Sales Success Tip-How to Increase Your Sales by Controlling the Sales Process
Sales Success Tip-How to Increase Your Sales by Controlling the Sales Process
Let me give you a real life example. I have a friend (for purposes of this example, we’ll call her Mary) who set an appointment with a potentially valuable prospect (for purposes of this example, we’ll call him Jim) that could have meant well over a thousand dollars in commission. She and her prospect agreed upon meeting at the prospect’s office at 2:00 on a Wednesday afternoon. The drive Mary to Jim’s office was well over an hour and having spent several hours prepping for the meeting, she had invested more than five hours in this meeting.
Mary arrived at 1:55 and after having to explain to the receptionist that she had an appointment (red flag) was told have a seat until Jim became available. 2:00 came and went. 2:15 came and went. 2:30 came and went. Finally, Mary inquired of the receptionist when she would be “allowed” to see Jim. The receptionist promised to check. At 2:45, more than 45 minutes after the scheduled start of the meeting, the receptionist informs Mary that Jim is in another meeting and will not be able to make their scheduled appointment.
Mary, clearly disappointed, left her card and told the receptionist that she would call Jim back “in a day or two” to reschedule. Would anyone like to guess the response when Mary calls back? Jim is never available and never returns her calls. Unbelievable, but certainly not out of the ordinary these days.
Mary is a victim of bad advice…of the conventional wisdom that says that we as sales professionals need to bow to the needs, wants, and desires of our prospects and accept their rudeness because we need them more than they need us. I disagree completely. Is your time valuable? Is it just as valuable, if not more so than your prospects’? I say it is and the sooner you realize that, the sooner you will notice fewer and fewer of the situations like the one I just described.
Mary and I had a long heart to heart about her situation. We put in place a process for each new appointment that while adding several steps to get to the appointment has resulted in a far fewer situations like this one, far less wasted time, a conversion rate more than double her previous rate, and most importantly, a 52% increase in her income.
Take control of your sales process. Your prospect needs to be led. The minute that you let him or her lead the process is the minute that you lose control and your odds of conversion drop dramatically. You are the boss. You have something that your prospect needs and wants. Start acting like it today and watch how much respect you will command and how many prospects will be willing to follow wherever you lead them…ultimately to a sale that leaves both of you better off than prior to your transaction.
Sales Success TipHow to Increase Your Sales by Controlling the Sales Process - To learn more about this author, visit Greg Beverly's Website.
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Have you noticed that many prospects are perfectly willing to string you along for as long as you are willing to let them? Have you noticed how many would rather stand you up than say no? What’s a sales professional to do? Just keep plugging away, call back and reschedule, etc., right? Absolutely not! While this will go against what many sales experts will tell you, I beg to differ. It is time that you recognize that your time and effort is valuable and conduct your business in a manner that reflects that. After all, if you don’t value your time and effort, how can you possibly expect your prospects to?
Let me give you a real life example. I have a friend (for purposes of this example, we’ll call her Mary) who set an appointment with a potentially valuable prospect (for purposes of this example, we’ll call him Jim) that could have meant well over a thousand dollars in commission. She and her prospect agreed upon meeting at the prospect’s office at 2:00 on a Wednesday afternoon. The drive Mary to Jim’s office was well over an hour and having spent several hours prepping for the meeting, she had invested more than five hours in this meeting.
Mary arrived at 1:55 and after having to explain to the receptionist that she had an appointment (red flag) was told have a seat until Jim became available. 2:00 came and went. 2:15 came and went. 2:30 came and went. Finally, Mary inquired of the receptionist when she would be “allowed” to see Jim. The receptionist promised to check. At 2:45, more than 45 minutes after the scheduled start of the meeting, the receptionist informs Mary that Jim is in another meeting and will not be able to make their scheduled appointment.
Mary, clearly disappointed, left her card and told the receptionist that she would call Jim back “in a day or two” to reschedule. Would anyone like to guess the response when Mary calls back? Jim is never available and never returns her calls. Unbelievable, but certainly not out of the ordinary these days.
Mary is a victim of bad advice…of the conventional wisdom that says that we as sales professionals need to bow to the needs, wants, and desires of our prospects and accept their rudeness because we need them more than they need us. I disagree completely. Is your time valuable? Is it just as valuable, if not more so than your prospects’? I say it is and the sooner you realize that, the sooner you will notice fewer and fewer of the situations like the one I just described.
Mary and I had a long heart to heart about her situation. We put in place a process for each new appointment that while adding several steps to get to the appointment has resulted in a far fewer situations like this one, far less wasted time, a conversion rate more than double her previous rate, and most importantly, a 52% increase in her income.
Take control of your sales process. Your prospect needs to be led. The minute that you let him or her lead the process is the minute that you lose control and your odds of conversion drop dramatically. You are the boss. You have something that your prospect needs and wants. Start acting like it today and watch how much respect you will command and how many prospects will be willing to follow wherever you lead them…ultimately to a sale that leaves both of you better off than prior to your transaction.
Sales Success TipHow to Increase Your Sales by Controlling the Sales Process - To learn more about this author, visit Greg Beverly's Website.
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Dave KurlanDave Kurlan is the founder and CEO of Objective Management Group, Inc., the industry leader in sales assessments and sales force evaluations, and the CEO of David Kurlan & Associates, Inc., a consulting firm specializing in sales force development. Dave has been a top rated speaker at Inc. Magazine's Conference on Growing the Company, the Sales & Marketing Management Conference and the Gazelles Sales & Marketing Summit. He has been featured on radio and TV, including World Business Review with General Norman Schwarzkopf, in Inc. Magazine, Selling Power Magazine, Sales & Marketing Management Magazine and Incentive Magazine. He is the author of Mindless Selling and Baseline Selling – How to Become a Sales Superstar by Using What You Already Know about the Game of Baseball. He created and wrote STAR, a proprietary recruiting process for hiring great salespeople, and he writes Understanding the Sales Force, a popular business Blog and is a contributing author to The Death of 20th Century Selling and 101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life, Volume 2. - Visit Dave Kurlan's Website |
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Leanne Hoagland-SmithAre your sales where you want them to be? Will you be one of the few who achieves sales or business success or one of the many who have failed to change? Are you tired of being told you are like everyone else? Then you may find my first book on sales of interest. Be the Red Jacket in the Sea of Gray Suits, The Keys to Unlocking Sales available at Amazon or at http://www.processspecialist.com/red-jacket.htm. This book is a reflection of my no-nonsense approach to improving sales to overall business results. If you are truly committed to making sustainable changes, then I can help you secure a positive return on your investment because I focus on executable solutions not telling you the problems you already know you have. From training to corporate (group) coaching to executive one on one coaching, my approach is to assess, create awareness, build a goal driven action plan and then execute. The bottom line question is "Not do you or your employees know it, but do you or they want to do it?" Please call for a free strategy session at 219.759.5601. - Visit Leanne Hoagland-Smith's Website |
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Linda RichardsonLinda Richardson is the Founder and Executive Chairwoman of Richardson, a global sales training and performance improvement company. As a recognized leader in the industry, she has won the coveted Stevie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sales Excellence and she was identified by Training Industry, Inc. as one of the “Top 20 Most Influential Training Professionals.” Ms. Richardson is credited with the movement to Consultative Selling and is the author of ten books on selling and sales management, including Sales Coaching — Making the Great Leap from Sales Manager to Sales Coach, and Stop Telling, Start Selling. She teaches sales and management at the Wharton Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton Executive Development Center. Linda is a frequent speaker at industry and client conferences, has been published extensively in industry and training journals, and has been featured in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Nation’s Business, Selling Power, Success, and The Conference Board Magazine. Learn more about Richardson's sales training and performance improvement solutions at http://www.richardson.com web - Visit Linda Richardson's Website |
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David AchesonDavid Acheson is the founder of DCJA Consultancy. DCJA Consultancy is a management consultancy business specialising in B2B sales consultancy. They offer bespoke and packaged sales consultancy including Sales Optimisation Review, Interim Sales Management, Sales & Marketing Review, 1:1 Sales & Management Staff Analysis, Management Training, Solution Sales Training, Creation of New Pay Plan, KPI's, run Customer Feedback Campaigns, assist with Recruitment, Coaching, Appraisals and set up Strategic Marketing Campaigns. David spent his early career in accountancy and then moved into sales in 1982, working in Office Equipment, IT, Advertising, Training, Outsourcing and Consultancy. He has held many Senior Positions in SMBs and Global Organisations including Head of Sales Operations & Head of Business Development. His knowledge, skills and great experience of the Sales Industry has led to David making keynote speeches and running educational sessions to key businesses through organisations including The Chamber of Commerce and Business Link. - Visit David Acheson's Website |
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John BrennanJohn Brennan Ed.D. Dr. Brennan is President of Interpersonal Development, LLC, a training and development firm. Interpersonal Development has provided sales training and coaching to more than 3,000 sales reps from over 100 companies. A native of Australia, Dr. Brennan received his doctorate from the University of Rochester. His dissertation researched the effectiveness of Behavioral Modeling Technology in training people in interpersonal skills. While he has spent most of his career designing or delivering training, he was also a Vice-President of Sales of a training and development franchise with operations in 25 markets. Dr. Brennan has designed and delivered sales training in North America, Asia, Europe, Australia and the Middle East. He has been a guest speaker at numerous national and regional professional conferences. When Microsoft wanted Best Practices articles on sales for their web site, they called Dr. Brennan. The results are at http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/FX011387391033.aspx His firm’s clients have included Volvo, The Prudential, Merrill Lynch, Eastman Kodak, Gannett, Equifax Europe, the Economist Group and countless small businesses. - Visit John Brennan's Website |
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George LudwigGeorge Ludwig is a recognized authority on sales strategy and peak performance psychology. An international speaker, trainer, and corporate consultant, he helps clients like Johnson & Johnson, Abbott Laboratories, Northwestern Mutual, CIGNA, and numerous others improve sales force effectiveness and performance. Though it's George's strategies and processes that help corporations increase productivity and performance, it's his tremendous energy and dynamism that spark the transformation. Again and again, clients remark on his amazing ability to unleash human capacity and inspire men and women to break out of their comfort zones. The result is a whole new type of salesperson. His customized presentations teach achievers to make stunning advances in their lives. From helping salespeople realize cherished dreams to helping corporations exponentially accelerate revenue streams, George Ludwig leaves audiences and individuals empowered, emboldened, and clamoring for more. George is the best-selling author of Power Selling: Seven Strategies for Cracking the Sales Code and Wise Moves: 60 Quick Tips to Improve Your Position in Life & Business. - Visit George Ludwig's Website |
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Dianne CramptonDianne Crampton is an executive leadership coach, team consultant, author and president of TIGERS Success Series, Inc. Dianne has been helping CEO's and Executives connect their employees to their core values and goals for over 20 years using the trademarked TIGERS team culture process, which stands for trust, interdependence, genuineness, empathy, risk and success. To download a free white paper on behaviors that build strong teams and behaviors that will predictably tear them down go here. - Visit Dianne Crampton's Website |
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Anne BarrAnne Barr has over 26 years experience in sales and marketing, six years as a franchisee. She has assisted over 367 business owners and purchasers to achieve their goals in career change, transition and exit strategy. She holds the designation of Certified Franchise Executive from the International Franchise Association, Certified Business Intermediary from the International Business Brokers Association and Board Certified Broker from the Texas Association of Business Brokers. Anne is active in professional organizations, networking groups and volunteers for non-profit entities. As owner/operator of four successful businesses, Anne has proven people skills and enjoys helping clients find the right "fit" in business ownership. Visit www.FranchiseOpportunitySpecialist.com for more information about me and my company. - Visit Anne Barr's Website |
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