What does it mean to be a successful salesperson, whether inside sales or otherwise? Certainly, the ability to persuade is as important as is the knowledge of the solution for sale. However, the most successful salespeople approach each sale as though it were a battle, in the most positive sense.
Selling software solutions isn’t as easy as it once was. Between the economic uncertainty and the increasing sophistication of buyers, you’ll need to work harder to convince companies that your solution is the right one for them.
No longer can a single executive make buying decisions on behalf of the entire company. According to a survey by CEBGlobal, the average number of people required to make a B2B purchase has risen to 5.4.
The Challenger™ Sale methodology provides an overall framework for complex sales providing not only a definition of a Challenger but a complete approach to address each step of the sales cycle.
Ah, the good old days... when you could sell using a list of all the great features in your solution and a few benefits sprinkled here and there. The economy was good and it was easy to get a signature on a purchase contract doing little more than offering “saved effort” or “increased throughput.”
Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) and Return on Investment (ROI) are similar methods of proving cost effectiveness that perform best in different situations. In fact, if you use a TCO tool at the wrong time in the sales process, you are taking big risks. Let's take a closer look at which tool is better for your business.
Has your sales cycle grown longer and more complex? Are you challenged by new buying behaviors that exclude you in the early stages of discovery? Chances are you’re also faced with more restrictive corporate and financial oversight, which shifts purchasing authority to CFOs and inter-departmental committees. How can you get the attention of buyers and decision makers in such a dynamic sales environment? A proven approach is value selling, a strategy that develops distinct sales messages focused on the bottom line. When all is said and done, prospects want to know how investing in your solution helps save money, increase sales and revenue, and achieve pertinent business goals.
Your prospect has already visited your website, perused your online content and seen a demonstration of your product or service. What do you do next to convert an active inquiry into a sale? Prospects must understand the short and long term financial benefits of your solution if they are to make a positive purchase decision. This can be a challenge, as many focus on direct acquisition costs and compare them to the cost of what they’re already doing. Such analyses can be short-sighted and inaccurate because they omit the incremental value delivered by a new solution.
How frequently do you use the term “ROI” in front of customers and potential buyers? I frequently hear sales and marketing professionals talk about “ROI” inaccurately. In a casual conversation, people might still give you the benefit of the doubt and have faith that you know your stuff. However, if you’re making a formal presentation or having a serious conversation with a prospect who’s well versed in financial terminology, any misuse of the term could obviously leave a disastrous impression about you and your company.
Each year, sales operations and marketing managers purchase sales enablement tools to help their sales teams increase win rates and close deals faster. So why do so many of these tools gather dust in the salesperson’s toolbox? In my experience, this happens for two main reasons.
