3 Powerful Tips to Qualify Your Sales

There is a very important step within the sales process that many entrepreneurs and sales professionals overlook far too often. The important step I'm speaking of, is none other than the sales qualifier. The sales qualifier is simply taking the time to qualify your prospect.

Qualifying in the sales process is essential because it allows the seller to determine the validity of the sale from the buyer's standpoint as well as confirm if both the seller and the buyer have invested their time wisely during the sales process.

Here are 2 very important reasons why you must always qualify your prospective customers or clients in any sales situation.

1. It saves time.

There is nothing worse than investing time in a prospect only to find out that they are not a good?fit for whatever you are selling. Determining the relevance that your product or service has to the potential consumer is vital.

2. It saves money.

Many times, a seller has to make an investment in marketing dollars to obtain leads to get prospective buyers interested in whatever they are offering. If the seller spends money wisely on targeting the right audience, the prospective buyers are more likely to convert into a sale. On the contrary, if the seller has not done a good?job in targeting the right audience, he or she will lose money.

Now that we have dealt with the reasons to use sales qualifiers with your prospective customers, we must talk about the top 3 sales qualifiers that you must practice in the sales process.

1. Budget - Determining the budget that the prospective buyer has available or allocated to spend is critical in the sales process. It is pointless to attempt to sell a $1,000.00 product to someone who has only budgeted $250.00 for the product or service they need or want. Not knowing a specific amount of money that the prospect is prepared to spend is failing to qualify your customer and could result?in not obtaining the sale or getting less than is available.
2. Need - Determining the need a prospect has is vital because it lets the seller know if the prospect is serious, browsing, or simply doing research. The seller must determine if the prospective?buyer is in a "ready to buy" situation,?meaning they are currently in the process?of researching options and ready to make a buying decision. ?If the prospect's need is great, he or she is far more likely to convert into a sale.
3. Timing - Determining if the timing is right for the prospective buyer is essential because many prospective?buyers begin obtaining quotes and doing research long before they are actively seeking to make a purchase. If a seller takes the time to ask a simple?question about the timeline that the buyer is seeking, this will provide vital information as far as how to approach the sales process and schedule follow up scenarios. Timing is everything in sales.

Now that we have discussed the top 3 sales qualifiers that must be completed during the sales process, it's also a good time to remind?you that each of these qualifiers should be discussed during the initial sales conversation. Waiting too long during the sales process to uncover the answers to budget, need, and will result in wasted sales effort. And considering that when it comes to sales, time is money, and there is none that should be wasted.

These are just 3 of the top sales qualifiers you should pay attention to when you're in sales situations. To learn more, head on over to the blog at the website listed below.

But before you go, I'd like to hear from you. Now it's your turn. Have you used these sales qualifiers in your business or career? If so, how did it save you time or money?

Leave a comment below. What's your take on sales qualifiers?

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This article was written by Dr. Lori A. Manns, President of Quality Media Consultant Group LLC. Portions of this article originally appeared on the blog found at www.qualitymediaconsultants.com.

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