4 Proven techniques for selling to SMB customers

You already know how valuable it can be to sell to SMB customers, so we are going to walk you through four tried-and-tested sales techniques that you can use to do just that.

1. Make sure you qualify properly

When you qualify your leads, you’re determining whether a lead fits into your ideal customer profile and assessing their likelihood of converting into a paying customer.

Lead qualification is important regardless of which customer segments you’re targeting, but it’s especially important when you’re reaching out to SMBs.

Obviously, you wouldn’t want to reach out to an SMB that:

·        Just registered their business last week

·        Hasn’t determined their business model

·        Has ￡0 in funding

You’ll want to qualify your leads, to make sure you don’t waste your time on chasing down leads who aren’t a good fit. This, in turn, leads to higher closing rates and more wins for your sales team.

2. Understand your customer’s mindset

If this is your first time selling to SMB customers, take some time to get to know your customers, and understand their mindset.

Once you have a thorough understanding of their underlying needs, wants and challenges, this makes it that much easier for you to build rapport with your customer, and eventually close the sale.

For instance, SMB businesses tend to be more concerned about cash flow than some other, bigger businesses.

To work around this, you might bring up your company’s flexible payment options, and discuss how SMB businesses can use your product/service to generate revenue for their company within a short span of time.

3. Don’t throw too much jargon at your customer

Picture this: you’re a business owner who’s new to PPC advertising. You reach out to a marketing agency because you want to get started with running Google Ads, and here’s what they say to you…

"Yep, we can help you get started, no worries! We’re experienced in all sorts of bidding, including Target CPA and Target ROAS. Actually, let’s go ahead and run some A/B tests to figure out what works best for your account -- we might start off with relatively high CPAs in the first month or so, but we can definitely increase your CTR to push down your CPA in the long run."

Would you feel confused, intimidated, and out of your depth?

Yes, yes, and yes.

The bottom line? SMB businesses don’t have as many tools, resources, and expertise as larger companies. When you’re pitching to these businesses, make sure you speak simply and with clarity, and don’t confuse your customer with too much jargon.

4. Set your customers’ minds at ease

SMBs are more risk averse because many are bootstrapped, and these folks must make every dollar count.

Here are some things that you could do:

·        Offer a free trial.

·        Offer a money-back guarantee.

·        Offer monthly payments instead of yearly contracts.

·        Feature plenty of testimonials and case studies on your website for social proof.

Bearing this in mind, do all you can to set your customers’ minds at ease, and reduce the friction associated with them becoming a paying customer.

GLProUK is a digital marketing agency based in London and Surrey fulfilling the digital content requirements of market-leading brands throughout the southeast of the UK, the US and beyond. Whether your vision consists of podcasts, graphic design or professional video and photography, GLProUK has the expertise and enthusiasm to help get your message out there. 

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