grow sales in even the toughest times

Covid has certainly struck most businesses in the worst possible way.

So what are initial signs of warning ~

a.???Customers call for pricing on deals already made

b.???Key Customers begin cutting back on the number of suppliers they engage with

c.????Secured deals suddenly go dead

d.???Leads dry up as Prospects hunker down

e.???More & more discussion & concern is around price

f.?????Sales made are reduced

g.???Confirmed deals become inexplicitly lost

h.???Your best salespeople start seeking other & easier employment

And then what generally happens is that we get into a panic & resort to the following ~

a.???Spend our reduced resources on advertising

b.???Cut back on sales staff & double up on areas

c.????Cancel all staff training & coaching

d.???Reduce our sales prices

e.???Set unrealistic sales budgets for the times

Guess what tends to follow ~

a.???A downward spiral commences

b.???We demand more activity metrics, more sales calls & more leads

c.????Sellers then chase any & everything, no matter how insignificant

d.???Unrealistic promises are made, losing more business as we fail to deliver on them

e.???Margins & T/O slides further

f.?????Management focuses on greater activity measurement & calls made

g.???Sellers panic & lose focus, seeking employment elsewhere

h.???As they leave management doubles up further on areas, reducing the number of Sellers even further

i.?????The spiral gets deeper & more acute

Sound familiar?

We have all been there & done that!

The trick is to calm down, not panic ~ easy to say!

?The 6 biggest WRONG things we can do in these stressful times are ~

?1.???Ignore the problem. It is not going to just go away!

2.???Increase advertising. Frankly this is chasing good money after bad. Rather learn what the challenges are & cultivate a way to overcome them.

3.???Dropping your prices. This is a highly dangerous practice which merely cuts back even further, profits.

4.???Cutting sales expenses ~ such as making a Seller manager 2 sales areas, reducing travel expense, stop training etc

5.???Reduce the number of Sellers that were necessary prior to this situation. In fact ideally one should consider increasing a Sales Team’s size, particularly with out & out HUNTERS, while letting you more accomplished MAINTERS mage & continue to give your existing Customer the very best attention they have ever had from your Company ~ & definitely keeps out desperate competitors from you’re a Accounts.

6.???Forcing your sales Reps to make more calls. This tends to lose the maximum return on each call made which further reduces sales & income.

?“Ok, clever dick, so WHAT should we be doing to drive sales back up, in a terrible economic situation?” I hear you ask…………..

?Let’s look at the realistic options that can & should be deployed:-

?1.???Stop selling price create value ~ now more than ever. Customers will spend if they can gain a clear indication of the rewards to them.

2.???Break an offer in smaller chunks. No this does not mean you need to take short cuts., but it allows for a cash strapped Customer to make elongated payments & gain your outstanding service offering just one morsel at a time. It also keeps the Customer loyal to you, as he needs to next bite of you complete offering.

3.???Learn your “new” or “revised” market. In difficult times things may change ~ and just as they have for you, so have they to for your Customer. You need to gain a clear understanding of their challenges to be able to present them with your winning solution.

4.???You need to learn ~

a)??????What is the greatest single problem facing your Customer/s?

b)?????When you understand their challenges, create winning solution/s.

c)??????What changes, if any, have you competitors made to meet the new challenges in your marketplace.

d)?????How does their solution compare with yours? Do you need to rehash/reconfigure the best path to move forward on.

e)?????Explain your solution, step by step to your whole Team.

f)???????Ensure your Sellers have a clear sales story which unpacks costs/savings gains for the Customer.

g)??????What support is required to arm your Sales team with the correct knowledge & confidence to sell you solution comprehensively to your Clients.

h)?????Ensure that you also craft a Prospecting plan for your sales Team to be thoroughly armed to present comprehensive winning solutions.

i)???????Do not hesitate to bring in training to lift shortfalls in your sales team. Remember, most will never have faced such uncertain times.

5.??????Protect you existing business. Be sure to protect & service your existing Clients with even better service than you regularly offer them. You will also come under attack from desperate Competitors. Your existing Sellers will mostly be strong MAINTAINERS ~ to ensure they have enough time to cement relationships.

6.??????Only the very brave will follow this advice BUT it really is a sound one. A HUNTER Seller is needed more in difficult times that any other. They can break down doors & gain entry ~ provided your attack plan is sound & provides real recovery recommendations to Customers.

7.??????Set clear activity & performance expectations. Sales Managers should be in the field, gauging any changes in the market as well as the success of your solution & the effectiveness of your sales Team in selling your new age solution ~ to both existing & potential Clients.

8.??????Craft realistic & dynamic measurements to encourage the sales Team.

a.??????Map activities to help Sellers get into the habit of this new way

b.??????Focus on building confidence by developing newly required & successful skills.

c.??????Catch Sellers doing things right/exceptional & share them with the whole Team.

d.??????The biggest sales gains will be found amongst the 60% middle range performer, never your top 20% or your bottom 20%. Therefore, focus Sales Management attention on the 60%.

e.??????Set clear daily, weekly & monthly expectations & outcomes. Neve throw a “wish to have” unrealistic target number on a sales Team. You will merely defeat everything you are trying to achieve ~ confidence in following your new norms & building back to the numbers you seek.

f.???????Brief & debrief, after every accompanied call, or at least daily. An intense focus is now required to ensure the whole team is on track & flowing the pre-set activity.

g.??????Do not show sign of panic or throw unrealistic targets at your Team, now matter how desperate or under pressure you are ~ success WILL follow if you have correctly built a winning strategy & BUILD your Sellers into performing the NEW NORM successfully.

?Solution ~

BizGro Sales Solutions will assist you develop & execute a winning strategy to meet your changed market conditions.

This is our forte.

So confident of our ability to help YOU, we offer our Clients with a full guarantee of growth, provided you follow our teaching resources to the letter.

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