The New Sales Guys Project by Frank Hurtte
Manpower issues is a common obstacle in the industry today. A new team member in the Sellers Team can sometimes really slow down production in the work flow. There is a plethora of roadblocks that not only set back the seller, but also the Sales Manager that has to be interrupted more often than usual due to the obstacles of the seller’s team under them.
The 6 main issues mostly ran into are
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·???????? The pressing need for learning both products and applications.
·???????? Identifying contacts outside of the obvious purchasing fronts at assigned accounts.
·???????? Difficulties in making meaningful first-time sale appointments.
·???????? Knowing how to engage a customer on the first sales call.
·???????? Understanding how to move relationships forward once contact is made.
·???????? The importance of scientifically gathering information from customers.
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?New products and applications?
It is important for the salesperson to understand application nuances. Customers want value-driven results from a salesperson within the first few reach outs. If the value doesn’t flow, setting additional appointments becomes increasingly difficult.?
We would advise to set time aside to look up more information on the within google search or other like platforms, to better equip one-self of the product/service and all the details they can offer and talk about with the customer. ??
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Identifying outside contacts outside of the obvious purchasing fronts at assigned accounts.
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First-time calls with purchasing people reveal little about the customer’s true buying decision. Whether trained to do such or just trying to focus attention on the buying group and price, the procurement people don’t help.?
When an account is reassigned to a new Seller, too often we find a customer contact information was obliterated during the last days of the previous person’s activity. (“Fell through the cracks”) We advise to maintain any and all social media contacts with the customer when available .Like a LinkedIn account, which might have proven to be a solid tool for discovering other contacts.?
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Making meaningful first-time appointments.
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Appointment Setting is the initial step in obtaining a new account. We advise to reach out a few times over approximately five weeks.? The research indicated salespeople who faithfully followed the process significantly improved their number of meetings and future sales calls.?
Once an appointment has been scheduled, be sure to follow up with reminders of the appointment time, with every method available, (Email, text, call, and social-media).?
We advise to reach out a few times over approximately five weeks.? The research indicated salespeople who faithfully followed the process significantly improved their number of meetings and future sales calls.
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Engaging first sales call?
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In today’s fast passed world customers can receive information within seconds on a google search engine. Listening to a dragged out product/service explanation/presentation may cause the customer to become fidgety and stop listening/caring.?
By asking the prepared, well-thought-out questions about the customer’s operation, training requirements, technologies used, and even ties to existing suppliers, helps the conversation to flow and the Seller to obtain necessary information. This process is known as “customer centric” first call, a call with absolutely NO SELLING!?
Take notes and look for areas that might be better explored on consequent visits. Make sure to ask clarifying questions when needed. At the closing is when you would want to address any off “note issues” the customer may have had a question on.?
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Moving current contact relationship forward
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New salespersons that listen, take notes, research products, and report back with something of substance does much to launch the relationship and keep the door open. “People buy from those they trust,” according to experts and we agree. It is important to build a trusting relationship with your customer. ???
Following a good first call with a couple of “just checking in” or poorly selected product demos can put the seller on the “Nuisance salesperson” list.
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Gathering Relevant Information
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Financial justification required for projects, cost of downtime, burdened labor rates, utility costs, markets served, and future technologies to be deployed: these are just a few examples of important information, a Seller would benefit from. It is important to gather and comprehend the future and value of information obtained.?
A seller’s ability to capture and recall information is tested daily, yet it is left mostly to chance. When in doubt, best to keep hand written notes on the whole conversation and then go back and look over them after the conversation. Highlight the relevant points of information useful to better manage that specific account.
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New hire accelerate development
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Selling in our environment is a never-ending journey of trust, respect, and understanding. There is no perfect step-by-step process for bringing on and developing a new seller in our industry. We can only do our best with what we have learned by experience, and online tutorials/discussions, and books like The New Sales Guy Project by Frank Hurtte.
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