The Sales Skills of the Future (The Future is NOW)

Success in sales is a totally different game to what it was only 5 years ago.

Push selling methodologies, tactics and mindsets are now out of step with what modern buyers want. Just ask any B2B buyer what they now expect from the engagement with a salesperson and it's the opposite of the old school salesy nonsense from yesteryear.

The acceleration towards customer-pull requires a wholesale shift in the skills required to be successful, and frankly, now is the greatest time ever to be in sales because there is no 'selling' required.

According to a 2020 McKinsey Global Survey, COVID has accelerated the digitisation of customer interactions and internal operations by three to four years. Competitive differentiation, now more than ever, comes from superior digital technology and capabilities, agility and a digitally savvy C-Suite.?

The successful salespeople of the new digital age are data-driven, socially connected, subject matter experts with deep domain knowledge in their industry. They can confidently offer their buyers unique perspectives and commercial insights well beyond the generalists of the past.?

The following roles are converging into what is fast becoming a hybrid set of competencies for anyone who wants to succeed in sales today, and into the future:?

Educator – solving problems and offering solutions is really about being a great educator. When you sell you break rapport, but when you educate you BUILD rapport. So try adopting the demeanour of a teacher and watch the dynamics change.?

Analyst – sales folks need to help buyers cut through the noise and find the exact piece of information/data they need to solve their problem. Developing your skills around data synthesis and being proficient at disseminating that data is now invaluable.?Buyers make data-driven decisions, so you better be good at leveraging the data that is available from a multitude of sources.

Publisher – creating and curating 'buying stage appropriate' content is a prerequisite for sales success. It's no longer good enough to be just sharing the occasional post, you have to be adept at getting the right message to the right buyer at the right time, and that requires a content strategy. The A-players utilise content and work with their marketing teams to get attention, establish credibility, nurture through subtle nudges and drive inbound.?

Detective – collecting information and sifting through the facts/research takes the leg-work away from you buyers. More importantly, if you can surface the exact piece of the puzzle that solves their problem then you win the deal. Leveraging technology to identify buying signals is all part of the big shift to Data-Led Selling.?

It’s never been easier for sales to?find information about their target buyers. Social media, big data, analytics and the myriad of tools and platforms that now exist have dramatically changed the sales role. So much so that no salesperson should never make a ‘cold’ call EVER again. ?

The paradox is, that despite this abundance of information, it’s never been harder for us to engage with buyers. Why? Because educated buyers now dictate the terms of engagement. Buyers can now solve their own problems without a biased salesperson pushing and manipulating them meaning that we have to transform 'HOW' we sell.

Today’s B2B buyers prefer the remote and digital self-service model. The security of thinking that buyers will always want sales involved at the top end of deals is fast being eroded. According to more McKinsey research:

20% of B2B buyers say they would be willing to spend more than $500K in a fully remote/digital sales model.

11% are prepared to spend more than 1M.?

We are deluding ourselves if we think that face-to-face meetings and traditional sales cycles will always be required to win large transactions.?

If you are in a sales or business development role, you need to rapidly develop your knowledge so that you can become the specialist that your buyers will value. Double-down on your digital presence so that buyers know you and CHOOSE you when they are ready to buy. Create content that gets noticed and gets remembered ... educate, educate, educate.

Here's the good news, if you can make this shift, then you can begin to truly enjoy a role where we are 100% aligned with our buyers and one where we are highly valued … instead of being distrusted and despised.?

After all, a sale is just something that happens when you are immersed in helping your buyer.?

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