What's the Difference Between Sales Process and Sales Methodology?

It's time for another edition of the?Art & Science of Complex Sales!?If you're new, this is where we talk about all things related to putting HOW you sell at the core of your business -- from sales process execution to best practices in sales coaching to driving winning behaviors to enabling growth in your sales organization.

Every week, I share ONE idea or strategy that sales leaders and teams can use to enable consistent growth for their organization. Whether you're a sales leader, sales consultant, sales manager, sales enablement expert or sales team member ready to accelerate your performance -- you'll find one action item that you can implement each week to get you one step closer to your goals.

My mission is to elevate the sales profession with technology and partnerships, so that we can all improve our sales effectiveness and raise the bar in sales.

Now, onto this week's topic! ????

Sales process and sales methodology – what’s the difference?

Sales process and methodology sometimes get mixed up, which can become very confusing and costly. In order to maximize the effectiveness of a sales team, there can’t be any confusion between the two.

Sales process – the treasure map

Using a metaphor, I’d like to describe the sales process as a treasure map. It has a clear starting point and a big X marking the treasure. There’s never a straight line to get to the treasure and in sales it’s a journey you make with your prospect.

It’s not always clear from the beginning what the treasure will?contain, but if it’s perceived to be substantial, there are likely to be many stakeholders involved and it will take some time to get there.?The map will outline important milestones and provide guidance along the way, but the journey will involve many challenges to overcome, which will vary from case to case.

Sales methodology – techniques and skills

To make sure the journey is worth traveling and to maximize the outcome, the map needs to be complemented with techniques and skills on how to get to the destination. How and when you apply these on your journey, such as rapport-building, active listening, mindful questioning, framing, and?business acumen?determines the success of your quest. Some of these skills and techniques can seem easy to learn on the surface, while truly mastering them can take a lifetime of practice.

The most popular sales methodologies have been created by people who’ve studied masterful professionals and modeled their behaviors into replicable methods. Neil Rackham’s SPIN Selling is an example of a popular sales methodology, focusing on?a brilliant questioning technique. Some have worked to combine methodology and process, such as Dave Kurlan with?Baseline Selling .

Other popular methodologies are Solution Selling, Insight Selling, and the?controversial Challenger Sale . An important methodology benefit is the use of specific terminology and measurement. Leading a team towards a destination, where some use the metric system, while others use the imperial unit system, wouldn't be very effective.

One needs the other – giving depth to the map

Having the skills and techniques but lacking a map is ineffective. Having the map and lacking the skills and techniques is even worse. Sales process and methodology need to be combined for maximum effect. We can imagine methodology like topology on the map, now clearly seeing hills, valleys, and obstacles and proactively being able to navigate through them. Another layer provides the structure to provide?continuous learning and coaching ?while on the journey.?

Sharing is growing

An experienced treasure hunter will have learned many skills and techniques and will be a better map reader. She will be able to assist less experienced travelers by training and coaching them. The managers should make efforts to bottle these best practices and poor them into your interactive map to minimize micro-management and continually provide high-level for everyone on the team.

Research shows that as much as 87% of new skills is forgotten within three months if not reinforced in daily operations.

Common mistakes

A lot of companies invest loads of money into sales methodology training, without providing maps and navigational tools thereafter. Research shows that as much as 87% of new skills is forgotten within three months if not reinforced in daily operations.

Another mistake is failing to educate the managers and provide them with the resources needed to ensure that the newly learned skills will be converted into successful behaviors.

The biggest mistake is not even realizing that a?map and resources are needed ; causing massive hidden costs such as high staff turnover, low win rates, and eroded margins. Salespeople, management, and leadership need navigation equipment to create an interactive map combining process and methodology and always make the journey educational.?

------

This article was first published on the Membrain blog here: https://www.membrain.com/blog/sales-process-and-methodology