The power of partnership.The power of partnership.

Sales Training Series

Running an Effective Sales Call

Training Module Run Time: 17 minutes

Welcome

What you will learn from this tutorial….

• Why proper sales call execution will shorten sale cycles

• How to achieve your objective on every call

Before We Start…

A “sales call” can mean any type of sales-focused customer

interaction:

• Lead follow up

• Proposal review

• Attrition call

• Phone or face-to-face

Typical Sales Call Mistakes

• Lack of preparation

• Skipping call set up/not driving the call

• Pitching instead of discovery/listening

• Selling too soon

• Etc.

Every Sales Call Has Three Parts

Every call should have the same beginning and end. The nature of the call will determine what happens in the middle.

Rapport Call Set Up

Your Compan

y Overvie

w Elevator

Pitch

Targeted Discover

y Question

s

Summarize and Discuss Solution

s

Beginning Middle

Close for Next Steps

End

Example – Objective of a First Call

• Uncover the needs of the customer and qualify

• Show the value of your solution

• Get commitment for a next step

• Understand the customers approval process

The call should be structured to meet the objectives.

Rapport Building

• Don’t underestimate the importance of building rapport with the

client

• Rapport building gets the customer accustomed to talking to you

Never skip this step!

Call Set-Up

• Start by thanking the prospect for taking the time to meet and then

recommend an agenda

• Get agreement on the plan

• Do introductions if people in the room / on the call are not acquainted with

one another

Elevator Pitch

Many times it helps to give a quick overview of your company just to give the customers some context

You need to develop an elevator pitch:

A one or two sentence description of what you do

• “___” is a (type of company) that provides (type of offering) for (types of customers)

• Do not embellish – make sure your elevator pitch is easy to understand

Sample Elevator Pitch

“AccuData provides data resources, marketing analytics, and marketing database technology for companies like ______

The reason we are here today is your company fits the profile of our typical customer and we would like to learn more about how you do direct marketing today”

Sample Company Overview

The “5” slide rule….

• Company background • What does your company do• Customers• A few relevant case studies• Why you are different / your unique value proposition

Discovery Questions

• Great questions are the best way to show your expertise as a sales person

• Start with identifying what you need to learn

You should ALWAYS make a list of questions prior to any sales call!

Summarize/Close

• You must earn the right to close for a next step

• Summarize your takeaways and sell the next step

You should walk in the call knowing what to close for!

Executing a Proposal Delivery Call

Rapport/ Call Set

Up

Review of Needs

Proposed

Solution(description, cost,

time frame, etc.)

Why This Solution

Will Solve the

Problem(how will

this improve

the customer situation)

Feedback and Q&A

Beginning Middle

Summarize

Close for Next Steps

End

Sales call start / finish the same way!

Sales Call Execution Best Practices

• Have a vision for every call

• You must structure your call to take into account

• Be cognizant of sales call components and execute

accordingly

• Continue to “check in” to gauge understanding and interest

Sales Call Follow-Up

Use Discovery Letters

• A detailed description of the sales person’s understanding of the

need and what is driving the need.

• A description of the timetable, budget, and approval process.

• A list of agreed upon next steps and owners. This list is one of

the best ways to push things forward, especially if there are due

dates attached to each next step.

Preparation

Why spend the time to prepare…

• Ensures every interaction has the best chance to succeed

• Builds confidence in your ability to execute

• Greatly reduces the chance of getting caught off guard

• Focuses the meeting on specific outcomes

Make sure the customer understands why you are coming!

How to Prep

Start with the end result in mind…

• Close for “X”

• Get commitment for “X”

• Get answers to ____ questions

• Validate their decision process

• Validate your assumptions

Prep Template

Call Prep Template NotesDate and time of meeting

Participants/roles (both at customer and your company)

Objectives and agenda (to be shared with customer)

Specific results you are seeking (detail potential next steps to close for)

What questions might they ask? (How will these questions be answered/who will answer?)

What information/messages do we want to communicate? How do we do so?

Call Structure – detail each component of the call – who will do what?

Scenario Planning: What is the best case scenario/our plan if we land here?

What is the most likely case scenario/our plan if we land here?

What is the worst case scenario/our plan if we land here?

Sales Call Execution Framework

20

PrepSales Call Exec

FollowUp

Three components of every sales call

Summary: Why care about sales call execution

“Blocking and tackling” can make a huge difference for a sales

person

• You have one shot to make a good impression

• Differentiate yourself via professionalism

21

The power of partnership.The power of partnership.

For Further Information:

Call your sales rep

800.732.3440 | info@accudata.com