general sales training

8/7/2019 General Sales training

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Module 2: General Sales Training and Selling Methods

Think about what you are selling, the market that you're selling into, the people you meet in the selling

process, and use what will help you sell better. Successful selling also requires that the product or service is

of suitable quality for its target market, and that the selling company takes good care of its customers.

Therefore it's helpful for the sale person (or anyone else in business for that matter) to work for apr of essional, good qua lity or ga nizat ion. Prod uct d evelopment, design a nd p rod uction, service delivery , and

the integrity of the selling company's organization are also necessary for successful selling, and typically

are outside the formal control of the sales person, hence why internal selling is an increasingly important

aspect of the modern sales role.

Effective sales people are interpre ters and translators (and increasingly educators too) w ho can enable the

complex systems of the buying organization and the selling organization to w ork together for the benefit of both.

The changing face of selling

Traditional Selling

(Typ ical 1 9 60 s-8 0 s selling a nd still found tod a y)

Modern Selling

(Essential to sustain successful business today)

standa rd p rod uct customized, flex ible, tailor ed p rod uct and service

sale s function p erf ormed b y a 'sa les-p erson' sa les f unction pe rf ormed by a 'stra teg ic businessmanager'

seller has pr od uct knowled g e seller has stra teg ic knowled ge of customer's market-place and knows all implications and opportunitiesresulting f rom pro duct/ service supp ly rela ting tocustomer's market-p la ce

delivery service and supporting information andtra ining ar e typ ica l ad ded value aspects of supp ly market opp ortunities, and assistance with pr oject

evaluation and decision-making are added valueaspects of supp ly

go od lead -time is a comp etitive ad vantag e just-in-time (JIT) is taken for gr a nted, a s a re mutualpla nning a nd scheduling; competitive a dva ntage s a re:capability to anticipate unpredictable requirements,and assistance with strategic planning and marketdevelopment

value is represented and judged according toselling price

value is assessed according to the cost to thecustomer, plus non-financial implications with respectto CSR (corporate social responsibility), environment,ethics, and corpo ra te culture

the benefits and competitive strengths of theproducts or service are almost entirely tangible,and intangibles are rarely considered oremphasized

the benefits and competitive strengths of the productor service now include many significant intangibles,and the onus is on the selling organization to quantifytheir value

benefits of supply extend to products and servicesonly

benefits of supply extend way beyond products andservices, to relationship, continuity, and any assistancethat the selling organization can provide to thecustomer to enable an improvement for their staff,


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customers, reputation and performance in all respects

selling price is cost plus profit margin, andcustomers have no access to cost and margininformation

selling price is market driven (essentially supply anddemand), although certain customers may insist onaccess to cost a nd marg in inf orma tion

sel ler knows the b usiness customers' needs sel ler know s the need s of the business customers'customers and partners and suppliers

sales person sells (customers only deal with salespeop le, pre-sale)

whole organization sells (customers expect to be ableto deal with anybody in supplier organization, pre-sale)

sale s peop le only sell ex terna lly , i.e., to customers sa les peop le need to be ab le to sell internally to theirown organization, in order to ensure customer needsare met

strategic emphasis is on new business growth (i.e.,

acquiring new customers)

strategic emphasis is on customer retention and

increasing business to those customers (although newbusiness is still sought)

buying and selling is a function, with peopledistinctly responsible for each discipline withinselling and customer organizations

buying and selling is a process, in which many peoplewith differing jobs are involved in both selling andcustomer organizations

authority of sales person is minimal, flexibility tonegotiate is minimal, approvals must be sought viamanagement channels and levels for exceptions

authority of sales person is high (subject toexperience), negotiation flexibility exists, andexceptions are dealt with quickly and directly byinvolving the relevant people irrespective of grade

selling and buying organization are divided strictlyaccording to function and department, inter-departmental communications must go up anddown the management structures

selling organization is structured in a matrix allowingfor functional efficiency and also for inter-functionalcollaboration required for effective customer service,all supply chain processes, and communications

the customer specifies and identifies product andservice req uirements

the selling org anization must b e cap ab le of sp ecify ingand identifying product and service requirements onbehalf of the customer

the customer's buyer function researches andjustif ies the customer organiza tion's needs

the selling organization must be capable ofresearching and justifying customer organization'sneeds, on behalf of the customer

the customer's buyer p rob ab ly d oes not app reciatehis/ her org anization's wid er strateg ic implicationsand opportunities in relation to the seller's productor service, and there will be no discussion with theselle r about this issues

the seller will help the buyer to understand the widerstrategic implications and opportunities in relation tothe seller 's p rod uct or service

the buyer will tell the seller what the buying orsupplier-selection process is

the seller will help the buyer to understand and alignthe many and various criteria within their own(customer) organization, so that the customerorganization can assess the strategic implications ofthe supplier's products or services, and make anappropriate decision whether to buy or not


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AIDA

AIDA is the orig inal sa les tra ining a cronym, f rom the late 1 95 0s, when selling w as f irst trea ted as a

professional discipline, and sales training began. AIDA is even more relevant today. If you remember just

one sales or selling model, remember AIDA. Often called the 'Hierarchy of Effects', AIDA describes the basic

process by which people become motivated to act on external stimulus, including the way that successfulselling hap pens and sa les ar e mad e.

1. A - A ttention2. I - Interest3 . D - Desire4. A - A ction

The AIDA process also applies to any advertising or communication that aims to generate a response, and it

provides a reliable template for the design of all sorts of marketing material.

Simply, when we buy something we buy according to the AIDA process. So when we sell something we mustsell go through the AIDA stages. Something first gets our attention; if it's relevant to us we are interested to

lear n or hear more a bout it. If the prod uct or service then ap p ear s to closely ma tch our need s and/ or

aspirations, and resources, particularly if it is special, unique, or rare, we begin to desire it. If we are

prompted or stimulated to overcome our natural caution we may then become motivated or susceptible to

taking a ction to buy.

Attention

Getting the other person's attention sets the tone: first impressions count, so smile - even on the

phone because people can hear it in your voice - be happy (but not annoyingly so) be natural,

honest and professional.

If you're not in the mood to smile do some paperwork instead. If you rarely smile then get out of

selling.

Getting attention is more difficult than it used to be, because people are less accessible, have less

fr ee time, a nd lots of competing d istra ctions, so think ab out when it's b est to ca ll.

G immicks, tricks and craf ty techniques do n't wor k, beca use y our p rospe ctive customers - like t he rest

of us - a re irritated by hundr eds of them every d ay .

If you are calling on the phone or meeting face-to-face you have about five seconds to attract

attention, by which time the other person has formed their first impression of you.Despite the time pr essure, relax and enjoy it - exp ect mostly to be told 'no thanks' - but remember

that every 'no' takes you closer to the next 'okay'.

Interest

You now have maybe 5-15 seconds in which to create some interest.

Something begins to look interesting if it is relevant and potentially advantageous. This implies a

lot:

The person you are approaching should have a potential need for your product or service orproposition (which implies that you or somebody else has established a target customer profile).


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You must app roa ch the other p erson at a suitab le time (i.e. it's convenient, and that a spe cts of

sea sonality and other f a ctors aff ecting timing have b een ta ken into a ccount)

You must empathize with and understand the other person's situation and issues, and be able to

express yourself in their terms (i.e. talk their language).

Desire

The sales person needs to be able to identify and agree the prospect's situation, needs, priorities

and constraints on personal and organizational levels, through empathic questioning and

interpretation.

You must build rapport and trust, and preparedness in the prospect's mind to do business with youpersonally (thus dispelling the prospect's feelings of doubt or risk about your own integrity and

ability).

You must understand your competitors' capabilities and your prospect's other options.

You must obviously understand your product (specification, options, features, advantages, and

benef its), and p ar ticularly a ll releva nce a nd implications fo r y our pro spect.

You must be able to present, explain and convey solutions with credibility and enthusiasm.

The key is being able to demonstrate how you, your own organization and your product will

suitably, reliably and sustainably 'match' the prospect's needs identified and agreed, within all

constraints.

Creating desire is part skill and technique, and part behavior and style. In modern selling and

business, trust and relationship (the 'you' factor) are increasingly significant, as natural competitive

development inexorably squeezes and reduces the opportunities for clear product advantage and

uniqueness.

Action

Simply the conversion of potential into actuality, to achieve or move closer to whatever is the aim.

Natural inertia and caution often dictate that clear opportunities are not acted upon, particularly

by purchasers of all sorts, so the sales person must suggest, or encourage agreement to move to

complete the sale or move to the next stage.

The better the preceding three stages have been conducted, then the less emphasis is required for

the action stage; in fact on a few rare occasions in the history of the universe, a sale is so wellconducted that the prospect decides to take action without any encouragement at all.

AIDCA

More recently the AIDA acronym has been used in extended form as AIDCA, meaning the same as AIDA

with the insert ion of Commitment p rior to the action stag e. Arg uab ly Commitment is implicit within the Action

stage, but if it suits your sales training purposes then AIDCA is an acceptable interpretation. Commitment

here means that a prospective customer is more likely to progress to the Action stage if their commitment to

the proposition can first be established. As ever, adding detail make the thing less elegant and flexible,

which in this case makes AIDCA non-applicable to selling methods that do not involve a two-way


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communication, for example, the structure of a sales letter or advert, for which AIDA remains more helpful.

For two-wa y sa les communicat ions, d iscussions, presenta tions, etc., then AIDCA is fine.

1 . Attention2. Interest3 . Desire4. Commitment5. Action

The seven steps of a sale

The Seven Steps of the Sale is the most common traditional structure used for explaining and training the

selling process for the sales call or meeting, including what immediately precedes and follows it. This

structure assumes that the appointment has been made, or in the instance of a cold-call, that the prospect

has ag reed to d iscuss thing s there and then. Aside fr om the q uestioning sta ge, this structure a lso a ppl ies to asales visit which been a rra nged for the purp ose of p resenting p rod ucts/ services or a sp ecific pr op osal

following an invitation, earlier discussions or meetings. For these pre-arranged presentations it is assumed

that the sales person has already been through the questioning stage at prior meetings.

prep ara tion/ pla nning/ resear ch/ ap proa ch (using fa cilitative methods)

introduction/ opening/ ap proa ch/ estab lish initial cred ibility

questioning/ identify need s/ ask how and what, etc/ estab lish ra pp ort and trust

presentation/ exp lanation/ d emonstration

overcoming ob jections/ negotia ting/ fine-tuningclose/ closing/ ag reement/ commitment/ confirma tion

fol low-up/ af ter-sales/ fulf i l l / del iver/ ad min

Planning and preparation

Generally, the larger the prospect organization, the more research you should do before any sales

call at which you will be expected, or are likely, to present you company's products or services.

Ensure that you know your own p rod uct/ service ex tremely we ll - espe cially f ea tures, adva ntag es

and b enefits tha t will be relevant to the prospe ct you will be meeting.Ascertain as far as you can the main or unique perceived organizational benefit that your product

or service would g ive to yo ur pr ospect.

Discover w hat curre nt supp ly a rra ngements exist or are likely to e xist fo r the p rod uct/ service in

question, and assess what the p resent supp lier's rea ction is likely to b e if their b usiness is at threa t.

Understand what other competitors are able and likely to offer, and which ones are being

consider ed if a ny.

Identify as many of the prospect organization's decision-makers and influencers as you can, and

assess as much as far as you can what their needs, motives and relationships are.

Try to get a feel for what the organizational politics are.


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W hat a re the prospect's org a nizationa l d ecision-making p rocess and financial p ar ameters (e.g.,

budg ets, year-end d ate)?

W hat a re y our p rospect's stra teg ic issues, aims, prio rities and p rob lems, or if y ou ca n't d iscover

these p re- meeting, what ar e they g enerally fo r the market sector in which the p rosp ect op era tes?

Prep a re y our op ening statements a nd p ra ctice your sa les pr esentation.

Prepare your presentation in the format in which you are to give it (e.g., MS PowerPoint slides for

laptop or projected presentation) plus all materials, samples, hand-outs, brochures, etc., and always

have spares - allow for more than the planned numbers as extra people often appear at the last

minute - see the pr esentat ion section fo r more d eta iled guida nce on d esigning fo rma l sale s

presentations.

Prepare a checklist of questions or headings that will ensure you gather all the information you

need f rom the meeting.

Think carefully about what you want to get from the meeting and organize your planning to

achieve it.

Unde rstand a nd ma ke the most of cold calling: d espite the tendency for some or ga nizations to

position cold calling as a lowly de-skilled canvassing or enquiry-generation activity, cold calling

increasingly enables sales people to become more strategic and significant in the sales function.

Introduction/opening

Smile - be professional, and take confidence from the fact that you are well-prepared.

Introd uce y ourself - f irst and last name, what y our job is and the compa ny you rep resent, and what

yo ur compa ny d oes (ensure this is orie ntated to a p pe a l to the p rospect's stra teg ic issues).

Set the scene - e xp lain the purp ose of your visit, ag a in orienta te a round your p rospe ct not yourself,

e.g. "I'd like to learn about your situation and priorities in this area and then if appropriate, to

explain how we (your own company) approach these issues. Then if there looks as though there

might be some common ground, to agree how we could move to the next stage."

Ask how much time your prospect has and agree a time to finish.

Ask if it's okay to take notes (it's polite to ask - also, all business information is potentially sensitive,

and a sking shows yo u rea lize this).

Ask if it's okay to start by asking a few questions or whether your prospect would prefer a quick

overview of your own company first (this will depend on how strongly know and credible your owncompany is - if only a little you should plan to give a quick credibility-building overview in your

introduction).

Questioning

W hile questioning is a vit al a sp ect of selling , the pr incip les a nd techniques of q uestioning a re mostly

transferable to other situations where questioning is essential for effective cooperation and

relationships - these questioning guidelines therefore extend to applications beyond sales and

selling.

Empathy and listening are crucial in questioning - understanding body language is useful too.


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A major purpose of questioning in the traditional selling process is to identify the strongest need or

benefit p erceived b y the p rospect relating to the p roduct/ service b eing off ered by the seller.

As the questioner you need also to understand very clearly what you are seeking from the

relationship - questioning should aim to identify a mutual fit - relationship work when there is a

good fit f or b oth sides.

Buyers commonly have one main need or b enefit, and a number of suppor ting needs/ be nef its.

Needs and benefits may be obvious to seller and buyer, or not obvious to either, in which case

questioning exp ert ise is critica l in selling , as it is an a ll other re latio nships where motives and chang e

are involved.

Questioning must also discover how best to develop the relationship and the sale with the

organization - how the organization decides: timings, authority levels, the people and procedures

involved, competitor pressures, etc.

Good empathic questioning also builds relationships, trust and rapport - nobody wants to buy

anything from a sales person who's only interested in their own product or company - we all want tobuy from somebody who gives the time and skill to interpreting and properly meeting our own

personal needs.

To be professional in your approach you should prepare a list of questions or headings before the

discussion.

Aside from complex variations, there are two main sorts of questions: open questions and closed

questions.

Broadly open questions gather information and build rapport; closed questions filter, qualify and

seek commitment.

O pe n questions invite the other p erson to g ive long answer s; closed questions invite the other p erson

to say yes or no, or to select from (usually two) options, for example red or blue, or mornings or

a ft ernoons, etc.

Use ope n questions to g a ther information - typ ically for exa mple, questions be ginning with W ho?

W hat? W hy? W here? W hen? And How?

W hen tra ining o r lea rning the skills of using op en questions it helps to ref er to the Rudy ar d Kip ling

rhyme: "I keep six honest serving men, They ta ught me all I knew; Their names a re W hat a nd W hy

and W hen, And How and W here and W ho.."

Use "Can you tell me about how..." if you are questioning a senior-level contact - generally the

more senior the contact, the bigger the open questions you can ask, and the more the other personwill be comforta ble a nd a ble to g ive you the information you need in a big exp lanation.

'W hat...? a nd 'how...?' a re the be st word s to use in op en questions b ecause they pr ovoke thinking

and resp onses ab out fa cts and fee lings in a non-threa tening wa y

Use 'why?' to find out reasons and motives beneath the initial answers given, but be very careful

and sparing in using 'why' because the word 'why?' is threatening to many people - it causes the

other person to feel they have to defend or justify themselves, and as such will not bring out the true

situation and feelings, especially in early discussions with people when trust and rapport is at a low

level.


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Listen carefully and empathically, maintain good eye-contact, understand, and show that you

understand - especially understand what is meant and felt, not just what is said, particularly when

you probe motives and personal aspects.

Interpret and reflect back and confirm you have understood what is being explained, and if

relevant the f eelings behind it.

Use closed questions to qualify and confirm your interpretation - a closed question is one that can

be answer ed with a yes or no, e.g., "Do yo u mea n that when this typ e of equipment goes down then

all production ceases?", or "Are you saying that if a new contract is not put in place by end-March

then the e xisting one a utomatically renews for a nother y ea r?"

W hen you've asked a question, you must then b e quiet - d o not interrupt - a llow the other pe rson

time and freedom to answer.

The other p erson (your 'p rosp ect' in selling langua ge) should b e d oing 8 0 -9 9% of the talking d uring

this stage of the sales discussion; if you are talking for a third or half of the time you are not asking

the rig ht sort of questions.

Do not jump onto an op po rtunity a nd star t ex pla ining how y ou ca n solve the pr oblem until you have

asked all y our q uestions a nd g a thered all the infor mation you need (in any event you should never

be seen to 'jump' onto a ny issue).

All the time try to f ind out the stra tegic issues af fected or implicated by the pro duct/ service in

question - these are where the ultimate decision-making and buying motives lie.

If during the questioning you think of a new important question to ask note it down or you'll

proba bly forget it .

W hen you have a ll the inf ormation you need, acknowled ge the f act and say thanks, then take a

fe w moments to think ab out, discuss and summar ize the key issues/ requirements/ pr iorities fr om yourprospect's organizational (and personal if applicable) perspective.

Q uestioning is tra ditionally trea ted by conventional sal es peo ple and conventiona l sales training as

a process to gather information to assist the sales person's process, and this is how it is typically

positioned in the old-style 'Seven Steps of the Sale'; however, modern sales methodology treats

questioning in a radically different way - as an essential part of a facilitative process whose

purp ose is to help the buyer de cide.

Q uestioning is a fundamentally impo rta nt pa rt of selling - techniques being increa singly develop ed

and refined far beyond early selling techniques - transferable to and from other disciplines

(notably coaching, counseling, therapy, etc).

Presentation

The sales presentation should focus on a central proposition, which should be the unique perceived

benef it that the prospect g ains fr om the p rod uct/ service.

During the questioning phase the sales person will have refined the understanding (and ideally

gained agreement) as to what this is - the presentation must now focus on 'matching' the benefits of

the product with the needs of the prospect so that the prospect is entirely satisfied that the

proposition.

The sales person therefore needs an excellent understanding of the many different organizationalbenefit s that a ccrue to customers, and why , f rom the product/ service - these perceived be nefits will


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vary according to the type of customer organization (size, structure, market sector, strategy,

genera l economic hea lth, culture, e tc).

The sale s pr esentatio n must d emonstra te t hat the p rod uct/ service meets the p rospect's needs,

priorities, constraints and motives, or the prospect will not even consider buying or moving to the

next stage; this is why establishing the prospect's situation and priorities during the questioning

phase is so vita l.

The above point is especially important to consider when the sales person has to present on more

than one occasion to different people or groups, who will each have different personal and

organizational needs, and will therefore respond to different benefits (even though the central

proposition and main perceived benefit remains constant).

All sales presentations, whether impromptu (off the cuff) or the result of significant preparation, must

be well structured, clear and concise, professionally delivered, and have lots of integrity - the

quality and integrity of the presentation is always regarded as a direct indication as to the quality

and integrity of the p roduct/ service.

It follows then that the sales person must avoid simply talking about technical features from the

seller's point of view, without linking the features clearly to organizational context and benefit for

the p rospe ct - also a void using a ny ja rg on which the p rospe ct may not under stand .

Sales presentations must always meet the expectations of the listener in terms of the level of

information and relevance to the prospect's own situation, which is another reason for proper

preparation - a vague or poorly prepared sales presentation sticks out like a sore thumb, and it

will be disowned immediately.

W hen presenting to inf luencers, which is necessary on occasions, it is impor ta nt to recognize tha t the

sales person is effectively asking the influencers to personally endorse the proposition and the

credibility of the selling organization and the sales person, so the influencers' needs in these areasare actually part of the organizational needs of the prospect company.

The presentation must include relevant evidence of success, references from similar sectors and

ap p lica tions, fa cts a nd f igures - a ll b a cking up the centra l p rop osition.

Business decision-makers buy when they become satisfied that the decision will either make them

money, or save t hem money or time; they a lso need to be certain that the new p rod uct/ service w ill

be sustainable and reliable; therefore the presentation must be convincing in these areas.

Private consumer buyers ultimately buy for similar reasons, but for more personal ones as well, e.g.,

image, security, ego, etc., which may need to feature in these type of presentations if they form

pa rt of the main per ceived benefit.

W hile the presenta tion must alw ays focus on the main pe rceived be nefit, it is impor tant to show that

all the other incidental requirements and constraints are met - but do not over-emphasize or

attempt to 'pile high' loads of incidental benefits as this simply detracts from the central proposition.

Presentations should use the language and style of the audience - e.g., technical people need

technical evidence; sales and marketing people like to see flair and competitive advantage

accruing for their own sales organization; managing directors and finance directors want clear,

concise benefits to costs, profits and operating efficiency; and generally the more senior the

contact, the less time you will have to make your point - no-nonsense, no frills, but plenty of relevant

hard fa cts and evid ence.

If the sales person is required to present to a large group and in great depth, then it's extremely

advisable to enlist the help of one or two suitably experienced colleagues, from the appropriate


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functions, e.g., technical, customer service, distribution, etc., in which case the sales person must

ensure that these people are properly briefed and prepared, and the prospect notif ied of their

attendance.

Keep control of the presentation, but do so in a relaxed way; if you don't know the answer to a

question don't waffle - say you don't know and promise to get back with an answer later, and

make sure yo u do.

Never knock the competition - it undermines your credibility and integrity - don't even imply

anything derog atory ab out the competition

If ap p rop ria te issue notes, or a copy of your p resentation

Use props and samples and demonstrations if relevant and helpful, and make sure it all works

properly.

During the presentation seek feedback, confirmation and agreement as to the relevance of what

you are say ing, but don't be put off if p eople stay quiet.

Invite questions at the end, and if your are comfortable, at the outset invite questions at any time -

it depends on how confident you feel in controlling things.

W hether p resenting one-to-one or to a stern group , rela x a nd be f riendly - let your per sonality

and natural enthusiasm shine through - people buy from people who love and have faith in their

products and companies.

Overcoming objections/negotiating

Decades ago it was assumed that at this stage lots of objections could appear, and this would tend

to happen, because the selling process was more prescriptive, one-way, and less empathic;

however, successful modern selling now demands more initial understanding from the sales person,

even to get as far as presenting, so the need to overcome objections is not such a prevalent feature

of the selling process.

Nevertheless ob jections d o a rise, and they can of ten be hand led constructively, which is the key .

If objections arise, firstly the sales person should qualify each one by reflecting back to the person

who raised it, to establish the precise nature of the objection - "why do you say that?" is usually a

good start.

It may be necessary to probe deeper to get to the real issue, by asking why to a series of answers- some objections result from misunderstandings, and some are used to veil other misgivings which

the sa les pe rson need s to exp ose.

Lots of objections are simply a request for more information, so definitely avoid responding by

trying to re-sell the benefit - simply ask and probe instead; the best standard response is something

like "I understand why that could be an issue, can I ask you to tell me more about why it is and

what's important for you here?.."

Try to a void altog ether the use of the wo rd 'but' - it's inherently confrontational.

An old- style technique w as to ref lect b ack the objection as a re-p hrased question, but in a for m that

the sales person is confident of being able to answer positively, for example: the prospect says he

thinks it's too expensive; the sales person reflects back: "I think what you're really saying is that you

have no problem with giving us the contract, but you'd prefer the payments staged over threeyea rs ra ther tha n two? - w ell I think we could p rob ab ly do something a bo ut that..."


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Another old-style technique used to be to isolate the objection (confirm that other than that sticking

point everything else was fine), then to overcome the objection by drawing up a list of pro's and

con's, or a nalyzing to dea th all the hidden costs of not going f or the d eal, or r e-selling the b enefits

even harder, and then to close powerfully, but these days such a contrived approach to objection

handling is likely to insult the prospect and blow the sales person's credibility.

It is important to flush out all of the objections, and in so doing, the sales person is effectively

isolating them as the only reasons why the prospect should not proceed, but then the more modern

approach is to work with the prospect in first understanding what lies beneath each objection, and

then working with the p rosp ect to shap e the pr opo sition so that it fits more accep tab ly with what is

required.

Avoid hea d-to -head ar guments - even if y ou win them you'll destroy the relationship y ou'll go no

further - instead the sales person must enable a constructive discussion so that he and the prospect

are both working at the problem together; provided the basic proposition is sound most objections

are usually overcome by both the seller and the buyer adjusting their positions slightly; for large

prospects and contracts this process can go on for weeks, which is why this is often more in the

negotiating arena than objection handling.

You've handled all the objections when you've covered everything that you've noted down - it's

theref ore impor tant to keep notes and show that you're d oing it.

By this stage you may have seen some signs that the prospect is clearly visualizing or imagining the

sale proceeding, or even talking in terms of your working together as supplier and customer; this is

sometimes called buying warmth. Certain questions and comments from prospects are described as

buying signals because they indicate that the prospect may be visualizing buying or having the

pr od uct/ service. In the old d ay s, sales peop le wer e ta ught to respo nd to ea rly b uying signals with

a 'trial close', but this widely perceived as clumsy and insulting nowadays. Instead respond to early

buying signals (i.e. those received before you've completed the presentation to the prospect'ssatisfaction, and answered all possible queries) by asking why the question is important, and then

by answer ing a s helpf ully as possible.

Close/closing/agreement

In mod ern selling, even using the tra d itional Seven Steps pr ocess, every sa les per son's aim should b e

to prepare and conduct the selling process so well that there are few if any objections, and no

need f or a close.

The best close these days is something like "Are you happy that we've covered everything and

would yo u like to go a hea d?", or simp ly "W ould you like to go a head ?"In many cases, if the sales person conducts the sale properly, the prospect will close the deal

himself, and this should be the another aim for the sales person - it's civilized, respectful, and

actually implies and requires a high level of sales professionalism.

The manner in which a sale is concluded depends on the style of the decision-maker - watch out for

the signs: no-nonsense high-achievers are likely to decide very quickly and may be a little irritated

if you leave matters hanging after they've indicated they're happy; cautious technical people will

want every detail covered and may need time to think, so don't push them, but do stay in touch and

make sure they have all the information they need; very friendly types may actually say yes

before they're ready, in which case you need to ensure that everything is suitably covered so

nothing can rebo und la ter.


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For the record here a re some closes fro m the b ad old d ay s - the trad itional gold en rule wa s alw ay s

to shut up after asking a closing question, even if the silence became embarrassingly long - (a who-

talks-first-loses kind of thing) - use them at your peril:

o The pen close: "Do you want to use your pen or mine?" (while producing the contract andpen)

o The alternative close: for ex ample - "W ould you like it delivered next Tuesda y or nextFrid ay ?", or "W e can do the T50 model in silver, and w e have a T5 2 in white - which one

would you pr efer?"

o The challenge close: "I know most men wouldn't be able to buy something of this valuewithout consulting their w ives - d o y ou need to g et y our wif e's p ermission on this?.." o r "Most

business people in your position need to refer this kind of decision to their boss, do you

need to ref er it?"

o The ego close: "W e g enera lly find that only the peop le who app reciate a nd a re pr epa redto p a y f or the b est q ua lity g o f or this service - I don't know how you f eel a b out it?..."

o The negative close: "I'm sorry but due to the holidays we can't deliver in the three weeksaf ter the 1 5 th, so we can only d o it next w eek, is that oka y?"

o The guilt close: "Over three years it might seem a lot of money, but we find that mostresponsible people decide they simply have no choice but to go for it when it's less than a

pound/ d ollar a da y to p rotect your.../ saf eguard your..../ impr ove your... (W hatever)."

o The sympathy close: "I know you have some reservations that we can't overcome right now,but I've g ot to a dmit that I'm pretty despe ra te f or this sale - my ma nager say s he'll sack me

if I don't get an order this week, and you're my last chance - I'd be ever so grateful if

you'd go ahead - and I promise you we'd be able to sort out the extra features once I

speak to our production people..." (How could anyone live with themselves using that

one?....)

o The pupp y d og close/ pupp y d og sale: "Let me lea ve it with you and y ou see how you geton with it..."

o The la st d itch close: (sa les person p acks case a nd g oes to leave, but stop s at the d oor ) "Justone last thing - would you tell me where I went wrong - you see I just know this is right for

you, and I feel almost guilty that I've not sold it to you properly, as if I've let you down....."

o The p ro 's and con's list: "I can app recia te this is a tough d ecision - wha t normall y wor ks is towrite down a list of all the pro's and con's - two separate columns - and then we can both

see clear ly if overa ll it's the rig ht thing to d o..."

o The elimination close: "I can see I've not explained this properly - can we take a moment togo through all the benefits and see which one is holding us back from proceeding?" (At

which the sales person lists all the benefits - the positives, and runs through each one to

confirm it's not that one which is causing the problem, crossing a line through each as he

goes. W hen he crosses the last one out he can claim that t here rea lly seems to b e no re a son

for not going ahead...)

Follow-up/fulfillment/delivery/admin

After-sales follow-up depends on the type of product and service, but generally for every sale the

sa les person must car ry out a number of impor ta nt p rocesses.


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All relevant paperwork must be completed and copies provided to the customer - paperwork is will

cover the processing of the order, the confirmation of the order and its details to the customer,

possibly the completion of installation and delivery specification and instructions.

Sales reporting by the sales person is also necessary, generally on a pro-forma or computer screen,

typically detailing the order value, product type and quantity, and details about the customer such

as industrial sector - each sales organization stipulates the sales person's reporting requirements,

and often these are linked to sales commissions and bonuses, etc.

The sales person should also make follow-up contact with the customer - as often as necessary - to

confirm that the customer is happy with the way the order is being progressed; this helps reduce

possible confusion and misunderstood expectations, which are a big cause of customer

dissatisfaction or order cancellation if left to fester unresolved.

Customer follow-up and problem resolution must always be the responsibility for the sales person,

who should consider themselves the 'guardian' of that customer, even if a well-organized customer

service exists fo r genera l a fter -sales car e.

Customers rig htly hold sales peop le r espo nsible for what happ ens af ter t he sal e is mad e, and goo d

conscientious f ollow -up w ill usually b e rew ard ed with ref err a ls to other customers - this is a lso

helpful for networking.

Follow-up is an important indicator of integrity; when a sales person makes a sale he is personally

endorsing the product and the company, so ensuring that value and satisfaction are fulfilled is an

integ ra l p ar t of the moder n sales function.

The Product Offer

The product offer, or sales proposition, is how the product or service is described and promoted to the

customer. The product offer is generally presented in varying levels of detail and depth, depending on the

situation.

As an opening or initial proposition the words are used by the sales person to attract attention and interest

in verbal and written introductions to prospects - so it has to be concise and quick - remember that attention

needs to be grabbed in less than five seconds.

The product offer is also used by the selling company in its various advertising and promotional material

aimed a t the targ et market.

FABs (features - advantages - benefits)

The technique of linking features, advantages, and benefits (FABs) was developed in the 1960s and it

remains an important basic concept for successful selling and sales training. FABs were traditionally

identified and by the company and handed by the training department to the sales people, who rarely

thought much about developing them.

Here is the principle of using Features, Advantages, and Benefits: Customers don't buy features, they don't

even buy the advantages - what they buy is what the product's features and advantages will do for them,

which in selling parlance is called the benefit.

For example: A TV might have the feature of internet connectivity and a remote control qwerty keyboard;

the advantage is that the customer can now access and interchange internet and TV services using a single

system; and the benefit is that the customer saves money, space, and a lot of time through not having tocha nge f rom one p iece of eq uipment to another.


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It's the saving in money, space and hassle that the customer buys. A sales person who formulates a sales

proposition or product offer around those benefits will sell far more Internet TV's than a sales person who

simply sells 'TV's with internet connectivity and r emote Q W ERTY keypa ds'. In f act lots of customers won't

even have a clue as to what a 'TV with internet connectivity and remote qwerty keypad' is, particularly

when it's pa ckag ed, bra nded a nd pr omoted a s the la test 'W eb TV XL52 0 with the new Netmaster G T50 0

Supa-consul'....

Moreover the few customers who recognize the product benefit by its features and advantages will also

recognize all the competitors' products too, which will cause all the sales people selling features and

advantages to converge on the most astute purchasing group, leaving the most lucrative uninformed

prospects largely untouched.

The aim is to formulate a product offer which elegantly comprises enough of what the product does and

how, with the most importa nt or unique b enefits for a given targ et market or pr osp ect typ e.

USPs (unique selling points/propositions)

The strongest benefit for a given target sector is often represented by the term USP, meaning unique sellingpoint or proposition (for many companies no real uniqueness exists in their USPs, so the term is often used

rather loosely where the word 'strongest' would be more apt). Real or perceived uniqueness is obviously

very importa nt because it g enera lly causes a pr ospect to b uy f rom one sales per son or supp lier a s op po sed

to a nother. If there we re umptee n W eb TVs on the mar ket, the ones that would sell the be st would be those

which had the strongest unique selling po ints.

Price is not a USP; sure, some people only buy the cheapest, but most do not; most will pay a little or a lot

extr a to g et what they w ant. As with the exa mp le of the W ebTV, a n ad vantag e tha t pro duces a money-

saving benefit is different to straight-forward price discounting. A low price is not a benefit in this context,

and any product that is marketed purely with a low-price USP will always be vulnerable to competition

which offers proper user-related benefits, most of which may come in the form of a higher value, higherprice package.

W hat ma kes it d iff icult to succeed a ll the time w ith a f ixed USP or serie s of USPs is that one man's USP is

another man's dead donkey - USPs by their nature fail to take account of a prospect's particular

circumstances and detailed needs. The name itself - unique selling point - says it all. Purchasers of all sorts

ar e more interested in buying, not b eing sold to.

Each type of prospect has different reasons for buying. Market sectors or prospect types with smaller

houses and few er roo ms a re more likely to respond to the sp ace-saving b enefit o f t he W ebTV as the

product's main USP. Market sectors or prospect types with big houses and lots of big rooms are more likely

to regard the time-saving benefit as the key USP instead. A sector which comprises people who are not

technically competent or advanced, may well respond best to a USP that the supplier could fail to evenmention, i.e., insta lla tion, tra ining a nd a fr ee technical supp ort hotline. W here d oes that lea ve the sa les

person if his marke ting d ep ar tment ha sn't included that one o n the list?..

UPBs (unique perceived benefits)

This leads us to the UPB, meaning unique perceived benefit - a modern selling concept naturally evolved

from FABs and USPs.

A UPB is essentially a customer-orientated product offer.

The problem with USPs and FABs is that they are largely formulated from the seller's perspective; they stem

from product features after all. So if instead of looking at the product from the seller's viewpoint, we look


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at the need , fro m the customer's viewp oint, we ca n build up a UPB-b ased p rod uct of fer that f its the

prospect's situation and motives much be tter than a ny list of ar b itra ry FABs and USPs.

First it comes down to knowing the target market segment, or the targeted prospect type, extremely well.

This implies that we should first decide which sectors or segments to target, and it also shows why the

pla nning a nd p rep a ra tion stag e in the selling p rocess is fa r more signif icant a nd influential tha n it ever used

to be.

Each targeted segment or prospect type has its own particular needs and constraints, and these combine to

create the p rospe ct's or ta rg et sector's very specific b uying motive. So if we can id entify and then formulate

a unique perceived benefit to meet or match a known or researched sector's specific buying motive, we can

create a very well-fitt ing and ea sily recognizable p rod uct of fer indeed .

For instance, a likely attra ctive targ et sector for the W ebTV could b e f a milies with limited spa ce a nd little

technica l conf ide nce. W ith childr en at school l ea rning how to use computers, their p a rents (the decision-

makers) would likely be interested in improving their children's access to internet services at home, given no

requirement for extra space, and in a way that didn't put pressure on their limited technical know-how at

the time of installation and for ongoing support. If the package enabled the parents to upgrade their TV as

well for not much more than the cost of a conventional TV, then we're certainly likely to get their attention

and interest, and we're a short step away from creating some real desire. The UPB for this particular

prospect type might look something like:

"You can now give your children important educational access to the Internet at home, if you know nothing

ab out computers, and don't even have room f or one."

The product offer above is described so that the prospect type in question identifies with it, and can

immed ia tely match it to his own situation. The W eb TVs relevant b enefits - i.e., you save spa ce a nd you don't

need to sp end time under standing the technicalities - have b een tra nslated to match exa ctly why w e b elieve

that the prospect might be motivated to consider buying it. The 'important educational' reference is an

example of developing the UPB further, i.e., that your children's education will be improved. The trade-off

is that more words reduce impact and attention; only by using the UPB in various forms can we see what

wor ks b est.

It's now clear to see the difference now between a basic technical feature ('a TV with internet connectivity

and remote qwerty keypad) and an unique perceived benefit (your children will be better educated). The

fea ture do es nothing to a ttract the buyer; the UPB does a lot.

There's another important reason to use tailored perceived benefits, rather than focus on FABs and unique

selling po ints: it's ea sy f or p rospects to compa re a nd p ut a pr ice on what a pr od uct is (FABs and even USPs),

but it's very difficult to value a real UPB. This means that sales people who sell UPBs are far less prone to

competitor threa t.

Developing strong meaningful unique perceived benefits is not easy - it requires good insight andunderstanding of the prospect or sector to be approached, and a lot of thought, trial and error to arrive at

something that w orks well.

Remember that it is important to adapt the product offer (UPB, sales proposition or however you define it)

accord ing to its use in the selling p rocess. For ex amp le:

W hen cold calling , the pr op osition is ge nerally b roa d, concise, a nd more stra teg ic in nature, a nd

amounts to no more than a long sentence.

In sales brochures and enquiry follow-up letters the product offer or proposition is more detailed,perhaps running to a few sentences or bullet points.

In formal proposals and detailed presentations the proposition can often extend to several

paragraphs.


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The Selling Process

Selling strateg ically , using a n open pla n ap pr oach requires a lot of thought and ex per tise. The rewa rd s ar e

well worth the effort though - the sales person is seen more as an advisor, and the selling process becomes

more of a co-operation and partnership, which is altogether much more of a professional and civilized way

of doing business. Sa les manag ement methods which a re aimed at increa sing a sa les team's stra teg icbusiness de velop ment responsib ilities, op po rtunities and cap ab ilities (as enta iled within the p rocess of selling

strategically), generally have good motivational effects on the sales people, because they enable personal

growth, extra responsibility, and higher level achievements.

Resear ch and p lan - mar ket sector, pr ospect, and d ecide initial a p pr oach

Make the appointment

Attend appointment to build rapport and credibility, gather information about business needs, aims

and p rocess, and develop/ ag ree a project/ pr oduct/ service specification

Agree survey/ audit prop osal (normally ap plicab le)

Carry out survey/ audit (normally a pp licab le)

W rite product/ service prop osal

Present proposal

Negotiate/ ref ine/ ada pt/ conclude agr eement

O versee fulfillment/ completion

Feedb ack/ review/ maintain ongoing relationship

Research and plan

In op en pla n selling, resea rch and p lanning is a very importa nt pa rt of the p rocess. The big ger the p rosp ect

organization or potential sale, the more planning and preparation is required. Major accounts need

extensive researching before any serious approach is made to begin dialogue with an influencer ordecision-maker. This is to enable the sales person to decide on the best initial approach or opening

proposition. Implicit in this is deciding what is likely to be the strongest perceived organizational benefit that

could accrue from the product or service in question, as perceived by the person to be approached

(different people have different personal and organizational views and priorities). Generally it is best to

concentrate on one strong organizational benefit. A benefit-loaded 'catch-all' approach does not work;

because it's impossible to make a strong impact while promoting lots of different points - people respond

most to a single relevant point of interest.

Assuming a large account is being targeted, the sales person must acquire as much as reasonably possible

of the following information about the prospect organization:

The organization's size and shape (turnover, staff types and numbers, sites, management andcorp ora te structure, subsidia ries and p ar ent org anization)

strategy and trading situation (main business aims, issues, priorities, trends of business and sector, a

profile of the organization's customers and competitors, and what the company considers important

for its own customers)

Current and f uture d emand , volume, scale f or the pr od uct/ service in questionCurrent supp ly a rra ngements and contract review d a tes

Decision-making pr ocess (who d ecides, on what b a sis, when and how)

Decision-makers and influencers (names, positions, responsibilities and locations)

the orga nization's stra teg ic implicatio ns, threa ts a nd opp ortunities that the prod uct/ service in

question affects or could affect (in terms of the organization's strategic aims, operating efficiency,pr od uct a nd service q uality, staf f r ea ction and a ttitudes, a nd pa rticula rly how the pr oduct/ service


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in question af fe cts or could a f fect the org anization's own comp etitive strengths a nd a dd ed value to

its own customers)

The final point in bold is the really special part, and obviously requires a good insight into the prospect's

business and market. The other information is what all good sales people will be trying to discover, but only

the op en pla n sales person will look fo r the f inal po int. The final p oint is ab solutely pivota l to the open p lan

selling p rocess. W hen the sa les pe rson moves the d ia log ue with the p rospect into this a rea then the sal e

takes on a completely different complexion; it completely transcends and surpasses any benefits, USPs or

UPBs that other sales people might be discussing.

These days it's easier to research and plan for a sales call than it used to be, because of the wealth of

information available in company brochures, websites and from the organization's own staff, notably in

customer service, press relations, and from the relative openness of most organizations. Trade journals and

trade associations are other useful information sources for building up a picture. Depending on the

particular product or service, different people in the prospect organization will potentially be able to

provide company-specific information about important matters such as contract review dates, purchasing

procedures and authority, even sometimes very useful details of attitudes, politics, the styles of the key

people, and their priorities.

W ith a sensitive a pp roa ch it's often p ossible obt ain the trust a nd co-op era tion of somebod y in the p rospe ct

organization, so as to provide this information, particularly if the discussion is positioned as non-threatening,

empa thic and o f some stra teg ic potential f or the p rospect. The rules of AIDA ap ply even to this infor mation

gathering element alone.

The secretaries and personal assistants of the influencers and decision-makers are generally very helpful in

providing information to sales people once an appointment has been made - assuming they are asked

politely and given proper reason - because they know that a well-informed visitor is more likely to enable

a productive meeting, thereby saving the boss's time. It's often worth approaching these people for

information and guidance even prior to making the approach for an appointment. Again the justification

needs to be sensitively and professionally positioned.

It's imp orta nt to strike the rig ht ba lance b etween re sear ching pr ior to the first ap pointment, and resear ching

during the first appointment. The sales person should take advantage of all information that is obtainable

easily and leave the rest to be filled in at the first meeting - as a rule, prospects respect and respond well

to a well-prepared approach because it shows professionalism, and allows a relevant and focused

discussion. Conversely, a prospect responds poorly to a 'blind' approach because it suggests a lack of care

and i t usually p rod uces a va gue, ill-infor med di scussion, which wa stes time.

A g ood technique f or p lanning a nd r esear ch is to d esign a 'pr o-f orma' o r checklist of items to b e re sear ched

for new prospects. This template will be different for each sales organization and product and maybe

sector, but once designed serves as a really useful tool, both to gather the right data and to provide the

discipline for it to actua lly b e d one.

Having researched and gathered information from various sources, the sales person is better informed as to

how and w hom to ap pr oa ch in the pro spe ct org anization.

Generally the first serious approach should be made to a senior decision-maker, normally the finance

dire ctor/ chief f inancial off icer or the manag ing d irector/ CEO . This is be cause only these p eop le have the

authority to ma ke importa nt stra tegic b udgeta ry decisions in the or ga nization; other manag ers simp ly wo rk

within pr escribed b udge ts a nd strat egies estab lished b y the FD/ CEO .

There ar e other rea sons f or p lanning to ma ke the ap p roa ch at the highest stra tegic level:

If the sales person begins a sales dialogue with a non-decision-maker, it is very difficult to raise the contact

to the necessary higher level afterwards. This is due to the perfectly normal psychology of politics andpecking-order in organizations. Everyone, when presented with a proposition which concerns their own area


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responsibility, by a person who reports to them, is prone to the initial "not invented here" reaction. The

rea ction of the r ecipient is lar gely dep endent not on the nature of the p rop osal, b ut upo n their r elationship

with the p rop oser.

The sales person's proposition should ideally be based on serious strategic implications and benefits, which

will not ty pically match the motives of a lower- ranking influencer.

The sales person must avoid a situation developing where he is reliant upon someone in the prospect's

organization having to 'sell' the proposition to a decision-maker on the sales person's behalf. This is because

it ra rely succeed s, not lea st d ue to the 'not-invented-here' r eaction of higher ra nking pe ople in the p rospect

organization.

Make the appointment

The most important rule about appointment-making is to sell the appointment and not the product. The sales

person must never get drawn into having to sell the product or service, either in writing or on the phone,

while trying to arrange an appointment. The sales person cannot sell without first understanding the real

issues and the real issues may not even be apparent at the first meeting, let alone before even making anappointment.

Appointment-making is a skill in its own right. Some selling organizations use canvassers or telemarketing

staff to do this for the sales person, but for large prospects it's useful for the sales person to combine the

ap p ointment-making with the initial r esea rching activity. W hen combined in this wa y it helps to build initial

relationships with helpful people in the prospect organization, and the sales person can collect additional

useful information that would otherwise be missed or not passed on by a separate appointment-maker or

canvasser.

Introductory letters are a useful and often essential requirement before an appointment can be made.

G enerally the larg er the pr ospe ct org a nization, then the more essential an introd uctory letter will b e. This is

mainly because pa's and secretaries almost always suggest that any approach to a decision-maker (i.e. theboss, whose time the secretary is protecting) be put in writing first. It's simply an expected part of the

process by which credibility and level of interest is assessed by the prospect.

Remember AIDA - it applies to the appointment-making process as well. The aim is the appointment not the

sale. W hen telephoning f or a n ap p ointment, with or without a p rior let ter, the sales person typ ically must

first sp ea k to a switchboa rd ope ra tor or receptionist, then be p ut through to the targ eted per son's secreta ry

or pa.

Bear in mind that the pa is there as a defense for the boss, and rightly so, or the boss would never get

anything done. So for any approach to succeed in getting through to the boss, the pa must effectively

endorse its cred ib ility. W hether by writing o r telep honing , the r eason f or w a nting to meet must b e serious

and interesting enough, which is why researching and understanding the organization's strategic prioritiesar e so crucia l. Generic pro duct and service ap p roa ches do not work b ecause they ar e not seen to rela te or

benefit the prospect's own strategic priorities.

A carefully thought-through UPB (unique perceived benefit) forms the basis of the appointment approach. If

it strikes the right chord the appointment will be granted. A good introductory letter may win an

appointment without the need even to speak to the decision-maker. Imagine what happens: the letter is

received b y the p a. If it loo ks interesting a nd credib le a nd w orthy, the p a will show it to the b oss. If the b oss

is interested, and in the event that the pa keeps the boss's diary (as is often the case), the boss often

instructs the pa to make an appointment when the phone call from the sales person is received.

Calling early or late in the day, or at lunchtimes, often enables the sales person to circumvent the pa, but

generally it's best to work with secretaries and pa's; they are usually extremely capable and


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knowledgeable people. They can be immensely helpful, so it's best to work with them and certainly not to

alienate them.

In modern appointment-making, calling out of normal hours is advisable only in instances where both pa and

bo ss a re ex tremely d iff icult to rea ch during norma l working hours.

The sales person's attitude towards the pa is very important. Imagine a pa who has taken a dislike to apushy ar rog ant sa les p erson - even if the ap p roa ch is enormously w ell resear ched, relevant and ap pe aling,

the pa will for certain tell the boss about the sales person's attitude, and it is virtually inconceivable for the

boss then to agree to an appointment. The sales person should always assume that the loyalty and mutual

trust between boss and pa are strong. Most pa's can exert positive influence too; some will even make

appointments for the boss with little reference to the boss, so there are lots of reasons for a sales person to

make a f avora ble impression with a pa .

The use of serious-sounding language is important also in presenting the reason for wanting the

appointment. The pa will generally try to divert the sales person's approach to a less senior member of

staff. By orientating the reason to fit into the contact's responsibility, there is less chance of the approach

being diverted. So it's important to tailor the approach to fit with the level of, and functional responsibility

of the person being approached for the appointment.

For example, a managing director's pa will refer anything purely functional to the functional department

concerned , i.e., HR issues will be re ferr ed to p ersonnel; IT issues will be di verte d to IT dep a rtment; sale sa les

and marketing will be referred to those departments. The only issues which will win appointments with MD's,

CEO's, or FD's (the main decision-makers) are those which are perceived to significantly affect or benefit the

pr of it and/ or stra tegy of the business.

Therefore if the sales person seeks an appointment with one of these decisions-makers, the approach must

be orientated to have a potentially significant af fect or b enefit upon prof it or strategy .

On occasions, the sales person will not be granted an appointment with the targeted main decision-maker,

but instead will be referred by them to make an appointment with a lower ranking manager or director. Ifthis happens it's no problem - the sales person then proceeds with the MD's or FD's endorsement to develop

the situation with the lower ranking contact. The fact that it's been referred by the MD or FD gives the sales

person vital authority and credibility.

Being referred down is fine; but trying to refer upwards for eventual purchase authorization or budgetary

approval is nearly impossible, which is why appointment-making should always aim high, with a

strategically orientated proposition.

Avoid scripts - everyone recognizes and reacts against a script. Just be your honest self. You must,

however , smile and mean it. If y ou don't feel li ke smiling , then don't d o a ny sa les calling - d o some

paperwork instead until you cheer up. If you rarely cheer up then you should get out of selling, because

unhappy people can't sell. You must also smile on the phone, because words spoken with a smile or ag rimace sound d if fe rent, and peop le can tell which is which. Just say "Hello, I'm/ this is (fir st a nd la st name),

from (your organization), can I take a couple of minutes of your time please?", or "are you okay to talk for

a minute?"

Let your personality shine through - don't force it, don't try to be someone that you're not, just be you. If you

are door-knocking and personal cold-calling - which is only recommended for smaller prospects - be

professional, enthusiastic and straight-forward. Resist any temptation to employ gimmicks, jokes and flashing

bo w-ties - y our cred ibility w ill be under mined b efo re y ou even open your mouth.

Some trainers talk about PMA - Positive Mental Attitude - and suggest that this is some kind of magic that

anyone can simp ly turn on and off at will. For a ll b ut the most ex per ienced pr actitioners of self -hypnosis or

neuro-linguistic programming, this is nonsense. If you're not feeling good, don't force it or you'll waste thecall and fee l worse. Just wa it until you're in the right mood a nd every thing will b e f ine.


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Sales people were, and still are, taught to use an alternative close when making appointments, e.g.,

"W hat's b est f or y ou, Tuesda y morning or Thursday af ternoon?..." This ca n be q uite insulting to a nother

person, who'll have heard the technique about a thousand times just in the past week, so it's best avoided

these da ys. Just a sk when would suit best; or initially , "W hat w eek a re y ou looking a t?..", and then ta ke it

from there.

Don't sugge st a pp ointments a t 9.00 a m or 4.30 p m, or a t lunchtime, but if they're of fe red don't quibb le.

The appointment

There a re some ob vious thing s to d o p re-a pp ointment which can b e overlooked , so here they a re:

Establish how long the meeting will last and who'll be there

confirm the appointment in writing - keep it brief, professional, and you can even provide an

agenda for the meeting, which shows you've thought about it, and prepares the contact for what's

to come

Gather any more information that you need - the willingness of the contact's support staff to help

will be quite high at this stage, but don't be a nuisance

ensure you've prepared everything that you might need for the meeting - broadly, you must be

able meet the expectations that your contact has for the meeting, mainly this will be information

about the company, its products and services; maybe relevant case history examples (if any exist -

summaries of successful supply contracts to similar organizations)

Learn anything you need to know to avoid being late - map and directions; security gate check-in

procedure; car-parking; journey and travel time - allow sufficient time for delays

The sales person's aims at the fir st a p po intment ar e to

Complete the gaps in the basic research and planning template, i.e. the basic company profile

(though not necessarily any mundane points, which could be provided later, but certainly thestra teg ic infor mation and views)

Establish personal rapport and trust, and the credibility of the sales person and the selling

organization

Learn about the prospect's business, priorities, problems, trends and issues, and especially the

corporate aims and objectives of the main decision-maker(s)

Gather relevant information about the strategic needs, implications and potential benefits linked

with the p rod uct/ service

Understand the prospect's buying process, including people and the role of influencers, budgets,

timescales, procedures, internal politics and attitudes, competitors and existing supply arrangements

Understand the trading preferences of the prospect - purchase vs. lease vs. rental - long termpartnerships vs. short term contracts - payment, ordering, lead-times, inventory, one-stop-shop vs.

dua l or multiple supp lier a rra ngements, etc

Agree a way forward that progresses the opportunity in a way that suits and helps the prospect, in

whatever a rea s of help that ar e useful to the pr ospect

The sales person's aim at this stage is absolutely not to launch into a full-blown presentation of the

pr od uct/ service feat ures ad vantag es and benef its. Sales p eop le who do this will be listened to p olitely,

ushered out and forgotten. (They'll then wonder why the once attentive, interested prospect afterwards

won't return the sales person's phone calls, let alone agree to another meeting.)

The sales person must be prepared to talk about the relevant technical aspects and benefits if asked, but

typically this will not happen in major account situations, because the prospect will know that the salesperson is in no position yet to present a relevant solution or proposition of any kind.


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The sales person will be e xp ected to know ab out and re f er to some exa mples of how the p rod uct/ service

has pr od uced significant stra tegic benefits (prof it and/ or q uality - making money or saving money) in

similar organizations and in similar industrial sectors to the prospect's organization. This is more proof of the

need for good industry knowledge - beyond product knowledge and FABs - this is knowledge about how

the p rospect's org anization could sig nificantly b enefit f rom the p rod uct/ service.

It may be also that the sales person is able to convey and interpret issues of legislation, health and safety,

or technology that have potential implications for the prospect's organization. This is a great way to build

bo th credib ility a nd ad de d va lue for the sales per son and the selling o rg anization.

At the beginning of the appointment explain what you'd like to achieve - broadly a summary of the points

above (essentially to understand all the relevant issues from a strategic perspective - and to what end -

which is to identify how best to progress the situation in a way that will be most helpful to the prospect.

And then you're into the questioning phase, which has already been outlined in the Seven Steps of the Sale.

W here q uestioning d if fe rs in major accounts selling compa red to the sty le w ithin the Seven Steps, is that the

prospect's perspective and situation are wide and complex, so more care and time needs to be taken to

discover the facts. If the appointment is with a senior decision-maker the breadth of implications and issuescan be immense. Any product or service can have completely surprising implications, when an MD or CEO

explains their own position. For example, a purely technical product sale lower down the organization,

where specification and price appear to be the issues, might have enormous cultural and cultural

implications for a CEO . A new computerized monitoring system for exa mple, would a ga in simply have p rice

and technical issues for a middle-ranking technical buyer, but there could be massive health and safety

legislative compliance issues (threats and potential benefits) for the CEO.

Only by asking intelligent, probing questions (mostly open questions, and use of the phrase 'why is that') will

the issues a nd o pp ortunities be uncovere d .

Sales peop le really only need a pa d and p en for the grea t pa rt of the f irst meeting (ask if it 's okay to take

notes - it's a professional courtesy). The sales person should actually try to adopt the mind-set and style ofan 'expert consultant', specializing in the application of the particular product or service to the prospect

type and industry concerned - and not behave like a persuasive sales person. The appointment process and

atmosphere should be consultative, helpful and co-operative. Steven Covey's maxim 'Seek first to

under stand b efo re y ou try to be unde rstood' w as never more true.

Senior experienced decision-makers will provide a lot of relevant information in response to very few

questions. Lower ranking influencers need to be asked more specific questions, dealing with an issue at a

time, and they will often be unable to give reliable information about real strategic decision-making

motives and pr iorities, because they simply d o not ope ra te a t that level.

There is twin effect from asking and interpreting strategic questions: first, vital information is established;

second, the act of doing this also establishes professional respect, rapport and trust. Combine these two andthe sales person then has a platform on which to build the next stage.

Agree audit or survey

For anything bigger than a simple small business prospect, normally the stage after the appointment is to

survey, audit or gather necessary data to be able to produce a sales proposal. Therefore at the

ap p ointment it is importa nt for t he sales person to a gr ee the survey or audit p ar a meters: exactly w hat is to

hap pe n, how it is to b e d one, whether a cost is atta ched (ra rely, b ut ca n be if significant exp ertise a nd input

is required), a completion date, who is to be involved, and what the output is at the end of it, which is

normally a detailed sales proposal.


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The survey will normally take place sometime after the appointment; it would be rare in a large account

situation for the sa les p erson to be a ble or to b e a sked to carr y o ut a survey immedia tely.

Therefore, after the appointment the sales person needs to summarize very concisely the main points of the

meeting and the details of the survey, particularly focusing on its purpose and outputs, from the prospect's

viewpoint. This confirmation must include all necessary parameters to ensure no misunderstandings develop

and that seller's and buyer's expectations match.

The document outlining the survey parameters and aims should be copied to the relevant people in the

seller's and buyer's organizations.

Carry out the survey or audit

This part of the process will depend on the type of product or service, and the process of the selling

organization. Some will have dedicated survey staff; in other situations the sales person may carry out the

survey.

For a large prospect organization this survey stage can be protracted and complex. It may be necessary

for reviews during the survey process to check understanding and interpretation. Permissions and access

may need to be a gr eed with d iff erent sites or locations in the p rospect's org anization, and this should a ll b e

managed sensitively by the sales person.

It is essential that the sales person manages this stage properly, thoroughly and sympathetically. This is

because the way that a survey is conducted serves as a very useful guide to the prospect as to the potential

supplier's quality, integrity and professionalism.

Write the product/service proposal

The sales person is responsible f or writ ing the sale p rop osa l, which should re f lect the find ings of the survey.

Some sales organizations have dedicated people who write project proposals or quotations. In this case the

sales person should ensure that what is written is relevant and concise, factually correct, and outlines the

org a nizational b enef its clear ly stemming f rom the p rod uct or services b eing p rop osed.

It may be possible for the sales person to involve an influencer or decision-maker in the drafting of the

proposal, so that it is framed as suitably as possible to meet the requirements of the prospect organization.

Getting some help in this way is ideal.

Proposals that are necessarily lengthy and very detailed should begin with an executive summary showing

the main d eliverab les, costs a nd or g anizational be nefits.

The sales person should always try to present the sales proposal personally, rather than send it. The

prospect may agree to, or actually ask for, a presentation to a group of people in the prospectorg a nization including influencers and decision-maker s, which is idea l.

The sales person should try to avoid any situation where a proposal is presented on the sales person's

behalf in their absence, by an influencer to the decision-maker(s).

If the open plan process has been applied thus far then it's actually unlikely that the prospect would not

wa nt the sa les pe rson's involvement at the p resentat ion stag e.

Present the sales proposal

The aim of the presentation must be based on whatever is the next best stage for the prospect, not for the

seller. Large organizations will not be pushed, and to try to do so often risks upsetting the relationship and

losing the op p ortunity a ltog ether.


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