Increasing your
sales isn’t all about selling. Instead you should focus your energy on helping
your customers to make a buying decision. Customers are more in control of
their buying decisions than ever before. They have a wealth of alternatives and
information available online, and interactive access to sources they trust via
social media. They don’t want to be pushed into a sale, but they are happy to
be pulled in by what is important to them.
If you want
to help your customers to buy, you need to spend more time understanding what
motivates their buying decisions. This means understanding the buying process.
The buying
process begins with customers understanding that they have a need for a product
or service. The stimulation for that need may have come from the obsolescence
of an existing product or service or perhaps a desire to acquire a significant
one off, high value, purchase.
At this
stage, two groups are responsible for attracting these potential customers -
the marketers (who raise awareness of your products / services) and the people
involved in the previous sale (who generate recommendations from existing
customers).
The next
phase of the buying process involves your sales team directly. Customers seek
people they can trust. Trust is enabled by the provision of a referral from an
existing customer who has had a good experience; the presence of a strong,
reputable brand; or the level of service received from a business.
In terms of
your sales team, having conversations with customers helps to develop rapport.
Asking open questions which cannot be answered with a yes or no engenders
trust. The opposite, closed questions, when strangers first meet, sound like
and feel like an interrogation and should be avoided. Good sales people know
how to start a conversation and build rapport with clients. If your sales team
can’t seem to do this, perhaps they need some training.
The final
phase is where the traditional sales approach kicks in. At this stage, the
buyer is looking to determine the value of your product or service offering.
Your sales process needs to demonstrate this value to the potential customer.
Customers who
have developed trust in your firm and / or your sales people will place an
unconscious premium on the relationship when it comes to considering perceived
price versus perceived value. Once you can demonstrate value to your customer
you should be able to help them to close a deal.
