Defining
success metrics allows you to formulate a game plan for your meetings with
prospective clients.
If you know what you need to accomplish, the
roadmap becomes very clear for what you need to achieve. If your success metric
is defined as your having a comprehensive picture of their challenges with
their current provider, you can prepare questions that will expose their
challenges. If your success metric is to gather all of the data needed to put
together a pricing proposal, the game plan is to ask all questions needed to
craft a solution for this prospect.
From a prospect's point of view, they have no
time or tolerance for salespeople who show up on their doorstep and ask
pointless questions for an hour. They are busy and very sensitive about their
time. If they accept a meeting with a salesperson, they expect that salesperson
to arrive having done their homework on their company and with a laser focus
approach to the meeting.
Remember, sales is a profession. They expect a
professional experience.
Great article from emarketer...CM
Building strong relationships is key to keeping clients
Small businesses acknowledge that clients are critical to their success: In a March 2015 study by The Alternative Board (TAB), 48% of small-business owners (SBOs) worldwide said their customers drove their success—the No. 1 response when asked how to describe their company culture. As such, they’re putting a strong emphasis on driving new and repeat customers this year—and it’s stressing many out.
In a December 2014 study by Zogby Analytics for Xero, growing the customer base was the top 2015 business priority among US SBOs, cited by 62.2%. However, SBOs are feeling the heat. In March 2015 research by Constant Contact, finding new customers was the leading business concern among US SBOs, cited by two-thirds. Retaining existing customers was also important, at 40%—the No. 3 response behind having enough time. Spring 2015 research by Ebiquity for American Express looked at a different list of priorities and here, keeping current business and revenue sources was the No. 1 company priority cited by US SBOs, at 38%, followed by growing the business (34%). When it comes to bringing in new business, word-of-mouth is still the most effective marketing channel for small and medium-sized businesses, cited by 28% polled in November 2014 by BrightLocal. For those looking to go beyond chatter though, search engine optimization and online local directories were the second and third most effective marketing channels for bringing in new leads and customers, followed by email marketing.
Once they’ve attracted those customers, relationships are key to keeping them. In a March 2015 study by Braun Research for Bank of America, nearly six in 10 US SBOs said establishing relationships with customers was the primary driver of repeat customers. Nothing came close to this, with low prices and prime location tying for second, with just 11% each. Generating leads and closing deals are just the beginning for small businesses. If they want to maintain the customer base they’ve worked hard for, they’ll need to form strong relationships with their clients. If not, they risk losing out to other driven parties in the industry that do.
emarketer - May 11, 2015 | SMB
It's true that most
buyers zero in on value, but the definition of value varies from prospect to
prospect.
That's why the best salespeople do as much
research as possible before contacting the prospect. This way, they can
provide benefit statements that speak directly to the prospect's biggest
hot-button needs, and offer solutions that help solve their biggest problems.
Personalizing selling points to match prospects'
needs keeps the sales call on target and helps ensure that the salesperson
doesn't lose the prospect's attention by focusing on benefits that have no
bearing on the prospect's business.
