Every salesperson has experienced the energizing sensation of having a prospect call YOU and say they're ready to buy. These “low hanging fruit” prospects are exciting because they're a chance to make a sale without having to bother with the time-consuming early parts of the sales process. No combing lead lists, no cold call, no wooing a prospect into meeting, just straight into the sales presentation.
Unfortunately, the expression “too good to be true” usually applies to so-called hot prospects. The truth is that you will rarely actually close a sale with a prospect that you don't meet until late in his buying process. The reason is simple: whichever salesperson first meets with a prospect has the home field advantage. The early-bird salesperson has the opportunity to frame his presentation in such a way that his company will automatically look like the best choice while his competitors look like losers.
For example, lets say you are selling corporate jets. Your company's jet is the most fuel efficient in its class, but its maintenance costs tend to be higher than the others. If you get involved with a prospect very early on, you can stress the importance of fuel economy in your presentation, thus guiding the prospect to think of fuel economy as a crucial factor in the buying process. When that prospect calls other vendors to compare their products, he is sure to ask what kind of fuel economy their jets offer. Naturally, your jet will turn out to have the best numbers – so now you have a huge advantage in landing the sale.
Frequently the prospect who calls up salespeople late in the cycle isn't even really shopping by then. She already has a vendor in mind, but her company's purchasing process requires her to get a certain number of bids before she can pick one. Or she may be collecting other bids so that she can go back to her preferred vendor with them and try to get a better price. The longer a prospect has been with her current provider, the more likely it is that this vendor has shaped the decision criteria in such a way that other companies don't really have a chance. This is particularly true with very big companies that have tons of red tape involved in the purchasing process.
This isn't to say that hot prospects are impossible to close. What it means is that if you simply give your sales presentation and leave it at that, you won't succeed in this type of situation. These prospects need a little extra work on your part if you want to have a real chance – think of it as a trade-off for the work you skipped from the early stages of the sales process.
When you get a call from a prospect who says he's ready to buy, it's time for you to ask him a few questions before you proceed. You'll need to ask who else the prospect is evaluating, how their relationship with their current supplier is working out, what is their motivation for switching providers, and similar questions. If the prospect expresses some real frustration or describes serious problems, you may have a chance. If not, don't get your hopes up.
If you do get the sense that the prospect isn't really considering your company, you can then ask him straight out if that's the case. You may actually impress him with your understanding of corporate politics and the purchasing process, which may not get you the current sale but will at least set you on the path to making the next one.
By Wendy Connick
http://sales.about.com/
Unfortunately, the expression “too good to be true” usually applies to so-called hot prospects. The truth is that you will rarely actually close a sale with a prospect that you don't meet until late in his buying process. The reason is simple: whichever salesperson first meets with a prospect has the home field advantage. The early-bird salesperson has the opportunity to frame his presentation in such a way that his company will automatically look like the best choice while his competitors look like losers.
For example, lets say you are selling corporate jets. Your company's jet is the most fuel efficient in its class, but its maintenance costs tend to be higher than the others. If you get involved with a prospect very early on, you can stress the importance of fuel economy in your presentation, thus guiding the prospect to think of fuel economy as a crucial factor in the buying process. When that prospect calls other vendors to compare their products, he is sure to ask what kind of fuel economy their jets offer. Naturally, your jet will turn out to have the best numbers – so now you have a huge advantage in landing the sale.
Frequently the prospect who calls up salespeople late in the cycle isn't even really shopping by then. She already has a vendor in mind, but her company's purchasing process requires her to get a certain number of bids before she can pick one. Or she may be collecting other bids so that she can go back to her preferred vendor with them and try to get a better price. The longer a prospect has been with her current provider, the more likely it is that this vendor has shaped the decision criteria in such a way that other companies don't really have a chance. This is particularly true with very big companies that have tons of red tape involved in the purchasing process.
This isn't to say that hot prospects are impossible to close. What it means is that if you simply give your sales presentation and leave it at that, you won't succeed in this type of situation. These prospects need a little extra work on your part if you want to have a real chance – think of it as a trade-off for the work you skipped from the early stages of the sales process.
When you get a call from a prospect who says he's ready to buy, it's time for you to ask him a few questions before you proceed. You'll need to ask who else the prospect is evaluating, how their relationship with their current supplier is working out, what is their motivation for switching providers, and similar questions. If the prospect expresses some real frustration or describes serious problems, you may have a chance. If not, don't get your hopes up.
If you do get the sense that the prospect isn't really considering your company, you can then ask him straight out if that's the case. You may actually impress him with your understanding of corporate politics and the purchasing process, which may not get you the current sale but will at least set you on the path to making the next one.
By Wendy Connick
http://sales.about.com/
Δεν υπάρχουν σχόλια:
Δημοσίευση σχολίου