The Sales Process – Sales Career Advice

In our article entitled Sales 101 – Basic Sales Career Skills we discussed the basic skills that are required in all sales jobs.  Now, we will look at the actual sales process, how to get it right from beginning to end right from the initial contact with the customer right through to signing on the dotted line.

Qualifying the Lead

This is also known as the listening stage.  Listening to your business, your colleague and listening out for new leads on clients.  Regardless of whether it is the client or yourself who makes the initial approach you will need to gather as much information about them as possible to establish if your company will be able to meet their needs.  It may be that you do not offer any goods or services that are suitable, and it is best to be upfront with them straight away if this is the case, otherwise it will only lead to problems further down the line.

Sales Literature

If the initial conversation shows promise, then it is time to back up your phone call with more in depth information about your company.  However do not go crazy and send out numerous un depth reports, because they simply will not read them in the majority of cases.  Your sales literature may be a short case study on your website, or some short pieces of promotional literature.  The idea at this stage is to really whet their appetite.

Meeting Preparation

If their interest has been maintained, you will need to make an appointment to visit your client (or have them visit you if this is more appropriate).  The appointment should be made at a mutually convenient time and you must prepare thoroughly.  Really know their company inside out, and be aware of the questions they are likely to ask about you and your products/services.  Remember the old adage: proper planning prevents poor performance.

The Meeting

Draw up an agenda so that you are clear about what you want to discuss, and to ensure you don’t leave the meeting kicking yourself for not talking about some vital matter.  Don’t be afraid of being upfront with the client about having an agenda, if taking control of the meeting will be of benefit to both parties then there is nothing wrong with it.  It will greatly depend on who you are meeting, but once again remember to listen and be honest.  It is good to build up a rapport with the client but never lose track of the reason you are there.

Proposal

The initial meeting won’t usually be the best time to submit the proposal to the client, it will require a second meeting so that you can assimilate all of the information you have gathered.  Take time to produce a professional document to submit to the client and be upfront with all the costs.  Depending on the nature of the work you undertake, the time it takes to get the proposal ready will vary but this should be done as quickly as possible.  Make sure that it is accurate and does not include anything the client does not expect to see.

Closing The Deal

Once the client has the proposal, you will need to follow it up with a phone call.  They are likely to have a number of objections or alterations which they wish to discuss with you and you should be prepared for this.  Once again, listen to them and ask appropriate questions in order to carefully negotiate with the client.  Do not keep lowering the price too much so that it becomes an unprofitable venture for your company, there must come a point when you walk away from a potential deal in this case.  However, if all goes to plan the proposal will be agreed upon by both parties.  Make sure the contract drawn up is fair and clear for both parties to get the relationship off to a good start.

This is just a brief overview of the sales process and it will vary greatly from company to company.  You should always do your research, but the key point is:  listen!