Insights Into Successful Sales Habits

Successful sales habits are a result of what you constantly do and pay attention to. Research tells us that it takes 21 days of consistently using a new behaviour for it to become a habit. Here are some sales habits you could try that could increase your success rate:.

Sell only to those who are in the window of buying.

To improve your return on sales effort (ROSE), focus on the buyer windows of 1. identified pain and 2. trigger pain. Do not invest time with latent pain (no reason to change) customers. Become quick at identifying the people who are potentially in the market and the people who aren’t.  Spend more time on the people who want what you’re selling and less time trying to convince people who don’t that they do.

Know your product and its market fit.

People buy from experts and people we like and trust. There should be no question about your product or service that you cannot answer to your customer’s satisfaction. Knowledge inspires confidence, and if your buyer has trust and confidence in you, your sales conversations will be more effective.

Follow up, follow up, and follow up.

It takes persistence and effort to gain buyers attention. Consistency is key in sales. If you say you will follow up, then follow up. If you promise something, then deliver on it. Make sure your callbacks are actioned, every lead is acted upon, and every request is followed through.

Take responsibility for things that go wrong.

Successful sales habits include owning your own success. Don’t ruminate on rejections or lost sales. Your mindset in sales is one of your biggest assets. If things go wrong, reflect, learn, optimize for next time, and move on. Selling is mainly an interruption business, so get comfortable with being uncomfortable.

Ask, and you shall receive.

Always have an ask. Ask for commitments to meet, to present, to make a proposal, etc. Ask for the sale. Always be clear on what you are asking the buyer for; too many salespeople engage with a customer without having an ask.

Never speak badly about your competitors.

Even if the buyer expresses frustration with their current provider, do not speak badly about them. This shows integrity. Focus on the problem, not the provider. People who are willing to trash talk their competitors might be just as willing to do so about their customers. They are seen as untrustworthy.

Don’t say what you can’t support.

Sure, successful selling is about story-telling. But in your stories, do not invent scenarios that you cannot support or provide social proof for. Focus on your strengths, your value, and what you do well. If you get objections or questions about something that is beyond your capabilities, be open and see if there is any other opportunity. Do not make stuff up. Never compromise your personal brand or credibility.

The Deadly Sales Sins

Successful sales habits are also about what not to do. Every business and every salesperson make mistakes, that’s life. The key is to try to reduce them as you learn and grow. Here’s a list of mistakes to avoid when making sales:.

Selling without knowing your customer.

People buy from people and brands they trust. To win in sales, you must not only be knowledgeable about your product but also about industry trends, challenges, and their unique set of needs. Ask yourself: Why am I targeting this customer? Why would they listen to me? What information do I have that would get their attention? Then, you have to take the time to listen to your customers and ask appropriate questions. What is my value proposition for them, and do I really believe they are a fit for my offering?

Using the same old sales pitch.

Customers don’t care what we do. They care about what value you will bring and what we can do for them. Getting their attention and getting past “why listen to you” needs an impactful value proposition with a story they can relate to. Coming back to the same customers with the same old pitch is a big mistake. Ever notice how often we start a sales call the same old way. Same phrases, same words as everyone else. Why is that? Laziness? Habit? This is the point. If buyers have resistance to salespeople, then we should get creative and try not to sound like every other salesperson. People want to know you are innovative, creative, and on the cutting edge of your industry. Make sure that you revitalize your sales presentation often. Use different examples, different approaches, appeal to different behavioural styles, and offer different incentives. Being creative is one of the keys to making sales.

Not taking advantage of sales training.

Selling is about art and science. Every expert approaches their job with the right skills, tools, and mindset. Yet, in sales, we read a script, get a list of contacts, and off we go. Then we are shocked at the low engagement rates with customers. The most successful salespeople never stop learning new ways to improve. (same as any profession). Take advantage of every sales training opportunity you can find. You will never lose if you choose to keep on learning.

Not Caring.

Do you believe passionately in what you do, the value you bring to your customers, your business, and, most importantly, yourself? Selling is a producer’s role, mostly every activity we do has to make an impact. Going through the motions and not caring about your own mindset or what you say or do will only result in you seeking out a new role. If you care, it shows, in your voice, your body language, and your actions. Care if you dare; if not, find something else.

Ignoring credibility and personal brand.

Never compromise your values, your credibility, or your personal brand. It’s never worth it in the long run. Always show integrity in your dealings with other people. It may feel good to put your competition down so you can convince your prospects of how much better you are, but in the long run, it won’t benefit you. People may like you in the moment, especially if you have charisma and the power of persuasion, but once you walk away, they’ll think about the things you said—both about yourself and about others—and they won’t trust you. Credibility and integrity always win in the end.

Wrap up.

One major pillar of success in any walk of life is establishing a winning position. Successful sales professionals are experts at selling from positions of strength. At the core of sales mastery is the knowledge that success does not happen in just any position. Maximum results in life or business require a position of leverage, or positional advantage. However, this must be earned. Successful sales habits are about knowing how to earn and establish a leverage position within the relationships of life and business.

To become truly successful, the positive side of you must outweigh the negative side of you. Your passions have to outmuscle your fears. If you have the drive, motivation, and persistence to succeed, you’ll want to hone your skills to achieve maximum impact.  How quickly—even whether—you reach maximum impact and win its high income depends on how thoroughly you train yourself for the success that can be yours.

Remember these points and incorporate these principles into your sales approach and everyday life.,

Source: Insights Into Successful Sales Habits – Free Sales Training Articles and Courses

Five Core Sales Skills To Master

Five core sales skills to master to help you improve any selling activity. Hello and welcome to this quick video lesson on some core sales skills. Whether you are an experienced salesperson or just starting out in your career, mastering these skills will help you improve your performance and achieve your sales goals.

Skilled salespeople can be defined as those who become market experts, researchers and have a keen interest in the customers business and needs. They know that selling a product or service is secondary  to understanding their challenges. In digitally enabled selling, a salesperson has to wear many hats, meaning they need a range of sales skills to call upon. Whether they play the role of consultant, negotiator, enabler, or challenger, it’s all about what the customer wants to achieve if they were to make a buying decision. Skilled salespeople always make it a priority is to build a strong channels of communication with their customers.

Did you know that 44% of salespeople give up after one follow-up?

The Core Sales Skills To Master

The first skill to focus on is active listening. According to a study by HubSpot, active listening is the most important sales skill. It helps build trust and rapport with prospects. This means paying close attention to what your prospect is saying, and not just waiting for your turn to speak. When you actively listen, you will be able to identify their needs, concerns, and motivations. and then tailor your sales pitch accordingly. Active listening includes being empathetic. The skill to assure customers that you have the capability and proof to help them achieve their requirements. This requires you to place yourself in their shoes, listen to them intently, and acknowledge their pain points.

Second on the core sales skills list is Questioning. Effective questioning helps uncover customer needs and pain points. Ask questions that help you uncover needs and desires, that motivates a customer to invest in learning more. Unless you ask targeted questions, you will not be able to uncover those needs and desires, or present your product or service, as a solution to them.

Third on the list is Storytelling. Humans find stories compelling in a way that a simple presentation of the facts, often cannot match. Telling stories helps create an emotional connection with prospects. Stories with emotion can significantly change your desired outcome. You may have amazing verbal skills, but you can very easily fail as a storyteller because in oral communication, a lot also depends on the non-verbal aspects of communication and often, what you don’t say is of equal importance to what you do say. Communicating to others is more complex. It’s harder because we have to actively work to understand them. What compels people to do the things they do? When we can identify our audience’s motivations and appeal to them, we can gain their attention and drive the action we seek. In other words, it’s by being thoughtful about those we are communicating to that we can get our own needs met.

Fourth on the list of core sales skills is objections. Sales objections are inevitable, but effective handling can turn them into opportunities.  Successful salespeople see objections as an opportunity to respond. The customer may not have fully understood your original positioning, so this is your chance to offer clarity. Also, it’s about hearing their concerns, and to respond to them with empathy. No matter how great your product or service is, there will always be objections to overcome. Rather than trying to argue with your prospect, it is better to acknowledge their concerns and provide solutions that address them. This will show that you value their opinion and are committed to finding the best solution for their needs. Just as the sales process has multiple steps and you are required to make multiple requests to advance your deals through the process, objections come in multiple forms and at different points along that path. Facing these roadblocks and getting past them, at each point on the sales process journey, is the key to getting in the door, shortening the sales cycle, increasing pipeline velocity, avoiding stalled deals, and, of course, closing the sale.

The fifth core sales skill is Closing. Closing is the ultimate goal of any sales interaction. Done correctly, it’s more about confirming a sale rather than closing. The ability to gain commitment from a customer to buy a product or service, requires a combination of knowledge, empathy, and value building skills. Closing is not an event but is a continuous process during your sales conversations. Always be asking for a series of yes commitments. Fear of closing: For many salespeople it’s not the lack of a good closing line; those are a dime a dozen. It’s the confidence, the mindset, the conviction that are often lacking. So, , you should be looking for opportunities to ask for the sale, right from that first conversation.

The Core Sales Skills

According to a survey by Salesforce, top-performing salespeople are 10 times more likely to be great closers.

Bonus Core Sales Skills To Learn

This sales skill is building rapport. People buy from people they like, so it is essential to establish a connection with your prospect. Find common ground, ask questions about their interests or hobbies, and show genuine interest in what they have to say. Building rapport will make it easier to gain their trust and ultimately close the sale.

Never forget the importance of product knowledge as part of core sales skills. You need to know your product inside and out to be able to explain its features and benefits in a way that resonates with your prospect. In your sales training, make sure you have all the information you need and are prepared to answer any questions they may have.

In summary, the five core sales skills that you need to master are active listening, questioning, storytelling, handling objections and closing. By focusing on these skills, you will be able to improve your sales performance and achieve your goals. Thank you for watching, and good luck with your sales endeavours!

Categories: Sales Training

Source: Five Core Sales Skills To Master – The Digital Sales Institute

Closing Techniques For Every Salesperson

Closing techniques to finalize a sale should be understood by every salesperson. In the dynamic and competitive realm of sales, the ability to close a deal is the ultimate measure of success. The closing stage represents the culmination of a series of interactions, negotiations, and relationship-building efforts between a salesperson and a potential customer. However, closing a sale is often easier said than done. It demands finesse, adaptability, and a range of proven techniques to effectively persuade the customer to commit. In this article, we delve into five indispensable closing techniques that every salesperson should equip themselves with, empowering them to achieve stellar sales outcomes.

Imagine yourself confidently assuming that the deal is sealed before actually receiving the customer’s final affirmation. The assumptive closing techniques leverages this mindset to nudge the customer towards making a decision. By subtly embedding the assumption of a successful sale within your conversation, you encourage the customer to embrace the idea that the transaction is a natural progression.

free sales training – closing techniques

The key to the assumptive close is striking a balance between confidence and subtlety. Phrases such as “When would you like us to deliver your new product?” gently guide the customer towards agreeing to the deal. This technique thrives on the foundation of trust you’ve established throughout the sales journey and your unwavering belief in the value your product or service brings.

2. The Value-Driven Ben Franklin Close: Balancing Pros and Cons

Drawing inspiration from the wisdom of Benjamin Franklin, this technique capitalises on the psychological impact of assessing pros and cons. By constructing a visual representation of the customer’s concerns and the corresponding benefits your offering provides, you empower the customer to make a well-informed decision.

To execute the Ben Franklin Close, sketch a simple two-column table. On one side, list the customer’s apprehensions or doubts. On the other side, outline the benefits and solutions your product or service presents to address these concerns. This technique triggers the customer’s cognitive processes, helping them recognize the overwhelming advantages that align with their needs.

3. The Urgency Close: A Call to Immediate Action

Creating a genuine sense of urgency can significantly influence a customer’s decision-making process. The urgency close technique harnesses this psychological phenomenon, compelling customers to act promptly due to a fear of missing out on a valuable opportunity.

Legitimate urgency drivers such as limited-time promotions or dwindling product availability can be incorporated to instil urgency. For instance, “This exclusive discount is available only until the end of the week.” By imparting a time-sensitive element, you motivate customers to act swiftly, ensuring they don’t lose out on a beneficial deal.

Ethical implementation of the urgency to close a sale is crucial to maintain your credibility. False urgency closing techniques only serve to erode trust and tarnish your reputation over time.

4. The Empowering Choice Close: A Sense of Ownership

Empowerment lies at the core of the choice close technique. By offering the customer two appealing options, both leading to a successful sale, you provide them with a perceived sense of control over the decision-making process.

When employing the choice close as a closing techniques option, you present two distinct yet attractive options. For example, inquire, “Would the standard package suit your needs, or would you prefer the premium package?” This technique removes the binary pressure of a yes-or-no decision, allowing the customer to actively choose the option that best aligns with their preferences.

5. The Recapitulative Summary Close: Reinforcing Value

As the sales interaction reaches its pinnacle, the summary close technique emerges as a powerful tool to reiterate the value proposition. By succinctly summarising the key points of the conversation and reaffirming the customer’s requirements, you reinforce the connection between their needs and your solution.

Craft phrases like, “Considering our discussion, it’s evident that our product’s features X, Y, and Z align seamlessly with your needs of solving problem A and achieving goal B.” The summary not only underscores your attentiveness but also positions your offering as the ultimate answer to the customer’s quest.

6. Be an Effective Negotiator

Your role as an effective negotiator is to anticipate and uncover which interest is governing the actions of your buyer or customer. In other words, what lies at the core of their behavior? The opening offer, the position, and demands all flow from these interests. Very often, people will stubbornly defend their rigid positions because one of their core interests is not met or they feel that it is threatened. Loss aversion  and change management are very strong motivational factors. In such moments, the ego takes the steer. If you want to succeed in a negotiation, as part of your closing techniques learn how to identify what people really crave, and then find a creative way to give it to them without compromising on your own negotiation goals. Your negotiation partners will never forget how good it felt to do business with you, how well understood and respected they felt.

Keep in mind for your next negotiation that a good negotiator can hear the ego speak, a great negotiator can hear it whisper.

7. Understand Where the Buyer is on Their Journey

Your understanding of the buyers’ stage within their buying journey is critical for several reasons. First, where the buyers are within their buying journey changes as they progress from stage to stage. Decision science informs us that people are generally risk averse and are twice as likely to make a change to avoid pain rather than achieve gain. This is especially true early in the buying journey when the buyers have not yet determined if a change is even needed.

Once the buyers move beyond the ambivalence about whether to change, their perspective moves toward one of gain—that is, how they stand to improve by making a change. The most important aspect is always to understand how buyers buy, what motivates them at each stage, and how to plan and execute sales conversations differently at different stages. If you don’t understand the fundamentals of a buying journey, it is highly unlikely that you can understand that different buying situations involve different buying journeys. Again, there is no one-size-fits-all approach to selling. How you as a seller plans and executes the best sales calls depends upon where the buyers are within their buying journey.

In Conclusion: Mastering the Art for Lasting Success

Mastery of closing techniques constitutes a pivotal sales skill for any adept salesperson. The prowess to successfully guide a potential customer towards a final decision hinges on comprehending their unique needs, skilled communication, and adept persuasion. While the Assumptive Close, Value-Driven Ben Franklin Close, Urgency Close, Empowering Choice Close, and Recapitulative Summary Close stand as invaluable tools, their effectiveness is intertwined with ethical implementation and genuine customer care. The objective transcends mere transactional success; it lies in fostering enduring relationships rooted in trust, value, and mutual gain. By honing and personalising these closing techniques according to diverse scenarios, sales professionals with some help from sales training can elevate their success rate, nurturing a trajectory of sustained achievements.

 

Categories: Sales Training

Tags: closing, closing a sale, closing techniques

Source: Closing Techniques For Every Salesperson – The Digital Sales Institute

10 Sales Tips for Every Salesperson

10 sales tips as a guide on selling to the modern customer. We all need some sales tips every now and again, to help keep our sales activity sharp and focused. Selling today can be a complex process that requires a unique set of sales skills. The savvy salesperson knows that to sell successfully they need to have a deep understanding of their customers’ needs and provide them with a solution that meets those needs. In this article, we’ll explore some sales tips and the key selling skills that salespeople need to succeed.

 

1.Product to Market Fit

First up on our 10 sales tips is to understand how the product fits and what it delivers is the basis of any successful sales conversation to a customer and is the first of our sales tips. Salespeople need to have a real understanding of “product to market fit” in order to target the right customer set plus FAB (features, advantages, benefits). They should be able to clearly communicate the value proposition of their product to potential customers in a way that is relatable to the challenges that buyer is facing.

Once a salesperson understands the customer’s needs, they then must be able is to communicate the unique value proposition of the product. A clear and compelling statement that explains how the  product solves the customer’s specific challenges and helps them get to a better place.

To communicate a value proposition effectively, it’s vital to focus on the outcomes of the product and not just benefits. Also, salespeople need to blend in case studies and testimonials from other customers who have achieved success with the product.

Buyers are also more likely to engage with a salesperson who is able to demonstrate the product’s potential and answer any product related  questions that customer may have. They should also be able to address the product’s unique advantages and how to differentiation themselves from other solutions.

2. Customer Profiling

Before ever picking up the phone or approaching a potential customer, salespeople should be fully versed in understanding the customer’s needs and pain points as it related to their offering. They must be able to outline the specific challenges that their customers are facing and then create sales conversations that address those challenges.

They also need to know what future state the customer wants to get to, how to make their lives easier and the outcomes the buyer will receive upon purchasing the solution. To do this, the salesperson needs to ask thoughtful discovery questions and actively listen to the customer’s replies. They should also be able to present themselves as market experts and how their product is helping to solve challenges in the customers industry.

To do this effectively, salespeople need to ask open-ended questions that encourage the customer to open up about their challenges and goals. What challenges are they currently facing in their business. How do they measure the success of their current solutions. What are their top priorities for the year ahead. Asking these types of questions helps salespeople understand the customer’s needs but if an opportunity to sell really exists.

3. Verbal and Non Verbal Communication Skills

Point 3 of our 10 sales tips is how both verbal and nonverbal communication are critical in the sales process. Salespeople are required  to explain data and technical details in a way that is easy for a customer to understand. They should be able to adapt their communication style to the personality type of each individual customer. Competent in all the different communication channels, such as video, email, phone, and in person meetings.

In remote selling, the customer can gather information from the salespersons statements in terms of the content (i.e., words used) and delivery (i.e., rate of speech, loudness, tone, number of pauses, and disruptive words such as “umms” and “aahs” used). In addition, the customer is subjected to a host of information from the visual channel. These cues can hail from the salespersons facial expressions as well as their head and body movements. The audio and the visual channels, respectively, give rise to the verbal and nonverbal cues in a communication.

Sales tips insight. As a given, salespeople should be skilled at building relationships with potential customers. They should be credible, personable, insightful plus be able to establish trust and rapport quickly.

4. Time Management

“Time management” is really about salespeople improving their overall work performance in order to make them capable of completing the various sales tasks in a timely manner. Time management comprises three components: Structuring, Protecting, and Adapting time. Well-established time management measures reflect these concepts.

Structuring time, for instance, is captured in such items as “Does the salesperson have a daily routine which they follow?” and “Does their main activities during the day fit together in a structured way?”

Protecting time is reflected in items such as “How often does the salesperson find themselves doing things which interfere with their sales role simply because they dislike saying ‘No’ to people?”

And adapting time to changing conditions is seen in such items as “They use wait time to consider answers or next actions” and “Evaluates daily schedule to optimize sales activities”.

5. Creativity Sales Tips

The fifth of our 10 sales tips is that salespeople who are able to develop new ideas for satisfying customer needs and who can generate as well as evaluate multiple alternatives for novel customer problems are more likely to be successful than those who approach their customers in a conventional way. Sellers who are creative are more likely to think divergently about their products and can therefore persuade their customers by citing a wider and more attractive range of benefits. Furthermore, creative sellers can also apply their divergent thinking skills by devising novel procedures to acquire new clients.

Sales creativity is characterized by the ability to perceive the sales role and customer interactions in new ways, to find hidden patterns, to make connections between seemingly unrelated topics, and to generate solutions. It is salespeople’s ability to tap into their ‘inner’ pool of resources – knowledge, insight, information, inspiration and all the fragments populating our minds. To use all the sales skills that they have accumulated so far and to combine them in impactful new ways.

A big part of using creative thinking skills productively in a sales career is creating solutions to arising or nagging problems either with the sales role or with customers. In the face of issues at in the sales process or in customer engagement, a creative thinker’s mind jumps to new methods of resolution. Employers seek salespeople with these proven problem-solving abilities because they want to bring this energy to their company. When issues present themselves, sales management need to count on their salespeople to handle it effectively and perhaps even turn a problem into a positive situation.

6. Confidence

We know that the selling process consists of collecting information about a prospective customer, developing a sales plan based on research, transmitting messages to implement the plan, evaluating the impact of these messages, and making adjustments based on this evaluation .Research into purchasing emotions shows that buyers are reluctant to back a proposal that’s being pitched by a salesperson who is nervous, fumbling, and even overly confident. On the other hand, they are likely to be persuaded by a salesperson who speaks clearly, who holds his or her head high, who answers questions assuredly, and who readily admits when he or she does not know something.

Confident and assertive salespeople inspire confidence in others: their customers, their audience, their peers, their bosses, and their friends. The ability to gain the confidence of others is one of the key methods in which a self-confident salesperson finds success. When people express themselves with assurance, we tend to believe them. This is the “confidence bias”.  When listening to a confident salesperson, psychology proves that customers believe “If that salesperson seems to believe in what they’re saying, they’re probably right,”

7. Growth Mindset

One of our favorite sales tips is that a growth mind-set enables salespeople to believe that their most basic abilities can be developed through dedication and hard work. That brains and talent are just the starting point. This view creates a love of learning, sales training and a resilience that is essential for great accomplishment. The growth mindset is based on the belief that your qualities are things that you can cultivate and change through your own efforts. Essentially, the growth mindset allows individuals to change and grow through application, effort, and experience.

Building rapport with customers is an essential selling skill for SaaS companies. When you build rapport, you establish a connection with the customer, which makes them more likely to trust you and your product. This can be done in a variety of ways, such as finding common ground, using humor, or simply being friendly and approachable.

Building rapport can also involve active listening, which means paying attention to what the customer is saying and responding in a way that shows you understand and care about their needs. By building rapport with customers, you can create a positive relationship that can lead to more sales and even referrals.

8. Handling Sales Objections

Selling is about creating value in the minds of a customer, this is tip 8 out of 10 sales tips. So, when they throw out sales objections or indicate a reluctance to buy, it’s mainly because the value proposition of the offering and the value to the customer is out of balance. The key to handling objections is to listen carefully to the customer’s concerns and address them directly. This means re-framing objections as questions and providing thoughtful, well-reasoned responses.

Values are the mental models of what the customer believes is important to them. Although none of us can see them, their impact in the sales process is as real as any tangible object. Values include achievement of outcomes, efficiency, effectiveness, trust, security, and convenience, to name a few.

To overcome sales objections, salespeople need to understand that customers usually have five “Value Enablers” with one as their front-runner in deciding if to or not to buy. They are: 1) Speed 2) Innovation 3) Quality 4) Price or 5) Service.

When overcoming objections, know your value propositions and clarify which ones match that of  the personal and organizational values of the customer.

9. Closing the Sale

There are lots of sales tips on how to close a sales. It is not an event but a process, meaning that closing any sale is the end result or ultimate goal of a salespersons sales conversations. Closing or confirming the sale can involve a variety of sales techniques, such as the agreement staircase, asking for the sale directly, FOMO (urgency – fear of missing out) or offering special incentives or discounts.

Remember, closing a sale is not a one-size-fits-all process. Every customer and sales situation is unique, and success may depend on how the salesperson uses the various closing techniques, so it’s important to be flexible and adaptive in this sales stage.

Also, think about the difference between the words, “close” and “confirm.” If a salesperson closes the sale, the mind thinks something has just ended, as in closing a door. If they confirm the sale however, the door opens the beginning of a long-term relationship and referrals. Changing the language from closing to confirming is a more positive approach not only when beginning the sales process, but also when gaining agreement on the smaller  decisions that  eventually lead to  “Yes.”

10. Keep in contact

The last of our 10 sales tips is that keeping in contact and following up with customers can be easily overlooked once the sale is complete. However, this sales stage (and it should be mapped into the sales process) can be just as important as the initial sales conversation. Keeping in contact with customers can help with referrals, building credibility, opening doors to new contacts, and obtaining recommendations or case studies.

10 SALES TIPS

So, there are our 10 sales tips for the savvy salesperson. Click here for more free sales training, Thanks for reading.

Categories: Sales Training

Tags: 10 sales tips, free sales training, sales tips, sales training, selling tips

Source: 10 Sales Tips for Every Salesperson – The Digital Sales Institute

7 Ways to Improve the Sales Experience

Here we introduce 7 ways to improve the sales experience on your website. The sales experience on your website is critical to gathering leads or even to get your visitors converting to paid customers .

Source: 7 Ways to Improve the Sales Experience on Your Website – The Digital Sales Institute

Only focusing on the features, services, and items is not enough if you want to outpace your rivals in online sales. You should provide a seamless customer experience. Only focusing on the features, services, and items is not enough if you want to outpace your rivals in online sales. You should provide a seamless customer experience. Online shopping has become a trillion-dollar industry, with many preferring the convenience of at-home purchasing rather than making the trip to a retail establishment. But that does not mean that customers do not miss certain aspects of the traditional shopping experience from time to time.

The personalized attention from a store assistant, and quick and easy information about products, are some aspects of the retail shopping experience that online marketers are trying to bring back into their websites. Some tricky problems characteristics of online shopping platforms are also being paid close attention to improve the overall customer experience. Brands are working hard to make the sales process as simple, easy, and quick as possible.

In today’s day and age, when the e-commerce market has become highly competitive, subtle improvements in sales experience for the customers can go a long way in building customer loyalty and increasing lead conversions.

7 ways to improve the customer experience on your website

1. Engage the customers in the R&D process

Customers nowadays have thousands of options in every product category and price range. Competition in the online shopping sector is intense. So, customers have become very picky about what they like, and they will only buy products with certain specifications. Brands often struggle to meet these extremely particular requirements and deliver an engaging sales experience.

Still, an easy solution to the problem involves customers during the product development process, where customers can share their feedback about what features they want to add or remove. This can be done by inviting customers to join seminars, workshops, and other online events through the website. Brands can look online for registration form inspiration for these events. These online seminars can also be good for brands launching new products that must explain and demonstrate their usage to the public.

2. Make sure to check website speed

Online shoppers generally make purchases primarily to save money traveling to a store. So quick response time from online shopping is one of their main concerns. Business experts have found that 53% of smartphone users leave a site that takes more than 3 seconds to load. This leads to a decline in their traffic volume. Customers have no time to wait half a minute for an elaborately designed web page while shopping. Similarly, the transaction page should load, respond, and process payments quickly to give customers the most satisfactory experience.

3. Assess mobile responsiveness

An essential element of online shopping is the ability to make purchases from your smartphone. Most online retailers have a mobile application, or their website can also operate on mobile. But some sites do not open properly on mobile, the page view gets distorted, speeds are slower, and the page responsiveness declines. These problems will discourage many visitors from repeating your site’s purchases. A vast majority of online shopping happens via smartphones, so ensuring the mobile responsiveness of your e-commerce website should be a top priority for all brands.

4. Introduce live chat

One of the biggest factors customers miss from traditional physical stores is the ability to instantly communicate with a real human employee about any questions or concerns. Online brands are now trying to replicate this interaction with the help of a live chat option on their site. This chat option allows the customer to speak directly to support service personnel. Customers can ask questions about specific products, payment methods or delivery estimations. The support employee will immediately answer the customer’s queries so they do not have to wait and can make their purchase immediately. Live chat is a great way to quicken conversion at the final stages of the sales funnel and boost the sales experience for your visitors.

5. Allow customers to share product photos

Most online stores have options for customers to rate their products and share their reviews. Online stores also, of course, provide multiple pictures of their products. But these pictures are primarily clicked in a studio setting, and customers remain skeptical about how exactly the product will look in their own home setting. So, some brands have now started allowing customers to share pictures of the products after receiving them.

These pictures can be posted along with their reviews and will give other prospective buyers an idea about what the products look like in a real-life setting. These pictures often push buyers to be convinced about certain products finally. But of course, this strategy works only for certain categories of products.

The online store should also have a monitoring system to ensure that customers do not post anything inappropriate with their product photos. Brands can also pay social media influencers to make real reviews of their products and share them with their customers for more real-life proof.

6. Good landing pages

Many online brands are now driving traffic to their websites with the help of social media posts and PPC advertising. The customers can click on the links shared in these posts and ads and take them to the brand’s official website. But instead of just taking customers to a generic product search or a product category page, it can be more effective to make the landing pages more specific.

When customers click on an ad for a particular product, they should be brought to the landing page to purchase it. There can be options to search for similar products, but the basic landing page should be hyper-specific. This will encourage customers to make quick and immediate purchase decisions because it is convenient to buy from your brand.

7. Personalized sales recommendations

Finally, introducing personalized sales recommendations is one of the most important improvements any brand can make in the online sales experience. Online stores have the ability to store customer information very easily. They have plenty of data on what customers made what purchases on what date. So, the next time a customer visits the online store, this prior data can be processed through data analytics systems to create personalized product recommendations for the customer. These new soft sales skills recommendations will be in the product categories and the specific customer’s preferred price ranges. This customized sales experience makes customers feel more connected and loyal to the brand.

They also save a lot of time and will most likely return to the same online store for future purchases. In case new customers for whom the brand does not have any existing data, they can recommend their newest launches and best sellers.

How to build the perfect online sales experience?

The perfect online sales experience is all about the right mix of ease of usage and element of interest. An excellent online store must have an intuitive user interface and a simple navigation system. But the website design cannot be too generic and simplified. It should look sophisticated and well-planned to the user to gain confidence about the brand’s authenticity. Most brands use social media and traditional advertising to build customer trust. Still, no amount of marketing will be able to convince customers to make purchases if they feel that the website is not well-protected and is casually designed. For the vast majority of customers, the website design is a good indicator of the trustworthiness of any brand.

Of course, functional elements like device compatibility, speed and responsiveness are also important elements of the customer experience. Data analytics is another background process that can greatly impact how a site’s sales experience is designed. Data analytics will identify which stages of the sales funnel are experiencing the most attrition. Then those web pages can be worked on specifically to make improvements. Analytics is also beneficial in devising personalization strategies for the sales process. The more a brand can personalize its sales experience, the more customers will feel wanted by the brand and return to the same online store.

Many software solutions are now available online to automate different parts of the sales process. Data collection, data analytics, recommendation engines, and landing page generators can now be fully automated. Business owners with a small technical team can introduce complex technologies in their online store. All that is needed is a vision to build the ultimate sales experience for the customer. So, if you are trying to out-pace your competitors in the online sales sphere, remember that it is not enough to just focus on features, services, and products that your brand can offer. The focus has to be on building a complete experience for the customer from start to finish. Also don’t forget to provide sales training on your web and social media strategy.

How to really close a sale

How to really close a sale is about getting the prospect to take action now. This requires them to give you a yes commitment and agreeing to sign any necessary paperwork. Some salespeople find closing a sale to be stressful, however with the right skill, mindset, and techniques it does not need to be.
TO CLOSE A SALE, YOU NEED TO DEFINE THE NEED
Defining the need
Closing a sale with a prospect is a lot easier when you both take a learning pathway to understand the exact problem, situation, and expectations. The more information you can uncover, the better. The prospect has to come to see your solution as the fix to their problem and then take the steps to get the benefits they envision. On an emotional level if you are able to make them feel that they need it, you are closing the gap between where they are now and the future. Your role as salesperson is to get acceptance that what you are proposing has more value than the cost of other alternatives.

To really close a sale, it is important to use open questions during need definition so you can figure out the real answers. The questions that a prospect can answer with ‘yes’ or ‘no’ should be avoided in this stage. With these kind of questions there is a danger of leading a prospect in the wrong direction. Therefore, you will not have correct information. Good question words in this phase are the likes of ‘why’, ‘when’, ‘how often’, ‘who’, ‘how’. What is also useful is to know the current situation of the prospect when it comes similar products that he already possesses.

This is backed up by research into “need analysis approach” which suggests that early in the sales process you should focus on asking open questions and listening.

There are 5 key issues to consider when preparing for the final sales negotiation:
1. What outcome does the prospect want to achieve?
2. What information will influence the outcome of the negotiation?
3. What concessions have I got to trade with. What is the cost and value of each concession?
4. What is my plan of action?
5. What tasks will you and other members of your team be responsible for in the negotiation?

Closing the sale
You can do everything right in the sales process and can still fail if you do not have the skill, courage, or knowhow on how to close a deal. Closing a sale is one of the most feared moves especially for a new salesperson when dealing with a prospect. One of the reasons is that we tend to have a fear of rejection. You must understand is that hearing ’no’ is part of selling’. However, what needs to be understood is that prospects are smart enough to know that you are trying to sell, and closing is part of the process. It is even considered strange if you do not try to secure a deal with some sort of closing technique.

Any sale can fail if you do not match the prospects problem or situation with a credible solution where the future state is a better one than where they are now. It is rare for a prospect to make the suggestion to finish a deal. It is worth noting that closing is a continuous process throughout the sale, and you must be prepared to try and close a deal more than once, most preferably several times. The first closing attempt activates both you and the prospect to negotiation mode. If the prospect has agreed that a need really exists, their guard is lower, and this is a perfect time to secure strong commitments towards buying your solution.

Naturally prospects have a high sales resistance in the beginning of any sales process. However, when doing your job well by defining needs and building trust, when you move over towards the closing phase the resistance is lower. That being said, closing can be done at any point during the sales process. However, you should always observe when the interest of the prospect is high. This changes during the sales process. If a prospect hears about a key benefit to them, their intention to purchase rises. In these moments you are likely to spot buying signals. Early in the sales process it is essential to activate the customer’s purchase senses with soft closing efforts such as budget, need, authority to act and timing.

To really close a sale requires you to build trust, credibility, provide proof and that your solution is believable. Hit these markers and the price becomes more and more irrelevant. Therefore, in certain sales situations it is possible to close a deal without agreeing on the price yet. An example of moving to closing after proving the need:

You: As you mentioned before, you are cleaning your house five times a week since
you do not like living in a dusty house and there is an allergy in your family. Now that you
have seen what this cleaning device can do for you, it can remove all dust and allergies, do you agree?
Prospect: I agree.
You: Ok, here is what I suggest we do… (moving on to one of the closing techniques)

The good news is that closing a sale is natural if a prospect is convinced that it solves their problem, and they have a vision of what they will gain from buying it. Your role is to guide the prospect on a learning pathway where all options are discussed and a clear path to purchase has been outlined. If there is an objection, the prospect will tell you after you try to close the deal. Objections are an opportunity to move the sale forward if handled correctly.

Free Sales Training Videos

Techniques To Close A Sale.

1. Give the prospect two options – each directed towards a deal.
This technique provides a smart way towards closing. You give the prospect two options
to move forward. For example, you could ask if a prospect wants to pay in instalments
or all in once. Whichever option the prospect chooses, it move the needle towards a sale. If
this technique is used, the prospect needs to be genuinely interested in finding a solution to
make it work the best. Word of caution. You must use the two option technique sparingly to close a sale as professional buyers can feel they are being narrowed down.

2. What’s your opinion?
Ask for feedback on the prospect’s opinion at key stages of the sales cycle. This is the only way to judge when the final confirming question should be asked. You might ask,

How does this program sound?
Which of these two options do you like best?
What’s your impression so far?
How do you feel about the lease option program?
What additional information do you need in order to make a decision?

3. If/Then
Ask an if or a then question can also help close a sale. If we can get the financing approved, then would you be interested in moving forward? Or something specific that addresses a need such as, If we can get it customized to your specifications, are you ready to move forward?

4. In order to move forward…
When a prospect shows buying signals, such asking questions, head nods, or even a forward lean, assume interest exists. You might ask,
In what ways will this resolve your issue?
Wait for a positive response, then assume the sale.
In order to move forward, we need to…
Then present next steps. You might also add a direct statement such as,
I’m looking forward to working with you.

5. If we can meet your need for X…
If we can meet your need for X, then are you ready to approve the order?
Or, If we can get it for 10% less, then are you ready to move forward?
This combines the Conditional Confirmation and the “If/Then” methods together.

6. We’re running a special…
We’re running a special on that item today. We’re offering it at 15% off list price until 5:00. Let’s get you that cost savings. Then assume the sale by moving into an Alternative Choice such as,
Would you prefer the bronze or platinum package?

7. The Presentation Yes
You might ask,

Seller: Do you like the service terms?
Buyer: Sounds good.
Seller: Do you like the quality?
Buyer: I was very impressed!
Seller: You can get an approval?
Buyer: Yes, Frank and I discussed this last week.
Seller: Then let’s move forward with the agreement. Here’s how we can get started…

Then move into your next steps. This combines Ascending Yes with the Direct Confirmation.

8. The Demo Yes
This Ascending Yes works well after a demonstration. You might ask:

Seller: Did the demo clarify everything?
Buyer: Yes, thanks.
Seller: Have we met or exceeded your expectations?
Buyer: Definitely! It has what we’ve been looking for.
Seller: Are you in agreement with the proposal?
Buyer: It sounds like a good plan.
Seller: Would you like us to get started next week?
Buyer: Sure, that would work.

This combines Ascending Yes with the Direct Confirmation. If the prospect gets excited, you should move forward to close a sale.

How Do You Improve at Closing A Sale?
Words create powerful images that influence thinking. Connotation is king. The word “close” for example, means to obstruct an opening or entrance, to shut out, block, or hinder access. Also, a closed mind blocks new ideas. To “confirm” means to verify, establish the certainty of something; to strengthen, or make binding by way of a formal agreement. Which would you rather do?
Strengthen the certainty of your relationship and bind together in a formal agreement, or block access, not only for your prospect but your mind as well?

Know Your Prospect or Customer.
To close a sale requires you to clarify the value you are bringing and that the prospects issues come first. Research your prospect, the company, and the market. What does their job entail, what market challenges are there, what would their day look like. What could their pain points be? How does your solution address them? Why will they listen to your value proposition? The hardest part of selling is to get a real, genuine conversation started, for this to happen you must be credible and useful. As good sales training programs will tell you – People still buy from people.

Map Out Potential Objections.
It is very unlikely that any solution you can offer is a perfect one. Therefore, there may be a few objections that you find arise on a regular basis. You will learn what these are from interactions that you have with customers. You may also be able to pre-empt some objections by understanding where your offering is different from your competition and, therefore, what expectations customers may have. Thinking through the risks inherent in a purchase may also help in understanding objections that you might receive when the time comes to close a sale.

As you gain experience of selling a particular product or service, you will know what objections you frequently encounter. It is likely that there will only ever be a few. When you know what these are, the idea is to pre-handle them. By pre-handle, we mean that you introduce them, rather than waiting for your customer to raise them in response to something you have said.

Make Buying Easier
The buyer’s path to purchase is not a straight line. Therefore, winning the sale is no longer characterized by a logical progression. The journey is dynamic and iterative.
Sales interactions starts and stops and sometimes even reverses. Customer timelines become obscure, and motivation to buy changes shape. This life-sized game of Snakes and Ladders is the new reality for salespeople today.

To really close a sale requires you to truly understanding the customers path to purchase means embracing the turns in the path. We must acknowledge that success comes from a dynamic approach to selling. Many of us already see the effects of a changing customer who demands a different approach. The question is, can we be proactive in our drive to change with them. It’s not enough to observe that buying has become more complicated. We must make the moves necessary to lead the customer and help them navigate the journey.  See here some free sales training tips.

Source: How to really close a sale – The Digital Sales Institute

Sales Objections And How To Overcome Them

When dealing with sales objections, the first thing you need to understand is that an objection is how a buyer communicates that a gap exists between their current situation and the clarity of the problem to be resolved before proceeding to buy.

Understanding what Sales Objections are.

So, a sales objection is communicated by a buyer that a barrier exists between the status quo and what needs to be satisfied before making a commitment to buy from you. Unlike concerns (examples include delivery or schedules), an objection arises because the buyer is not convinced or even predisposed, at this time, that your product or service can solve their problems. Remember that buying is a “change management project” so they will have a reluctance towards your offering, as they understand it. An objection is raised as a barrier to a purchase being made due to change, the size of change or the impact that change will have on them and their business.

Due to the fact that you as a salesperson, need to highlight pain, the cost of inaction and bring attention to unconsidered needs, sales objections must be viewed as a natural and necessary part of your sales process. Knowing that objections will arise allows you to plan even pre-empt for them. You can create a process for handling them, learn the discipline to show understanding and empathy while acquiring the sales skill to control your emotions as you dig deeper into the root cause of the objection.

The important thing for you to know is that all of these skills can be learned and developed.

 

Handling Sales Objections

Tip 1.

The best way to handle objections is not to create any.

You can often create objections because you make assumptions, suggestions or comments which have no relevance to the buyer. You may also to be too quick to offer solutions which are unsuitable, impractical, or inappropriate. By truly following your sales process, having meaningful conversations that undertake a proper diagnosis to see if a problem exists and refrain from drawing conclusions before this has been achieved, you are unlikely to say the wrong thing and create objections. At any time if you are unsure of your customer’s situation, ask and clarify before suggesting anything. In this way you will minimize objections, because fewer will be created.

Tip 2.

Maintain a Running List of Buyer Objections.

You will most certainly encounter lots of similar questions or concerns across your sales conversations. Group them into a running list of sales objections. Each time you hear a new one, add it to your list. Then write out your response to that objection and practice the dialogue exchange as you answer it. I recommend that you write out a couple of variations on the responses so that you are prepared for a buyer who needs a higher level of comfort.

Tip 3.

View Objections as Opportunities.
As you now understand that sales objections are when buyers believe that there is a gap between their current situation and the motivation to change it now. Yes, handling these objections will require you to master this skill so you need to invest in learning the various techniques. Your sales mindset should always view objections as an opportunity to get commitments from the buyer that you can close this gap and in so progress towards an agreement. Any time the buyer raises a flag is your chance to establish and build credibility with them. The more credibility you build, the further over you will go towards securing the deal.

Sales Objections are NUT$.

Whether it is digital selling or traditional selling, most objections can be grouped into four types:

Need: Lack of need as buyer does not yet accept, or does not admit, the need to solve a problem

Urgency: Lack of Urgency as the Buyer does not yet see the impact and value of your solution

Trust: Lack of Trust as Buyer feels uncertainty about you, your solution, or your company

$: Lack of Money: Buyer tells you that there is no budget for your solution

Managing Objections.

OK, you now know that the four types of objections are not stumbling blocks but an integral part of your sales process. In an ideal world, you would never get any. By not creating objections and pre-handling the ones that may arise, you can minimize the number of objections occurring. However, there will always be times when you have to respond to any objection. If and when the buyer brings up a sales objection, do not panic, stay in control, pause and breath, keep your voice confident (as if you get these questions all the time), nod to show your understanding and then deploy the following four-step process for overcoming objections. These steps will work for you in most sales objections. The personalized and specific response to the buyers question will vary depending on which of the four objection types you are responding to.

 The 4 step Sales Objections Handling Process.

1. Listen
2. Understand
3. Respond
4. Confirm

Step 1: Listen Fully to the Objection

Your first reaction when you hear sales objections may be to jump right in and respond immediately. Resist this temptation. When you react too quickly, you risk making assumptions about the objection. Instead, take the time to listen to the objection fully.

Guidelines

Do not react defensively. Train yourself to ignore any negative emotions you might be feeling. Stay focused on what your client is saying and the business challenge you are helping to solve. Emotions are natural, but you cannot let them interfere with your buyer interactions.

Take a deep breath. Don’t allow yourself to sigh or tighten up. Keep breathing and stay focused.

Listen actively. Listen with the intent of fully understanding the buyer’s concerns without bias or anticipation. Allow your body language and verbal confirmations to communicate to the buyer that you are listening intently.

Step 2: Understand the Objection Completely

Many objections hide underlying issues that the buyer can’t or isn’t ready to articulate. Often the true issue is not what the buyer first tells you. It’s your job to get to the heart of the objection, and then fully understand it and its true source. Repeat back what you heard, in a concise version. The intent of repeating back is to ensure you completely understand what the objection actually is.

Guidelines

Ask permission to understand and explore the issue. Get permission and give yourself license to stay here and work on it.

Restate the concern as you understand it. Sometimes when you restate the objection, the buyer sees the issue more fully. As a result, you get closer to the true source of the objection.

Ask “What else?” and “Why” questions for clarification. Even after the buyer confirms you understand perfectly, ask some form of “What else?” You’ll get more information. When you ask why (e.g., “Why do you ask that? Why is that important? Or any other why-type question), you can get to the heart of the issue. Often buyers will elaborate, and that is very helpful to you both.

Often, it is the answer to that last “What else?” that contains the biggest barrier to moving the sale forward.

But unless you go through all of the other “What else?” replies, the real barrier continues to exist.

Step 3: Respond Properly

After you’re confident that you’ve uncovered all the sales objections, address the most important objection first. Once you work through the greatest barrier to moving forward, other concerns may no longer matter or feel as important to the buyer.

Guidelines

Choose your words carefully. As with all of your client interactions, do not respond defensively when selling. Be sure to address their specific concern…don’t be cagey.

Respond. Do your best to resolve the issue right away. When you face a more complex sales objection, your instinct may be to put the discussion on hold so you can research the matter further. The more you can resolve issues in real time, the greater chance you have of moving the sale forward. This is where your preparation and practice pays dividends. If you have to, however, you may need to look into something. If you do need more information, don’t wing it. Buyers can sense that. It creates distrust.

Minimize your words. Long-winded responses can sound insincere. Keep your responses clear and to the point.

Step 4: Confirm You’ve Satisfied the Objection

Once you’ve responded to the buyer’s sales objections, it’s time to check if you’ve satisfied all of their concerns. Just because they nodded during your response doesn’t mean they agreed with everything you said. Ask if the buyer is happy with your solution. You won’t know if you don’t ask.

Guidelines

Ask if you’ve satisfied the objection. Don’t assume anything about what the buyer is thinking. Ask if your response made sense and if there are any other concerns.

Explain your solution further if necessary. Depending on the situation, you may do this immediately or you may need to schedule another time. Some objections require a process to overcome, not a quick answer.

Forms of Asking “What Else?”

• “What else is bothering you?”
• “What else does that affect?”
• “What else is on your mind?”
• “What else is getting in the way of moving forward?”

Sales objections don’t have to stop you. Handling them is just one of the sales skills you can learn and develop. Developing this skill will bring more discipline in how you handle them, discipline leads to control which will bring a newfound confidence into every aspect of your selling.

Categories: Sales Training

Tags: handling sales objections, how to handle sales objections, overcoming sales objections, sales objections, sales obstacles

Source: Sales Objections And How To Overcome Them – The Digital Sales Institute

Sales and GDPR

Sales and GDPR is becoming an issue across many geographies. For many companies, selling is not easy. Even the thought of cold calling, consistent following up, and rejections can ruin a sales team’s day. Top it with the necessity to remain compliant with GDPR, nightmares are inevitable.

For sales teams, GDPR is unavoidable. Prospecting has evolved, and sales practices must now comply with the GDPR or face fines. Due to the EU data privacy regulation known as GDPR, which went into effect in May 2018, the manner you used to sell has changed dramatically. GDPR is causing businesses to react in one of two ways: open distress or hidden disdain.

Although the law is wide and broad, it lacks precision in terms of what vendors can and cannot do. Sellers are feeling the sting of severe and unduly cautious directives generated by acute sales and GDPR concerns. There’s already so much pressure to satisfy often-outdated marketing and conversion KPIs.

In this article, we will give you five tips that will help you remain compliant with GDPR whilst selling.

Sales and GDPR – How to Remain Compliant

Here are five tips to help you remain compliant with GDPR whilst selling. They are as follows.

1. Ask permission when sending cold emails
2. Ask consent for purchased leads
3. Use social selling
4. Leverage the benefits of cold calling
5. Don’t underestimate your website

Read on to see how you can implement these tips in real life

1.   Ask permission when sending cold emails

You’ll need to quit sending out cold marketing emails and advertisements on autopilot. Sending automated sales emails to consumers without first acquiring their authorization is prohibited under GDPR. This includes quick catch-up emails, product demos, and ‘just reaching out’ emails, as well as any other method of interaction that your clients did not request. If you’ve never spoken with a customer before, show in your active sales email that you attempted calling them before emailing them. However, if the email has been sent to a person rather than a cluster of recipients (and includes an unsubscribe link, it’s almost certainly automated). So, if you incorporate a link to your user agreement trying to explain why you’re contacting them in the first place, you can keep sending cold sales emails to potential customers.

2.   Ask consent for purchased lead lists

Purchased lead lists can be a terrific method to fill in the gaps in your sales pipeline, whether it’s during a dry spell or to supplement your existing prospecting efforts. However, this has changed. If you buy leads from third-party ‘lead generators,’ you’ll need to receive special permission to utilize the email addresses on the list, unless they’ve agreed to be contacted by affiliated partners.

You can contact them in this situation. You must, however, obtain verification of their consent from the third-party vendor from whom you obtained the list. Moreover, you must also allow them to unsubscribe from your email messages. This sales and GDPR-related adjustment has an impact on previously acquired leads as well. If you’ve already acquired leads for your mailing list but haven’t contacted them, you’ll need to get written permission from the third-party vendor before sending marketing communications.

3.   Use social selling

Many salespeople are unfamiliar with the term ‘social selling.’ Despite this, only one out of every four salespeople uses social selling. It’s quickly becoming a popular technique to prospect for those who do use it. The good news is that GDPR does not preclude you from using social media to find and communicate with potential consumers. Whether you communicate with clients online and ask for advice or reach out to new consumers directly, you can keep using social media as part of your overall sales strategy. You may contact these folks and seek approval to create and market to them once they’ve approved your connection request. Keep in mind that in the social media realm, the notion of delivering value before asking for something still applies so use soft sales skills. Spamming your social media contacts will produce the same results as spamming prospects through any other route.

If the conversation moves away from social media, you’ll need to show that you have a legitimate reason to contact them by email or phone. Obtaining their consent is the best way to achieve this. However, you cannot use this consent to send them promotional emails.

4.   Sales and GDPR – Leverage the benefits of cold calling

One of the most efficient ways to develop new connections with prospective customers is by cold calling.

Is cold calling, however, permitted under the GDPR?

The good news is that cold calling is exempt from the GDPR’s regulations, giving it a new lease on life, which is great news for cold callers. It’s worth mentioning that you’ll require their approval before you can start delivering them promotional deals whenever you add a new customer to your CRM system. So, while you’re on the phone with a potential customer, simply ask whether they’d want to get newsletters. If they approve, send them a link to a website where they can modify their subscriptions and select which headlines, blogs, and alerts they wish to receive. Unless you record a call with a prospect, cold contacting can be tough to document their consent. Send an email detailing what you discussed on the phone conversation to get across this.

5.   Don’t underestimate your website

Your site is a fantastic way to get new prospects.

If you gather contact information from site visitors using a web form, now is the time to examine the type of data you collect. This is due to GDPR’s need that you provide legal justifications for the personal information you acquire. This means that in the future, you will only be able to request information that you require rather than information that you want. When requesting personal information such as salary and date of birth can help you identify and prioritize prospects, you must be able to substantiate your request. If you can’t explain the extra information, stick to asking for the person’s name, firm, and business email address. You must also be transparent and upfront about how and why you utilize their data, as well as provide them with the option to opt-in or opt-out.

This means that just because someone provided you their email to register for a webinar does not really mean they’ve subscribed to all of your email lists.

Wrapping Up

That’s a wrap for this article. Hopefully, these tips will help you remain compliant with GDPR whilst selling and prevent you from landing in legal feuds. Remember, sales and GDPR enforcement has changed the way you sell, and you must tailor your sales strategy keeping that in mind. If you still have any questions related to the same, don’t forget to reach out to us via the comments.

Source: Sales and GDPR – How to Remain Compliant – The Digital Sales Institute

Basic Sales Tactics That Work

Basic sales tactics can sometimes be overlooked in the quest to create a more complex sales strategy or sales process that is more flair than factual. As every salesperson or business owner knows, the goal of selling is to acquire more customers – profitably!!

All sales tactics needs to be planned in order to be effective, as the right tactics are key to making your business grow and achieving your goals.

Apart from well thought our sales tactics, digital marketing has now also become central to every sales strategy. And it us no longer just about good content or high traffic to your website. Nowadays, selling is all about targeting the right profile of buyer, the buyer who is more likely to buy your products and services due to their pain points or challenges. The old sales methods of attracting customers is slowing declining because the more traditional sales tactics and sales pitches have already probably reached everyone. And this means sales strategies have changed quite a bit these days. To scale a business, you just can’t depend on Google AdWords anymore to drive sales leads (not saying don’t do it, but it doesn’t seem like an actual strategy for increasing sales).

Here are some of the best basic sales tactics that can drive in tons of new customers for your business:

1.      Email Marketing and Basic Sales Tactics

It isn’t the spammy email marketing that you’re thinking of. It’s actually about sending highly personalized emails with relevant information related to what the person is looking for or wants. You can also use social media platforms to collect contact details of people interested in what you have to offer and send them personalized messages that they will appreciate more than traditional advertising.

One to one personalized email marketing involves the selective of targeting of specific customers or prospects and engaging them with a content that matters to them. It can be anything from an introduction, some research, a whitepaper, news, or an invitation to something specific.  Personalized email marketing will not guarantee a sales lead, but it gives you a better chance of opening a sales conversation. Email marketing as one of your basic sales tactics should not be overlooked.

2.      Social Media and Social Selling

If you don’t know how to use social media and social selling as part of your sales tactics, then recruit someone who does. Social media is a superb channel to influence and garner attention. Regular blogs with great content (and SEO keywords) when shared on social media can be a potential inbound lead channel. Social selling involves salespeople using social media to reach buyers and an audience. It is not about selling but rather making real and meaningful connections. Digital selling (using the social media channels) is now a key component of any sales strategy. However, salespeople need to be trained how to navigate their way, so they don’t harm your brand or reputation.

3.      Affiliate Marketing

It involves someone else in your sale. So, if you want others to do the selling for you, then affiliate marketing should consider. The idea is that someone posts links to your online platform and earns a commission if anything gets sold there through their links. It brings more traffic and exposure, which is also a great strategy for small businesses looking for growth.

4.      Emphasize the benefits not the features

Suppose there’s something that all good salespeople have in common, their belief in their product. They always believe that they are truly unique and offer something different from the competition. If this isn’t something you’ve installed in your business yet, now is the time to do it.

One thing that can help sell your product is your understanding of it. What are the real benefits, what problems are you solving, why does that matter to buyers, why would they listen or even care? You will have to know each little aspect, including the problems that it solves, how it works, and especially the results that the client will get when they buy it.

5.      Basic Sales Tactics Sell with emotion

People purchase things to make their lives easier whether as a consumer or in business. You could say all buying decisions use emotions, not always with logic. A good salesperson knows how to use both to make a sale, but they always lean towards selling by feeling. Teach a customer to feel something not just know about it.

Instead of focusing on what people should do, focus on how your product can make them feel. Words like “imagine”, “think about it”, “how would you feel” “in the future”, “what it will look like” etc. That’s why you need to express the benefits constantly. How will their future state be better once they’ve purchased this over all other options? It is something that you need to convey always. Write down every benefit that your product provides so you can refer to it any time you need then as part of your basic sales tactics.

Moreover, you can also join the digital sales institute, and its mission is to empower salespeople with all the selling skills they need to succeed in an ever-changing market.

6.      Communicate, communicate, communicate

There’s nothing worse than a silent sale. Don’t be afraid to let people know what you have and why they should buy it. Then again, please don’t overdo it either. You need the right amount of talking so that your prospects can process information but not too much because then you’ll be seen as annoying. Besides, if people are very interested in what you’re offering, they’ll ask questions without you needing to pry them about it.

Wrapping Up!

Do not overlook the basic sales tactics to improve your sales skills when it comes to implementing your sales strategy. Also, it may be a good idea to let an IT support company will take care of your technology needs, keeping your business website and social channels safe from attacks, be it online or offline.  IT support San Diego is one such company but search around and find one that works for you.

So, these are some basic sales tactics that you can use to increase conversion rates and grow your business faster than ever (not saying it won’t take time). And remember, even if one sales tactic works for someone, it may not work at all for the other person, so consider trying out all of them before deciding on what works best for you!

Source: Basic Sales Tactics That Work – The Digital Sales Institute

Sales Prospecting Emails That Get Responses

Learn how to create sales prospecting emails that will get read and generate responses from prospects and customers as part of your sales tactics.

The role of sales prospecting emails in the sales process gets questioned from time to time. Well, we do live in a fully digital age, we make online purchases; we communicate with family and friends via texts and social media posts. Any business engaged in marketing and sales must use all the digital means at their disposal, from stunning websites, engaging, and compelling blog posts, social media promotions, online advertising, and more. All of these are designed to keep existing customers and to attract new ones.

How About Email?

One primary method of finding prospects is through emails. In fact, if done right, research shows that Email marketing has a high ROI of all marketing activities and tools. For every dollar spent, marketers can expect an average return of $42.

The question becomes this: how does a company craft sales prospecting emails that will actually get opened and then generate responses? Given the fact that the average consumer receives just under 150 emails a day and that they delete or “spams” a full 24% of sales emails, sales and marketers know that they have to “buck” these statistics with emails that will work.

The answer lies in using the following strategies and tips. They will increase your “odds” and certainly help to effectively communicate with prospects and convert them into ultimate customers.

1. Identifying the Right Prospects

In sales, you have spent a lot of time researching your target audience. And there are plenty of data-gathering tools to help you do this. Having a truly accurate customer profile allows you to compare prospects against it and then to decide whether sending an email is worth it.

Where do you go to find prospects that are a fit? You can start with social media. All the major platforms have “groups” with similar interests and demographics. Suppose, for example, you are a business that is offering meal kits for busy millennials. You can use the analytics of the major social media platforms to identify these groups and monitor their conversations or recommendations. You can then participate in those conversations, discussions and provide a backlink to your website. From there, you can nurture further and, perhaps by providing great insights you can garner an email address. This will be a good prospect. All of this takes time.

There are other email tools you can use that may provide a prospect email list based upon the characteristics you identify. These come with a cost, of course, but a good resource will be invaluable. And it will save you lots of time.

2. Personalization Matters

Personalization is as simple as addressing a prospect by name. Or is it? Actually, it’s not. Adding a personal touch means that you address a pain point that your prospect is experiencing, both in your subject line and in your email content itself. Otherwise, you are sending just another sales pitch. Even if they need the product or service, if they don’t feel that you are in tune with their unique need, they will be unmoved.

Do you offer a subscription box service? What problem does it solve for your prospect? Whether it is software, disposable razors, diapers, or wine, how does this provide efficiency or delight to your prospect? When your sales prospecting emails focuses on that, you will have “hit a nerve,” and the chances of a response are so much greater.

This is just as important for B2B prospect marketing. What pain points have you gleaned from your research, perhaps on LinkedIn? Does someone have an issue with managing remote workers that can be solved by your software? Your email should address that issue in a personal way.

3. That All-Important Subject Line

Journalists understand this. They know that their headline must grab the immediate attention of the reader. It has to have psychological appeal and pique curiosity if the potential reader is to move forward. And so, it goes with email subject lines. If you do not “strike a nerve” with that subject line, you are relegated to the “delete” button or, worse, to spam. Many journalists spend as much time on the headline as they do on the article itself.

You, too, must spend a lot of time on that subject line. Can you ask a question that will resonate and address a pain point? Can you indicate that you have a solution to a problem you know they face?

“Are you tired of dirty razors?” “Done with lugging huge packages of diapers from the car?” “Struggling to keep your remote team all on the same page?” These are subject lines that will probably resonate with your targets.

If you want to analyze the effectiveness of your subject lines, there are a number of tool that will do this for you. Plus, you can also test different headlines for resonation (more on that later).

Above all, your sales prospecting emails should avoid “salesy” pitchers like “Get your discount not!” or “Buy now for a great price offer!” How many emails do you think people get with these types of subject lines? Too many, and they are not impressed.

4.   Sales Prospecting Emails Should Be Brief

One of the biggest mistakes you can make is to wax profoundly on who you are, what your company is all about, and more. In fact, long emails are not read. Prospective customers and clients are busy people. They want to know what you are offering and “get in and get out.”

Your sales prospecting emails have one single purpose. You are introducing a value and a solution to a prospect with a single method for them to respond. There are lots of studies that show email recipients most often read emails that are between 75-100 words. And this study included an analysis of over 40 million emails. Use this as a guide as you craft the body of your email. Keep your message singular and short.

5. It’s All About Value and Benefit

Marketers understand this as they create other marketing content. Email body content is no different. It’s not about you – it’s about the prospect.

How can your prospect benefit from the product or service you offer? Think this through carefully as you write your sales prospecting emails. This is not the time to talk about your company or detailed product features. It is time to talk about solutions to problems.

A smart marketer from Help Scout once said, “People are not interested in buying a bed. They are interested in a good night’s sleep.” Do you see the difference here?  The features of your “bed” are unimportant in a prospect email – that’s for later. The benefit is getting that better sleep.

Think about the pain point you are solving, and explain it in less than 125 words. Your response rate will be far greater.

6. Include Social Proof if You Can

This may be tough in a very brief email body. But it is a powerful psychological tool. People do not like to feel that they are missing out and not going with the crowd.

There are a few ways that you can do this. You can mention the numbers of new customers who have come on board in the last year. If you have a famous person who uses your product or service, all the better.

Another way to get around this without lengthening the body of your email is through an attachment that the recipient can then choose to open or not. This attachment might include verifiable testimonials with full names of actual customers; it could include a case study of how a company or an individual consumer benefitted from your product or service. This might be the place to present a video of a happy customer.

7. Provide a Single and Clear Call to Action

Don’t leave it up to the recipient to think about what action to take. You do not want to propose options. You want your prospect to do one thing and one thing only. Make it clear and decisive. You have to control the next step.

8. Get Your Timing Right

You actually can conduct some research that will show the best times of the day that your typical prospects will be going through their emails. You can look at your own history of email opens by current customers, because they have the same demographics as your prospects. If you use a good email service, that company will track the openings and provide full reports that include these times.

9. Don’t Shy Away from Follow-Up Emails

Of course, you don’t want to harass prospects. That is the fastest way to get “spammed.” But a following up on your sales prospecting emails after a reasonable period of time, is not harassment. Many email campaigns do not provide for this, and it is a mistake. And if you wait for reasonable periods, you can send additional follow-ups as well.

10. Do The Testing

You understand what A/B testing is. Your email service should provide this. You should A/B test one thing at a time – your subject lines, your body content, your calls to action, and the time of day they are sent. Divide your prospect audience and deliver your two versions. Review the reports you get, and keep the more successful versions.

These 10…

Sales prospecting and converting prospects into customers is not for the faint of heart. It takes research, planning, strategizing, and persistence. And while sales prospecting emails can be a platform with the greatest ROI, it can also be an epic fail, if not done right. Take these 10 strategies and tips seriously, implement them, and you will have campaigns that will resonate with your prospects.

Source: Sales Prospecting Emails That Get Responses – The Digital Sales Institute