Sales is a tough business. A complex
sales cycle can take six months to a
year before the deal is closed. The process is long and involved. Since every customer sees many salespeople every week, it
is important to differentiate yourself and
your company from the pack.
Smart Business asked Rick Lawson, vice
president of new business development for
InfoCision Management Corp., Akron, for
some advice on how to get customers to the
bottom line in an effective, efficient manner.
What is the first step in getting a customer to
‘yes’?
The most important step in new business
development is to spend time researching the
prospect. First, figure out whether the needs
of the prospect align with the services or
products you provide. As an example, don’t
go to a prospect with international operations if your support capabilities are limited
to domestic sales and service.
Spend time researching the prospect. Look
at its annual reports. Do Internet searches.
Look for articles that quote the company’s
CEO. Try to get a feel for where it sees its
business in three to five years. This process
opens up your understanding of the market
and the companies you anticipate engaging.
Be prepared to understand — in detail —
what your company can do for them.
Then, identify the highest-level executive
you can speak to in that organization. Don’t
start low and try to work your way up. You
might see a person in a lower-level position
who is nice and listens to your proposal —
but it’s really a waste of time. Identify and
approach an executive who has a broad view
across the prospect’s strategic landscape.
Once you identify a target, what’s next?
The next step is to obtain an interview, to
get in front of that senior-level prospect. The
mistake many people make once they get the
interview is to load up on PowerPoint presentations and give a one-sided talk about
their business, their manufacturing capability
or JD Power ratings. Instead, give the other
side time to explain its needs. I like to go into
an interview with a blank piece of paper. On one side, list the prospect’s current state. On
the other, list the desired state. Work from
global concepts to specifics. This model is a
fantastic tool to glean where the prospect’s
strategic objectives are headed. When you
are done, the prospect — not you — has built
a bridge to where it wants to be. That bridge
should be your offering.
Is it now time to ask for the sale?
Right. Craft a proposal. Target the proposal
based on how your company’s products and
services will get prospects where they want
to be in one, three or five years. This is much
more powerful than talking about manufacturing capability or ISO approvals. This
approach lets you establish credibility. You’ve
built a relationship. They know you are serious about the process and understand the
complexities and the gaps in their program.
What should be in the proposal?
Write something that is aligned with the
areas that you plan to address. Be sure it
states that these are needs that the prospect
has identified, not just things that you want to
sell. Say, in so many words, ‘Here’s what we
propose to meet the needs you’ve identified.’
Don’t just pull up a boilerplate document
and change names on the company’s standard proposal. You must respond to the
prospect’s specific needs. It helps to bring in
cross-functional teams so everyone is on
board within your company. Give prospects
an actionable document that they can take to
their CEO for approval.
What if the prospect says ‘no’?
You will have to overcome objections.
Some are in the form of questions: ‘Is this
your best deal?’ Others will be statements:
‘You’re too expensive.’ This is the time to file
off the rough edges.
Always respond from a position of
strength. Don’t back down. Tie your responses to how your product or service will help
prospects meet their strategic plans. Always
loop the answer back to helping them get
where they want to be. Then, close the deal.
Don’t be afraid to ask for the business. Make
presumptive statements like, ‘Can we start in
10 days?’ or, ‘Where can I send the contract?’
What about following up?
The sales process does not stop here, in
fact, it is really just beginning. This is where
most sales organizations really fall short.
Remember to measure, monitor and platform. By this, I mean that once the program
is up and running, the salesperson must
measure and monitor the program. Be sure
to live up to your proposal.
Being successful in measuring and monitoring your service once you have started will
position you for future sales. Look for add-on
sales. See if you can make a similar sale to a
different division. Get referrals. It’s much easier to use a reference to get another job than
it is to try to find a new prospect.
RICK LAWSON is vice president of new business development at
InfoCision Management Corp., Akron. He has a broad background
in financial and outsourcing services. He can be reached at
[email protected]. In business for 25 years, InfoCision
Management Corporation is the second largest privately held teleservices
company and a leading provider of customer care services, commercial
sales and marketing for a variety of Fortune 100 companies and smaller
businesses. InfoCision is also a leader of inbound and outbound marketing for nonprofit, religious and political organizations. InfoCision operates
32 call centers at 13 locations throughout Ohio, Pennsylvania and West
Virginia. For more information, visit www.infocision.com.
