Develop a Superior Sales Strategy in St. Augustine Beach, FL
It is Transformation Time.
I am obsessed by strategic sales and the very best-selling methods to carry out and to perform that role. What is right about selling, what is missing, what does not work, and what can be improved to perform the sales role in corporations? The sales position continues to evolve. However, I am not and have never been a risk taker. The very best skills are required for success. This is a place for a strategic planner and strategic consultant.
Boston Consulting is now considered the five-star consulting firm in their industry.
They have fewer than 3,000 employees. At the other side, is Accenture Consulting. They are a company with 38,000 employees and are a training ground and springboard for first-time, new hires. Hundreds and hundreds of other consulting companies are now defunct.
Why?
Customers are turning to their own data research to diagnose their own needs. This trend will continue and soon vendors will be left to fight over smaller and smaller margins and there will be less and less market share to go around. Sales executives must know their clients and customers, as well as have the very best consulting team.
The market is less predictable, and forecasting revenues is more difficult than ever before. This is hardly new news. But there are sales strategies and sales tactics that take on your competition and win.
Are your consulting sales applications stimulating, out-of-the-box thinking, and do they challenge your customers' own thoughts and ideas? How do you know?
The best consultants in your company have the social skills to create a sales strategy. Social Cloud Strategy, the titans of corporate sales strategy, would say it is time to explore the specific options.
What Our Clients Are Saying...
People are the most creative. Their judgment improves when they understand the way that strategy really works. These are the skills and the consistency that corporations value the most - versus another offsite retreat to brainstorm with peers for innovative ideas, which are quickly forgotten.
This is why! The B2B buying cycle is broken and takes longer than it should.
For 60% of the companies surveyed, the internal buying process complexity hampers their efforts, while 40% blamed poor marketing and sales efforts by their vendors. You are the face of the company to your customer.
Companies are more willing to leave a long-time vendor in favor of a shorter buying cycle or for basic features of the product or service. The customer expects innovation and service from their trusted suppliers. Given the sad condition for both parties, there is a significant opportunity for a new sales strategy to make a major productivity improvement. The sales executive is the face to the customer. This is where the sales consultant can make the greatest contribution to their clients.
Second.
More selling time does not mean more successful sales or more reliable forecasts or a greater return on every transaction. This is not about memory selling or more hours built into every day. Without a sales and sales management strategy, this department becomes the greatest expense in the whole organization.
To begin, there are only four selling methodologies and not 14 or 40, as many consultants would claim. Each strategy of the four favors a different need, based upon the customer and the competition. Going forward, each strategy provides a reliable forecasting method for the corporation.
Note: There is no such thing as a repeat customer, because your competition wants them every time.
However, every customer can be identified as one of the following. Approximately twenty years ago Regis McKenna identified the evolving power of the consumer and categorized the developing relationships in the technology marketplace. Buyers were identified as *Innovators, *Early Adapters, *The Majority, and *Laggards.
Each consumer required a unique sales strategy of their own in order to shorten the purchase process. However, the greatest number were known as the "Majority Buyer" and the "Laggards" and have the greatest need of all. Their companies are in a state of confusion and need direction. All the time, it was believed that each customer has the same needs; however, some are much slower to adopt the solutions.
That is where the "Sales Consulting Skills" can be applied and are the most useful. Consulting skills are required when vendors and suppliers are working with the "Corporate Innovators" and "Early Adopters." Every "Senior Sales Executive" will tell you to start at the top of the client's organization chart and take all of your political skills with you.
This skill is not available in the typical, over the counter "How to Sales Guide."
(See section: Corporate Strategy.) You must find yourself with the most passionate supporters of the proposal in your corner. You must give them the added-value-proposition to qualify the sales opportunity. You must create value for each of the stakeholder in the sale. You must calculate the total cost-of-sale for the customer and for yourself and your company. You must use the "Political Sales Strategy" to move quickly and close the sale.
Customers and clients have already arrived at 60% of the purchasing decision, and the remaining 40% is up to the companies who intend to compete for the business. Professional sales consultants also know which sales strategy your customer is using. The (SCS) Sales Cloud Strategy will help the client improve their own internal issues and create an enhanced relationship with your company in a shorter period of time. Improve the buying cycle and shorten the marketing effort was our key objective. (SCS) Sales Cloud Strategy is your best choice to compete and win.
You are successful because you have helped your customer/client succeed with (their own) business transformation.
In the current role, successful sales executives have abandoned the traditional sales book and now follow key strategic processes as a customer consultant and problem solver. Unlike traditional selling styles, the strategic sales executive quickly involves themselves in the political environment, with the change agents and stakeholders, to lead the way. This means pushing the client as hard as possible and as fast as possible for the results both parties are looking for. Many software applications have promised to perform the same "sales function."
Many standalone CRM applications were simply oversold and missed important steps. Many account-planning processes make attempts (unsuccessful) to penetrate new markets and new customers but lack a credible value-proposition. Note: Every client is different. Each client is identified and described as one of the four buyer types that were named above.
Traditionally, sales representatives have migrated to the group called, "Majority and Laggards." They immediately go directly to those clients who are the least threat and in the most obvious need. After all, these customers will eventually make a purchase decision. However, truly competitive companies will prepare their own customer analysis and determine what works for them. These companies create organizational tiers inside their sales force. Strategic thinking and planning is necessary first and a "Sales and Marketing Strategy" is prepared.
THE ULTIMATE "WINNING SALES STRATEGY" IS CONSULTING WITH YOUR CUSTOMER/CLIENT AND WORKING WITH THEIR OWN CUSTOMER.
It is vital to consult side-by-side with your client's sales organization to jointly transition your customers and reinvent your B2B relationship. This is how you out-perform the competition.
There are several key value-propositions that kick-off this process. There are tactics that will develop and test, very early in the sales process, the direction your strategy will take. There are many cautions along the way and many traps to avoid. However, the qualification process is much shorter and the forecasting credibility and reliability is improved. Both top line revenues and earnings are improved.
The very best sales strategy is to earn the right and their trust to join the client's own sales organization and become a valued member of their sales force. This is called a breakout or breakaway strategy. You can offer real time experience to sell complex solutions. You offer advice about their competition and their systems. This is more than just sales chatter and has a greater strategic return. Your strategic questions are designed and prepared to upset the client and make them aware of their real strategic needs.
Management Strategy
Management is the most political position of all. The sales management position requires skills that are different than sales force motivation. This is not a sports franchise. More time making sales calls will not drive more sales results.
"We are not in the 20th century any longer."
The challenge is to recognize that selling is a sophisticated and complex work. Customer participation in the selling process is the skill that sales leaders share with the sales force.
The management position must implement all the strategic changes within the corporation vs. sticking to the old views. The management position requires that you know the Corporate Strategy, the HR strategy, Competitive Strategy, and IT Strategy, and you are responsible for each one. Therefore, the correct political skills are invaluable.
During the next 24 months, the marketplace will become even more competitive. Pricing pressure will increase. More and more will be written about the management position inside all corporations from every industry. Terminology and words such as the following will partially describe the sales management position.
Forecasting, staff retention, change through empowerment, cross-channel sales, and marketing strategy, business coaching, competitive knowledge. Audit performance; who are the leaders in the virtual sales force, marketing alignment, a mobile-technology-strategy that works. What is the next strategic phase for your sales organization? Better CRM. What is the economic trend and how is the market moving.
At this phase of transition and change in the sales profession, leaders who have career experience and consulting skills are critical to the next level. We have only heard about "group think," "total social agreement," "firmographic," "the latest culture cure called," "changes-to-win," and "gamification." Eventually, their proven successes will have a larger role in corporate strategy. However, terms such as "Competitive Strategy" and revenue forecast will still have a major role within the "Corporate Strategy."
I urge you to drop the popular weekly magazines or skip articles that offer a single solution to every selling situation. Articles such as "how to close big deals" are simply tactical steps written by inexperienced representatives with knowledge of just one particular industry. Exceptional customer service is very important. Corporations must build a healthy brand. I would place the responsibility on your marketing and communications department to maintain the customer relationship and create a better service/web experience.
(See Section: Competitive Strategy)
Guide your employees toward the best possible and most creative outcome. Now, connect that objective with the Corporate Sales Strategy.
Remind your employees to question the status quo.
Business management coaching will demonstrate the strategy and how it works.
Very recently, companies like Facebook have taken pages from the IBM sales book. A similar strategy and several tactics were used to faceoff with Google and compete for the growing (mobile-market-place). There has been plenty written about this strategic move.
In North America, The Darden Business School at The University of Virginia has earned a reputation as "The Nation's Best." The Darden Business School began their work over five years ago. The business school leads the nation in sales strategy and sales management research, sales training, and recruiting methods.
The business school offers more programs and more choice in sales and career training.
Contact us to see how we can help drive your sales force to new levels of success. We proudly serve business owners throughout St. Augustine Beach and all of Florida.
