John Asher, author of “Close Deals Faster” and the CEO of Asher Strategies, a growth strategy consulting firm, offers these tips for helping your salespeople start fast in 2018 at all stages of the sale:
- Focus on a few top prospects. Make sure your reps are using networking technology to prospect for new business and are only focusing on qualified leads. Remind them not to get discouraged after the first several touches. On average, it takes 12 touches to close a sale. They should plan every touch to meet a specific objective and add useful content with every touch.
- Conduct thorough research before the first contact. Learn everything possible about the prospect’s company, offerings, organization, industry and even their competitors. Use insiders to fully understand prospects and their requirements
- Act as a business consultant and expertly handle objections. Seventy-five percent of business involves people deciding on overall value where a salesperson can help. Price is actually lower on a buyer’s list of priorities than they let on, so don’t cave on price too soon. Identify and overcome objections by identifying the most common ones and practicing responses.
- Recognize when the buyer is ready to buy and know how to close the sale. Remind your reps to pay attention to nonverbal cues during the closing process. Throughout the entire sales process and in any interaction with a buyer, they should always close to the next step.
- Build long-term relationships with the new customers. Even if your company has dedicated customer service and account management people, make sure your reps maintain relationships with their customers after securing the sale. Keep them
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