Make these easy tweaks to your sales process to create a huge increase in sales revenue.
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Want to sell more? Here are 12 simple actions that you can take today that will increase both revenue and profit.
1. Reduce the number of opportunities you pursue. The more
opportunities you've got, the more likely you are to make a sale, right?
Wrong! If you can't give each prospect the attention they deserve,
you'll lose sales you otherwise might make.
2. Increase the percentage of time you spend selling. Get
somebody else to handle your paperwork, expense reports, or whatever
busywork is involved with making a sale. Use the extra time to get in
front of customers.
3. Stop buying technology because it's cool. Smartphones,
tablets, and PCs can be important tools--but learning and supporting
them can drain your productivity. Only purchase devices and programs
that actually help you sell.
4. Think about your solution as a verb. Suppose your company
makes glue. If you're selling "glue" (a noun), you'll talk about product
features. If you're selling "gluing" (a verb), you'll talk what your
offering does for your customer's business.
5. Treat selling as a service to the customer. Stop thinking
that selling means "convincing" the customer, "overcoming" objections,
and "winning" the business. Instead, view yourself as the customer's
ally in solving a problem.
6. Terminate weak engagements--politely but immediately. The
moment you find out that a customer really doesn't need what you're
offering, point them in the right direction, then politely withdraw from
the opportunity.
7. Don't confuse telling with selling. Rather than talking to
the customer about what your product can do, ask intelligent questions
so that the two of you can discover whether the customer really needs
you to help solve a problem or achieve a goal.
8. Hone your lead generation effort. Based upon your own
experience, observe who's just interested and who's actually buying.
Hone your lead generation efforts to find more of the ones who are
actually spending money on your offering.
9. Don't focus on the gatekeepers. Make sure that you're talking to the real decision-makers,
and not just the influencers and sideliners. When you meet a
decision-maker, stay in regular communication throughout the sales
cycle.
10. Stay on top of your opportunities. Don't lose track of
what's changing inside the account. Build a short sales plan that
documents the process and the players, so you don't spin your wheels
trying to remember who needs what and when.
11. Outflank your competition. Find out who the other guys are
calling on, and how they're approaching the account. Figure out who
they're talking to, what they're saying, and defensively position your
offering to counter their approach.
12. Increase your average dollar value. It takes just about as
much effort to cut a $1,000 deal as it does to cut a $10,000 deal. The
more revenue you book on each opportunity, the more money you'll make
overall.
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