dive into the past . It is at this point that those facts and figures on : how much was sold ? Who sold ? To whom was it sold ? Which clients had the highest revenues ? What has changed ? What support system exists ? are answered !
Creating an Ideal Customer Profile
As the facts and figures help you unearth the customer trends and purchase behavior , this should help in specifically bringing out issues such as which clients spend the most , on what products and loads of finer detail on their entire sales cycle . Using this demographic and psychographic analysis , create an ideal customer profile to enable the sales team invest more energy and time towards clients fitting that profile . Because again , a lot of sales studies across industries typically reveal a constant pattern ; that 80 % of their revenues usually come from 20 % of their clients .
While at it , use these ideal customer profiles to teach your sales battalion how to listen to client needs , teach them how to position your product as the one thing that will solve the customers ’ problems , how to create differentiation from competition and most importantly , teach them how to quantify and sell value and eventually get the clients to sign the dotted line .
Conduct Your SWOT
This is the forum where all other relevant departments are brought on-board for a realistic soul-searching of the company ’ s strengths , weaknesses , opportunities and threats as the war is prepared for in earnest . The aim here is not so much to focus on the negative , but more so figuring out how to leverage your strengths and capitalize on opportunities . As the General , the task here is to give direction to your battalion and this requires a systematic approach for detailed analyses on various internal and external key factors that should support engagement moving forward .
Go to Market Strategy
Here the General should focus on looking at how best to utilize all his inside and outside resources to deliver the organization ’ s unique value proposition to customers and achieve competitive advantage . Having assessed where you
have been and what has worked , next step is to start considering how to get to where you are going next . Here , the focus is on analyzing both existing sales territories and new sales territories and how to approach each . Usually , the cheapest , fastest revenue will be from existing accounts . The slowest and most expensive new revenue will result from cultivating sales for new products in new territories .
Matching Revenue Goals and Action Plans
Using the elaborate assessment of the past and current situation , the next plan of action should be to generate realistic revenue goals for territories and individuals and the actions needed to achieve the same . To optimize the action plan and achieve meaningful results , it would be wise to approach different market segments with a clear positioning plan . Think about Large accounts , opportunities inside existing accounts , opportunities in new accounts and new territories , opportunities inside existing territories and markets etc . Each should be viewed as unique segments to be approached in a custom fashion . Also , how do you intend to identify and approach companies that meet ideal client profile ?
Selling Yourself
To the soldier out there in the field - yes , I ’ m talking to you the Salesman and Saleslady , beyond all the training , skills and development bequeathed to you by your organization , eventually , all a client really buys is your confidence and the bond of trust created by the relationship . So take time and invest in yourself : groom-up , prepare beforehand , get your messaging right , communicate effectively , engage thoughtfully , cultivate self-confidence , walk like a winner , talk like one too , research and ask the right questions and command respect .
Do all this but remember ; it ’ s a very fine line between confidence and cockiness . Whereas one would earn you a sale , the other will see you go home broke , minus commission and with a bad industry reputation .
All said and done , the war rages on ; businesses must decide on their conduct in this warfare , what ’ s yours ?
Chabala H . Walter is a perceptive , amiable , and conscious Sales , Marketing and Communications Professional . You can commune with him on this or related matters via email at : Chabalawalter @ gmail . com .