Developing Your B2B Sales Skills
Unique Skills for Business to Business Selling
I am often asked for a simple, effective, no-nonsense approach to goal setting that
can be used by anyone to start the year fast and focused.
What follows is what I affectionately call the Six Step Makeover.
It’s a simple process that’s easy to learn, easy to apply, and easy to get results from.
One area I’m always asked by sales managers and national account sales people, is how do I grow my business when I’m spending so much time with my existing account.
The answer is to grow the existing account using different strategies.
Now that may sound rather simplistic and well it is. Yet, I find that most b2b sales people get into a rut of doing the same things everyday with their current customers. They visit the same people, talk about the same topics and forget to look outside their box of certainty.
It is time to expand the business. First think about your customers – each one – and answer this question…
Am I currently selling all I can to this customer?
If the answer for any account is no. Then, the next question is…
What are you doing about it?
Now, you need to go back over the list and use a different type of question.
Okay, some sales people questioned my business fit example in an earlier b2b sales tip. And, good for you. The ones who questioned it most be in the b2b sales superstar group and knew there were some missing pieces to my earlier explanation.
Well there are a number of key issues to resolve when working toward a true business fit and surprise – it has little to do with your product or service.
I know the traditional trained sales people are thinking I have lost it when I say it has very little to do with your product. Well, somebody needs to tell you this before you start losing business due to positioning mistakes.
Some of you are asking… what the heck does perseverance have to do with b2b sales? Well in some cases everything.
Let me explain the importance of perseverance in large account b2b sales…
Major account sales are seldom to never a one call simple sell. You will be asked to make call after call – meet with multiple decision makers and influences to make a successful b2b sales. This does not include all the follow up, additional documentation, negotiations, and planning of your sales strategy.
Since you are not going to get a quick sale in most cases, perseverance keeps you in the game and coming back to see the sales opportunity to the commitment and agreement. So embrace this key success trait to your advantage.