Sales Strategy

B2B Selling has Changed – Have You?

by

I don’t know if you have noticed a major change in selling, yet, I started to notice some major changes in the B2B Selling World during the past four years. And, yes, the Great Recession has a major role in the changing dynamic of our world of selling.

First, let’s look at some of the trends started during the past four to five years.

  • Consolidation of Industries and Niche Industries
  • Customers demand lower costs
  • Product Knowledge is known by our customers & prospects
  • Old techniques and tactics are basically useless
  • Real Decision Makers have disappeared from the Sales Process

Read more…

Are Your B2B Sales Goals Identified for 2012?

by

Just a gentle reminder, you should have your B2B sales Goals for 2012 established, noted and in some cases – launched.

If you have neglected to set your new goals for the coming year, then you are one of three types of people:

Read more…

Are You Looking Past the Next Sale?

by

I find most b2b sales are only focused upon the immediate sale opportunity coming their way. Is this the way you look at sales opportunities?

The best sales people – including the b2b sales superstars – have a longer time horizon. They look at the next sale as the first step in a series of sales opportunities.

In fact, I have a friend who is always telling me how he looks at every customer with a three year INITIAL time line in mind. If the customer appears to be a one sale only – he passes on the opportunity. Could you do that?

What factors are in play to cause you to want to look into the future when evaluating a potential sales opportunities? Let’s take a look at what I’ve learned…

Read more…

Six Ways to Strengthen Your B2B Sales Strategy

by

Most of the time, b2b sales people just make a call on a prospect or customer using the “wing-it” sales strategy. Meaning they just show up and trust they ability to figure things out on the fly and make a sales.

“Making a Sale” is the first mistake, since it is seldom focused upon the long term Account Relationship. It is much more important to build an account than to make a “sale.”

To assist you in the develop of a clear and concise sales strategy for a targeted account, here are six ways to strengthen your B2B sales strategy…

Read more…

How Do You Deal with Competitors?

by

Seems to be a number of questions and chatter about how to deal with, attack, match and overcome competitors. Therefore today we will discuss how to deal with competitors.

Okay, first a couple of facts.

  • If you have no competitors, the customer may not be worth the trouble.
  • The better the account, the more competitors you will have.
  • Customers will use the competitors to either valid your pricing or use the competitor to get you to lower your prices.
  • Some competitor will always attempt to buy the business with an loss leader type pricing.
  • You must know who your competitors are in order to develop a sales strategy to win the account.

So, the question is back to how do you offset the competitor’s energy and persistence to take your business from you everyday? That is the focus we will be taking and one you should be examining every day you are in the field or with a customer.

Now, we have all heard some sales person say this… “I have no competition.”

Read more…

Your Personal Challenge – Think Big or Think Small?

by

Recently I got one of those tough questions which cause you to stop and reflect on both the question and the possible answer(s). Here is the question…

Do I need to think big and go for everything I can get? or, Do I think smaller and take what I can at the moment?

How many of you are agreeing this is a tough question. How do you feel about the question and your position regarding this potential dilemma.

How many of you think going for everything is the right move? And, how many of you think getting what you can at the moment is best?

Okay, my answer is…

Read more…

Types of Selling Models to Use for B2B Sales

by

B2B sales people are always asking me this question…

What B2B Sales Model Should I Use today for b2b sales success?

Then we get into a dialogue about the types of selling models and this is where it gets real interesting. Seems the topics all have something to do with a particular Sales System rather than the true model of b2b sales.

There is a huge number of selling systems for you – each guaranteeing you success. However, the true can be found in understanding the foundation of the system – one of the two types of b2b selling – to know if it will really work for you.

Read more…

Use Pilot Programs for Improved b2b Sales Success

by

If you are looking for a method to quickly improve your b2b sales success, then think about how you can implement a small pilot program for your prospect.

Some b2b sales people make it a focal point to place a pilot program into a prospect account or in some cases an existing customer who could be looking at a totally new process you are offering.

The reasoning for the use of pilots is it lowers the fear of buying, shows an actual ROI on the project, and allows the buyer to see your implementation practice in account. Thus, no surprises or chaos causing more issues or confrontation across functional groups.

Here are four methods you can use to trigger the use of a pilot program within your prospect

Read more…

Six Strategies to Win against a Leading Competitor

by

One of the toughest situations a b2b sales person can be in today, is when you know your competitor is ahead of you for a sales objective. So, what do you do to overtake the competitor and win the sale or the account.

There are six possible strategies to use. Any one or any combination of the six should help you gain an advantage with a prospect or existing customer during these critical negotiations.

Here are the six b2b sales strategies to use to win against a tough competitor.

Read more…

Two Key Strategies for Relationship Selling

by

While doing some research on relationship selling, I ran across these two key strategies several times. Since most b2b sales people want to have good relationships with their customers and prospects, I felt it would be good to pass on these simple strategies.

Now I know several of you believe two strategies is not enough for b2b sales success. Okay, true when talking about all the different types of b2b selling. However, what I’m talking about is – only relationship selling.

When focusing upon successful b2b relationship selling, you really only need to focus upon two key strategies. So here are the two key strategies for relationship selling.

Read more…