Mindbiz - Steps in Selling

How to Grow a Business

The Steps in Selling
As increasing numbers of people enter business for themselves so to does the importance of their selling skills. When operating your own business your selling skills become one of your key skills. Your selling skills can often determine if you survive.

While it is very helpful for your sales success to enjoy visiting people, talking to people and explaining to them how you can help them, success in selling also depends to a great extent on your preparation.

Preparation - The key to selling success

How well have you considered what you are selling, what benefits your service or product can bring and who will gain those benefits. When these things are summarised together they are often referred to as your value proposition.

Who are you selling to - Your Target Market

You are likely to find that not every single person wants your product or service and those that do have certain characteristics. It could be that your target market lives in a certain geographic location, does a certain type of job, falls in a typical age or income range, has a certain set of interests. As you get to understand these characteristics you also get to understand who your target market is and therefore how best to communicate with this target market.

Steps in Selling

·       Set your sales goal

       Prospecting

·       Planning

·       Contact

·       Presentation

·       Objections

·       Close/ Agreement

·       Grow (After sales service)

Sales Goal

Having a sales goal can provide you with focus and an idea of your boundaries and opportunities. Simplistically you have an opportunity to increase your sales in three key ways:

                increasing number of customers

                increasing average sales size

                getting customers to come back

There is a useful sales calculator within the profitability Increase Potential Index that I suggest you should find very helpful to provide you with an indication of what you can increase your sales to. While this calculator is designed for the Restaurant industry and it is also useful for any sales area


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Sales Prospecting

Have you consider how you will develop your bank of leads. Will it be from

                Passed experience

                Lists (eg Phone book, club memberships)

                Observation

                Networking

                Multipliers

                Sellers with similar market

                Attend functions

How will you qualify your sales leads. You will qualify your sales leads so that each sales contact you make will be more effective. Three key questions to ask in qualify your leads are:

How will they benefit

Can they afford it

Can they say yes

Planning your contacts

Your Key Sales Ratios

Do you know how you will measure your results. Ultimately you will measure your success on the sales your make, but in order to increase your sales you will understand what the key sales drivers are for you your results. How many leads to you get, how many of these leads do you make contact with, how may do you get an appointment with, how many do you make and initial sale with, and then how many do you develop an ongoing relationship with.

Preparation for your Sales Presentation

Naturally you will enjoy great success as you are better planned for your sales. Key area of your preparation will include:

        Product Knowledge

·       Presentation - having your presentation prepared

·       Positive Attitude - going into the sales meeting with a positive attitude

·       Know the likely benefits for your prospect

·       know the objections your prospect could have

·       and the answers

·       Organise your material

Planning is essential because it brings your confidences and highlights the most effective way to make your presentation

How to Prepare your Sales Presentation

·       Gather Information:

·       Networks - use your networks to better understand your prospect

·       Publications: brochures, annual reports

·       Questionnaires

Give yourself sufficient time take time to think

Contact

Get the Appointment

                Referrals

                Direct Mail

                Drop in

                Advertising

                Networking

Presentation

                Personal knowledge

                Establish rapport

                Product knowledge

                To the point

                Appeal to the senses

                                Samples

                                Visual, brochures, photographs, overheads, slides

                                Testimonials

                Get prospect involved

                Questions

                You listen

                Demonstration

Close the Sale

               Ask for the sale