Without sales you are not in business, and today's rough economy makes it doubly important to properly support and motivate your sales staff. Here are a few tips on boosting sales performance during tough times.
Follow up leads with a "touch." Fear of rejection prevents many salespeople from properly following up leads. Unconsciously, they hide behind email, snail mail or voice mail, never really "touching" the sales lead with a conversation or face-to-face meeting. Make the barometer for a successful sales call an actual conversation with a prospect. Turn down your sales staff's anxiety level by helping them organize what it is they want to say that will help the prospect realize why they should do business with you.
Provide fresh leads. In a down economy, ramp up your advertising and marketing to provide fresh leads. Run ads consistently, in the same medium with the same placement or time, so that when customers are ready, they know where to find you. Demonstrate your products at local malls or fairs, place your products with opinion makers and celebrities to create buzz and develop your internet presence through websites, social networking and email.
Identify your highest performing salespeople and pick their brains. What are they doing that the rest of your sales force is not? Make a project of observing these sales people in action and writing up the ways they succeed. Schedule in-house lunches, seminars or training where top performers can share strategies and answer questions for the rest of your staff.
Mine your existing client base. Too many businesses consider completing an initial sale as the end of the sales process. Just the opposite is true. Creating a relationship with your current clients will generate many additional sales and client referrals in the future. Maintain periodic contact with your clients at least a few times a year. Find out what their problems are, offer information of value to them, and see what you can do to help your customers get what they need and want. Be a problem solver and the door will always be open to you.
Follow through on the training you provide. Make sure your salespeople understand what they learned and actually try to implement it. Use a chalkboard or a website to allow salespeople to report sales statistics so that everyone is on the same page. Meet with sales people periodically to set goals, work out problems and create accountability.
Provide outside training. Create a fresh viewpoint on your sales by calling in an outside sales trainer or by sending your sales staff to a training seminar. (Search "sales training" on business.com to find trainers). One tip, process or strategy can lead to a whole new sales approach.
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