Why Aren’t You Using Your HUGE Market Advantage?
This is the fourth in a series of seven articles outlining the need for NEW RULES in your selling efforts. In today’s article, we’ll look at the “Dynamic of Process.”
Sales Process: No one term has commanded the attention of so many, yet been implemented by so few.
Every CEO I know talks about ‘sales process,’ but few implement any true strategy. When I go into their companies and ask about their process, my question is answered with dead silence.
Why the silence? Few companies will admit to having a good, psychologically sound sales process. And those sales teams that do have a decent one rarely use it.
Why is that?
Sales people love the ‘relationship’ angle to selling. You hear that word far too often. “Relationship.” “We’re in a relationship business.” “I’m going to go establish a relationship.” “I have a great relationship with the CEO.” (Although they never buy anything.)
I’m all for relationships. Have at it!
But, the best relationships come after you have worked out a process that benefits the customer. You do that consistently and you’ll have customers far and wide talking about what a great relationship they have with you. Your referral rates will go off the charts. It starts with the Dynamic of Process.
Dan Sullivan (The Strategic Coach) says, “I’d rather have great processes than great personalities.” His belief is that, in this era, great processes trump everything.
When I say “process,” what do you think of?
Probably a graphic that lays out the different components of the process you intend to take your customer through. In software companies, they call it, “The Customer Journey.” In other companies, it’s merely the desired sequence of events that benefit the selling organization.
However, I think of process differently.
If you truly want to change the game, you must have a process that is so beneficial for the prospect, whether they buy from you or not, that they would feel a fool not to go through it with you.
A pretty high bar, huh? Stay with me.
What Should Your Process Contain?
In The New Rules of Selling, we outline six steps that are MUST-HAVES in your process, but here are three examples to get you going.
- An overview of your process. Your process should be the first sale in your NEW RULES world. I have one client who has perfected his introduction and it’s sounds like this, “Before we begin today, Mr. Smith, let me share with you how I work.” And then, he proceeds to lay out the process. It works like magic!
- A portion dedicated to THEM. This includes their issues, their visions, their goals, their dreams and their problems. What “circumstances” exist in their world that would justify doing business with you? If they can’t answer that, then they aren’t a good prospect.
- A commitment to knowing and believing the financial benefit. At some point, you will be asking them for money for your solution. They need to have something to compare the ‘cost’ to. Usually, it’s a detailed overview of the economics of ‘doing nothing.’
The fact is that in most sales processes, doing nothing is an option for the prospect. The national closing average is less than 10% which means that 90% of the time, nothing happens. So, doing nothing might be your biggest competitor. We call it, “The Phantom Competitor.” It’s there, but you don’t see it.
If the decision is between doing nothing and spending $200k on your solution, well, you know the answer.
The Process Dynamic is more than a mere visual sketch on a page. It is the foundation for you changing the very dynamic of the selling game. If you do not have a process, your dynamic will be off, and you will lose more than you win (90% of the time).
Get to work! Change the game and the rules by changing the underlying dynamic of the buyer-seller dance.
By the way, you owe it to your prospect to work on your process. Many people think this is just so you can sell more stuff. I disagree. True professionals are continuously working on themselves and how they guide their clients to optimal solutions. By not working on your process, you’ve given up on your client’s true best interest.
Don’t take that to the grave with you. 🙂
Want More?
If you’d like to change your approach by changing the Dynamic of Process, then take a look at what I created for you by clicking the button below. When you build the right process, your success will astound you. Here I go again, but not everyone is ready for this change. Some won’t have the stomach for it because it means change. If you think you are ready, click the button below and take a look around.
