I've been working with quite a few sales teams lately, in many different industries. While their normal sales training includes how to close a sale, I have found a general lack of forethought, experience or training in what to put into their presentations to be more persuasive.
It's similar in
many aspects to writing and delivering a speech. You want to get attention, keep the interest and motivate to action.
I thought I'd highlight three easy yet important ways to be much more successful in closing a sale - using strategies that I employ every day in my proposals and presentations.
1. Do your homework
How much time do you take researching a prospect before your initial contact? You will clearly be more successful by understanding their industry, their problems and challenges. What the responsibilities of their role in the business are. Then you can put their shoes on and relate how you can help solve their problems.
2. Results before resource
Almost every piece of marketing material, proposal, sales presentation that I see has the wrong I/You ratio of. Your prospects care about themselves. Have you heard the acronym FORM? It's what people care about: Family, Occupation, Reputation, Money.
Yet most marketing material focuses on how wonderful 'we' and 'our' products are. How great we do. Send this chest thumping guerrilla marketing philosophy packing. In other words we as the resource available to them.
