seo penguin

Sales for Small Business Owners

Apr 5, 2010 conference, laidoffcamp, sem, seo, social media

Sales for Small Business Owners
Chris Conrey from Integrum with Dave Cooke

• Sales in one word is relationships. The people that are doing the cold calling, the brow beating, the pushing is not building a relationship. It’s all about building a relationship with your client – sales is dating: it never gets better than this, but you still want to get married.
• Don’t chase deals that are bad, or is not a good relationship for you. Don’t get into bad relationships with clients just because they’ll sign a check.
• If a business knows that it’ll add value, they’ll hire you. Make them aware that you’ll create a solution and offer value to them. You can’t build value until you have a relationship.
• How do you know what people need.
• Spend the time to get to know them. You want to talk to them and build a rapport, trust, etc. Make it a “first date” – get to know them, learn what they want, like, how they talk/communicate. Learn how you can add value. Learning is the most important component to building a sales relationship. You want to discover what it is that you can do to help them. You need to be able to empathize and internalizing.
• You should be listening twice as much as you should be talking. It’s listening for the solution.
• Build value so they pay your prices. Don’t cut yourself off to lower prices and sacrifice value. Usually when you have to lower your prices, you haven’t established value for your product in the first place. The challenge is to differentiate yourself. Price is only a denominator, not a differentiating factor. Price is the last conversation, not the first. If you lower the price you’re lowering your integrity, credibility and value.
• Be a drug dealer – solve their pain. Keep asking why until you understand.
• What’s the pain
• What’s the impact it has on the business.
• What’s the result of fixing that and how will it effect their interest.
• Measure everything. EVERYTHING. It’ll help make a sales map.
• Track what you’re doing right so you know what to do more of, and track what you’re doing wrong so you know what not to do.
• Track leads coming in.
• Track people saying yes, and people saying no – find out WHY they’re saying no.
• Why I won a deal.
• Ask your clients why are they doing business with you.
• Stay disciplined. Make sure to stay on your road map. Make sure everyone is on the same page.
• If you tell someone a time frame… stick to that date! Do not miss it. It’s your integrity on the line. Make it time bound.
• Business development NEEDS to be 25% part of your work week. Make you your most important customer.
• Be Real. If you’re not yourself, if you lie, people will know. Do what you can do and make sure the people you’re selling to know that.
• If you don’t understand something it’s OK to ask them. Better to ask and know than not know.
• It’s OK to repeat things back to them, actually, make sure to do it so both parties understand what is wanted/needed.
• Make it Personal
• If they like coffee, bring them some. Google what they’re all about so you know them when you meet them. Work what they like, and what you know about them, into your conversations.
• Stop Selling. You’re not selling, you’re talking to them. Don’t pitch right away. Collaborate and listen.
• Don’t just take a business card. Ask the person offering a business card “woah, I’ve got tons… but why should I take yours.”
• If you tell them you’re not hear to sell something you have to live it because they won’t believe you. When they believe you they’ll open up to nearly everything – it becomes personal, a date, not business.
• Being you is the best sales tool.