Mistake number 7 of the 10 typical mistakes in complex b2b sales: “A lack of a common sales methodology prevents successful team selling.”
There used to be two major camps when talking about sales. The “artists” who attributed success in sales to the personal behavior of the employees and the “mechanists” who firmly believed that the secret of sales lies in its processes and methods. Of course, there has always been the group that understood that both are important. Today, we still see the third group, I’ll call you “digital automators,” who bring the possibilities of the online world to the table.
All three worlds have their justification, or more precisely, they actually form a common world. I firmly believe that the decisive factor in sales for individual sales people lies in your personal behavior. I believe just as strongly that the success of a sales organization rests on a collaborative understanding of the sales process that is right for the business. When even the simplest concepts like buying centers or sales funnels are only superficially imbued, or not imbued at all, productivity suffers. That is where projects are lost and bad or no-go decisions are made. On what basis then does good coaching take place? How are reviews designed?
In April, we trained over 150 employees of a company on a sales process adapted to the organization and coached them on real projects. Based on these skills, the close rate has jumped 7% since then. (I can read your mind : Yes, you are welcome to have the contact to verify this data after consultation). Best or worst of all, this is low-hanging-fruit. You don’t need complex IT systems or weeks of analysis. You need conviction, the will to implement and €1,200-1,500 budget per employee.
Hence out tip: Develop your “Way of Selling.”
Introduce the necessary methodology and the corresponding competencies and establish a common “language of sales productivity”. On this basis, you can develop the second important pillar, the personal effectiveness of the employees.
Author:
Pierre Martin, Managing Director CEVEYCONSULTING GmbH
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