I have been a salesperson in past, I have run sales organizations in my past and I have run marketing organizations. I believe that salespeople in general have lost their way.
We have a number of clients at Puzzle Partner where we help them with their sales and marketing strategy in order to ultimately enhance their revenue objectives. I work with CEO’s, sales leaders and salespeople on a daily basis and I am finding that we have an issue with communication.
The Internet and email have created this communications issue. It is now a common sales practice to reach out to a prospective client via email or another medium such as LinkedIn. This is all well and good if you already have a relationship in place either directly or through a network. Where this ultimately breaks down is when the email is “cold”. I hear of sales people talking about the fact that they are not hearing back from their outbound cold emails. Go figure!
The best way to get an audience with a person in order to pitch your solution or product is to build a relationship with them first. OK, I hear it…how can I build a relationship with someone when they will not get back to me? For starters, try picking up the phone and calling them. Cold calling is never fun but at the end of the day it is the only true way to get on to someone’s radar. Also try using your network to help you gain introductions into the prospect you are hunting. Do be afraid to ask for help from your co-workers of friends as you would be surprised at how vast your network really is.
Salespeople also need to be visible. Unless you are trying to sell new windows or duct cleaning services you need to get out of your office and meet people. The best use of your time in this endeavour is to attend industry specific thought leadership conferences and trade shows. I know people may think of this as old fashioned at times but there is no better way to build relationships quickly and effectively. Also join associations that are relevant to the area that your solution or product is best suited. This enable you to become engaged with other peers and possible prospects within a non-sales environment and ultimately adds credibility to your own personal brand.
One last point, none of this is rocket surgery (sorry for mangling my metaphors). Just treat people how you yourself would like to be treated. The best way is to build that trusted relationship with your prospect as it will ultimately ensure that they will buy from you.
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