Do you use a purpose driven sales call process? Or make a sales call to just check in with a prospect or customer? “Hi Carly Customer I’d like to stop by to just touch base with you.” Does this sound like your approach to scheduling a sales call? Don’t just touch base. Stretch for the next one.
(I’m not a big fan of sports analogies. Probably cause I’m not good at them. But practice makes perfect so here goes.)
Don’t Just Touch Base. Plan Your Purpose Driven Sales Call To Advance To The Next Base
Image by Keith Johnston from Pixabay
Make Each Sales Call Count
Some companies use the baseball diamond analogy for the sales closing process. Just stopping by to touch base wastes your customer or prospect’s valuable time. Have a compelling reason to meet with them each sales call. Everybody is busy these days, including you, champion salesperson. Just touching base leaves you exactly where you were in the sales process. It didn’t move you closer to the close. Using a purpose driven sales call process challenges you to have a compelling reason for each sales call.
Base-By-Base Sales Process
Using the baseball analogy, first base might be to create the desire to change, second base to confirm the urgency with the decision maker. Moving on to third base to establish the budget. Then crossing home to close the deal. Great salespeople know where they are in the selling process. Hanging out on one base never scores a run. Make a purpose driven sales call to advance to the next base.
Avoid Getting Tagged Out
So there you are on first base with a nice lead off to second when the pitcher pivots and throws to first. Get too far off the base and you are out. You do have to focus on the current step in your purpose driven sales call process until your prospect agrees it is time to move on. If you are safely on first base be sure there is truly a desire to purchase your product or service. Test that by leading off a bit and asking confirming questions. Then set up the next step toward closing and move to second base on a ground ball single. Here you confirm you are dealing with a key decision maker.
Be Prepared To Move On
Having gotten to third when the pitcher walked a batter, you are confident the buyer wants your product and you are talking with the decider. On third base in your purpose driven sales process you confirm your solution fits their budget and get ready to close the deal. A line drive to right field might advance you to home even it is caught. But you have to be alert not leave third too soon. Tag the base and judge your chances of beating the throw to home after the ball is caught. Maybe your proposal doesn’t meet the budget. Hang out on third until the buyer is convinced of the value of your proposal. Sometimes your task will be to modify your offer to meet the budget. When the ball is hit to deep in the outfield and bobbled instead of caught, you may find the budget is greater than your proposal and you can sell additional services.
Plan Each Sales Call To Advance To The Next Base
No more just touching base and hanging out with a buyer. Respect your buyer’s time by setting an agenda benefiting them and advancing you to the next base. Fill each day with purpose driven sales call process meetings with buyers.
To learn more sales secrets see Chapter Eight, The Six-Step Sales Process, in Secrets of the Softer Side of Selling. For even more sales help, join our FREE Sales Club! “See” you next week.
Good selling!
Don Crawford & Lois Carter Crawford