In today’s data-driven market, it’s easy to get caught up on the numbers, but sometimes it’s in changing up the more qualitative side of things that we get the results we’re looking for.
It isn’t hard to see why. Strip the context away from even the most valuable data set, and what are you left with? A bunch of numbers, now of fleeting value. Similarly, by using a fresh perspective for your sales team, you can contextualize the entire sales process in a more accurate, useful, and motivating way.
If you aren’t sure what this would entail, you’re in the right place. In this article, we’re going to cover a couple of examples of how changing the perspective of your team can improve sales and help your business stand out in the competitive B2B market. Over the next few sections, we’ll explain how these perspective shifts can complement the sales process and ultimately lead to a stronger consumer connection and more conversions.
Put the Customer Experience Before Closing Sales
Modern B2B customers are armed to the teeth with information. As the B2B market has made strides in more automated and accessible purchasing options, it has taken on a few features that are characteristic of the B2C market, like trusting community reviews for the quality of a product and having ample resources for comparing the offerings of one company to another.
This means most of the clients that your team will get in touch with probably already know how your company shapes up to others – at least as far as features go. What they don’t know is if your team lives up your company values in their interactions, providing a productive and friendly customer experience even when the conversation isn’t strictly about selling your products or services.
In other words, your first point of contact with many of your leads could very well be the tipping point. If they’re going to choose you or your competitor may rest on the experience your reps give them – since they probably already figured out what features you offer on their own. That said, if your salespeople are operating under the traditional pitch-convince-sell perspective, then the importance of the customer experience may be lost on them, and the customer will feel like just another name on the rep’s list.
Instead, focus on training and reminding your salespeople about the importance of getting to know the specific needs of their leads and tailoring the discussion to them – not so they can close deals, but so they can be helpful. If your leads see that your team can be valuable in terms of consultancy and products or services, then you have a big leg up on the competition. For more on this, see the next tip.
Minimize Pitching, Maximize (Real) Conversation
Another useful perspective switch is showing your salespeople the value of having real conversations with leads – not just pitching. Rather than waiting for an opening in a conversation to begin a tried-and-true sales pitch, the goal should be figuring out what your clients need out of your business and having an authentic discussion with them about what you have to offer.
We discussed taking on a consultant role in the last section – that’s key here. If your leads ask questions and your team gives them genuinely useful market advice – not just “We have a package that will give you…” – then you can make a very strong impression. As we said earlier, your buyers have probably educated themselves on what you have to offer anyways, so emphasizing productive, unscripted conversations that make them feel like they aren’t constantly being upsold can really make the difference.
One big part of this is listening. Normally, the onus is on the seller to carry the conversation and talk up whatever product or service they’re selling. While it’s important to always have a handle on the conversation, most of the call should be spent listening to your lead’s stories and giving them useful feedback in response. Relevant services that your company offers will come up naturally, and the conversation will feel less like a pitch and more like one business helping another.
If you have any questions about lead generation best practices, our team at Beyond Codes can help. Beyond Codes is a B2B Appointment setting firm that simplifies your biggest lead generation challenges and delivers programs with measurable results.
