When Sales Doesn’t Sell
Always Be Closing
That’s the famous line of one Alec Baldwin in Glengarry Glen Ross and a mindset that I as a sales manager have to make sure is always resonating with my team.
From time to time however, I feel like we (myself included) can’t BUY A DEAL.
Lets layout the scenario our team found ourselves in so it makes more sense to you, the reader:
- It was the second week of March (end to Q1)
- The entire company was struggling to bring in revenue and bookings
- The KPI’s we use to forecast future bookings were all hovering around normal, historic levels.
- AE’s were getting more than enough opportunities- some were getting 10–20% MORE than the month prior
- Facts remained: WE. COULDN’T. CLOSE.
Many of us — whether we be SDR’s, AE’s, Sales Managers, Sales Directors, etc. — have been there. The peaks and valleys of being in sales, the wonderful ebbs and flows that keep us COMING BACK month after month to do it again.
But how do we stay consistent?
Relevant?
Operating at a high level where we (individually) or our team (those we manage) all get paid?
These were the questions I asked myself on March 12th, 2017 trying to figure out a way in which we could salvage an entire quarter.
The answer I came up with — and what I ALWAYS go back to — is something my very first Sales Mentor taught me:
Whenever you are struggling — go back to the fundamentals.
Be a human being.
Be you, but be an expert too.
Listen to your prospective buyer, but be willing to make recommendations as well.
Acknowledge the buyer’s thoughts and emotions, but play to them as well.
People buy based on emotion after all.
Below I have listed a few of the things my team implemented during the final 2 week stretch run of Q1. These tidbits not only increased our close rate and revenue intake to finish the quarter — it allowed us to hit every single goal we had from our executives and investors.
1. Expertise
Use phrases that show industry expertise. Savvy buyers KNOW they won’t be the guinea pigs to your experiments so give them a phrase that will resonate.
“9 out of the 10 accounts I brought on last week asked that same question! Its a great question, and THIS is how we go about that process for you.”
“The benefit of setting this up prior to the quarter ending is pretty massive, as it resulted in X amount of business for the last account we signed on over a 30 day time frame.”
2. Make A Recommendation
Recommend certain features that the buyer may not be leaning towards initially and show how its worked in their industry. Even though we as humans won’t admit it,
WE LOVE HEARING RECOMMENDATIONS!
Even your prospective buyer, who before your demo had it all figured out, wants to hear the recommendations you have. They’re free ideas being bounced around that they can potentially use to better THEIR business!
“I know that you normally don’t do promotions because the margins are a bit slim but I definitely believe that doing a small incentive, something that’s minimal like 10% off, if you’re comfortable with that, can make a world of difference in getting your company the exposure it needs to drive the traffic and revenue you told me about before. We have seen a lot of success with these types of campaigns with other brands in your industry.”
3. Assume The Close
Whether you sell to SMB’s (mom and pop shops) or high level Enterprise accounts, confidence will always reign supreme. If you act like you have signed 10 deals prior to this one, your buyer will follow suit.
If they don’t want to move forward then no worries. The objections will come and you can handle those at that time. But always assume that your buyer is moving forward, especially if you’ve crossed all the T’s and dotted all the I’s when it comes to answering their questions and identified current Need and Fit.
