closing the deal the art of professional sales - sacrao
TRANSCRIPT
CLOSING THE DEAL
The Art of Professional Sales Rebecca Tankersley
Georgia Institute of Technology
February 4, 2013
Admission & Sales
• Overview of different sales cycles
• Customer Satisfaction & Loyalty Model
• Selling Framework
• Professional Selling Competencies
• Close the deal!
Sales
• What is a sale?
▫ A sale occurs when the full knowledge of the solution is transferred to the buying organization (or buyer), a transaction has taken place, and the product or service meets or exceeds the buying organization’s level of expectation or need.
United Professional Sales Association, “The Compendium of Professional Selling”
Sales & Admission: Facing Today’s
Challenges
• Sales:
▫ Savvy Buyers
▫ Rate of Change
▫ Global Economy
• Higher Education
▫ Savvy Buyers
▫ Difficult Economy
▫ Declining Support
Sales Is A Process!
• Professional sales is a process that can be measured, repeated, and improved in any environment!
• Once you understand the process, you create leverage and impact to the economy.
Revenue-Generation System
• A large-scale system found in any organization wishing to sell something.
Commerce Cycle
• This cycle merges the Continuous Selling Improvement Cycle with components of the Revenue-Generation System, plus:
▫ Transaction Experience as the “hub” of movement,
▫ Selling Cycle Management
Buying Cycle
• The commonly accepted and universally applied process by which a customer buys any product and details what they experience when they buy.
Know Your Client!
• Admission representatives must become extremely familiar with the student and family, and understand their goals, problems, and needs.
• No two students are alike!
Know Your Client!
• Culture
• Personality Type
• Information Processing (Visual? Auditory?)
• Influences
• Gender
Customer Satisfaction & Loyalty
Model
• Encompasses the entire system needed to find, acquire, and keep a client (student) happy.
• A solid understanding of this model allows for goal setting & attainment, along with objectives for the day/month/year.
CSLM – Transaction Process Stages
• Initiating – buyer & seller gain knowledge
• Communicating – activity & dialogue occur
• Implementing – service is fulfilled, created, or put into place
• Assimilating – ROI for buyer
Professional Selling Competencies
• Knowledge – what you know
• Abilities – what you can do
• Skills – abilities with positive results
• Character – why you do what you do
Knowledge
• Value ▫ Understand your product (institution) and
the business climate (student needs)
• Buyer ▫ Develop rapport, set expectations, and
build a relationship
• Self ▫ Know yourself as a sales/admission
representative (ability to manage your own time and tasks)
Knowledge
• Schedule
▫ Activities needed to capture and put into action information provided by other selling ability areas
• Deal
▫ Know how to advance the sale in synchronization with the buyer (student).
▫ Developed by understanding what, why, how, and when buyer will buy
Professional Selling Ability Areas
(SAAs) • Business
• Product
• Relationship
• Expectation
• Personal
• Priority
• Technology
• Selling Interaction Management
• Opportunity Management
Business Knowledge Ability
• Understand the issues faced by buyers (students, families)
• Essential Activities:
▫ Economic Impact
▫ Business Transactions
▫ Negotiations
▫ Business Measurements
Product Knowledge Ability
• Understand the product, how to position the solution, and value the solution will bring to the buyer.
• Essential Activities:
▫ Competitive Landscape
▫ Positioning
▫ Messaging
▫ Value Proposition
Relationship Knowledge Ability
• Understand how to treat each buyer as unique and special, and relate the solution to the buyer in a relevant manner.
• Essential Activities: ▫ Communication Planning ▫ Rapport Building ▫ Information Distribution ▫ Influencing Others
Expectation Knowledge Ability
• The sales professional should understand if and when to walk away from a potential sale!
• Provide top-notch service to buyers to ensure repeat business and a solid selling reputation
• Essential Activities:
▫ Customer Service
▫ Resource Allocation
▫ Resource Management
▫ Customer Metrics
Personal Knowledge Ability
• This is the foundation on which all other ability areas depend upon!
• Essential Activities:
▫ Self Talk
▫ Personal Planning
▫ Self Mastery
▫ Personal Health
Priority Knowledge Ability
• Manage personal time and priorities to achieve goals & objectives (maintain focus and productivity).
• Essential Activities:
▫ Activity Identification
▫ Activity Sequencing
▫ Schedule Development
▫ Schedule Control
Technology Knowledge Ability
• Apply technology to the buying experience. Use of technology gives sellers the ability to recall details faster, provide answers more effectively, and maintain communication.
• Essential Activities:
▫ Impact
▫ Usage
▫ Optimization
▫ Effectiveness
Selling Interaction Knowledge Ability
• Grasp the most comprehensive data and education possible, integrate into the selling system.
• Essential Activities:
▫ Initiation
▫ Communication
▫ Implementation
▫ Assimilating
Opportunity Knowledge Ability
• Identify, manage, develop, and close the right sales opportunities.
• Essential Activities:
▫ Territory Development
▫ Opportunity Planning
▫ Opportunity Development
▫ Opportunity Closing
Conclusion
• Understanding the buying and selling cycles, and integrating different phases into a repeatable method, creates successful sales and happy customers.
• Know your buyer and where they are in the buying cycle, then meet the needs of that person.
Sources
• “The Compendium of Professional Selling,” United Professional Sales Association. 2nd edition.