Developing the best product is not enough — unless you can convert it into a sale, your business’s overall performance is likely to suffer. Given the fierce competition in the market, you need to work out an effective sales strategy that will draw in your target customers quickly.
Confused where to begin? Here are seven effective ways to visibility improve the sales performance of your business this year:
Don’t move forward without a plan
Failing to draw up a sales plan is setting yourself up for failure. A sales plan helps you clearly identify the objectives, strategies, processes, and key metrics for measuring the performance.
Devote your attention towards putting together a detailed sales plan. It will also help you communicate better with your sales team and align them with your objectives, so they are laser-focused on achieving the targets.
Always stick to the 80/20 rule
Customers are not attracted to the features of your product. They are keen to understand what are the benefits of your product that can address their pain points.
According to a study, only 15 percent of sales calls focus on adding enough value. So ensure that 80 percent of every sales conversation focuses on sharing helpful information with the target customer and how they can ease their pain points. Only the remaining 20 percent of the conversation should focus on the benefits of your product and how it is a solution for the challenges your customers are facing.
Don’t shy away from making cold calls
Cold calling is a powerful tool in your arsenal to skyrocket sales. In fact, 41.2 percent of sales executives consider their phone to be an effective sales tool. However, if you are not doing it correctly, it can result in a massive waste of resources and time.
To make the most out of cold calling, ditch the script. Instead, think through the questions your customers are likely to have and work out the best answers. Don’t forget to enrich the answers with information — the more information you provide, the better are your chances of making a sale.
Lastly, don’t try to sell right away on the first — focus on building a relationship with the prospect so that you are viewed as a friendly and trustworthy business that genuinely cares about its customers.
Know your competitive advantage
The best way to outrank your competition is by demonstrating to the customers why your product is a better option than the one offered by your competitors. If you fail to show a distinct competitive advantage, you may end up as a ‘me-too’ product. Such products hardly get the lion’s share of the market.
Start by figuring out the Unique Selling Proposition for your business. Then highlight the USP during every conversation with a prospective customer. This will help to convince them that your product is better than everything else available in the market.
Craft a pitch that grabs attention
Successful sales require powerful storytelling that appeals to customers on a deeper level. According to the London School of Business, people can remember 65 to 70 percent of information shared through stories but only 5 to 10 percent of information shared through statistics alone.
Throwing too much data or technical details at your customers can leave them confused. Instead, painting a picture of how your product can simplify the challenges your customer is facing and improve their lives is a better way to pitch your product. Once you can create an emotional impact on a prospect, sales will follow.
Get the CRM to work for you
CRM is more than a relationship management tool to provide better customer care. You can optimize your CRM to boost sales. For example, you can obtain information about a typical sales cycle and evaluate whether any bottlenecks need resolution. You can learn more about the behavior of your customers and give them a customized offering. You can also identify the leads who are likely to convert and use lead nurturing tools to make a sale.
Stay in touch with your loyal customers
Satisfied customers are a powerful marketing tool to boost sales. Once you make a sale, ask your customer to leave feedback about your product or share the purchase on social media. Start a customer referral program that incentivizes both the referrer and the referee.
Take, for instance, Evernote, where the referrer earned 10 points for the first three referrals that can be used for subscribing to the Premium plan, and the referee got a free month of the Premium plan. In this case, the sales and growth in customer base happened mostly on account of the referral program, and the company did not have to spend a sizeable amount on advertising or SEO.
Are you looking for more guidance to improve the sales performance of your business?
Building a sales strategy that improves sales performance is critical for the growth of your business. However, as a small business owner or a new player in the market, figuring out everything on your own can be challenging. That’s why working with a mentor to learn which are the most effective strategies to amplify your sales can be helpful. This is exactly where Jupiter Business Mentors can make a difference and get your sales moving at lightning speed.
Jupiter Business Mentors is a platform to connect mentors to the start-up community and small & medium business enterprises so that you can learn from their experiences and grow your business. The mentors can advise you about the best tips you must include in your strategy for surging the sales and putting together an effective system to track your progress. With 35+ expert mentors across the industry on the same platform, getting advice straight from the horse’s mouth has never been easier.
