By Dave Fellman
Here’s something I found online today: A sales cycle is a series of specific steps needed to acquire new customers. The seven typical stages include: (1) Initial contact, (2) Qualify compatibility, (3) Analyze needs or wants, (4) Make the pitch, (5) Deliver the proposal, (6) Negotiate, and (7) Close the deal. Yeah. OK. Pretty standard sales training stuff, right?
I’d like to offer you a different perspective, one that’s more specific to our industry. First, let’s define “the deal.” It is not whatever product or service is included in the first order they place with you. Sure, that’s the “deliverable” they’re buying from you, but it’s not what you’re really selling. Remember, we’re talking about acquiring new customers. “The deal” you have to close on is the decision to give you a try as their printing and data solutions provider.
Once that’s accomplished, my vision of the PDSP Sales Cycle is only partially completed. My vision has five stages: (1) Prospecting, (2) Quoting /Competing, (3) The First Few Orders, (4) The “Good Times,” and (5) The Downhill Stage. The first two lead up to closing “the deal.” The next two are about customer satisfaction and Customer Maximization. The last one, of course, we want to delay as long as possible.
These are the things I’m going to be talking about at the upcoming APDSP Regional Workshops. And, I’m going to be putting a lot of emphasis on driving the sales cycle, not just riding it. I’ll provide proactive strategies for every stage of the cycle, from accelerators in the prospecting stage to gaining maximum value from each customer during the “Good Times.”
I will also be presenting a segment on Sales Management, again representing a proactive approach to the many challenges of hiring, training, managing and motivating salespeople. A key point I’ll be expanding on: No one has ever died from too much sales management, but way too many printing/data services salespeople have underachieved because they didn’t get enough.
The theme of the Regional Workshops is Powering Your Sales. I’m looking forward to helping you do that. Hope I’ll see you in Denver or Chicago or Boston!
There is still time to register for the Denver, Chicago and Boston events! Click here for details.