{"id":526,"date":"2012-08-15T11:45:59","date_gmt":"2012-08-15T18:45:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/theasoe.com\/blog\/?p=526"},"modified":"2012-08-15T11:45:59","modified_gmt":"2012-08-15T18:45:59","slug":"sales-process-help-or-hindrance","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.theasoe.com\/blog\/?p=526","title":{"rendered":"Sales Process: Help or Hindrance"},"content":{"rendered":"

I just finished reading Kendra Lee\u2019s recent post on Sales Process: Help or Hindrance.\u00a0 \u00a0http:\/\/www.thevarguy.com\/2012\/08\/01\/sales-process-help-or-hindrance\/<\/a><\/p>\n

I found it interesting for several reasons, but I want to share my perspective in two areas.\u00a0 While Kendra\u2019s main focus is on sales process and making sure you have the appropriate focus for your solution offering, he also is tying the sales skills of your team to their ability to move deals through the funnel to close.\u00a0 Through his example, I had a concern for the selling skills of the team as well.\u00a0 Allow me to make two short \u00a0additions to the post that I hope will help you do a better job of focusing your sales team, no matter how small or large.<\/p>\n

Point # 1 \u2013 The Sales Process or is it the Buying Process?<\/p>\n

When I am working with my clients on their selling process, I change their focus to looking at the process from the customer\u2019s perspective, the customer\u2019s buying process.\u00a0 I have them define what their customers go through to identify the business problem, determine the business impact of the problem and the resolution to the problem, determine how the customer will fund a solution, and then evaluate and select a solution and a vendor.\u00a0 Once a clear definition is put in place, you can define the appropriate sales activities and supporting sales tools to guide the buyer through the evaluating and purchasing process.<\/p>\n

Point # 2 \u2013 Selling Skills<\/p>\n

When a clear customer buying process is defined and used to track the progress of opportunities through the funnel, you now have a model that helps you assess your sales team\u2019s selling skills.\u00a0 You have laid out the process and activities you expect them to follow.\u00a0 Now, how well do they execute those activities?\u00a0 Do your reps have the ability to work with prospects to identify the real need?\u00a0 Are they able to help them develop and define the business impact?\u00a0 Are they able to define the value (results you will produce) of your approach?\u00a0 Can they build the business case that helps the prospect determine you are the solution for them?<\/p>\n

Getting your sales team focused on how your customer perceives your value and buys from you will drive improved sales productivity.\u00a0 For additional insight, see my post here in the ASOE on January 12, 2012.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I just finished reading Kendra Lee\u2019s recent post on Sales Process: Help or Hindrance.\u00a0 \u00a0http:\/\/www.thevarguy.com\/2012\/08\/01\/sales-process-help-or-hindrance\/ I found it interesting for several reasons, but I want to share my perspective in two areas.\u00a0 While Kendra\u2019s main focus is on sales process … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[30,1,5],"tags":[341,743,126,93,339,340,287,342],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theasoe.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/526"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theasoe.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theasoe.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theasoe.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theasoe.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=526"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.theasoe.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/526\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":533,"href":"https:\/\/www.theasoe.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/526\/revisions\/533"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theasoe.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=526"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theasoe.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=526"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theasoe.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=526"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}