If you’re losing sales then it’s usually down to these very basic reasons (despite what sales gurus might tell you!):

 

1. You’re missing the mark on value.

If what you’re offering doesn’t solve a problem or make life easier for your customers, they’re not going to buy. It’s as simple as that.

 

2. You’re not really listening.

Ever been on the phone with a salesperson who just talks at you? Not fun. Listening to what the customer needs is the first step to making a sale.

 

3. You’re jumping the gun.

Nobody likes feeling rushed. Pushing for a sale before you’ve built any kind of relationship is a surefire way to turn people off.

 

4. You’re wasting time on dead ends

Not all leads are worth pursuing. Learn to spot the ones that are just going to waste your time.

 

5. You’re ignoring objections

Brushing off concerns instead of addressing them only makes the customer more hesitant. Take objections seriously and work through them.

 

6. You’re forgetting to follow up

Out of sight, out of mind. Don’t let prospects forget about you—follow up and stay on their radar.

 

7. You’re making things complicated

Keep it simple. A confusing sales process is a sure way to lose customers.

 

8. You’re pretending competitors don’t exist.

Know your enemy. No solution is so unique that it doesn’t have any competition. Ignoring the competition won’t make them go away—it’ll just leave you in the dust.

 

9. You’re blending in instead of standing out.

If you’re just another fish in the sea, why should anyone choose you? Find your unique selling point and shout it from the rooftops.

 

10. You’re skipping the relationship-building part.

People buy from people they like. Take the time to build relationships—it’ll pay off in the long run.

 

Losing sales feels awful but it’s not the end of the world. Learn from your mistakes, tweak your approach, and carefully rebuild your pipeline being mindful of the above.

 

Is there anything I’ve missed? What would you add?

 

#sales #selling #edtech #pipeline #relationships #closing #saleprocess #edtech

It’s a well-known good practice to do your research before you meet with a potential customer.  Spending some time understanding them so you can have a decent conversation with them when you meet goes a long way and shows you’re serious about them.  The question is: how much is too much?

 

When selling in education, I worked with a guy for several years who made a point of researching the schools we were due to meet with; he wanted to come across as a ‘trusted advisor’ as opposed to a salesperson.  However, he would take it far too far and spend the meeting quoting their school motto at them, discussing their school trips and questioning their exam results; they didn’t feel like he had done his research, they felt like they were being stalked!  It ended up having the opposite effect and the staff would become suspicious and back away – it rarely ended in a successful sale.

 

If you veer too far into the realm of over-research, you’ll likely give your potential clients the creeps rather than impressing them. Striking the right balance is the key to a successful client meeting. Here’s how you can do it:

 

1. Background Research: Start by gathering some basic background information about your potential customer. This might include their mission, vision and values, size, and any recent news or developments related to their school or trust.
2. Tailored Questions: Use your preliminary research to frame thoughtful questions. Focus on inquiries that demonstrate your genuine interest and understanding of their needs. For instance, instead of quoting their school motto, you can ask how they envision their future.
3. Active Listening: During your meeting, pay close attention to what your potential client says. Listen for pain points, challenges, and objectives. This is where you can showcase your expertise by aligning your solutions with their needs.
4. Engage in Two-Way Dialogue: Make the meeting a conversation, not a monologue. Share relevant insights from your sector and how your business can provide value. Encourage your potential customers to share their thoughts and expectations.
5. Respect Boundaries: Remember that your potential customers have their comfort zones and boundaries. Respect their personal space and the information they choose to share.

 

The key to successful customer meetings lies in a balanced approach to research. While thorough knowledge is valuable, your customers ultimately want you to be an expert in your own field, not theirs.

So, be curious, be prepared, but most importantly, be attentive and adapt to your customer’s unique needs. By doing so, you’ll forge more genuine connections and create a stronger foundation for successful sales relationships.

How many hours have you put into building your sales pipeline? 

Loads. 

Once you add up all the calls you’ve made, events you’ve attended, email campaigns, social selling, face-to-face meetings and everything else it totals up to a big investment.

So letting that pipeline go cold is heartbreaking, and it’s even harder to get it moving once it’s frozen.

This post will show you how to defrost your frozen pipeline with a simple 30-word email. 

There are three easy steps and it will take less than a minute to contact each cold prospect.

Time to get cracking!

Step 1:  Identify something of value that you can send to your prospects.

The first step involves identifying something of value to your prospects, and preferably something you already have.

You’re looking to provide something specifically useful to them.  The idea here is to open up dialogue but also to create a reciprocal relationship where you have helped them so they will want to help you.

The thing of value can be anything really (and obviously if it’s something from your own business/website the so much the better!)  Good ideas include:

• A free ebook on a subject you know they are interested in
• A cheat sheet to help save them time
• A How To guide on something they might not know about

If you or your company genuinely doesn’t have any valuable free resources to send out, then a link to a blog they might find useful can be equally as helpful.   It’s all about the value it will give the recipient more than the format itself.

Step 2: Create the email

Create a short, 30-word email using the exact format below (of course, top and tail it in the way you would usually with Hi, Best regards, etc. – you want to keep in personable!)

Enter the resource title in the first paragraph, it shows you’ve taken the time to understand what might be interesting to them.  (N.B. don’t forget to also include the attachment or link to the resource – it’s easy to accidentally forget!)

Choose a date you’d like to set up a call and add it to the second paragraph.  Suggest just one option as a binary choice of yes/no is more likely to produce a response. For example . . .

Subject: Thought you might find this interesting

Dear [XXXXXXXX],

I thought you might find this resource useful on the subject of [XXXXXXXXX], an area I know is of interest to you.

Are you free to catch up by phone on [XXXX]?

Step 3: Send the email

That’s it, that’s all you need to do.  Now press send, move on to your next cold prospect, and do it again!

Every potential customer you have will go through some sort of buying cycle.  There are all sorts of different incarnations of the cycle but, broadly speaking, they will follow the 5 stages below.  The big question I’m often asked is: as a supplier, what is our role in the buying cycle and when should we get involved?  The short answer: every step of the way!

I’ve outlined below each stage of the buying cycle and what you should aim for your role to be, as a supplier, during each stage.

Buying Cycle stage 1: Recognising there’s a problem.

Your role – Get to know your potential customer and ask them what their priorities are.  By building a relationship you can talk to them about their future challenges and build a need.

Buying Cycle stage 2: Searching for solutions

Your role – Listen to your potential customer; what do they think they need to solve their problem?  By understanding their needs you can work together on identifying the issues and help them frame the type of solution they require.

Buying Cycle stage 3: Creating a shortlist of solutions

Your role – Be the service/product expert for your potential customer.  Explain what your product/solution will help them achieve and compare it to alternatives – focus on outcomes.

Buying Cycle stage 4: Finding providers who provide the chosen solution and selecting one

Your role – Be the trusted advisor to your potential customer and the ambassador for your service/product.  Discuss your value proposition and what sets you apart from the others.

Buying Cycle stage 5: Making a buying decision

Your role – By now you will have created a strong relationship with your potential customer, shown that you understand their needs and will have demonstrated how your product/service will solve their problems.  Now you need to make the purchase process as straightforward as possible and focus on the great experience they will have with you once the contract is signed!

Essentially, the buying cycle is the process your customers go through when they realise they have a problem and are looking for a solution.  For maximum success, take control of the process and get involved from the start.

All too often businesses embark on sales and marketing activity, both inbound and outbound, with one single goal – to reach and engage with the elusive ‘decision maker’.  And if you are lucky enough to reach and engage with an actual decision maker then that is a wonderful thing, but it’s unlikely to result in much of the way of business if you haven’t engaged with other people in the process.  Here are two good reasons why you should never obsess with the decision maker when you’re creating your sales and marketing strategy:

They’re not the person with the need

The person who can place an order may not be the person who has the ‘need’ you are trying to fulfil with your solution . . . meaning your marketing efforts are likely to fall on deaf ears.  For example, if your product or service helps businesses close sales more quickly, target those people who have the greatest need for this (e.g. sales managers).  If they are sold on what your product does then they will become your biggest asset when it comes to influencing decision makers.

Making decisions does not necessarily equal placing orders

Within most businesses there is rarely a single point of decision-making or a single budget holder.  Of course there will be somebody who physically places orders but they will do so based on the consensus of key stakeholders – ignore these at your peril.

A successful sales and marketing strategy needs to be built on clever targeting based on the answers to a few very simple questions.  Who are my stakeholders?  Where are they?  What do they need?  Understanding the answers to these questions can create all sorts of new opportunities for your business to engage with your customers.