Six Force Multipliers to Sales Success

The rules have changed. Salespeople can no longer be just “mouths in a suit.” The precarious economy, finicky buyers and new technologies mean you’ve got to be at the top of your game. What you need are force multipliers to enhance the skills and techniques of your sales team. Here are six to help you survive in 2013.

1. Fully exploit CRM. Cory Mosley, principal of Mosley Automotive Training says skip perfunctory exercises in CRM—like simple log ups and sending out letters. You must use it every day to for accountability and reporting. Implement a customer life-cycle marketing plan. Use the information to pinpoint training, new business development trends and opportunities for growth. Are there any new enhancements to CRM that can help you achieve better sales? If so, find them and use them.
    
2. Stay on top of T&D. If you’re a sales manager, make sure training and development remains a top priority. The buck stops with you to ensure their talents and skills are fully developed. Mosley notes that most training today is recycled, outdated and lacks customer focus. Look past the process training (filling out order forms and contracts) and concentrate on motivation and how to close sales in today’s “crunch” sales environment. Without proper training and motivation, your sales will nosedive and grosses will sink. It’s a lose-lose for everyone.
    
3. Boost Efficiency. Use a single program to manage multiple areas of your sales operation. Look into and cut out any unnecessary steps to reduce transaction times and increase the number of transactions. Your goal is more sales revenue with less labor and workload.
    
4. Enhance Work Environment. Take a survey to evaluate your work environment. You may discover some important work issues that affect the three “M's”—morale, motivation and money.  Enhancing these areas can affect how your sales team treats both your current and potential customers.
    
5. ID the Whales and Marquees. In the film Wall Street, Bud Fox identified Gordon Gekko, his whale and marquee client. Big clients make a statement about who you are as salesperson or team. These clients won’t be easy to get. Chances are, they’re pretty locked in with another sales team or company, people who are giving them what they want. But there’s always that one opening.
    
6. Play the Long Game. To win over whales and marquees, you’ve got to play the long game. Instruct your sales team to give them useful ideas to help them enhance their bottom line. This can include case studies showing how you helped a similar client overcome a challenge. Or have your sales team send whitepapers and magazine articles with insights and ideas on how to achieve better results. These should be sent out an average of once a week with a personal note. Finally, go directly to the top--to the CEO or the president. Sales consultant, author and entrepreneur Barry Farber says, this will give you a clear picture of the organization, its decision makers and its hierarchy.

Times are tough. To succeed in sales, you’ve got to be tougher. That means fully exploiting and leveraging the techniques and technologies that can help you land those whales and marquees--while keeping your smaller, steady clients happy.

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