The Importance of a Formal Sales Process

 

What is a “formal sales process”?  Why is having a standard sales process flow important to your company? With a formal sales process in place, salespeople are 50% more likely to meet quota, based on a survey by the TAS Group. It’s been proven that a formal, repeatable process is one of the “5 Factors of Sales Success”:

• Formal Processes
•  Aptitude
• Motivation
• Product Knowledge
• Sales Skill Set

Successful salespeople will stick with you longer. In one study, we learned that having the feeling of success breeds loyalty and reduces staff turnover by 39%.

In spite of the obvious advantages of having a formal sales process flow; out of 1,275 B2B companies surveyed by Sales Performance Optimization Study, less than half have a formal sales process. Reflect on your company: do you have a formal sales process plan in place? Are you missing out on new business?

To see what we mean by a formal process, evaluate your current sales practices against our basic 10-Step Sales Process. From there, you will have the foundation to make a decision on whether your processes are “formal” and if not, some weak areas to focus on immediately. 

The 10-Step “Basic” Sales Process –

After given a qualified lead

1. Research the prospect’s organization
2. Develop a “Coach” who will offer additional understanding into the prospect’s needs and desires
3. Request that the “Coach” help you with the initial contact
4. For bigger sales opportunities, complete a formal business capture checklist to understand the customer in detail, and develop the appropriate marketing messages (our checklist is 20 items)
5. Build rapport in the first meeting with the prospect by talking about their professional passions
6. Inquire about their business issues
7. Discuss how your company can help satisfy their issues
8. Provide appropriate supplemental material about your organization
9. Follow-up with a handwritten thank-you note
10. Follow-up with the prospect as many times as necessary to close the sale

You know you have the right-fit sales process when a steady flow of target-hitting sales results from your team’s efforts. To get your sales-team on the right track, contact us at 202.742.6639 or visit our schedule to see when the next sales training session is in your area. Sales & Marketing Process Workshops are two days in length and are for executive and management teams.