Sales

A response to William Hague by Hugh Alford

No one really likes criticism – even justified criticism but I guess we all need it.
 
Such an uncomfortable denunciation came from William Hague the UK Foreign Secretary this weekend who urged us that “… there’s only one growth strategy: work hard”.

Why do so many otherwise intelligent and astute people throw their money away? This is what people are doing in both their personal and business lives by neglecting to negotiate effectively.

I believe part of the answer lies in the inherent politeness and reluctance to give offence which is at the heart of our culture.

Negotiation is often wrongly associated with tough entrepreneurs such as Alan Sugar and the candidates on the ‘The Apprentice’. However, you don’t have to be bolshie and blunt to be a good negotiator.

The Caversham based networking organisation, Business Biscotti, held an event entitled “Digital Day" on 29th March 2012. The day represented Business Biscotti’s first step in their strategic focus to support Small and Medium sized Enterprises, whose cause they champion, working closely with organisations such as TACK International.

The day was hosted by the founders, Graham and Sue Reeves at the Grovefield House Hotel, Burnham, Slough. It was designed to provide members with tools and techniques to improve and grow their online presence, as well as understand the power of social media in building and maintaining business relationships.

When people prospect over the phone their main role is to identify and create opportunities that at some stage can be turned into business. Within the telephone arena there are many ways any business can get involved in prospecting and importantly, make it pay.

The first place to get involved in prospecting and appointment setting is your internal sales people but before doing so you need to consider the following questions to ensure they are doing it right first time.

How confident are they at getting to the decision maker? And once they've got through do they grab their attention or do they send them to sleep?

Over the last 20 or so years when we look at sales and selling, there have been a couple of major changes that should impact the way a professional salesperson goes about their work. Unfortunately a lot of these salespeople have not changed with the times.

1) The first change is the language that is wrapped around sales and selling.

If you can answer yes to any of the following questions there’s a good chance you aren’t making qualified appointments. But what does that really mean?

• Do you feel under pressure to achieve your KPIs?
• Does your manager insist you meet with everyone?
• Do you feel deflated if someone says “no?”
• Do you travel miles for a quick chat over a coffee, just to tick a box?
• Could some of your business be won over the phone?

To make a qualified appointment takes true skill.

Buyers with budgets (or even without budgets) feel in a strong negotiating position in many markets right now. In this Blog we explore some of the negotiation strategies and tactics they are trained to use.

1. The budget bluff
"That is all I have in my budget and so that is all I can afford to pay."

2. The squeeze
“Your competitor(s) are much less than you.”

3. The reverse auction (online)
“OK suppliers – here is a list of all your prices on screen. Would you like to submit a better offer?”

In a tough market your current key accounts are like gold dust. And never forget that your key accounts are your competitor’s key prospects (and vice versa).

So what points does a key account manager have to remember right now?

1. Work like you were on their payroll not yours
If you are doing your job 100% then your customers should feel like you are representing their interests more than your own company’s (in reality you are representing both equally).