Get to know your potential customers through Account Development Research. Find out what their issues, troubles, pains, desires, goals, hot buttons are before you approach each separate prospective customer. Why? Because it will increase your chances of winning the deal. But, it’s best if this is done by someone outside your organization who has not vested ‘sales’ interest.
Use both closed and open questions to get a good, workable understanding of the environment and day-to-day operations of your prospective customers. Have a research script to follow, and hire someone from outside the organization to conduct the research and then analyze and report on the findings.
Find out:
- how your prospective customers perceive their own industry and their future in it
- what strategies they are using to survive and grow
- what they are doing about key issues related to your offering
- whether they use or are open to using outside solutions
- what may be driving the need to obtain an outside solution
- what time frame exists for any upcoming decision to obtain a solution
- how ‘budgeting’ comes into play for purchasing a solution
- who evaluates and how they evaluate various features of solutions
- what solution they already have, if any, and how they rate it
- what solutions they are looking at, if any
- how they wish to be approached about solutions
- what marketing messages resonate with them
- how they prefer to engage in the sales process from vendors
- what is the most effective way to help them understand their choices
- brochures | videos | case studies | sample | demos | trial | ROI analysis, etc.
- who all is involved in selecting the solution vendor
- what is expected after the purchase and what would ‘wow’ them
It this interests you, let’s talk about the customized plan possibilities for you.
Contact me at: Chris@ChristopherAnacker.com