‘” You are not asking for a decision, and the prospect, in answering, is merely saying, “You have not convinced me yet, but if you can, I would be prepared to…” Failing to establish this initial willingness or ability to invest will result in endless, unprofitable discussions. The main thing that sets personal selling apart from other methods of selling is that the salesperson conducts business with the customer in person. This allows a business to use fewer sales representatives to manage their clients. The type of presentation to be planned and delivered. It is important to check if the products have been received in good condition, to establish the customer is satisfied etc. The overall goals are to find, attract, and win new clients, service and retain those the company already has, entice former clients to return, and reduce the costs of marketing and client service. Your job as a salesperson is to find the ones who are. Many sales representatives rely on a sequential sales process that typically includes nine steps. Personal selling is when a salesperson meets a potential buyer or buyers face-to-face with the aim of selling a product or service. The term can also be used to refer to the achievement of a desired outcome, such as the exchange of money or the acquiring of a signature. The initial step of selling process starts with prospecting or searching for potential customers. A salesperson must understand their products thoroughly, and ensure that there is a match between product, benefits, and customer needs. Every salesperson should prepare a customized elevator pitch to quickly entice the customer to view the product offered as the solution to his needs. Handling Objections: Any presentation of a product or service will raise objections from the prospect. Sellers humanize themselves and show they’re there to help prospects, not sell at them. Tips for Printing and Marketing Materials. This validation takes place as the prototypes are assessed by consumers to identify potential problems and to smooth out design issues. There may be several opportunities to attempt to close during a presentation, or opportunity may knock only once. In this process, companies should find real consumption motivators that eventually evolve into product offerings. A salesman’s product must be relevant to his prospect. By leveraging the established relationships a salesperson has with these contacts, he will find it easier than cold calling to get the inside track on a new customer. Information gained through CRM initiatives can support sales development and marketing strategy by growing the organization’s knowledge in customer-oriented areas. ” / “Would you sign this order form please? ”, The either / or choice close – Examples of this technique include: “Would you like red or green? Show appreciation that motivates sales teams to do more follow up to facilitate repeat business and referrals. To identify which particular market segment to aim for, a salesperson should analyze the profile of their existing customers, and secure a picture of what their “ideal customer” should look like. Effective prospecting requires a systematic methodology. Find the prospects or the potential customers 2. Closing refers to the achievement of the desired outcome, which may be the exchange of money or the acquiring of a signature. The salesperson should have as much information as possible about the candidate being pitched to. Victor Antonio 524,787 views Salespeople can overcome objections by following certain guidelines such as viewing objections as selling tools, being aware of the benefits of their product, and creating a list of possible objections and the best answers to them prior to the presentation. This is known as the FAB technique (Features, Advantages and Benefits). It is sometimes necessary to disbelieve someone who says that he is the decision maker. Failing to analyze a prospect is the main reason for a great deal of wasted prospecting spent on a customer who should have been promptly discarded after due research. Clarifying the objection can allow you to ask questions to gain more information. Situations where a closing attempt is logical include: when a presentation has been completed without any objectives from the prospect, when the presentation has been completed and all objections and questions have been answered, and when the buyer indicates an interest in the product by giving a closing signal, such as a nod of the head. Through careful planning, salespeople can focus on important customer needs and communicate the relevant benefits to the buyer, address potential problem areas prior to the sales presentation, and enjoy the self-confidence that arises after thorough preparation. The personal selling process is a seven step approach: prospecting, pre-approach, approach, presentation, meeting objections, closing the sale, and follow-up. Very often the list of benefits is somewhat longer than the list of cautions. Personal Selling Process – 7 Important Stages: Prospecting, Pre-Approach, Approach, Demonstration, Handling Objection,Closing and Feedback Personal selling or salesmanship itself is a process. The goal of this activity is to highlight the various steps of the personal selling process and to demonstrate which specific activities occur at each step of the process. If you are a sales professional or a sales executive engaged in personal selling, you probably get overwhelmed with too much information on the topic of a sales process. The prospect is in fact requesting additional information to help him to justify a decision to buy. The salesman must establish on the outset whether the prospect can afford to buy. Cody Zahler, Telephone Follow Up. A method is usually selected depending on the attention span available from the prospective client. A salesperson should read all he can about his market, using information that is readily and freely available in libraries, reference books, trade directories, newspapers, and magazines. Normally ladies with children, shopkeepers, and people in a hurry give less attention. Assumptive closing – This technique is most commonly used in cold calling after impulsing a customer. Here, prospect is a person or an institution who is likely to be benefited by the product the salesman wants to sell and can afford to buy it. At least a slight modification to what has worked in the past is always required for the pitch to be authentic and effective. 1. Second, there may be some products in a salesperson’s product range that match up better to one industry or market segment than another. iii. It is important to focus on a virtual balance of the candidate’s needs and wants to maximize one’s leverage when pitching. First impressions are vital to making a successful sales call. Measuring and valuing customer relationships is critical to implementing this strategy. This fragmented implementation can cause inherent challenges, as only certain parts are used and the system is not fully functional. Closing is distinguished from ordinary practices such as explaining a product ‘s benefits or justifying an expense. The prospect may object to points made in the presentation, so the salesperson should be prepared to listen and address those concerns. Prospecting for customers is the first step to selling. The prospect may not be fully convinced and the issues raised are thus very important. The average salesperson will also always have a natural negativity toward approaching someone new. But there should be guidelines prescribing the … Several factors including the following must be considered prior to approaching a customer: Gather Information from Printed Materials. A key marketing capability is tracking and measuring multichannel campaigns, including email, search, social media, telephone, and direct mail. It is vital to know who the decision-maker is, so as to save a great deal of time in having to redo yet another sales presentation. * Features : Refers to the physical characteristics such as size, taste etc. potential customers; qualifying identifies those who have the authority to. First, read the brief fictional scenario about Ilya Rastova's personal selling process. Be sure to not overwhelm the buyer with questions. Stakeholders must be identified early in the process and a full commitment is needed from all executives before beginning the conversion. Responding to the objection is important. Personal selling can adjust the manner in which facts are communicated and can consider factors such as culture and behaviour in the approach. Many SFA applications also include insights into opportunities, territories, sales forecasts, and workflow automation. Further communication with consumers validate the final definition of a market-based product or service. Personal selling includes direct communication with any consumer or business prospect in an effort to make a sale. The seller does not just want to ignore the buyer and his concerns. The Personal Selling Process. It is mostly two-way communication, which not only involves a … For instance, the salesperson might say, “Just pass me your credit card and I’ll start the paper work for you. The decision making stage is only the beginning of your sales and marketing efforts for your brand and personal selling is the cornerstone to your sales-marketing marriage. What information will the prospect require before they will choose to buy my offering? These ideas must be incorporated in a market research process involving customers and other clients and suppliers in the Value Chain. Showing genuine but tempered enthusiasm about the product, making eye contact, and actively listening to whomever you come in contact with are just a few suggestions that will create a good impression. Customers may have gotten into the habit of raising objections, have a desire for more information, or have no need for the product or service. A well-prepared sales presentation will engage prospects with relevant information and entice them to make a purchase commitment. Personal selling is an approach that individualizes the sales process. Solution selling is when the salesperson focuses on the customer’s pain and addresses the issue with his offerings. Defining a Target Market: Prospecting in a defined target market that mostly contains characteristics of an ideal customer will help in making the sale. The term “elevator pitch” reflects the idea that it should be possible to deliver the summary in the time span of an elevator ride, or approximately thirty seconds to two minutes. Examine the elements of the sales pre-approach used in personal selling and sales promotion. Describe the characteristics of a sales presentation within the context of personal selling and sales promotion. The profile should include psycho-demographic characteristics, such as age, sex, careers, and interests, since all will impact where or when they buy. Some small talk may be necessary to reduce tension but the purpose always remains business. Step 3. Discovery: Finding out What Customer’s Need. Furthermore, a correct business definition leads to a natural market orientation; for instance, Charles Revson’s famous quote, “in the factory we make cosmetics; in the drug store we sell hope,” allowed the company to develop cosmetic products based on women’s hopes rather than product features. Illustrate the rationale and use of customer relations management (CRM) as part of personal selling and sales promotion. For example, a salesman might mention that his product is popular with a person’s neighbors, knowing that people tend to follow perceived trends. Median response time is 34 minutes and may be longer for new subjects. The purpose of listening to the buyer is to gain as much knowledge as possible about their objection. The ideal customer (i.e., the one who buys as soon as the salesperson talks to them) is probably non-existent, but the closer a salesperson’s prospect matches that ideal customer profile, the fewer sales objections will arise. Personal selling is a process of Developing relationships Discovering needs Matching products with needs Communicating benefits Viewed as a process that adds value The evolution of personal selling 1950 to present is describe as under Personal Selling in the Information Age:-An evolution from the industrial economy to the information economy. The preapproach is when you gather relevant information regarding the prospect in order to create a customized sales presentation. ” A limitation of this approach is that not all customers buy to address a “pain”, and not every need is a problem requiring a solution. Personal contacts can also be a great source for mining information. The listener likely turns back for an explanation, and then the remaining sales talk or pep talk happens. 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