PROCESS OF SELLING

There are 6 basic steps :

 PROSPECTING
 PREPARATION
 PRESENTATION
 HANDLING OBJECTIONS
 CLOSING SALE
 FOLLOW-UP

PROSPECTING

 It is the exercise involved in identifying potential customers. There are 2

reasons for prospecting :
i) to increase sales
ii) to replace customers lost over time

 The name of a person or an organization that might be a prospect is referred to

as a “lead” or a “suspect”

 A prospect is a qualified person or organization that has the potential to buy a

salesperson’s products &/or services

 A lead once qualified may become a prospect if

 he has the Money to buy
 he has the Authority to buy
 he has the Desire to buy

Common Methods of Prospecting

1) Cold calling/canvassing – e.g. door-to-door selling, telephone canvassing

2) Endless Chain – Customer Referrals
3) Orphaned customers
4) Sales lead clubs
5) Prospect Lists : Secondary data
6) Get published – e.g. Yellow Pages
7) Public Exhibitions
8) Centres of influence
9) Direct Mail
10) Telemarketing
11) Observation
12) Networking

PREPARATION : This includes

 Pre-approach
 Planning the Sales Call
 Planning the Sales Presentation

Pre-approach

 Effectiveness of approach determines whether the salesperson will be granted

an opportunity to make a sales presentation or not

 Referrals are a great help

 Making an appointment is important because

i) it can save time spent in travelling & waiting
ii) when an appointment is taken, a prospect is in a more receptive mood
iii) it makes a sales call look professional
iv) it enables the salesperson to plan his day

 While making a telephone appointment, remember to

 Clearly identify self & company

 Mention referrals, if any
 State the purpose of your call & briefly indicate how the prospect can
benefit from the meeting
 Stress benefits over features
 Provide only enough info to stimulate interest
 Do not take “no” for an answer & be persistent
 Ask for an appointment so that you can further explain
 Give the prospect a choice of date & time & get his concurrence or a
different date & time convenient to him for the meeting
 If you can get a referring customer to make an appointment for you, do so

 Busy prospects maintain gatekeepers (secretaries, receptionists) to filter out

calls & visitors. Effective salespersons successfully navigate through this
filtration system. To do this
i) they believe in themselves & carry themselves with confidence
ii) develop friends in the prospect’s firm like staff in the prospect’s
department, receptionists, secretaries
iii) call the right person at the right time
iv) do not waste time waiting
v) use e-mails to make appointments

Planning the Sales Call : Reasons are

1) Builds up the salesperson’s confidence

2) Develops an atmosphere of goodwill : builds up the prospect’s confidence &
belief that the salesperson can be trusted to fulfill obligations
3) Creates professionalism
4) Increases sales

Elements of Sales Call Planning

1) Determine sales call objective

- Pre-call objective
- Focus & flexibility
- Making the goal specific
- Moving toward your objective

For every sales call, set a SMART objective

S - Specific (to get an order is not specific)
M - Measurable
A - Achievable
R - Realistic
T - Timed

2) Develop Customer Profile

- The background of the company

- Who makes buying decisions : the DMU
- Backgrounds of the buyer(s)
 - Which competitors sell to them now & why
- Desired business terms like delivery, payment terms, credit, service
terms, training, etc
- Purchasing policies

3) Develop Customer Benefit Plan

 For a consumer product, it should indicate your relative strengths in advertising,

displays, promotions, pricing, relative advantage in shelf-space occupation &
positioning, etc

 For an industrial product, it should indicate how it will be effectively integrated

with existing equipment

 All these benefits should be translated to items like forecasted profit per sq. ft.
of shelf-space, ROI, Payback period, etc

 It should finally suggest a purchase order based on the aforesaid cost-benefit

analysis

4) Develop Sales Presentation : 4 varieties of Sales Presentation methods are in

common use. They are
 Memorized or Canned Presentation
 Formula Selling
 Need – Satisfaction Selling
 Problem – Solution Selling

Memorized or Canned Presentation

 Assumes that a prospect’s needs can be stimulated by direct exposure to the

product through the sales presentation

 Highly structured format

 Salesperson does 80 – 90 % of the talking

 Salesperson does not make an attempt to uncover prospect’s needs but makes
the same canned presentation to all prospects
 Stresses product features & benefits & concludes with a purchase request

Merits

- Ensures a well-planned presentation to be made by all salespersons

- Helps & gives confidence to the inexperienced salesperson
- Effective when selling time is short as in door-to-door selling or telephone
selling
- Effective when product is simple & non-technical in nature

Demerits

- Presents features that may not be important to the prospect

- Allows very little prospect participation
- Impractical to use when selling technical products
- Can result in high-pressure sales

Formula Selling

 So named because it uses the AIDA formula of buying theory for the
presentation

 Can be used in straight re-buy or modified re-buy situations in consumer goods

 Is less structured & more flexible

 It is assumed that the salesperson knows something about the prospect

 The salesperson controls the major part of the conversation

Need-Satisfaction Presentation

 Salesperson typically starts the presentation with a probing question. This opens
a discussion about the prospect’s needs : need development phase

 Aware of the prospect’s needs, the salesperson takes control of the presentation
by restating the prospect’s needs : need awareness phase
 In the last stage, the salesperson shows how the product will satisfy mutual
needs : need fulfillment phase

 If the salesperson needs to go back to the prospect a second time, he can then
use the formula presentation

 Too many probing questions can alienate the prospect

Problem Solution Presentation

 Used in selling highly complex or technological products/services like

industrial equipment, office equipment, ERP Packages, Projects, etc

 Salesperson has to make several visits to fully understand the prospect’s needs

 Salesperson may have to undertake short trials/ test-runs, etc for a deeper
analysis of the problems to look for solutions

 After this analysis, he develops a proposal & presents it as a document &/or a

verbal presentation

 Involves a very flexible, highly customized in-depth study of prospect’s needs

 Normally requires interacting with groups & presenting different aspects of the
proposal to different groups

Presenting to a Group

 There must be a group leader if presenting in a group to control the presentation

 Give a proper introduction of the group & briefly state the objective of the
presentation

 Establish credibility : brief history of your company, its development, its

philosophy & its success. Give a reference list of your clients
 State your advantage over competition without going into too many
comparisons

 Give quality assurance & qualifications

 Cater to each group member’s individual behavioural style

 Induce group participation in the framing of performance & decision criteria

 Make a presentation as in a one-on-one situation but handle all concerns

presented by the group

 Try to meet each specific need with a specific proposal

 Prepare exhaustively to address all possible concerns

 Write an exhaustive proposal document with data, specifications, problem

background, solutions, success/performance criteria, decision criteria,
testimonial certificates for satisfied clients, etc

 Do not read from the proposal document in the presentation. Address key issues
& solutions only

 Do not present prices to a group that does not have an authority to decide on
price

 Solicit impressions from the group at the end of the presentation

 Be prepared to negotiate on techno-commercial & price aspects

Negotiating

Big-value sales often have many negotiable items : product offerings, price,
delivery terms, payment terms, guarantee terms, service terms, etc

Preparation is the single most important asset of a good negotiator. This involves :
1. Reviewing each of the bargaining chips available & knowing the limits to
which each can be stretched

2. Knowing what extra services can be offered

3. Knowing the areas of inflexibility

4. Knowing the strengths & weaknesses of competitors

5. Can you provide an alternative to what the client is asking for, if your offer
does not support that ?

6. Refer past records of negotiations with the client or similar clients

7. Study the prospect’s business well. Look at the big picture. Do not focus on
features; look for benefits you can provide

8. Find out the prospect’s level of desire for benefits : must have, should have,
would be nice to have

9. Do not start negotiating until you have obtained a commitment in principle to

the offered solution

10. Establish trust, credibility & mutual respect before starting negotiations

11. Start negotiating with the least significant issue & gradually move into
the more serious ones

12. Do not seek a win-lose situation. Try for win-win.

13. Negotiate price last of all

MAKING PRESENTATIONS

A) Approach : Opening the Sales Presentation

B) Elements of a Sales Presentation : Sales Presentation mix
C) Handling Competition in a Presentation

Approach : Common techniques are

1) Opening with a Statement :

- Introductory statement : does little to capture prospect’s interest

- Complimentary statement : seller needs to know something
about the prospect’s business
- Referral statement : can have a negative effect if the prospect
does not like the referee
- Premium statement : everyone likes to receive something free

2) Opening with a Demonstration :

- Product approach : Salesperson places the product on the retail

counter & waits for the retailer’s reaction. Works well if the product is
new or modified

- Showmanship approach : Salesperson does something unusual

3) Opening with a Question :

i) Customer benefit approach : useful when you know the customer’s

critical needs & have a short time to present. E.g. Would you be
interested in saving 20% on the purchase of our IBM-compatible PCs ?

ii) Curiosity approach : E.g. would you like to know why a recent article in
magazine X has described our new product as revolutionary ?

iii) Opinion approach : People are flattered when asked for their opinions on
a subject. Good for new salespersons. E.g. I am new to this business.
Will you help me ? My company says our electric shavers are best in the
market. What do you think ?

iv) Shock approach : Should be used carefully. E.g. did you know that
shoplifting costs supermarket stores like yours thousands of rupees every
year ?

v) Multiple Question approach : asks the prospect a series of questions

forcing the prospect top participate & develop a 2-way communication.
The SPIN approach asks the prospect 4 types of questions in a sequence.
They are
 S : Situation question
P : Problem question
I : Implication question
N : Need-Payoff question
E.g.: S : Do you like to cook ? Do you & your family eat out much ?
P : Are there times when you must quickly prepare meals ?
I : With both of you working, does your present oven mean
inconvenience to you ?..that you have to eat out more than
you want to..that you have to eat junk food instead of well-
balanced meals ?
N : Do you need a convenient way to prepare well-balanced,
nutritious meals at home ?

Sales Presentation Mix

 Persuasive Communication
 Participation
 Proof
 Visual Aids
 Dramatization
 Demonstration

Persuasive Communication

1. Use questions
2. Be empathic
3. Keep the message simple
4. Listen
5. Have a positive attitude & enthusiasm
6. Use logical reasoning
7. Suggest
 Suggestive Proposition
 Prestige suggestion
 Autosuggestion
 Direct suggestion
 Indirect suggestion
 Counter-suggestion
8. Personalize relationship
 9. Create mutual trust & credibility
10.Use positive body language : Always smile. It is not always important
what you say, but how you say it
11.Control the presentation
12. Be diplomatic

Participation
To induce prospect participation
 Use questions
 Induce product use
 Use visuals
 Give demonstrations

Proof

Salespersons are known to exaggerate product claims & often buyers are skeptical
of these claims. Proof statements increase credibility
 Past sales : Help predict future sales
Forecasted sales – Inventory = Suggested order size
 Guarantees
 Testimonials : from prominent people, experts, satisfied customers
 Company proof results : test market info, performance test data
 Independent research results : medical research findings on products
published in leading medical journals

Visual Aids

 Increase retention : People tend to remember 10% of what they hear &
50% of what they see
 Reinforce the message
 Reduce misunderstanding
 Create a unique & lasting impression
 Show the prospect that you are a professional

Some common visual aids are

 The Product
 Charts, graphics & slides
 Photographs & videos of product & its uses
  Product models & miniatures
 Sales manuals
 Product catalogues & leaflets
 Orders
 Testimonials
 Guarantees
 Posters & display material
 Sample ads
 Audio cassettes & computers

Dramatization involves presenting the product in a striking, showy, extravagant &

theatrical manner.
Ads dramatize product presentation.
Make sure that dramatization would work effectively
Demonstration

 People receive 87% of their info on the outside world through their eyes & only
13% through the other senses. So, make sure that the product is visible
 Every sale does not need a demo. All products do not lend themselves to
demos.
 Plan & rehearse the demo to ensure smooth flow
 Prepare for the unexpected if the demo does not go as per plan
 Induce participation by prospect in the demo
 Customize demo for the prospect
 Use technology to your advantage in your dramatization & demonstration
efforts

Handling competition in your presentation

 Do not refer to competition unless absolutely necessary

 Acknowledge competition briefly if the prospect mentions it but drop it &

return to your presentation

 If you have definite advantages over competition, make a detailed comparison

 HANDLING OBJECTIONS

Basic rules for handling objections are :

 Plan for objections : Consider not only the reasons for buying your products but
also the reasons for not buying them. After each call, divide them into major &
minor objections & devise ways to handle them

 Anticipate & forestall objections :

- Address commonly raised objections in your presentation.
- Anticipate objections & discuss disadvantages before the prospect raises
them. If you acknowledge it, you don’t have to defend it.
- If the prospect raises it, he feels compelled to defend it.

 Handle objections as they arise, otherwise

a) Prospect may stop listening
b) Prospect may feel you are hiding something
c) Prospect may feel you don’t know the answer

 Be positive : Use positive body language, appear friendly. Never take the
objection personally or be hostile to it

 Listen : Hear them out fully. Do not interrupt the prospect when he is raising an
objection. Jumping on an objection before it is spelt out irritates the prospect &
makes him suspicious

Understand objections : An objection can be

a) a request for more info
b) a condition that may be negotiated
c) a genuine objection
d) a hopeless objection

An answerable objection can be

i) Major or Minor
ii) Practical (overt) or Psychological (hidden)

Practical Objections Psychological Objections

Price Resistance to spending money

Product is not needed Resistance to domination
 Overstock of the product Predetermined beliefs
Delivery schedule Negative image of salespeople
Dislikes making a buying decision

Major Categories of Objections

1) Hidden Objections : Prospects who have hidden objections ask trivial,

unimportant questions, maintain a veil of silence. Smoke out hidden objections
by asking questions &/or by attempting a trial close

What will it take to convince you ?

Tell me what is really on your mind
What is your real objection ?
2) The Stalling Objection : Mostly faced in selling new consumer goods

I’ll think it over

I’ll be ready to buy on your next visit
I have enough stock now
I am too busy to see you now
I’ll have to get an approval from my boss

3) The No-Need Objection

I’m not interested

The product we have is still good
We are satisfied with what we have now

4) The Money Objection

Your price is too high

I can’t afford it
Give me a 10% discount & I’ll buy

5) The Product Objection

Your competitor’s product is better

I don’t want to take risks

6) The Source Objection

 We won’t buy from you
We have done business with XYZ for the last 5 years. Why should we change ?

Techniques for handling objections

1) Dodge : B : Your price is a little high

S : Before you decide to buy, let me tell you about the value that goes
with the product

2) Pass Up : B : I’m not really interested in your product

S : Why ?
3) Rephrase objection as a question
B : Your price higher than XYZ
S : I can appreciate that. You want to know what particular benefits our
product has that make it worth a higher price. Right ?
OR
Well, I understand how you feel. Mr K at ABC felt the same way but he
found after reviewing the total program that he would benefit by buying now
(the Feel-Felt-Found method)
OR
As I understand, your only objection to buying from us is……. If I can solve
this for you, I assume you’ll be prepared to buy. Right ?

4) Postpone : Usually necessary in case of the price objection if it is raised by the

prospect before the salesperson has been able to discuss fully the FABs

5) Boomerang :

B : Your software program is too complicated

S : Quite so. It is not meant to be used by everyone in the organization as this is
going to handle a lot of confidential information

6) Ask questions : 5 question sequence

Q 1 : There must be some good reason why you are hesitating to go

ahead now. What is it ?

Q 2 : In addition to that is there any other reason ?

 Q 3 : Just supposing you could convince yourself that ….. then you’d
want to go ahead with it ? (If yes, go back to selling. If no, go to Q 4)

Q 4 : Then there must be some other reason. May I ask you what it is
? (Depending on response, go back to Q 2 or to Q 5)

Q 5 : What would it take to convince you ?

7) Direct Denial :

 Sometimes the objection raised is incorrect. Acknowledge the prospect’s

viewpoint, then handle the objection by providing the correct info

 Should be used tactfully based on facts, logic & politeness

 Should be used judiciously to counter especially damaging misinformation

8) Indirect denial :

 Softer, more tactful & more courteous than the direct denial

 Begins with an agreement with the buyer’s position – Yes, I agree, Sure, I
appreciate how you feel, etc

a) Yes, but you would agree that it takes info & not time to make a decision
b) I agree our price is a little higher but so is our quality
c) Sure, it costs a little more but that little extra will buy you peace of mind
d) I appreciate how you feel. Many of my customers felt the same way until…

9) Compensation or counterbalance : A salesperson must compensate for the

negative aspect of making a purchase

B : I can make 5% more profit with brand X

S : Sure you can but if you take exclusive dealership of our brand, you won’t
have to worry about brand X being discounted by other retailers. Yours will be
the only store carrying our brand. What do you think ?
10) Third Party Reply

Here is what research has shown…..

Field tests at …….have shown that …..
This is what the famous Journal ….. has to say about …..

This is an effective technique with the expert or skeptical prospect. Phone

calls to references who will vouch for the salesperson’s claims can help

CLOSING
Closing Techniques

1) Alternative Choice Close : Gives the orospect a choice. Not buying is not
an option.
“ Would you prefer Model X or Model Y ?”

2) Assumptive Close : “ I’ll have this delivered to next week”

The seller has assumed that the prospect will buy. If he says nothing,
chances are that the order has been accepted.

3) Compliment Close :
“ Obviously you know a great deal about this line of business. You have
seen the ups & downs in this line & no one knows better than you how
important is the need for reliability in your operations. With our
suggested equipment in ……..area, the reliability factor will be greatly
enhanced. So, I suggest that we ship x units of our equipment to you by
October…….”

Especially effective if the prospect is a self-styled expert or has a big ego

4) Summary-of-benefits Close :
“ This air-conditioner has a high efficiency rating (feature)that will save
you 10% on your energy bills (benefit) because it uses less electricity
(advantage). What do you think ? (Trial Close) Would you want it
delivered next week ?”

Simple straight-forward close, not aimed at specific prospect

personalities
5) Continuous Yes Close :
S : Mr X, you said you like our product quality. Right ?
B : Yes, that’s right
S : And you like our fast delivery ?
B : Yes
S : You also like our credit terms ?
B : Yes
S : So, shall I get “x” units delivered to you in a fortnight ?

6) Minor Points Close : Gives the prospect a choice to make a low-risk

decision on a minor issue & subtly leads him into the bigger decision to
buy
“ Would you wait till you can get the silver-grey coloured version of our
car ?”
Often used when the prospect has difficulty in making the decision

7) T-Account Close/ Balance Sheet Close :

To Act (Pros) Not to Act (Cons)

Fast Delivery Narrow range

Good Profit
Good Credit

8) Standing-Room Only Close :

“ The cost of this eqipment will increase 10% next week. Would you buy
it now or would you pay the higher price ?”

“ We’ve got limited stock. You better order now or we won’t be able to
meet your demand”

For the right product, person & situation, it works very well

9) Probability Close :
B : I need to think it over
S : I appreciate that. When I call back next week, what is the probability
that we will do business ?
B : i) Greater than 50% but less than 85% for buying
- Focus on objections & handle
ii)Greater than 85% but less than 100% for buying
 - Why wait ? Let’s go ahead now
iii) Less than 50% for buying (Little chance of buying)

10)Negotiation Close