Sales Methodology For Effective Sales

SALES METHODOLOGY FOR EFFECTIVE SALES A. Understanding Sales Methodology A successful sales process will certainly help your business develop more quickly. For this reason, an appropriate sales methodology is needed for the company to implement. There are quite a lot of sales methodologies that companies can use. However, not all of these methods are suitable for use by every business. That is why it is very important to understand what the sales methods are and choose the most suitable one for the business. Pipedrive defines sales methodology as guiding principles on how to act between sales stages. Each sales method is designed to help the sales team work as well as possible and solve problems in the sales process. In implementing sales methodology, comprehensive information is needed regarding what buyers need. This serves to help plan a more effective sales process. B. Example of Sales Methodology It was mentioned above that there are quite a lot of sales methodologies that are known today. Here are some of them. 1. SPIN Selling SPIN selling is one of the most popular sales methods. First introduced in 1988 by Neil Rackahm, this method is still very effective to apply. Reporting from Mailshake, SPIN is an abbreviation for Situation, Problem, Implication, and Need-Payoff. One of the focuses of this sales method is to ask relevant questions to prospects to find out what their problems and expectations really are. 2. Conceptual Selling Conceptual selling has the idea that customers do not buy products or services. Instead, they buy into the concept or solution offered by the seller. This sales method really emphasizes communication, especially active listening skills on the part of the seller. In this sales method, the sales process is apparently divided into three stages, namely getting information, providing information, and getting commitment. 3. Challenger Sale The next effective sales methodology is the Challenger sale. This type of sales method focuses on good communication between the seller and the prospect. When conducting a Challenger sale, sellers must encourage themselves to learn new skills. This aims to provide prospects with new insights into their business. Then, he must also adapt his communication to the prospect so that the conversation can be more effective. When a salesperson can provide new insights and is able to control communication, then he can be trusted by prospects. That way, the sales process can run smoothly. 4. Solution Selling According to HubSpot, solution selling does not focus on selling a specific product. However, it is more about selling the solution that prospects need. This sales methodology refers to the pain points experienced by customers. Then, they are provided with solutions to use the right product or service for them. In carrying out solution selling, the sales team must spend more time with prospects. This aims to find out the problems and find the most appropriate solutions to overcome the problems they face. 5. Sandler Selling System The Sandler selling system is one of the oldest sales methodologies and is still effectively used today. In this sales method, the priority is to build mutual trust between the seller and the buyer. The sales team that uses this method must be able to demonstrate a sincere desire to gain the prospect's trust. However, first they have to identify prospects who truly meet the requirements to become customers. The reason is, not everyone needs the products or services offered. So, when the prospect is suitable and strong trust is formed, of course the conversion process can occur. 6. Inbound Selling In today's digital era, it is easier for buyers to do research before starting to buy a product. This can be utilized by implementing the inbound selling method. The focus of this method is to make people want to become buyers and not to offer the product directly. So, by implementing this method the sales team only needs to focus on making prospects interested. Then, start creating an approach based on customer interests. There are several advantages to this sales methodology, for example saving time and budget, making it easier to get quality leads. C. Strategy for Choosing the Right Sales Methodology Before starting to apply the sales methodology mentioned above, first find out what is the most appropriate way to choose it for your business. 1. Identify the entire sales process The first thing that needs to be done is to identify each sales process carried out by the business. Identify several important things, such as the goals of making sales, how to get quality leads, and what activities the sales team needs to carry out. To make identification easier, discussions need to be held between the sales and marketing teams and other stakeholders. 2. Understand customer needs If you want your product to be liked by customers, of course the company must first understand what it actually needs. In order to understand what they need, you can carry out a survey directly or by filling out a questionnaire. Find out what real problems customers are facing so that you can create products that can help solve those problems. 3. Choose the most appropriate sales methodology Each sales methodology has its own advantages and disadvantages. When choosing, this must be considered carefully. Apart from that, if it is felt that there is no most suitable method, a special method can be developed that is most suitable for use by the company. This can be done by adopting several elements of the sales method to suit the needs of the business. 4. Prepare materials and training This part is very important so that all sales teams can apply the chosen method. Create materials that document what sales methods will be used. Also create guidelines that the entire team can learn from. If necessary, create training that can help improve the abilities of each sales team member.