The emerging of digital information has transformed the task that salesmen face, particularly in the technology industry. Due to the accessibility of information on the Internet many salespeople will find that their roles seem almost obsolete. The key to understanding the fundamentals of being an efficient seller in the modern market is to examine and recognise different the different buying modes of customers.
Transactional Buying " customers want lowest cost purchases
Due to the commoditisation of technology products, it's not surprising, or unreasonable, that many technology customers simply want the best terms or the lowest cost. And they may not even want to speak with a sales person.
Something of note however is that recent studies have shown that many of these transactional buyers would forgo the cheapest option if they saw value in the sales process.
This was demonstrated surprisingly and dramatically by a US Technology Company who announced to the market that they would no longer be competing based on price. Compared to some of their competition, their prices were quite high, but they were willing to take the risk.
At first, their business did fall off. But, the sales team focused on creating value for customers beyond products and services. The results were startling. Within a year, profits had increased over 11 percent and revenue was up six percent. The previous year, when the company was competing often on price, both revenue and profits were down!
Consultative Buying " selling value as well as the solution
In every market, there are also customers willing to go beyond a purely transactional relationship when the seller can offer more than just quality products and good customer service. For these buyers, an important element is having access to the expertise of the business.
This type of customer will welcome new relationships with your business if you can make them sure that you will become useful assets and that they will have access to your knowledge and expertise. To ensure that your product holds value to a customer, the seller must tailor their selling process for a particular customers requirements, and throughout the sale process, describe ways in which their solutions holds the answers to the consumers problems.
Think about two fundamental conditions of communication: People value more what they conclude than what they're told. People value more what they ask for than what is offered.
So in order to have an effective sales technique, sellers must recognise these buying modes in potential customers, as well as adding value in the customers mind with the questions you ask. Many sellers will usually ask questions to gather perspective on their prospects situation, but they must ask themselves, is this customer gaining value from these questions? I.e. are these questions creating a valuable picture in this customers mind about our solution to their particular problem?
Transactional Buying " customers want lowest cost purchases
Due to the commoditisation of technology products, it's not surprising, or unreasonable, that many technology customers simply want the best terms or the lowest cost. And they may not even want to speak with a sales person.
Something of note however is that recent studies have shown that many of these transactional buyers would forgo the cheapest option if they saw value in the sales process.
This was demonstrated surprisingly and dramatically by a US Technology Company who announced to the market that they would no longer be competing based on price. Compared to some of their competition, their prices were quite high, but they were willing to take the risk.
At first, their business did fall off. But, the sales team focused on creating value for customers beyond products and services. The results were startling. Within a year, profits had increased over 11 percent and revenue was up six percent. The previous year, when the company was competing often on price, both revenue and profits were down!
Consultative Buying " selling value as well as the solution
In every market, there are also customers willing to go beyond a purely transactional relationship when the seller can offer more than just quality products and good customer service. For these buyers, an important element is having access to the expertise of the business.
This type of customer will welcome new relationships with your business if you can make them sure that you will become useful assets and that they will have access to your knowledge and expertise. To ensure that your product holds value to a customer, the seller must tailor their selling process for a particular customers requirements, and throughout the sale process, describe ways in which their solutions holds the answers to the consumers problems.
Think about two fundamental conditions of communication: People value more what they conclude than what they're told. People value more what they ask for than what is offered.
So in order to have an effective sales technique, sellers must recognise these buying modes in potential customers, as well as adding value in the customers mind with the questions you ask. Many sellers will usually ask questions to gather perspective on their prospects situation, but they must ask themselves, is this customer gaining value from these questions? I.e. are these questions creating a valuable picture in this customers mind about our solution to their particular problem?
About the Author:
Terry Forsey is one of the country's top technology sales and marketing coaches and can help your business survive and prosper in these difficult times. To see how Terry Forsey can help your business visit his website at http://www.forsey.info
