Sales 101: what I've learnt so far

It is often hard to contact the decision maker at a company. (S)He is often shielded by a secretary and has 100+ emails a day to deal with as well as all the real work they have to do.

While working for Netchemia I have been involved with a few aspects of the sales process. Also in attending the 'MIT Sloan Sales Conference' I have gathered some more tips. Heres what I've found.

Use Surveys
The key with surveys is that this is not directly sales, there is less pressure on the target prospect.

By Phone
Doing some initial customer surveys I rang 100 people. I got about 25 responses and spent 2 days working to get them: 2 leads generated. Information given by the prospects helped better tailor the survey and if I got in touch with a talkative person I could learn a lot. Response rate 25%. Read my other post on getting past the Gatekeeper for more information.

By Email
I set up the same survey using www.surveymonkey.com and emailed 1500 targeted prospects. I recieved 120 responses and 10 leads were generated. Total time used 4 hours. Response Rate 8%.

Surveying over email is a great way to generate leads quickly if there is a large sample size. However the response rate is much lower. I would first test out the survey on a small sample size by phone and refine the questions. Reading up about survey on this website I found that Wednesday morning was the most likely time people would respond to this kind of marketing.

Use Email
From the conference and though reading up on this website here's what I found to be the most important points in writing emails to potential prospects:

• keep the title less than 50 characters
• keep the email short
• focus on 1 small piece of information which you want to communicate
  
• ask for something which is easy for the prospect to give you, such as a referral
  
• Don't include your title in the message, people discriminate based on title easily
• Don't put any images in the email, many email systems block images by default and mobile phones don't display many image types
• Don't use any marketing speak in the email, make the email sound tailored to the individual
• Always finish the email with a question, otherwise the prospect feels no obligation to reply
• Don't start the email with "I have been trying to get hold of you" or "I have left x messages for you" the prospect may think that if thats the case then (s)he doesn't want to speak to you
  

Use LinkedIn
I have had a linked in account for a while now and have never really figured out what to do with it. Until I heard Jeff Hoffman of Basho Strategies talk. He suggested the following:

1. Search for a person you want to speak to. This will usually be a decision maker at a company. So search in the Title Field for VP.
   
2. Look for a decision maker in the target company , it doesn't to be the desicion maker your looker for but a decision maker.
3. When you find someone who is connected to you through one other person, then you want an introduction. But how do you get the introduction? Approach the person with an easy offer and proposal.
4. “Hi x, I was searching linked in and noticed you are connected to Y. I would like a referral to that person. Is there anyone in my network who you would like to meet?"

Use Blogs and Podcasts
Again this tip is from Jeff Hoffman of Basho Strategies. Why do people write blogs? for recognition. How often do others comment on their blogs? hardly ever. Therefore commenting on someones blog through email is flattering to the recipient.

1. Search Google for a blog or podcast written by someone in the target organization who is in a decision making position.
2. Read the blog and look for some information you find interesting
3. Email the author with the title being "I have just read you blog..."
4. Ask the author for a referral to the decision maker you are looking to contact

Use Analytics
Add analytics to your website. (For example Google Analytics which is free). And track visitors to your website. If someone visits on a number of occasions then they are interested in your product/service. This is a great opportunity to contact them.

Week 16: Netchemia and MIT Sloan Sales Conference

This week I have been working in Netchemia, spoke with an IP attorney and attended the 'MIT Sloan Sales Conference' in Boston.

There is a lot to write about so I will split it up into 3 short posts

Thoughts on IP

My Sales 101 learning

Takeaways from the MIT Sloan Sales Conference

hope you find it as interesting as I have

Week 11: Start of Internship at Netchemia: Sales

My new Internship is at Netchemia. A 6 year old start up with 20 employees and 4 person partnership at the top. Netchemia provides school districts with web based software which allows them to streamline office processes by making them paperless. These process' include recruitment and learning plans for students.

I've been placed in the Sales department, where I will learn about Sales, Marketing, a small amount of Technical Development and making proposals for potential clients (in the UK called a 'bid' or 'tender' in America called an RFP: Request For Proposal).
Having only been at Netchemia for week I feel this will be a really useful placement for me, and also like the Kauffman course so far has missed out on a very important subject: Sales. You don't have a business; you don't have a customer without first selling.

The course has covered pitching for investment. I feel this is different. In a pitch I already have the listeners permission to sell to them. In a sales office getting this is just one of many steps involved: getting the permission to speak to the right person. This is a difficult challenge and a very worthwhile skill any entrepreneur should learn.

No matter who you are selling to the first few steps of the process are the same:

1. Target the right company.
2. Contact the company.
3. By default be put through to the company's gatekeeper.
4. Get permission from the gatekeeper to speak with the target customer: the prospect.

Step 4. to me, is what defines one of the key differences between an average and a great salesman (there are many more key differences but this is the first important one). The gatekeeper is often a receptionist or special assistant to the prospect. One of the jobs of the gatekeeper is to shield the prospect from 'unsolicited calls'. So as a sales person, one of the gatekeepers jobs is to not let you past. The gatekeeper is an interesting position, they have all the power to block you, but not necessarily the understanding to know if you will benefit their boss or not. Trying to sell to the gatekeeper is often a waste of time: what influence do they have in the decision making process to buy? Probably none and yet you must convince them that their boss would appreciate speaking to you.

Heres a few basic tips I have learnt.

1. Don't have a set script: it makes you sound like another seller in a call centre (center).
2. Don't waste to much time trying to explain to the gatekeeper why you are calling: the longer you're on the phone with them the less chance you have to speak with the prospect. Often you get to a point in the conversation where the penny drops the can almost hear the gatekeepers thought process: "oh hang on this is a sales person I don't want them to waste any time of my boss".
3. Just say in a confident polite way "X Please" where X is just the first name of the prospect (as if you know then on a personal level).

Then your through to the prospect! The first call you make to a prospect is never a sales call, all you want is 5 minutes of their time to see how they are currently dealing with issue 'x' and whether they would benefit from your system. Try to see if your product and their needs are a fit. Then arrange an appointment to call: a next contact: where you take a step closer to the sale.

Hopefully as the weeks go by I'll be able to close a sale!