Customers usually don’t leave because someone else offers a lower price. They leave because your salesperson has done a poor job of taking care of them.

Customers will tolerate almost anything, including less than perfect service. What they are unable to accept is being neglected.

Some salespeople really want to believe that price is the problem when they lose a customer, since it is easier to blame the loss on something beyond their control.

But in actuality, research shows that neglect loses many more customers than price.

Customers leave if:

1. They feel they are being taken for granted. Sales pros must work at making them feel special.
2. They get the idea that the only time salespeople show interest in them is when an order is needed. Salespeople shouldn’t be predictable when it comes to “caring.”
3. They feel salespeople come to their door only when they have something they want customers to buy. Are these the only occasions when your reps go to see customers?
4. They feel salespeople spend too much time with — and lavish too much attention on — prospects.
5. They feel sale reps are only interested in them when they are placing orders.
6. They feel salespeople do a poor job communicating with them. Are invoices all they ever get from your company?
7. They feel sale reps are only interested in “big accounts.”
8. They feel that salespeople drop them like a hot potato once they close a sale. They are pleased with the fine way they were treated at the beginning, but they noticed a difference once they became customers. Such an approach not only leaves a bad taste in customers’ mouths, it makes it nearly impossible for positive relationships to develop.

It may be a good idea to reproduce this list and pass it out to your reps at your next sales meeting.

For sales and marketing pros to get up and run while the economy is on its hands and knees means avoiding these seven mistakes.

Mistake #1: Relying on your gut instincts

Some business people seem to think that relying on information is a sign of weakness. They are more comfortable trying to guess correctly than they are attempting to get the facts and accumulating the necessary information to help the prospect make an informed decision.

Mistake #2: Always keeping your eye on the competition

Just because the competition is doing it doesn’t make it smart, effective or correct. Following the competition like a shadow may be a sign of a lack of confidence. Top business pros see themselves as innovative, cutting-edge pacesetters — not second-hand followers. They embrace new ideas and suggestions on how to stand out from the competition.

Mistake #3: Focusing solely on product quality and price

Top revenue generators recognize that just offing a great deal on a quality product isn’t nearly enough in today’s competitive market. They recognize that they can get everything right in terms of the product and price — but unless they complete the process with incredibly good customer service, they run the risk of losing business.

Mistake #4: Believing a quick payoff is better than making an investment

The extended slowdown may be creating serious panic at some organizations. They may respond by making few investments in their customers and concentrate only on making the sale today. But those who’ll come out on top now — and when the economy rebounds — recognize the importance of making long-term investments in existing customers. It’ll boost customer loyalty, which in turn will keep sales up despite economic conditions or increased competition.

Mistake #5: Thinking the sale is made after the presentation

Oftentimes, the sale is made — or lost — before the presentation begins. It’s what happens before the presentation that determines whether the sale is made. How is the salesperson or your company perceived by prospects? Do prospects trust you? Do they know you’re willing to share your industry knowledge and expertise both before and after the sale.

Mistake #6: Taking rejection personally

It’s never easy to learn that you’ve lost a sale or an existing customer to a competitor. But never take rejection personally. Use it as a sign it may be time to review your techniques and try to pinpoint areas for improvement.

Mistake #7: Relying heavily on relationships to sell

There was a time when one customer could influence numerous decision makers within their own company. But that trend’s fading out. Today, department heads want more autonomy. They want to make their own decisions, because more companies are holding decision makers personally accountable for their actions. Being overly reliant on existing relationships to help boost sales can be dangerous today.

Avoid blame statements

Blame statements rob customers of their motivation to be your customer and put them on the defense.

Examples of blame statements include:

• You’re wrong. That’s not how you should do it.
• Why didn’t you use it the way I explained?
• That is not what you asked for.

Top salespeople focus on the positive by using questions to gracefully correct customers without making them feel wrong.  The following questions allow you to respect the customer’s viewpoint and create a new opening for a positive result:

• What else do you feel might be possible?
• Can you please share with me your thinking on that?
• Is it possible that there may be another approach/solution here?
• Is it possible that there may be more/other facts to consider?
• How can I best assist you now?
• That’s interesting. Can you share with me why you feel that way?
• I’m not too sure what you mean? Can you elaborate on that?
• May I ask where you heard/learned that?
• What are you noticing that supports your feelings about this?

Adapted from “Coaching Salespeople Into Sales Champions,” by Keith Rosen, www.profitbuilders.com

If you can help your customers achieve that goal, you’re all but assured that they’ll not only keep buying from you — but they’ll buy even more.

Here are nine strategies to help your customers do more with less:

1. Be bold. Offer innovative ideas and insights. Customers are so busy dealing with their own competitive pressures that they don’t have time to discuss the same old solutions — nor do they want to. What have you learned from some of your other customers that’ve had similar issues that can relieve your present customer’s pain? Presenting these insights is key to increasing your business with an existing customer.
2. Be a true consultant. Talk business strategy with your customers. Show how your offerings advance their strategies. Create solutions that solve your customers’ problems. Customers expect solutions that support and drive their central business goals.
3. Talk results with customers. Show how your product or service can positively affect a customer’s performance. Identify the appropriate needs and create a compelling case for your solution. It’s also smart to talk about some specific results your product or service has achieved recently for some of your other similarly-situated customers.
4. Be innovative. Increase credibility as a trusted advisor by bringing to the table innovative, highly differentiated solutions that respond to customers’ unique business challenges. This will show your customers that you want to be a partner in their future success — not just a supplier.
5. Do your homework. New conditions demand new strategies. Know more and turn that knowledge into value. Customers want insight. Go beyond asking good questions about your customers’ situations. Before getting in front of your customers, be ready to answer questions about the strengths and weaknesses of their own customers and competitors.
6. Resist the pressure to just sell something. Overpromising to customers is a frequent trap that some salespeople fall into. Gaining the sale in the short term may create havoc downstream. The outcome is predictable. Customer trust is eroded, and future business that should’ve been won is lost.
7. Focus on results and relationships. Show commitment to your customer by adding value. Conduct periodic account reviews to summarize the value you’re providing and pinpoint areas for improvement.
8. Learn about competitors. They have never been more aggressive or more vulnerable than right now. Develop defensive strategies and points of view. Help your customers develop strategies for dealing with their competitors. Be proactive in providing advice and insight.
9. View each customer’s company as a market. Focus efforts on segmenting and capturing share of this market. Then leverage successes and relationships within that market.

Today, quality of service has become so essential that those who lead the way in service excellence have a powerful competitive advantage.

Responsive service is what counts most today. It inspires customers to return and buy more often.

Customer service used to end when the sale was made. Today, customer service begins after the sale is made. Businesses and salespeople may get everything right in terms of marketing, product and price. But unless they complete the process with incredibly good customer service, they’ll lose business.

Defining good service

Customers respond positively to signals that say, “We really appreciate having you as a customer.”

Here are seven customer care strategies that will help you build customer loyalty and boost sales:

1. Don’t take relationships for granted. Have a plan for getting feedback from customers. Feedback will help you create a competitive advantage. And the only way you’ll know what customers are thinking is by gathering feedback.
2. Contact customers when it’s not necessary. It sends a message that you appreciate their business — and value the relationships you have with them. It also tells your customers that you won’t abandon them after a sale.
3. Let them know how much you like working with them. Why take a chance or assume customers know that you appreciate your relationships you’ve built with them? Put it on the record by letting them know in writing why you like working with them.
4. Ask them what you could do to make working with you easier. Even when you have good working relationships with customers, there still may be something that bothers them. And while it may not be a relationship breaker, it can still be a minor problem that grows if it’s not resolved.
5. Make suggestions for improving their operations. Your knowledge is unique and your helpful suggestions make you a partner in your customers’ successes. Customers will view you as a resource if you pass along useful information. Don’t cut corners. When a customer has been around for awhile, there’s a tendency to take his or her business for granted — by only doing what’s absolutely necessary and coasting. If the customer doesn’t figure it out first, a competitor won’t be far behind to steal your business.
6. When something’s wrong, let them know what you’ll do to fix it. Stuff happens. But when it does, jump on it quickly and tell your customers what you’re doing to resolve it.
7. Take every customer complaint seriously. There’s no such thing as a small complaint. What seems minor to you may loom large in a customer’s mind.

Granted, many companies have been worried about just surviving, much less thriving, over the past few years. But now that things are beginning to look up, many organizations are turning an eye toward growth again.

One major target: the supply chain.

So when it comes to improving your supply chain performance, what’s your company’s No. 1 priority? Check out what your peers (and perhaps your competitors) are focusing on: improving product quality.

That’s what now holds the top spot in a ranking among current supply chain initiatives for manufacturers, according to a new study by IDC.

Some renewed attention on this front could position you well for recovery with your customers.

The best way to consistently outperform your competition is by cultivating and maintaining loyalty among your customers.

Buyers get what they pay for

You know that adopting the sell-cheap approach unravels in the long run.

Short-term strategies like cutting costs or offering freebies might bump up the short-term numbers a bit. But the honeymoon will end quickly when customers soon discover they’re paying for those lower prices in other areas — through poor quality or follow-through.

Keep ’em coming back

There are three steps to drive customer loyalty:

1. Exceed expectations. Get a delivery there a day early. Enclose your business card with the next transaction, along with a “call me anytime” offer. Ask customers to complete a short survey on how well you do your job. Then share the results — and the changes you’re making to address any shortcomings.
2. Make an emotional connection. Customers no longer want to just be satisfied with their purchases. They want to feel like they have a business partner who’s taking care of them. Salespeople who develop a loyal following go that extra mile to show customers that help is available whenever it’s needed.
3. Put the needs of your customers first. Make it clear to customers that you’re seeking to meet their needs, not tell them what they need. Instead of focusing on your prices, credit requirements, etc., congratulate the customer for choosing you, and pledge to meet their needs.

Info: “Three Loyalty Selling Tactics That Drive Maximum Revenues,” freshrevenues.posterous.com

The following mistakes are to blame for losing the most sales.

In reverse order, here they are:

7. Depending solely on the capabilities of your products or services to seal the deal. The problem: Not many companies have a unique enough product or service to simply blow the competition away. So companies must differentiate their products or services in ways that convey value to customers.

6. Salespeople are afraid to get out of their comfort zones — and be more persistent or persuasive, push past gatekeepers to find the real decision makers, pick up the phone and make more cold calls, etc. Some are fearful of calling executive-level buyers or become intimidated when selling against tough competition. Unfortunately, few comfortable places exist anymore for salespeople who aren’t willing to challenge themselves.

5. Not knowing the competition. Some companies get outsold because their reps don’t know anything about the salespeople competing against them for the same business — not their names, not how they sell, not whether they’re new to the job or highly experienced, nor what they are likely to do to win business. That’s selling blind — and it doesn’t work.

4. Depending too much or too little on relationships. Relationship selling isn’t enough anymore. If a company can’t prove ROI, being friendly with buyers won’t close future sales. On the other hand, it’s always a good idea to build relationships with those who can influence buying decisions, as well as the main decision makers themselves. The key is to develop strong relationships throughout your industry without counting on them to close sales for you.

3. Not having a plan to win. To succeed, both sales and marketing pros need an objective, something to aim for. This requires planning — not just talk.

2.  Not understanding customers’ businesses. Successful companies have two things in common: They heavily research customers’ businesses, and they are passionate about solving customers’ problems.

1. Failing to develop the skills and traits required to win. The skills required for sales success today are different from what they were even a few years ago. Salespeople have to be better researchers, problem solvers and leaders than their competitors. Winning a sale today requires knowledge, planning and precise execution from beginning to end. Successful companies offer greater and more meaningful service to their customers than the competition, and they know their competitors’ next moves — so they can beat them to the punch.

Adapted from “How Winners Sell” by Dave Stein.

Great prices, quality, product features and service are key components of customer satisfaction. But salespeople are the driving force in generating customer loyalty.

Customers who felt their salespeople stood out from the pack (in a good way) were 10 to 15 times more likely to remain loyal.

When satisfaction doesn’t lead to loyalty

There are five key reasons why satisfied customers don’t become loyal customers. Share them with your salespeople.

1. Problems sour the relationship. Although initially satisfied with the purchase, customers become dissatisfied when unresolved problems develop later on in the relationship. And suspicion that there will always be problems can quickly sour the relationship and block any opportunity to move the customer into the loyal category.
2. Poor follow up. The same salesperson who spends months or even years pursuing a new customer fails to ensure that those orders are processed and fulfilled in a satisfactory manner.
3. Communication breakdown between customer and salesperson. Once the sale is made, some salespeople turn the servicing function over to others within their company. And as salespeople slowly lose touch with their customers, the chance of making future sales dwindles dramatically.
4. The original decision-maker leaves and is replaced by someone who has a personal relationship with a competitor.
5. Easy return. If the customer is still doing some business with a former supplier, it’s easy for him or her to return to that supplier for all of his or her needs if problems develop elsewhere.

Complacency undermines loyalty

It’s not a good idea to take a customer’s loyalty for granted. To avoid becoming complacent with your customers, try to stop thinking about “account maintenance” and start thinking about “account development.”

The key to customer loyalty is not just what you deliver — but how you deliver, service and support it. Simply meeting your customers’ expectations is not enough anymore. Customers want to know you care. Customers want you to make them feel important.

Developing loyal customers

Here are four tips to developing loyal customers:

1. Demonstrate a “we’re here to solve your problems” attitude. Customers want a positive response right away when they run into problems or have serious questions.
2. Come up with new ideas for your customers. You have expertise and knowledge, you know what’s happening in your industry and you know your customers’ needs. Now make a serious effort to share those thoughts.
3. Don’t be afraid to say, “We can’t do it.” This is not the same as saying, “We can’t help you.” It’s being honest. But don’t stop there. Try to help the customer get what he or she needs. It will build confidence and credibility for you and your company.
4. When you make a mistake, admit it right away. Don’t try to cover it up with excuses. Customers know what’s going on, and using excuses will cast doubt on your credibility. Once you admit the mistake, start talking about solving the problems.

Adapted from “Managing the Customer Experience,” by Joe Wheeler and Shaun Smith.

Here are three strategies that’ll bring lost customers back:

1. Review account history. If a former customer won’t reveal specifics as to why he or she left, prepare to do some research. Check the account records carefully to see if there were any problems or complaints that went unanswered (perhaps about delivery or quality). Try to come up with a plan to fix any unresolved problems, then share that plan with your former customer.
2. Check with other departments at your former customer’s company to get more information. Maybe the account was lost because of a decision made in Accounting or elsewhere within the company. You can’t fix what you don’t know.
3. Don’t let the experience affect other accounts, especially if you uncover problems that led to a loss of business. Try to repair any unresolved issues and explain your solutions to your present customers before they cancel, too.

Adapted from “Master Selling, Maximize Success,” by Kristina Susac.

Salespeople who stay focused on the needs of existing customers are less likely to be unseated by price-cutting competitors. They are also more likely to be rewarded with increased loyalty and repeat sales.

Here are five strategies that generate loyalty among existing customers:

1. Be bold. Increase your success in retaining current customers by focusing your efforts on calling customers with innovative and unique ideas to improve their situations. Today’s buyers are so busy dealing with their own competitive pressures that they don’t have time to discuss the same old ideas they’ve heard before. Have you learned anything from your past customers that can relieve your present customers’ pains? Packaging these insights creatively is the key to increasing business.
2. Be a true consultant for your customer. Talk business strategy with your customers. Show how your offerings advance their strategies. Create solutions that solve your customers’ problems. Customers expect solutions that support and drive their central business strategies.
3. Talk results with customers. Show how your product or service can positively affect a customer’s performance. Identify the appropriate needs and create a compelling case for your solution.
4. Be innovative. Increase your credibility as a trusted advisor by bringing to the table innovative, highly differentiated solutions that respond to customers’ unique business challenges.
5. Do your homework. Focus on both results and the relationship. New conditions demand new strategies. Know more and turn that knowledge into value. Customers want insight. Go beyond asking good questions about customers’ situations. Before getting in front of existing customers, know the ins and outs of their own customers, competitors, strengths and weaknesses.

Discussion ideas

• Ask your salespeople to give examples of how thinking outside the box helped them increase sales to existing customers.
• Ask for specific examples of how they fill the role of business consultants for customers.

Resist the pressure to just sell something

Overpromising to customers is a trap that’s easy for some salespeople to fall into when they’re trying to increase sales. It creates havoc downstream by eroding customer trust, losing business and jeopardizing entire relationships.

Here are three techniques that will help salespeople build stronger relationships with existing customers.

1. Focus on results. Show your commitment to constantly adding value. Conduct periodic account reviews that summarize the value you’re providing customers with and pinpoint areas for improvement.
2. Be an educator. Your customers have never been more vulnerable than right now. Help them develop strategies for dealing with their competitors. Be proactive in providing advice and insight.
3. View each customer’s industry as a potential new market. Focus efforts on capturing market share within the industry. Use your success with one customer in the industry to build more relationships within that same industry.

Discussion ideas

• Ask your salespeople for examples of how value-added selling enabled them to increase sales to present customers.
• Ask for examples of how competitive research helped your salespeople increase sales to present customers.

Here are the top four keys to setting goals salespeople will be motivated to hit, according to a recent Corporate Executive Board study of more than 700 organizations:

1. Connect incentives to company goals: Most managers understand the value of providing incentives that constantly raise the bar on salespeople’s performance. But the goal should also be to find ways to tie incentives to your company’s overall mission. That way salespeople aren’t just focusing on closing sales. Example: The Ritz Carlton wanted to increase customer loyalty. And to do that it started giving out additional bonuses to employees who constantly go out of their way to let guests know how much their business is appreciated. As a result, the company was rated No. 1 in PeopleMetrics’ 2009 Buyer Loyalty Survey.
2. Follow up and follow through: It’s also essential to have a system in place for following up on goals and adjusting them based on each rep’s progress. Meet with salespeople regularly to review previous goals and actual business results, and adjust those goals when necessary. During those meetings, have reps choose three specific goals they’d like to achieve and work with them to create a step-by-step plan for accomplishing each.
3. Have clear metrics in place: Even though certain goals are qualitative, there should always be an agreed upon means for measuring a salesperson’s progress. Metrics help managers pinpoint where a salesperson may be falling short, which is the first step in overcoming the problem.
4. Consistently update your approach: The business world is constantly changing, as are the incentives that motivate salespeople to go out and close more business. With that in mind, you may want to consider updating your compensation strategy so it reflects the way your business has changed (e.g., does it reward reps for closing repeat business? Does it encourage reps to push the products with the highest profit margins?). You also may want to ask salespeople what incentives they want that would motivate them to close more business. Incentives only work if they are something salespeople truly value.

Source: “Five Steps for Effective Sales Coaching,” by the staff of the Corporate Executive Board, BusinessWeek.

Can you think of any other goalsetting keys? What works for your sales organization? Let us know in the Comments Box below.

Consider a recent survey, which John Tschohl wrote about in his book Cashing in on Success, that asked customers, “What do you want from a salesperson? What would be the No. 1 attribute of your favorite salesperson?”

The response: 91% said, “Be there when I need you.”

Translation: You don’t have to be the quickest, you don’t have to be the cheapest, you don’t have to be the smartest — if you’re there when your customers need you, you’ll get the business.

A few ways to let customers know you’re there for them:

• Give them your cell phone number.
• Provide them with a toll-free number that they can call 24/7.
• Give them a Web URL where they can go on their own for info.
• Tell them how to get a hold of you and when’s the best time to reach you.
• Let them know who else they can turn to for help (tell them who else is on your team).

Adapted from “Cashing In On Success,” by John Tschohl

What do you do to let customers know you’re there for them?

1. Base commissions on net profit rather than gross profit or sales: A high percentage of companies have seen their net profits decrease over the past few years, despite the fact that sales remain consistent. Why? Because in this economy,  a lot more salespeople are willing to play Let’s Make a Deal — offering customers concessions that could be costing your company revenue. A lot of organizations avoid this problem by adjusting their comp strategy so commissions are based on a percentage of the net profit each sale delivers, rather than the overall price tag.
2. Ensure substantial rewards for closing repeat business: Loyal customers are the life blood of any organization. Still, most salespeople are trained to focus primarily on closing new business while “keeping an eye” on existing customers. Unless there’s ample incentive to hit certain levels of repeat business, some salespeople won’t pay much attention to existing customers. When that happens, the company loses out big time — remember, it costs much more to bring in a new customer than to keep an existing one.
3. Create bonus levels based on account potential: Salespeople need to have an incentive to press for more volume or longer-term contracts. If the comp strategy is set up to offer more substantial rewards for closing accounts that are more lucrative over a long period of time, salespeople will work harder to develop longer-term highly-profitable relationships with buyers.
4. Ask for feedback on non-cash rewards that would motivate salespeople to close more: With so many companies looking to cut costs, it may not be the ideal time to recommend major changes to the bonus plan (even if they’d end up making the company more money). Instead, it may be a better idea to collect feedback from salespeople about what types of non-cash incentives would motivate them to increase profits. Encourage them to get creative, and perhaps even set a team benchmark the entire department can shoot for and celebrate together.

Do you think these comp strategies would really work? Can you think of any creative comp ideas we missed here? Let us know in the Comments Box below.

1. Forget about the sale. Not for good. But try to put the sale on the back burner of your mind so you can focus on learning the needs and values of your prospects. You can’t be certain the solution you’re offering is of any value until you know what the prospect is looking for. Try not to impose an agenda. Genuinely listen to what the prospect really needs. It’s the fastest way to build trust.
2. Ask, don’t argue. It may be a good idea to come up with a series of questions before a sales meeting. The questions should help you determine what your prospects are looking for, why they’re looking for it, how they expect it to benefit their businesses and when they expect to have it. Offering solutions that don’t take your prospects’ needs and values into consideration won’t work. Questions that show genuine interest, concern and confidence go a long way toward building trust.
3. Listen with your fingers. Taking notes is a good way to ensure that the information you’re gathering is sinking in. When prospects see you taking notes, they usually see it as a sign that you intend to use the information to help them. Then when they are ready to talk about solutions, you have an outline of needs to meet and values to uphold.
4. Seek to understand. Your understanding of your prospects must be solid so there’s no room for presumptions. If they’ve answered a question and you still don’t have what you need to know, ask another.

Adapted from “Killing the Sale” by Todd Duncan

Think of a skeleton hidden in a closet. You know that sooner or later, your customer is going to come across it.

And how do you think customers will feel when they discover that skeleton?

They’ll probably wonder what other ugly little secrets are lurking that you haven’t disclosed, creating distrust and ruining the buyer/seller relationship.

The solution: Open up the closet — and make that skeleton dance for customers.

If you bring it up first, you’ve made peace with it. You’ve shown customers you’re trustworthy. And you’ve turned a potentially bad situation into a way to build customer trust and loyalty.

Example: Suppose a customer is purchasing a refurbished product. There’s nothing wrong with it. It might even be better than it was to begin with — since it’s been reconditioned and scrutinized for quality.

But what if that customer learns later you sold them a “used” product?

Then you might be talking to an ex-customer.

To avoid that situation, disclose any drawbacks (or what might be considered a drawback in the customer’s eyes) and the reasons behind them. Then explain how everything comes together to benefit the customer — via lower prices, extended warranties, etc.

This way the seller raised the point about a potential problem, instead of waiting for the customer to find it. And in the process of doing so the seller likely built trust and a stronger relationship with the customer.

Adapted from “Ethical Selling,” by John Alexander

1. Protection: How strongly do you guarantee each buyer’s investment? How do they know they’re safe doing business with you?
2. Confidence: Are buyers always kept in the loop about new products or changes to existing ones? How do you reinforce the notion they’re receiving the best value on the market?
3. Appreciation: How do buyers know you value their loyalty? Do you offer buyer rewards or preferred customer status based on loyalty and purchase levels? Do you offer membership programs that offer buyers incentives, while locking them in as long-term customers? Are there volume discounts? Price breaks?
4. Service: Do salespeople maintain contact with buyers consistently? Is there a system to ensure customer problems are resolved quickly and efficiently? Do customers feel confident their orders will be fulfilled quickly and correctly?

And determining just how loyal or engaged your buyers are can be tricky. But here are three decent indications salespeople are building strong relationships:

1. More referrals: Engaged buyers are sending more business your way (you may even want to consider offering incentives to encourage referrals).
2. Less customer turnover: Engaged buyers know they’ve got it good.
3. More feedback: Engaged customers feel more comfortable sharing feedback about what they like (and don’t like), mostly because they view their relationship with your company as a partnership.

How does your organization encourage loyalty? Share your thoughts in the Comments Box below.

Adapted from a recent Allegiance Marketing study

1. Most new purchases need to be justified and/or approved: Unless you’re selling direct to CEOs, chances are your prospects will have to get the green light before any sales can be finalized. What may be helpful is to ask prospects early on who else is involved in the decision-making process, then work to gain as many internal champions as possible. Consider how each sale will impact the others involved in the buying process, so everyone — not just prospects — think your products/services are beneficial.
2. It’s a buyer’s market: Prospects have more access to competitive pricing and discount offers than ever before. So what does that mean for salespeople? Conducting more pre-call research and perhaps even offering their own competitive analysis may be required to seal more deals. Taking proactive steps like this helps salespeople anticipate any possible objections, while maintaining control of the process. Finally, providing your own competitive analysis allows you to highlight all the areas where you offer superior value and ROI.
3. Everyone is doing more with less: Companies are leaner, and most prospects are being asked to take on additional responsibilities. That means they don’t have nearly as much time to spend listening to a lengthy pitch. Salespeople may be able to use that to their advantage, by focusing on solutions that can help prospects eliminate costs or save time.
4. Loyalty is at an all-time low: The average company now loses 10%-30% of its customers every year and 50% of its buyers every five years, according to Carlson Marketing research. That’s a direct result of all the other offers buyers are bombarded with today. But salespeople can boost customer loyalty by focusing on building strong relationships. With the growing popularity of social networking outlets like LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook, salespeople have even more ways to maintain a dialogue with buyers, solicit ongoing feedback, monitor what’s changing about customers’ businesses, etc.

Adapted from “Sales Lessons Learned From Selling in a Recession,” by Kelley Robertson

Cold calls, long hours

Making cold calls and working long hours may be uncomfortable, but they’re also necessary for sales success. Successful salespeople understand that sometimes it takes present discomfort to achieve future gains.

New opportunities

Successful salespeople also understand and appreciate that the upside of dealing with difficult situations is learning and developing new sales skills. They often pick difficult tasks (or sales calls) over the easy ones, recognizing they’ll make them stronger as a salesperson.

Three key areas

Here are three areas that cause discomfort for salespeople. It’s a good idea to share these common sore spots with your staffers (especially the younger, less experienced reps) so they recognize they are not alone in dealing with them — and so they know how to deal with them.

1. Coping with losing a sale. When some salespeople lose a sale, they push it to the back of their minds and chose not to talk about it. But the first step in dealing with a lost sale is acknowledging it and learning what they could’ve done differently. There’s always tomorrow to turn things around.
2. Breaking out of a sales slump. When someone’s experiencing a slump, it’s critical that the person look carefully at his or her approach, strategies, strengths and weaknesses. The person must recognize that the key to breaking out of a slump is to maintain a positive attitude, prospect effectively, tailor presentations to individual prospects/customers and offer great after-sales service.
3. Dealing with customer problems. When customers call with problems, salespeople are tasked with a challenge: drawing on all of their resources and experiences to come up with effective and timely solutions. Those who become experts at problem-solving take on the role of troubleshooter, a role that builds customer trust and loyalty.

Adapted from “The 12 Clichés of Selling,” by Barry Farber

Here are seven attitudes that can reduce success and destroy sales:

1. I know more than my customers. Because salespeople are experts in what they sell, it’s easy to assume they know more than their customers. This is a subtle sales killer because no salesperson wants to deliberately demean or talk down to a customer. Their real goal is to pass along expertise. But that may not be the way it comes across to prospects and customers. Without realizing it, they may be making their customers feel uncomfortable.
2. My customers know more than I do. Some salespeople conclude that customers have a lot more industry-specific knowledge than they do. But in actuality many customers feel inadequate and try to cover for it by convincing salespeople of their expertise. The result is that some salespeople hold back and don’t give customers the full benefit of their knowledge and experience.
3. That account is solid. Some salespeople believe, “My customers think of me first when a need arises.” And once a salesperson holds a customer for several years, it’s normal to assume the account is “safe.” But no account is safe today. Even though customers may be satisfied with a salesperson’s performance, they are always ready to listen to a competitor. And complacency always allows competitors to get their foot in the door.
4. When there’s a problem to be solved, my customers turn to me. Many salespeople expect customers to turn to them when problems arise, because they’ve always been helpful and accessible. But that’s not enough today. It’s important to project a strong, clear “problem solver” image and reinforce it all the time.
5. It’s not worth investing a lot of time with this customer. It’s easy for salespeople to develop the habit of pegging certain customers as being “small time.” They even establish a ceiling on how much business they will do with the customer in the future. Eventually these customers will go elsewhere if they believe they’re being treated as second-class citizens.
6. To be successful, I have to concentrate on the big orders. A big sale is obviously a good sale. Big sales can also be killers if salespeople aren’t careful — because if a salesperson devotes all of his/her attention toward making that sale, it can leave little or no energy to serve other prospects or customers.
7. The only thing important to customers is price. This always sounds so hard-hitting and businesslike, but it has no basis. Anyone trying to build or sustain a business on price alone won’t be around long. An essential sales goal for salespeople should be to create a climate in which customers want to buy from them. When that happens, price alone becomes a secondary concern.