What’s your sales team made up of…. Order takers or opportunity makers?
No doubt, the last few years have been challenging for many. There have been so many staffing, resource and operational changes in companies, and it isn’t going to let up anytime soon. How is your sales team managing these changes with your customers?
Because there’s been so much change, order takers need to stop doing things the same old way or they’re going to get left in the dust. Consider a recent study we did… when asked how many bidding opportunities they were participating in with their clients, the sales reps were convinced it was at least 75%. Meaning, they had an opportunity to bid on at least 75% of client projects. The reality was that they were only getting to participate in 39% of the project bidding. This is a huge discrepancy of perceptions vs. reality. Think of all of the lost sales as a result. In addition, 55% of the customers surveyed stated that their sales had increased over the past year– combine that with the gap in bid participation and it’s huge missed opportunity.
Let’s review three questions that can turn an order taker into an opportunity maker….
1. How has their industry changed?
Understanding what has changed and what the opportunities are for your customer in their industry can help you position your organization to fill the gaps.
What’s changed with their competitors, for example, and how can you help them take advantage of that now?
2. How has their business changed?
Understand what they need now that may be different from before. What pain points are they experiencing that you can help them overcome? Are they offering new products or services as the result of a pivot in their business? Knowing this will enable you to provide more relevant products and services.
3. How have their buying needs changes?
Understanding how buying needs have changed can allow you to work with them in a way that better suits their needs now. For example, maybe they aren’t able to keep as much inventory and they need quicker turnaround times on deliveries.
And most importantly, don’t be afraid to ask the toughest question for order takers… “how can I earn more of your business?” Getting the answers to these questions will better position you to earn more business from your customers and enable you to accelerate your customer relationship so you can make more money from your customers and make them happier in the process!
If you’d like some help, please reach out at (216-867-1165) I’m happy to help you get started. You can also watch a video on this topic, on Elite Experts Network.
