Statistics never lie, any drop in the level of sales, in the level of customer satisfaction or in the company image, may indicate that an inadequate sales strategy is being developed.
Control over the sales force is a key factor in achieving business success. To generate increasing sales and gain market share, you must have a sales force that guarantees increasing, adequate, and reliable sales that provide a high degree of customer satisfaction.
Here are some brief considerations that can help you identify problems with your sales force:
INDICATIONS THAT YOUR SALES STRENGTH IS BEGINNING TO FAIL:
- Complaints and claims: Are the products and services offered becoming objects of complaints and disagreement? Inability to attend to customer complaints: Are your customers' requests resolved with a: “There is nothing we can do” or “What We're sorry but we can't solve your problem. ”Sellers who can't deal with customers and competitors: Are you losing customers because your sellers can't adequately answer all the buyer's questions and can't sell their ideas? Do customers ask for explanations that their sellers cannot supply? Lack of material: Have you ever been asked for additional information and have you been unable to supply it? Do you lack support material to help your buyers make a purchase decision ?.Loss of market and failure to close business:Are you experiencing problems in completing business as before? Do your most precious customers buy from you less and less frequently? Do you find it more difficult to sell every day? Laxity of attention: Do you notice a decrease in the level of attention and treatment? for your customers? Lack of statistics: Do you lack indicators that let you know how your sales are going and what is the degree of satisfaction of your customers ?.
If some of the answers to the above questions are yes, then you may be facing a problem with your sales force that you need to take care of right away.
CONTROL OVER SALES STRENGTH AS AN ANSWER:
Simple control tools can help you solve problems with your sales, here is a simple list with some of them:
1. Maintain reliable statistics and reliable performance indicators: Remember that to be adequate the indicators must be:
- Accessible (easy to identify and collect) Relevant (for which we want to measure) Faithful (who faithfully report the conditions of the data being collected) Objectives (unambiguous in their interpretation) Accurate (for the action to be estimated) Univocal (exclusive parameters of what is measured) and Sensitive (that allow collecting and estimating variations of what is referent).
2. Constantly motivate and train your salespeople: A motivated salesperson is synonymous with a satisfied customer.
Some of the ideas that may be helpful are:
- Provide additional motivation through sales commissions. Offer incentives for new customers. Constantly train your staff. Ask about shortcomings in sales mechanisms to your own sellers. Communicate and support constantly.
Experience and knowledge are key factors in achieving successful sales, so train your new employees and retain and incentivize those who stand out for their talent.
3. Pay attention to complaints and claims: It is not only to attend, it is to generate strategies that allow the company to solve the problems that have generated the claims.
Some advices:
- Attend quickly and clearly. Make no excuses. Constantly evaluate products, services and care mechanisms. Prepare for the most frequent eventualities and have a contingency plan in case of serious problems.
4.Use the appropriate marketing instruments in the areas of promotion, sales and distribution: A common mistake when you have worked for some time, is to forget about the marketing instruments, to rely exclusively on experience.
Never stop being up-to-date on the market trends you are facing, research and keep an open mind in order not to make mistakes that can be painful for you.
5.Improve your language with customers, suppliers and partners: Do not lose sales by not being prepared when selling. Prepare yourself, learn your speech and practice.
6. Constantly analyze your customers: Follow trends, check their tastes, ask them what appeals to them. There is a lot of information that can help you sell more and that is based on a simple comment from a consumer.
7. Equip your workers with the right tools: Use briefs, brochures, presentations, samples, videos, and all the tools that can help you sell an idea.
And finally "Always keep an eye on your competition", if you want to properly control your sales force, always try to be ahead of the rest, this will guarantee long-term attention and efficiency.
