June 15th, 2017

If you're selling or attempting to sell your services on a regular basis, it's imperative that you be an influencer in today's economy. There have been a lot of changes that have occurred in the sales world, particularly as digital technology has become more and more prevalent. This is largely due to the fact that the buyer's journey has changed so dramatically. Now more than ever, buyers are more inundated with information and have access to information. Simply trying to pile more information onto your prospects may actually be doing them a disservice. Because the buyer's journey has changed so dramatically, the sales process too must change.

The benefit of all of the technological advances of late is that our ability to engage with people has become so much easier. From email to social media and beyond, getting in touch with people for any reason, including sales purposes, has opened up immensely. With this incredible ease to connect, we must realize that it's not the connection itself that is most important, but rather the relationships we build through these connections.

So how does one then effectively navigate through the sales process in our current environment?

 

Step One: Have a Great Online Presence

This may seem obvious but think about it: our relationships with others oftentimes precede us. We live in a world where our prospects may come across our online presences' before we have the chance to formally introduce ourselves. For example, your LinkedIn profile may come up in a search or as a mutual connection to your prospects before you've ever even spoken to them. With this in mind, it's imperative that you put your best foot forward on all of your online profiles. Make sure your LinkedIn profile reflects positively on you and your business, that your Facebook business page is set-up for success, and that you've set any of those embarrassing photos from your college years to private.  

 

Step Two: Be an Effective Guide 

The way that salespeople provide value to their prospects has changed. In the past, buyers were much more reliant on sales people to provide them with the kind of information they might need in order to make a purchasing decision. The sales person would have the brochures, the knowledge, the information, and the deals available in their toolbelt to ensure that their prospects were sufficiently educated before making a purchase. Nowadays, buyers are much more likely to have begun their buying journey before the sales person ever even shows up. With this shift in the buyer's behavior, it's crucial for the sales person to guide their prospect through the process of gathering information and help them make sense of their options. Just because a buyer has more information doesn't mean that they will make the right buying decisions. 

 

Step Three: Emphasize the Human Connection

Humans have an innate need to connect with one-another. When looking at technology and the power that it has over how we do business, at the end of the day, we want to know that there's another person at the other end of that technology. There's nothing that can replace the assurance of looking somebody in the eye and having an in-person connection. While all of the modern technology can and should help salespeople in their sales process, one should not overlook the power of human connection. 

 

Step Four: Be a Great Marketer in the Context of Being a Salesperson

The sales and marketing spectrum has become increasingly fused together in our modern era. For example, in the past, a marketer would place an advertisement in a relevant publication while the sales person would establish and handle the generated leads from the marketing efforts. Nowadays, the lines are blurred whereby the salesperson is responsible for being a social seller - using the social media tools available to have more conversations and more effective conversations. Going back to our example of having a great online presence, the salesperson can now leverage their online presence to create these new and improved conversations. It's no longer just enough to have your online profiles completed. The key to leveraging those profiles is to be active within those channels - Post a conversation on LinkedIn, send a message on Facebook, join a conversation on Twitter, etc.

 

The world is already connected and it's vital for businesses sales processes to keep up with our ever-evolving world. Leveraging the digital tools at our disposal and guiding prospects through the sales process with a genuine human touch will result in more leads, better conversations, and ultimately, more conversions.