What’s wrong with Sales?
And how I’m trying to fix it for me
Small disclaimer — I’m only focusing on selling a digital service here.
I’ve been working in business development and sales for the past 4 years. Three of those I spent in an office, working for a software development agency and the the forth I’ve worked remotely for a product, UX & UI design company (still am).
I know business development and sales are two wildly different topics, but both teams I worked with were small enough for me to be responsible for the two areas simultaneously.
There’s always new things I’m learning every day (bearing in mind industries are changing in a manner of months), but there’s also some trends or maybe universal truths that I’m starting to notice.
First, it’s becoming harder to reach the right people, even though we’re getting more connected every day. Second, people will talk to you only if they feel they’ll leave the conversation with more value than they had before joining it.
Companies spend millions on training salespeople how to talk like AI assistants. I’ve went on calls to hear what sales people have to offer, just to see how others practice the profession and maybe get some valuable insights only to remain disappointed that I’ve spent my time talking to an audiobook.
I can only explain this by the fact they have a call quota they need to meet. Doesn’t matter if they don’t land the deal. They won’t get a commission, but they’ll meet their monthly goal and they’ll have a good night sleep. Those hungry for success will go for that commission by all means, which results in those really pushy (sales-y) messages we all receive and loathe.
Nothing about this process seems effective. The system rewards higher numbers, not conversation quality.
Because of the challenges of sales, we’ve experienced a flood in various sales tools that are meant to help salespeople send emails faster, schedule more meetings and organise better. Sure, they each solve a specific problem, but it makes people miss the bigger picture.
The amount of tools you’re using can make you more efficient, but not necessarily more effective. For that, you need a more holistic approach.
The huge amount of similar products and services offered worldwide (and salespeople trying to aggressively sell them), leads me to my first point — it’s become harder than ever to reach the right people.
My target audience for the past 4 years has been people, who receive the same type of message hundreds of times a week from people they don’t know. Of course, my own message will get lost in this vast sea of indistinguishable (at first glance) offerings. Our service might be superior than most others, but the message recipient will never get to the point, where he discovers the value in what my team offers.
A better approach needs to be adopted.
For me, this approach is to establish a personal connection with our target audience and not focus on selling them something. Instead, I’ve started focusing on bringing them some form of value. This brings me to the second point I mentioned at the beginning.
People appreciate receiving value from talking to you. It makes them feel like they’re not wasting their time on a conversation with a person they don’t know. Naturally, the more value you bring to them, the more they want to interact with you. You also need to be wary of your own effort-to-value balance, but for the most part you can reuse the insights you’re providing people with if they’re universal enough.
What kind of value can you bring to a person in an online message? Ask them what they’re currently struggling with. Ask them what current challenges they’re facing at their company. Then offer some genuine advice and, if possible, connect it to your own expertise or your team’s work experience.
For example, at Melewi, being a remote company, we’ve worked with a lot of companies, operating in different markets. I keep a few insights from every local market we’ve had to deal with and offer advice, relevant to what my lead is having troubles with.
This accomplishes two things. It brings value to the person, because she’ll leave the conversation with more knowledge than she previously had AND it establishes me and my team as professionals with lots of experience in many geographic regions.
Even if your lead is having troubles with something you’ve never had to deal with, you can offer your sincere feedback just from your life experience and common knowledge. Every form of feedback counts, as people will appreciate you taking the time and considering their issues.
It’s a fresh change from their usual experience — people who want something from them.
The basis of this approach is nothing new. It’s just putting yourself in the other person’s shoes, in order to understand what they need so your interaction can be mutually beneficial.
Don’t expect your leads to give you their time so you can list out your offer; try to earn it instead and think of how to make it worth their while.
