Capitalizing on Niche Markets
Selling to Parachutes Businesses
Most parachutes businesses have tight budgets and no time for games. With these useful selling tips, you can improve your sales model and increase your returns when selling to parachutes businesses.
Ambition and confidence are excellent personality traits for sales professionals. But selling to parachutes businesses requires more than a desire to succeed.
In any B2B industry, one of the key indicators of long-term success is the ability to expand your customer base. On the upside parachutes businesses can be found throughout the nation, but the trick is to acquire and retain new accounts.
How to Evaluate Sales Staff
Periodic staff assessment is essential for companies that sell in this industry. Businesses that achieve significant market share hire quality candidates and routinely evaluate them against performance goals and benchmarks.
Although annual reviews may be enough for other business units, sales units should be evaluated quarterly with monthly or weekly reviews of sales totals. Training, coaching and sales incentives can be useful for boosting sales and employee morale. In some instances, it may be appropriate to team underperforming sales reps with reps that have more experience selling to parachutes businesses.
Industry Developments
Inevitably, parachutes businesses are constantly adapting to the marketplace. Companies that sell to parachutes businesses need to evolve with their customers to meet changing consumer needs. B2B businesses that take an unfocused approach to industry developments are at a significant disadvantage, especially in this industry.
Subscriptions to trade journals and networking are useful tools for business owners and sales teams who recognize their need to stay current on industry developments.
Reaching Prospective Customers
Prospecting transforms contacts into qualified leads.
Networking can enhances the value of prospecting and conversion ratios. However, it's important to make sure your sales force isn't so focused on conversation that they miss the point of prospecting, i.e. the identification of likely buyers, key decision makers and high value industry contacts. In other words, the type of people you meet is just as important as the number of people you meet when prospecting for parachutes businesses.
Lead lists are advantageous because they narrow the field for your team. Third-party lists from reputable vendors (e.g. Experian Business Services) arm your sales force with good leads, making it easier for your company to balance the quantity and quality demands that are prerequisites for effective prospecting.
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