Sell to Your Target Market
Selling to Smokestacks Businesses
The trouble with selling to smokestacks businesses is that the wrong sales strategies can threaten your entire plan for success. If your offerings appeal to this market, it's time to learn how to sell to smokestacks businesses in the current business climate.
Initiative and perseverance are admirable characteristics for sales professionals. But selling to smokestacks businesses requires more than an impeccable work ethic.
If your sales strategies fall flat, your entire revenue stream could be in jeopardy. Here are a few simple strategies you can count on to keep your earnings statement in the black.
Reaching Prospective Customers
Prospecting transforms contacts into qualified leads.
Networking can dramatically improve your team's prospecting abilities 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 smokestacks businesses.
Lead lists are useful 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.
Niche Selling
New businesses that attempt to tackle the entire marketplace face a long, uphill battle. A better approach is to customize your approach to an underserved niche.
In the smokestacks business industry, niches can be based on location, business size or sub-specialties within the industry. For niche sellers, market research is a non-negotiable. Don't assume that there will be demand for a niche product line unless you have done your homework and can support your expectations with solid research.
Role of Owners & Managers
Owners and managers are active players in selling to smokestacks businesses. Front line visibility is essential for large accounts, but your sales team can benefit from on-the-job partnerships with the owner or sales manager.
By periodically accompanying your reps in the field, you can build relationships with the people you count on to close sales.
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