Presentation Transcript

1. PMHS Sales Summit

   The Sales Process
2. What are the steps of the sales process? Prospecting Rapport Building Discovery Presentation Negotiation
3. Prospecting Sales prospecting done right will have a huge impact on your sales revenue. Effective prospecting is a critical component of sales success. However, remember prospecting is not selling. Steal Your Competitors' Clients - Your best prospects could be someone else's customers. The result of successful prospecting is a list of qualified leads that may become your customer. Selling begins only after a lead is categorized as qualified. If you start selling too early, you run the risk of devaluing your product before you have the opportunity to understand your prospect's needs. That generally leads to a situation where price becomes the most important buying criteria.
4. The Stages of Prospecting AssessmentWhen designing a prospecting process you'll need to take an objective look at your individual situation. Here are some considerations for filling the "new business" pipeline: What are the key needs of your intended customer? Where and how does your hotel best fit? To what degree is your hotel name or brand recognized by your potential market? How effective have you been at prospecting in the past? Do you have the tools and determination to make it work? What have been your traditional sources of business leads: brand RFPs, CVB, referrals, networking, business partners, telemarketing? What has been your conversion rate? How many leads does it take to create a new customer? How much potential business is out there for you, based upon your analysis of the market?
5. The Stages of Prospecting Continued… StrategiesSuccessful prospectors typically devise a number of strategies, which together provide the how, "How am I going to achieve my goal of XXXXXX in new business this year?" Here are a few proven strategies: Ask every key contact in every existing, satisfied account for new business opportunities. Target a list of companies. Commit to prospecting. Lock in that time in advance and build the rest of your schedule around those regular sessions. Research, Research, Research! Typically we waste incredible amounts of time trying to convince prospects to buy from us without ever really asking the tough questions. A few of the key criteria in obtaining leads are: identification of decision makers, current supplier situation, decision timeframe, and price/budget as a buying criteria
6. The Stages of Prospecting Continued… Commit to following up. Lots of opportunities are lost because we get distracted or simply do not follow up with potential business opportunities. Make prospecting a quality, not a quantity effort. You are going to have to make a certain number of contacts, by phone, by mail, in person to come up with one good lead. Make it a practice to do research on every company which you target to prospect. Look for information about the key executives as well. There is plenty of valuable information about companies and people on the internet. Get your message and talking points down solid. Include statements that provoke interest or action at each level of contact you have with a potential customer. It is ok to use a script. Be prepared. Make sure you know and have responses to all the common objections posed by your potential customers. Take notes
7. Prospecting Best Practices 1. Focusing on Need Dates by Segment 2. Reader Board Services 3. Utilizing Local Venue Calendars 4. Establish a time commitment to prospecting- “Sales Lockdown”- only focusing on prospecting during this time frame 5. Utilizing www.Jigsaw.com and other internet lead referral sites 6. Environmental Scanning- driving the local market to uncover new companies coming into the market, ones leaving, and new construction. 7. Internet Prospecting: Hoovers.com as an example. 8. Lobby Ambassador Program 9. Know your competition- know who their top loyal customers are, as well as anything that is happening at the hotel such as turnover or poor service. 10. Review lost business reports. 11. Fully utilize the Brand Resources from the National Sales reps, to marketing through the brand programs, to any information provided through the Brands internal employee website. 12. Cross sell and partner with entire PMHS portfolio of hotels.
8. Rapport Building Sales research shows that over 90% of the closing rate is based on having a good rapport with the customer. Rapport starts by making your first interaction with potential customers all about them and their interests and issues, not about you, your property, and your solutions. The bottom line is that people want to do business with salespeople that they relate to and that they feel understand their needs
9. 5 Steps to Building Rapport Be mindful of your body language gestures and remember to keep them positive- Unfold your arms, uncross your legs, show your palms and remember to smile. Develop awareness and sensitivity to your prospect’s body language. An effective listener notices all aspects of communication and is aware of voice tone, facial expression, repetitive movements, and muscle tension. Rely on the nonverbal as a much more accurate indicator of intent. Create harmony! “Matching and Mirroring” your prospect’s body language gestures will psychologically cause them to identify with you. An effective way to begin matching is to subtly nod your head in agreement when your prospect nods their head. Make eye contact and listen with genuine interest. You are certain to create an unfavorable impression if you give your prospect the idea that you are not fully present in the conversation. Occasionally repeat verbatim what your prospect says ­ especially their key words or phrases. Restating in your own words serves to clarify communication, but you deepen rapport when you use their words.
10. 5 Steps to Building Rapport Continued… During your interview you should ask open-ended, clarifying questions with who, where, what, when and how. Open-ended questions will require your prospect to give in-depth responses. Become an active listener. While it is important to educate your prospect about your product or service, as a general rule you should listen more than you talk. The quickest way to destroy trust and rapport is to interrupt another person while they are speaking. Dress and act professionally. While it may seem unfair, we are judged on our appearance. Research indicates that people form a lasting impression of us within the first five minutes. Be personable but not overly familiar. If appropriate, occasionally call your prospect by their first name.
11. Building RapportBest Practices 1. Uncover personal information such as b-day, hobbies, favorite things to do, etc. 2. Make the potential client feel important. 3. Focus on common interests. 4.Know your surroundings: know what is appropriate content to discuss relating to customer and children. 5. Be honest and positive. 6. Learn likes and dislikes of client. 7. Develop friendships. 8. The relationships you develop must feel genuine. 9. Strengthen relationship through story telling. 10. Use the courtship approach- Do not move too fast in fear of turning the client off. 11. Consider the position of the client and try to match with that of the member of the sales department if possible and if necessary.
12. Discovery The discovery part of the sales process is simply a sharing of information. Discovery is the process of revealing facts and information-- the part of the process where the sales professional asks the prospect relevant questions that are directed at uncovering needs and objectives of a customer.
13. Discovery Objectives Your four objectives of the Discovery should be:1. Find the PBM (Primary Buying Motive) 2. Uncover any objections that may surface during the close 3. Understand the need (why does the prospect need your product/service) 4. Self Discovery (Allow the prospect to accurately understand the need they have for the product/service you are selling)
14. Discovery Objectives Continued… The way to validate your Discovery effectiveness is by obtaining answers to the first three objectives. If you can, then the fourth objective will naturally happen. If you cannot answer the first three objectives then the Discovery is not over. The Discovery should not end without understanding first three objectives because without understanding them there is no sale. A key component to the Discovery is listening. When you do not listen properly three detrimental things will happen: You sell benefits and features that are irrelevant to the prospect and as a result the prospect will believe that the product or service is not for them You seek to answer objections that were never there and thus create objections that the customer had never even thought of The price value is not realized and you end up leaving money on the table
15. Discovery Best Practices 1. Ask what it takes to get the business. 2. Get to “NO” efficiently. 3. Eliminate Objections. 4. Ask open ended questions to force the client to elaborate and then “Listen”. 5. Have prior knowledge of the company and what they do before approaching client. 6. Always recap with the client what you have learned and heard during your discussions with them so that you are sure you understand their needs and wants. 7. Uncover personal needs of the primary contact. 8. Reference past business opportunities with their company that were successful events. 9. Find out who the end user of the hotel would be and what “their” needs are. 10. DO YOUR HOMEWORK.
16. Discovery Best Practices 11. Use Link Phrases. 12. Understand the rater bias. 13. Understand seasonality and stay patterns. 14. Uncover keys to client retention. 15. Uncover “hot buttons”. 16. Determine what went well and what went wrong with prior usage.
17. Presentation Finally, the vast amount of knowledge you have about your products, services and your client comes into play!
18. Presentation Tips Don't be afraid to be excited about your product. If you're not, your prospect certainly won't be! During the presentation part of your sales process, focus on your properties benefits- Benefits answer the customer's question: "What's in it for me?" Benefits are what cause people to buy. Set objectives for sales calls. Be on time for sales appointments. Be prepared for your call. Have your sales kits, sales tools and answers ready. Let prospects talk 90 percent of the time; they'll tell you how to sell to them. You just need to listen. Use testimonials. Your best selling tool is a reference from a satisfied customer. Adapt your sales presentation to your prospect. Always follow through on promises. Determine your prospect's hot buttons and work them into your follow-up plan. Follow up, follow up, follow up Don't be afraid to ask for the business.
19. Presentation Best Practices 1. Bring the experience to them. 2. Use gifts/takeaways for them to remember you. 3. Be enthusiastic and excited about your product and presentation. 4. Be creative. 5. Be prepared and be persuasive. 6. Use link phrases. 7. Incorporate a “WOW” factor- customize your presentation around their company’s information.
20. Negotiation The first thing you have to do when negotiating is make sure you're in the right frame of mind. Do you really believe that your product or service is a value at the price you're charging? If the answer is no, then you won't be able to negotiate successfully. Learn how to hold firm. This is the stage of negotiation during which your belief system is challenged. In order to be successful, you really need to believe that you are already giving your prospect a great price. Typically, 40% of all customers will respond the same way, with either 'I had to ask' or 'I just thought I'd try.' Unfortunately, over 50% of sales people cave in on the first try, and give the client the discount they're asking for. This is lose-lose for everyone. Repeat. Some clients will press ahead with their request for a discount even after you've given them one of the responses outlined above. The vast majority of them, however, are just looking for assurance that you really are giving them the best possible value for price paid. Work to reassure your customer that they're getting the best price.
21. Negotiation Continued… Value Added Selling. If after all this your prospect is still pushing for a discount , and research indicates that 40% will be, then find something else to give them that doesn't reduce your price. The key is to have a list of approved value adds you're willing to offer prepared in advance, so you can refer to it during the negotiation. It is hard to think creatively in the heat of a negotiation, so planning ahead can give you a ready-made solution that leaves both you and the customer feeling satisfied with the transaction.
22. Negotiation- Worst Case The last line of defense. If your client is still asking for a discount, you may have to give it to them in order to close the deal. But before you do, always ask them one of the two following questions: What is important to you about an x% discount? or Why is an x% discount important to you? These questions will uncover any last details/objections that could help you find a different way to structure the terms and pricing, which will allow you to keep your price while letting the customer walk away with their needs met as well. If, you ultimately do have to reduce your price, make sure you never reduce your price without getting something in return. Getting something in exchange for a pricing concession is key to managing customer expectations, you do not them to believe that future discounts will not be the norm.
23. Negotiation Best Practice Ask for the Business!!
24. Questions?