These days, the most popular impression towards a salesperson is conniving, and self-interested which is commonly perceived among movies and books. In short, they are the ultimate con artists. But, truth be told, they are the complete opposite of this, for the salespeople are actually the ones who put all the customers need above anything else.
With this modern era’s customers, they don’t respond well when they think they are the ones that are the target of the sales pitch, especially in a traditional sense. The risk of marketers who do not focus on serving the customers is that it irrevocably damages the innermost relationship they have which is the customer relationship.
Related: Some Customer Experience Trends for You
There are numbers of tangible benefits for both the salesperson and the association brought by putting a customer’s needs first. As for the association area, marketers don’t think there is any business growth over time without them giving a strong focus on customer experience. And, sales representatives who give so much effort in customers’ needs first are rewarded with respect, industry credibility, referral business and of course, loyal customers.
What customers want from salespeople
Active listening to what your customers say is the best way to ensure that you are focused on your customer in the sales process. By simply understanding their needs is critical in offering a solution. For example, it may just seem to be normal for some sales person to take down notes of ten pages in one-hour sales call. They devour what customers tell them because with every fact or opinion given by a customer is a breadcrumb that adds to my ability to offer them the right solution under the right terms.
But, we are not yet at our peak, for active listening isn’t the hardest part of the equation yet when it comes to delighting your future customer. Getting the prospect to a zone where they open enough to tell you what’s on their mind may be the most difficult thing of all. In what you commonly see in movies, which is the old-school world of sales, where deals were made on golf courses was because the setting is more opened up to tell their golf partner what is really important to them. But, with today’s customers they rarely have time with this kind of stuff like going out into golfing trips with potential partners. Customers now want answers fast, they are now more practical and time-efficient. So how do you get your prospects to trust you quickly?
A recommended technique in the early sales relationship is giving away something meaningful. An example from a business experience is that in every sale they made, they let my customers find out what is their heart’s interest. This may be through insights that are disadvantageous to me. This could be something as simple as pointing out something about my competitor’s solution that is better than mine. Another way is letting them know that they don’t need that extra service or product. This helps to build and establish trust by doing this once or twice in the sales process. That also proves that you as a salesperson want to understand challenges of the customers and is willing to work with them in building suitable solutions to their needs.
In order to have a stronger and better relationship in no time, it is best to adopt an honest customer-first approach in sales. Something that even the Hollywood might eventually learn is that thoughtful salespeople are more successful than those who are the duplicitous ones.
The moment you don’t understand the customer’s experiences, the tendency is you may lose out your understanding on how to make the customers happy with the experiences you create. Your customers may now be connected to your brand, but that doesn’t assure that they really are. Those that serve their needs and map their individual customer’s journey without delivering truly personalized experiences, are not only missing the increment on their purchases, but also their loyalties to your brand. On the process, it is tough to understand whether they are satisfied or brand-loyal if you don’t understand their experiences or their levels of engagement with your brand.
These are three sales enablement elements that are suggested for businesses trying to focus on improving the customer experience:
-
Simplify your purchasing process
Things on how vendors make products such as B2B solution can be amazingly aggravating and difficult. Even the basics such as the call-in number for sales may serve as an obstacle at times. Or even the web conferencing system which requires numerous constant downloads. These may just be little hiccups but these can be essentially stressful for the customers.
Sales enablement professionals shall be able to streamline the buying process and resolve these issues. See what they find frustrating about buying from you by trying to survey losses and even clients. Look on how shall you move and take action on each stage. And, be able to understand customer interaction to be able to sight down what could degrade the customer experience as early as possible.
-
Add value
Only a few salespeople add value to their customers as said earlier. They often lack market insights or detailed product information that helps customers formulate their strategies. Thus, it is not a question that only 20% of salespeople bring value to their customers according to Forrester survey.
By bringing the value addition that their prospects want, sales people can create a positive customer experience. This means that having the ability to access relevant sources and having the mastery of the product is highly needed. It is also knowing what to say in order to support the prospect’s business case. Lastly, it means that you are able to help customers see how to make their company better by being able to provide perspective on the market per se.
-
Make your salesperson a champion
There will be a need for changes the moment the customer adopts to your solution. An example of this is the changes in their priorities and processes. Therefore, a champion might take risks along the way. He or she must need to spend an amount of political capital to make things happen. But, as the potential payback, things will be great.
This is one of the reasons why it is somewhat uncomfortable to make your champion. To make a decision that can make them a hero internally courtesy of your solution needs guidance and support. Hence, what is the best way to give a great experience to your customer rather than solving a major business problem with an assist from your solution?
Therefore, do not be afraid to challenge yourself as well as the customer as a great way to give them the experience they deserve.
In order to deliver great customer experience, sales teams can collaborate from the sales enablement leaders. Thus, this means more returns downstream and faster throughput in the top of the funnel.
