The world of sales is fast-paced and abundant in frequent conversations with clients and prospects. In “The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People,” Stephen Covey writes “begin with the end in mind.” In sales, this means starting with a vision of the final destination before planning the activity that will take you there. I want to address two categories of sales goals: the strategic objective for the account and the outcome of your next sales call.
1. Strategic Objective
The strategic objective is the next major milestone you want to reach with a specific account. This is more than their next purchase order… this is the next phase of your relationship. If all goes well, what door is opened to the next stage? The objective you are aspiring to reach has to be aligned with the goals that your client is seeking. Is it opening new lines of business, getting access to new markets, or expanding to another territory? What does this represent in additional opportunities and what is the financial target associated with this new stage? Defining a Strategic Objective requires research and insight into the account’s long-term goals and careful visionary planning. Once you know where you’re heading, then you can plan how to advance in that direction.
2. Sales Call Outcome
An execution action plan involves interacting with your client. Every time you meet, talk, or email your client, you must have a specific sales call outcome in mind that will make forward progress towards the larger strategic objective. Not all calls end in a contract or purchase order – eventually you will get there – but the goal for each call is to reach a mutual agreement to move forward. Some examples of these advances could be an introduction to another decision maker, releasing more information about the opportunity, doing a trial or beta test, or a conceptual agreement to move ahead. In short, you have to walk into your meeting knowing exactly what you want to get out of it. Just like with the Strategic Objective, the Sales Call Outcome must also align with the goals of your client. They also have to make progress towards the accomplishment of their goals for this to be mutual and build up to a closer relationship.
Now what ?
A good practice is to establish Strategic Objectives at the same time that you set your annual sales targets. It is wise to invite other team members to collect different perspectives and insights. Regarding the Sales Call Outcome, one is necessary for every interaction. Do you need to sit down and block out time to plan all of them? The answer lies in the magnitude of the advance you are seeking and the effort to get there – the larger the outcome, the more planning it requires. Pick an outcome that can be accomplished in one sales call. If it requires more than one call, then determine what you need to get from the first call to move on to the next. But every interaction must be driven by a clear outcome. This clarity will also be evident to your client, who will very likely appreciate that you are efficiently planning your time together.
Happy selling!
Roberto Muñoz
Sales and Business Coach