Sales are essential to all businesses. Without sales, there is no revenue – it is that simple. At Credico, we have simplified outsourced sales for Fortune 150 mid-market and nonprofit organizations since 1991.
As consumers, we are very familiar with business-to-consumer (B2C) transactions as they are part of everyday life. From purchasing our weekly groceries, seeing a special offer on TV, receiving flyers through our letterbox, or viewing promotions across our social media channels, all are urging us to buy.
However, the everyday consumer is not necessarily as aware of how business-to-business sales (B2B) work. It’s not difficult to grasp – it is still a sale, just from one business to another rather than to a single customer.
When selling to a business, you still must convince a person first. People are still people. So, if you can build rapport and be creative and flexible in your approach, just as in B2C sales, you will successfully be able to sell to businesses, too. B2B sales typically, but not always, have higher order values, longer sales cycles, and can be more complex than B2C sales.
To master B2B sales, follow these three simple steps:
Ask Questions
The more information you have about the business you are trying to sell to, the more you can help add value, differentiate yourself from your competition, and close sales. Questions are the most important sales tool. Ask open-ended questions like what, how, why, where, when, and who. Try to avoid yes or no questions. Ensure that your business customer feels understood by repeating back what you’ve learned from them. A good goal is to do only 30% of the talking.
Be the Solution
Your research should have uncovered your business customer’s pain points. When you truly understand their problems, you can position yourself as the answer to them. Let the business view your support as more efficient or cost-saving than a salesperson trying to hawk a product.
Meet Face-to-Face
When you have a valuable offer, know what the business needs, and can demonstrate how your products or services are aligned, try to communicate face-to-face as much as possible. Obtaining a B2B sale often entails greater internal deliberation before a business can commit to your proposal. Depending on the price point, it can be a higher-stakes conversation. When you can meet face-to-face (whether in person or via video) to answer the customer’s questions, deliver your pitch, and address concerns, you can build trust with your customer that can’t always be established over the phone or email.
Get in touch if you want to see how we can enhance your B2B sales. We’re always happy to arrange a meeting to discuss outsourcing your sales. At Credico, we help companies that want to grow their customer base by simplifying the work of coordinating sales efforts. We outsource sales to local sales teams who use face-to-face interaction and creative technology applications to build customer relationships and amplify impact.