Sales TrainingSME software development in Pakistan

Why Small companies and young

entrepreneurs have difficulty understanding how to sell to a western markets

Large companies want predictable-stable growth but are usually faced with a sporadic pipelines that are very hard to plan against.

What A training exercise that

Takes an average consultant on bench and transforms them into an inside sales asset

Takes an average MBA-marketing and converts him into an IT services sales rep

Focused on professional education that develops awareness of patterns, techniques

What it isn't Doesn’t address long term grooming

aspects

Who would be interested? Small software houses looking to grow

their sales Companies looking to develop their

projects into products Mid-sized companies looking to make

their pipelines more predictable Mid-sized companies looking to

efficiently use their bench

How? Gather up various sources Compile a sales execution manual Validate Develop a delivery methodology against

it Validate Develop teacher-training material

Why should you participate? Skill development for senior consultants

High level course content / Questions answered Lead Generation Lead Nurturing (Follow ups) Call Setup Familiarity with a CRM / Other Lead

management system The IT Services Eco-system

Defined focus areas Services vs. Products Inside sales vs. Outside sales DIY vs. Building a team What part of the sales process (early vs.

closing) Size of company? (Fortune companies vs.

SMEs) Geography New Sales vs. Expanding accounts Who will deliver it. First trainers…

Pricing? Trainees Trainer*******************************************

Begin ContentThoughts worth sharing about sales

Stages of Sales Prospect Lead Client

Sales is a pipeline Revenue depends on

How many prospects you can talk to Their conversion to Leads

Persistence and perseverance How good a job you do to turn leads into

clients

Know the forest Types of players

Customers Services firms Infrastructure vendors License resellers Value added players

Interdependencies List Sellers Companies that setup interviews

Tools Contact Generation and Enrichment

Net Prospex Jigsaw Hoovers Linked In

Intelligence and Prospecting InsideView beenverified.com Rain King Discover Org

Tools (cont’d) CRMs

SugarCRM Dynamics Sage ACT Maximizer Salesforce

Mass-Mailing MailChimp

Value chain People who bring business (~30%) Business to technical mapping (from

project on a budget to a job post) ..

Keys to success Follow up Be clear who your ideal client is

Lead Generation Ideas Look for Pakistani Names

How to warm up a cold-mail Know the company basics (Size, Partners, Industry, Location) Know the partners Review their social profiles (Google, linkedIn, facebook etc.. ) ENGAGE TO COME WITH

Something that makes it look like you have done your research (talk about the location, an event on their facebook page, something interesting on their website.. )

Presenting something that they would value (advice on the website, tools that can help their cause… )

Make the research count KEEP IT BRIEF Research the key people on LinkedIn Prove that you are not a bot Mention the location

Emotional Triggers Fear: Insurance companies often appeal to the

emotion of fear with messages like "Don't get caught with too little insurance."

Guilt: Nonprofit organizations use the guilt trigger effectively in copy such as "Don't let them suffer anymore.“

Trust: Financial companies are leading the way with messages like "no hidden fees.“

Value: "If you find a better price for the same product, we'll match it" are effective in piquing feelings related to value.

Belonging: "You're part of the family."

Emotional Triggers 2 Competition: Copy like "Make them drool" is a great example of

a message that elicits feelings of competition. Instant Gratification: Use words like now, today, in one hour or

less, within 24 hours, and so on to appeal to the emotional trigger of instant gratification.

Leadership: Phrases such as "Be the first on your block" effectively appeal to the emotional trigger of leadership.

Trend-setting: Variations of "all the cool kids are doing it" are commonplace in copywriting and can be used to market a wide variety of products and services to an even wider audience.

Time: Marketing messages that appeal to that desire for more free time are extremely effective, such as "Cut the time it takes to vacuum your house in half."

Follow-ups Categorize your people

Ping every week Ping every month Don’t ping

The Importance of Partnerships How to get them right? Types of Partnerships (IT eco system)

Developing perspective How to build your ideal customer How to see the world from his eyes How to view him from the eyes of your

competition

How to keep your spirits high

Differentiate New sales vs. account growth

Time Management How much attention to give to each kind

of client Typical day

Success in numbers # of opens for your cold-mails

Trusted Advisor Trust Advisor

Roles – which to focus on? Prospectors Follow-up-ers Closers

Other sources Referrals Work your network (LinkedIn)

Types of players

Who do I Sell To? Influencer - Judgers

Some people are there to give an opinion of you and your services. Their sole goal is to apply some form of expertise (often technical) to allow the decision-makers to make a good decision. Find out what criteria these folks are using and give them lots of detail to let them see what great services you have and how helpful you are.

Influencer - Blockers

Blockers are a bit like gatekeepers in that they have a solely negative function in shutting you out. They tend to have more power, however, in influencing the decision-maker. A financial director, for example, may put his or her foot down to say that your product is too expensive. A technical expert may say that you lack the latest gizmos. You often cannot go around blockers, so find out their negative criteria they use to shut you out and find ways of getting through them.

Who do I Sell To? Decision Makers

These are the real people you want to get to, though you may have to go through a lot of others. They are the people with the actual authority to decide to buy your services. They have the budget and the ability to spend it. Whilst courting these individuals is of course important, do remember that you have to keep the rest of the client’s organization happy as well. Any one of them can make or break your day.

Users

Users may have one or more of the roles above. They may also have no say at all in the proceedings. Remember that the benefits of the product that you are selling are mostly for these people. Also remember that the influencers themselves often do not understand the users very well. It can be a helpful act to bring these people into the equation. If you can get a naive user into a state of trust, they can become effective champions.

The SPIN Model Situation QuestionsAbout the existing client situation to establish the background and framework to ask… Problem QuestionsAbout client challenges, difficulties, or dissatisfactions which reveal Implied Needs. This is a client statement of challenges with the existing situation. You then develop these problems using… Implication QuestionsAbout the effects or consequences of the client’s challenges so that the challenges become clearer and more significant, leading to… Need-Payoff QuestionsAbout the value or importance of a solution to the client’s challenges so that the attractiveness of your solution is increased. This leads to Explicit Needs or a client’s statement of a clear want and desire in which your products or services can resolve. You are then able to show the benefits of how your products or services can resolve the Explicit Need.

How do I Handle the Sales Call? Opening Identify yourself and your organization. Establish the purpose of the sales call. Gain agreement for you to ask questions and take notes.

Investigating Use the SPIN sales questions.

Demonstrate Capabilities Show how your product or service Benefits the client by resolving Explicit Needs

which have been expressed.

Obtain Commitment Check that you have covered all key concerns. Summarize the benefits. Propose an appropriate commitment and advance.

Reading List Managing professional Services, David

Maister Predictable Revenue, Aaron Ross

Action Plan (asked for by Bilal)

Push Marketing (40% of your effort) Contact generation

Bought Leads Custom/Make your own

Jigsaw: 1$ / contact, cheaper if you can get a data entry guy to upload your contacts ZoomInfo: ?? NetProspex

Bundled Example/ Cost ???

LinkedIn Your contacts Create groups of interest

Facebook Twitter

Company listings Chambers of commerce Public Directories Network with local partners

ELance type regional search, PSEB listing  

Appointment setting firms (meeting with qualified leads) Salesify.com , 600-1000$/meeting (5000$ or so minimum)

Trade shows Telemarketing

Cold Calling Inside Sales

Email marketing

Pull Marketing (60% of your effort)

Search engine optimization (SEO) 800$ or so per month

Pay per click (PPC) advertising Google AdSense: $$??

Blogging and leveraging the blogosphere SMM

Seesmic – good tool to broadcast to linkedin, facebook, twitter etc. Wish it could also do company blogs since that is supposed to be the most effective way to get in touch.

Buzz marketing Targeted landing pages Conversion tools Sophisticated analytics You tube

Get a video made about Allied/Products 

Common activities

Article writing3-4000, for a 1 page, high

quality formatted article Company research

Manta.com

Follow the money Growth or Revenue? Company growth usually has a high

correlation with IT project activity High growth is usually strongly

correlated to geography and industry. Growth in one industry usually spills over

to supporting industries (e.g. Discovery of Oil also supports Resellers, Logistics suppliers, Professional services etc..)

Experiences with Lists Live with the hunted Categories of lists

By Tech By Types of people By Geography By Industry By Job function

Pros and Cons

How to keep going

Contact Harvesting

Nets, Spears, Seeds How to

IT

Networking Hardware Software

Pre-packaged Products

License Services

Install, Maintain Customize/Extend

VAR Business Solutions

Custom Solutions

Difference in selling Products vs. ServicesProducts Services

Predominantly Referral based

Price How is it determined?

Comparative options US Bill rate