Building a new sales process can seem like a daunting task.
Yet it is the framework around which your organisation is built.
Having a process in place that is both up to date and reflects current market trends is vital. Especially for building a sustainable, high growth operation.
“There’s no single “right” sales process for every team.”
And most importantly, it must be as unique as you are.
There’s little gain from copying another successful process if it simply doesn’t fit with your business.
How Managers Can Build A New Sales Process
Over time, market challenges and trends can shift the focus of your operation.
If your process doesn’t move with the times, you’ll often be left behind.
Staying at the cutting edge of experience in a competitive field can often be the difference between winning or losing opportunities.
Even beyond price and product.
The right processes and workflows allow teams to collaborate constructively.
Accountability is clearly defined as no stone left unturned. Across the business no opportunity is missed and everyone is pulling together in the same direction.
To fully embrace your potential, you need to have a process in place that works for both yourself and your customers.
Here we outline 3 simple steps to build a new sales process that facilitates the achievement of your goals without compromising customer experience.
1) Act With Purpose & Consistency
When starting to uncover your new process, the first step is to ensure there is a process foundation to begin with!
Individuality, and personal flair, are integral for driving forward success.
However, an absence of structure and consistency can lead to a disjointed customer experience depending on who or how they engage.
So rather than worrying about getting it 100% accurate first time around, focus on encouraging your team to act with purpose and consistency.
Where possible, stick with one rule, or one option, and run with it.
Record every important data point in the CRM. Then you can evaluate whether or not the correct decision was made, based on your accumulated data.
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2) Define Your Stages & Activities
Now you have your rules of engagement in place. And you’ve collected ample CRM data on which to base actions and decisions.
The next step is to define precisely how, where and when, you’ll connect with your ideal customer profile.
Each stage, needs to be both easy to understand and distinctly separate from the stages before and after.
If you can’t easily explain, or comprehend what needs to happen, it’s time to head back to the drawing board.
Likewise, it should be obvious which criteria need to be met to unlock the next stage.
For example, what converts a lead into an opportunity.
What steps need to take place before an order is purchased.
Who needs to be contacted before delivery.
Both internal staff and external customers alike must mark clear progress toward the ultimate goal or aim at each stage.
This avoids time wasting, allows for a streamlined experience and provisions for a more effective use of the resources at your disposal.
When you build a new sales process, keep the volume of stages manageable and focus on the actions which carry most weight.
3) Prioritise The Customer Journey
Your rules have been identified, they’re being followed consistently and the backbone of a clearly articulated process has been defined.
The final aspect is what will take your new sales process to the next level.
The added extras that will facilitate the shift away from internal orientation toward the customer’s buying journey.
It’s not always easy, but success here will truly set you apart from the crowd.
There has been a major shift to buyer focus, with stages required to match how they buy rather than how you sell.
To ensure your focus remains on the opportunities most likely to close, introducing buyer criteria alongside your own internal criteria helps secure buy in and gauges commitment.
At each point, it’s important to make sure there is a clear cut answer that is both auditable, and measurable.
Last of all, in much the same way every business has a unique way of operating, so do your potential customers.
Flexibility, or branching processes, help accommodate personal preference.
At the same time, they ensure you can still gather everything you need to qualify an opportunity and convert the lead to sale.
Adopting this approach gives your team guidance to move opportunities in the right direction, while enabling top performers to bring individuality to the process.
Naturally, every team wants to adopt best practice instantly, but not every organisation is ready. Or even aware of what that end result should look like.
Start by acting consistently, within a structure that works for you, retaining a customer focus and you’ll be well on the way to iterative improvements before you know it.
Ready to explore how Anthill can help you build a new sales process? Schedule a demo today.
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- August 30th, 2022