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Are Pre-Conceived Notions Affecting Your Sales-Closing Efforts?

Inside Sales Lead Management Featured Article

Are Pre-Conceived Notions Affecting Your Sales-Closing Efforts?
 
October 09, 2014

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An article titled “You’re More Biased than You Think” on fastcompany.com recently piqued my interest. The piece speaks primarily about unrealized or subconscious biases and how they influence hiring decisions and workplace culture. However, I suspect they influence our actions as sales people, too.


Example One: The Gatekeeper

You have likely heard the reminder to “befriend the gatekeeper.” We keep hearing this advice most likely because we keep ignoring it. It’s not always that we don’t like or respect the gatekeeper – we just want to get to the coveted decision-maker. That’s the one who controls the purse strings, after all.  Just remember, though, that you may have to get in good with that executive assistant or receptionist before you can even think about connecting with the person whom you are trying to reach. Next time you find yourself thinking, “Ugh, I just got the assistant,” change that to, “Great, I’m connecting with the person who can assist me with the next step in my quest.”

Example Two: The Big Business Lead

Have you ever found yourself in the lucky position of having your dream prospect contact you? You will do backflips, front flips, and jump through fiery hoops just to win this business. It could mean a huge deal for your company and/or a sizeable bonus for you. The driving desire to land this customer is normal, but it can cause you to act hastily or unwisely. Dig deeper by using qualifying questions with your call script to discover some of the following information:

  • Are they just tire-kicking?
  • Do they really intend to leave their current provider, or is this just a scare tactic to reign in their current vendor?
  • Does your business have the infrastructure and resources to support this dream client?
  • Does the person who contacted you have any real decision-making authority?

Example Three: The Small Business Lead

This is the flipside of the example above. While you are chasing the big business leads, are you missing low-hanging fruit? Small businesses may not be your “dream clients” per se, but several small businesses can be just as profitable as one dream client. Plus, they may be easier to close. Ask qualifying questions and use lead scoring to ensure the small business can use your product before you write them off altogether.

Example Four: Individual-Level Biases

The scenarios above are pretty closely tied to B2B sales. For those of you in consumer sales, you may not have exactly the same biases as listed above. You likely do have your own, I’m sure, when it comes to stereotyping individuals. These same stereotypes can affect B2B sales reps, too. Do you find yourself overlooking a customer due to a stereotype?

One great example to review here is age. It might make sense if you are selling Medicare Advantage Plans to be very selective about the age of your target prospects. On the other hand, if you sell technology products or services, don’t disregard an older customer or decision maker simply because he or she is older.  According to the Pew (News - Alert) Research Internet Project, six in ten seniors go online regularly. Of seniors with annual household incomes over $75,000 or more per year, 90 percent are online and 82 percent have broadband at home. (A “senior” is defined as age 65 and older by the Pew Research Center.) As retirement age creeps up and the need to work later in life extends, older customers will be important. Rid yourself of age bias and you could find yourself with more leads and sales.

Do you think bias affects your selling or the selling ability of your team? Using an automated, queue-based lead management solution like VanillaSoft can help curb any unconscious bias because workflows are automated based on criteria. It creates a successful repeatable sales process. Give it a try today with a VanillaSoft free trial.



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