Karina Collis
Viktoria Fischer-Werth

5 sales insights
TO take your sales tactics
to the next level

Monthly digest, June

How to deliver a B2B sale?

Do you start with research, then outreach, pitch, negotiation and then the deal is won?

We wish it would be that straightforward! As you might have experienced, the reality is more complex. Your prospects are human beings with their own thoughts, ideas and preferences. In addition, in B2B sales there are multiple decision makers and you literally have to sell multiple times to arrive to the finish line. A nicely made product presentation and a sales pitch will not be enough to break through the barricades of obstacles.

Getting people to show interest in your sales proposition is one of the major challenges in carrying out a sales strategy. And often the skills and the knowledge needed to provoke and flurish this interest are not impeccable: according to Forbes magazine, 55% of salespeople lack basic sales skills.

Luckily, there are some things you can do to optimise your sales tactics and win your prospect's interest.

In our monthly series of Sales Insights will share with you tips to improve your sales, influence and persuasion skills. Every month you can learn more about 5 interesting – and powerful – insights to master your sales techniques and convince future clients.

Sales insight #1. CHANGE YOUR PURPOSE

Slide with text: change from “helping to buy” to “help to change"

Do you want to be seen as a salesperson or as an advisor to your clients?

Your purpose behind a sales process makes a big difference. Instead of focusing on selling, focus on helping your clients to solve their problems and needs. Help them to change and guide them during the process.

How can you do this? By asking the right questions and leading them towards the confidence that they are making the right decisions:

Help your prospect identify the weak points of their operations and how it affects other sides of the business

Help your prospect understand the need for change and create urgency around the potential risks involved

Help your prospect analyse the potential solutions

If you focus on helping, your client will build trust and a more positive attitude towards you. This will not only be helpful for the current deal you want to close, but also for the future: a client who trusts and values you as a helpful advisor will be more likely to come back to you.

Sales insight #2. GUIDE THROUGH COMPLEXITY

Communication is key, especially in sales. It is the core of sales: two people communicating with each other, trying to discuss what the issues and potential solutions are. In fact, it can often mean the difference between success and failure. But what communication style is the most effective in sales?

Gartner established 3 sales communication styles:

Giving

provide as much information as possible to your prospect
"I can give you all the information in detail about the product"

Telling

add a flavour of personality. Share your opinion and stories
"Let me tell you what you need to know"

Sense-Making

guide a customer through complexity by helping to focus on the
right questions, identify which information matters most
“There is a lot of information, let me help you guide through it
to make sense of everything"

Research showed that the sense-making approach increases customer confidence, reduces customer scepticism and, most importantly, yields far greater closure rates.

The world is crowded with information, so your prospect will appreciate you helping him to go through this complexity and understand it.

Slide with text: guide prospects through complexity. Graph that shows Gartner’s 3 sales communication styles

Sales insight #3. ALIGN MARKETING AND SALES

"Sales teams reject 55% of
marketing-qualified leads."

Salespeople often see marketing and sales as two separate disciplines, with marketing not being important for a sales process. But that's a mistake.

Digital marketing is not a one-stop solution for your sales pipeline. Too many sales teams miss possible leads because they don't pay attention to marketing. Sounds familiar?

Slide with text: Align marketing and sales

Rethink the whole Marketing and Sales strategy. Be more proactive in generating new leads. Marketing can also be more effective at a later stage of your sales process, so don't miss this chance! Allow the Marketing and Sales functions to partner closely during the entire customer purchase journey.

It will help you draw interest towards your product and build up trust between you and your prospect.

Sales and marketing alignment can lead to 38% higher sales win rates - so don't miss out on them and invest in both marketing and sales.

Sales insight #4. ACT AS AN ADVISOR

Slide with text: Act as an advisor in sales

Imagine you are in pain and go to the doctor to get checked. You don't go to the doctor just to be asked "Tell me where it hurts." You want to hear him say "I know it hurts, and if you don't react now, it might be dangerous. Let me tell you what you need to do."

It works the same for sales. Act as an advisor for your clients and help them figure out what's best for them and their company.

How do you become a trusted advisor in sales?

Pay attention to what your client says and show recognition by following up on it. Offer value and actionable insights. Be proactive by presenting solutions to their problems. All of this will help you to build a stronger relationship with your client - and to make more sales.

Sales insight #5. FORGET ABOUT WORDS

It's not what you say, it's how you say it. The majority of information we receive comes not from words, as one might think, but from body language.

Dr. Albert Mehrabian conducted multiple studies and summarised his findings in the 7-38-55% rule:

The 7-38-55% rule

Words deliver 7% of the overall message

The tone of your voice accounts for 38% of the overall message

Your body language accounts for 55% of the overall message

It is all about our body: eye contact, gestures, facial expressions. The problem is that we often don't pay attention to whether our body and our words are in sync, whether they express confidence and openness, or the opposite.

So how to improve your gestures while speaking? We have a hack for you. Learn from the best! Turn into any Obama speech or Ted Talk and mirror the body language to practice. If you feel insecure about it, maybe record yourself while speaking to figure out what exactly you can improve. Pay attention to your whole body position, where you look at while talking, and what you do with your hands.

Slide with text: forget about words, use body language. Pie chart that demonstrates the importance of body language

Conclusion

Sales are not only about telling a person why they should buy your product. If you want to sell successfully, there is so much more behind it: how do you talk to your prospect? What is your purpose in engaging? Can you help them find a solution to their problem?

There are many different aspects you should pay attention to, but also many useful techniques which will help you close a deal more easily.

Stay up to date with our monthly digest of 5 powerful sales insights to learn more techniques that will help you win your prospect and increase your sales. For other sales insights, cold e-mail templates, and more tips have a look at our other articles.

Good luck with applying the techniques we share! The more you practice, the better you will become.

Are you at the beginning of a prospecting journey? Check out our articles about cold email writing

The science behind cold emails that work. PART 1 - KEY PRINCIPLES, TEMPLATES AND EXAMPLES
The science behind cold emails that work. PART 2 - CALL TO ACTION THAT MOVES
THE SCIENCE BEHIND COLD EMAILS THAT WORK. PART 3 - FOLLOW UP STRATEGY AND FOUR FOLLOW UP TEMPLATES