B2B Sales
Sales, as defined by the father of modern-day marketing principles, Philip Kotler, is a component...
B2B Sales often require more research and planning than traditional B2C selling. The sales cycle is longer, and you often interact with multiple stakeholders at your prospect’s company. However, it can also be more rewarding—particularly when you close a huge deal that took 12 months to bring to fruition. To help you make sure that you are selling in the B2B market effectively, we have rounded up our top five strategies for B2B Sales:
Top 5 Tips for Successful B2B Selling
Research!
Before you reach out to a prospect, make sure that you know as much as you can about them prior to that initial outreach. You can do this by looking at their website, reading their blog, and subscribing to any newsletters or marketing campaigns that they may be putting out. Reading a company’s blog will help you understand what a company values and how they operate. Take note of who is drafting the blogs, as it will tell you what is important and to whom. If a decision maker is writing, you now have some insight into the way their mind works. Not only will this help you understand their why, it will also help you understand how their why intersects with your organization’s why. Then you can ascertain if what you have to offer can even effectively address any or all their pain points.
And while we are talking research, has your company developed its own buyer personas? Buyer personas are fictional representations of your ideal customer. It takes into account the customers you already serve and helps you identify the areas you can grow into as well. A well fleshed out buyer persona will help you take your target market from the abstract into the concrete. It will include questions about their likes, dislikes, their demographics, problems they have, organizations they belong to, brands they love, etc.
Effectively researching your prospects and companies with whom you work will take you a long way in giving your clients the personal touch they deserve. By looking at their competition and their target markets, you may be able to know ahead of time the questions they may ask and will be better able to answer them. This will move your cold calling into warm calling as you will be able to proactively offer well thought out solutions rather than just having to come up with something off the top of your head.
Offer Solutions, Not Products
Don’t believe the lie that all you have to offer your clients is the goods and services you are selling. Products can be abstract. Solutions, when positioned properly, resonate with prospects by letting them envision how you can help them in their real-world context.
Services and products can come from anywhere. But your solution minded USP is what can set you apart. Your research that you can tell you can help them. Your research will tell you what needs they have and how you, and only you, are best apt to meet those needs. By focusing on what your client needs rather than just on a product to push or sell, you will avoid being that pushy salesperson that no one wants to talk to anyway.
Focus on Value and ROI, Not Price
Move the focus of your prospect conversations away from the price point. Instead, lead with the benefits they will receive from your product or service. How much time and resources will it save them? Never underestimate the inherent value of convince them they cannot live without it and price will be a non-issue. This is among the most effective B2B selling strategies that you could adopt.
Many times, the solutions you offer will help a company grow. Perhaps you offer IT services. And maybe you keep hearing that the company is considering just hiring an IT guy versus shouldering the monthly cost of an MSP. But is that one IT guy really going to be able to offer the value associated with around the clock services like a larger MSP can? Can one person really provide all the services that a vender can? And is your client considering the cost of managing that person and the cost of their benefits? Perhaps not. Perhaps what they really need is to focus on the value, peace of mind, and return on investment that you can provide. If you are meeting their need, doesn’t that enable them to make more money? Well then it is no longer a price of a service, but an investment. .png?width=400&name=5%20Tips%20for%20B2B%20Sales%20(1).png)
Offer Valuable Content that Moves them Along in the Buyer's Journey
By now you know your prospects and what they are looking for. You should also know by now that the modern B2B buyer is becoming increasingly skeptical about sales and marketing messages because they seem overly automated and irrelevant.
Consider the following:
-
95% of buyers select a vendor who provided them with ample content to help navigate through each stage of the buying process
-
68% of customers feel more positive about a brand after consuming content from it
-
82% of buyers viewed at least 5 pieces of content from the winning vendor
-
And companies that develop sales enablement strategies typically win 13.7% higher contract value
To effectively offer relevant content that is helpful and human to your target market, you MUST make sure that your sales and marketing teams are collaborating. Salespeople can alert the marketing team to problems they encounter, and your marketers can then whip up content to address those pain points. When your sales team helps to create the content, you can be sure that the content they publish will provide a perspective that addresses their prospect’s challenges and can then provide them with actionable insights that will propel them forward to getting the solutions they need and along the buyer’s journey.
Having an effective outbound content strategy also considers that the modern B2B buyer uses social media and peer groups to make informed decisions. Salespeople should be active on social media channels like LinkedIn to get that content in front of decision makers. We know that B2B buyers are doing online research. But that does not mean that they cannot be guided to find the necessary information to help them make informed decisions.
Another effective piece of content that is valuable to share is the testimonial or case study. This helps show people how you have helped others in the past.
Follow Up that Focuses on a Happy Customer
All that research from tip one will continue to bear fruit as your prospect progresses on their buyer’s journey. This will help you pivot as their needs change. As a buyer’s needs change and pain points arise, you can offer further solutions to help. (Read: here is upsell opportunity). Additionally, salespeople and account manager’s that are subject matter experts on the solutions they provide helps to establish them as a go-to authority and trusted source of information for their clients.
One way to make sure that your marketing and sales process is effective, is by using an effective CRM and marketing automation tool. By being able to see how many times a prospect has opened certain emails or read varying pieces of content you’ve provided them, you will be better able to continue to meet their needs. Remember, according to Harvard Business Review, it is five times more expensive to get a new customer than it is to retain a happy one. So having a sound follow up strategy not only guarantees delighted customers, but also helps improve your own bottom line. Make sure that working with you is an enjoyable experience. Send thank you notes. Check in on your clients to make sure things are running smoothly and that they are happy. Keep the lines of communication open and provide them with follow up content that can address pain points that you are not currently meeting. Grow the trust in the relationship by continuing to meet the client’s needs even after the sale is completed. Then, and only then, can you even begin to earn the right for the second sale or upsell. And remember, delighted customers will send you referrals. You can and should even ask your delighted customers for feedback on how you can do your job better.
As dependence upon digital strategies and sales increase, it is important that B2B salespeople keep up. B2B salespeople can no longer rely on a “If we build it, they will come” mentality. By being proactive, doing ample research, and providing helpful content that their prospects want and need to read, your sales team can stay ahead of the curve. Working in tandem with marketers, modern B2B salespeople and account managers can build strong working relationships with their clients where problems are addressed head on and ROI soars.