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| Selling Problems Map For Action Corrects |
Edward J. Feeney Feeney Associates
Over the past 20 years, the key people at Feeney Associates have observed, tape recorded, transcribed and quantified the frequency of certain selling behaviors on thousands of sales calls in transportation companies. |
| Here are key sales behaviors which must be improved and the problems which occurred on virtually all sales calls in every transportation company where we made field sales calls prior to developing the training: |
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During 95 to 97 of all calls prior to MAP FOR ACTION, no observable action was taken on the call, seldom was it even specifically requested, and quite often the exact chain of actions the prospect must take was not even known to the salesperson. To give you additional traffic, the customer must take observable action: change a routing, phone an assistant, set up a meeting, etc. If the salesperson knows what specific actions the prospect must take, asks for them, and aids the prospect in taking these actions at the end of the call, traffic is more likely to follow. |
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The same presentations were given to customer after customer with out first probing for needs or reconfirming the needs uncovered on earlier calls. Needs probes, if any, were limited essentially to transportation needs. But the needs of the organization as a whole (e.g., to reduce inventory and to increase sales through better customer service), were not probed, nor were the personal needs.Even when the needs are expressed, there is a problem with salespeople recognizing needs and recalling them. In one large test we ran, using a tape recording of an actual sales call, transportation sales people at all levels could repeat back only 2.8 of 9 needs expressed by a customer. |
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Very frequently, calls were not made on the decision maker(s); the salespeople erroneously thought the contacts were decision makers, didn't probe this at all, or did so in an ineffective manner. |
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Prospects privately told us they were inundated with calls by transportation salespeople and appreciated someone who got to the point quickly. Yet salespeople spent considerable time on non-essential conversation because they thought the customer (sometimes the same customer as in our survey) wanted them to be "friendly." |
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Direct sales calls were made on a significant portion of prospects and accounts who should not have been called on or who should have been contacted by telephone! They had no business, were giving all of their small amount of business to the carrier anyway, or had a minor service problem which could have been handled sooner and more quickly by telephone (with a personal call later, if necessary). |
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Salespeople did not probe for any objections not volunteered by the prospect and, therefore, did not answer them. |
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Appointments were made by telephone infrequently, without stating clear benefits ("I'm rolling through your area today." was one typical announced reason), or without inviting other decision makers to the meeting and without inquiring what information the salesperson or the prospect should bring to the meeting to increase the chances of action. |
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During sales presentations, the company's features were seldom linked to customer needs nor was it made clear how they produced benefits, little proof was offered, and, unless the prospect volunteered a comment, there was no probe of the customer's reaction.
(More on our findings when we meet)
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