Is your sales team struggling to perform in the “new normal” of COVID-19? Even though physical sales calls won’t be an option in the short term, there is still much that your team can do to get your folding cartons and rigid boxes out the door.
As part of PPC’s ongoing initiative to engage our community and offer virtual learning opportunities, we recently held a webinar led by packaging industry sales expert Bill Farquharson on how paperboard packaging manufacturers can prepare their sales teams to hit the ground running. Check out these 11 ways to kickstart your sales post-COVID-19 from Bill’s presentation.
1. Sell Less
Selling less doesn’t mean decreasing efforts or putting your team’s time elsewhere. It means identifying what has worked for your business in the past. The 80/20 rule positions that 80% of your sales come from 20% of your customers. This is the time to focus on the 20%
Which sales silos have brought about the most business previously? What campaigns and tactics work best on this demographic? You don’t need to take on every new opportunity, instead make sure you take every opportunity that makes you money.
So, while you’re paring down your forces, be sure to keep in mind:
- Connecting with new businesses
- Managing existing accounts
- Selling one product line over multiple
- Focusing on a specific vertical or geographic area
2. Sell Better
This one feels like a no-brainer. Of course, you want to improve your sales tactics and achieve greater returns at the end of the day.
But now is the time to commit to improving. Read more books and newspapers; listen to podcasts and other audio resources. These will offer lessons, spark new tactics, and encourage new thinking that can get your team closer to a much-wanted breakthrough.
3. Sell Deeper
In the same vein of focused improvement, also consider spending your time studying existing accounts. By drilling down on your current clients or ideal audience, you can learn more about what makes them tick, how their sales cycle turns, when they buy, and why they buy. Start by discovering your audience’s:
- Core business
- Challenges
- Future plans
This knowledge translates to campaigns for new audiences as well as generating new ideas for maintaining and improving work with current clients
4. Sell Vertical
Choose one vertical or marketing segment – food and beverage, medical, beauty, etc. – and learn it inside and out. Bill recommends searching “10 marketing mistakes [your vertical] makes” as a starting point. How can your products solve these problems? How can you convey this to your demographic?
Use this knowledge to your advantage.
5. Sell Basic
When times are tough or your team is looking for new ways to improve business, go back to basics. Using fundamental approaches is a great way to reconnect with your clients as well as your sales model.
If you had to choose any, focus on these 4:
- Pursue high-value, well-researched sales calls
- Reach out to appropriate target markets
- Prospect your sales process
- Stay diligent
If you need more help, Bill has an assessment test for use at billfarquharson.com.
6. Sell Bigger
To keep growing, you need to land the big fish – big chains, established brands, etc. Large accounts provide much-needed revenue along with credibility. Managing high-profile clients shows that you can handle others of the same scale and gives you the leverage to land more. But how do you get the first one?
As a general rule, it takes 18 months to secure a large client, and the acquisition process isn’t straightforward. They don’t tend to send out RFQs, instead opting to work with businesses they’ve previously connected with.
Use your connections, leverage LinkedIn, connect with customers’ sales teams, and keep trying. Bill’s tip: identify seven large accounts you’d like to secure. Pursue five of them steadily and keep the other two in reserve.
7. Sell Smarter
During downtime, perform a tech review. Do you have all the tools that you need? Of course you have a computer, phone, and LinkedIn account to connect with potential clients.
But are you making videos? Using ads? Managing a YouTube account? Find new ways to reach who you need. Research tools and reach out to technology providers and ask them how they can help you improve your job.
8. Sell Branded
Marketing has become the new version of sales. It’s a smart tactic to adopt because it helps to build your brand and strengthen your prospecting attempts, with many of these options being entirely free. Your team can do everything from writing white papers to creating podcasts and video series.
This is also a time to improve your credibility. Create case studies you can leverage down the line and request recommendations. Reach out to previous connections so they can help let others know about your qualifications.
9. Sell Different
If you want to stay where you are, keep doing what you’re doing, right? However, as times change and competition improves, you’ll be lost in the past. Rethink everything:
- Are you reaching out to the correct target market?
- Is your brand true to who you want to be?
- Is your messaging connecting with your audience and accurately portraying your offers?
Get your team on the right track by asking them where they want to be in six months, what needs to be done to achieve that, and then get to work!
10. Sell Efficiently
The idea that time is money is truer than ever. Get ahead of the curve by listing out your current customers and prospects and keep researching about them, their business, your business, and how you plan to interact. That way, when sales return to normal, you waste no time.
11. Sell Simple
The last tip that Bill had to offer was to simplify the process for your customers – to do their thinking for them.
Solve their problems, reach out to them, make it easy for them to start working with you. Connect with them in their preferred manner and, instead of having them make a purchase, show them what they can get from you and how they will benefit greatly.
Members can view the full recording of Bill’s presentation here. For a schedule of PPC’s upcoming free virtual events, visit paperbox.org/events.