Fundamental Selling Techniques for the New or Prospective Salesperson

Sales is one of the most demanding and increasingly competitive professions in today's business environment. Yet many who pursue it lack the foundational training and practical understanding of what effective selling actually involves. This intensive, highly interactive two-day program gives you a comprehensive introduction to the art and science of selling, equipping you with the tools, frameworks, and techniques you need to build a successful sales career and elevate your performance from day one.

Who Should Attend:

Salespeople, sales support professionals, and candidates for sales positions who want to build or reinvigorate their selling skills.

How You Will Benefit:

• Identify the behaviors and core skills of a consistently successful sales professional
• Describe different types of selling models and their distinguishing characteristics
• Identify the key elements of an effective sales framework
• Understand prospecting fundamentals and conduct a structured sales call
• Use a customer-centered selling approach to deliver genuine value
• Apply proven closing techniques to earn the business
• Use a formula to calculate and work toward your sales goals
• Manage customer relationships for long-term retention and growth
• Develop a concrete action plan for applying your new skills immediately

What You Will Cover:

• The unique role that sales plays within an organization
• Behaviors, characteristics, and skills that define top-performing salespeople
• Characteristics and structures of different selling models
• Calculating and setting goals based on your sales quota and territory plan
• Analyzing your territory and conducting account research
• Calendar planning to build a healthy sales pipeline and hit targets
• Resources and methods for generating strong leads
• Strategies for responding confidently to common new business objections
• The "Earn the Business" process
• The "Deliver the Business" process
• The "Manage the Relationship" process
• Tools and technologies for maintaining accurate customer information
• Strategies for staying in regular contact with customers and nurturing relationships over time

Course Outline:

Learning Objectives

• Understand how sales generate revenue and contribute to organizational success
• Apply a customer-centered approach to delivering real value
• Identify the behaviors, characteristics, and skills of effective sales professionals
• Expand your communication skills and apply tools and techniques to strengthen sales performance
• Develop an action plan to put new skills into practice immediately

The Importance of Sales

• Understand how sales drive revenue for your industry and organization
• Define sales from the customer's perspective
• Describe the customer's buying cycle and how it influences your approach

Selling Models

• Compare the characteristics of different selling models
• Understand the impact of digital and electronic selling channels
• Identify the various ways customers choose to buy

Building Relationships and Developing as a Sales Professional

• Identify the traits and habits of high-performing salespeople
• Expand your communication skills by understanding personality styles and adapting your approach

Planning for the Business

• Analyze your industry and territory systematically
• Build a detailed customer profile
• Apply segmentation to differentiate customers and focus your efforts
• Develop competitive advantage statements for your key accounts

Finding and Qualifying Opportunities

• Apply the steps of the find-and-qualify process
• Use diverse resources and methods to generate qualified leads
• Identify opportunities with existing customers and respond strategically to objections

Earning the Business

• Apply the steps of the earn-the-business process
• Open a sales call with impact and purpose
• Use proactive listening to clarify and confirm customer needs
• Present options persuasively and resolve objections with confidence
• Apply closing techniques to secure commitment

Delivering the Business

• Understand that delivering on your commitments is a direct extension of earning the business

Managing the Relationship

• Apply the steps of the manage-the-relationship process
• Develop and execute a strategy for maintaining meaningful ongoing customer contact
• Identify the tools and technologies best suited for tracking and managing customer information

Putting It All Together

• Apply the full set of skills, tools, and techniques covered throughout the program in a comprehensive capstone exercise