We talk a lot about the stages of the sale, but commitment remains a fundamental element to keep in mind throughout the sales cycle, and deserves special attention.

This week, with Tom Le Cochün (Team lead AE international), we suggest you go beyond the 6 points to check with all your sales reps, to ensure end-to-end commitment.

1. Master a precise chronology

From the very first meeting, your prospect needs to know what is going to happen throughout the sales process:

• discussion highlights
• the content of each interaction
• the steps involved in making a decision
• a clear, precise to-do list.

The more the prospect understands what's expected of them, the greater their attention and commitment will be.

Don't forget to involve them in this timeline: "What do you think are the different steps involved in creating Modjo? How can I help? "What would prevent us from working together?"

At the beginning of each interaction, specify :

• How does this meeting fit into the overall calendar?
• The prospect's expectations for this meeting
• Your expectations of this meeting
• The duration of the meeting
• What to expect at the end of the meeting

Here's what the beginning of each meeting might look like:

• "The aim of this demo meeting is that at the end, you can find out if Modjo meets your expectations and we can discuss the next steps, or if not, that you can tell me at the end of this demo so we don't waste any time. What do you think?"
• "We've allotted 45 minutes for this demo, does that seem enough? Does anyone have an earlier requirement?"
• "I'll show you the demo in this order, then we can talk about this and that. Do you need to add or remove a part? Okay, we're ready."

Finally, without a slot in your prospect's calendar, there's no commitment. Follow-up should be as tight as possible, with a clear agenda and tasks for your prospect to do.

• "I'll let you invite Thibaut to the demo, can you spell his last name for me?"
• "From what you're telling me, I understand that the next steps would be A B C?"

Send the summary by e-mail and, if you've recorded your conversation, send the video link as well.

2. Build relationships

It's no surprise that a prospect who likes you is more likely to engage with you.

Before the call :

• Check out your prospect's background and social networking interests.
• Read the latest market news, their company and ask them a question
• Review your last exchange to memorize the name of the absent colleague, bounce off a story...

During the call :

• Always switch on your camera when making a video call.

Video conferences are 30% more likely to be converted when the camera is switched on. You switch from an "interrogation" mode to a "conversational" mode.

Your background can also create more links, so don't blur it if you think your environment can create more links.

• Reuse 1 to 3 words that your interlocutor often uses. By using their vocabulary, you give the impression of belonging to the same group.
• Rephrase the stated problems, trying to express your interviewee's feelings.
  
  " We can't motivate our sales people to fill in our CRM correctly"
  "Does it frustrate you not to have a clean and accurate CRM?"
  " It stresses me out, because I need it for my weekly reports".

Once you talk about your feelings with your prospect, you gain intimacy because you become someone who understands them and can potentially help them feel better.

After the call :

• Make your prospect feel that he's being treated as a privileged member of your team: be responsive if he contacts you, be contactable and available for him.
• Send them a message wishing them a happy new year, a happy vacation (now's the time!), an article or a contact that might interest them.

3. Keep your questions and answers dynamic

The aim here is never to launch into a monologue, whether on one side or the other.

However, don't just ask any question. Try to get verbal validation from them every time you introduce something new:

• What do you know about Modjo?
• Does what I'm showing you really address the problem we've identified?

But there's a limit to the number of questions you can ask: more than 15, and statistically, you'll bore your prospect 🙂.

Market research suggests that the ideal number of questions in a 30-minute meeting is between 10 and 15.

4. Work on "sales intensity".

We've talked about this several times, including in this article on why you need to put intensity into your offers.

Sales intensity remains the best way to retain prospects.

Examine your chronology and your interactions with your prospects, and make sure you always stay in touch if you identify a week without interaction.

• Call
• Electronic mail
• LinkedIn fora specific topic
• You can also use all the activities offered by your marketing: webinar invitations, e-books, customer feedback, etc.

Be tactical and don't hesitate, during your follow-up interactions, to ask yourself, "What's changed since the last time we spoke?"

This approach enables your contact to talk to you about a subject that may or may not be directly related to your sale, and to pick up on weak signals.

Good news or not, this will help you keep control of your sales cycle.

5. Meet the right person!

One last tip: find the right way to respond to your prospect's hierarchy. You're probably talking to your champion, but the real person you'll need to convince together is the decision-maker.

For each opportunity, you need one or more champions. They're essential, because you'll need them to get your opportunity close. The more you involve your champion, the more he or she will feel responsible for not wasting the time of the decision-maker, who is often your manager.

All that's left is to put all his advice into practice. 😎

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Better,

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