How Spooky Sales Are Killing Wins

Happy Halloween! 

A special treat for you today to mix sales and Halloween! :) 

Are you ready for a spine-chilling tale this Halloween? Gather around as we unveil the story of the haunted sales pipeline.

Once upon a time, in a company not so far away, there was a sales team facing a dreadful curse. Their pipeline had dried up, leaving them desperate for new leads. But every time they managed to find a potential customer, something eerie would happen. They would express interest but then vanish into thin air, never to be heard from again. It was as if they were being ghosted by these prospects.

The team tried everything to break the curse. They sent emails, made calls, and even set up meetings. But time and time again, they were met with the most dreaded phrases in the sales world. "Send me some information", "Let me talk it over with my team", or the spine-chilling "We will get back to you."

Pretty spooky… right?

In reality, all of this happens every day of the year and is so frustrating for so many sales reps and teams.

It doesn’t need to happen.

Pipeline… times are different and the approach needs to be dialed in. Just sending out mass emails isn’t enough.

Now I’m not saying that every message needs to be sent 1 by 1 but it does need to be focused on who it’s going to and why it’s going to them.

What it has in the message is more important than how many. You can’t leave it up to the recipient to use their “decoder ring” to figure out what you can do for them.

It needs to speak their language and be so simple that they connect your message with the pain point that is killing them.

Next comes those that you have talked with and they “vanish into thin air”. Nothing is more frustrating but it is preventable. Understanding their world and asking questions about how helpful it is for them (or not helpful).

When someone is not responding or “ghosting” it’s because they didn’t see the value. That’s the bottom line. Sure they are busy… busy with things that matter to them more than you.

The point is… if you figure out what matters the most and see you aren’t high on the priority list nor can you be, you can stop reaching out a million times and keeping it in your pipeline.

Also, notice when they are telling you to go away… “Send me some information” or “Let me talk it over with the team”. These are sure signs that it’s a no and you aren’t seeing it.

Ask more… “I can send you some more information but want to make sure I send what’s the most helpful for you… what is it that you are looking for?” Or “what would be the most helpful for you?”

Talking with the team? “Totally understand… if this was just your decision, which I know it isn’t, do you have any hesitations on moving forward” or “What do you know the team is going to want to talk about and what concerns will they have”.

The more you can hear their objections, it gives you a chance to go through these with them.

Sales is not about staying with the way you’ve always done it. If you want to do more… you’ve got to be more (not just do more).

Have a Happy Halloween and make sure to leave the scary stories about your sales at the door and start off November with success.

Kim

PS... 2 more months until the end of the year. What you do today is going to impact Q1 of 2024. Time to get going!!!