By Drew J. Stevens
July 28, 2011
I worked hard for four years and worked the phones like mad but I was not satisfied. Until one day a recruiter called with a job offer that altered my life. Rather than solicit services over the phone I was asked to work for a large organization that desired to employ sales professionals who could get appointments with “C Suite” executives. Yes, I was asked to sell new services to the CEO’s and CIO’s of Wall Street. Now I was Top Gun.
Similarly, you will want your sales team to do the same. Selling to large accounts is actually no different from selling one-to-one but there are some considerations.
First and foremost before any selling representative picks up a phone to place a call with a large account, it is important to know what to say before hello. Large accounts require proper planning and analysis so that provocative conversations can transpire between sales agents and decision makers.
The proper research includes:
Annual Report
This important multi-section document is a must read. Within the front pages, sales professionals will find a letter from the president or CEO indicating new products, growth plans, operational woes and competitive plans. This first section will communicate how you and your producers help the company.
Other ways to obtain the report, are to go to the firm’s website or subscribe to Internet services such as Hoovers.com or Dow Jones News Retrieval.
Business News
To properly service your customers you must understand their successes, feel their trials and tribulations and help to downplay competitive and marketplace pressures. Reading a major periodical will apprise you of new customer news and keep you abreast of business changes.