As sales people we all know how much time and effort goes into getting a decision-maker to agree to a meeting.
Clearing that initial hurdle in the sales process takes a lot of our time and attention.
While scheduling the face-to-face encounter certainly brings you one step closer to making the sale, the hard work doesn’t stop here. Running sales meetings that have a high chance of conversion takes some planning and preparation.
“If I had eight hours to chop down a tree, I’d spend six sharpening my axe.” Abraham Lincoln
As sales professionals, we all aspire to run eloquent, relevant and converting sales meetings whenever we come face to face with a potential client.
However, knowing exactly what to say to win over a decision-maker is hardly ever a matter of mere intuition: it takes some preparation and research to understand your prospects’ needs and how your solution can address them. What’s more, you need to make sure that all people in the room have a clear understanding of the meeting objectives to maximise your chance for conversion.
IRD is constantly striving to help our customer’s improve their sales performance. Here is our insider strategy to help you significantly improve the likelihood of sealing the deal in your next sales meeting.
Get the right people in the room
There’s nothing more disappointing than turning up to a meeting thinking that you’re talking to the decision-maker, only to find out on the day that only a junior member of staff could make it. While they’re still an important influencer in the buying process, they won’t have the final say in sealing the deal.
At best, this situation means a longer sales cycle for you. At worst, it can mean a lost opportunity if the person you’re meeting with is unable to communicate your product benefits effectively to the senior decision-maker. We recommend taking a proactive approach to avoid these kinds of decision-maker no-shows or last minute reschedules.
Call your prospect the day before the meeting to confirm. Make sure all decision-makers will be in the room (read more about how to get decision-makers to agree to meeting), but also take note of who else will be in attendance. For instance, the decision-maker may be accompanied by an end-user or division manager who will have different needs and questions about your solution.
Having this conversation is the first crucial step in preparing for a successful sales meeting. You know you’ll have the right people in the room and can prepare your presentation to cater to the needs of this specific group.
Manage time and expectations
Running out of time, not setting clear objectives, leaving without an outcome or next steps: the list of characteristics for a poorly run meeting is endless.
Admittedly, it’s easy to understand why they so often get a bit out of hand. Different stakeholders have different needs and before you know it you have answered everyone’s questions, but have also gone off on a tangent. While you may have discussed a lot of interesting and important side aspects, you have reached the end of your allocated time without getting all your main selling points across.
The simplest way to make the most of the time is to send a meeting agenda to all attendees and stick to it. Outline clearly what the objectives are and summarise your points at the end. That way you can not only manage your prospect’s expectations, but also ensure that the key take-aways from your pitch will stay top of mind.
Following the meeting up with a summary of your main take-aways and a timeline for next steps will further enhance your chance of conversion.
Get a 360 degree view of your prospect’s business
Building rapport and trust in your sales meeting is crucial for a successful outcome: and the ability to talk with authority and confidence about your prospect’s industry, as well as asking them strategic questions about the latest developments in their business will set the right tone for your face to face encounter.
Spending some time researching competitor activity, what’s happening in your prospect’s organisation, as well as knowing key contacts and current market trends will give you great talking points for the meeting. Moreover, it clearly demonstrates to your prospect that you have genuine interest in their business and you’re not just there to deliver your standard sales presentation.
The research process will also enable you to prepare your questions for the meeting and potential objections the prospect might have about your solution. Taking the time to think about objections and how you’d respond to them in advance, will enable you to think on your feet when it matters.
Bonus tip: If you have a lot of time to prepare, you can also do a little bit of research about the people who will attend the meeting. Social media can be a great way to find out if you have common interests you could discuss as an icebreaker (just be careful not to overdo it and cross the line into stalker territory).
Only have limited time to prepare?
While it’s always advisable to factor in plenty of time to prepare for a sales meeting, we understand that life doesn’t always go according to plan.
If you need to prepare for a sales meeting at short notice, try to still do at least 15 minutes of research on your prospect and their main competitors. Business development tools such as InsightGuru can be a real timesaver in these situations by allowing you to scan all the latest news relating to this organisation in one place.
Having a set of go-to questions or even a script can help in a last minute meeting. While you certainly don’t want to sound scripted or stilted in your meeting, it can help you find out more information about your prospect and avoid any awkward silences.
About this Article
This atricle first appeared as a newsletter for subscribers to IRD products including Prospector and Connector and is reprinted with their permission. IRD is Australia’s leading source of market insights for media organisations.
Disclosure: radioinfo Editor, Peter Saxon, is a director of IRD.
