Massive and ongoing advances in Sales and Service Technology (Enablement and AI etc.) are great. These advances help us all improve productivity by automating a lot of the activities that prevent us from spending time with customers/clients and prospective clients. Really helpful as competition and complexity increases.
But, the most successful sales people you know aren’t successful because of their ‘tech stack’. They’re successful because they connect with and are trusted by their clients.
Looking into a challenging business environment, it won’t be your collection of programs, interfaces, IT infrastructure or software that will differentiate you in the eyes of your client.
The quantity and quality of the conversations you have with your clients will have the biggest impact on establishing and growing relationships.
And, that’s the human element.
There’s not one, but 3 conversations that must be improved.
With Customers – Where product knowledge and selling skills are most visible. This is the outer game of selling. The buying process has evolved, as has the definition of “value” expected from your salespeople. Are your customer conversations reflecting these changes and delivering that value?
With Yourself – Where Achievement Drive, self-belief and attitude play a critical role. This is the inner game of selling
With Your Coach – Most coaching, when and if it happens, is directed at improving Conversations with Customers (coaching sales skills, account planning, sales call planning).
Very little, if any, is directed towards Conversations with Yourself – the one that 84% of organisations say is equal to or more important.
Do your coaching priorities need to be adjusted?
All three conversations are critical. Ignoring any will create a headwind to achieving goals like:
- Individual & team quota achievement
- Increasing breadth of products per customer
- Account penetration & expansion
- Adoption of selling skills by traditionally non‑salespeople
- Tenured salespeople breaking through plateaus
