Tip # 13 – Qualify fast

February 25th, 2011 @ admin

I love this one. It is simple, focused and the true mark of a professional sales person.

As simple as it may sound, I have found that it seems to be one of the less common practices of sales people. Most often, I find sales people working with prospects they have not qualified well.

I believe a prospect is qualified if they have these two things;

1. They have an appropriate and relevant business concern that needs to be addressed.
2. They have an assigned budget to solve this business concern … now.

Most often I notice sales people qualify their prospects partially. Here are some examples …

Scenario One:
They assess that the prospect has an appropriate and relevant business problem and the prospect is really interested in the solution or product, but they have no idea when the prospects would actually complete the transaction.

Scenario Two:
They are talking to a prospect that “has the money”. But they have not asked the prospect, if some of that money is budgeted for the transaction in question.

Scenario Three:
The sales person and prospect have a great rapport and the prospect likes the offer, but they did not address appropriate business requirements that need to be met for the transaction to be completed; e.g.; 2nd local language or regulatory requirements.

In Conclusion:
Learn to ask the tough business questions … with a smile. The only business reason to being friendly and building a rapport is so that you can qualify an opportunity fast thus reducing your costs and increasing your profits.

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Category : 25 Tips to Selling in a Recession &Blog &Business Strategy &Disruptive Sales Strategies