SELLING SKILLS

Agenda

Introduction to Personal Selling

Skills of a Sales Executive

Personal Selling in the promotion mix

Buyer-Seller Dyad

Diversity in personal-selling situations

Theories of selling

The 7 Step Sales Process

Key Accounts Management

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Theories of Selling

 AIDAS theory of personal selling

 ―Right Set Of Circumstances‖ Theory Of Selling
 ―Buying Formula‖ Theory Of Selling
 ―Behavioral Equation‖ Theory

The first two, the “AIDAS” theory and the “right set of circumstances”
theory, are seller oriented.
The third, the ―buying-formula‖ theory of selling, is buyer oriented.
The fourth, the behavioural equation, emphasizes the buyer’s decision
process but also takes the salesperson’s influence process into account.

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AIDAS Theory of Selling

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Attention

 Gaining attention is a skill, which can be developed in practice, just like any
other skill. The phrase ―First impression is the last impression‖ is
applicable here. The salesperson’s initial attempt should be to make the
customer completely happy. Casual discussion is one of the best openers for
the seller to gain customer attention by bringing it to the sale. The aim here is to
put the prospect in the right frame of mind to continue sales talk. In order to
participate in the face-to-face interview, the seller needs to convince the
prospective customer. A good start to a discussion can provide the stage for a
full sales presentation. In order to make the prospective customers aware of
their sales presentation a seller must apply his social and psychological skills.

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Interest Creating

 The second step is to increase the attention of the prospects to have a strong
interest. The seller must be passionate about the product in order to do this.
Another approach is to give the product over and allow prospect to handle it.
The same intent applies to brochures and other visual aids. Throughout the
stages of interest, the hope is to explore the most efficient selling appeal. Some
people are very good at the opening, but the techniques take over when they
explain the product, they become uncomfortable. Others with strong product
awareness could open up without hesitation but create interest in the second
stage.Interest is an integral part of the sales process and therefore is part of the
AIDAS theory. This is the second step in AIDAS Theory of Selling.

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Desire

 After attention is paid and awareness is generated, a strong desire for the
product must be evoked. This is a point ready for purchase. At this point,
complaints from the future will have to be dealt with carefully. You save time and
improve the chances of a sale if complaints were expected and addressed
before the prospect raised.The seller in personal sales must do the same. In the
mind of the consumer, he must generate enough desire to buy the product
immediately. Think of a sales person selling a tool or a mop. Sales Person
expain the benefits of the product and made you think, ―Why I have not
purchased it before?‖ In this way, this impulse becomes an integral part of the
philosophy of AIDAS sales. This is the third step in AIDAS Theory of Selling.

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Action

 The potential customer is ready to act, i.e. to buy, if the presentation has been
perfect. Very often the prospect at this stage may have some hesitation. The
salesman should handle this stage very carefully and try to conclude the deal
effectively. The seller then has to reassure the client, once the buyer has asked
the seller to pack the product, that the decision is correct. The customer may not
act, although the product might be desired.Maybe he would like to purchase the
product, but he would not. The customer must be inducted in such situations.
The customer may be inducted in different ways to buy the commodity. For the
sales person, it is important to understand whether the customer is to be
specifically influenced or whether subtle reminders are to be placed on a sales
call. Both methods work, however the customer needs to be known.This is the
fourth step in AIDAS Theory of Selling.

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Satisfaction

 Satisfacton is 5th step in AIDAS Theory of Selling. The customer should feel
that the seller has merely helped him in making right decision. The salesperson
will ensure that the product is delivered to the consumer after the sales are
made. The salesman can feel the opportunity and brings back his talks.
Customer always expect good service and good products. Thus, you must
reassure your customer that he took the right decision even after he purchased
the product. The product is useful for the customer. He’s right, and that’s his
decision. Since customer is king and we have to satisfy them in his quries and
provide good after sales services. Good Products and services has a great
impact on long lasting customer relations.

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―Right Set of Circumstances‖
Theory of selling

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―Buying Formula‖ theory of selling

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―Buying Formula‖ Theory of selling

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Buying Formula

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―Behavioral Equation‖ Theory of Selling

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―Behavioral Equation‖ Theory of Selling

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―Behavioral Equation‖ Theory of Selling

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―Behavioral Equation‖ Theory of Selling

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―Behavioral Equation‖ Theory of Selling

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―Behavioral Equation‖ Theory of Selling

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Agenda

Introduction to Personal Selling

Skills of a Sales Executive

Personal Selling in the promotion mix

Buyer-Seller Dyad

Diversity in personal-selling situations

Theories of selling

The 7 Step Sales Process

Key Accounts Management

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The 7-Step Sales process

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1 - Prospecting

 Every sale starts with a lead. Leads are found through prospecting, also known
as lead generation. There are various ways for your company to prospect such
as through marketing methods, networking at live events or trade shows as well
as on social media, purchased lists, cold calling and referrals. The prospecting
process helps identify potential buyers who have expressed interest in your
product or service or who might be interested based on their demographics,
industry or other characteristics.

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2-Initial Contact & Qualifying

 Regardless of how you acquire leads, your sales reps will need to make initial
contact with them. This may be via a phone call, email or through social media.
During this first interaction the goal is for your team member to gather key
information to determine if leads are a good match for your product or
service. Qualifying questions are typically related to budget, authority, need
and timeline. When the lead is a qualified prospect, your rep may proceed with
a needs assessment. Depending on your product or service, this may be
conducted during a separate interaction, by phone or in person, and scheduled
at the close of the qualifying call.

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3 - Needs Assessment

 At this stage, reps need to have a series of standard questions prepared to ask
prospects. This will prevent them from forgetting to enquire about any important
details while guiding the conversation. Plus, this makes them look more
professional to potential customers. These questions should be open-ended to
encourage the prospect to talk. Reps need to be sure to listen more than they
speak at this point in the sales process. Although they may be tempted, they
should not start discussing product at this point. The goal is to
thoroughly understand the prospect’s situation, challenges and
motivations to potentially make a change by purchasing your product or
service. This information makes it easier for your team members to tailor their
sales pitch or demo to each specific prospect. Plus it allows them to anticipate
any objections by understanding what might prevent the potential customer from
moving forward with your solution.

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3-Needs Assessment

Examples of questions that might be included in this stage are:

 What did you like or dislike about your previous provider?
 What business problem are you hoping we’ll be able to solve?
 Describe your current situation.
 Tell me how this situation will look when you’ve addressed your current
business problem.
When all questions have been discussed, it is important that your reps verify their
understanding of what the prospect told them. The best way for them to do this
is by recapping what they heard and requesting confirmation. This ensures that
the rep is on the same page as the prospect before proceeding to the next step.
If needed, additional questions may be asked to clear up any areas the rep
misinterpreted.

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4 - Sales Pitch or Product Demo

 At this point in the sales process it’s time to clearly communicate the value of
your solution in terms of the prospects needs, challenges and desired end state.
This is effectively accomplished by connecting the potential customer’s needs
and wants with the corresponding features and benefits of your product offering.
This is why it is critical that reps gain a clear understanding of what is discussed
during the needs assessment stage. Plus, additional information to have a good
grasp of during this stage is based on any further details about the prospect’s
company and industry. This will provide additional context and facilitate an even
better quality pitch or demo. Be sure that your reps make note of any specific
benefits in which the prospect is most enthusiastic about. At the end of this
stage a proposal, if appropriate to your product or service, is typically scheduled
for a mutually agreed upon date.

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5 - Proposal and Handling Objections

 Not all products and services require a separate proposal. If yours does, it
should be customized for the prospect based on all that your sales rep has
learned about their needs, challenges and motivations so far. They’ll want to
focus on the aspects that are of greatest value to the potential customer and
highlight how it will help them reach their desired outcome. Once the proposal
has been presented (or if there isn’t one, this would occur after the sales pitch or
demonstration), the prospect often expresses questions or concerns. These are
also known as objections. There are usually a limited number of recurring
objections for any given offering. Keep a record of these and what responses
are best to address these. Sharing this information across your sales team will
ensure that your reps won’t be caught off guard by an objection and will always
be prepared with the most effective responses to remove any roadblocks to
closing the sale.

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6 - Closing

 This is where prospects commit to purchase or to stop the process. It is just one
step in what may be a very long sales cycle. While this may seem like the most
important step, it is only successful when all the previous steps have been
completed properly and in order. There are hundreds of different closing
techniques, tips and tricks, but the most important thing to remember is that it is
not a standalone event. When the sale is made, prospects agree on your terms
and price or negotiate for mutually beneficial ones. All objections have been
addressed and all details are finalized for delivery, fulfillment or related actions.
This may also involve introductions to others in your company who will be
handling these next steps.

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7 - Following Up, Repeat Business
& Referrals

 Happy customers make excellent candidates for your other services. By

nurturing an ongoing relationship with them, they’re often receptive to
purchasing additional products or services and repeat business. Plus, they are
terrific source of referrals! A great way to continue these relationships is
through marketing communications such as updates about new offerings,
industry news, an e-newsletter or some sort of interactive rewards
program. This way, your customers will always think of your company first when
they have a related requirement or a friend who has one.

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Agenda

Introduction to Personal Selling

Skills of a Sales Executive

Personal Selling in the promotion mix

Buyer-Seller Dyad

Diversity in personal-selling situations

Theories of selling

The 7 Step Sales Process

Key Accounts Management

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Key Accounts Management

 Key account management (KAM) defines full relationship between

your business and the customers you are selling to. It describes the individual
approach of sales people to their customers in order to create long everlasting
business relationship.
 In that in B2B sales we’re dealing with multiple individuals, its good to record
pertinent facts about decision-makers within the account that you’re dealing
with.
 You need to have an access to all this account information in order to engage
with your customers effectively and systematically and grow key accounts into
profitable long-term relationships.

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Tips to excel in Key Accounts Management
 #1: Using Account Types/Classification for Key Account Management

 You need to be sure to see the difference between a real Key Account and Standard
Account. A Key Account is represented by a person or a group of people to which your
business has built more than standard business relationship based on the trust level
between you and buyers.
 Ideally the dynamic of the relationship has changed from that of vendor-buyer to much
more of a partnership. You’re no longer selling to that buyer—you are that buyer’s
partner in continuously helping their company succeed. One very key reason for doing so
is that the better your buyer (and other contacts at the company) succeeds, the more
your product or service is going to succeed at that company.
 Based on this relationship you can cluster your accounts by account types and account
classification:
 Account Type – is a customer, be it a individual or company, that you are connected to–
a new customer, existing customer, partner etc.
 Account Classification (0, A, B, C, D) – enables you to classify your accounts
from 0 (you do not know this account at all) up to D (your Key Account)
 It means that the most valued account in your system should be classified as ―D‖ and
recognized as a ―Partner‖.

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Tips to excel in Key Accounts Management

 #2: Using Org Chart to Define Key Account Buyers Roles

The most important factor in Key Account Management is the people involved within
the account.
In B2B selling, you’re rarely selling to one person. You’re selling to a group of decision-
makers who hold different positions in the company, and who have different levels of
influence on the purchase.
In addition to the basic hierarchy—which is obviously important—different individuals
may have substantial influence on the purchase despite higher or lower positions in the
company. There may also be others outside the company, such as consultants, who
are influencing the purchase as well.
Therefore, you need to build your Key Account Org Chart. This allows you to always
know to whom you are talking, where they stand within the order of things, and who
must still be convinced in order to bring the sale to a close.

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Thank you
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Bibliography

 https://www.projects4mba.com/aidas-theory-selling/680/
 Sales Management-Decisions, Strategies and cases, Prentice Hall
 https://www.act365.com/7-step-sales-process/
 https://salespop.net/crm-sales-software/what-is-key-account-management/

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