Every salesperson and business should strive for a rock-solid sales strategy. While there are no true shortcuts when dealing with prospective sales, there are ways to take the frustration out of the equation. With the right strategies, you can generate more leads and see more conversions on a regular basis.
We asked a panel of Forbes Business Development Council members to explain how their team maximizes every prospective sale. Read on for their favorite sales hacks and how you can incorporate them into your own business development process.
Forbes Business Development Council members recommend their top hacks for succeeding in sales.
Photos courtesy of the individual members.1. Being Direct
This one won't blow anyone away, but we simply ask, "Do you want to do this?" I'm not a genius, so I can't pick up on all the signals from a buyer. So, my team and I have just learned to ask, "Hey, do you want our help? Do you want to buy what we're selling?" Getting a "yes" to that is pretty indicative of whether or not we're going to win the business. - Adam Boyd, Beneplace
2. Letting Customers 'Choose Their Own Adventure'
This is a type of sales pitch I learned in one of my first jobs selling cable subscriptions. I start by asking the customer a few open-ended questions about their preferences and then guide them through an ideal product or package. This style of collaborative storytelling helps the customer develop a personal connection with your product, incentivizing a sale. - Bryce Welker, Crush The CPA Exam
3. LinkedIn Networking
LinkedIn is our favorite sales hack our team uses. We use it to follow the contacts and recent activities of a prospect we’re working on. You can tell a lot about what a potential customer is looking to do based on the vendors they’re connecting with, and it can clue you in to how well they’ll fit with one of your products and/or services. - Sarah Knapp, Spruce Technology
4. Personalizing Your Message To Their Pain Points
The key to optimizing each sale is to personalize your message and demonstrate that you understand precisely the customer's pain points and how they can be solved. Tightly integrated marketing and sales workflows, combined with robust data analytics that give an accurate view of the customer's journey, help you respond to customers with hyper-personalized messages at the right time. - Toby Murdock, Upland Software
5. Phone Follow-Ups
Have sales reps make "random" calls that align with a prospect's opened emails. Learn when they are meeting with a competitor and send a swag box to be delivered on or before the meeting day. This tactic pushes phone follow-ups with the prospect. We are the most dangerous when we can get the prospect on the phone in the mid to late stages of the sale and refocus them on their initial problems. - Christian Valiulis, Automatic Payroll System
6. Black Hat Coaching
We use a highly effective approach called Black Hat Coaching, a process that tests and improves a sales plan with the sales team. It’s a scripted approach to coaching that can be used from the early stages of an account, from the opportunity to the close. Everyone who uses it follows the exact same process, so it’s a “safe” place for sales reps to get help across the organization. - Julie Sokley, Autodesk
7. Finding Out A Customer's Priorities
The real initiatives with priority are usually where the money goes. A great sales trick to find these is to look at the job openings a prospect has. They will tell much more than words if they are interested in a particular area or not. We have had clients approach us on MSSP/MDR services and, when we look at their job postings, if they are hiring analysts we know they are not interested in our services. - Manoj Tandon, Dark Rhino Security
8. The 3E-TEC Formula
We all like being heard and to have empathy with what we are buying. My No. 1 sales hack would be my own 3E-TEC formula: three engaging moments, one traffic approach (consideration), one engagement and, finally, a CTA for conversion. All engaging moments should be targeted to their sphere of interests, and the final stage of the conversation should be on a one-to-one scale on- or offline. - David Mahbub, Field Agent
9. Deep Meeting Preparation
My No. 1 sales hack is a deep meeting prep. I gather as much information as possible about the company and stakeholders: their roles, the organization, initiatives, successes, failures. I think in today’s world professionals are overloaded and, therefore, don’t take the time to understand their prospects fully. At the same time, prospects have less time and patience for the typical sales pitches. - Safi Oranski, CyberMDX
10. Content Marketing
A great sales hack to stay top of mind with your prospects and current clients is to regularly send articles and case studies relevant to their industry and the services you offer. This will show your prospects your expertise, understanding of their industry and your desire to be a partner, not just another salesperson. If these are articles you or your team has written, all the better! - Janet Waring, Model B
11. Listening More And Talking Less
Salespeople tend to love to talk, but we always advise our sales team to listen more and talk less. Let the customer drive the conversation. Let this person tell you exactly what they want. The customer may not have a clear idea of what they are looking for, but you can tell from what's said exactly which direction you need to go. The more you know about this person, the better. - Lev Barinskiy, SmartFinancial Insurance
12. Automating As Much Of The Sales Process As Possible
I use tools to automate almost all parts involved in the sales process in terms of data collection and lead generation. I also automate all content and subject matter creation to allow my sales reps to focus on delivering authentic engaging messages. I leave their personality to be the true differentiator, and the way we find the leads or push out their content is as automated as possible. - Scott Douglas Clary, ROI Overload
13. A Clever, Visceral Email Subject Line
A tip from a former manager: When you can't get a prospective or current client to respond to emails or voicemails, send an email with "Knock, Knock" in the subject line—nothing else. It evokes the act of stopping by their office for an impromptu chat and connects with them to reengage. Used sparingly, this technique has been nearly 100% effective for my team over the last 10 years. - Drew Mattison, Tremendousness
14. Knowing Your Product Inside And Out
I believe a great sales hack is knowledge—the knowledge of what you are selling, who you are servicing or selling to and a clear understanding of the product or service. Believing in the product or service is key as well. It is hard to stand behind and sell a product or service you don't believe in. Understanding your clients' needs, goals and wants is a huge part of knowing as well. - Karolina Hobson
15. Building Personal Connections
We don’t sales hack in network marketing. We focus on building personal connections. Our independent associates are part of our community because they want something bigger for themselves, and they want to connect others to the same opportunity. It’s a natural sales process centered on changing people’s lives through hard work, a true sense of community and dedication to others. - Mark “Bouncer” Schiro, Kynect
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15 Sales Hacks Recommended By Top Biz Dev Leaders - Forbes
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