New Versus existing customer
Contrast your experiences of selling to a new customer - Customer Acquisition - as against selling to an existing loyal customer. The term new customer here means three possible situations:-
- A customer (company) that never bought from you; or
- A customer who used to buy and has stopped buying for long now; or
- A customer who buys but too little in comparison with the potential.
Everyone knows that Customer Acquisition requires much more effort than selling to existing customer. Many sales experts have monetized this difference and the commonly agreed figure is that it costs 7 times more to make a new customer to buy than to sell to an existing customer the same volume.
Why is there a difference?
When prospecting, during new customer acquisition, there is usually no built-up confidence and positive attitudes that the salesman can use in the selling situation. He/she has to work carefully and consciously build it. At this time what is of utmost importance is to differentiate between creating conditions for future sales and selling a product per se.
Not seeing this difference is the root-cause of many a failures to win over a new customer.
While the salesperson is working to consciously build confidence and positive attitude in a new customer he/she must refrain from coming too quickly to the sales argumentation for the product on offer. This can be illustrated as follows:
For a typical sales person left side may require one or two visits in case of a new customer.
Customer Acquisition - General guidelines to create winning conditions for future sales
- First visit plan must fit the total strategy. You must study the likely profile of the new customer being visited and think of the total strategy of how you would win this customer. Adapt your first sales visit to the total strategy with this customer.
- Aim to reach the highest possible contact level at the customer to open up maximum opportunities.
- Do not to push the customer too hard in first one or two visits and thus spoil future contacts.
- Do not use time with the customer on gathering information that you could get beforehand. It is even more important to prepare well for your sales talk in first visit.
- Aim to end the first visit with concrete acceptance about what should be done after the sales talk.
Prospecting - Six objectives in the first 20 minutes
In the first 15-20 minutes of the sales talk, when prospecting with a new customer, there are no specific discussions around needs or products. Instead, this time must be used by the salesman to create a good contact climate, build the customer’s confidence in the company and in himself, sell the need of the company’s products and make the customer interested in more detailed discussions. These conditions are usually present from the start in a sales talk with an existing customer.
- To have a good contact climate
- To create confidence in the company
- To create confidence in yourself
- To increase how the customer sees the importance of our area
- To get information about the customer
- To make the customer interested in a concrete area
Your sales communication profile - a self-assessment
You may find the following checklist useful to be able to improve on - prospecting skills - specific things to do in the pursuit of above 6 objectives. Place a double tick, or single tick or a question mark in right side boxes.
1. Creating good contact climate:
What to ensure so as to get acceptance of customer for mutually constructive business discussion
| A. Getting acceptance as a person |
| Dressing and manners suited to each situation |
| Not allowing your age, sex or appearance to come in the way |
| Being open to others |
| Being aware of own characteristics and how others may react to these |
| Personal hygiene (Neat and clean) |
| Ability to analyse others’ personality to adapt to it |
| Being perceived as reliable |
| B. Getting acceptance as a business associate |
| Demonstrate that you are knowledgeable about what matters to the customer (e.g. customer industry, e.g.customer’s exact problem) |
| Customer should feel that you want to help |
| Customer should feel that you can help |
| Good balance of confidence and humility |
| Good balance between agreeable personae and sincerity |
| Previous impression on customer |
2. Giving Information
Ability to bring Customer up to speed at your own knowledge level about your products, your view of Customer's industry or some technicalities, or some other expert area
| Technical vocabulary without jargon |
| An ability to form message in line with customer’s ability |
| Adjusting to customer’s timeline in terms of when and how long |
| Having and using concrete examples |
| Having and using visual aids |
| Presentation Skills |
| Being an authority on concerned topic |
| Ability to influence how customer views a situation |
| Demonstrating involvement with enthusiasm |
| Being open and thus creating positive climate |
3. Getting feedback
Absorbing facts, feelings and attitudes of customer
| Customer should believe that you are really receiving what he tells |
| Asking about facts that are relevant for his business situation |
| Mastery of questioning technique |
| Ability to interpret signals - Body language, voice and tone |
| Active listening |
| Depth of probing |
| Making customer feel that information collected will be of benefit to customer and sales person |
| Assessing customer’s understanding |
| Confirming own understanding for customer |
4. Steering towards decision
Building the sales talk in logical steps. (e.g. getting acceptance of need before sales arguement)
| Helping customer to be clear and in agreement about aim of meeting |
| Ability to set objectives for this meeting and future meetings |
| Seeking part acceptances and part decisions |
| Strong initiative (Attitude) |
| Strong initiative (Skill) - use of own knowledge to influence the way sales talk goes. |
| Adapting and sustaining pressure to suit customers personality |
| Summarizing from time to time |
| Ability to ask for decision/ order |
