By researching potential gaps and needs in advance, salespeople can identify opportunities to create differentiated value.
For example, if you sell cybersecurity solutions, you should be familiar with the security standards specific to your prospect’s industry. From there, you can identify the advantage your product can have in helping customers achieve compliance with those standards.
Once these differentiators are understood, salespeople can map their gambling data brazil capabilities to the customer’s needs. Ultimately, customers will be receptive to what those salespeople have to say because their information is relatable.
The key is to limit your ideas to the most relevant and compelling. The urge to demonstrate the value of the research you conduct is often strong, but it needs to be contained. You will be able to create greater impact with just a few concise ideas.
Continuing with the hypothetical all-in-one CRM example, you don’t want to mull over every feature of the sales and marketing aspects of the platform if you know your prospect is looking for a solution to improve their customer service infrastructure. Identify the points you need to emphasize and remove the extras from your consultative approach.
►7. Listen carefully
Consultative selling is customer-centric, to what your prospects have to say. Give them some space to talk. As mentioned above, you should guide the conversation, but there's a difference between guidance and control.
Avoid unpleasant tactics that may seem competitive or combative. Don't interrupt their line of thought with your own solutions to their problems. Also, be aware of other factors that can indicate how well the conversation is going, including nonverbal cues they may be giving off, such as awkward body language or facial expressions.
The key here is to empathize with your prospects. Let them know that their problems are important to you and that you have a vested interest in solving them.
Consultative selling vs. solution selling
Solution selling — a sales style in which a salesperson presents a product or service based on solutions rather than features — is often confused with consultative selling. And that kind of confusion is fair.
In some cases, the terms are even used interchangeably. Both sales approaches rely on empathy and taking the time to understand a prospect's mindset and situation.
