5 Steps to the new normal of selling

Business is waking up again. For many things have been quite for 18 months and for some lockdown has created new opportunities and they have seen an increase in business. 

As life begins to a new kind of normal, securing sales for any small, medium and large business is still top of the agenda. 

However the ‘new normal’ has settled for you, selling your service or product will need some fresh thinking when it comes to traditional ways of selling. For some tolerance for being approached ‘cold’ and ‘sold to’ by unknown people from unknown companies who have no idea of their needs and issues is not welcomed. I would say that most people want anyone selling them anything to know who they are and what they stand for. 

So, what do businesses need to consider, when thinking about their sales strategies and the best approach to take?

Here are 5 steps to selling in the new commercial landscape.

1. Identify your ‘best’ opportunities.

This is quite a simple step to take but one that is not often thought about. Some companies cast the net wide to try and get traction. It is important to put your effort into the opportunities that will work for you and will prove fruitful for you. 

Often, we talk about having a growth mindset, where you are able to look at growth and work consistently towards achieve this. Coming out of lockdown, if your business has seen a dip and needs growth, we can often go into this with a fixed mindset. If the focus is on sales revenue, then we could become too fixed on doing this at all costs. Growth mindset will allow us to the best opportunities. 

2. Re-engage and understand the current needs of customers and prospects

Once you’ve understood where to focus your energies, re-engage with those customers. Ask for feedback – how is their business? Find out what’s changed and get to know their plans and strategies to adapt to the new climate. 

Your customers have been through exactly the same as you have and their ways of working may now be different to what they have been in the past. Don’t make assumptions that you will return to the same way of working. 

3. Be yourself, be human

People buy from people. It is a known fact that when making a decision between two suppliers the one with the best relationship wins every time. And when we say best relationship, we the ones with a human connection. Be genuine contacting customers. Have a genuine human conversation. Don’t think about ‘selling’ straight away before you’ve understood needs and established rapport.

4. Invest in Marketing

This is a time when trust and relationships are important. If you need to find new customers and build new relationships this is the time to invest in marketing to enable the sales process to begin.

Marketing will allow you to identify prospects and bring them into your pipeline. Think closely about what you are doing to sell yourself before you even meet with customers. Ensure that you have a social selling strategy within your marketing effort. 

Social selling is the process of developing relationships as part of the sales process. This often takes place via social networks such as LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and Pinterest, but can take place either online or offline. Remember point 3 when you do this, be human, be yourself. 

5. Above all, be Agile

Customers want something different, and you need to be able to supply that to ensure your own success. Agility and resilience require strong relationships externally and internally. The current largely remote working conditions will mean easier access to information and ideas from anywhere. Harness the power of all your employees to keep as close as possible to market trends, your customers, suppliers, prospects, competitors, and your ecosystem to enable you to understand how to keep your business relevant and keep sales and cash flowing.

Everything has changed, everything is different, but then everything is the same and settling into new ways of working for everyone. 

Want to know more of what you can do as a small or medium business to improve your sales skills? Why not take a look at www.Pitch.Community 

Pitch is more than a product or a training programme, it’s about building a community to support local businesses and support you as a business leader, so that you can really meet your full potential and get back in business.

The programme is designed for sole traders, start-ups or leaders of small businesses that find themselves within a sales environment but have never been exposed to the sales process before. The Pitch Community are great subject matter experts creating excellent value for your clients. You may be a design agency, or an SEO expert. An Architect, or a kitchen designer. Pitch will equip you with the skills and knowledge that exceptional salespeople have.