The five steps of the sales cycle and what you need to know.
By August J. Aquila
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For a long time, the word “sales” was not an accepted word in accounting firms. Unfortunately, too many accountants associated sales work with some type of unprofessional and even unethical activity. Fortunately, those days are long gone.
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The word “sales” is not a four-letter word; it is a professional activity. People who sell make a promise of some future deliverable: “I will do this and this for you.” In turbulent times, selling is a skill that accountants must learn to be successful. Here is my definition of selling: “Selling is problem solving.” Nothing more and nothing less. It’s what you do every time you help a client with a problem. If you have been a successful new business developer, then you have been a successful salesperson.
Now, if you understand the sales cycle, you will bring in even more business. There are five steps you need to know and each step in the cycle requires a different set of skills. In my experience, many accountants want to jump from Step 1 to Step 5, ignoring all the steps in between. Obviously, you can’t do that; here’s why:
1. Obtaining leads. Leads come from two main sources. Direct leads come from existing clients or referral sources and indirect leads come from marketing activities such as webinars, speaking engagements, email blasts, etc. The best leads are direct leads because you have a third-party endorsement in your client or referral source. I have often said that leads are all around us, we just don’t recognize them. Ask yourself:
- How many referral meetings did I have this week?
- How many contacts did I have with my clients this month?
- When was the last time I asked a lawyer or banker for a referral?
In short, what level of effort are you making to generate leads?
2. Setting up appointments. The secret of setting up appointments is not in the asking but in the listening. When meeting prospects, learn how to ask questions that begin with how, where, what, when and why. Such questions will get the prospect talking about themselves, their problems and needs. It’s critical not to try to sell anything at this point. Your sole objective here is to set up the next meeting with the prospect. You might say the following: “I sure would like to learn more about how you do that. Do you think you would have some time next week to spend with me?” Or: “Sounds like an interesting challenge you are facing. Could I find out more about it?”
3. Conducting a fact-finding meeting. Once you have the next meeting arranged, you are not able to continue probing to find out what the client needs. You are still in the relationship-building stage, so don’t become frustrated if the first meeting does not bring in a new client. Research has shown that 80 percent of all sales are made in the fifth sales call. If you give up after the second or third meeting, you are giving up too soon. At this stage in the process, you keep asking questions to get the prospect talking about their concerns. And remember to listen. You should only be talking about 20 percent of the time. If you find yourself doing too much talking, you are not listening to the prospect. When you hear silence, your prospect may be thinking. Slowly but surely, the prospect will reveal their true needs.
4. Developing your solution to the problem. Prospects want solutions to their problems. It’s not the retirement plan itself that is important; rather, it’s the benefit of knowing that they have enough money to enjoy their golden years. When presenting a solution, remember the following points: speak in terms of what the prospect will receive (the benefits), provide the client with evidence that you have done this before, use visuals so the client can see what the results might be. Don’t speak jargon. Finally, involve the prospect in your conversation. Make sure you are having a dialogue, not a monologue.
5. Closing by asking the client to say “yes.” Every prospect or client will object to something during the sales cycle: pricing, timing, too much or too little experience, etc. You need to learn how to overcome objections, how to turn their objections into selling points and even how to ask the prospect how they would solve the issue. Once all the objections are dealt with, it’s your turn to ask for the business:
- “If we start the project on Friday, is that soon enough?”
- “Do you want to be billed monthly when we get started?”
- “Our estate planning partner is available next week. Can we decide now?” When the prospect says yes, just say, “Thank you” or “Congratulations; you won’t be disappointed.”
Asking for referrals and getting them is a normal part of doing business. Your clients won’t think any less of you for asking. As the old Nike commercial said: “Just Do It.”
