Sales Processes You Need

1. Call Management
A call management process improves individual interactions between a seller and a buyer because it creates much-needed structure and intentionality for sales reps as they carry out their calls.
In this process, there are typically three stages: planning, execution, and debriefing. During the planning stage, salespeople should have clarity around the following questions:
What is the objective of the sales call?
Which questions should you ask?
What objections do you expect to encounter?
During the execution of the sales process, the rep should rely on their planning and preparation to guide the call, while still being attentive and allowing room for flexibility if the conversation doesn’t go as planned.
When it’s time to debrief, it’s helpful to bring on a peer or manager who can provide feedback on what went well and what could be improved for the rep’s next call. It is also a great time to reflect on any questions the rep didn’t get a chance to ask, or to consider solutions to objections they were not able to resolve during the call.
2. Lead Qualification
Sales teams should take a systematic approach to qualify leads early in the sales process. Having a process for qualifying leads provides a valuable gut-check for reps so they know what to look for when engaging with leads.
By having a specific set of criteria reps should look for when qualifying leads, along with a consistent set of questions they can ask in initial sales calls, reps will be more prepared walking into their initial conversations with prospects, and can feel more confident when pursuing the right leads for their offer.
As reps are qualifying leads in their pipeline, here is some criteria they can consider:
Does this potential customer fit your ideal customer profile?
Is this individual the appropriate decision-maker for this purchase?
Does this potential customer have the budget to pay for your products or services?
The answers to questions such as these can be helpful for qualifying and disqualifying leads as needed. Ultimately, when your reps are selling to the right people, their job and sales process as a whole will be much smoother.
3. Opportunity Management
In sales, an opportunity is a highly qualified lead that is likely to buy. The opportunity management process helps sales teams source and track sales opportunities throughout their pipelines.
Many sellers engage in opportunity planning when they pose questions such as:
What business problem are you trying to solve for the customer?
Who are the stakeholders you need to engage with?
How will you position yourself against the competition?
Once they’ve entered the pipeline, reps should closely track and document how opportunities move through the sales process, noting what methods of communication and sales tactics work best when converting opportunities into customers.
4. Account Management
The account management process maximizes the long-term value of select customer relationships by continually aligning your company’s capabilities with the needs of your customer. This process often ramps up after the initial deal has closed to ensure the success and satisfaction of the customer.
Account plans help guide your account management strategy by answering questions such as:
What are your company’s goals for the relationship?
What are the customer’s business needs?
What plan of action will keep the relationship healthy and profitable?
Though the role of account management often falls to account managers, not sales reps, both the account managers and sales reps need to maintain alignment on how best to transition customer accounts. This usually entails a debriefing period where sales reps prepare account managers to take over the account, providing the insight they gained while making the sale.
5. Territory Management
This process helps salespeople allocate their effort most efficiently among different types of prospects and customers by prioritizing buyers according to their potential value and then mapping call patterns to maximize the seller’s expected return.
Territory plans are common for field-based salespeople who must answer the questions:
Who are the top customers and prospects in my territory?
What level of attention does each deserve?
How will I ensure the right level of service to each?
6. Deal Management
For sales teams, deal management involves having an aligned approach to revenue-generating initiatives. This sales process tracks the workflow of a sales deal from beginning