Amity Business School

The Selling Process

With an emphasis on personal sales

Amity Business School

The role of selling process

A salesperson is involved in an array of
activities.
These selling activities are known as the steps
in the selling process.

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The actual selling process

The actual selling process is like a chain, each
of whose link must be closed successfully or
the seller will fail to get the order.
However, each step somewhere may overlap
and the sequence may be altered.

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The Eight Step Process

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.

Prospecting
Pre-approach: planning the sale
Approach
Need assessment
Presentation
Meeting objections
Gaining commitment
Follow-up

Prospecting

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Identifying the leads

- Referrals from customers
- Referrals from internal sources
- Referrals from external sources
- Published directories
- networking
- Cold calling
Qualifying Leads Prospect
A prospect must be a MAD buyer ( Money to spend, Authority to buy,
Desire to buy)
It is not only unethical to bother people who do not need goods/services,
also costly. Thus, prospects must be qualified.
In order to qualify, prospect must fulfill all three conditions:
- Do they have the need?
- Can they afford to buy the offer?
- Are they receptive to being called by salesperson?

Pre-Approach

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Planning the sale

This step includes all the information gathering activities
regarding the prospect.
Contact management software, Accounts history exploration etc
Customer Research identifying the decision maker,
influencer, buying habits etc.
Planning the sales presentation define the objective or
goal for a particular call, also, planning as to how a
salesperson is actually going to approach the buyer and what
questions should be asked.

The Approach

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This step is difficult as the salesperson must ask the buyer to

commit to a meeting without knowing what she needs or
wants.
The background work is done now, so, the prospect must
actually be called upon :
- Fix the appointment
- Right body language and right addressals according to
the sensibilities of the prospect are imperative parts of the
right approach.
A good opening statement is imperative to gain the attention of
the buyer.

Need Assessment

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This is the stage where salesperson must

discover, clarify and understand the
prospects need.
The best way to do this is to ask questions.
Use of SPIN questioning technique helps
figure out customers needs.

Need assessment contd..Amity Business School

Situational Questions factual information. ( SITUATION)
e.g. Who is involved in the purchase decision for this product?
Problem discovery Questions uncover potential problems/dissatisfaction/
difficulties ( PROBLEM)
e.g. Have you ever experienced any problem servicing your clients?
Problem impact Questions to uncover the consequences of not solving the
problem or the repercussions of his problem ( IMPLICATION)
e.g. What impact does the delay in receiving material have on your operations?
Situation value Questions reinforce the value or the importance of solution.
(NEEDS-PAYOFF)
e.g. If the delays are significantly reduced how much would you be able to save?
Confirmatory Questions confirmation that they are interested to hear about
your product/ service; commitment seeking.
e.g. If I can show evidence that my product will solve your problem would you be
interested in that?
Salespeople should ask these questions in the same logical order !
A successful need assessment should lead to a pre commitment which confirms
that the buyer is a MAD buyer.

Presentation

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To approach presentations a salesperson should string together

a series of FEBA.
( Features, Evidence, Benefits, Agreement)
It is primarily a discussion of those product/service features,
advantages and benefits which the prospect would perceive as
important.
Could be oral or written proposals and/or supporting materials.
Helps buyer also to participate in the process and the
presentation is not just one sided.

Presentation contd..

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Product Demonstrations: Demo should be complete and as

identifiable as possible. Latest technology( graphics, sound,
video etc.) can be used to make that happen. For e.g. American
Airlines
Prepared sales presentation/ canned presentations
- boosts salespersons confidence.
- Use tried and tested sales technique.
- Assurance that complete story would be told
- simplifies sales training

A prepared presentation done poorly without feeling is a dismal

experience !

Presentation contd..

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Developing effective presentations:

- keep it simple

- Talk the prospects language( avoid industry jargons)

- Stress on applicability according to prospects
situation.
- Seek credibility by proving points one by one.

Meeting Objections

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Objections should be welcome, since it indicates prospects

interest in the offering.
While responding to the objections, following techniques may
be used:
- Listen completely.
- Clarify the objection
- Respect the prospects concern.
- Respond to the objection
The endeavor should be to make the benefit outweigh the concern
to facilitate purchase.

Continued..

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Types of objections:
- Price/value objections ( use problem impact & solution
value questions)
- Product/Service objections( use proof providing tactics
like case histories, trial use, demonstration, expert opinion
etc.) acknowledge the needs that cannot be satisfied & re
emphasize what can be satisfied
- Procrastinating objections ( best strategy is to ask for
commitment for some future action that will move the sale
forward)
- Hidden objections (must recognize the real barrier to
sale)

Gaining Commitment

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Closing the Sale

Salesperson must ask the buyer to commit to some action that
moves the sales forward. Should be a natural part of the
process and not be a surprise to the buyer.
Key to obtaining commitment is to plan realistic objectives
for each sales call & ask for a commitment
Some of the common sales closes are
-Assumptive close- assumes the buyer is going to buy
- Special offer close- in order to entice him to buy
- Summary close summary of all benefits & suggest action for
finalizing the sale
- If still turned down a thank you is still appropriate. No,
not now should not be construed as No, not ever.

Follow - Up

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This is a post-purchase/sale step.

Reps must make certain that they answer all the buyers
questions and that the buyer understands all the details of the
contract, delivery of the product, buyers overall good
experience with the product and the company.
Follow-up forms an imperative part of relationship marketing.

Exercise

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Create a flow of sales process for the

following:
Outbound Sales
Inbound Sales