Digital Smiles
The B2B sales cycle can be lengthy and complex. Depending on the size of the deal, closing a lead can take weeks or even months. As each day passes, customer acquisition costs increase while the likelihood of winning a deal decreases. Regular follow-ups, reminders and negotiations often don’t provide the desired outcome for either party.
Sales isn’t easy, but after 15 years in relationship-based sales and management, there is a solution to help you close deals 25-30% faster. Read on to discover the six tried-and-true strategies to shorten your sales cycle.
Developing a solid ideal customer profile (ICP) is the foundation of B2B marketing success. Consider the industries and roles that would be a perfect fit for your product or service. Who was your product created for, and who brings the most value to the business? Think about factors like industry size, growth potential and decision-making processes.
Do your research by gathering insights about your target audience’s demographics, needs, pain points and buying behaviours. Identify the gaps in their current solutions and how your product or service can effectively address them. Utilise industry reports, surveys, social media engagement and competitor analysis to retrieve as much information about your potential customers as possible.
Explain why customers should choose you and highlight what sets your offering apart from competitors. Provide tangible benefits and solutions and link to relevant case studies. An ICP should be like a roadmap, helping you find customers whose challenges match your capabilities.
Set up a firewall to ensure inbound leads match your ICP. A lead scoring system can help you focus on the most promising leads. Elements to consider include budget check, company size and HQ location.
Adapting outreach messages and sales pitches to customers’ pain points is key. Show that you understand their challenges and provide solutions, not just products or services. As an example, rather than a generic pitch, suggest how your product/service directly helps your potential clients.
Automation in marketing and sales processes can help streamline repetitive tasks so you can focus on building connections and closing deals. Automate lead scoring from website forms, opportunities distribution, call scheduling, task reminders and messaging.
Equip your team with the right tools and establish smooth processes. Consider setting up a separate team for manual tasks, such as sales enablement, and marketing-led lead nurturing.
Following up quickly and persistently with leads can keep the sales momentum. Our internal data at Belkins revealed that waiting no more than three days before following up brings the greatest increase in reply rate (around 31%). The first follow-up boosts the response rate by 49%, while the second one boosts it by an extra 9%. Follow-ups should focus on continuing the conversation, providing value and demonstrating your commitment to helping potential customers achieve their goals.
Mastering these six strategies can help you significantly shorten your sales cycle and increase the chances of winning more deals. Utilise them to make your sales process a well-tuned engine for success.
Originally reported by Martech: https://martech.org/6-winning-strategies-to-shorten-your-b2b-sales-cycle/
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