A recent lead generation poll showed that converting leads to pipeline revenue (accelerating sales) was the biggest challenge for marketers.
What are we doing as sellers that keeps us from closing sales?
It’s a tough question, and it’s one that gets a lot of feathers ruffled. However, this is one question that Sharon Drew Morgen isn’t afraid to tackle. I spoke with Morgen recently to ask her about her take on the question and her new book Dirty Little Secrets: why buyers can’t buy and sellers can’t sell and what you can do about it.
I wanted to speak with Morgen because I was intrigued with the advice she lends to help with B2B’s major dilemma: How can we successfully work with people from the time they express interest until they decide to buy? Basically: How do we convert leads to sales? Morgen has some great suggestions.
If you want to hear what Morgen had to say, listen to my interview “Why sellers don’t have the right tools to help buyers buy.” During this interview, Morgen discusses how she sold a “dead account” by simply applying her Buying Facilitation model to the situation. I think you’ll find Morgen’s insight helpful and her book more than a little tempting.
Listen to podcast now (21 minutes)
According to Morgen, most sales people are wonderful at what they do. They are informed, they know how to pitch – they know their business. Unfortunately, it’s not the sales people that are lagging, it’s their sales model. Sales teams tend to focus on gathering data and selling the solution; however, in order to make the most of our leads, sales need to be able to manage the behind-the-scene issues that our buyers face.
To get on the buyers decision team, we must examine the whole skeleton behind the buyers’ environment. Buyers live in a system that includes personal and timing issues and problems with partners and inner-office politics, and the list goes on and on. Once sellers learn how to help the buyer manage and solve these issues they can help speed along the buying process. Morgen says the buyer will eventually figure out how to solve these issues with or without our help; however, if sales can help to facilitate the change and be there waiting, they will be able convert the sale. Morgen says sales need the right tools to help the buyer. Sellers need a different skill set that she calls “Buying Facilitation.” Morgen’s change management model leads buyers through all of their change issues, and helps sellers learn how to listen to their buyers’ system and develop a set of questions that guide them through the buying process.
