Amity Business School

The Selling Process

With an emphasis on personal sales
Swati Bhatnagar
Module - III

Types of Selling

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The role of selling process

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A salesperson is involved in an array of activities.

These selling activities are known as the steps in the
selling process.
A typical salesperson spends about 70% of his/her time
engaged in one of these steps. The remaining time is
split between two general categories of non-selling
activities.
The actual selling process is like a chain, each of whose
link of must be closed successfully or the seller will fail
to get the order. Adaptive Selling
However, each step somewhere may overlap and the
sequence may be altered

The Selling Approach: 8 Steps

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Prospecting

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Identifying the leads

Referrals from customers, internal sources, external sources,
Published directories, networking, Cold calling
Prospect Pool- Leads, Referrals, Orphans, Customers
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?

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Popular methods of prospecting

Cold Canvassing
Orphaned
Prospect Pool
Centres of Influence
DirectMail
Observation

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Pre-approach: 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 ( Knowledge on Product,
Company, Competitors) 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 , smile, and right addressals according to
the sensibilities of the prospect are imperative parts of the right
approach.Attention to details- like holding the briefcase, sales
docket in the left hand
A good opening statement is imperative to gain the attention of the
buyer as they set the tone for the rest of the sales interview

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 questionsopen ended questions majorly rather close
ended questions.
Use of SPIN questioning technique helps
figure out customers needs

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Need assessment contd..

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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Recognise that buyers purchase benefits

Benefits at 2 levels :- 1st by purchase of a product, 2nd by
purchase of a product of a particular supplier
To approach presentations a salesperson should string
together a series of FEBA.
( Features, Evidence, Benefits, Advantages)
It is primarily a discussion of those product/service features,
advantages and benefits which the prospect would perceive
as important.
Relate features to customer benefits by using phrases like:-

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which means that

which results in
which enables you to
Risk is hidden reasons behind many failures to sell
To tackle that use :a) Reference selling b) demonstrations c) trial orders d) gurantees
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.

Continued..

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Chinese Proverb: Tell me & Ill forget, show me & I may remember,
involve me & Ill understand.
Product Demonstrations: Demo should be complete and as identifiable as
possible. Latest technology( graphics, sound, video etc.) can be used to
make that happen.e.g. American Airlines
Types of presentations:-Canned presentations; Organised & Tailored 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 !

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Continued..
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.

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Meeting Objections
Objections should be welcome, since it indicates prospects
interest in the offering.
Akin to a hurdle race.
Can be in the form of doubts, minor objections or obstacles
While responding to the objections, following techniques
may be used:
- Listen completely.
- Clarify the objection
- Respect the prospects concern.
- Respond to the objection

Continued..

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The endeavour should be to make the benefit

outweigh the concern to facilitate purchase
Excuses or stalls are the reasons that customers use to
disguise their real objections & avoid making a
decision
Objections are prospects way for asking for more
questions

Negotiation

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Negotiation on price, credit terms, delivery times,

trade in values etc
Start high but be realistic
Attempt to trade concession for concession
Buyers negotiating techniques:- shot gun
approach,sell cheap.. Future looks bright,
Noahs ark

Types of objections

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- 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 recognise the real barrier to
sale)

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Methods of handling customer objections

Superior feature method

Yes. But method
Reverse English Method
Indirect denial method
Pass out method
Comparison method
Direct denial method
Another angle method
Narrative method
Testimonials method

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Gaining Commitment/ 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
finalising the sale
- If still turned down a thank you is still appropriate. No, not
now should not be construed as No, not ever

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Follow-up
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.

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Selling Process vs. Selling Approach

Selling Approach

Selling Process

Transactional

Prospecting

Affiliative
Consultative
Enterprise

Closing

Presenting