by Theresa Merrill
Years ago I was sought out by a media firm for a consultative sales position. During the interview process, I was to demo present to a team of managers my follow-up to a ?Client Needs Analysis? I conducted for a prospect. While summarizing the client?s needs and problems my manager to-be shouted out ?What does this have to do with why they should buy time on our network???he didn?t get it. I got the job though and went on to demonstrate how my success was directly linked to a consultative sales approach.
Consultative selling is a term that is often used, but are you executing the Client Needs Analysis properly? In my mind it is the distinction between being customer-focused or being product-focused, and it can?t be faked. These are the seven steps to conducting a successful Client Needs Analysis.
Questions should enhance your credibility. A good lawyer never asks a question she doesn?t have the answer to. When you meet with a prospect to conduct a CNA (Customer Needs Analysis) always prepare for the call like a lawyer would prepare to question his witness. You don?t presume to know their business better than they do, but that doesn?t mean you can?t research their business so you can ask intelligent questions. ?Congratulations on achieving your fourth quarter revenue goals, how will this success impact your business model for 2012??
Ask open-ended questions that allow for a large number of potential replies. In a CNA you should be talking only 20% of the time, while the prospect should be talking 80%. Questions should be easy to answer and non-threatening. Your goal is to engage them in a conversation, not stump them. Don?t ask about their margin of profit. Something as benign as ?So, how did you get started in the restaurant business?? works. Be flexible; allow the client to take the conversation into their areas of interest.
Be empathetic. Harvard Business Review studied successful salespeople and one of the most important qualities they possessed was their ability to gain feedback from their clients through empathy.
Adapt to their behavioral style. Are they open/direct or closed/indirect? If you?re talking to Bill Bottom-Line adjust your questioning tempo to his style or risk losing him. Studies show that you establish rapport with people when you mirror their body language. Don?t sit on the edge of your seat, if the client is leaning back in his.
Don?t talk about your product. You?re gathering information; refrain from talking about your product during the CNA. If you contracted for the meeting correctly, explaining your desire to understand their needs and challenges, this shouldn?t be an issue for the client. Also resist providing a solution on the spot, this goes against the very nature of an effective CNA, which is to provide customized solutions to fit their specific needs. Your solution will appear as one-size fits all.
Listen effectively. Often we are so fixated on our questions, that we don?t focus on what is being said. Concentrate and listen for ideas, not facts. You?re listening to gain insight into what the prospect perceives as value. Don?t jump to conclusions. Repeat what you think you heard and clarify. Clients like you to tell them what they said. Ask good follow-up questions to demonstrate this.
Write down your questions and answers. If you show up without a notebook, or iPad, you?ll not be effective. You?re conducting an interview, have your questions written down and be prepared to jot down their comments. Clients note this and mention other salespeople don?t do this; again this is not a veiled attempt to learn about their business. Upon closing ask if you missed anything, if there was something they would like to share, that you neglected to touch upon. This is also valuable for when you make your follow-up presentation, in case of any discrepancy in communication you can reference your notes.
Lastly, don?t leave without scheduling a time to come back and present your findings. If you?ve genuinely demonstrated interest in the client during the CNA, they will be more anxious to buy than you are to sell at this point. Get back to them with your marketing plan, as soon as possible.
Theresa Merrill is the Director of Business Development for Anovick Associates. She has more than 20 years of sales and marketing experience in NY, Boston and Atlanta working for Katz Communications, CBS, Tribune and Cablevision and can be reached at 201.444.2991 or by e-mail merrill.theresa@gmail.com
For more article from Theresa GO HERE
(1/10/2012 7:20:53 AM)
love your article. this is the kind of information sellers should read every time they prepare for a CNA. we're all so proud of our product, that we often forget our job is to help our clients. if not for their success, we've got no job; and that all begins with finding out as much as we can about what they need from us to succeed.
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