| Feature
Article
Launching
Solutions with Impact - Part #1
KickStart Your Sales Momentum
by Alison Chandless
We all know that to win deals, Sales must be able to
explain to a customer why they will benefit more from
your product than any other solution. To build strong
sales momentum for your new solution, your sales tools
must capture the customer knowledge that resides in
the accumulated experience of your Sales and Marketing
organizations.
Unfortunately, launch teams often focus their tools
and training on communicating product knowledge and
features, rather than communicating a solution’s
strategic value to your customer. These narrowly designed
launch materials may prepare your Sales team for calls
on a technical buyer, but they fail to equip them for
campaigns across an enterprise. Your launch loses impact.
Maximize the Impact of your Sales Launch
You’ll get maximum launch impact when you provide
your Sales channels the right information at the right
time. The challenge is providing solution-focused tools
and training in sales language; otherwise, they’ll
waste time translating product information into selling
messages (sometimes the right ones, sometimes not).
Will your launch plan meet the challenge, and pass the
“impact” test? Use the checklist below to
measure your success in arming your sales organization
for a quick ramp time.
Launch Effectiveness Checklist
- Your
Sales tools and solution training are customer-oriented
and produce sales teams that know how to sell
your product to all stakeholders—not only
the technical buyer.
- Top-tier
sales players (Reps and SE’s) have contributed
to your launch training. Their customer knowledge
and sales strategies have been documented and
communicated.
- Direct
sales teams and partners can locate and access
critical information whether they are on the
road, in their home office or at a customer
site.
- Sales
teams are armed with sales tools for every stage
of your sales process: identifying suspects,
qualifying prospects, generating interest and
acceptance, creating proposals and closing deals.
- Every
customer-facing organization is prepared to
introduce your solution. Customer Service, Professional
Services, Accounts Receivable and other administrative
staff can articulate your products’ value.
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Make
Sure Sales is Armed and Ready
To
reduce non-selling time and increase the quality
of their customer interaction, arm your Sales
channels for the entire sales process—start
to finish. Our launch checklist is a good starting
point, but engage your Sales team to create yours.
Your sales team is ready when:
-
Sales reps know how to find and gain entry into
target accounts. They have tested scripts and/or
content for email campaigns.
- Discovery
questions are provided to uncover customer problems
and identify opportunities. Sales channels understand
the opportunity those problems present.
-
Sales channels can describe how your product
or service solves
identified customer problems. Your demos support
your claims and illustrate solutions to your
customers’ problems.
-
Sales tools bolster your sales efforts. For
example, customer references and case studies,
sales presentations with scripts, proactive
proposal and RFP response content, and an ROI
analysis.
-
Your sales team can explain your pricing in
customer terms and can differentiate the uniqueness
of your solution as compared to that of the
competition.
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Use
KickStart to Build Momentum
If you don’t have resources to build the most
effective launch tools, let KickStart Alliance create
your customized, sales-ready tools and training. Our
Sales and Marketing experts can build the plans, design
tools and create the required content to ensure your
sales channels get up to speed quickly.
Contact Alison
Chandless for more information or to request a Product
Launch datasheet.
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In
This Issue:
Launching
Solutions with Impact: KickStart Your Sales Momentum
Quick
Test – What does your team say about your launch?
Quick
Notes – Sales Ready Launch Materials
Everyone
Can Sell!
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| Everyone
Can Sell!
Not
everyone can succeed as a sales rep, but everyone with
customer interaction can strengthen your sales effort.
Recruit influential members of customer-facing organizations
to contribute their own creative ideas. We’ve
listed a few creative ideas for widening your sales
reach; email
us with yours!
-
Post
banners, posters, table art and brochures
throughout your company—especially in
the lobby—to raise company awareness
of your product’s introduction and positioning.
-
Use
your phone system to advertise to customers
waiting for support or telesales (carefully
avoid becoming intrusive or repetitive).
-
Provide
a clever e-mail salutation that includes your
product’s tag line and web site link.
Request all employees to use it.
-
Educate
your Accounts Receivable and other administrative
staff on your product’s value and target
customer. You never know when they will uncover
an opportunity.
-
Customer
Support or Technical Support personnel can
be your best, and most subtle, sales organization.
Make sure they feel comfortable articulating
the value and functionality of new solutions.
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