Question & Answer: Outline and discuss the sequence of events in developing a sales presentation when using the following methods…..

1. Sales call objective – A sales call objective is basically setting up an agenda while making a sales call. A sales call is normally either a cold call where the sales person directly reaches the client without any prior appointment or a planned call where there is a prior appointment taken by the sales person.

In these two calls, there is difference in the way the salesperson approaches the customer. If we speak about cold call, the customer is not aware of the product or the company that the salesperson is going to talk about. This is generally the first meeting between the customer and the sales person. The objective while making this call is to make the customer understand as to what the salesperson can offer and also the salesperson needs to understand what the customer would require and what can be offered to the customer. It is very important that the sales person understands the customer’s needs first and accordingly frame a pitch which would attract the customer. This would make more sense rather than rushing about the products and the introduction of the organsiation. The most important objective of this kind of sales call is to earn the trust of the customer and also provide the customer with solutions which would help him or her overcome their operational challenges.

On the other hand, in a planned call, which can be the next step of a cold call, the customer is aware of the product or the organsiation of the sales person. In this scenario, the objective of the sales call is to uncover more opportunities by initiating a discussion with the customer and probing him or her to provide more details about the challenges they face. In this scenario, the objective is to upsell other products which can also be called as bouquet selling where the different products or solutions are offered to the customer.

Therefore, a sales call objective is not only to close a particular sale but also to understand the customer business and who their clients are and what services do the customer’s provide to their customers. The next step is to analyse and fit in the products that the salesperson can sell to the customer and help the customer from overcoming challenges. The whole idea of sales call is to plan and engage with the customer as mucha s possible.

2. Product to sell – The concept of selling is known to all but the most important concept is sales is to pitch the right product to the right customer. It is often seen that sales person offer products to the customer directly without asking their preferences or tastes or needs and ends up losing the customer’s interest. In order to ensure that a sale needs to be succesful, it is very important o understand the need and preference of the customer. A lot of questions need to be asked from the customer first before pitching any product. by asking questions, we get to understand where the customer is facing a problem and which product or service of our will help in resolving that problem. Thus, there is a right product offered to the right customer.

3. Customer Profile – The most important step of a sales call is planning. The planning is the initial stage of a sales call. In this stage, the task of the sales person is not only to identify the name of the organisations but also understand what services do they provide and how our product will suit their requirement. Or in other words, whether our product will suit their requirement. By doing this, there is a lot of filtering done and a lot of time is saved which can be used for productive calls.

4. Product’s FAB marketing plan – A product’s FAB marketing plan consists of placing and promoting the right product in the right market. A lot of analysis is done through data which is collected by conducting surveys or data obtained through relevant sources. This analysis basically gives a picture as to which market would have the most potential customers for the product that is on offer. By doing this, the right product reaches the right kind og market and there is a prosperous result that is obtained.

5. Business Proposition – A business proposition consists of several factors like cost , competition, service and support etc. While preparing a business proposition, the most important hting that needs to kept in mind is the competition’s actions. The actions that the competition is taking in the market and theie pricing and otehr features need to be kept in mind before offering a business propostion. The customer is alsways cautious about the cost and quality of the product. If the customer is aware of the quality and cost of the product of different competitors, there is every chance that your business propsotion will be compared to other competitor’s propositions. Therefore, a very measured approach needs to be taken while preparing a business proposition keeping in mind the positives and highlighting them to customer and also maintain strong relationship with the customer.

6. Suggested Purchase Order- A purchase order is the last stage of a sale. if a purchase order is issued by the customer, it means that the customer is willing to purchase the product the from you. While preparing a purchase order, there should alsways be mutual consent on th terms and conditions which would include payment terms, delievry terms or service terms. It is very important that these are spoken about properly before coming into an agreement.