Sales and Marketing Strategies - ASHER · 9. Customer-focused newsletters / Blogs / Outbound Marketing 10. Marketing Messages • Killer arguments, key and ghosting discriminators

Sales and Marketing Strategies

John Asher’s Vistage/TEC Presentation

FOR SUSTAINED REVENUE GROWTH

TODAY’S DATE

MY NAME

CONTACT:Email: [email protected] • Cell: (703) 625-4321

www.asherstrategies.com • Phone (866) 732-0363 2

1. Product Knowledge

2. Aptitude*

3. Selling Skills

4. Motivation

5. Sales Process

–Dr. Larry Craft

*Numerous correlation studies show that 50% of the results for outside salespeople are due to their natural talent (aptitude)

–Craft Systems

...And the salespeople have the values, grit and discipline to follow through.

Know their business, their customers’ business and their customers’ competitors’ business extremely well

Are born with a natural talent for sales

Know and use the top-ten sales skills

Are self-motivated, and managers provide them the training, tools, coaching and processes to be successful

Are working in companies that have best-practice marketing, sales, and customer service processes to support them

The Elite Salespeople...

“Spend more time hiring and less time managing”

www.asherstrategies.com • Phone (866) 732-0363

The Top-Ten Skills of The Elite Salespeople[LISTED IN THE ORDER THEY ARE NORMALLY USED BY ELITE SALESPEOPLE]

1. Focus on a few top prospects• Give them a lot of “touches”

2. Use coaches (insiders) to fully understand customer requirements• Match/mirror personality styles to prospects• Use Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) techniques

3. Thoroughly research prospects and their organizations prior to first contact• Know how to “challenge” buyers• Take business from the “relationship” sellers

4. Sell yourself by building rapport• Know how to get buyers to talk about themselves and their business issues

5. Ask questions, listen and guide the conversation• Use the three techniques to be the “perfect listener”

6. Use powerful marketing messages• Killer arguments (can you really do it?)• Key discriminators (why they should choose us?)• Ghosting discriminators (why they shouldn’t choose the competition?)• Business case analysis/return on investment (why fund this activity at all?)

7. Act as a business consultant and solution provider• Help prospects solve problems• Know how to overcome objections

8. Recognize when the buyers are ready to buy (Buyer's Shift) and know how to close the sale

• Use the six closing principles

9. Build long-term relationships with customers • Turn them into your lifetime “coach”• Use disciplined opportunity charts for up and cross selling• Use a robust customer feedback process

10. Ask for referrals• Ask your suppliers, vendors, and consultants

3


1. Totally focus on the buyer’s point of view – Before you discuss your offerings

2. Ask permission to take notes and take notes

3. Summarize and repeat back to get agreement

1. It makes the seller use 80% of their brain to listen – As opposed to 20% when not

taking notes

2. Taking notes communicates that you are actively listening. – Lets the buyer know that you care

and their words are valuable enough to write down

– Makes you appear like a professional salesperson

3. It causes the buyer to take you more seriously

4. It slows the needs analysis process down – Gives the buyer more time to

think and share more info – Gives you more time to process

the information and develop questions

5. Writing down what you hear increases retention by 40-70%

6. Most people cannot remember more than three main points if they do not write it down

7. Gives you the info to later put into CRM

8. It reduces anxiety most buyers feel when salespeople do not take notes

Eight Reasons to Take Notes

NS

NS

NS

NS

NS based on Neuro-science (how the brain works)

Three Keys to "Perfect" Listening


NS based on Neuro-science (how the brain works)

1. It is polite and shows respect

2. It gives control of the conversation to the buyer – The “illusion” of control

3. However, since you are asking questions, guiding the conversation where you need it to go and extracting the information you need to see if you can help the buyer, you are actually in control of the conversation

4. It lets skeptical buyers know exactly what you are doing

5. You get your first “yes” in the “staircase” to yes (to the deal you want)

6. 100% of the buyers will agree to let you take notes – They want you to get it right! – Buyers do not want to waste time on salespeople who do not take notes,

and offer solutions that are not the right fit

Six Reasons to Ask Permission Before Taking Notes

NS

NS

NS

NS

The buyer’s comfort level is now 70 to 80%


Summarizing Buyer’s Requirements

• Just prior to offering solutions, summarize the buyer’s requirements back to them – Use your notes

• Your summary results in one of two outcomes: – You have it exactly right, having a great impact on

the buyer (you not only listened well, but you also must really understand)

– You do not have it exactly right, allowing the buyer to correct you (and preventing you from making the mistake of offering a solution that does not respond to the buyer’s need)

º It happens 90% of the time

• When you summarize and feed it back to the buyer, you get even more information, 77% of the time – The additional information is almost always important; not trivial

The buyer’s comfort level is now at 80-90%

• Here are examples of information buyers will tell you as they listened to your summary (if they haven’t told you already) – Information that they forgot to tell you – The priority of their requirements / specs – The other buyers we need to talk to – Information about the incumbent

and/or your competition (the “Last Look”) – Their decision-making process – Their time frame

• If you show empathy for what is in it for them personally and they feel the empathy – You are way closer to the sale (90%)

• If you used all three perfect listening techniques well, you have clarified the buyer’s requirements and their needs in their mind

— “You Are Working Too Hard to Make the Sale”; Carnegie Institute

– Their budget (60% of the time) – Increased scope of work – Personality types of the buyers

(sometimes the “Last Look”) – Internal politics – What is in it for them personally

To the buyer, the discussion feels like a collaboration


1. Using aptitude assessments for the selection, training and coaching of customer-facing people

2. Account-management/ customer-service policies

3. Customer-feedback process

4. Strategic Planning/Vision

5. Strategic Marketing (what new markets)

6. Digital Marketing

7. Using CRM strategies to become customer-centric

8. Management of salespeople• Recruiting, interviewing, goal setting and compensation plans

9. Customer-focused newsletters / Blogs / Outbound Marketing

10. Marketing Messages• Killer arguments, key and ghosting discriminators and ROI

11. Prioritization of opportunities

12. 20-step new-business capture process (for large opportunities)

13. Sales Process

14 Sales presentations

15. Proposals

The Top-15 Best Practice Marketing, Sales and Customer Relationship Processes

Revolutionary Automated Marketing Process (RAMP)

• Internet Marketing (generate prospects)– Outbound (Email/Social Media) (Demand generation)– Inbound (SEO/SEM) (Attract prospects to your website)

• Blog (generate prospects)– Raise SEO level

• Integrated Social Media Campaign (generate prospects)

• Interactive Website– Content rich– Prospects educate themselves– Lead generating (can convert cold prospects into qualified leads)

• Marketing Automation Software– Artificial intelligence techniques– Multiple nurture tracks (different types of buyers)– Send the right information to prospects at the right

time in their buying process– Lead scoring metrics (to evaluate prospects)

• CRM– Notify salespeople about the

new qualified lead– Fully populate the CRM

file for the salespeople



— “The Top Ten Skills of the Super Salespeople”

> >

>

>

>

eERP/ERP – eCRM/CRM

STRATEGIC PLANNING

TACTICAL MARKETING

SALES AND MARKETING

MANAGEMENT

INTERNET

SALESSKILLS 1, 2, 3, 4, 5,

6, 7, 8, 9, 10

SKILLS 2, 3, 6, 10SKILLS 1, 2, 3, 4,

5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10

SKILLS 1, 10

ACCOUNT MANAGEMENT/

CUSTOMER CARESKILLS 4, 6, 9, 10

BRANDING AND

STRATEGIC MARKETING

SKILLS 1, 2, 3, 6

Roadmap For Company Growth

“The nicest thing about not planning is that failure comes as a

complete surprise and is not preceded by a period of worry and

depression.” — Richard Palmer


APQ SNAPSHOTOne of the most common challenges businesses face today is high turnover within sales departments.

The APQ assesses the natural aptitude of salespeople and other customer-facing professionals.

The APQ is a brief, 81-question personality / motivation assessment that measures personality traits that predict the highest levels of performance. These personality traits combine to measure aptitude for various sales positions along with over a dozen secondary sales traits such as “Prospecting Motivation” and “Confidence to Close the Sale.” The resulting APQ Coaching Report can then be used to select new candidates and coach current team members to greater success.

RECENT CASE STUDIESThe APQ has consistently been shown to identify peak performers. Examples include:

• In three major studies (n=931), sales personnel scoring high vs. low on the APQ had an average of 50% higher sales commissions.

• In one large Mid-western financial services agency (n=67) individuals scoring high vs. low on the APQ had 740% higher sales commissions.

• In one analysis (n=461) based on revenues, it was found that hiring APQ “High” scorers would generate increased sales revenue of over $20,000,000.

Sales Gene Discovered. Do your sales people have it?

Identify Sales Aptitude Talent with the Advanced Personality Assessment (APQ), and Get the “Right People in the Right Seats on the Bus”

-”Good To Great”

Over 200 correlation studies show natural aptitude is the most significant factor in

predicting sales success!


COMPATIBILITY CHART

1-19 Low Compatibility

20-39 Low/Moderate Compatibility

40-59 Moderate Compatibility

60-79 High/Moderate Compatibility

80-100 High Compatibility

ASSESS THE ASSESSMENTTo schedule an APQ demonstration, please call us at (866) 732-0363, e-mail us

at [email protected] or follow the QR code link to our website.

USING THE APQAS A SELECTION TOOLOne’s score on a scale of 1 to 100% for each of the personality traits is compared to the score range of the ideal candidate’s traits for a specific position to determine a compatibility score of 1 to 100.The results can be used for hiring and coaching and meet the federal guidelines (EEOC) for fairness in employee selection. These profiles have been carefully validated by studying thousands of successful incumbents.

USING THE APQ AS A DEVELOPMENT TOOL

• APQ COACHING REPORT: Describes the candidate’s strengths and improvement opportunities, and provides specific recommendations to improve sales performance.

• APQ SALES BUILDER REPORT: Provides insight to help the salesperson recognize and adapt to the customer’s unique “Buying Style” and provides recommendations to communicate with empathy and understanding.

• APQ TEAM BUILDER REPORT: Provides managers and employees the ability to understand their team members and communicate effectively. Serves to avoid conflict and build productive relationships.

PRIMARY PERSONALITY TRAITS

Intensity/DriveMeasures “fire in the belly” and results-orientation

IndependenceMeasures team player vs. entrepreneurial spirit

Need to AnalyzeMeasures intuition vs. “analysis paralysis” in decision making

Need to ServeMeasures on-task behavior vs. service orientation

AssertivenessMeasures confidence to confront or control others

Self-ProtectionMeasures ability to handle criticism or rejection

Recognition DriveMeasures social motivation and versatility

TrustMeasures skepticism vs. belief in others

Optimism Measures attitude (victor vs victim)

www.asherstrategies.com • Phone (866) 732-0363 12 www.asherstrategies.com • Phone (866) 732-0363 12

COMPATIBILITY CHART: OUTSIDE SALES REPRESENTATIVE

COMPATIBILITY CHART: CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

USING THE APQ COMPATIBILITY CHARTS TO UNDERSTAND WHAT JOB PEOPLE ARE BEST SUITED FOR

OUTSIDE SALES REPRESENTATIVE

Based on her primary personality traits, this

candidate is moderate to highly compatible for an

outside sales position

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

Based on her primary personality traits, this same

candidate scores low compatibility for a customer

service representative

THE FOUR LEVELS OF EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE (EQ)

LEVEL 1 Basic EQ Self Awareness APQ – Identify and understand your personality style and extremes

LEVEL 2 Professional EQ Self Management Stretching your extremes to avoid blind spots

LEVEL 3 Sales/Relationship EQ Role Management Stretching anywhere you are outside the “ideal range” for your position

LEVEL 4 Influencer/Leadership Expert EQ

Relationship Management

Influence the relationships with match/mirror and NLP techniques

APQ for Emotional Intelligence (EQ) Development


EQ LEVEL 1.0: Psychologists tell us that the first step to self-improvement is self-awareness. The APQ primary personality traits show us who we are compared to everyone else.

EQ LEVEL 2.0: The APQ shows us which of the primary personality traits are extremely high (over 80%) or extremely low (under 20%). These extremes show us why we are so successful, but in many cases can be a “blind spot”. The APQ coaching reports shows us how to stretch from these “blind spots” when we need to for greater personal and/or professional success. These “blind spots” are independent of our job.

EQ LEVEL 3.0: The APQ compatibility chart compares applicants and employees to peak performers in numerous positions. The Sales Builder report shows the employee where they can stretch for better performance.

EQ LEVEL 4.0 (the highest level): APQ shows us which personality type we are: Directive Driver, Expressive Communicator, Reflective Thinker, Supportive Helper. The APQ Sales Builder Profile report shows us how to “stretch” towards the other personality types to have better relationships with teammates and customers and to sell more effectively to prospects.


Understanding The Four Personality Types

HIGH EGO DRIVE

LOW EGO DRIVE

LOW EMPATHY HIGH EMPATHY(people/feeling oriented)

(impatient, extrovert)(fast-paced)

(patient, introvert)(slow-paced)

(task/fact oriented)

To figure out the prospects’ personality type, ask the coach two questions:

1) Are they fact or feeling-oriented? (Empathy Level)2) Are they fast or slow-paced? (Level of Ego Drive)

Match/Mirror Personality Styles = 80% CHANCE OF SALE

Do Not Match/Mirror = 20% CHANCE OF SALE

-”CMI”

USE www.crystalknows.com

SALES POSITIONS:Outside Sales Person (Hunter)

Account Manager(Farmer)Customer Service Representative

Inside Sales RepresentativeRetail Sales

MANAGEMENT POSITIONS:Executive Management

(CFO/COO/CIO) Marketing Manager

Sales ManagerTraining Manager

Administrative/Office ManagerPersonnel Manager (Recruiter)

Human Resources Manager

NON-SALES POSITIONS:Receptionist

Administrative Assistant

APQ Positions

USES OF THE APQSELECTION SELF AWARENESS COMPANY ACTIONS

• Hire employees with the right aptitude to fill in talent gaps

• Work better with associates and customers

• Better targeted coaching of employees

• Determine which employees to switch to a different job

• Sell more effectively to prospects • More effectively team employees up with other employees

• Determine which employees should leave the company

• Reduce employee conflicts • Modify processes to accommodate current set of employees

Introduction to APQ AssessmentSample email to send to current employees

“Team,

I recently had the opportunity to meet John Asher, Chairman and CEO of ASHER, a strategic marketing and sales company. His company offers an assessment called the Advanced Personality Questionnaire (APQ) that is used for employee coaching and development.

We will be providing the opportunity to use this tool to all customer-facing team members. The online questionnaire takes about 20-30 minutes to complete. Instructions for taking the APQ will be e-mailed to you by ASHER. Within a few days of completing this exercise, you will be given a customized “Sales Builder Profile Report” which describes your natural approach to selling and serving customers and helps you recognize the different buying styles so you can communicate empathetically.

Please note– this is a tool for you. Be true to yourself in answering the questions. There are no right or wrong answers, and we cannot see your responses to individual questions. The results of the questionnaire are intended to help you individually. If you answer how you truly feel, I believe you will find the information you receive to be quite useful.”



1. Product KnowledgeDo your salespeople have it? 1 2 3 4 5Can they answer all questions about your products and services? 1 2 3 4 5Does their product knowledge give them a sense of power and confidence? 1 2 3 4 5

2. Sales AptitudeDo your salespeople have it? 1 2 3 4 5Do you have the right people in the right seat on the bus for all sales and marketing positions? 1 2 3 4 5

Do your salespeople know how to adapt to all four personalities types? 1 2 3 4 5Have they developed all 4 levels of EQ? 1 2 3 4 5

3. Selling SkillsCan your salespeople execute the top ten sales skills with mastery on a continuing basis? 1 2 3 4 5

Do they use the three techniques to become a perfect listener? 1 2 3 4 5Do they know the 15-shortcuts to closing deals faster? 1 2 3 4 5

4. MotivationAre your sales people self-motivated? 1 2 3 4 5Do they have the sales tools needed to be successful? 1 2 3 4 5

– Smart phone 1 2 3 4 5– CRM (accessible when salespeople are mobile) 1 2 3 4 5– Tablet with videos of your products and services and appropriate apps 1 2 3 4 5– Premium level on LinkedIn (business plus or sales navigator) 1 2 3 4 5

5. Sales and Marketing ProcessesAre your sales people well supported with sales and marketing processes? 1 2 3 4 5Is your company currently using the following technologies together in an integrated lead generation system? (RAMP) 1 2 3 4 5

– Search engine optimization (SEO)/Search engine marketing (SEM) 1 2 3 4 5– Blog 1 2 3 4 5– Integrated social media campaign 1 2 3 4 5– Interactive, content rich, lead generating website 1 2 3 4 5– Marketing automation software 1 2 3 4 5– CRM 1 2 3 4 5

Company Growth Strategy (Self-Evalation)

Documents

Sales and Marketing Strategies - ASHER · 9. Customer-focused newsletters / Blogs / Outbound Marketing 10. Marketing Messages • Killer arguments, key and ghosting discriminators