What is consultative selling and why is it key to your business success?
What is consultative selling and why is it key to your business success?
“You only have to do a few things right in your life so long as you don’t do too many things wrong.” – Warren Buffett
This well-known phrase could make any business think that avoiding a wrong decision or process is as important as making the right one, so good planning will bring closer to success.
Although this principle applies to all areas of a company, in this article, we want to focus on one of the important strategies that a sales rep can improve: consultative sales. Making effective use of this sales method is vital since the success or failure of a business could depend on this valuable activity.
What is consultative selling?
Consultative selling is a sales method in which the salesperson plays the role of a consultant to identify the customer’s needs. The consultative selling approach gives priority to building a relationship of trust between customer and salesperson, rather than offering the benefits of a product.
Why is consultative selling important?
Consultative selling is important because it can bring the following benefits:
- Increased loyalty
- Customer-salesperson teamwork
- A win-win approach
- Gives you positioning as a supplier
- Differentiates yourself from the competition
- You gain knowledge of how, when, and in what way to act.
- You gain the customer’s trust. As a result, they may recommend you to others who might be your potential clients
Consultative selling is handled differently from product-based selling. That is because it involves knowing the customer’s interests, their trust, their needs and ultimately selling the solution to their need.
As for buyers, when it comes to using a product or service, they will pay attention to the loyalty and honesty of their salesperson, which will be imperative in maintaining a long-term relationship. Whereas in traditional sales, the main objective is to make the competitive advantage stand out and go straight to mentioning the multiple features of the product, as well as the benefits of its use, without spending much time on whether the customer needs it or not.
To understand the difference, let’s look at the following comparison:
Consultative Sales Process
Regardless of how many employees make up the sales team, they all must maintain a current focus, and in addition to their valuable experience as sales professionals, they apply the use of consultative selling techniques.
The following steps are important in establishing contact with qualified leads:
- Conducting in-depth research on potential customers
- Asking the right questions to understand your customer
- Active listening
- Diagnosing actual needs
- Building a tailored solution
Step one: Conduct in-depth research on potential customers
Research is essential for the sales team, as they will then have the tools to identify and fully understand customers.
To lay the foundations for consultative sales, researching the following elements will be of importance:
- The potential customer’s company, industry, and organization
- The customer’s environment (their social media, company website, company history, etc.)
- The latest news regarding the client’s activity
- The current suppliers
- Their hobbies or areas of interest
The obtained information will break the ice on the first visit and also allow a better approach to the questions. Good research even gives the salesperson the ability to find a common ground, which can open up communication and make all the difference during the negotiation.
Step two: Ask the right questions to understand your prospective customer
This phase will be worth the preparation as it puts consultative selling skills into action. To identify the underlying problem, preparing a series of questions to understand the client’s real need can help.
The questions that sales professionals use should be open-ended, so avoid questions that limit responses to yes or no.
If the sales team researches ahead of time, they will be better able to come up with effective questions that will help them get to the source of the client’s problem. Then, the sales team can find a solution that best fits the particular issue.
Step three: Practice active listening
Sales reps must maintain a consultative sales approach. Remembering this will require them to talk less and listen more. A good suggestion is to apply the 80/20 rule of communication, meaning 20% talking and 80% listening.
Showing interest is part of successful consultative selling and should also be reflected in body language. It is also important to avoid jumping to quick conclusions.
At the end of the conversation, a good option is to paraphrase everything the client mentioned. This will show that the attention was completely focused on their responses and needs.
Step four: Diagnosis of the actual problem
This important step identifies the real problem that the customer has been facing, probably for a long time. The diagnosis is a real and credible basis for designing a high-quality solution.
But what if we realize that the problem is beyond our product or service? Honesty is key at this stage. It is best to explain to the customer that the product or service will not deliver what they need. This way, the customer does not feel cheated. Such honesty will have better results in the long run. The prospect will maintain confidence in the brand, even if it does not solve their need.
However, if we diagnose the problem but do not help our customers understand the solution or see the real value of the product, they will not see the need to make any changes. As a result, they will not see the need to buy.
Therefore, the way a sales professional pitches a particular solution can either break down or build up barriers to customer understanding. It is important then, that the solution is presented in a compelling way.
It is necessary to be persuasive when explaining how the product can provide the solution to the customer’s problem. So use clear, precise, and consistent messages that relate the value of the product to the customer’s needs.
Step five: Building a tailored solution
This is the step in which the customer is ready to hear a good sales pitch that reveals the potential of the product. It is crucial that they are shown the product in action. The time spent on each presentation represents an investment of time and money.
To have an effective proposal, you should:
1. Use all the elements gathered in the previous steps.
Demonstrate that the product has compelling solutions to the customer’s needs. It is important to show specifically how, when, and in what way it will achieve this.
2. Include your product in the conversation.
The overall goal is to convey the effectiveness they will receive from purchasing your product. Try to connect with your potential customer about how they feel.
3. Not enumerate a list of product or service features.
Instead of listing all the reasons your product or service is better than the competition, focus on features that are relevant to the customer’s needs. In this way, they can see how the product or service will result in their individual success.
4. Offer a solution that has a win-win approach.
For this, it is important to be open to possible objections and to keep in mind that the goal is to make a sale. It is always important to maintain a positive mental attitude, listen carefully to questions, and make any needed clarifications.
In summary, solve all the prospect’s pain points during this presentation.
Since consultative selling is focused on achieving long-term relationships, the customer must be followed up after the sale is closed. This will encourage more sales.
Why a consultative sales approach is key to your business success
Analyzing the above factors, the approach of all sales professionals influences the position of the potential customer. Customers see great value in knowing that their needs, concerns, ideas, problems, etc., are understood instead of feeling that they are just another target of the sales approach.
Using the techniques in this article, combined with the skills and experience of the sales team, you can have a high chance to see your leads turn into successful sales.
However, it is necessary to keep in mind that the biggest challenge is to maintain a genuine relationship between the seller and the buyer from the initial conversation. This will likely result in a long-term business relationship.
Conclusion
Efforts made in mastering this selling technique will help build a genuine and personalized relationship with the customer. So take time to understand the buyer’s unique motives, conduct in-depth research, and listen actively, without forcing the sale.
It is important to focus on the benefits, rather than just the product features. This will help the customer perceive your honest and genuine interest, which is more valuable than the immediate sale itself.
Remember that achieving long-term relationships is a major part of consultative selling. A satisfied customer is more likely to be an active and consistent buyer, and their experience may even become part of your company’s marketing.
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