SALES: What worked yesterday may or may not today

By ROGER BOSTDORFF

I sat through a Zoom call this morning entitled “Crisis and Recovery: How to market your business in the wake of the COVID-19.”

It was excellent!

There were technical gurus as well as marketing gurus making observations and recommendations. I found it very enlightening and the Zoom call delivered as billed.

Some of the observations that were discussed were that with the requirements to stay removed from some of your customer locations during this pandemic, the marketing approaches had to be changed and may be changed forever. The cost of Google Ads are running about 50% less than prior to the pandemic. The need for KPI’s (Key Performance Indicators) are needed more today than ever before.

I find this very interesting. However, what was not discussed was that if marketing is going to change the sales process must change also. They need to work together, hand in glove. The ultimate objective is to sell something. One of the marketing guru’s indicated that customer’s “Don’t want to be sold but want to be helped in the buying process.” Isn’t it the responsibility of the sales person to evaluate how the customer wants to be engaged and then act accordingly? There is no one-size fits all relative to making a sale.

So what is my point? Since the pandemic has limited the one on one interaction with your customers, it might make sense to do a sales process assessment to see if your old process needs updating. Is it going to be successful in the new norm? Or, do you need to make some changes … bold or subtle? What worked yesterday may or may not work today.

Roger Bostdorff is the President of B2B Sales Boost. He spent over 30 years with IBM in sales and sales management. He then became President/COO of a small internet security company before founding B2B Sales Boost, LLC. B2B Sales Boost, LLC is a consulting company helping organizations improve their sales and overall business processes. B2B Sales Boost has helped their clients with recruiting as well. Roger is also available for public speaking engagements. You can find more about B2B Sales Boost on the web at www.b2bsalesboost.com or calling 419-351-4347. If you would like to receive the B2B Sales Boost Newsletter please send an email to roger@b2bsalesboost.com.