If you consider all the things that you do as a salesperson throughout the day, you’ll notice you spend a lot of time virtually prospecting, qualifying, closing, and building relationships.

But there is so much more involved in making effective virtual sales calls and interactions with your prospects than just using Zoom.

The short answer is this: Everything!

As I thought about this article, I thought about what was all included with virtual selling:

• Marketing to new segments, verticals, individuals
• Prospecting for additional business from current clients/portfolios/books of business
• Following up on contacts initiated from social media or traditional networking
• Conducting initial conversation live but not in person face-to-face
• Qualifying discussions
• Presentations and closing appointments
• Use of video materials or other support content such as testimonials, case studies, and proof of concept reports.

But as I started my Google search for articles on the history of virtual selling, one of the hits was a link to a course offered by IMPACT – a virtual training company. Here is an excerpt from the page:

A couple of weeks ago, I set up an appointment with a rather large, well-known tax company. I went on their site ready to schedule my appointment and saw that I could either go in person, or I could do a virtual call. To start, they clearly laid out what I could expect and what I needed to do on the day of. When the meeting day rolled around, I checked my email to see if they sent a reminder of what I needed to do.

Nothing.

I then logged into the account I created where they said a button for a video call would show up.

Nothing. 

I then called them and asked what I should be doing to make sure the video call works out and then proceeded to tell me that the tax preparer will call me right before because "he’s the only one in the office who knows how it works.” 

Long story short, I received the call and then proceeded to spend almost 30 minutes trying to get it to work (which it never did). What seemed like a seamless alternative to save time on my part turned into quite a frustrating, time-consuming debacle. 

This is why there is so much more to making virtual selling and interactions with your prospects than just using Zoom for your calls. 

So, what can go wrong? Everything. And that, understandably, is why you might hesitate or be resistant to move towards more virtual selling. 

There was probably a time when many of the things you do now were new to you, your industry, or your career. Believe it or not, there was a time when:

• We didn’t use computers as a sales enablement tool
• We certainly didn’t Google anything, use Facebook or LinkedIn
• Emails were considered for internal use only and never, NEVER, would we communicate with a prospect or client via email
• Using a tablet or mobile device was Sci-Fi
• PowerPoint presentations were for those salespeople that couldn’t command the room or didn’t know their solutions well enough

My point here is that there was a time when you resisted, pushed back, or were hesitant to do something that you thought would take away from your traditional approach or thoughts about selling:

• People do business with people they like
• It’s important to have a firm handshake and look your prospect squarely in the eye
• Selling is a face-to-face business
• If I don’t’ get out and see my prospects, my competition will

But if you take a minute and consider all the things that you do, you’ll notice you spend a lot of time virtually prospecting, qualifying, closing, and relationship building.

Virtual communication can be defined as any communication that takes place without you physically being present with the person you are communicating with. If you don’t think you sell virtually today, or you don’t think you live in a virtual sales world, then take a look at your inbox and sent folder and your cell phone call log every day.

So, here is where I’ve landed:

• Embrace the fact that you already have a sales practice that is highly virtual
• Take time to understand how to become more effective in your current virtual communication methods  
• Your body language, facial expressions, eye movement, and tone of voice all gets lost when you send an email
• Much of the same is lost even on a phone call
• Emails have to capture the reader’s attention just like a handshake, and eye contact does
• When making phone calls, you have 5 seconds to capture the prospect's attention
• Expand your current virtual communication to include video: Tips for better, more effective video meetings;
• Duplicate the in-person experience as best you can
• Let an expert run the backroom – set-up and running the meeting – so that you can focus on what you do best
• Professional look and feel. You don’t have to be studio quality for most meetings but if you are presenting the deal that makes or breaks your year, and virtual is your best option, then put your best foot forward
• Practice, practice, practice
• Make sure your participants are prepared well in advance. Also, log-in for the meeting– especially first-time events – should be 10 to 15 minutes before starting the meeting
• Have backup information clearly communicated. For example, if you run into problems, you will switch to a conference call

In closing, think about how much more you can get done, and how much more effective you can be if you didn’t have to get into a car for an hour each way for a meeting. Think about the flexibility it gives your client if there are people that can't make it into the office for the meeting but can now join virtually. Think about your ability to include more of the right people in meetings so that your sales process doesn’t get bogged down. Think about all the things you already do that are virtual and how you can improve your skills in those areas.

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We have identified the four Cs of great salespeople and how mastering these traits will lead to better relationship selling and advanced selling skills.

This week we are turning our attention to trait #2; Confidence. Great salespeople are almost always confident and express that confidence in three areas.

In last week’s blog, we began a series focused on the four Cs of great salespeople, starting with the first C- Curiosity. We discussed that the two most critical skills that a salesperson must master are being good at asking questions and being even better at listening. Both of which are advanced selling skills and keys to being a great relationship selling salesperson.

This week we are turning our attention to trait #2; Confidence. Great salespeople are almost always confident, and they tend to express that confidence in three areas:

First, they are confident in their firm’s value proposition (how their firm helps businesses or people solve problems). They are believers. By that I mean they believe their company can do everything they say they can do. They have “proof of concept” and share that with confidence. By the way, these confident salespeople rarely, if ever, think they need to have the lowest price. They position value, and they defend that value.

Secondly, they are confident in their approach. They know that they must interrogate reality, as Susan Scott says in her book “Fierce Conversations.” They must figure out whether the prospect is truly a prospect with a problem they have to solve, the money with which to solve it, and the conviction and clarity to make a decision when presented with a solution. Confident salespeople ask the tough questions, and they ask lots of those tough questions.

Thirdly, confident salespeople are confident in their belief that they do not have to be liked for the prospect to do business with them. Don’t get me wrong – they do subscribe to the philosophy that people generally enjoy business relationships with people they like. But they confidently believe that the buying decision is made because the prospect has trust and confidence that the salesperson can do what the salesperson says they can do – and that is to solve the prospect’s problem. Being liked has very little to do with any of that.

So, how confident are you? And is that confidence contagious?

The two most important skills that a salesperson must master are becoming good at asking questions and becoming good at listening which are advanced selling skills.

We have identified four traits that all great relationship selling salespeople have in common. In part 1 of this blog series, we will discuss the first most critical trait, curiosity. 

Great salespeople are like diamonds in your collection and similar to diamonds, they have characteristics that make them shine. We all know the four Cs of diamonds are cut, color, clarity, and carat so what are the characteristics that great salespeople possess? In my role as a sales coach, I get an up-close and personal look at some of the greatest salespeople in the world. Some are young while some are older. Some are extroverted while others are more introverted. Some are extrinsically motivated, and some are intrinsically motivated. In short, salespeople come in all shapes and sizes.

But I have been able to identify four traits that the great relationship selling salespeople have in common:

1. Curiosity
2. Confidence
3. Courage
4. Charisma

Today, I want to start with the curiosity trait. Great salespeople tend to be naturally and intellectually curious in their conversations with prospects. Now if you have read this blog before, you understand I believe the two most important skills that a salesperson must master are becoming good at asking questions and becoming good at listening and these are advanced selling skills. The problem with listening is that too many salespeople simply listen with the desire to interrupt as opposed to listening to understand.

This is where great salespeople really shine. In their pre-call plan, they create questions that are tailored for resonance, meaning the questions speak the prospect’s love language. These questions are questions that invite discussion around the things that matter most to the prospect, the essence of relationship selling. And because the salesperson is “intellectually curious”, most of those questions start with why, when, how, what or when, which we know are “journalism questions.”

And that’s not all. Salespeople who are curious also rely on industry intelligence to make sure the questions they ask are both intelligent and that those questions resonate. One resource that thousands of firms around the world rely on to help in this research area is IBISWorld which can provide salespeople with real-time industry-specific knowledge. This allows salespeople to avoid having to tell their prospects how smart they are – they simply ask questions that allow the prospect to self-discover that the salesperson is knowledgeable about the prospect’s industry. As one of my mentors taught me years ago, great salespeople ask what weak salespeople prefer to tell.

So how curious are you when you speak to your prospects? Are your questions tailored for resonance? Let us know. We are curious about your skills!

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When developing a salesperson’s advanced selling skills, it's important to focus on not only what the prospect says but also what the prospect doesn’t say.

As many of you know, I am a music aficionado…and as such, I would be remiss if I did not note the passing a few weeks ago of the singer Meat Loaf at 74 years of age. Born with the name Marvin Lee Aday, Meat Loaf sold more than 65 million albums worldwide.

He also has something to teach us in terms of mastering advanced sales techniques around the topic of having clarity with the prospects in our pipeline. Go ahead and sing along with me:

And all I can do is keep on telling you
I want you
I need you
There ain't no way I'm ever gonna love you
Now don't be sad
Cause two out of three ain't bad

Now while the name of that song is “Two Out of Three Ain’t Bad”, we can also refer to this as “The Dance of the Prospect.” Maybe it brings to mind a recent deal you chased. You know, the one you were sure you were going to win right up until the moment that you lost. I doubt you will disagree with me when I say that prospects can be quite elusive and quite vague when you meet with them.

When we are working to develop a salesperson’s advanced selling skills, we focus on not only what the prospect says but also what the prospect doesn’t say. Here is what they often say and all of this is enticing bait for salespeople:

• We have heard good things about your company
• We are open to new ideas
• We think you might be able to help us
• We would love to see in writing what you could do for us

That is your prospect saying, “and all I can do is keep on telling you…I want you…I need you”. But what you might need to consider is what they are not telling you, which is “there ain’t no way I’m ever gonna love you.”

But hey – for all you salespeople…don’t be sad. After all, two out of three ain’t bad.

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With the past couple of years working remotely, many of your bankers’ skills are rusty and they may not be using the tech tools they should be. During these times, they must be better than ever before at reaching out and communicating effectively and consistently.

Here are 3 keys to evaluating the right banking sales training program that will help your relationship managers adjust to the new selling environment.

It’s no surprise that, with continuing pandemic issues and concerns, many clients and prospects are avoiding our bank lobbies. And why not, with online access to almost everything? So how will your salespeople continue to build relationships and keep your best customers? With the past couple of years working remotely, many of your bankers’ skills are rusty and they may not be using the tech tools they should be. During these times, they must be proficient, actually, they must be better than ever before at reaching out and communicating effectively and consistently. This is key for most banks to sustain and build relationships, grow loans, and achieve higher net interest margins.

Here are 3 key ideas to make sure that your banking sales training is helping your relationship managers adjust to this new normal, and increasingly remote selling environment:

1. Make certain that your bank is focused on helping your salespeople blend the value of human touch with digital assistance. According to a recent Banking Exchange article, this is the new frontier in customer engagement. So, what does that mean? They must be able to assist customers and prospects in navigating these digital options and provide a holistic, consultative approach. Because of our new “anywhere economy,” our customers expect the ability to conduct all their business remotely and on any device. Think about your own experiences with digital platforms – you might love the convenience but often need that human interaction to make the experience successful. I am working with a new platform for prospecting called ZoomInfo Intent. The system helps to understand what companies are searching for keywords that describe our services, which could be very helpful but I have encountered the need to have human help along the way. This is your relationship manager’s greatest opportunity – to be ready to ask the questions to help more fully understand and serve the client. They must be adept at answering the question at hand and comfortably probing further to more fully understand the goals of the client. How good are your people at doing this?
   
   
2. Speaking of prospecting… There are so many different tools to be explored to connect and build relationships virtually but it is harder. The second key to your banking sales training is to make certain that your salespeople are proficient at using the tech tools to connect. Some may want to avoid this but today, there is no choice. Calling is still a prospecting option but with so many people working remotely, you must have cell phones to connect with any consistency. Here are some of the “must-haves” in prospecting now:
   • Regular outreach and activity on LinkedIn every day
   • Industry research and pre-call planning tool like IBISWorld
   • ZoomInfo or a similar tool to gather company and contact data of your target
   • HubSpot or similar marketing platform to identify lead activity on your website
   • Strong and effective use of video email – take a look at OneMob as a tool
   • Networking opportunities with target audiences – conferences are back in person
   • A strong and compelling value statement to share
   • A system to consistently ask for introductions (not referrals) from your clients and COIs
     
     
3. The third key is understanding The Will to Sell of your sales team. Do your bankers have the desire, commitment, outlook, and motivation to sell despite the challenges? Do they take responsibility for their actions and outcomes? Let’s face it, many industries have been affected by the pandemic; some have suffered and others have thrived. What does your bank need to do differently within its own culture to adapt, grow, and achieve 2.0 ROA and NIM over 5? Your client-facing salespeople are key and they must be highly skilled. There is a blueprint for elite performance and science to selling – the 21 cores sales competencies, identified by the industry-leading sales evaluation company, Objective Management Group.
   
   
   Make certain that you know why your top performers are so successful and how your sales team stacks up against the other banks. Make sure that your banking sales training is focused on helping your bankers be stronger at the 21 core sales competencies listed above. When mastered, these skills will help your lenders and relationship managers differentiate from fintech firms and other banks and position their value so that they can hold pricing steady when your competitors are dropping their rates.

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