It has always been a difficult task for advisors to be able to reach the prospects they call and email each day. They call…and they email…and they keep following up, wondering if anybody will ever do one of two things: 

1. Answer the phone.
2. Return a voicemail/reply to an email.

While certainly not a new development in selling, engaging with prospects has become increasingly and dramatically more difficult. If we go back to 2009, it took around 8-10 outreaches on average to engage with a prospect. In today’s world, that number had risen to 16-18 attempts. Keep in mind that these are averages. Sometimes it takes even more attempts to get the prospect to pay attention to you.

Why has the number of outreaches required more than doubled in the last decade? There are three main reasons: 

1. Distraction: Prospects are busier than ever before and are constantly battling the numerous distractions that come their way. Their mobile device buzzes and they have to look. The email notification on their phone or computer sounds and they can’t resist. Some have estimated that the typical person picks up and puts down their mobile device between more than 100 times each day.

2. Competition: There is more of it than ever before and it’s fiercer than ever before! In financial services, competition from other financial institutions is only a small portion of the battle. With online companies and non-traditional providers, competition can be, and is, literally any company.

3. Commodity: Unfortunately, in some industries including banking and insurance, the prospect believes that the vendor calling them and the vendor they currently use are essentially the same. The prospect just doesn’t see any meaningful difference. To them, a bank is a bank. An insurance broker is an insurance broker. A technology provider is a technology provider.

Of these three reasons, #3 is the most concerning (or it should be). And here’s why… If you don’t differentiate yourself from your competition by providing value, your prospect will do the differentiating for you. But they won’t use a measuring stick of value. They will more often than not use a measuring stick of price.

Here is another sobering statistic about the world of modern-day selling. While the average number of needed attempts has increased to at least 18, most salespeople quit after less than 5 attempts. Maybe they think the prospect is being rude by not replying. Maybe they think that, “in the good old days,” people used to return calls. Regardless, the world has changed. Advisors in banking and insurance must be very proficient at breaking through these three barriers, standing out from all the other bankers, and be memorable.

If you or your team need help refining your value proposition, we can help.  Just reach out to one of our Sales Training Experts.

According to Objective Management Group, the pioneer and leader in sales evaluations, there are 5 Sales DNA Competencies that determine the degree of success for every salesperson and manager. It is a rare occurrence that a non-salesperson is hired into a sales coaching or management role and therefore, a sales leader always brings into their management role their own set of sales DNA based on past experiences. These habits can be supportive in many cases as they have led to their sales success. However, the role of coach is to teach and develop others to sell, which is a very different set of daily activities and sometimes, their learned behaviors are not conducive to achieving sales team success, through others.

The Sales DNA Competencies measure a sales manager's beliefs and actions that support or limit success in sales management. Sales managers are often unaware of how their biases can negatively impact their coaching of their sales team. Here is a breakdown of the 5 core Sales DNA competencies as they relate to success in selling and coaching:

• Doesn’t Need Approval: As a salesperson, this means a salesperson is able to ask tough questions and challenge their customers to earn their respect. Similarly, as a sales coach, the manager will be able to probe and ask tough questions of the salesperson about their sales process to help them uncover choke points and improve skills. Successful coaches are not worried about being liked as they know that taking someone out of their comfort zone is often where the learning happens. This happens to be one of the toughest areas for a new sales coach to overcome. Most people do want to be liked but in the role of leader, it can get in the way of being truthful, driving skill improvement and earning the respect of the sales team.
• Stays in the Moment: A successful salesperson is able to remain objective and actively listen to their prospects and customers. They are not thinking forward as to what they will say in response but are listening intently to learn so that they can ask further questions and probe deeper. A sales leader who is ineffective at staying in the moment may not listen well, jump to conclusions and fall back on their own selling approach, telling the salesperson what to do. To be successful at building sales team excellence, a coach must really listen, ask probing questions of their salespeople to help uncover areas in the sales process they may be missing or need coaching. To some degree, they are helping a salesperson self-discover what needs to improve, based on their questions.
• Supportive Beliefs: Strong salespeople feel empowered to take positive action without being sabotaged by negative sales-specific self-talk. What is in the head often affects actions and behaviors. Certainly, an effective sales leader must have a strong self-image and believe they have the skills to impact the success of their sales team. And they must have supportive sales beliefs too. These beliefs in a coaching role must reflect the importance of teaching and coaching an effective sales process, helping their salespeople understand the buyer’s journey and how to help move prospects from awareness to information gathering to decision-making. Supportive beliefs may well be one of the primary reasons a successful salesperson is promoted into a coaching role. They believe they can and so they do succeed.
• Supportive Buy Cycle: This means a salesperson has the ability to push back over price objections, competition, and indecision. They do not allow their own buying approach and habits to keep them from asking tough questions of prospects. Similarly, a sales coach will help their salespeople understand how their own buy cycle; how they purchase, may be getting in the way of how they sell and react to their prospects. All people have a buy cycle but truly successful salespeople and leaders are able to separate their own habits from those of their prospects, enabling them to address price objections and delays, instead of inwardly understanding and accepting those reactions.
• Comfortable Discussing Money: Elite salespeople, or the top 7%, have learned how to lean into discussions about budget and find funding that isn't readily available. In life, talking about money issues is often considered impolite and a salesperson must overcome this reluctance that has been inbred. In a sales role, price objections are inevitable and instead of being taken aback, successful salesperson learn to anticipate and even flush them out. They are able to focus on demonstrating the unique value their product or service provides and how it solves the prospect’s problems or improves their lives in ways a competitor cannot. Imagine the importance of the sales manager’s comfort discussing money in their role as coach. If they are unable to role play, address budget and demonstrate to their salespeople the importance of discussing money, their salespeople will not become proficient in this critical area.

As defined by our sales evaluation partner, Objective Management Group, the Sales Technology Competency measures an individual's ability to successfully leverage CRM, professional social media, and video selling tools. Being proficient with sales tech helps salespeople stay in touch and handle client conversations in a personal and relevant manner. Many sales tools integrate marketing, sales, and analytics data into one convenient platform which helps salespeople see what leads come from marketing and curate their approach to effectively target prospects.

Let’s take a deeper dive into the three-legged Sales Tech stack:

CRM Savvy
Most companies have invested in a CRM tool and using the cumulative data captured within, are able to provide revenue projections for the sales team and understand profitable customer segments. For the salesperson, the CRM is a helpful tool to segment clients into profitable verticals for them to pursue.  Some companies are investing in adding market research to their CRMs to help salespeople become industry experts. Additionally, a salesperson can turn to their CRM to review their sales pipeline and determine what needs to be done to further a prospect in the pipeline. Bottom line, successful salespeople today understand the importance of their CRM and embrace it as a necessary part of their sales process.

Social Selling
Social media platforms, when used strategically, can expand reach and enhance brand visibility. Focusing in on LinkedIn for example can help a salesperson develop a profile to attract the right target, follow and reach out to specific titled individuals and companies and share their professional knowledge in group discussions. LinkedIn is essential for any B2B professional. Most companies have also invested in some level of email and use automation tools to ensure consistent communication, nurturing leads through the sales funnel. In many cases a salesperson is able to see the “footprint” of the prospect as they consume content on the website which provides information as to their needs and interests. Success in today’s world, requires a passion and experience using social selling tools for business development purposes.

Video Proficiency
Video conferencing tools, such as Zoom or Google Meet, help salespeople communicate with prospects and customers in a more personal and engaging way. Video conferencing is very common today and it is essential for a salesperson to be comfortable using the technology. Video can help build rapport, demonstrate products or services, and address objections or questions. Companies have invested in video technology for salespeople to use as conferencing tools to conduct webinars, demos, or training sessions for prospects and customers. Video conferencing can also help managers communicate and collaborate with their sales team and share best practices and feedback. Bottom line – video is here to stay and successful salespeople utilize various video options as a regular part of their sales activity.

Mastering the use of Sales technology can seem overwhelming due to the many options available, however the companies and salespeople who identify the right channels and use them consistently to build a voice and a brand are able to differentiate from their competitors and achieve sales excellence. A salesperson’s focus is always about better understanding their prospect’s business, industry, challenges and aspirations for growth and effectively utilizing sales technology can help them along this path. In fact, it could be said that salespeople who use outdated sales approaches may become obsolete. Sales leaders must help their team find and develop the resources and skills needed for sales tech competency.

1. They are taking longer than ever to make decisions.
2. They are involving more people in the decision-making process.
3. The odds (while never really in your favor) are becoming increasingly in favor of the incumbent provider.

About five years ago the average number of people on a decision-making team was between 3 to 4 people for sales that were of some complexity in the B2B world. Now in 2024 most experts believe that number has increased to between 5 to 7 people who now make up the prospect’s decision-making group or team.

Why has this trend become the 3^rd certainty in the life of a salesperson? I can give you 3 reasons:

1. In a difficult or uncertain economy, prospects become very deliberate or conservative about making changes in existing relationships and/or spending money on new products or services. Spending freezes are not uncommon.
2. Prospects take comfort in the “safety in numbers” approach. The thinking is that two heads are better than one…and six or seven seems even better.  The prospect’s belief is that this approach minimizes the chances that something will get missed.  And if something goes wrong, it is harder to blame a team of 7 as opposed to a single decision-maker.
3. Buyers have fallen in love with the pursuit of consensus. But the problem is that consensus is rarely if ever reached.  After all, if everybody is thinking the same way about something then somebody is probably not thinking.

So how do you as a salesperson adjust? 

You must make sure you are having a conversation with all of the people (not some of the people) on the decision-making team. Is that a hassle? Yes, it is. But decision makers that are not accounted for during the sales process represent a huge red flag. 

And finally, you had better be incredibly effective in making sure that the existing relationship is breakable, and you must have demonstrated tangible proof of the value that you and your company can bring to your prospect.

Put the odds in your favor. Make certain that you have these issues uncovered and understood so that you have a more qualified prospect with a high likelihood of closing.

Now even though many of you think you have this skill of asking questions nailed, it would be interesting to have a microphone hooked up to you during your next sales call to find out if you really ask meaningful, exploratory, and yes, courageous questions.

Here’s the #1 tip: think ‘presidentially’ with your questions. It is probably the single most important piece of advice we can share with you when you are meeting with an executive of a company or with a head of household. Think about the things they think about and worry about.

Executives, owners, and heads of households usually think about the bigger picture, longer-term issues such as the well-being of their enterprise. So, ask them questions about that. What you sell is just a part of the overall picture. Instead of focusing on a specific loan need, investment strategy, or benefit coverage, think broader and ask questions like:

1. What is getting in the way of reaching your revenue goals?
2. How does this impact growth?
3. What is the effect on turnover?
4. If you had to find the money to cover this cost where would it come from?
5. How does this investment affect your longer-term goals? 

You get the idea. Really seek to understand the challenges facing your prospect, not just the specific product need you might be able to solve. This separates you from the other salespeople talking and pitching product solutions. You will be solving business problems instead!

So, what about when your prospect asks you questions like: How big is your company? What kind of service guarantees do you provide? What other companies in our space do you work with?

Here’s tip #2: These questions are not their real questions. Get beneath their question by asking: "Joe, I want to make sure I address the right concern or question you have, when you ask ‘how big’, what is your concern relative to size?" The prospect will now give you a more accurate answer – for example – I want to make sure that you have the resources to take care of our entire footprint.

Questions like these will drive a much deeper conversation.

Here’s tip #3 and a rule of thumb for questions: Follow the leader (your prospect). Too often salespeople have their list of questions and are prepared to ask those questions. They want to follow the script, but the problem is the prospect doesn’t know their lines. You have to follow their lines or lead. Here is an example:

• You ask a question – “How concerned are you that you won’t be able to come up with the cash to take advantage of the market opportunity? “
• The prospect says – “Very concerned”
• You ask – “Tell me more about ‘very concerned’ – what specifically are you concerned about?”
• The prospect says – “My concerns are xy & z”
• You ask – “Why does xy and z bother you? What is the impact?”

This is how to get to the bottom of the real issues that need to be solved – not just the surface issues. 

Let’s say you have uncovered a prospect’s motivation to take action and you know that they have a real pain that is costing them. Hidden in the conversation though is another pain. The pain of change. Tip #4 – The key thing to remember is that there are two pains at work – the pain of not changing and the pain of change. The pain of not changing has to be substantially greater than the pain of change. So, with that in mind you have to ask about the pain of not changing:

Here are some examples:

• How long has this problem been going on?
• What happens if you don’t fix it?
• What is the cost to you, the company, your family, or your community?
• Who in your organization is impacted by this change and how will you handle that?

 Tip #5: Occasionally your prospect will want to transfer the pain...

“Well if we don’t do this then the company, the department, the marketing group, etc” will… Transferring the pain to someone else makes it easy for your prospect to ignore the problem. This is why you have to make it personal. When you ask the question: “What happens if you don’t fix the problem” and you get a “pain transfer” answer, you must re-ask the question. “I’m sorry Sally, what I meant to ask is this: Why is this a problem for you specifically if you don’t fix it?”

So, there are 5 tips you can use today, to get better at discovering what is really bothering your prospect. Go give them a try right now and see how they work for you.