If you’re selling to businesses, private companies, public companies large and small you need to be careful not to fill your sales ranks with order takers. An order taker may be just fine in a retail environment although I’d be careful. But in a B2B environment order takers will kill your business.
An inbound sales lead arrives by phone, by web form, by email. A precious thing indeed! It could be from an existing customer. It could be from a stranger. The question is what happens next? Here are five examples of what an Order Taker will do compared with a world-class sales professional:
5 Reasons
- Order takers confirm what the prospect wants. Sales Professionals diagnose what the prospect is trying to achieve.
- Order takers email prospects back to confirm the part number and quantity. Sales professionals call back using the number on the email and have a conversation full of really insightful questions. These questions immediately establish massive credibility in the head of the prospect.
- Order takers try to force their product range into the shape of the prospect’s request. Their motivation is selling. Sales professionals motivation is servicing. Thus in many conversations the sales professional will explain to the prospect that there is a better alternative sold by another supplier for their needs.
- Order takers don’t care whether the prospect is a five-week intern or the CEO because everyone in their eyes has the power to spend money. Sales professionals always establish from the outset the authority of their prospect and their mandate to make decisions.
- Order takers believe that prospects know what they need and it’s their job to deliver it. Sales professionals believe prospects can be unclear on what they want and almost always need help to understand their needs and the consequences of their decisions.
Build a team of curious, informed, conversationalists across your whole business not just in sales. The consequences of such a bold move have been known to build a scaleable, remarkable business where work becomes fun.
