Maybe you have heard of the Sandler Submarine of the sales process, but maybe you haven’t.
So let’s break it down.
In any sales process there should be a general flow that is adhered to. As you meet your prospect and a potential fit is realized, start with bonding with your prospect and building rapport with them. This create
s trust and allows a friendship to emerge. After comfort and friendliness are established then you, as the salesperson, want to give them an up-front contract. In other words, give them a way out if they need one. Determine right there, early in the conversation that if either or both of you discover this is not a good fit, then it is more than okay to close the file and walk away. This leaves room for both of you to say “no” if at some point that becomes apparent that it would be the best course of action, this freedom is crucial in the sales process.
Next is digging for the pain, and you want to spend a good bit of time here until you are absolutely certain of the “why” and the need of your prospect. Allow them to share their woes, challenges, difficulties and frustrations with their current situation and all the while be discerning whether or not what you are offering will truly meet that need, alleviate the pain and solve their problem. Once who have thoroughly uncovered the pain and have determined you have a reasonable solution for them, then you have earned the right to broach the subject of budget. As you are comfortable talking about money, they will likely be more at ease. Offering ranges and brackets of pricing also helps the conversation flow more naturally and is more flexible.
Once budget has been discussed then comes time for a decision, if they decide to go with your offering, great. You then reach the stage of fulfillment and focus on delivering what they need to the best of your ability. Last, you move into the post-sell, continuing good relations, follow-up if necessary and assist in any way moving forward.
The Sandler Submarine is a great sequence to adopt in most to all sales positions, this will help you serve your prospects and hopefully customers to the fullest extent.
BoweryJE22