Part 2/2
In class we have been discussing the Sandler Submarine and his seven steps for that method. Sandler’s method does not focus on the old-fashioned ABCs of thinking of sales. Instead of focusing on constantly closing sales, the submarine focuses on client needs making sure the sale will be a good fit, the new ABCs.
Bonding and rapport—>Up-front contracts—>Pain—>Budget—>Decision—>Fulfillment—>Post-sell
After figuring out the true pain the client is dealing with, the next step is to figure out the budget to remedy the problem. A good thing to remember is that the more pain a client is in, the more willing they will be to spend on the solution. In class Professor Sweet told us that clients WANT to discuss the budget. Sometimes they bring it up to early and in that instance, the salesperson needs to take astep back to ask a few clarifying questions. As a salesperson you should figure out what the budget is and how comfortable they are talking about it instead of TELLING the client the budget.
After figuring out if the client is a good fit to work with your company and your company with the client, a decision can be made. The Sandler Method is focused on customer needs, so if the salesperson decides that her solution will not be the best fit for the customer then the decision will be to part ways and maybe to suggest another company to fulfill the client’s needs.
When the only next step is contract or no contract, the salesperson must remember that they should not be asking the client for the order, they should be moving the client to a place where they give up and ask the salesperson for the order. Then the salesperson will fulfill the order and move to the post-sell stage. In this final stage of the Sandler Submarine, the salesperson will continue to work on the relationship the client- providing support and making sure that the client doesn’t have buyer’s remorse.
By using the customer-focused Sander Submarine method of sales, salespeople will gain more success in sales. While it may take longer to close the sale, the purpose is to find the right customers who will be happy with their purchase and who will return to buy from the company again.
Mason 
Aliyah Shelatz
Good point on making sure that the client is a good fit for the company. Sometimes we are so focused on making sure the client wants the company to be a good fit for them, that we forget the client needs to be good for the company.
I have always find the Sandler’s Subamrine helpful and I am glad that you talked about it here. The budget talk can get tricky but it is always recommended to get an idea of the prospect’s comfort zone before talking about budget.