Sales people need to go back to basics

New Research shows many sales are lost through basic mistakes

UK sales managers should be taking a leaf out of Alan Sugar's book and carpeting their sales force over basic mistakes which could be losing them millions, according to new research 80% of respondents to a survey from Vecta software, said that sales people regularly jeopardized the sale by not understanding their business, with almost as many citing the sales person's inability to listen or even get basic company details correct as a major reason for not buying

Meanwhile, in more than 50% of cases those surveyed claimed that the sale was lost simply because the sales person failed to ask the right questions.

Respondents also listed a catalogue of gaffes which would have any self respecting sales professional heading straight for the exit.

These ranged from repeatedly being called by the wrong name to, in one case, a salesman attempting to sell an engineering solution to a bank! More bizarre examples of sales blunders include a sales person who's packed-lunch had spilt into his briefcase, who proceeded to hand out materials covered in salad dressing, and a salesman who turned up to a meeting in an old pair of carpet slippers, (the ones he apparently used for driving).

Some survey respondents even took drastic measures to avoid yet another pointless sales meeting.

One such story involved a hopeless but persistent salesman, who had a habit of turning up unannounced, being shown into an office only to be greeted by and eight foot inflatable penguin, with the owner of the office addressing him on speaker phone.

On the whole, the most common experiences tend to revolve around a combination of sales people who are always under prepared and those who simply will not listen and 'oversell' due to missing vital verbal cues.

"The reality is that, in sales, you have a small window of time to persuade your prospective, or existing customer that they should buy what you are offering and it is a very delicate process".

"These are busy people who are inundated by sales calls, so there is seldom a second chance, which is why it is vital that you have the most up to date sales intelligence on that customer's business at your fingertips so you can ask the relevant and pertinent questions that will lead to more sales" "Sales intelligence is the missing link between the sales person and the customer as it delivers timely, critical information about customer buying patterns that translate into real sales opportunities".

"The ability to identify cross and up-sell opportunities, whilst recognising potential problems, such as drifting customers, early will ultimately create a more professional and respected salesforce".