Selling in a Slow Economy
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The document provides guidance on selling strategies during an economic recession. It defines a recession as occurring when the GDP decreases for two consecutive quarters. Some key challenges during a recession include pressure from competitors, budget constraints, and slower customer decision making. The document recommends maintaining a positive attitude, understanding customers' psychology and needs, and focusing sales strategies on value, results, and relationships rather than price alone. New strategies like consulting with customers on their business are emphasized.
Selling in a Slow Economy
- 1. Pointers for Selling in a Recession! Selling in a Tough Economy Tonye Briggs
- 2. Slow Economy Definition An economic slowdown occurs when the rate of economic growth slows in an economy. Countries usually measure economic growth in terms of gross domestic product (GDP), which is the total value of goods and services produced in an economy during a specific period of time. The prolonged effect of a slow economy is RECESSION
- 3. What is a Recession? Recession is the economy shrinking for two consecutive quarters (=6 months) with a decrease in the GDP (=Gross Domestic Product) GDP = Value of all the reported goods and services produced by the people operating in the country GDP = MONEY VALUE OF {C + I + G + (X M)} C = Consumables, I = Gross Investments, G = Government Spending, X = Exports, M = Imports
- 4. What is Recession? It is a phase of business cycle. In recession total investment, Income, employment and demand comes down. Production of goods and services is more but demand is less, so price level also comes down. It will further discourage investment and employment.
- 5. 5 Maintaining A Positive Attitude1 2 3 4 Understanding Your Customer . Sales Strategies during a Recession Major selling Challenges during a Slow Economy SE L L I NG I N A SL OW E CONOM Y
- 6. MAINTAINING A POSITIVE ATTITUDE
- 7. During tough times you are surrounded by bad news. negativism: the media, peers, customers, concerned family and friends, and a worried management that is trying desperately to keep things afloat. How you choose to input and process this information determines your attitude and behaviour. We can control our MINDS and our attitudes Maintaining a Positive Attitude
- 8. View success in the long term and failure in the short term Reframe what you hear and see. Remain focused Give tough times an appropriate amount of emotion Maintaining a Positive Attitude
- 9. Garbage ingarbage out. Good ingood out. Put good stuff into your head and good stuff will come out in your behaviour. Tough times never last, but tough people do.Robert Schuller Any fact facing us in not as important as our attitude toward it, for that determines our success or failure.Norman Vincent Peale The last of human freedoms: to choose ones attitudes in any given set of circumstances, to choose ones own way.Victor Frankl Fuel yourself emotionally, spiritually, and mentally. Your abilities will expand to your capacity for believing. Mental Reprogramming
- 10. Maintaining a Positive Attitude
- 12. 12 Psychology of Recession Source for Information Customers Reaction to a Recession Understanding your Customer
- 13. Psychology of Recession One common denominator in a recession is a feeling of uncertainty and an increased importance half price/value During recession time, people act less impulsively and more rationally, they shop in scanning mode The consumer is not a moron , but in crisis times with less money in their wallets, they become really picky - David Ogilvy
- 14. Source for Information Get out and talk to your customers Talk to your sales team Talk to the other no competition players in the market
- 15. Source for Information Speak to the Key Performers in the market Discuss the current trends and what sectors are still performing reasonably well. Try to identify any new areas that may be showing signs of growth opportunity. Discuss what promotional activity may help sell through in your product areas Listen and note views of your sales people as to where you can compete
- 16. In Tough Times Your Customer will Take a bit longer to decide on a purchase So start earlier! Build the additional time in your sales plan Need shorter ROI timeframe In good times you could justify a purchase with a return on investment over multiple years In tough times you may need a pay back of less than a year The Need to Save Money is acute All solutions will need to save money first
- 17. In Tough Times Your Customer will Need to have a purchase budgeted And then it may need to get reapproved Ask you for longer payment terms 30 days could go to 45 days Avoid taking risks! At the end of the day your deal will come down to how comfortable your customer is with you and your company Demanding More for Less Be asked by management to get more quotes A trusted advisor relationship is key here
- 18. SALES STRATEGIES DURING A RECESSION
- 19. Sales Strategies during a Recession Be a true business consultant for your customer. Talk business strategy with your customers. Show how your offering advances their strategy. Do your homework. Know more, be more connected than your customer and turn that knowledge into value. Focus on results and relationship. In these tough economic times your customer is focused on results. It is important to enhance both the customer relationship and results. Explore creative pricing options. Provide financial incentives that cover the totality of your business with a customer.
- 20. Use referrals, results stories, and references as your call cards. Results stories and references supply the firepower you need to build credibility and trust with prospects Go to school on your competitors. Know your Develop defensive strategies and points of view. Focus On Different Groups Of Customers. Conduct a market survey and develop a new sales call priority list. Prioritise your time on more profitable market segments. Upgrade Your Selling Know-How. Review your ability to handle price objections and invest extra time brushing up your negotiation skills.. Sales Strategies during a Recession
- 21. See More Clients. you're bound to get more than your usual share if you increase the number of carefully targeted calls. Tighten Up Your Message What is your message? Saving Money, Making Money or Productivity. Make sure the message is relevant to the clients pain Sales is about the mastery of communication! Don't Cut Expenses That Generate Sales! You just might create more problems than you may have envisaged. Recession is a time to increase innovative capacity, not reduce it. Increase Your Commitment To Excellence Sales Strategies during a Recession
- 22. MAJOR SELLING CHALLENGES DURING A SLOW ECONOMY
- 23. 3 Major Challenges during a Slow Economy Extreme pressure by competitors to take away existing customers Budget constraints when adding resources Much slower client decision making process
- 24. 3 Major Challenges during a Slow Economy Extreme pressure by competitors to take away existing customersExtreme pressure by competitors to take away existing customers Implement program to assess and address accounts at risk Follow formal decision making process when faced with aggressive competitor discounting Implement formal on going face-to-face process to demonstrate value to client
- 25. 3 Major Challenges during a Slow Economy Extreme pressure by competitors to take away existing customersExtreme pressure by competitors to take away existing customers Implement program to assess and address accounts at risk Client Account Risk Assessment Action Plan
- 26. 3 Major Challenges during a Slow Economy Extreme pressure by competitors to take away existing customersExtreme pressure by competitors to take away existing customers Follow formal decision making process when faced with aggressive competitor discounting
- 27. 3 Major Challenges during a Slow Economy Extreme pressure by competitors to take away existing customersExtreme pressure by competitors to take away existing customers Implement formal on going face-to-face process to demonstrate value to client
- 28. 3 Major Challenges during a Slow Economy Budget constraints when adding resourcesBudget constraints when adding resources Use a cost-effective process to deploy resources Increase capacity by increasing selling time Focus performance improvement activities on the right members of the team
- 29. 3 Major Challenges during a Slow Economy Use a cost-effective process to deploy resources Budget constraints when adding resourcesBudget constraints when adding resources Focus on Process ( how things get done) > Results ( whats done).
- 30. 3 Major Challenges during a Slow Economy Increase capacity by increasing selling time Budget constraints when adding resourcesBudget constraints when adding resources
- 31. 3 Major Challenges during a Slow Economy Focus performance improvement activities on the right members of the team Budget constraints when adding resourcesBudget constraints when adding resources
- 32. 3 Major Challenges during a Slow Economy Much slower client decision making processMuch slower client decision making process Adjust sales process, evaluate enterprise pipeline and modify goals if necessary Evaluate each opportunity and dont waste on going resources on extremely delayed decisions Create a sense of urgency through sales dialogue with client
- 33. 3 Major Challenges during a Slow Economy Adjust sales process, evaluate enterprise pipeline and modify goals if necessary Much slower client decision making processMuch slower client decision making process Set realistic Sales Targets based on analyses
- 34. 3 Major Challenges during a Slow Economy Evaluate each opportunity and dont waste on going resources on extremely delayed decisions Much slower client decision making processMuch slower client decision making process
- 35. 3 Major Challenges during a Slow Economy Create a sense of urgency through sales dialogue with client Much slower client decision making processMuch slower client decision making process Urgency is both EMOTIONALLY driven and INTELLECTUALLY justi鍖ed Its the buyers sense of urgency that lengthens or shortens the sales timeline
- 36. Summary Be a true business consultant to your customer. Do your homework. Focus on both results and the relationship. New conditions demand new strategies. Increase your success in retaining and growing current customers and finding new prospects by focusing your efforts on calling on the right people in the right accounts with innovative and competitively unique ideas.
- 37. Summary In the short term, sales organizations that can see through the haze of recession and stay focused on the needs of customers are less likely to be unseated by special deals offered by competitors. In the long term, they will be rewarded with increased customer loyalty and repeat sales. The secret to success in a recession is innovation ForresterResearch The secret to success in a recession is innovation ForresterResearch
- 38. Tonye Briggs +234 817 000 1456, +234 805 930 2304 briggs@salesnetworkng.com www.salesnetworkng.com Sales Initiative Network is sales performance improvement organisation dedicated to promoting professional development, peer networking and thought leadership among of sales and business development professionals. Thank You