Sales Strategy

A strategy is used to achieve an objective. Before you dive headlong into the selling process, you need to have a strategy. A Sales Strategy could be part of an overall business plan. This is where you can translate your yearly goals into projects, campaigns and even daily habits. Why should you have a sales strategy plan? Although you can be successful in sales without a strategy or business plan, it is easier to succeed when you have one.

Reasons to develop a sales strategy?

Why Bother Having a Sales Strategy? Well here are some valid reasons to spend some time on a sales strategy. Even if you are an individual salesperson, your strategy will help you become successful.

Plan of Action

The first reason is so you can develop a plan of action. A plan of action will give you a road map, from where you are now, to where you want to be. This is not the same as your goals or objectives, which we will talk about later. Your goals and objectives should be fixed, whereas your plan of action should be fluid. Just like a SatNav system, your destination is fixed, but your route may change depending on the traffic etc. In just the same way, your business goals will be fixed and yet your plan of action may change. It is still import to have your plan though.

Meet Objectives.

As I said before it is important to have business objectives and a sales strategy is a way you can meet those objectives.

Provides Motivation

A sales strategy provides motivation. Its Friday afternoon 4pm and you feel that you have worked hard this week. The little tempting voices ask you “why not slope off early and enjoy the weekend?” But what about the weekly outbound sales call target? You are still ten phone calls short. If you don’t hit these, you will be behind on your monthly target. Do this a few months running and that’s a recipe for disaster. So, your weekly target, which is part of your overall sales strategy, motivates you to make those calls. It makes you do the key things you need to do but don’t feel like doing.

Who needs to create a sales strategy plan?

Sales Manager

It may be the Sales Manager of the Small to Medium Enterprise, who may or may not have a small team of Sales Representatives reporting into them. A unifying sales strategy will help the team to focus. It can create some healthy competition.

Entrepreneur

The Entrepreneur, Sole Trader or Small Business Owner should also develop a sales strategy. As part of the overall Business Plan, a sales strategy is a key feature of the business plan. It will help when forecasting sales and therefore the key financials of the business. This could be critical if applying for finance.

Individual Salesperson

If you are an individual Salesperson,as I said before, get your own strategy. Treat your job as your own Business.