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Sales Territory Management - How to Prioritize Your Activities to Produce Maximum Results
Copyright © 2005, Alan Rigg
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How you prioritize your sales territory management activities
depends upon whether you are managing a territory that has
existing customers, or whether you are building your customer
base from scratch.
If you manage a territory that has existing customers, your first
priority should be to introduce yourself to every single one of
your customers. This should be a pleasant, low-key introduction
along the lines of, "I just wanted to introduce myself and see if
there is anything I can do to help you." Then, as you are
chatting with your customers, you can ask, "Would you mind
sharing with me how you think my company's relationship with you
has been going so far? What have we been doing well? Where could
we improve?"
Collecting this kind of feedback is a great way to start
relationships with customers. It also helps you draw any
festering problems out into the open. If you can address the
problems quickly, it can really jump-start your relationships
with the affected customers.
This same approach can also be effective for customers that have
been reducing their purchases from your company over time, or
customers that have stopped ordering completely. It is never much
fun to listen to people complain. But, if you can isolate and
solve the problems that are causing the dissatisfaction, you can
produce a rapid and substantial boost in sales.
If you find customers that are really happy with the service your
company has provided, drill down (with more questions) to
determine just what has made them so happy. Their answers will
provide you with a template for successfully managing their (and
other) accounts. Also, ask these happy customers for
referrals…regardless of whether you have contributed in any way
to their happiness! Happy, satisfied customers are usually
delighted to share their positive experience with others.
Once you have met all of your existing customers, the next step
is to identify target prospects in your territory. Start by
checking with your manager. If they have been managing your sales
team for any period of time, they should be able to suggest some
good target prospects.
Once you have compiled a list of target prospects, determine
which ones you will pursue first. Which target prospects have the
greatest potential to purchase the largest amounts of products
and services? Which ones are likely to be "quick closes"? If you
have both types of target prospects on your list, pursue several
of each type at the same time. In the words of a well-respected
executive that I used to work with, "Elephant hunting is
great…but those rabbits sure taste good in between the
elephants!"
When you are ready to begin pursuing your target prospects, start
by asking your existing customers whether they know anyone that
works in the target organizations. If they do, ask for referrals.
Once you have exhausted available referrals, proceed with the
other activities in your prospecting plan - but tailor these
activities to attract the attention of your target prospects.
Conclusion
Effective sales territory management begins with touching base
with EVERY SINGLE ONE of your existing customers. Ask questions
to gauge their satisfaction with their relationship with your
company. If they identify any problems, work aggressively to
solve these problems as your first priority.
If a customer expresses happiness and satisfaction, ask questions
to determine what your company has been doing RIGHT. Use this
information to create a template for managing all of your
accounts. Also be sure to ask for REFERRALS, both in general and
to specific target accounts. Exhaust these referrals before you
begin the other (less productive) activities in your prospecting
plan.
Prioritize your activities as described in this article, and you
will maximize sales growth in your territory!
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Writer's Resource Box:
Sales performance expert Alan Rigg is the author of How to Beat
the 80/20 Rule in Selling: Why Most Salespeople Don't Perform
and What to Do About It. His company, 80/20 Sales Performance,
helps business owners, executives, and managers DOUBLE sales by
implementing The Right Formula™ for building top-performing
sales teams. For more information and more FREE sales and sales
management tips, visit http://www.8020salesperformance.com .
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The article on this page is Copyright © 2005, Alan Rigg
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Article Marketing Tips:
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