How I landed a $ six-figure client.
In this article, I share the journey and roadmap which can be useful for people looking to score big. I’ll also share what I really do before, during, and after a call with any prospect which increases my chances to get results.
If I have to give one answer to this, it’d be focussed preparation.
Brief history: Well, my background is non-tech. I studied commerce in school and business in my undergrad.
I had no experience doing tech sales or anything in tech in the past. I ended up landing a job at SaaS Labs (JustCall — a cloud-based phone system).
I read along the way an immense amount of resource material as to how I can sell software products to businesses which gave me the flexibility to create my own way. If you’re in software or sales, this article can be a huge value add if you’ve not found much success till now or basically what you’ve wanted. I used this to close my first six-figure contract in net TCV.
This is a roadmap I continue to follow and will always vouch for any person seeking results with their clients.
I have always believed that the first call with a prospect is the most important stage of the sales process, simply because it’s a unique opportunity to make a great first impression.
I also tried to distill best practices and want to provide insights into what I have seen work and not work. The main thing I know is that preparation always works.
The Most Important: Before the call
It’s crucial that you learn about the company and the prospect at the same time. You should tend to take a few minutes to prepare your calls is the most important factor when it comes to closing a deal.
Prospects that come to your website are usually evaluating several other tools. If you know about their company, their founder, and their industry (basic stuff), it allows the person on the other end to resonate and trust that they’re in good hands.
For instance, some criterias you can focus upon are:-
- How big is their team?
- What are the recent industry changes?
- How long has this person been there? (Use LinkedIn, Crunchbase or company about us info)
It’s always valuable that you show your prospect that you have spent some time doing your research.
Sometimes while using Linkedin, you may find common connections or interests, similar educational backgrounds which may increase your chances of closing the sale 2x faster.
How can this crucial step help you?
Once you know the background of the company, you can set a higher standard before you close the deal.
Because I had done the homework, I knew that they had the bandwidth to pay upfront and big team size. If I hadn’t known their company is 250+ in employees, I’d have just been offering something for 50 people (which would be irrelevant in their case)
During the Call
Speak as little as possible during this phase. Limit you're talking to only what you know and don’t try to throw a lot of information around here and there, because you might end up confusing your prospect.
1. Build trust and rapport
After setting a nice tone, make it all about them. The time you spend talking on a sales call has a significant impact on your chance to close the deal. In fact, top sales performers are known for consistently letting their prospects talk about 60% of the time, so it’s your prospect who should be talking the most.
2. Address their questions first
If you’re selling software, there are high chances that your prospect has tried out your software before the call. In such cases, it saves valuable time for both parties to focus on what the prospect wants to know. If your team has built a self-serve product, demos will eventually be less intensive. Your ability to custom tailor your demo Vs showing the usual stuff of everything from scratch will be extremely valuable here.
3. Give your pitch
Once you have acknowledged your prospect’s pain, you will now be better informed to give your prospect an adapted pitch about how your product solves their issue. Don’t overdo it. Make it short and to the point.
Just because you’re an expert in your software and product knowledge does not mean your prospect will be able to grasp all the knowledge and skills you’ve accumulated over time in your short call.
If you’re not able to find any good arguments that could make your product useful to the company, maybe it’s also because they don’t qualify as a potential user. Some prospects have the habit to lowball the offer or deal you present.
You should try to limit such experiences with people by having a time-bound offer (expires in the next 7 days). It’s always better to pass these prospects because they’ll always want more for what it’s worth.
After the call
Keep your lead moving further along the sales funnel by making sure you have well-defined next steps. I try to schedule a second call in the last 5 mins within a week of our first call to retain the relationship we’ve had.
Follow up with them on a casual basis to know if they’ve reached a conclusion. This is where your preparation will give you an edge over other sales folks.
Research says people are more likely to trust those people who can act as trusted advisors.
Chances are higher if other folks from the competitor company have missed this step and you’ll end up landing the client.
Conclusion
I ought, to be honest. It will not work 10 out of 10 times and this is definitely more work than what you probably do right now. But remember, this will definitely have a higher chance of success rates if you’ll track back in hindsight.
Also, because knowledge compounds- in the long run, (post one year of rigorously doing this) you’ll not be spending that much time reading about the prospect too much.
Don’t forget, knowledge never fails! Implement this strategy and see wonders in your sales success rates.
P.S.: I’d also like to thank the invaluable help, inspiration, and assistance I received from all the team members at SaaS Labs.