Five Sales Management Strategies That Worked in Past Recessions

Five Sales Management Strategies That Worked in Past Recessions – from Selling Power Sales Management Newsletter

This is the fifth time the United States has been in a recession since 1970, and with each one, top sales leaders have found ways to grow revenue. So which sales strategies have worked best recession after recession? The Forum Corporation recently dug through reams of research on past recessions with the aim of discovering just that – the most effective selling strategies for the most challenging times. The Forum Corporation senior consultant Jeffrey Baker revealed Forum’s findings in his point-of-view paper, “The Downturn’s Upside – Creating a Recession-Proof Sales Strategy.” He says there are five strategies that have worked time and again during recessions. Here’s a look at each one:

1. Remain optimistic. Before you roll your eyes and say, “Yeah, yeah, I’ve heard this before,” keep reading. There’s a reason optimism is listed here as number one and that it comes up again and again as a key strategy of successful selling in a recession. “In times like these, attitudes can have a profound impact on overall performance,” says Baker. “Optimistic thinking skills have been positively correlated with successful outcomes in the sales profession.”

   Keep in mind that optimism doesn’t mean blindly whistling a happy tune; rather, it’s about the conviction that negative events are temporary. Skilled optimists can look past the constant onslaught of negative news to see the many selling opportunities available amid the economic turmoil.

2. Reassess and requalify. Your customers’ businesses are changing; don’t let their new strategies render your product or service obsolete. Ask your customers how their businesses are changing and, more importantly, how your product or service adds value now. Show how your offering is essential to the client’s business and how it fits with his or her company’s strategic objectives. And if you discover a repositioning is not enough, act fast. Sometimes a client’s new direction “requires a new product or service configuration to be truly valuable and competitive,” says Baker. But catch it quickly or you risk losing business.
3. Expand relationships. Customer relationships have always been key to successful selling. But it’s no longer enough to have just one or two solid relationships at a client organization. With more and more people joining the buying process, salespeople must deepen relationships with customers and prospects, as well as expand their relationships upward and across client organizations. Don’t “sit idly by waiting for news of others who have entered the fray,” warns Baker. Seek them out now.
4. Address customers’ risks. Customers are more concerned than ever with risk – just look at your longer sales cycle for proof. Use those concerns to help you build your case, says Baker. “Skilled salespeople,” he explains, “will uncover key risk concerns of customers early and address these risks directly and in a way that builds competitive selling advantage.”

   Remember that risk concerns are always an opportunity. When prospects ask for a lower price, for instance, you can remind them of the risks of supplier failure and that desperation pricing from a supplier is often an indicator of precarious finances. Or maybe you have a product that can mitigate a customer’s risk in a certain area – now’s the time to focus on it.

5. Be bold and insightful. Customers are so overwhelmed with all the changes happening in their businesses and industries that they don’t have time to listen to yet another generic sales pitch. To be heard today, you must be able to offer innovative insights on the customer’s business. How can you alleviate a specific pain? What fresh ideas do you have regarding the customer’s company? How have other clients solved a problem with which this prospect is grappling? Anything less than a targeted, intelligent, well- researched idea isn’t going to get you in the door.

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For a copy of Forum’s full point-of-view paper, visit www.forum.com.