Sales Managers are often nervous of kicking off yet another dry sales meeting. Here’s some ideas that recent participants have shared for adding an element of discussion and debate at sales meetings.
Topics marked * are great for getting people talking and sharing ideas – get a flipchart or whiteboard ready to capture ideas or have a stack of Post-It notes ready to stick on the wall.
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- Discussion of results against targets
- * How can we use teamwork to sell more
- Discussion of costs against budget
- * How can we reduce sales expenses/costs
- Discussion on product prices
- * How can we get better prices/reduce give-aways
- Planning selling time
- * Planning to improve prospecting for new customers
- * How to plan for more effective territory coverage
- Pre-planning calls on buyers and non-buyers
- The purpose and value of company paperwork
- The importance of keeping adequate customer records
- Writing more creative and helpful reports
- * How could we simplify company processes
- * How to sell the full range of products/services
- Using current advertising to support sales presentations
- * New products needed to ‘plug holes’ in current range
- Selective selling: setting product priorities
- * How to find and attack competitors’ strongholds
- * Comparing the product range with competitors
- Discussing future plans for major exhibitions
- * Possible advantages of holding in-company exhibitions
- * How to develop and use Case Histories
- Re-opening dormant accounts (except bad payers)
- How to identify slow payers in advance
- * The best way to ask for money owing to us
- Individual self-analysis to improve effectiveness
- Individual team members’ plans for own self-development
- Individuals to give summary of book read about selling
- * Additional group training needed to improve effectiveness
- Making appointments by telephone
- The best ways to improve email management
- Getting beyond email communication
- Difficult types of buyer and how to handle them
- How to deal with ‘I’ve never heard of your company’
- * Best methods of introducing company and products
- How to capture attention from start of meetings
- Questions to develop the customer’s interest
- Using your website to support the sale
- * Ideas to improve the company LinkedIn profile
- Painting word pictures which increase need
- Questions which encourage buyer to discuss needs
- * Translating product features into benefits
- Benefits: How to present capital or revenue savings
- How to demonstrate a product
- * Developing a survey check-list: getting the facts
- Overcoming customer objections and resistances
- * Developing best answers to the most frequent objections
- Techniques for closing the sale
- * How to select the most appropriate close to use
- Handling complaints about products: quality, etc
- Handling complaints about service: deliveries, etc
- * How to reduce customer complaints
- Effective presentation of proposals
- * How we could improve company proposals
- Negotiation techniques: exchanging concessions
- * Listing concessions which buyers usually try to get
- * Listing concessions we can make which are not too costly
- Making more effective customer presentations
- * Individual role-plays on product presentations
- Introduction of Customer Care programme
- * How to improve customer relationships
- ‘Professionalism in Selling’
- ‘Good Human Relations in Selling’
- ‘Developing a Reasoned Logical Approach to Selling’
- *The Power of Enthusiasm in Selling’
- ‘The Development of a ‘Service’ Attitude to Customers’
- ‘How to Sell a Service’
- ‘Eliminating Negative Language and Attitudes from Selling’
- ‘Influencing with Integrity’
- ‘The Best Sale I ever made’
- ‘The Most Difficult Sale I ever made’
- ‘The Greatest Selling Mistake I ever made’
- ‘My Recipe for Selling Success’
- Invite speakers from other departments in the company
- Invite outside speakers or buyers from business/industry
- Hold Brains Trust meeting with colleagues and outsiders present
- Organise revision and quiz on specific product knowledge (with prizes)
- Select individual salesperson to organise/administer meeting
- Select individual salesperson to chair meeting (with manager present)
Plus
- What’s on the agenda for our next sales meeting
What would you add?
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