A good salesperson has a plan for directing the conversation
and positioning the desired outcome. The most important piece
of the conversation to script is the opening questions: They
can make or break the tone of your entire meeting and, ultimately,
impact the outcome. As your call or meeting progresses, consider
these steps:
- Focus questions on the customer, their business
and their needs.
- Use questions to first establish a dialogue to share
and learn what is most important to them.
- Value the information that they share with you. Look
for ways to respond that will provide a solution.
- Demonstrate your sincerity in learning about
the customer.
- Probe, probe and probe again.
- Work through the layers of information to really understand
their emotional and task reasons for the purchase.
- Use questions to learn their frame of reference.
- Questioning will reveal their ideas for potential solutions.
- Learn the value and priority of finding a solution
and the customer's sense of time frame, finances, politics
and value-added options.
- Summarize the questions.
- This will ensure you capture their input correctly
and "take their pulse" before moving forward to the next
step.
- Develop your solution.
- Address both business and personal reasons for buying.
- Make sure your solution is benefit-oriented.
- Don't "Feature Dump." Anyone can match your products
or service features- it's the benefits that set you apart
and cannot be easily replicated.
Follow the tips and techniques presented in this month's newsletter
to help you become a prepared, knowledgeable, and intuitive salesperson.
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|
| Before
You Connect, Plan Your Call |
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Contrary to conventional
wisdom, your best indicator of success with prospects
isn't your performance in the sales call. It's the
work you do before you reach out to them.
Pre-call planning is one of the most important steps
in the sales process. Do it right and you'll position
yourself as an informed, prepared person who your prospect
will want to do business with. Skip it and you're giving
up an opportunity to connect at a respectful level
with your customer and to match their needs with your
program's assets.
Read
the complete article >>
*Sales Check-Up Vol. 3, No. 3 |
| Get
in with the Gatekeeper: They're Your Greatest Ally |
 |
We
hold them in awe and approach them with a little trepidation.
And rightly so. After all, gatekeepers are the people
who have the power to let the right person in the door.
It's your job to make sure you are that right person.
But to ensure you're the right person, you have to
demonstrate that to the gatekeeper. You need to convince
the screener that what you have will offer value to
their boss.
Read
the complete article >>
*Sales Check-Up Vol. 1, No. 12 |
| First
Things First: Get the Appointment |
 |
So
you know that the orthopedist, Dr. Barrett, is unhappy
at your competing hospital. And your hospital's growth
plan has targeted orthopedic services as a high priority.
You've also heard from your own orthopedists that things
have been working out well for them lately.
Now, you-and rightly so-want to take the opportunity
to reach out to Dr. Barrett and let him know what your
hospital can do for him. But when you called his practice,
you were shut down almost before you asked for the
appointment. Ouch.
Read
the complete article >>
*Sales Check-Up Vol. 2, No. 2 |
Wait!
Before You Ask for the Sale,
Ask the Right Questions |
 |
Ah,
the stereotypical salesperson: the "tell and sell" talker
who focuses on what he has and talks until he finally
wears them down enough to get the deal. If only that
technique really worked.
Those who have hit the streets (or the phones) long
enough know the art of knowing when to talk and how
to go about getting the information you need. Getting
the sale requires the ability to:
- Think strategically about your customer and their
needs;
- Ask good questions to engage them in a thoughtful
dialogue;
- Listen carefully to their answers; and
- Tailor subsequent, deeper questions that lead
to your benefit-oriented solution.
Read
the complete article >>
*Sales Check-Up Vol. 1, No. 6 |
|
| Announcements |
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All articles featured
in this issue are part of Corporate Health Group's
e-newsletter, Sales Check-Up. Available
as a subscription series, Sales Check-Up is
loaded with hands-on sales how-to's, featuring
practical information, real-life scenarios and
scripting-valuable tools designed to help you
enhance your sales effectiveness.
If you are ready to claim your spot as a leader
in physician relations sales and service, we
invite you to get started by subscribing to Sales Check-Up.
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Whether we open the door by phone or in person,
the critical first step is to establish trust
and credibility with the prospective customer.
The same principle holds true with current customers.
We must re-establish our credibility and reaffirm
our clients' trust in us, our organization and
what we have to offer:
| Research |
| • |
Before you contact them, develop
a baseline of knowledge. |
| Open the Door to
Dialogue |
| • |
Use a strategic question or statement
that builds empathy through understanding:
| ◊ |
"Our physicians are interested
in assistance with billing services..." |
| ◊ |
"You may be wondering about our
recent affiliation with..." |
|
| Purpose, Process,
Payoff |
| • |
Use the three P's to transition to
the meeting agenda:
| ◊ |
"The reason (purpose) we're meeting
today is... |
| ◊ |
What I'd like to do is (process)... |
| ◊ |
At the end of this meeting, I should
be able to provide you with (payoff)..." |
|
|
 Question
and Answer Forum |
|
We
want to hear from you. If you want us to
answer your question about sales tips, techniques
and tactics, please submit your question. Each quarter, we will
draw from all the entries for a prize! |
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+ SURVEY |
Do
you want to learn about other physician relations programs'
compensation plans?
Sample data collected from 2005 & 2008 surveys.
| • |
How others in your shoes are
attaining ROI Successes? |
• |
What are emerging trends
in physician relations? |
| • |
What new best practice is growing
net new referrals? |
• |
How your program compares to national leaders
in physician relations? |
Help us expand our best practice research and learn what others
are doing in physician sales and service. This isn't your typical
survey, one where you spend time giving your information...only
to be lost in cyberspace, never to be heard from again. Our survey
is different...it is for you.
We use 5 years of cumulative data from 375+ programs, combined
with results from this year's survey to support current and emerging
best practices in physician sales and service, and allow you
access to the results.
If you take the time to fill out the online survey then you will
receive a copy of the findings and cumulative data. We guarantee
these findings will help you gain new insights that will drive
effective change and help your program become one of the best.
And isn't that what you want?
|
Looking
Forward to Our Next Issue:
In December, learn more
sales techniques:
- Determining true customer needs
- Asking for business
- Gaining commitment
- Product partner highlights
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|
Looking for a training
session or speaker for your hospital? CHG has a team
of specialists for customer service and experience, sales
and business development and organizational strategic
thinking. Visit www.corporatehealthgroup.com or
call 1-888-334-2500.
To
view all CHG newsletters, please click here
Share your feedback with
us. What do you want to know more about? What are some
of the issues you're facing? Your comments will help
us zone in on the physician topics of interest to you
as we prepare our next issue. |
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