Repairing Your Sales Engine: Move Forward And Save Money Selling Service

by Tony Horwath

Many companies rely on their sales force to generate new revenue for their companies. But, what do you do when the sales force just isn't meeting your objectives? Or, how do you start a new sales force?

Selling is a profession. It is a combination of knowledge, methodology, process and people. And, particularly in the past 20 years, relationship selling has become even more important. But, it takes a company to win business, not just a sales executive. If you think you can just walk into a customer's office and lay down your business card and win a job, you're mistaken.

Selling products is different from selling an intangible service. The method of selling services is unique. Those who view sales as a profession and work on selling through a process are the successful sales professionals. Successful sales professionals need training and mentoring, though. Plus, a sales professional needs to understand the potential client and its needs, not just what they are offering. The salesperson needs to be able to develop a business case and show clients how they will receive a favorable return on their investments.

If your sales force is broken or you need to develop a new sales engine, the market now offers alternatives. There have always been alternative avenues for sales distribution. Manufacturers representatives or telesales companies are a few alternatives. They may be exactly what works for product-driven organizations that are selling commodities. For service organizations, however, it's difficult to sell over the phone and even more difficult if you do not have a direct dedicated sales force. This is particularly true in an ever-changing industry such as information technology.

Many of these companies are riding the wave of the Internet. These high growth, emerging Internet companies need a sales force that can be developed quickly and is flexible, since lost time is lost revenue. The marketplace is growing, and the time to strike is now. How quickly can a company build a sales force? This is where the evolution of business process outsourcing (BPO) has become another choice over the past three years.

This is a particularly vital option for small companies, which don't have the background or process knowledge to start a sales force, or companies that are in transition for which outsourcing sales can be a cost-effective way to get them to market more quickly.

So, what do you look for in a sales BPO? First, be sure the company understands your market and has experience in the industry. Doing this homework up front will save you money and the many headaches that can come if you hire the wrong company or develop the program internally but can't manage it effectively.

Speed, process and efficiency do not always go hand in hand. A sales process can drive new business to greater heights and verify that existing customers are satisfied. A process identifies client profiles and effectively reviews opportunities so you work smarter not harder.

The sales BPO industry is expected to top $15 billion in the U.S. market alone this year, and growth is anticipated for sales BPOs is the international market. Non-U.S. based companies are always looking to enter the U.S. market, but the cost of building a presence is prohibitive. Because of this, foreign companies typically will build an American sales force, but manage it from abroad. All this long-distance management does is create an island of people without hands-on management and direction. For companies in this situation, outsourcing the sales function to a U.S.-based company proves to be a cost-effective solution.

So, whether you're a new company or just need to move in a new direction or new geography--or if you need to fix a broken engine--think about what makes sales people successful. Think about process, knowledge and methodologies. Think about getting the right people in the right place at the right time. Selling services takes skill, and finding true sales professionals that have had success takes recruiting experience and time. Think about outsourcing your sales and sales management function so you can concentrate on the big picture.

Remember that it takes an engine to make a company move. How fast do you want your engine to go?

Anthony S. Horwath is president and founder of Sales Focus Inc. He can be reached at 410-730-0500.