Welcome to the second and final part in the “Learn to think like a Sales person and sell more training courses” blog series.

In the first part we looked at the important role research plays in understanding the needs and pains of your prospects, these could be compliance, growth or the new Government agenda.

We also examined how different dialogue techniques can be used to identify the drivers and goals of your prospects – also what level of influence they have in purchasing training.

Finally, in the previous blog, we explored the key skill of really listening to, recording, and ultimately using the information your prospect tells you about their requirements in order to build a relationship.

This time, we’re going to conclude by looking at how you go about qualifying your leads, positioning yourself as a trusted solution to their business challenges and ultimately - closing the deal.

So, here goes with the final 3 steps in this tried and trusted consultative Sales process…

Inform

As you are actively listening and responding you should be looking for opportunities to inform. However, this is not about spouting how great your training courses are, it’s about helping the lead to overcome their challenges by presenting various solutions and positioning yourself as a trusted advisor. This may or may not involve using your service, but your focus should always be to help the lead, no matter what.

You must be careful not to give away too much knowledge at this stage, balancing the knowledge you give, with the questions you ask and the answers you get back.

Qualify

You’re going to have to qualify the lead at some point. A qualified lead has goals, might or might not have a plan, but definitely has challenges to overcome, a defined timeline and a budget.

An unqualified lead is just as good as a qualified lead during the consultative sales process. Unqualified leads give you a chance to help, so be friendly, listen, inform, and then move on. Remember, unqualified leads should be entered into your CRM for inclusion in future marketing campaigns.

If structured effectively, email campaigns sent from your training management software can tap into the pains, needs and wants of these leads, based on the information you into your CRM. Educate them and positioning yourself as a valued source of information and potential solution. You can then nurture and progress the lead through the sales funnel to the point where they engage with you.

Qualified leads, of course, also give you the chance to help, be friendly - and most importantly, sell. Make sure you dedicate the majority of your time to qualified leads already in your sales pipeline. Don’t try to close unqualified leads until they have been qualified; it will just hurt them and you in the long run.

By focusing on “high-value activities” - the business intelligence, CRM and reporting functionalities in your training management software will help you identify these – you will run an efficient and effective Sales and Marketing operation, growing your business and reducing your cost base.

Close

With the right approach you have a good chance of closing your qualified leads - as they have budget, an identified need and the authority to purchase.

If pushback does occur during the closing process, or at any point, return to the lead’s original drivers for training. What will the consequences or missed benefits be if they do not to buy training from you.

The closing sequence should feel natural to you both. If you have understood their needs and positioned yourself as a trusted advisor and potential solution, you should both arrive at the same conclusion together.

If you focus on closing only those leads that are the right fit for your business, and you have a good product and deliver excellent customer journey, then retention rates on your key accounts should also be quite high. Again, training management software can be used effectively here to provide smooth online booking, automated course communications, future course recommendations and to gather and analyse post-course feedback for continuous improvement.

Now it’s your turn…

It’s now up to you, use these six principles and adapt them for your organisation, creating your own consultative sales methodology.

Sales people perform at their highest output when there is a clear and considered process they can understand, follow and repeat. When they know they have a process that will help them close business, they will perform at their best and with confidence.

Follow this process and your new leads and existing clients and will never feel like they are being “sold to”, rather, seeing you as a natural extension to their business and long-term partner.

Developed in collaboration with leading L&D professionals and fully-accredited by the Learning and Performance Institute (LPI), ATMS (Achiever Training Management Software) is a robust, powerful and scalable solution for the training provision sector. ATMS utilises the latest technology to enable training providers to drive profits through communications and conversion, reduce costs through automation and visibility, and manage courses and customer experience across multiple touch-points.

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