With such a limited number of true selling hours each day, your and your team’s time should be invested with people who should, can and most likely will buy your offering. A moment with anyone else (when you’re aware of it) is a time management tragedy.
Continually qualifying your sales opportunities is the best way to make sure you’re investing your sales time wisely.
Here’s how…
- Create a list of your formal qualification points.
- Assume nothing throughout the entire sales process.
- Continually ask qualifying questions.
- Be prepared to end a sales process if it no longer looks like a good investment of time.
- Always close a discussion confirming next action steps (further qualifying your prospect’s/ customer’s commitment to the effort).
Go deeper with the points below or download the entire guide (to the left).
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Create formal qualification points
To create a list of your formal qualification points, take an objective look back at those deals you’ve won over the last year/ month/ week and find the common threads that brought these customers into your business. Consider such points as…
- Do those who buy from us have a stated date or timeline for implementation when the sales process begins?
- Do our prospects/ customers usually have a specific budget allocated for purchasing our product/ service?
- What’s the typical title or area of responsibility of those who buy from us?
- Do most people who buy from us purchase something from someone else that’s similar to our product/ service?
- Is our firm usually the first company the prospect approaches for a product/ service like ours, or the last?
- Are most people who buy from us first-time buyers of our product/ service?
- Do most people who buy from us buy something else first?
Then look for the common threads among the deals you lost. When these points come up in the future, you’ll know it’s likely better to allocate your sales time elsewhere
Qualifying questions
Powerful questions to help you continually qualify your prospects…
What do you see as the next action steps?
What is your timeline for implementing/ purchasing this type of service/ product?
What other data points should we know before moving forward?
What budget has been established for this?
What are your thoughts?
Who else is involved in this decision?
What could make this no longer a priority?
What’s changed since we last talked?
What concerns do you have?
Sample exit statments
How to most appropriately exit a sales situation that’s no longer worth your time…
“At the moment, I’m not sure we can provide enough value to you, but I’d like to keep in touch should things change. May I keep in touch periodically?”
“That sounds like an exciting project. We may be a little early in our discussions given all of your priorities. May I give you a call in two months?”
“Wow, you really have your hands full at the moment. Perhaps we should talk again in a few months and let you focus on these other priorities. May I subscribe you to our company newsletter?”
Now go qualify someone (and sell something).~>
Connect with Sam (guy behind this stuff)…
massuad ravaseehen says:
get down with the sales rap man. great stuff here for sure.. sell it
1 June 2011
Jeff Phillips says:
great advice, i was stumped at times this helps alot. Thank you. keep ‘em coming
12 January 2011
Qualifying Opportunity and Potential in Sales | Get Your ACT Together says:
[...] some of these criteria to help you assess and measure opportunity and potential, here is a great Qualifying Guide from Justsell.com. Use it, it [...]
3 July 2010
Eric Pinola says:
This is one of the finest collections of sales materials and teaching sI have ever seen online.
The exit statements are money!
Is there a great resource on finding the right leads? Here is the challenge that I am having:
http://bizcovering.com/business/where-are-did-the-mom-and-pops-stores-go/
Eric Pinola
Champion Energy
http://www.ChampionBrass.com
7 May 2010
tmark says:
Great Stuff
16 April 2010
Gerard Downey says:
Thank You for this great and informative advice. Your daily quotes really help me in those tough days when I get frustrated, But know I must move forward and succeed!
16 April 2010
Qualifying Opportunity and Potential in Sales | Deborah Shane Toolbox says:
[...] some of these criteria to help you assess and measure opportunity and potential, here is a great Qualifying Guide from Justsell.com. Use it, it [...]
6 April 2010
Sales Exits – Just Sell®… it’s all about sales® « The Blog of Gobi Canada says:
[...] courteous exit will help you create good will and plant seeds among people who may one day become qualified prospects. And remember – you reap what you [...]
9 March 2010
YasmeenTajunnisa says:
Thank you for valuabe advise. it help me to focus on my Personal & Professional Tasks
3 December 2009
Alexander Sharpe says:
This guy has plagiarized your material.
http://salesjail.blogspot.com/2009/10/time-management-101-how-to-move-your.html
20 November 2009
Andrew Macdonald says:
great website use all the time . great to give advise to rest of the Sales team
cheers Andrew Macdonald
New Zealand travel guide
http://www.destination-nz.com
21 October 2009
Elizabeth Houser says:
I get so much out of your daily sales lessons. I am fairly new to this profession, I love it and am absorbing as much as I can from as many good sources as I can yours is one of the best.
8 August 2009
jim trelka says:
This is great advise. Thank you for posting this and making it available for all to read
6 August 2009