subject: Want to Increase Sales and Differentiate Your Sales Approach? Then Consider an Advance Meeting Agenda [print this page] Want to Increase Sales and Differentiate Your Sales Approach? Then Consider an Advance Meeting Agenda
Are Most B2B Salespeople Allergic to Paperwork?
After interviewing hundreds of corporate decision-makers for my books, Buyer Approved Selling and Winning Sales Advice, I would have to say the answer is a resounding yes!
Why?
Because the decision makers interviewed made it clear: Most sales people don't use basic sales practices that involve writing! A good example would be the Meeting Agenda. Do you ever meet with salespeople? If so, when's the last time a salesperson provided you with a written agenda before a meeting?
The research revealed that meeting agendas are rarely used by salespeople. In fact, decision-makers from name brand companies like DaimlerChrysler and U.S. Bank reported that less than 10% of salespeople who met with them took the time to prepare a written agenda. Consider the following comment by Ted Biggs as published in the book, Winning Sales Advice: Sales Secrets from the Decision-Maker's Side of the Desk:
"I wish salespeople would use an agenda when they meet with me, but I can't recall it ever happening!"
- Ted W. Biggs, Senior Vice President and Western Region Sales Manager, U.S. Bank (Rates this approach a 10 out of 10; NEVER sees it used by salespeople.)
Just for fun, let's examine some key benefits that accrue to the salespeople who actually prepare meeting agendas:
* Since hardly any salespeople use written agendas, it differentiates their approach
* It positions them as proactive, professional and organized
* It allows the meeting to focus on predefined objectives
* It identifies any information or items the prospect needs to prepare ahead of time
* It allows the salesperson to prioritize agenda items in order of importance
* And of course the list goes on...
So why don't most sales people prepare agendas before sales meetings even though it will help them be more successful?
Because they're allergic to paperwork?
Or is it because no one ever requested they use one: not the buyers they met with nor the sales managers they work for. They may have been taught to do so in a sales training course but knowing what to do and actually doing it are two very different things!
Want to increase sales and differentiate your sales approach? Then consider a few "extra work" steps that while not always expected, are usually appreciated by the decision-maker.
