Written by: Holly Jackson, Senior Level Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
Learn how to fix your lead generation problem. Discover if you have a sales conversion problem. And uncover strategies and tactics that work to fix both. This short article digs into where most business leaders leave revenue on the table. Reach peak performance through these simple strategies today.
Whenever I have group calls and ask what business owners and founders need more of, it’s usually one of three things:
“I need more leads”
“I need more money/revenue”
“I need more clients”
Basically, they are saying the same thing. And they may say it in other ways like…
“My calendar is empty”
“I have a cash flow problem”
“I’m afraid my business won’t survive the recession”
“We need to find more investors”
The list of things that’s keeping business owners and founders up at night is long. But this problem isn’t hard to fix.
And it’s not always a lead gen problem. In fact, it’s usually a sales process and systems problem.
It’s simple really.
You haven’t built the systems and processes that work.
To reach peak performance you must track what works and do more of that. Systemize that. Document and scale success.
So why and where do most leaders leave loads of money on the table?
An Obsession With Money Will Crush Your Sales Process
Sales is about service. It’s about helping your prospect discover the problem they have. Give them clarity on what they need next. And it’s about helping them see that you have the bridge that will get them where they want to go.
Stop the cold calls. Stop the unintentional reach outs via LinkedIn and email. Step back and consider a more sophisticated approach.
Design a lead generation system and sales approach that gives. What is something of value that helps your potential client?
Here are some ideas to add value and create reciprocity...
Offer value through introductions, resources, and helping them gain clarity
Be empathetic when they share their struggles
Offer insights that will help them see a problem in a new light
Share stories that relate to their experience to connect
Ask them thought provoking questions that they’ve never considered
When they have a breakthrough or share a win, celebrate with them
If you’re an expert in an are they are looking for connections in, share that and offer to make connections
Build a meaningful connection with them (i.e. treat this like a first date or a new friendship)
Add value early on. Build a relationship and listen.
Sales is about being of service. It requires curiosity, active listening, sharing, and telling stories.
Always start from an intention of service and relationship building as you design your lead gen and sales systems.
Without this approach, you will burn through good leads. And miss out on huge opportunities.
Stop Obsessing with Lead Generation
Let me get this straight..you say you have a lead generation problem. But you have 100 new leads a month on sales calls.
That sounds like a sales conversion problem…
Look at the data, step back and look at the actual problem.
Do you have a lead gen problem where your calendar is empty? Or do you have a sales problem?
If your calendar is full of calls and yet you’re not getting sales, you have a sales problem.
Many organizations don’t have a formal sales process. And if they do, it’s not reviewed for continuous improvement to remain current in today’s market.
Most business owners and founders aren’t able to answer the simple question, “what is your sales conversion percentage?”.
When evaluating if you have a lead gen or a sales problem, considering the following questions:
Does the product you're selling fit the leads you are reaching out to?
Is the problem big enough for the market to pay the price point you are charging?
Are there other industries, companies, or roles that would be a better prospect to target?
How many calls are you booking per week with prospects?
How frequently do your prospects book in for a sales call?
What’s your sales conversion?
Stop saying blindly and without data that you have a lead generation problem. If you have a sales problem, recognize it.
Dedicate the time and resources required to fix it.
If you are going after the wrong market, hit pause, step back and test a new one. If you have no idea where to begin, consider hiring a professional.
Don’t allow your business, sales team, and company culture to continue to suffer. You need to plug this profit leak today.
There Isn’t a Sales Process or It’s Lacking
Here are some of the biggest gaps I find when working with business leaders on their sales process:
1 You aren’t clear on the problem you solve.
We’ve discussed how sales is about service and helping your prospect navigate change. It’s essential that you get clear on the root problem your prospect is experiencing on the first call.
Be excellent at asking questions. Dig into potential problems. Don’t allow them to provide short or vague responses without asking more.
Here are some questions to consider asking:
What products and services do they offer?
What do they charge?
How many clients do they currently have?
How many more do they want?
Do they have a plan to scale?
What are they doing to get leads?
What’s their business development strategy?
How are sales conversions going?
Why are they so passionate about what they do in business?
How long do clients stay with them?
What’s their biggest challenge in the business today?
What have they done to try and solve that problem?
What’s working well and what’s not?
Who are they currently working with (masterminds, coaches, consultants, marketing agencies, etc.)? And what specifically are they helping them with?
Your job is to diagnose. Follow up with more questions. Take copious notes. Get to their root problem.
Make sure you have a clear picture.
2 The Problem Isn’t Big or Important Enough
Change is painful.
I describe sales as poking the bear. If you don’t paint a clear picture of how much pain your prospect's problem is causing, why would they change?
Change is scary. No one wants to change…unless we show them how badly they need to.
As sales professionals it’s our job to show them how the problem is impacting every aspect of their life. We need to paint a picture for the emotional pain it’s creating.
Selling is emotional. Pull out that emotional pain to help them see the need for a new future state.
3 The Gap From Today to the Future State Isn’t Big Enough
What will life look like after you help your prospect fix their problem?
If you don’t do a good job of painting a vivid, emotional, tangible picture, you won’t close the sale.
Help them visualize this new ideal future.
The more excited they are about this vision, the more they are bought into the need for change. And working with you and your company.
But if the gap is small, you’ll get comments or questions like: “I can figure this out on my own.” or “Why would I pay you, when I can do this myself?”
The bigger the gap, the more they understand they need to solve it today.
They understand they can’t wait to figure it out on their own. They see the need for an expert. And they see the urgency in fixing it today.
Build the gap. Your sales conversion will soar!
4 You Never Ask for the Sale
I’ve had so many clients send over a sales call recording to review and they ask me “Holly, what am I doing wrong?”.
Believe it or not, many sales people and business owners fail to ask for the sale.
Sales calls are designed to help the prospect to a hell yes or a hell no. It’s your job to guide them through this process.
When you fail to ask for the sale, everyone loses. You waste everyone’s time…
It’s also your job to ask more than one time. Sometimes they have timing questions. They may need a payment plan.
Work through all their objections to get to a hell yes or a hell no.
You may have to ask for the sale upwards of 10 times to close them. Keep going.
80% of sales occur after you’ve asked at least eight times… practice asking even if it’s uncomfortable.
It’s your responsibility to get them to a yes or a no…not a maybe.
5 You Don’t Onboard the Client
As soon as the prospect says yes, take their payment. Schedule their first call. If there's a contract or paperwork, walk them through it.
Onboard them on the spot. Otherwise that yes may disappear as soon as they hop off the cal. There’s nothing worse than spending time on a sales call and then being ghosted.
When your sales teams are ghosted by “yeses”, there is 100% a big gaping hole in your sales process. I guarantee you are leaving loads of revenue on the table if this is happening.
Why do they ghost you?
Because they get off the call and their mind goes wild. They think…
“I don’t know if I can afford this”
“Can this company really help me?”
“Am I ready for this?”
“Is the timing right?”
The list of thoughts is massive and it’s normal.
This is why your sales process must understand how to work with the human condition and that includes buyers remorse and fear of change.
Avoid this and get them onboarded on the call.
This will massively improve your sales closure rates. Stop chasing prospects. Stop getting ghosted.
Close them and onboard them on the call.
Need Help?
I get it. This is really hard to do alone.
This is why I work with a coach. And this is why my clients hire me as a consultant.
When I work with companies and nonprofits as a consultant, I bring an objective, external voice to help you:
Reach peak performance
Find your profit leaks
Turn shiny objects into revenue
Build repeatable success processes
Discover based on metrics where success lies
Show you what you need to STOP doing
Design a state of the art employee experience
Create a customer experience that results in referrals and raving fans for life
If you’re ready to...
Take BIG and bold action in your business
Help your employees reach their full potential
Grow as a business leader and commit to continuous learning
Try things outside of your comfort zone
Reach more dream clients
Have more impact in your business, community and the world
Build more revenue
Improve your lead generation and sale process
Invest in yourself and your business
Let’s chat: click here!
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Holly Jackson, Senior Level Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine Holly Jean Jackson is a Revenue & Performance Consultant, Speaker, Podcast Host, best selling Author, and founder of Business Builder Throw Down. In her Peak Performance Blueprint, she takes a holistic and logistical approach to success. After all, one can’t have massive success in business without a life of equal or greater success.
Business owners hire her to master the art and science of real success because most lack direction, action, and results. So, she helps define and design a business roadmap for impactful visibility, intentional profitability, and endless sustainability.
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