Have you mastered the fundamentals of sales strategy for a growing B2B organization? Want to refresh your skills? This presentation covers the ins and outs of these best practices: * Creating the right value proposition * Choosing the best target * Understanding how to reach your partners and customers * Navigating the steps of the sales process * Using tools to help with the close * Leading the sales team

2. Presentation for
B2B Sales Strategy: Insider Tips
March 22, 2012
@markeelliott melliott@vapartners.ca www.vapartners.ca

3. Agenda
• Introduction
• Value Proposition
• Targets
• Sales and Marketing
• Tactics
• Process Tools
• CRM
• Forecast
• Managing the Team
• Compensation
• Great Resources
• Follow-up items
@markeelliott melliott@vapartners.ca www.vapartners.ca

4. Introduction
• Mark Elliott co-founder
• VA Partners provides Part-time Sales and Marketing
• 15+ Years of Sales and Marketing
• Created a $600,000 annual annuity stream for a
finance company
• Grow Financial client from 1 to 44 customers and
double revenue
• Close over $100,000 in sales directly from Social
Media Leads
• Booked over 70 meetings using Social Media
• New clients for web based company increased
revenue by 50%
• Worked with 50 clients over 5 years
@markeelliott melliott@vapartners.ca www.vapartners.ca

5. Sales gets a bad reputation
@markeelliott melliott@vapartners.ca www.vapartners.ca

6. Value Proposition
• What benefits are you
selling?
• Revenue increase
• Cost reduction
• Productivity
improvement
• Avoid something bad
• Quantify the benefit
• Selling through a
channel
• Multiple Value
Propositions
• How are you different
vs. your competitors
@markeelliott melliott@vapartners.ca www.vapartners.ca

7. Targets
• Where do your benefits
best match-up?
• Vertical focus
• Horizontal focus
• Leverage knowledge
and success to own a
market segment
• Best contacts within a
company
• Could be multiple
• All organizations don t
work the same way
• Call high in the
organization
@markeelliott melliott@vapartners.ca www.vapartners.ca

8. Sales and Marketing
• Work in Alignment
• Segment target
markets
• Marketing to support
sales
• Web
• Brochures
• Presentations
• Social Media
• New Content: Blog
• PR
• Traditional Media
• What is a good lead
• Measure your activities
@markeelliott melliott@vapartners.ca www.vapartners.ca

9. Sales Tactics
• Research
• Social Media
• Web
• Jigsaw
• Linkedin
• Leverage 2nd
• Status Updates
• Twitter
• Regular Updates
• Reach out through
Twitter
• Targeted Email
• Warm/Cold Calling
@markeelliott melliott@vapartners.ca www.vapartners.ca

10. Sales Process Tools
• Path to Sales Success
• Meeting plans
• Who are you meeting
Prospecting • Why do they want to
meet?
Qualifying
• Goals
• Next Steps
Proposing
• Activity targets
Closing • Handling objections
• Sales deliverables
Roll-out • Brochures
• Presentations
• Proposals
• Web update
@markeelliott melliott@vapartners.ca www.vapartners.ca

11. Sales CRM
• Accounts
• Contacts
• Activities
• Opportunities
• Notes
• Leads
• Share information
@markeelliott melliott@vapartners.ca www.vapartners.ca

12. Sales Forecast
• Bottom up is best
• Consistent
• Specific opportunities
• Next steps defined
• Hold reps and
managers accountable
• Follow-up
@markeelliott melliott@vapartners.ca www.vapartners.ca

13. Sales Team
• Roles are defined
• Expectations
• Support is in place
• Communications plans
• Formal one-on-one
• Team meetings
• Sales meetings
• Management by
walking around
• Sales Plan
@markeelliott melliott@vapartners.ca www.vapartners.ca

14. Sales Compensation
• Simple
• Measureable
• Salary
• Commission
• Activities
• Meetings
• Proposals
• Demos
• Calls
@markeelliott melliott@vapartners.ca www.vapartners.ca

15. Great Sales Resources
Peer2Peer Senior Sales
Entrepreneurs Tool Kit
Sales 2.0 Book
Linkedin Group
http://yoursalesplaybook.com http://thesalesblog.com/
@markeelliott melliott@vapartners.ca www.vapartners.ca

16. Follow-up items
• Presentation will be posted
• Hot Tips
• VA Partners Blog Summary
• Follow-up questions, please contact me
@markeelliott melliott@vapartners.ca www.vapartners.ca