This presentation provides the basic 5 steps that are used to build a formal sales process that can double your Sales Reps revenue. The key to success lies in the adoption of the designed process. A presentation by Sales Benchmark Index, A Sales Consulting Firm.

1. Website Email Phone
www.salesbenchmarkindex.com info@salesbenchmarkindex.com 1-888-556-7338
Sales Process:
Double Sales Rep Revenue in Five Steps
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2. Building a Sales Process:
Customized to your firm’s needs
1 Understand the Buyer’s Perspective
2 Leverage Current State
3 Prepare for Change
4 Design the Formal Sales Process
5 Implement the Sales Process

3. The Buyer’s Perspective:
Necessary for proper alignment
1. What buyer persona(s) are you going after?
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2. For each buyer persona, what buyer stages do they follow?
3. For each stage, what observable behavior signifies the buyer’s transition from one of
their buying stages to the next? These behaviors are called Exit Criteria.
4. Use discovery methods like:
– riding along with Sales Reps on sales calls
– speaking with customers
– using customer surveys
– performing Win/Loss/No Decision Analyses
5. Discovery will also reveal the buyer’s indications/questions that help you identify
which sales stage they are in.
Back

4. Typical Misaligned Sales Process
Sales Cycle
Determining Confirming
Opportunity Confirming Finalizing
Prospecting Differentiated Value and Negotiating Closed
Identified Vision Match Mutual Plan
Problems Power
Sales Exit Criteria
First Meeting Pain, Timeline, Discovery, Sch Demo, Reference Close Call
Decision edule Demo Summary of Called, Complete,
Criteria, SOE Findings Activant Ask Order
Preferred,
Proposal Review
Needs Explore Resolve
Catalyst Purchase
Recognition Options Concerns
Recognize Clear Vision of Solution Preferred Solution Risks Considered Issue Order
Buyer Exit Criteria
Problem Identified
Buying Cycle

5. Persona: Company Profile and Fit AWARENESS CONSIDERATION PREFERENCE
PREFERENCE
Focus Verticals and Employee Count:
Manufacturing, Retail, Transportation, Professional & Buyer Buyer Buyer
Financial Services (300 – 5000 employees) • Do I have a problem? • Can I ignore this? • How long will it take to get this
• How does this problem relate to • Is there a quick fix? fixed?
Indicators of high likelihood of pain, strong fit
achieving my goals? • Can I fix it myself? • How much of our time do I need to
• Old legacy in-house ERP and T&A systems • How painful is the problem? • Do I need help? put towards it?
• In-house manual systems and processes • Who does the problem impact – • What are my choices if I need help? • How do I know the fix will work?
• Hourly workforce that is decentralized, unionized, departments, users, employees, • How should I evaluate alternatives? • How disruptive will it be?
• Growing/shrinking, leadership change, merger/acq decision makers? • How will others on my purchasing • How much will it cost?
• Facing heavily regulation with govt customers • What are my peers doing? committee evaluate alternatives? • What impact will it have?
Buying criteria: • What happens if it doesn’t work?
• Increased productivity, Compliance, User
experience, business case, systems integration,
employee satisfaction I Cant… I Want… Key Messages
HR SVP/EVP (Most senior person) • Receive advanced notification and • Ease of use solution for • Increase employee engagement
visibility to compliance issues employees, limited training resulting in higher satisfaction
Responsibilities:
• Get visibility or access to historical required • Ensure compliance with
Benefits, Payroll, recruiting, com
data to manage compliance issues • An early warning alert and automated HR and pay policy
pensation, performance
• Identify root cause of performance historical view of compliance enforcement that supports
management
Focus: HR compliance, employee and productivity issues. challenges and issues workers and workplace
engagement/culture, productivity, accountability • Maximize the productivity of my • ALL: Access to data that helps me • High user adoption, reduced
workforce maximize return on employee training and fewer errors with BIC
Role in purchase: Always a key influencer and may • ALL: Balance staffing requirements investment (Productive/Efficient) user experience
be drive the evaluation. Evaluates employee and employee schedule preference • ALL: third party validation and
engagement, staffing levels, and compliance. proof of financial justification
Operations COO • Get the reports I need to compare • Ease of use solution for employees, • Integrated solution resulting in
profitability of plants/stores. limited training required improved accuracy (no re-key) and
Responsibilities: Delivers on the • Identify root cause of performance • To reduce costs of managing my speed (no latency)
promise of the organization and productivity issues. workforce • Decreases administrative time
(product/service) • Maximize workforce productivity • Deliver highest quality at the lowest Improve customer service and
Focus: Optimal productivity and efficiency. Seeking • Receive advanced notification and cost in shortest time product quality while reducing
Quality, Cost savings and Speed. Process driven to visibility to labor expense leakage • An early warning alert and historical costs by changing the way labor is
achieve customer satisfaction. • Model workforce changes and see view of compliance challenges and deployed and scheduled
how they impact KPI’s issues • Cloud solution is scalable and
Role in purchase: User Buyer, must work with the • Schedule the right people, right configurable, with an upgrade path
CFO to fund a WFM solution. place, right time that is automated and no cost
• Get the reports I need to compare • To reduce costs of managing my • Self-funding investment, clear ROI
Finance CFO (delegates to Controller)
profitability of plants/stores. workforce • Flexibility of solution to meet the
Responsibilities: Delivers bottom
• Receive advanced notification and • To drive out costs and enable current and future needs of my
line numbers for the organization.
visibility to labor expense leakage incremental revenue generation evolving company
Financial performance reporting,
and compliance issues • Better align corporate performance
forecasting revenue, budgeting and
indicators with employee activities
cost control
• Cloud solution is scalable and
Focus: Financial performance and productivity.
configurable, with an upgrade path
Always looking for ways to increase profitability.
that is automated and no cost
Role in purchase: Approver/Economic Buyer

6. Leverage Current State:
Know your strengths & weaknesses
1. Is your current Lead Generation function capable of providing
qualified opportunities to a new Sales Process?
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2. Do you have a viable Customer Relationship Management system
that is well deployed and adopted?
– Does it have line-of-sight dashboard capability?
– Can you reasonably modify the CRM to match the new Sales Process?
3. What best practice methods are Sales Reps currently using that can
be made Standard Operating Procedure in the new Sales Process?
4. Are there any high quality sales presentations in use by one area in
the field that can be leveraged by all?
Back

7. Lead Generation – Overview
Demand Generation – Lead Sourcing Demand
(Inquiries) Generation
Marketing Captured Lead (MCL)
Marketing
Marketing Qualified Lead (MQL) Lead
Management
Sales Accepted Lead (SAL)
Sales Qualified Lead (SQL)
Opportunity Created
Sales Opportunity
Management
“Closed/Won”

8. Dashboard Design Guidance – BD Sales Rep
How is my overall In what part of the sales
What is my upside potential?
performance? process do I need coaching?
• Volume Potential • Win and Loss Rate • Stage Transition % and
• Last Interaction • No Decision Rate Target
• Top Target Accounts • New ‘Deal Proposals’ • Stage Durations and
• Upcoming Renewals • Target Attainment Target
• Territory Potential • SFDC Activity Levels • SFDC/Sales Aids Use
• Selling Time • Progression/Regression
• Brand Value Articulation
Am I meeting my personal Am I achieving my sales What Leads/Prospects
financial/career goals? goals? should I pursue?
• LRP/Budgeted Volumes • Pipeline Volume • Leads
• Short Term Program Targets • Closure Rate • Qualified Opportunities
• Activity Targets • SFDC Activities • Lead Age
• Bonus • Target Volume • Lead Conversion Rate
• Target Accounts
• Deal Profitability

9. Prepare for Change:
Adoption is key in E=Q*A 1
 Assemble an Expert Panel of Top Sales Reps and Sales Manager.
 Identify metrics/targets the new Sales Process will improve.
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 Develop Change and Communications Plans.
 Are other departments on board with a new Sales Process?
– What obstacles and even sabotage will be presented by other
departments like:
 Product
 Marketing
 HR
 Customer Service
 IT
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Effectiveness of a solution = Quality of the solution * Adoption of the solution Back

10. Expert Panel:
Their purpose in a project
1. Form of Discovery for internal best practices and centers
of competency
2. Trusted Source to help vet initial observations and
findings
3. Trusted Source to comment on initial solution design
and plans
4. Resources that can be used to help train during rollout
of the Sales Process
5. Form the nucleus of a pilot implementation
6. Promote the change throughout the organization
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11. Choose the Improvement Metrics
– For Sales Process, these are the usual metrics that improve:
1. Sales cycle length (World-class benchmark = 37% shorter)
2. Deal closure rate (win 48% more)
3. Average deal size (14-21% higher)
4. Average revenue per head (2x greater)
– What improvements do you think your sales force is capable of?
• Consider setting conservative targets for the first version
– Set your initial targets within first month of project, but know that
they can’t be finalized until discovery is complete – you won’t
know until later what metrics are available or feasible

12. Sample Communications Calendar

13. Design the Formal Sales Process:
Aligned with Buyer’s cycle for success
1. Document the Buyer’s process(es)
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2. Design the aligned Sales Process(es) with appropriate Exit
Criteria and Job Aids
3. If necessary, allow for product or channel variations
4. With Marketing’s help, design Sales Aids for Major Interactions
– These are stage-aligned presentations used by the Sales Reps to
move Prospects to the stage Exit Criteria).
5. Create a Sales Playbook that contains the details of each Stage,
Step and Task
6. Run a pilot using the Expert Panel as Pilot Team
Back

14. Buying & Selling Processes
Stage Names
Buying Process
1. Recognize 2. Search for 3. Evaluate 4. Resolve
5. Implement
Need Information Alternatives Concerns
1. Qualify 2. Value 4. Preserve
3. Proposal 5. Implement
Opportunity Proposition and Close
Sales Process

15. Sales Process Guidance Panel
1. Qualify 2. Value 4. Preserve
3. Proposal 5. Implement
Opportunity Proposition and Close
Description – one sentence description of the purpose of this stage
Customer Indications Strategic Sales Activities
List of steps, in order of accomplishment, that tell the
Typical Customer/Prospect Actions, statements, and
sales rep what they should be doing to move the
observations that point towards this stage being their
customer forward
current state in their buying process
Sales Aids Customer/Prospect Exit Criteria
List of the tools the sales rep should use in this stage to
help achieve the exit criteria. Description of the prospect/customer-specific actions
that indicate the buyer has moved to the next step in
their buying process and that we should move to the
Tools with an (I) indicate internal use only corresponding next stage in our selling process
Tools with an (E) indicate external use with the Internal exit criteria may also be listed here
customer/prospect

16. Implement the Sales Process:
Focus on Adoption
1. Develop Courseware and Train the Sales Force
– Use Expert Panel Members as co-instructors
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2. Execute to the Change and Communications Plans
– Heavy emphasis on post-training reinforcement that includes
weekly SM and SFE Team topic-based sessions
– Allows the general training session fire-hose effect to be
absorbed in digestible chunks
3. Have changes to the CRM software implemented in order to
align with the new Sales Process and required SPM Dashboards
4. Perform Continuous Improvement
– Requires periodic audits of use
Back

17. Sample General Training Session Agenda
Module Day Time
1: Introduction and The Buyer’s Process 1 1:00-3:00
2. Sales Process Overview 1 3:00-4:00
3: Sales Process Stage 1: Qualify Opportunity 1 4:00-6:00
4: Sales Process Stage 2: Value Proposition 2 8:00-10:30
5: Sales Process Stage 3: Proposal 2 10:30-12:00
Lunch 2 12:00-1:00
5: Sales Process Stage 3: Proposal (cont.) 2 1:00-3:30
6: Sales Process Stage 4: Preserve & Close 2 3:30-6:00
7: Sales Process Stage 5: Implement 3 8:00-9:30
8: Course Review and Wrap Up 3 9:30-12:00

18. Sample Post-Rollout Reinforcement Schedule
Weekly Call Topics
Week Starting Week Starting Week Starting
Date
7/11/2011 7/18/2011 7/25/2011
Theme Map Opportunities to Stages Buyer's Process SPM Sessions
Training on new SPM dashboards in SFDC
Re-acquaint Reps with the Buyer process and the new metrics that will be tracked.
SMs to instruct Reps to go through their
by covering slides 21-22 of Module 1 of Hands-on training with participants logged
current portfolio of Opportunities and
training. Have Reps discuss (and then add into their SFDC accounts and viewing their
Theme Specifics determine which stage they are in by using
to SFDC) the specific exit criteria that their dashboards and learning how to run
the Customer Indications and, possibly, the
buyers in current opportunities have reports and filter them. Multiple sessions
Opportunity Assessment tool.
exhibited. will occur: BD Reps, Reseller Sales Reps,
Marketer Sales Reps, SMs.
Sales Team Meeting + virtual Pilot Team Sales Team Meeting + virtual Pilot Team
Method of Delivery Live webinars.
Member. Member.
Speaker/Instructor SM + Pilot Team member. Pilot Team member of SFE Lead. SFE Team and SFDC personnel.
1. Each Rep to add in a Note the specific 1. Reps must try out their login id and
Suggested Action 1. Each Rep to have all of their Opportunities
buyer Exit Criteria to each current ensure they can see their new dashboards
Items mapped to new SFDC stages by next week.
Opportunity in SFDC. in SFDC.
One Pilot Team member from the region
should have already done this to be able to
Prework assist the SM in explaining how to do it. Also,
all Reps should read through/be familiar with
the Customer Indications of each Sales Stage.

19. Can you do this yourself?
Understand Buyer’s Process Understand Current State
Identify
Identify Lead Leverage Best
Buyer Steps, Understand Exit Determine Buyer Assess CRM Tools,
Generation Practices and
Questions, & Criteria Personas Use & Capability
Capability Sales Aids
Indications
Sales Sales Sales Mktg Ops Sales
Mktg Sales Sales Ops
Prepare for Change
Assemble Expert Choose
Improvement Develop Change & Assess Org
Panel Comms Plans Alignment
Metrics
Sales Sales Sales Sales
Ops Ops Ops
Design Implement
Develop Execute
Develop Audit Results
Buyer- Create Sales Develop & Comms & Recommend
Channel/ Pilot with &
Aligned Sales Aids & Sales Train on Change SFA/CRM
Product Expert Panel Continuously
Process w/ Playbook Courseware Management Changes
Variants Improve
Exit Criteria Plans
Sales Sales Sales Sales Sales Sales Ops Sales
Mktg Ops Ops Ops

20. Learn More
Contact us to hear the rest of the story...
Email - info@salesbenchmarkindex.com
Phone - 1-888-556-7338
Web: http://www.salesbenchmarkindex.com/
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