December 6, 2016
5 Tactics for driving end of year sales success
December is typically crunch time for sales reps and managers who work on the front line. While most people are thinking about their Christmas shopping and festive party plans, you’re caught up in end of year anxieties about hitting your annual sales targets. With just a few weeks to go, you need to close sales pronto, but you’re getting rebuffed by prospects who want to put buying decisions on hold till the new year. Things start to get real tense as you’re weighed down by the pressure to do more with less, and do it yesterday!
Need some help to drive up your win rates? Here are 5 tactics you can use to make quota and finish the year on a sales high.
1. Prune your pipeline
The clock is ticking and having too many opportunities in your pipeline at this time of year can stall your progress. Don’t waste time trying to target anyone and everyone as this will just dilute your attention. Focus on the deals that are most likely to close this year, and remove any less certain prospects from your December pipeline. You can always follow up with them next year. Use the Progress Percentage feature in DropTask [now Ayoa] to identify which deals are near completion in the sales cycle. In addition, a quick analysis will help determine which prospects are the best fit and have the most urgent need for your product or service. Look at your last 10-20 leads and identify some criteria to describe those that went on to close successfully. For example, were the majority startups or established businesses? Which departments tend to respond better? What’s the average sales price? And so on. Use this customer profile as a guide for directing your primary sales activity.
2. Get creative with incentives
There’s fun and festivity in the air, so now’s a good time to think of creative ways to nudge your prospective customers to say yes. Consider special holiday discounts to encourage prompt purchase, free shipping/returns, competitions, giveaways, flexible payment schemes and add-ons; or bundle your products into new combinations so you can sell at a higher price point. Flash sales via email and social media are a great way to create a sense of urgency and encourage last-minute buys. According to a study by Monetate, 56% of businesses agree that flash sale campaigns tend to have better response rates than regular campaigns. Shorter duration flash sales – say three hours – are particularly successful. With DropTask [now Ayoa] Notifications, you can keep a tight rein on all your campaigns and communicate available offers to the sales team in real time, so everyone can capitalize on a more receptive ‘holiday happy’ market.
3. Automate sales workflow
The best sales teams operate within a standardized process that defines a particular sequence of steps – Research, Approach, Qualify, Presentation/Product Info, Close, Aftersales/Follow-up. In the mad rush to drive immediate year-end sales, however, this process can often go to pot, and with it, so do the chances of achieving customer satisfaction. Technology is valuable in helping to automate workflow for your reps. Even simple tools like email templates can ease the pressure. By cutting out extra procedures and reporting, sales people won’t get bogged down by the daily grind and can devote more energy to what they do best – selling. The DropTask [now Ayoa] Workflow Board is a great feature for enabling up-to-the-minute tracking of each stage of the sales workflow, without overcomplicating things. In just one glance, you can quickly evaluate your key sales activities and progress, and realign as necessary to meet your goals.
4. Remove roadblocks
As crazy as things are right now, it’s worth taking time to review all the proposals and campaigns you made throughout the year to identify any significant roadblocks that held your prospects back from purchasing. Make notes of the challenges you faced and what worked well in response. What lessons can you take on board to make this final month a winner? Assist your team in overcoming any obstacles and set clear metrics to hold your sales reps accountable, for instance, outline targets for number of calls or appointments. Support and accountability for tasks can be easily administered through DropTask [now Ayoa] by establishing effort and urgency levels, attaching files/notes, determining task dependencies and redistributing tasks between team members.
5. Celebrate wins!
People are motivated by recognition and rewards, and this is especially true for salespeople! A little celebration can mean a lot at the end of the year, when the atmosphere turns festive and joyful. It’s the perfect time to thank your reps for their hard work and reward wins to keep everyone revved up and hungry. Extend the same celebratory spirit to your loyal customers by reaching out to thank them for their custom, wish them ‘happy holidays’, or even send a surprise gift. A small gesture can go a long way in cementing good relationships for the future.
Any other tips for boosting sales success as we reach the end of 2016? We’d love to hear about them.