In prehistoric times, humans sold animal hides for grain. Today, selling is still the foundation of the economic world. But few people really understand our role. We must give new value to selling and for that, Symbiomax is our best instrument.

The course point by point

Basic Concepts in Sales of Technology (solutions and consulting)

The sale of technologies and consulting services has several important characteristics. It is a complex type of sale. When you sell computers or other technologies, the client expects you to have the skills and competence to give him the needed information that will help him make a good decision.
Another characteristic is the fact that microcomputing has revolutionized the business world in many ways. The functionalities offered to small businesses and to the general population, are certainly changing the world. But for marketing purposes, constant decreases in price have sent the message that prices will come down forever.
The sales personnel, making sure to give the client adequate answers, also needs to remain motivated. In a hyperactive market where clients have more and more difficulties understanding price variations in technology, salesmen must keep their integrity despite the clients’ misinformation. It is not accurate to say that a client is not honest, but that most clients are misinformed.

In this course you will learn how to use all aspects of your offer, so to keep the client in your sphere of influence.

The principles of selling to companies

Selling to a company is very different from selling to an individual as concerns how to earn their trust. Using a human point of view, it will be possible for you to establish solid links between two companies. You must bring back the client to a person to person link.

You will learn here how the person in front of you may read his needs as an individual working for a company and also represent the company looking for a supplier. It is often said a solution must be sold. For that you must understand the challenges of the problem. When you sell to a company, this is even more important. If you are able to evaluate the position and the needs of your contact as they relate to the client’s company, you will speak a language that the client will listen to.

Overcome prejudices related to selling

Almost every day you will face prejudices about selling. We will work together on this important point. You will learn to make the difference between your own prejudices and those of your client, and will be in a better position with your potential clients. You will also learn to overcome the consequences of such prejudices.

Time and stress management

One of the most difficult element to overcome, is stress related to performance. We will take a new look at this aspect of your profession. Stress is also in great part related to time management, priorities and communication with your clients. There are proven methods that will give you the freedom that you need. For exemple, by eliminating the stress factors related to performance, you will be much more efficient. Time is an other foe that you will face every day. There are ways to understand and reduce stress due to time mismanagement.

How to choose and manage your objectives

Choosing your objectives is very important. Aiming well is as important as in it is in an archery competition. Learning to aim well when you are selling is one of the several qualities needed for success. Our method will allow you to manage your objectives according to your capabilities and your daily reality.

Identify and Record potential buyers (Qualification)

During traditional sales courses, qualifying the client is one of the most important aspects. But it is also a very badly misunderstood step of the selling process. Its role is extremely important.

Qualification must also be considered for real persons. All aspects must be considered. A buyer is a person who needs to fill a need; he is looking for a solution to a problem. And the buyer has several objectives to meet. He must satisfy the requirements of his bosses. He will be evaluated on his results. He has to make sure he is making the right choice.

How to eliminate the competition in the sales process

One of the most important parts of the Symbiomax system is to persuade the client to become like your partner in your client salesman relationship. This way of working greatly increases your chances to conclude the sale and to show your offer is better than the competition’s. This partnership relationship with the client opens the way to exclusivity. When learning to develop this relationship with a potential client, you will make sure to increase your sale conclusion ratio.

The principles of communication in sales

Nothing is more important than communication in sales. It is the map that helps you find the treasure. To choose the words well, when to say them, lead the conversation to the important points and many other aspects of communication determine the course to follow for a client. People tend to believe what you are saying. So your communication, verbal, non verbal or written, represents a great responsibility. How to communicate well will be everywhere in the course. You will now understand the challenges and traps, as well as,learn how not to fall in them.

How to establish a relationship of trust with your client.

It is sometimes difficult to understand why your client has decided to buy from your competitor. You were sure that you had the best solution, that the price was rightand competitive. All that and many other reasons.

You will often find the answer by looking at the trust factor. Whether you are a contractor or an employee, the client-salesman relationship is a business relationship. Trust is the foundation on which the business world has always turned and you must never forget the importance of this unwritten rule between two persons and the companies that they represent.

Trust often comes naturally, but sometimes it must first be established. The salesman must find the way to establish this special link with his client that gets you closer to a favourable decision. But, the salesman must keep this relationship alive. This course will show how a client accepts to give his trust and a how a salesperson can keep it. It is important never to forget that your client may have this same type of relationship with your competitor. This is where the Symbiomax system becomes important. Symbiomax allows you to understand the structure of such a commitment and to evaluate your credibility and your competitor’s.

Efficient face to face meetings

This concerns you as a person. How do you present yourself? Where should you improve? It is very important for you to objectively evaluate your impact in an interview.

The sale of technological solutions is getting speedier. But the client needs more and more to keep a symbiotic relationship with a person in whom he has confidence, in order to make an educated decision. Even more so, when it is an important purchase in terms of price or functionality. Meetings with the client are very important in such circumstances.

You must know how to conduct an interview, whether to learn how to shake the client’s hand, where to make it, reading of the client’s body language or his capability to read yours. The client often knows better than the salesman the little games played during interviews and the way to take control of a situation. This is why it is so important to learn all parts of the interview.

The client’s interventions (objections)

Sometimes clients ask questions that are more like objections. In traditional sales courses, salesmen learn how to “answer to objections”. But the client is not always objecting. He is asking real questions and gives you the opportunity to inform him. You must learn to make the difference between legitimate questions and objections. Even more, you must also learn how make sure the client is sincere in his desire to buy YOUR solution.

When and how should you conclude a sale

The conclusion of the sale, also known as the “closing” of the sale is the most mysterious part of the process. It is very simple but it depends directly on the previous steps.

This part of the approach is the shortest, but also the most delicate. The client often leaves just before signing a contract. To avoid this, you must be well prepared. You will learn here how each step of the sale leads you to this moment where you will be rewarded for your efforts.

Positioning your products and services

Despite the importance of this part of their work, many salesmen rely on the marketing specialists of their company to define where to position the products they sell. Small entrepreneurs rely on their knowledge of the market and often only on their instinct.

However, good positioning of the product or service executed by the salesman will allow to qualify each situation better. The clients are often better informed of what is offered in the market than the salesman himself. This should not be. You will learn a simple and practical method to keep an eye on the products that you are selling, what products the client is looking for, what is offered elsewhere and who wants it.

Efficient Networking

To succeed is sales, you must know people and how to meet them. You have to find how to meet them or to attract them. You must do it so that it is worth it, without losing your integrity.

Basic principles must be respected. First you must deal with your own fears and especially not show them. You will learn in this course how to initiate simple yet efficient actions.

Cold calling : its challenges and solutions

There is no magic solution that will make this part of our profession lose its importance. Direct solicitation is the most hated part of selling. But it is essential to learn how to meet people we don’t know and sell to them. There are ways to make the experience enjoyable.

Some companies hire sales specialists. But the results are often disappointing. Often, the fact that the first meeting took place with another person slows the process and the sale can even be lost. Imagine the client like a bird coming out of his shell; the first person he sees is for him the most important.

Your fears are legitimate and even normal. However, it is possible to learn how to deal with them.

The body language

Communication between two persons generally solicits the unconscious at 90%. The body reacts in an unconscious way during meetings and gives even more clues than the words used. You will learn to read body language.

This faculty to see the non verbal will help you in many parts of your life. It will be useful during your meetings with your clients, but also to help you better understand the persons who could have an influence on the course of your life.

If you have an important purchase to make, you will be able to reverse the roles and to read the real intentions of the person in front of you.