“We need to break into a new market, but my salespeople aren’t making any headway.”

Diversification is a sound business strategy for many companies. After all, it’s never wise to rely on one customer or market for all of your income. Consider the manufacturing shops that service the automotive industry. Those that had developed additional market opportunities were better able to survive the last economic downturn than those that had not.

For salespeople, however, entering a new market can be a serious challenge. For many it’s a rude awakening when the activities they’ve successfully pursued in the past aren’t generating the same results. It can become discouraging to the point at which the salesperson questions whether the new market is worth going after at all.

A Sandler Solution

When a company targets a new market, they need to equip their sales team with the tools they need to succeed. This effort begins with an explanation of the potential for new business that this market represents. A salesperson needs to understand the size of this opportunity so they will adopt a positive attitude toward the goal.

Think about it: We’re asking the salespeople to deploy their time and energy in a new and unfamiliar area. If they don’t have a reasonable expectation that the market represents an abundance of opportunity, why would they put forth the effort?

Likewise, it’s important that the sales team understands the nature of this new market and how it may be different from dealing with their traditional customers. So they need answers to such questions as:

• Are they selling the same products they’re familiar with, or has the company developed new or modified ones specifically for the new market? If so, what do they need to learn about these new offerings?
• How do the products and services they sell relate to the needs of the new market?
• Are the new prospects concerned about the same issues as the traditional customers, or different ones? In other words, what is the pain for which the prospect needs relief, and how do these products solve their problems?

Entering a new market usually requires a good deal of planning and preparation on the part of the sales force. The Sandler Training system teaches these and other selling skills. If you’d like to learn more, please attend our next Business Leader’s Workshop/Luncheon: Improving Sales. Simply CLICK HERE for complete information.