Sales Management can learn by example from Henry Ford. Almost a hundred years ago Henry Ford revolutionized an industry. This allowed the Ford Motor Company to gain market share that remains strong today. Although Henry Ford didnt invent the automobile, he did create the assembly line. The assembly line concept continues to thrive today. With todays computer and software technology, sales management can do similar things in sales. The basic concepts and principles are the same. If you adopt these ideas you can increase market share in your industry. Sales Management Must Start With a Proven Sales Process At the Ford assembly line, there is a sequence of automobile parts that must be assembled in a specific order to complete a car. This is similar to the sales process. The sale team must follow the sales process in a specific order to complete a sale. If sales management doesnt have a proven sales process, how can they expect to increase their sales production? They cant! Therefore, the first step in automating sales is creating or mapping the sales process. One of the challenges sales management has is making salespeople follow a sales process. As with any system, salespeople must learn to do everything that needs to be done and when it needs to be done. Fortunately, computer technology and contact management software can help solve many of these challenges. When done correctly, salespeople will adapt to an automated (computer) assistant that performs their routine tasks. Automating Routine Sales Tasks Automating routine sales tasks will eliminate wasted sales time and allow for more belly to belly sales time. For many salespeople, even the simple and routine task of writing a sales letter is difficult. When we can automate these routine tasks, a salesperson can be in front of more customers and prospects. When salespeople make more contacts, the sales team can dramatically improve sales. There are countless sales tools a business can adopt in the realm of sales and marketing automation. Some of them work and others wont. If you search for a sales automation solution, be sure it follows a proven sales process. Mapping the events of the sales process isnt easy. However, the benefits of having an automated sales process management system are enormous. |
