The Importance of an Adaptive Sales Process

One of the most old-school (and, frankly, outdated) approaches to sales is creating and imposing a strict protocol and process for every sale. These narrow approaches are outdated for a reason - they simply don’t work.

The reason for this should be obvious: not every person is the same. When you create a sales process and expect it to be followed to the tee, you often find that what seems like it should work on paper isn’t aligned with the needs of your sales team or your customers.

These rigid sales systems leave no room for diverse and creative thinking. They don’t allow the unique talents and strengths of the sales team to surface. Perhaps most importantly, they don’t allow us to meet customers where they are, instead of where we think they should be.

Not All Customers Are the Same

Picture two different car dealerships. Each brings in a sales consultant to help their teams learn to sell more effectively.

At the first dealership, the consultant teaches a protocol for selling to several distinct customer personas. “Each customer will fall into one of them,” the consultant explains confidently, “and when you figure out which persona they are, this is the script you need to use.”

At the second dealership, the consultant goes over customer personas, but emphasizes that most people won’t fit exactly into one box and that they may be in different places in their car buying journey. “Ask questions that help you understand their needs,” the consultant explains, “but don’t forget to listen to what they want.”

Back at the first dealership, a woman enters saying she wants to buy an SUV. Fresh off his training a young salesman sizes her up. She’s mid-forties. Based on the personas, this was a mom looking for a car that will take her kids to school and various sports practices. She will be concerned about storage space and gas mileage. The salesman asks how many kids she has and the woman is immediately put off.

“I don’t have any kids,” she says, before repeating “I’d like to buy an SUV.”

The salesman is thrown. He’s not entirely sure what to do next, but he does have a script to follow. He starts asking her about an average day, what gas mileage she’d like, how many people regularly ride with her… Eventually, she cuts off the questions. “Look,” she says, clearly irritated. “I saw a four-door Jeep Wrangler online and I’d like to test drive it.”

The woman knows what she wants. She’s clearly done her research. She doesn’t need to be convinced. But the endless barrage of questions that don’t acknowledge what she’s saying makes it seem like the salesman doesn’t care what she wants or thinks he knows better.

When the same woman visits the second dealership, she tells a salesperson that she saw a Jeep Wrangler online and wants to test drive it. The salesperson immediately pulls out their tablet and shows her a few they have. “Did you have a specific one in mind?”

Within ten minutes, they’re in the car. As they drive, the salesperson tells the woman that she has great taste in cars. Then they ask what kind of bells and whistles she likes. She names a few, and the salesperson mentions a few extras that the more expensive model has.

In the first scenario, the salesman failed to recognize, and his training failed to explain, that not every lead will begin at the top of the funnel and not every customer will fit a set persona. Rather than making a surefire sale, he alienated a customer by placing her into a box she didn’t belong in. Meanwhile, at the second dealership, the salesperson met the woman where she was. They acted as a guide. Most importantly, they listened.

When sales leaders create overly strict protocols and scripts, they strip their salespeople of the ability to develop and use their intuitive selling abilities. When leaders trust their teams to observe and analyze a situation and focus on building relationships with customers, they find that their team is more effective at winning business.

Not All Salespeople Are the Same

Just as not all customers have the same desires, not every salesperson has the same traits or strengths.

We all have preconceived notions about what characteristics make somebody good at sales, and many of them are grounded in truth. However, that doesn’t mean there is only one way to be a good salesperson or that different personalities don’t have their place on a sales team.

Recognizing the Strengths of Your Sales Team

You want to help your salespeople grow and thrive, but forcing them to sell in a way that emphasizes their weaknesses isn’t the way to do it. Instead, discover what strengths each team member has and encourage them to further develop those skills.

Start by observing each member of your team. Are they assertive and confident? Or are they warm and inviting? Are they great at steering a conversation? Or are they excellent listeners who make customers feel heard? Do they like working with a team or by themselves? Do they appreciate feedback on their performance, or would they prefer to only be notified if there is a problem? All of this will help you understand how they’ll most effectively sell - and how you can most effectively manage them.

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A healthy relationship between sales and marketing is vital to an organization’s success. Dive deep into this effective strategy in our book  Sales & Marketing Alignment. If you'd like more insights on how you can improve your sales leadership, contact us.