It seems a bit obvious to say that, for a sale to be completed, the customer needs to feel the need to buy and the supplier needs to stimulate the buyer's need and demonstrate the value of their product/service.
However, there are still many companies getting lost in this process, wasting resources and energy on actions that do not result in increased sales.
For example, imagine a duck hunt to exemplify the relationship between marketing and sales:
Marketing spreads corn to attract ducks. Sales shoots the sitting duck.
To explain: if you attract the wrong “animal” you won’t hunt taiwan email list ducks or, if you miss your shot, you scare away the duck and other potential prey. The worst scenario is to try to hunt anything that comes your way.
To encourage the right sales approach and customer needs, Howard Stevens, president of HR Chally Group, conducted a 17-year study that included interviews with more than 10,000 business executives, experts, technicians and buyers. He then teamed up with Jeff Cox, co-author of “The Goal” and “Zapp,” to turn this experience into a fictional business story called “ The Solution Quadrant .”
Evaluating the results obtained, Stevens concluded that there are four basic types of sales personalities and four types of markets, defined by the needs of customers. In his book, he talks about ideas for reformulating concepts and strategies, allowing you to position the company in relation to the needs of customers by evaluating the variables Complexity – degree of intimacy or contact that the customer wants – and Experience – level of technical knowledge of the customer.
According to Stevens, the four quadrants are as follows:
1. Closing Market
High technology and low contact
Novelty, or unique, or highly specialized products. Closing customers are confident in their own ability to apply the product. They need emotional satisfaction .
2. Consulting Market
High technology and high contact
Complex and relatively new systems. These customers want comprehensive support, before and after the sale, from competent personnel for advice and training .
3. Relationship Market
Low tech and high touch
Complex systems that are accepted and widely used. The customer is familiar with them, but wants personalized support with purchases and deliveries.
4. Showcase Market
Low tech and low touch
Standardized products for universal use. The customer knows the product and buys what he needs, according to price and convenience.
OK, you've evaluated each of the quadrants and understood which one best applies to your business.
Now it's time to understand 3 critical factors for a successful sale :
Customers who appear to be similar have different needs
Different types of customers require a different sales approach
The better the relationship between customer needs and the appropriate sales approach, the greater the success.
With the Quadrant Solution techniques exposed, you can group different customers into different brackets, evaluating the approaches of salespeople, their styles and skills, training, techniques used, etc.
By using salespeople as characters, you understand situations that may be occurring in your company and learn how to solve them.