The sales discovery call is critical to any sales pipeline. It’s the first step into properly qualifying if a prospect is a great fit for a company’s solutions.
A good sales discovery call can mean better client relationships and customized solutions that can satisfy their needs. It can also result in savings in time, effort, and resources should problems arise in the future.
Matching good clients with a company’s offerings can spell success, and there are several ways the sales team can do this with discovery calls.
Research
Doing proper research into an interested party is essential to the sales discovery process. Research facilitates better calls and enhances the buying process. Sales professionals get better insights into helping prospects determine better solutions to their needs.
Good research is also indicative of a company’s professionalism and can translate to better customer service.
However, research shouldn’t only focus on the company but also on the contact person. This is especially true when dealing with DMUs (decision-making units.) Knowing whom you’re talking to gives you an edge in figuring out how to engage the person.
Here are a few questions that you should answer before getting into a sales discovery call:
- Who are the company’s stakeholders?
- Who do they externally affect?
- How will your products or services potentially affect their current systems of production? Will it also affect their shareholders?
- What is the company’s market share?
- What is their vision and how does your company fit into this vision
Prospects Need a Familiar Reference
Marketers need to provide relatable examples to connect with their clients.
This could either be a peer that’s using a particular strategy to overcome a common problem or challenges in the industry.
These examples provide something that a prospect can relate to and create a more personal connection for them, especially if it’s something that their company is going through.
By providing relatable examples, especially of clients that are in the same industry like theirs, marketers also highlight the ability of the companies to provide worthwhile solutions.
Listen. Then, Listen Some More
Sometimes it’s almost tempting to start selling services right away, but marketers should try their best not to.
The purpose of the sales discovery call is to “discover” information about the potential client and use this information to customize products for them, find out about their unique needs, and if the company is a good fit for them.
Once, the conversation is dominated by the marketer, the main objective of the sales discovery call is lost.
Strive to listen to a prospect and after that, listen some more. One will find that with careful listening to other pain points – that are not just related to the solutions that one is selling – are revealed, allowing the marketer to find solutions for the prospect properly.
Give Them Free Advice
Prospects are in the market for solutions, and there is nothing wrong with providing them with free advice on how to go about certain problems in their company.
This tactic establishes your company as an industry expert and builds rapport with the client. Prospects
However, never provide unsolicited advice; it always has to be within the natural limits of the flow of the conversation.
Not everything has to be behind a paywall, and by giving a little, you can receive more.
The Turnover Is Important
A good sales discovery call is usually followed up with other exchanges of information and conversations while they are onboarded to the company. However, this is where potential problems may arise.
Prospects don’t like repeating themselves. If they have to explain their needs and ask the same questions again and again as they move through different departments, it could ruin the sale altogether.
Aim to consolidate all the information that you have about them as they move through the different steps in your pipeline. This omnichannel-like approach gives them a seamless transition in your organization, and it helps keep your customer service experience smooth.
End the Goal With a Tangible Objective
Whether it’s moving the prospect further through the pipeline or simply setting up another schedule for the next call, each sales discovery call has to end with a purpose.
Apart from instances where a prospect is found not to be a good fit for the company, ending each call with a purpose facilitates converting a prospect into a sale.
You could schedule a meeting with another member of their team, get them in touch with members of your team, send them a draft proposal, etc. Whatever it is, it has to set up the next point of communication with the prospect.
Lead Nurture
Offer to send them a resource that can help them with their questions after a sales discovery call. This could be a case study or information that can continue to give them insight and value, even after you’ve gotten off the phone with them.
This further solidifies a company’s reputation as one that provides value.
Sales discovery calls are important parts of a lead generation strategy, and this is most especially true for B2B businesses. A lot of companies invest heavily in lead generation and sales calls because they lead to real results.
At the end of the day, your team will also benefit from these calls. No prospect is better than a prospect with a bad fit in the company.
