Sales Call Checklist

THE PREPARATION
Formulate a goal(s) of the visit and write it down
Check for practical arrangements, such a dress code
Arrange for an internal briefing to agree on the goals and propose an agenda
Issue the proposed agenda days ahead of the visit
Decide if there is a need for an NDA, carry 2-3 paper blank copies with you
Do research on the company to visit:
+ Check the web on latest press releases
+ Check with colleagues on work with related companies, investors, etc.
+ Call outside relationships to check if anything special is going on (Packeteer, Harris, other service providers, etc.)
+ Check stock price to see what kind of mood they are in
+ If they have products already, know the operator status of the previous day/week
Finally prepare a travel pack with directions, and approximate driving times

THE VISIT
Respect your customer
+ Be on-time, when late call in to let them know how late you will be
+ Make notes while being with the customer, in general ask for permission
Apply SPIN selling tools to acquire information
General information needed is:
+ Opportunity vs. timeline, how to we differentiate
+ Feature and service requirements, where to provide value add?
+ Budget allocations, which department, how much, what kind of spending cycle
+ Organization/Department structure, decision maker, informer, etc.
Summarize the meeting and agree on follow-up action points, focus at your goals/deliverables!
Schedule a follow-up meeting to go over the action points
When you leave the prospect ask yourself "what is his hobby?" You need to know how to make a personal touch at some point and I want you to make that call ahead of time. KNOW YOUR CUSTOMER.

THE FOLLOW-UP
Issue brief minutes on the meeting, not too long but with the essential information:
+ Date/Place of visit, full names/titles of people present, describe opportunity within the account vs. timeline
Actions that lead you to this goal with persons assigned
Write a thank you note to the person you visited within 1-week
+ Par 1, thank you and discussion topic description
+ Par 2, emphasize the key points, our added value followed by a short list of action points.
+ Par 3, start with "Name, I really..." and make a sincere statement where you think the relationship should go.
Follow-up on the agreed action points appropriately AND timely

Is sales 'black magic'?

For the longest time I have been amazed how people refer to sales as a 'skill you are born with', as if sales managers have magic voodoo dolls they use to generate sales. In part this is true as a major part of sales has to do with human interaction, and in a world of e-mail and text message exchange this seem to get outdated.

I am certain that as you look into your current company the VP of Marketing has an MBA, and the VP of Eng has a MSC. With the VP of sales, often having an unrelated education, it therefor is no suprise that years of experience are necessary to be in charge of one of the larger cost centers, and drive the direction of the company.

In the beginning I too got caught in the magic and believed that I was touched by the hand of god to be a 'medicine-man' and spell my 'black magic' onto the people. Yet as I learned the lessons of sales (channel / sales / account management) I found that although there certainly is an element of 'magic' to it, sales is like any other skill, and just like it can be taught and trained.

It was not too long ago that practicing medicine was so magical it would make you the #2 in the tribe. Compare that to nowadays where based on education and training, pharmacists are available 24/7 at many local grocery stores.