7 stages in the classic sales system
14.03.2025 17:11
There are many techniques that help sales managers build long-term and trusting relationships with customers. The choice of model depends on many factors, including the specifics of the market, product, target audience, business resources, location, etc. An effective seller must understand the needs of customers and find the right solution for them.
Be that as it may, many sellers, especially at the beginning, have similar problems. So, do not reinvent the wheel. Start with mastering the theoretical basis, namely with understanding the scheme or algorithm of sales. In total, there are seven stages in the sales system.
1. Actualization, or establishing contact
At the first stage, the sales manager must interest the buyer.
According to the well-known AIDA model, A - Attention is attention. It is worth making a short mini-presentation of yourself - who you are, from which company, and why your product can be useful to the buyer. At this step, the most important thing is to find common ground. Any unremarkable, at first glance, little things play a role: intonation, timbre of voice. If it is a conversation in the store - the appearance and manner of the seller.
2. Anamnesis, or identification of customer problems
A professional seller treats a customer like a doctor treats a patient. After the contact is established, the "diagnosis" of the buyer begins - identifying his "pains", needs and problems and the best ways of "treatment". The right questions are the key to the deal. Examples of such questions can be found in the masterpiece of sales - Neil Rackham's book "SPIN sales".
- The conversation is built on the principle of "from general to specific". You can use the following types of questions (or scripts):
- Open-ended questions. You need to find out what the client is looking for and wants. Options: "What product do you choose?", "Why do you choose it?", "How do you plan to use it?".
- Alternative questions with a controlled choice. You offer the client a choice from what you have to offer. Options: "Do you need a big or small one?", "What is important for you in the product, and what is secondary?".
- Closed questions. If the client is not inclined to dialogue, your task is to ask questions that have an affirmative answer: "yes" or "no". Options: "Let me send you a presentation, introduce you to the catalog".
3. Summarizing
Usually sellers skip this step. However, according to psychologists, summarizing is of great importance in the development of further communication.
You summarize what you heard - what product the client needs and what result he expects. This will be useful both for you to compile a "profile" of the client and for the buyer to solve his problem.
4. Product presentation
At this stage, you form a specific offer for the client based on the collected data. To make your presentation look natural and have an effect, it should be adapted to the needs of the client. You should emphasize the most important product benefits and characteristics for the buyer, while not listing all the properties of the product.
Wrong. The phone model is equipped with a liquid crystal screen with IPS matrix.
Correct. The smartphone has good color reproduction, the picture on it is bright and juicy. Watching movies on such a screen is a pleasure.
Remember - sell not the characteristics of the product, but the solution of specific problems of the client with the help of this product.
"Potential customers are less interested in 'seeing how it works' and more interested in making sure you understand their needs, have a full understanding of their requirements and that the product will work." Dan Tyre, HubSpot employee
5. Selling the price, or working with objections
At the stage of announcing the price, customers usually have many questions and objections. And you, as brand ambassadors, need to be able to dispel their doubts. Often, the buyer is not sure about the justification of the price and the product, but hides this fact by making claims about the quality of the product. It is important to recognize the true reason for the objection and offer the best solution to the problem.
By asking questions, you may find out that you misunderstood the customer's need, or the product does not solve his problem. In the process of communication, most objections are removed, hidden fears of a person are revealed, and trust in the product is gained.
By the way, prepare scripts for each objection in advance. To do this, analyze in detail the portrait of your target customer, and at what stages of the sale an objection may arise.
6. Follow-up or closing the deal
Contact is established, you have told about the offer, dispelled doubts. It remains to bring the deal to an end. There are several ways to complete the sale:
The simplest is the method of direct transaction: "Well, do we place an order?".
Set a deadline. The seller says that now the product is sold at a reduced price, in the near future the price will increase. This technique works best during a sale.
Discuss an action plan with the client. Example: today we conclude a contract, tomorrow the goods are delivered to you, and the day after tomorrow you start using it.
Offer a test drive. The client gets into a situation where he can feel that he already has the product: driving a car, tasting ice cream, etc. After such an experience, it is much easier for him to decide to buy.
The technique of three "YES". People are inert by nature. The more of your questions a person answers in the affirmative, the easier it is for them to agree with you further. Example:
- Is the color of the car nice?
-Yes.
- The wheels are the size you wanted, right?
-Yes.
- And the price is right, right?
-Yes. -Yes.
- Well, let's make an application!
Summing up the advantages. If the client does not dare to buy, the seller can once again talk about the important advantages of the product for the client, as if summing up the presentation.
7. Cross-sell and Up-sell (additional stage)
This step is not included in the classic sales scheme. It is necessary if the seller intends to increase the average purchase check.
Cross-sell is the sale of goods related to the main one. You should move to this stage only when the seller has worked out all the objections and is sure that the customer will definitely buy the product.
Up-sell is the sale of more expensive goods. It is also worth offering the client to buy more expensive goods after all objections have been worked out and the decision to buy has been made. If the offer comes before all objections are removed, it is likely that the customer will refuse to make any purchases at all.
All these factors listed above affect the overall impression of your store. And if something goes wrong (sellers are rude or ignore the buyer), then the consumer, who could regularly bring profit, will no longer come to the store.
The division of sales into stages allows you to better work out different situations with sellers. But understanding the algorithm alone is not enough for lead generation. Success comes to the one who perfectly knows different sales techniques (or at least one), knows the product perfectly and analyzes contacts with customers every time. And, of course, who constantly makes efforts and just takes and does.
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Как раз на эту тему мы много и подробно говорили в Торгсофт подкасте "Как найти хорошего продавца": https://torgsoft.ua/articles/podcasts/torgsoft-talks-30/
Класична система мені дуже цікава Підкажіть пряме посилання на ресурси де розглянені інші класичні завдання продаж та системи продаж І куди можно скинути символічну фінансову винагороду Дяка!