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Acquiring New Customers: The Impact Strategy and Process have on Growing the Top Line
Janek Performance GroupContributors: Nick Kane and Justin Zappulla© August 2012
As we begin to make our way out of some exceedingly challenging times and work through an
assortment of sales and business challenges, one issue continues to stay at the top of most lists:
the acquisition of new customers to grow the top line. As we know, new customers mean new sales.
Along with customer retention and growing relationships, acquiring new customers is one of the
most effective ways to keep the business thriving and ensure long-term success. Unfortunately, it
can also be one of the most challenging and costly activities.
In order to produce new client relationships, your company needs to emphasize its value proposition
and target those prospects that are highly likely to value that offer to create a sound sales strategy.
This includes clarifying the company’s value proposition in a meaningful way so that it differentiates
its products and services from the competition. In addition, it is important to manage the pursuit,
that is, to align the strategy with the sales processes and develop an effective approach for seeking
higher value prospects.
This white paper will explain how a company can acquire new customers by clarifying its sales
strategy and seeing to its effective execution through alignment of the sales process.
At IssueMany sales leaders we’ve worked with find themselves so involved in the execution of sales activity
that they neglect to revisit two key questions. Do I have a clearly defined and current sales strategy?
And, are my sales processes in alignment with the strategy? Unless and until the answer to both of
these questions is yes, it is not yet time to focus on tactics and/or skill development. Unfortunately,
this is one of the most common mistakes we see sales leaders make when looking to acquire more
new customers.
Let’s begin with some definition.
Generally speaking, a sales strategy is a plan that defines the value
proposition so it can differentiate the company's products/services in the
marketplace and identifies key target markets that are likely to “value,”
or respond to, the value proposition. This is the first step in helping the
sales organization engage prospects in meaningful ways while being able
to differentiate itself from the competition.
The sales process on the other hand, similar to any other business process, is a series of steps designed
to lead to a desired outcome. More specifically, the sales process defines the rules of engagement
around prospecting, selling, and retaining customers. It details the stages, individuals involved,
activities, available tools, resources, and the definition of precise outcomes and performance indicators. Business leaders further understand that this challenge of prospecting and acquiring new customers
can be a daunting and costly task. Let’s take a closer look at what is involved when addressing sales
strategy and process in order to acquire new customers and grow the top line.
The SolutionSales Strategy Clarification
Time and time again we see sales organizations invest time and money into improving the
“execution phase” of the sales performance cycle, only to later conclude that it was the strategy
itself that was flawed from the beginning. Additionally, it is important to acknowledge that not
all strategies begin flawed. Rather, we have found that they do not receive the testing required
or are not clarified often enough.
There are quite a few reasons for clarifying your sales strategy on an ongoing basis.
In our opinion, here are the top three:
Your key assumptions are no longer accurateToo many times we see organizations making decisions based upon outdated and
simply inaccurate assumptions. Before coming to an agreement on an approach,
make certain to validate your assumptions within today’s environment.
New threats are present in the marketplaceAs we all know, the marketplace is continually evolving. In order to develop an
effective sales strategy it is important to identify new threats that emerge.
These threats include: competition, promotions, public/industry policy changes,
new products releases, advances in technology, innovation, and more.
The perception of your value proposition has changedYour customers' needs are changing. As a result, the way in which your value
proposition meets their needs will likely change as well. While assessing your sales
strategy, solicit feedback from your customers on the “perceived value” of your
value proposition with respect to solving their problems.
A clarified sales strategy ensures you have a strong value proposition that differentiates you from
the competition and one that will truly resonate within the market place. In addition, your sales
strategy will identify a segment or segments of customers who are most likely to “value” your value
proposition. However, before you unleash your sales force to acquire these new found prospects,
you need to ensure your sales process is in complete alignment and supports your strategy.
Sales Process Alignment Just as sales representatives must tailor or adjust their presentations to a specific client, so too must
a company align its sales processes with its sales strategy. A defined sales process will provide the
sales team with a road map on how to execute the strategy in the most effective way. Best in class
sales processes include clearly defined stages with activities, skills, resources, and points of measurement.
Let’s take a closer look at each.
Stage:The creation of stages is a way of breaking down the end-to-end
sales process in smaller, more manageable segments. It also helps
sales reps and coaches improve performance by working on specific
stages needing attention. While one rep may thrive at identifying
and qualifying prospects, another may be better at presenting and
closing. This becomes more and more evident as you break down
the stages of the process.
When you look at the sales process from end-to-end, it can be
quite lengthy and complex. Typically it includes several stages with
a significant number of activities, events, people, tools, and
resources—engaging at different levels over a given period of time.
Activity:Now that you have segmented the end-to-end sales process into stages, next take a close look at
each stage to determine what is required to ensure a successful outcome. When defining activities,
document the what, who, and when. Be as specific as possible.
This level of detail will ensure the team understands their role and objectives, as well as those of
others, to achieve the desired results. Typical sales process activities include: industry and customer
research, meetings, emails, phone calls, analysis, and proposal writing. The more specific you can be
about the activities, the better.
Skill:The list of activities defines the what, who and when. However, we find best-in-class sales processes
always document the skills required to carry through the activities.
This extra step provides great value in helping the sales team execute and improve performance over the long term.
Not only will this help the sales rep understand specifically where he or she should focus in order to
arrive at a more favorable outcome, it is also quite helpful for the sales coaches, who are typically
front-line sales managers.
As a sales manager, if you can measure the quality of sales activity stage by stage and rep by rep,
you can be prescriptive and strategic about your coaching efforts. Additionally, this information
should be shared with your company's Learning & Development division to ensure that group aligns
development paths and training programs to support your efforts with the sales team.
Acquiring New Customers: The Impact Strategy and Process have on Growing the Top Line
1
Resource:Here you will want to list the resources that are available to a sales rep at a given stage in the sales
process. Resources are also commonly referred to as enablers. Your focus here is to understand the
resources available to the sales team to enable them to be more successful in a given stage. Typical
resources include: marketing material, available partners, systems to access, job-aides, technology,
business intelligence, and organizational tools.
We have also found that the more complex the sales environment is, the more important these
resources become. As such, they need to be considered carefully.
Measurement:Points of measurement are arguable one of the most important aspects to the sales process.
They not only tell you what to expect or what happened but how effective it was. We’ve all heard it
before—"What doesn’t get measured, doesn’t get done." While we tend to agree with this state-
ment, we feel there is a larger opportunity for organizations to leverage this information differently.
We find that organizations tend to “manage and evaluate” things that have already happened.
We refer to these as lagging indicators.
Although there is certain value in knowing what happened so that you can make adjustments in the future, we find it is more valuable to measure things in the moment, so that you can adjust along the way.
We encourage organizations to measure leading indicators. Leading indicators give you insight into
things that happen or are happening in the sales process before a decision is made. This information
is much more actionable, as it enables you to adjust along the way in order to achieve a more
desirable outcome. Here are a few examples of each type:
In ClosingTo achieve top line growth and acquire new customers, we at Janek Performance Group feel it is
critical that strategies are clarified and processes are aligned to effectively implement the strategy.
Sales professionals tasked to execute these processes must be equipped with the skills, tools, and
behaviors to do so effectively.
This alignment creates synergies at all levels of the sales organization and will ensure maximum success when acquiring new customers.
Executives and sales managers: re-evaluate your assumptions, the current competition in the
marketplace, and your customers' perception of your value proposition. Break down and define
with detail the stages of the sales process and the activities associated with each one. Assign the
appropriate skills to each activity. Finally, inventory your resources and calibrate your measurements
and timetables.
This task is no doubt challenging and requires an investment of time; nonetheless, it is absolutely
critical. Creating or re-focusing your sales strategy to provide a clear definition and purpose, and
aligning your sales processes with that strategy is an investment that every successful company
undertakes. Janek Performance Group can assist you to do the same for your sales organization.
© 2012 Janek Performance Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
As we begin to make our way out of some exceedingly challenging times and work through an
assortment of sales and business challenges, one issue continues to stay at the top of most lists:
the acquisition of new customers to grow the top line. As we know, new customers mean new sales.
Along with customer retention and growing relationships, acquiring new customers is one of the
most effective ways to keep the business thriving and ensure long-term success. Unfortunately, it
can also be one of the most challenging and costly activities.
In order to produce new client relationships, your company needs to emphasize its value proposition
and target those prospects that are highly likely to value that offer to create a sound sales strategy.
This includes clarifying the company’s value proposition in a meaningful way so that it differentiates
its products and services from the competition. In addition, it is important to manage the pursuit,
that is, to align the strategy with the sales processes and develop an effective approach for seeking
higher value prospects.
This white paper will explain how a company can acquire new customers by clarifying its sales
strategy and seeing to its effective execution through alignment of the sales process.
At IssueMany sales leaders we’ve worked with find themselves so involved in the execution of sales activity
that they neglect to revisit two key questions. Do I have a clearly defined and current sales strategy?
And, are my sales processes in alignment with the strategy? Unless and until the answer to both of
these questions is yes, it is not yet time to focus on tactics and/or skill development. Unfortunately,
this is one of the most common mistakes we see sales leaders make when looking to acquire more
new customers.
Let’s begin with some definition.
Generally speaking, a sales strategy is a plan that defines the value
proposition so it can differentiate the company's products/services in the
marketplace and identifies key target markets that are likely to “value,”
or respond to, the value proposition. This is the first step in helping the
sales organization engage prospects in meaningful ways while being able
to differentiate itself from the competition.
The sales process on the other hand, similar to any other business process, is a series of steps designed
to lead to a desired outcome. More specifically, the sales process defines the rules of engagement
around prospecting, selling, and retaining customers. It details the stages, individuals involved,
activities, available tools, resources, and the definition of precise outcomes and performance indicators. Business leaders further understand that this challenge of prospecting and acquiring new customers
can be a daunting and costly task. Let’s take a closer look at what is involved when addressing sales
strategy and process in order to acquire new customers and grow the top line.
The SolutionSales Strategy Clarification
Time and time again we see sales organizations invest time and money into improving the
“execution phase” of the sales performance cycle, only to later conclude that it was the strategy
itself that was flawed from the beginning. Additionally, it is important to acknowledge that not
all strategies begin flawed. Rather, we have found that they do not receive the testing required
or are not clarified often enough.
There are quite a few reasons for clarifying your sales strategy on an ongoing basis.
In our opinion, here are the top three:
Your key assumptions are no longer accurateToo many times we see organizations making decisions based upon outdated and
simply inaccurate assumptions. Before coming to an agreement on an approach,
make certain to validate your assumptions within today’s environment.
New threats are present in the marketplaceAs we all know, the marketplace is continually evolving. In order to develop an
effective sales strategy it is important to identify new threats that emerge.
These threats include: competition, promotions, public/industry policy changes,
new products releases, advances in technology, innovation, and more.
The perception of your value proposition has changedYour customers' needs are changing. As a result, the way in which your value
proposition meets their needs will likely change as well. While assessing your sales
strategy, solicit feedback from your customers on the “perceived value” of your
value proposition with respect to solving their problems.
A clarified sales strategy ensures you have a strong value proposition that differentiates you from
the competition and one that will truly resonate within the market place. In addition, your sales
strategy will identify a segment or segments of customers who are most likely to “value” your value
proposition. However, before you unleash your sales force to acquire these new found prospects,
you need to ensure your sales process is in complete alignment and supports your strategy.
Sales Process Alignment Just as sales representatives must tailor or adjust their presentations to a specific client, so too must
a company align its sales processes with its sales strategy. A defined sales process will provide the
sales team with a road map on how to execute the strategy in the most effective way. Best in class
sales processes include clearly defined stages with activities, skills, resources, and points of measurement.
Let’s take a closer look at each.
Stage:The creation of stages is a way of breaking down the end-to-end
sales process in smaller, more manageable segments. It also helps
sales reps and coaches improve performance by working on specific
stages needing attention. While one rep may thrive at identifying
and qualifying prospects, another may be better at presenting and
closing. This becomes more and more evident as you break down
the stages of the process.
When you look at the sales process from end-to-end, it can be
quite lengthy and complex. Typically it includes several stages with
a significant number of activities, events, people, tools, and
resources—engaging at different levels over a given period of time.
Activity:Now that you have segmented the end-to-end sales process into stages, next take a close look at
each stage to determine what is required to ensure a successful outcome. When defining activities,
document the what, who, and when. Be as specific as possible.
This level of detail will ensure the team understands their role and objectives, as well as those of
others, to achieve the desired results. Typical sales process activities include: industry and customer
research, meetings, emails, phone calls, analysis, and proposal writing. The more specific you can be
about the activities, the better.
Skill:The list of activities defines the what, who and when. However, we find best-in-class sales processes
always document the skills required to carry through the activities.
This extra step provides great value in helping the sales team execute and improve performance over the long term.
Not only will this help the sales rep understand specifically where he or she should focus in order to
arrive at a more favorable outcome, it is also quite helpful for the sales coaches, who are typically
front-line sales managers.
As a sales manager, if you can measure the quality of sales activity stage by stage and rep by rep,
you can be prescriptive and strategic about your coaching efforts. Additionally, this information
should be shared with your company's Learning & Development division to ensure that group aligns
development paths and training programs to support your efforts with the sales team.
2
Resource:Here you will want to list the resources that are available to a sales rep at a given stage in the sales
process. Resources are also commonly referred to as enablers. Your focus here is to understand the
resources available to the sales team to enable them to be more successful in a given stage. Typical
resources include: marketing material, available partners, systems to access, job-aides, technology,
business intelligence, and organizational tools.
We have also found that the more complex the sales environment is, the more important these
resources become. As such, they need to be considered carefully.
Measurement:Points of measurement are arguable one of the most important aspects to the sales process.
They not only tell you what to expect or what happened but how effective it was. We’ve all heard it
before—"What doesn’t get measured, doesn’t get done." While we tend to agree with this state-
ment, we feel there is a larger opportunity for organizations to leverage this information differently.
We find that organizations tend to “manage and evaluate” things that have already happened.
We refer to these as lagging indicators.
Although there is certain value in knowing what happened so that you can make adjustments in the future, we find it is more valuable to measure things in the moment, so that you can adjust along the way.
We encourage organizations to measure leading indicators. Leading indicators give you insight into
things that happen or are happening in the sales process before a decision is made. This information
is much more actionable, as it enables you to adjust along the way in order to achieve a more
desirable outcome. Here are a few examples of each type:
In ClosingTo achieve top line growth and acquire new customers, we at Janek Performance Group feel it is
critical that strategies are clarified and processes are aligned to effectively implement the strategy.
Sales professionals tasked to execute these processes must be equipped with the skills, tools, and
behaviors to do so effectively.
This alignment creates synergies at all levels of the sales organization and will ensure maximum success when acquiring new customers.
Executives and sales managers: re-evaluate your assumptions, the current competition in the
marketplace, and your customers' perception of your value proposition. Break down and define
with detail the stages of the sales process and the activities associated with each one. Assign the
appropriate skills to each activity. Finally, inventory your resources and calibrate your measurements
and timetables.
This task is no doubt challenging and requires an investment of time; nonetheless, it is absolutely
critical. Creating or re-focusing your sales strategy to provide a clear definition and purpose, and
aligning your sales processes with that strategy is an investment that every successful company
undertakes. Janek Performance Group can assist you to do the same for your sales organization.
Acquiring New Customers: The Impact Strategy and Process have on Growing the Top Line
© 2012 Janek Performance Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
As we begin to make our way out of some exceedingly challenging times and work through an
assortment of sales and business challenges, one issue continues to stay at the top of most lists:
the acquisition of new customers to grow the top line. As we know, new customers mean new sales.
Along with customer retention and growing relationships, acquiring new customers is one of the
most effective ways to keep the business thriving and ensure long-term success. Unfortunately, it
can also be one of the most challenging and costly activities.
In order to produce new client relationships, your company needs to emphasize its value proposition
and target those prospects that are highly likely to value that offer to create a sound sales strategy.
This includes clarifying the company’s value proposition in a meaningful way so that it differentiates
its products and services from the competition. In addition, it is important to manage the pursuit,
that is, to align the strategy with the sales processes and develop an effective approach for seeking
higher value prospects.
This white paper will explain how a company can acquire new customers by clarifying its sales
strategy and seeing to its effective execution through alignment of the sales process.
At IssueMany sales leaders we’ve worked with find themselves so involved in the execution of sales activity
that they neglect to revisit two key questions. Do I have a clearly defined and current sales strategy?
And, are my sales processes in alignment with the strategy? Unless and until the answer to both of
these questions is yes, it is not yet time to focus on tactics and/or skill development. Unfortunately,
this is one of the most common mistakes we see sales leaders make when looking to acquire more
new customers.
Let’s begin with some definition.
Generally speaking, a sales strategy is a plan that defines the value
proposition so it can differentiate the company's products/services in the
marketplace and identifies key target markets that are likely to “value,”
or respond to, the value proposition. This is the first step in helping the
sales organization engage prospects in meaningful ways while being able
to differentiate itself from the competition.
The sales process on the other hand, similar to any other business process, is a series of steps designed
to lead to a desired outcome. More specifically, the sales process defines the rules of engagement
around prospecting, selling, and retaining customers. It details the stages, individuals involved,
activities, available tools, resources, and the definition of precise outcomes and performance indicators. Business leaders further understand that this challenge of prospecting and acquiring new customers
can be a daunting and costly task. Let’s take a closer look at what is involved when addressing sales
strategy and process in order to acquire new customers and grow the top line.
The SolutionSales Strategy Clarification
Time and time again we see sales organizations invest time and money into improving the
“execution phase” of the sales performance cycle, only to later conclude that it was the strategy
itself that was flawed from the beginning. Additionally, it is important to acknowledge that not
all strategies begin flawed. Rather, we have found that they do not receive the testing required
or are not clarified often enough.
There are quite a few reasons for clarifying your sales strategy on an ongoing basis.
In our opinion, here are the top three:
Your key assumptions are no longer accurateToo many times we see organizations making decisions based upon outdated and
simply inaccurate assumptions. Before coming to an agreement on an approach,
make certain to validate your assumptions within today’s environment.
New threats are present in the marketplaceAs we all know, the marketplace is continually evolving. In order to develop an
effective sales strategy it is important to identify new threats that emerge.
These threats include: competition, promotions, public/industry policy changes,
new products releases, advances in technology, innovation, and more.
The perception of your value proposition has changedYour customers' needs are changing. As a result, the way in which your value
proposition meets their needs will likely change as well. While assessing your sales
strategy, solicit feedback from your customers on the “perceived value” of your
value proposition with respect to solving their problems.
A clarified sales strategy ensures you have a strong value proposition that differentiates you from
the competition and one that will truly resonate within the market place. In addition, your sales
strategy will identify a segment or segments of customers who are most likely to “value” your value
proposition. However, before you unleash your sales force to acquire these new found prospects,
you need to ensure your sales process is in complete alignment and supports your strategy.
Sales Process Alignment Just as sales representatives must tailor or adjust their presentations to a specific client, so too must
a company align its sales processes with its sales strategy. A defined sales process will provide the
sales team with a road map on how to execute the strategy in the most effective way. Best in class
sales processes include clearly defined stages with activities, skills, resources, and points of measurement.
Let’s take a closer look at each.
Stage:The creation of stages is a way of breaking down the end-to-end
sales process in smaller, more manageable segments. It also helps
sales reps and coaches improve performance by working on specific
stages needing attention. While one rep may thrive at identifying
and qualifying prospects, another may be better at presenting and
closing. This becomes more and more evident as you break down
the stages of the process.
When you look at the sales process from end-to-end, it can be
quite lengthy and complex. Typically it includes several stages with
a significant number of activities, events, people, tools, and
resources—engaging at different levels over a given period of time.
Activity:Now that you have segmented the end-to-end sales process into stages, next take a close look at
each stage to determine what is required to ensure a successful outcome. When defining activities,
document the what, who, and when. Be as specific as possible.
This level of detail will ensure the team understands their role and objectives, as well as those of
others, to achieve the desired results. Typical sales process activities include: industry and customer
research, meetings, emails, phone calls, analysis, and proposal writing. The more specific you can be
about the activities, the better.
Skill:The list of activities defines the what, who and when. However, we find best-in-class sales processes
always document the skills required to carry through the activities.
This extra step provides great value in helping the sales team execute and improve performance over the long term.
Not only will this help the sales rep understand specifically where he or she should focus in order to
arrive at a more favorable outcome, it is also quite helpful for the sales coaches, who are typically
front-line sales managers.
As a sales manager, if you can measure the quality of sales activity stage by stage and rep by rep,
you can be prescriptive and strategic about your coaching efforts. Additionally, this information
should be shared with your company's Learning & Development division to ensure that group aligns
development paths and training programs to support your efforts with the sales team.
Resource:Here you will want to list the resources that are available to a sales rep at a given stage in the sales
process. Resources are also commonly referred to as enablers. Your focus here is to understand the
resources available to the sales team to enable them to be more successful in a given stage. Typical
resources include: marketing material, available partners, systems to access, job-aides, technology,
business intelligence, and organizational tools.
We have also found that the more complex the sales environment is, the more important these
resources become. As such, they need to be considered carefully.
Measurement:Points of measurement are arguable one of the most important aspects to the sales process.
They not only tell you what to expect or what happened but how effective it was. We’ve all heard it
before—"What doesn’t get measured, doesn’t get done." While we tend to agree with this state-
ment, we feel there is a larger opportunity for organizations to leverage this information differently.
We find that organizations tend to “manage and evaluate” things that have already happened.
We refer to these as lagging indicators.
Although there is certain value in knowing what happened so that you can make adjustments in the future, we find it is more valuable to measure things in the moment, so that you can adjust along the way.
We encourage organizations to measure leading indicators. Leading indicators give you insight into
things that happen or are happening in the sales process before a decision is made. This information
is much more actionable, as it enables you to adjust along the way in order to achieve a more
desirable outcome. Here are a few examples of each type:
In ClosingTo achieve top line growth and acquire new customers, we at Janek Performance Group feel it is
critical that strategies are clarified and processes are aligned to effectively implement the strategy.
Sales professionals tasked to execute these processes must be equipped with the skills, tools, and
behaviors to do so effectively.
This alignment creates synergies at all levels of the sales organization and will ensure maximum success when acquiring new customers.
Executives and sales managers: re-evaluate your assumptions, the current competition in the
marketplace, and your customers' perception of your value proposition. Break down and define
with detail the stages of the sales process and the activities associated with each one. Assign the
appropriate skills to each activity. Finally, inventory your resources and calibrate your measurements
and timetables.
This task is no doubt challenging and requires an investment of time; nonetheless, it is absolutely
critical. Creating or re-focusing your sales strategy to provide a clear definition and purpose, and
aligning your sales processes with that strategy is an investment that every successful company
undertakes. Janek Performance Group can assist you to do the same for your sales organization.
3Acquiring New Customers: The Impact Strategy and Process have on Growing the Top Line
© 2012 Janek Performance Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
Typical stages of the sales process include:
• Prospect
• Qualify
• Discovery
• Present
• Close
• Implement
• Service
As we begin to make our way out of some exceedingly challenging times and work through an
assortment of sales and business challenges, one issue continues to stay at the top of most lists:
the acquisition of new customers to grow the top line. As we know, new customers mean new sales.
Along with customer retention and growing relationships, acquiring new customers is one of the
most effective ways to keep the business thriving and ensure long-term success. Unfortunately, it
can also be one of the most challenging and costly activities.
In order to produce new client relationships, your company needs to emphasize its value proposition
and target those prospects that are highly likely to value that offer to create a sound sales strategy.
This includes clarifying the company’s value proposition in a meaningful way so that it differentiates
its products and services from the competition. In addition, it is important to manage the pursuit,
that is, to align the strategy with the sales processes and develop an effective approach for seeking
higher value prospects.
This white paper will explain how a company can acquire new customers by clarifying its sales
strategy and seeing to its effective execution through alignment of the sales process.
At IssueMany sales leaders we’ve worked with find themselves so involved in the execution of sales activity
that they neglect to revisit two key questions. Do I have a clearly defined and current sales strategy?
And, are my sales processes in alignment with the strategy? Unless and until the answer to both of
these questions is yes, it is not yet time to focus on tactics and/or skill development. Unfortunately,
this is one of the most common mistakes we see sales leaders make when looking to acquire more
new customers.
Let’s begin with some definition.
Generally speaking, a sales strategy is a plan that defines the value
proposition so it can differentiate the company's products/services in the
marketplace and identifies key target markets that are likely to “value,”
or respond to, the value proposition. This is the first step in helping the
sales organization engage prospects in meaningful ways while being able
to differentiate itself from the competition.
The sales process on the other hand, similar to any other business process, is a series of steps designed
to lead to a desired outcome. More specifically, the sales process defines the rules of engagement
around prospecting, selling, and retaining customers. It details the stages, individuals involved,
activities, available tools, resources, and the definition of precise outcomes and performance indicators. Business leaders further understand that this challenge of prospecting and acquiring new customers
can be a daunting and costly task. Let’s take a closer look at what is involved when addressing sales
strategy and process in order to acquire new customers and grow the top line.
The SolutionSales Strategy Clarification
Time and time again we see sales organizations invest time and money into improving the
“execution phase” of the sales performance cycle, only to later conclude that it was the strategy
itself that was flawed from the beginning. Additionally, it is important to acknowledge that not
all strategies begin flawed. Rather, we have found that they do not receive the testing required
or are not clarified often enough.
There are quite a few reasons for clarifying your sales strategy on an ongoing basis.
In our opinion, here are the top three:
Your key assumptions are no longer accurateToo many times we see organizations making decisions based upon outdated and
simply inaccurate assumptions. Before coming to an agreement on an approach,
make certain to validate your assumptions within today’s environment.
New threats are present in the marketplaceAs we all know, the marketplace is continually evolving. In order to develop an
effective sales strategy it is important to identify new threats that emerge.
These threats include: competition, promotions, public/industry policy changes,
new products releases, advances in technology, innovation, and more.
The perception of your value proposition has changedYour customers' needs are changing. As a result, the way in which your value
proposition meets their needs will likely change as well. While assessing your sales
strategy, solicit feedback from your customers on the “perceived value” of your
value proposition with respect to solving their problems.
A clarified sales strategy ensures you have a strong value proposition that differentiates you from
the competition and one that will truly resonate within the market place. In addition, your sales
strategy will identify a segment or segments of customers who are most likely to “value” your value
proposition. However, before you unleash your sales force to acquire these new found prospects,
you need to ensure your sales process is in complete alignment and supports your strategy.
Sales Process Alignment Just as sales representatives must tailor or adjust their presentations to a specific client, so too must
a company align its sales processes with its sales strategy. A defined sales process will provide the
sales team with a road map on how to execute the strategy in the most effective way. Best in class
sales processes include clearly defined stages with activities, skills, resources, and points of measurement.
Let’s take a closer look at each.
Stage:The creation of stages is a way of breaking down the end-to-end
sales process in smaller, more manageable segments. It also helps
sales reps and coaches improve performance by working on specific
stages needing attention. While one rep may thrive at identifying
and qualifying prospects, another may be better at presenting and
closing. This becomes more and more evident as you break down
the stages of the process.
When you look at the sales process from end-to-end, it can be
quite lengthy and complex. Typically it includes several stages with
a significant number of activities, events, people, tools, and
resources—engaging at different levels over a given period of time.
Activity:Now that you have segmented the end-to-end sales process into stages, next take a close look at
each stage to determine what is required to ensure a successful outcome. When defining activities,
document the what, who, and when. Be as specific as possible.
This level of detail will ensure the team understands their role and objectives, as well as those of
others, to achieve the desired results. Typical sales process activities include: industry and customer
research, meetings, emails, phone calls, analysis, and proposal writing. The more specific you can be
about the activities, the better.
Skill:The list of activities defines the what, who and when. However, we find best-in-class sales processes
always document the skills required to carry through the activities.
This extra step provides great value in helping the sales team execute and improve performance over the long term.
Not only will this help the sales rep understand specifically where he or she should focus in order to
arrive at a more favorable outcome, it is also quite helpful for the sales coaches, who are typically
front-line sales managers.
As a sales manager, if you can measure the quality of sales activity stage by stage and rep by rep,
you can be prescriptive and strategic about your coaching efforts. Additionally, this information
should be shared with your company's Learning & Development division to ensure that group aligns
development paths and training programs to support your efforts with the sales team.
Resource:Here you will want to list the resources that are available to a sales rep at a given stage in the sales
process. Resources are also commonly referred to as enablers. Your focus here is to understand the
resources available to the sales team to enable them to be more successful in a given stage. Typical
resources include: marketing material, available partners, systems to access, job-aides, technology,
business intelligence, and organizational tools.
We have also found that the more complex the sales environment is, the more important these
resources become. As such, they need to be considered carefully.
Measurement:Points of measurement are arguable one of the most important aspects to the sales process.
They not only tell you what to expect or what happened but how effective it was. We’ve all heard it
before—"What doesn’t get measured, doesn’t get done." While we tend to agree with this state-
ment, we feel there is a larger opportunity for organizations to leverage this information differently.
We find that organizations tend to “manage and evaluate” things that have already happened.
We refer to these as lagging indicators.
Although there is certain value in knowing what happened so that you can make adjustments in the future, we find it is more valuable to measure things in the moment, so that you can adjust along the way.
We encourage organizations to measure leading indicators. Leading indicators give you insight into
things that happen or are happening in the sales process before a decision is made. This information
is much more actionable, as it enables you to adjust along the way in order to achieve a more
desirable outcome. Here are a few examples of each type:
In ClosingTo achieve top line growth and acquire new customers, we at Janek Performance Group feel it is
critical that strategies are clarified and processes are aligned to effectively implement the strategy.
Sales professionals tasked to execute these processes must be equipped with the skills, tools, and
behaviors to do so effectively.
This alignment creates synergies at all levels of the sales organization and will ensure maximum success when acquiring new customers.
Executives and sales managers: re-evaluate your assumptions, the current competition in the
marketplace, and your customers' perception of your value proposition. Break down and define
with detail the stages of the sales process and the activities associated with each one. Assign the
appropriate skills to each activity. Finally, inventory your resources and calibrate your measurements
and timetables.
This task is no doubt challenging and requires an investment of time; nonetheless, it is absolutely
critical. Creating or re-focusing your sales strategy to provide a clear definition and purpose, and
aligning your sales processes with that strategy is an investment that every successful company
undertakes. Janek Performance Group can assist you to do the same for your sales organization.
4Acquiring New Customers: The Impact Strategy and Process have on Growing the Top Line
© 2012 Janek Performance Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
Typical Leading Indicators:
• Lead to appointment ratio
• Pipeline to quota ratio
• Presentation to proposal ratio
• Average days in each stage of the sales process
Typical Lagging Indicators:
• Close %
• Average deal size
• Sales revenue
• Deal margin
As we begin to make our way out of some exceedingly challenging times and work through an
assortment of sales and business challenges, one issue continues to stay at the top of most lists:
the acquisition of new customers to grow the top line. As we know, new customers mean new sales.
Along with customer retention and growing relationships, acquiring new customers is one of the
most effective ways to keep the business thriving and ensure long-term success. Unfortunately, it
can also be one of the most challenging and costly activities.
In order to produce new client relationships, your company needs to emphasize its value proposition
and target those prospects that are highly likely to value that offer to create a sound sales strategy.
This includes clarifying the company’s value proposition in a meaningful way so that it differentiates
its products and services from the competition. In addition, it is important to manage the pursuit,
that is, to align the strategy with the sales processes and develop an effective approach for seeking
higher value prospects.
This white paper will explain how a company can acquire new customers by clarifying its sales
strategy and seeing to its effective execution through alignment of the sales process.
At IssueMany sales leaders we’ve worked with find themselves so involved in the execution of sales activity
that they neglect to revisit two key questions. Do I have a clearly defined and current sales strategy?
And, are my sales processes in alignment with the strategy? Unless and until the answer to both of
these questions is yes, it is not yet time to focus on tactics and/or skill development. Unfortunately,
this is one of the most common mistakes we see sales leaders make when looking to acquire more
new customers.
Let’s begin with some definition.
Generally speaking, a sales strategy is a plan that defines the value
proposition so it can differentiate the company's products/services in the
marketplace and identifies key target markets that are likely to “value,”
or respond to, the value proposition. This is the first step in helping the
sales organization engage prospects in meaningful ways while being able
to differentiate itself from the competition.
The sales process on the other hand, similar to any other business process, is a series of steps designed
to lead to a desired outcome. More specifically, the sales process defines the rules of engagement
around prospecting, selling, and retaining customers. It details the stages, individuals involved,
activities, available tools, resources, and the definition of precise outcomes and performance indicators. Business leaders further understand that this challenge of prospecting and acquiring new customers
can be a daunting and costly task. Let’s take a closer look at what is involved when addressing sales
strategy and process in order to acquire new customers and grow the top line.
The SolutionSales Strategy Clarification
Time and time again we see sales organizations invest time and money into improving the
“execution phase” of the sales performance cycle, only to later conclude that it was the strategy
itself that was flawed from the beginning. Additionally, it is important to acknowledge that not
all strategies begin flawed. Rather, we have found that they do not receive the testing required
or are not clarified often enough.
There are quite a few reasons for clarifying your sales strategy on an ongoing basis.
In our opinion, here are the top three:
Your key assumptions are no longer accurateToo many times we see organizations making decisions based upon outdated and
simply inaccurate assumptions. Before coming to an agreement on an approach,
make certain to validate your assumptions within today’s environment.
New threats are present in the marketplaceAs we all know, the marketplace is continually evolving. In order to develop an
effective sales strategy it is important to identify new threats that emerge.
These threats include: competition, promotions, public/industry policy changes,
new products releases, advances in technology, innovation, and more.
The perception of your value proposition has changedYour customers' needs are changing. As a result, the way in which your value
proposition meets their needs will likely change as well. While assessing your sales
strategy, solicit feedback from your customers on the “perceived value” of your
value proposition with respect to solving their problems.
A clarified sales strategy ensures you have a strong value proposition that differentiates you from
the competition and one that will truly resonate within the market place. In addition, your sales
strategy will identify a segment or segments of customers who are most likely to “value” your value
proposition. However, before you unleash your sales force to acquire these new found prospects,
you need to ensure your sales process is in complete alignment and supports your strategy.
Sales Process Alignment Just as sales representatives must tailor or adjust their presentations to a specific client, so too must
a company align its sales processes with its sales strategy. A defined sales process will provide the
sales team with a road map on how to execute the strategy in the most effective way. Best in class
sales processes include clearly defined stages with activities, skills, resources, and points of measurement.
Let’s take a closer look at each.
Stage:The creation of stages is a way of breaking down the end-to-end
sales process in smaller, more manageable segments. It also helps
sales reps and coaches improve performance by working on specific
stages needing attention. While one rep may thrive at identifying
and qualifying prospects, another may be better at presenting and
closing. This becomes more and more evident as you break down
the stages of the process.
When you look at the sales process from end-to-end, it can be
quite lengthy and complex. Typically it includes several stages with
a significant number of activities, events, people, tools, and
resources—engaging at different levels over a given period of time.
Activity:Now that you have segmented the end-to-end sales process into stages, next take a close look at
each stage to determine what is required to ensure a successful outcome. When defining activities,
document the what, who, and when. Be as specific as possible.
This level of detail will ensure the team understands their role and objectives, as well as those of
others, to achieve the desired results. Typical sales process activities include: industry and customer
research, meetings, emails, phone calls, analysis, and proposal writing. The more specific you can be
about the activities, the better.
Skill:The list of activities defines the what, who and when. However, we find best-in-class sales processes
always document the skills required to carry through the activities.
This extra step provides great value in helping the sales team execute and improve performance over the long term.
Not only will this help the sales rep understand specifically where he or she should focus in order to
arrive at a more favorable outcome, it is also quite helpful for the sales coaches, who are typically
front-line sales managers.
As a sales manager, if you can measure the quality of sales activity stage by stage and rep by rep,
you can be prescriptive and strategic about your coaching efforts. Additionally, this information
should be shared with your company's Learning & Development division to ensure that group aligns
development paths and training programs to support your efforts with the sales team.
Resource:Here you will want to list the resources that are available to a sales rep at a given stage in the sales
process. Resources are also commonly referred to as enablers. Your focus here is to understand the
resources available to the sales team to enable them to be more successful in a given stage. Typical
resources include: marketing material, available partners, systems to access, job-aides, technology,
business intelligence, and organizational tools.
We have also found that the more complex the sales environment is, the more important these
resources become. As such, they need to be considered carefully.
Measurement:Points of measurement are arguable one of the most important aspects to the sales process.
They not only tell you what to expect or what happened but how effective it was. We’ve all heard it
before—"What doesn’t get measured, doesn’t get done." While we tend to agree with this state-
ment, we feel there is a larger opportunity for organizations to leverage this information differently.
We find that organizations tend to “manage and evaluate” things that have already happened.
We refer to these as lagging indicators.
Although there is certain value in knowing what happened so that you can make adjustments in the future, we find it is more valuable to measure things in the moment, so that you can adjust along the way.
We encourage organizations to measure leading indicators. Leading indicators give you insight into
things that happen or are happening in the sales process before a decision is made. This information
is much more actionable, as it enables you to adjust along the way in order to achieve a more
desirable outcome. Here are a few examples of each type:
In ClosingTo achieve top line growth and acquire new customers, we at Janek Performance Group feel it is
critical that strategies are clarified and processes are aligned to effectively implement the strategy.
Sales professionals tasked to execute these processes must be equipped with the skills, tools, and
behaviors to do so effectively.
This alignment creates synergies at all levels of the sales organization and will ensure maximum success when acquiring new customers.
Executives and sales managers: re-evaluate your assumptions, the current competition in the
marketplace, and your customers' perception of your value proposition. Break down and define
with detail the stages of the sales process and the activities associated with each one. Assign the
appropriate skills to each activity. Finally, inventory your resources and calibrate your measurements
and timetables.
This task is no doubt challenging and requires an investment of time; nonetheless, it is absolutely
critical. Creating or re-focusing your sales strategy to provide a clear definition and purpose, and
aligning your sales processes with that strategy is an investment that every successful company
undertakes. Janek Performance Group can assist you to do the same for your sales organization.
5
Janek Performance Group
As a leader in sales performance solutions, Janek works with a broad range of clients in a variety
of industries to provide the resources, expertise, and training and consulting services to support
organizations in meeting their sales objectives.
Contact us today to talk about how we can help your company achieve greater sales success.
Website: www.Janek.com | Email: [email protected] | Phone: 800.979.0079 | Fax: 800.979.0074
Acquiring New Customers: The Impact Strategy and Process have on Growing the Top Line
© 2012 Janek Performance Group, Inc. All rights reserved.