Throwing money away:
The top executives get huge salaries in order to make crucial investments that will make or break the company’s future. In today’s world, ROI – Return On Investment is more important than ever. Even front-line supervisors are being forced to be more careful about what purchases they approve due to global competition and budget cuts. In other words, today’s businesses have no room for fat. You must understand the role of your product or service in your customer’s income stream before you can sell it. Then, explain this to your customer in a compelling way.
This article will give you an overview of ROI or metric selling. If you have been presenting numbers to clients for many years, you can still read this article. You might find a new tool that you can use to close more deals today, such as metric selling.
How Metric Selling Works. If you are a student who didn’t understand why “x” was equal to the cosine “z,” then don’t worry. Metric selling doesn’t require nearly as much math as it seems. The process is actually quite simple. You first find out what your client cares about, and then you show them how your solution can help – in hard currency. Let’s say your company makes construction equipment. It doesn’t matter if the client chooses yellow or green; however, pointing out the fact that your vehicle lasts on average three years longer than its competitors and saving your customer $300,000.00 is probably essential.
This doesn’t mean that other factors don’t matter. Ultimately, however, these numbers will tell the buyer something that no sales literature could. This is not about getting out your calculator. It’s about changing your mindset. Instead of talking about the important things you believe are critical about the product you sell, you will find out what your customer believes is essential and then present it to them in terms that grab their attention.
Selling ROI may be the best way to approach the sale if money is an important consideration. You might think, “I have been doing this exact thing for years.” This ROI formula is used by most top sales professionals. Metric selling can be a powerful tool. It is not a new method of selling, and it will not be the best solution to all your sales problems.
The Key Metric Selling Questions
Metric selling is about asking questions, not using calculators. The focus of metric selling is to get the customer to share their pain and give them the proper medication to heal it. This is just as it would in any other sales. It is important to remember that senior executives and owners often feel that “hurt” in profit and loss statements. Here are some sample questions to help you discover your customers’ ROI needs.
o What do you think this costs your company each month? o What would it cost to increase production if there wasn’t so much downtime? What would it cost to stop your current system? What are your key metrics to measure success? o What would your plan be if you could spend less money on this problem? What amount of money do you think equipment is costing you? How important is ROI to your decision-making process?
Presentation of ROI Solutions: If you have taken the time to determine the competitive advantages that you can offer your customers and what amount of money they could expect, closing should be easy. You simply need to refer to the information they gave you and point out the numbers. Then ask for the order. You shouldn’t have any objections, especially if you did everything correctly. Two major stumbling blocks when using the ROI approach are trying to use it on an inexplicable person or failing to address the pertinent issue.
Metric selling works best for economic buyers, the people at the top who are always thinking about the bottom line. For them, ROI is key to almost every investment decision. They want to make more than they spend, so closing the sale is just as easy as convincing them. Lower-level managers might not care as much about the numbers. They don’t care if the company succeeds; they do. But, the slight differences in the price in return often get in the way of speed, convenience, their relationship with the salesperson, and other concerns. It’s easier to sell executives than it is to front-line supervisors, especially if you want to help them see the larger picture.
Get started with Metric – ROI selling today!
Metric selling, like any other sales technique, is not new. Superstars have used these methods for years to close large orders. They are more critical than ever. You might be able to open up new avenues for more extensive and more rewarding commissions if you learn how they work.
