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Revenue Driving Processes: How do you implement the proper processes that drive & close more deals?
(This question came from Focus Webcast: Socializing the Sales & Marketing Team - Secrets to Customer 2.0 Success)
Please explain these Processes.
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3 Answers
I am not sure we can express everything necessary to be successful with a revenue funnel, but i do believe there are some important "must-dos" with regards to create a proper revenue-driving process:
1. Map your buyers journey first -- many people start with their sales and marketing process. That is a no-go for me. The first step for ANY organization (not just sales and marketing) is to understand what the customer's process is when they buy. Start from the top. included in this exercise is persona-building. Your different stakeholders make take different paths to purchase.
2. Devise your Lead Management Strategy -- As Brian Carrol says "its start with a lead". All the noise you hear about lead nurturing, lead generation, marketing automation are sub-sets of the Lead Management Strategy. PS draw it.
3. Merge it with the Sales Process --- Remember this is "revenue-driving" processes. In today's Customer 2.0 world, sales and marketing MUST work together. Process is the first "tie that binds".
OK, now you have a plan, pluck off these things next:
1. Assign Resources -- Remember its called: "People, process, and technology" for a reason. You need people to run your revenue process, and Im not just talking about sales guys. People have to be in charge of the various steps.
2. Automation -- CRM first, marketing automation second, efficiency tools such as sales 2.0, Inside View
3. Content Mapping -- Automation can help you deliver here. Now that you know the buyer journey and where you want to take them, create content to move buyers from research to purchase
As the person who has been writing articles and books, and talking and training, about the 'buyer's journey' for the past 22 years I'd like to weigh in here.
Craig is correct in that it's necessary to at least address the buying decision journey. But you all are missing the point I think:
1. it is absolutely impossible to go behind-the-scenes with the buyer, and face their political and relationship and values-based criteria. you're not there when they have their discussions, or their arguements. You're not there in the men's room, or on the golf course. Even if you KNEW exactly what the buying process is - absolutely impossible but even if you could - you aren't part of their political/relational system and can have little influence over these idiosyncratic decisions.
2. the sales model continues to be firmly placed in the 'understand need/place solution' end of the buyer's journey. this end is no more than 10% of the complete journey. the internal, private, off-line decision issues that buyers must address on their own, determine how and what and if and when and why they decide to buy. It's got absolutely nothing to do with our solution until then (the time it takes buyers to come up with their own answers is the length of the sales cycle). Sales enters too early and then tries to hang around until.... until....
Even with digital marketing and sales, the only data being collected is specious; the underlying assumption is if you can grab the prospect at the right point in the buying decision journey, they'll need the data you have. Not only are the current means bringing forth leads of unknown quality, but there is no way of knowing exactly where on the spectrum of the full journey - internal and private and off-line - the prospect or lead lies.
Of course, it is possible to become part of the off-line decision facilitation buyers go through, but it's not possible using the sales model (and yes, here I become a hammer looking for a nail).
To close more deals, start creating processes that manage the human side of the buying decision earlier, and then get it into the workflow. Currently, there are no processes (except the ones I'm creating for Kadient) that enter this early -- and note: we enter far earlier than a solution/need discussion, and employ a change management model prior to any sales model whatsoever.
Great answer Craig. To add to this I would suggest following the 8 steps that Stephanie Tilton highlighted in her recent "Gear Up For Success" ebook:
1. Identify your ideal customer
2. Define a qualified lead and processes for generating and nurturing them
3. Develop messaging and execute a more comprehensive yet targeted marketing strategy
4. Create content that attracts, engages, and nurtures
5. Connect where prospects spend time
6. Implement an inside sales/teleprospecting strategy for lead follow-up and qualification
7. Hand off to sales
8. Close the loop, measure the results, and refine
For more details the ebook is available for free at http://bit.ly/bGT6PC
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