Improve Your Sales Presentations With These Key Factors To Success
One of the most critical phases of selling VoIP services is the product demonstration. Generally, consumers are accustomed to an Apple-like experience when it comes to purchasing communication devices. They expect to be able to touch and feel the device, explore the different features, and experience the appeal of the aesthetics. While there is nothing “sexy” about purchasing business phone services, MSPs and resellers are obligated to show off these devices in a similar fashion in hopes to inch the prospect that much closer to sealing the deal.
These demos often leave much to be desired, primarily because the context of the demonstration is largely focused around the hardware itself (how many buttons the phone has, what they do, etc.) This is despite the fact that the real value in your offering cannot be quantified by a number of buttons, but instead general outcome that the system as a whole can create.
George Bardissi of BVoIP eloquently explained this concept in our latest episode of Talkin’ The Talk:
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Here are a few points of emphasis that will help you shift the conversation away from the physical device and toward the overall value that these devices represent:
Know Who Your Audience Is
If you are in a position to be selling Managed IT or Telecom services, then you probably already know this but it bears repeating. It is important to always understand who it is you are presenting to and what is ultimately important to them when they make the decision to switch phone services. An Office Manager is likely to have a vastly different reason to switch than a CFO might, and this could ultimately decide what the starting point may be for the conversation as you begin to work through these qualification steps.
If you want to really “nail” the demonstration you should look to accomplish two things. The first is that you have to address your audience’s immediate reason for interest. This could be a problem with the existing system that they have, or something that they found attractive about yours. There ultimately had to be something to draw them in, and it is important to find out what that is and hit it head-on. The second thing to uncover is the underlying value that your system can contribute. These are solutions to problems that they may not even recognize they have, but once they are realized they can’t live without them.
Acknowledge Their Preferences
If you want to be able to hold your prospect’s attention and eventually tap into that underlying value, it is important to first clear the air of any other distractions. To do this, take a few minutes discussing what the prospect’s preferences are and “check all of these boxes” as George described in our conversation. At this point you are helping your prospect understand that your system likely does in fact meet their minimum specifications (whatever those may be) and that this is not a step backwards from whatever it is they already have in place.
I recall a demonstration at our Managed Services company where the prospect’s number one concern with the entire system was whether or not they had to press the number “9” number before dialing out. This was apparently the reason why they were frustrated with their existing system, so much so that they were desperate to switch. Another demo consisted of a 20 minute discussion regarding the amount of “speed dials” that can be set on the phone because the decision maker wanted a unique button for all 30 of their employees. These preferences will come to the surface within this conversation no matter how much you try shift away from them, this is why it is best to start the conversation here, address their needs immediately (no matter how quirky they may be) and then you will be free to move on without distraction.
BVoIP Offers MSPs Flexible, Reliable, and Creative Cloud Unified Communication Solutions To Grow Their Business. Request Demo
Work Through Business Outcomes
Once you have addressed the “elephant in the room” you can begin to work through the various ways your prospect can leverage your system to improve the way they communicate. Ask your prospect where they think communication can be improved the most in their business and get them talking through some of these challenges. Then use this information to guide the conversation toward the features and solutions that will have the most impact.
George brought up a great example of this in our conversation, as he described a business who’s customers were frustrated over the response time that they received from employees at the company. The company in question was looking for a solution, but they needed more insight into how many calls were not getting answered and why this lapse in availability was occurring. This now opens the door for the MSP or reseller to talk through the reporting capabilities of a system to track the availability of agents, as well as redesigning a call flow to be less frustrating for the customer. If you can get your prospect to open up in this way, you can get them more engaged and willing to move forward than simply showing off a sleek handset and making a phone ring.
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