Sales Motion: Decoding the DNA of Successful Sales Strategy

Key Takeaways:

1. A sales motion is a blend of a company’s sales process and its sales methodology, creating a strategic and philosophical blueprint for selling products or services.
2. The sales process involves repeatable, actionable steps a sales team follows to convert leads into customers.
3. A sales methodology is the philosophical framework that guides the sales process, outlining the approach sales representatives should adopt when selling on behalf of the company.
4. Implementing an effective sales motion can significantly enhance sales efficiency, ease of tracking, and overall sales performance.

The Sales Motion: An Indispensable Aspect of a Successful Sales Strategy

In the realm of sales and business growth, achieving success doesn’t happen by chance. It’s not an art dependent solely on individual flair or improvisation. Instead, it’s a methodical process steered by a well-thought-out strategy and a guiding philosophy. This amalgamation of strategy and philosophy, known as the sales motion, forms the very essence of a company’s sales efforts.

The sales motion is the cornerstone of how a company sells its products or services to prospects and customers. Like the DNA of an organism, it holds the blueprint of a business’s approach to sales – combining the step-by-step process salespeople should follow (the sales process) with the guiding sales philosophy (the sales methodology).

The Sales Process: Charting the Journey from Prospects to Customers

A sales process is a structured set of steps designed to guide a sales team from identifying potential leads to closing a deal. This high-level roadmap offers a strategic path for salespeople to convert a prospect from point A, an early-stage lead, to point B, a closed customer.

While each organization’s sales process is tailored to its unique needs and products, most follow a general six-step framework:

1. Prospecting: The process of identifying potential customers who might be interested in the product or service.
2. Connecting and Qualifying: Establishing initial contact with prospects and determining if they are viable leads.
3. Researching: Gathering extensive information about the prospect’s business to tailor the sales approach.
4. Presenting: Showcasing the product or service to the potential customer, focusing on how it addresses their needs.
5. Handling Objections: Addressing any concerns or objections raised by the prospect during the sales process.
6. Closing: Finalizing the sale, getting the prospect to commit to purchasing the product or service.

For instance, let’s take a hypothetical company selling a B2B cloud computing solution. Their sales process might involve prospecting at industry-specific events, qualifying leads over the phone, researching the lead’s company across various departments, demonstrating the product with the help of engineers, adeptly handling objections raised during the presentation, and finally closing the deal by achieving buy-in from decision-makers.

This sequence of steps forms the first strand of the sales motion DNA – a company’s sales process.

The Sales Methodology: Cultivating the Right Sales Attitude

If the sales process provides the ‘what’ of selling, the sales methodology offers the ‘how’. It’s the philosophical underpinning that directs how the sales process should be executed. It instills a specific mindset, attitude, and approach that sales reps should adopt when representing your company.

There’s a myriad of sales methodologies, each emphasizing different aspects of the buyer’s experience. Some might focus on the buyer’s economic situation, some might concentrate on the buyer’s pain points, while others might address the broader context influencing the buyer’s decisions.

A prevalent methodology, The Challenger Sales method, advocates a ‘teach-tailor-take control’ approach. First, reps provide valuable insights to prospects about larger business problems and potential solutions that go beyond their product or service. Next, they tailor their communication to the buyer’s specific needs based on detailed research. Finally, they take control of the sale, emphasizing selling over being liked, and imparting wisdom and establishing authority.

The sales methodology, with its focus on the mindset and approach, forms the second strand of the sales motion DNA.

The Sales Motion: The Symbiosis of Process and Philosophy

Now, when we intertwine the sales process with the sales methodology, we give birth to the sales motion. It’s this interplay between ‘what to do’ and ‘how to do it’ that imbues a company’s sales efforts with purpose and direction.

The sales motion of our hypothetical B2B cloud computing company might blend their unique sales process with the Challenger Sales methodology. While the sales process outlines specific steps, the Challenger Sales methodology dictates how these steps should be carried out.

For example, during the prospecting phase and initial phone calls, the sales motion would guide reps to ask insightful, open-ended questions that shed light on the prospect’s pain points and provide an understanding of the larger picture behind the deal. This could include questions like, “How have your on-premise servers been limiting your online sales?” or presenting bold ideas about the future of eCommerce.

The sales motion not only determines the journey of the sales process but also governs the spirit in which it is conducted. It may vary based on buyer persona, company ethos, or the nature of the product or service. Therefore, it is crucial for any business to understand and fine-tune their sales motion, as it’s often the determinant of the efficacy of their sales efforts.

Conclusion: The Power of a Well-Defined Sales Motion

In the dynamic world of sales, it’s crucial to have a guiding star – a framework that offers direction and a philosophy that instills the right approach. The sales motion is that guiding star. It’s the body and soul of your sales effort, combining the step-by-step strategy with a guiding philosophy, helping sales teams navigate the journey from lead to customer successfully.

Creating and honing an effective sales motion is a nuanced process. It requires careful thought, trial and error, and a deep understanding of your business and buyer personas. However, when you pinpoint the best sales motion for your business, the rewards are manifold. It can enhance the efficiency of your sales efforts, make the process easier to track and improve, and, ultimately, boost your sales performance. The sales motion, in essence, is the DNA that shapes the genetic makeup of a successful sales strategy.