Last Updated on June 22, 2023 by Dave Schoenbeck
A shorter sales cycle means driving more quality leads in less time, eventually increasing profit. However, with so much of the sales process resting in your customer’s court, it can be hard to think of ways to speed things up without rushing your prospects and potentially losing out on sales.
Fortunately, a shorter sales cycle benefits your customers just as much as it helps you: you can use it as a competitive advantage to stand out from the crowd once you get the science down. If you’re using too many resources waiting for clients to pull the trigger, you must shorten your sales cycle.
Ideas to Shorten Your Sales Cycle
A strategic sales cycle is a much better investment of your time than blindly trusting the sales pipeline to filter into profit eventually. Here are 12 actionable ways to shorten your sales cycle today.
- Seriously review the quality of your content and collateral material. You won’t convert your best prospects if you’re not putting out your best articles.
- Review your written sales process for effectiveness. If you don’t have one, start writing it and following it.
- Consider your customer relations performance. Anyone who interacts with your clients should be likable, helpful, friendly, honest, and eager to please. Building a solid relationship with your customers lubricates the sales process.
- Organize yourself to do the high-return-high-value tasks vs. the low-value administrative time-eaters. Delegate when you can, and invest your extra time into prospect care.
- Clarify your target audience. Casting a wide net is a waste of resources. It’s better to target the specific people your product or service is made for.
- Trim the fat. While it’s true that some prospects need time to make a decision, that’s the time you could be spending on your most promising leads. If you’re stretched for resources, either automate your follow-ups to indecisive customers or table your correspondence until you’ve followed your most decisive prospects through to the finish, then revisit.
- Understand who the real decision maker is in your client’s organization vs. who has the title. Sometimes multiple stakeholders have purchasing power, but your prospect may not tell you about them. Find ways to network with everyone who can make decisions in your client’s organization.
- Set realistic and practical milestones and reminders in your customer relationship management (CRM) tool. If you don’t have a CRM, get one that fits your selling style and business. Faithfully use the CRM that you select. Your sales pipeline will thank you.
- Like Brian Tracy writes, if you must eat a frog, do it first thing in the morning. Don’t let yourself procrastinate on the sales tasks that you don’t like doing. It only gets more challenging as the day goes on.
- Always think about what is in the “thought bubble” of your prospect. Don’t allow doubts to fester until they become roadblocks. Always address any possible objections as early as possible to alleviate their fears.
- Share your testimonials and ratings with your prospects. Social proof speeds up the sales process, shortening your sales cycle.
- Always position a closing statement with your prospects at regular and consistent intervals. Always set the next meeting time and date, and remind them that they will soon need to make a buying decision. Customers react to deadlines. Make it a priority for them, and they will respond in kind.
While it takes strategy and possibly overhauling your sales process, a shorter sales cycle will be worthwhile. Please fill out my contact form for a complimentary coaching call to help you with strategies to shorten your sales cycle.
Coach Dave
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