Published : December 6, 2019It often happens that you look at another company, bursting with sales, and think to yourself, “You know what, their product isn’t as efficient and good as mine! Then why is it that they are getting all the sales while we are struggling?” I am sure that each and every one of you have felt this way, sooner or later. So what exactly is the reason behind the success of these companies? It is nothing but better and more efficient sales techniques.
It is not falsely said that businesses may prosper or die, rise or sink on the basis of their entire sales team. Your business is dependant on your sales team. Your sales team, on the other hand, is barely being able to shoulder this enormous responsibility and hit all their targets. They want to make good sales, they want to rack up insane numbers, they want to get on the leaderboard and get extra commission – they just don’t know how.
Fortunately for them, there are various sales techniques that can help these salesmen reach out to a larger mass of people and generate a higher conversion rate.
What is meant by inside sales?
Inside sales techniques are the rising trend in the sales sector. Inside sales proceeds to promote and sell products through the internet or remotely from one place instead of going out and physically meeting prospective customers. As technology advances, we continue to become more and more invested in it. Today, most people spend a majority of their day online. Hence, it is only logical that sales reps should reach out to potential customers online or though the phone.
Do inside sales techniques actually work?
In a business, the two most valuable assets are time and money. Marketing and selling a product actually consumes a large chunk of both. However, with the help of the new inside sales techniques, businesses can now easily sell their product with the least consumption of these valuable assets.
Let us talk in terms of numbers. According to the Harvard Business Review, inside sales cost about 40-90% less than your traditional outside sales methods. Why is that? The primary reason for this cost reduction is that inside sales does not require any travelling as opposed to outside sales. One can sit at one place and sell to potential customers, thus cutting down on costs of transportation, food, hotels and even saving precious time.
Effective inside sales techniques that will help you boost your sales
Enough has been said in the praise of inside sales. Let us get straight to point and look at some of these effective sales techniques.
1. Thoroughly understand how your product works and what is its use
Some of must be thinking, “This is not a sales tip!” But it so happens that it very much is. The next obvious question would be how is it so. Well, let me tell you.
Customers are not as naive as salesmen perceive them to be. If you do not believe in your product and are confused about how exactly it works, your prospect will see right through your farce. How can they put their faith in your product if you yourself don’t believe in it?
The inability of salesmen to answer simple questions based on the product or service that they are selling is the biggest turn off for any potential customer. If you cannot successfully portray yourself as an expert who knows what he is talking about, then your customers will never come to trust your word and buy your product.
Stretched truths and false promises don’t fetch customers. To be a good salesman, you need to have sufficient knowledge and confidence to be able to sell your product. You need to put in that extra ounce of effort and get to know your product in depth. Meet with various departments in your company and understand the different perspectives, uses and working of the product.
Know your product well and believe in it. This is one of the most basic inside sales techniques that people often tend to neglect.
2. Follow the 10 by 10 rule and get rid of unproductive mornings
There is no shortcut to success. You have to grind your way to it. Take the traditional route and approach as many prospective customers as you can. Making call after call trying to sell your product can turn out to be a rather tedious job. However, it is bound to get you returns if pursued diligently.
One of the most effective sales techniques used by many businesses nowadays is the 10 by 10 rule. This technique is aimed at starting the day on a high note instead of procrastinating through the morning. What one is required to do is make at least 10 sales calls by 10 in the morning. If you happen to close a deal, it will lead to a boost in your productivity for the rest of the day. On the flip side, if you do not make any sales, you can at least give yourself points for trying!
We at CallHippo always encourage our employees to start their day with energy and enthusiasm.
3. Make as many sales calls as you possibly can
Statistics prove that phone calls are still the number one way to reach out to potential customers. When it comes to inside sales, salesmen are not able to make the same personal connection with their customers as they could have made interacting with them face to face. So the next best option is phone conversations!
Using the right skills, a salesman can develop a personal connection with his customers over the phone as well. You know your product works, you know there is a demand for it and you even have all the required facilities to reach out to the public. Essentially, you are just a phone call away from making a sale!
Due to the number of cold calls and rejections, phone calls are no longer considered to be among the top sales techniques. However, our personal experience and logistics at CallHippo begs to differ. Our salesmen take the effort to call all potential leads and prospective customers. They put an effort to make a personal connect with the customer over the phone and patiently explain our service to them. Our sales team continues to surprise us every month with mind boggling numbers!
4. Utilise the SMS feature to the fullest
Frequently undermined, SMS is another one of the most effective inside sales techniques. While it is preferable to call your customer and directly interact with them, they might not always be available to patiently attend to your calls. In such cases, the SMS feature is really handy. It allows you to deliver your message to the customer in a precise and compact manner and it allows the customer to attend to your message as per their convenience.
Whether it is promoting a new product that has been recently launched or informing the masses about the upcoming sales, SMS is a very effective way to convey the information to prospective customers. That being said, sending out just one SMS is not enough. You need to persistently send messages to potential customers on a regular basis. Let me tell you why.
Let us assume that you are a toothpaste company and are promoting a new flavour that you have launched. You send out a text. The user sees the text and probably does not immediately respond to it. A few days later, you send a text again. And after a few days, you send it again. By now, the customer has viewed your SMS and read your brand and product name at least 3-4 times. The next time the customer goes to buy toothpaste in a super market and thinks of which paste to buy, your brand name will automatically pop into his mind.
5. Personalisation is the key – don’t just send cold texts and emails
As mentioned earlier, being an inside salesman does not give you an excuse to not be personal. Customers love personalisation. They love thinking about the fact that you actually spent time and effort in getting to know them. This in itself gets them interested in what you are trying sell. Personalisation is one of the best sales techniques till date. That’s why many businesses use this technique in their cold email campaigns to generate leads and improve their strategy more efficiently.
A person receives hundreds of sales emails everyday. So how do you personalise your emails and texts to capture the attention of your prospect? It’s pretty simple. Research about your prospect and get to know their likes and dislikes, you can do this using a platform like Sales Navigator. For example, to increase your cold email response rate, if they are into music, include music references in your emails as an icebreaker.. This will not only draw their attention to your email, but will also get them interested in your product. Another vital step to improve the efficiency of your email marketing campaigns is using an SPF record checker and implementing an email security policy to increase deliverability.
6. Be quick to respond to web leads because speed matters(a lot)
The five minute rule is another one of the essential sales techniques that every good sales rep must follow. When you get a lead on the internet, you should not waste any time or delay responding to it in any way. As per the five minute rule, you should ideally respond to the lead within 5 minutes of getting it. It not only lets the prospect know that you are active and interested, but also helps you capture their attention before it moves on to something else. As the minutes slip by, your chances of converting that lead drastically decreases.
The CallHippo team is always on their toes, responding to web leads at the earliest! We make sure that the prospect feels respected and cared for.
Be quick and grab them before it’s too late!
7. Always follow up on your leads
Sending follow up emails can be awkward. After facing cold rejection, you might not prefer knocking on that door anymore. Almost all businesses out there simply send one sales email and then back out if they do not get a response. However, among the most effective sales techniques, follow up texts, emails and calls can really make an impact on the customer.
Word it wisely like, “Hey, you didn’t take up our previous offer so here is something that might be better suited for you!”
Believe it or not, it does work.
You May Also Read : Best Sales Apps to Supercharge Your Profits
8. Get your business on social media
I do not know who needs to hear this but get your business on social media! Social media selling is more effective than most sales techniques. Statistics prove that a majority of the youth try out brands and products that are trending on social media. Create viral videos, put up relevant content, grow your followers, and reach out to the public! Market your product in a way such that it catches the eye of the public instead of simply annoying them.
As far as inside sales is concerned, these are the top sales techniques that are in fact proven to work. They might take up a lot of time and effort, but if you want good sales, you have to put in the work!
Updated : November 15, 2024
Naim Vakeel is a content writer who specializes in making the integration and management of business phone systems simple and practical. His content is all about providing clear, actionable advice on how to use VoIP and virtual phone solutions effectively, helping businesses streamline their communication setup.
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