If you farm and hunt than you need a plan. If you are required to acquire customers (hunt) and nurture customers (farm), then you need a plan. Generally, most salespeople have a component of each; but, some roles, like Strategic Account Management, have these responsibilities specifically embedded in their jobs. Without a plan you will take the path of least resistance; you will do which of the two comes easier to you. And the problem with that is that the customer is denied solutions you may have, your employer loses business, and you, well, score poorly on, and likely get heat for, the neglected activity. So, what to do? Here are 3 ways how you can address the challenge of hunting and farming in sales.
Dedicate Specific Days for Hunting and Farming in Sales
Here’s a fun fact. Not all days are selling (hunting) days. Yes, you read that right. Salespeople that are actively hunting daily are few and far between. The vast majority are allergic to hunting on Mondays and Fridays even when their reports show otherwise. What this means is that the salesperson can dedicate a day, say Fridays, to farming. To be sure though, farming is not just a courtesy call feel good meet. No. The importance of farming is beyond that. It presents itself with opportunities to hunt too.
For instance, to cross-sell. “He signed on to our pest management control program but didn’t want to buy our GPRS app. ‘That’s OK’ I told him. I knew he would come round. And 8 months later he did. Over the 8 months, however, we were in continual engagement bi-weekly monitoring progress of the performance of the pest control program.”
Adopt a Market-Specific Approach (Camping)
If you are selling persona loans, life insurance or such other B2C services and products, it pays to sell in a specific market (‘camp’). Camping is unbelievably effective for hunting and farming. It even easily resolves the non-sales days. All you have to do is show up at the market with no concrete plan in mind.
“If I stary in the office, I’ll be told off so I just come to spend the day here and take tea at their canteen,” a salesperson confessed. “But being their go-to guy every so often, a customer excitedly says “You’re around! (sic). Good. Come. There’s this colleague you must sell to.” Or: “I have not received my cheque book and ‘your people’ at the bank are not helpful What’s happening?” And an idle day is suddenly active with hunting and farming activities
Utilize an Account Planning Tool for Complex Roles
If yours is a comparatively more complex role like Strategic Account Management you need a more elaborate plan. An account planning tool. This tool, which can be in the shape of a matrix (a table with four quadrants on an A4 paper) captures four essential components. Details of the customer (Name, Location, Core Business, any related companies, when onboarded etc); Revenue (Current and Potential etc), Relationship Goals (How you have aligned your institution to the Customer’s for mutual success), and Administration of the Plan (Customer’s decision-making processes, and frequency of engagement). Documenting these in an Account Plan will radically transform and direct your sales efforts.
“With the plan, I’m able to track changes that happen with the customer business and time I should allocate t each. The decision isn’t only determined by potential revenue only, but value too. For example, there’s one I see monthly, because he gives me very good industry insights and referrals though the potential revenue from him is limited.”
Hunting and Farming in Sales
So, there you have it Three was to practically manage a fluid situation of hunting and farming in sales and optimize your selling time. Dedicated days, camping and account planning. By implementing these strategies, you can effectively balance hunting and farming activities, leading to better results for your customers, your employer, and yourself.
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