Gaining the attention of qualified buyers is every sales team’s goal. Without sales, a business doesn’t stay in business for long and sales requires buyers in the “sales funnel,” a model for identifying the theoretical customer, and drawing him or her closer to being an actual one. The common ways to get a buyer into the sales funnel are to attract them or to find them.
Attracting a buyer involves answering their questions and/or being where they will find you. One way to be where they can discover you is to establish a position of knowledge leadership, either for a target industry or on a common problem shared by potential customers. Speaking at events, writing in publications, or even being on a podcast -- all are opportunities to showcase your knowledge of the subject your potential buyers are interested in, and to make yourself a sought-after knowledge leader.
Another option for helping potential buyers discover your company is to improve your digital presence with Search Engine Optimization for your website. SEO is both a technical discipline (please hire a professional for support) and common sense -- make your website answer questions. If you’ve seen a question answered on Google’s search page without the need to click to a website, that’s called a zero rank featured snippet block (zero snippet) appearing at the top of the Google search results page. Achieving a zero snippet rang is as simple as thinking about common questions buyers of your product or service have and answer them on your website. With technical SEO in place, your website’s answer can be the definitive answer, attracting buyers.
In addition to Google, the question format works for YouTube, which is the second largest search engine. Adding “How to…” to your videos is the ticket to getting more notice on YouTube and attracting potential buyers. Last but not least, the traditional advertising options will place your company in the view of potential buyers, whether digital or print.
Finding buyers means being where they are, either digitally or physically. Pre-COVID, meeting customers in-person (physically) often meant attending trade shows, networking events, or chapter meetings. Being present at those events to introduce yourself and your business. Digital options for connecting with potential buyers were plentiful before the pandemic, but since mid-2020 those digital options have become more prevalent, and much more mainstream as a business format.
Being digitally present might look like participating in an industry forum, attending virtual networking events, or being active on social media. A company can maintain a social media presence, or individual staff can be active, or a combination of both. More than mere presence, however, the goal is to engage the target customer on social media. Even, old-fashioned outreach by phone still works in 2021! I personally know several companies employing it successfully to find buyers in target industries.
A third option is often overlooked -- expanding current customers’ purchase of products or services. I like to call this the “Did you know” technique, as coined by sales coach and author, Alex Goldfayn (Selling Boldly, The Revenue Growth Habit, and more). A “Did you know?” question extends a customer into services or products you offer that currently they are not buying. Goldfayn cites the statistic that 20% of “Did you know?” questions become closed sales. Your customers already know, like, and trust your business, so closing the sale is easier.
What does a “did you know” question look like? In person, the question might come up by having your inside sales team or account executive ask a variant of “Did you know we can also help you with product or service x?” as the customer makes a purchase, or while talking to the customer about their current needs. Digitally it might be offering “frequently purchased with” options when they select an item in an online buying portal. In physical shipments, it might be mailing a short capabilities brochure with the shipment.
Finding buyers or making buyers aware of your company’s product or service is an essential part of the sales and marketing process. Harnessing one of these three techniques in a way you are not now, will make buyers less elusive and improve your sales funnel.
Alexandria Trusov is the Global Marketing Manager at Alpha Resources and a B2B marketing consultant to manufacturers and other B2B companies. Contact her at [email protected] or visit www.truinsightsconsulting.com.