New Sales Competencies

The Skills Your Customers Require

A recent study [1] identified seven new competencies which are necessary for sales success today. The study, which spanned 40 business-to-business sales forces, compared the traits of the top third of most productive salespeople to the bottom two-thirds, using feedback from customers, sales managers, and peers.

The study found that, besides the established competencies of sales skills and account strategy development, there are now seven new skills that customers appreciate from their vendors. I’ve listed them below along with specific suggestions for using KAPS and OIS concepts to reinforce them.

Engaging in Self-Appraisal and Continuous Learning.

This is both the most important and the most difficult. It’s critical because today’s rapid pace of change requires constant learning, flatter sales organizations mean less time spent by manager with salespeople, and it’s the one competency which makes it easier to learn the others. It also may be difficult for many salespeople, for whom ego strength is important, meaning they’re so high on their own abilities that it’s difficult to admit they need to improve. This reinforces the claim we make in KAPS that the most important words in the opportunity plan are: “I don’t know” (DK)

Listening Beyond Product Need.

This is the skill which enables solution and consultative selling. By asking excellent questions and listening for business needs instead of just the customers’ requirements, you may add value by suggesting unspecified requirements, or improve your strategy by identifying additional problem owners.

Orchestrating Internal Resources.

Your customers want salespeople who can get things done internally to deliver complex solutions and superior service. Although KAPS and OIS have a strong customer focus, sometimes it is as important to look within and have an action plan to be able to build internal relationships and deploy the necessary resources to strengthen the Solution Fit section of your opportunity plan.

Aligning Customer/ Supplier Strategic Objectives.

In the survey customers were particularly impressed with salespeople who try hard look to further the interests of their customers’ companies as well as their own, and to take a long term view. Make sure your customer strategies worksheet is up to date in key account planning and periodically revisit the SWOT analysis.

Establishing a Vision of a Committed Customer/Supplier Relationship.

Because customers sometimes don’t understand what’s in it for them to open up and give you information, the most successful salespeople are adept at helping the customer to understand the potential of an expanded relationship. This is especially important when you are trying to “train” a customer to expect to be sold this way. Make sure you have a strong value proposition to express it.

Understanding the Financial Impact of Decisions.

The most effective salespeople understand ways to contribute both to internal profitability and customer profitability. In effect, you’re not selling a product or a service—you’re selling customer results which are measured in financial terms. The ability to show the financial impact of doing business with you helps you elevate the perceived value of your solution and open doors at higher levels within the customer’s decision process. Use your solution value worksheet as the framework to build and demonstrate the business value of your solution. In addition, knowing more about your own company’s profit dynamics will help you to structure “win-win” proposals.

Consultative Problem Solving requires anticipating possible problems
and proposing innovative solutions.

This of course requires both a deep understanding of your own capabilities and of the customers’ business problems, and being able to think about how to go beyond your immediate product or service to a complete solution. In effect, this competency requires a mastery of Listening Beyond Product Need and Orchestrating Internal Resources to develop the best solution. It requires thinking of yourself as a business consultant rather than a salesperson.

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