Commercial Skills
Commercial success originates from a thorough understanding of the difference between serving and selling. As exemplified by:
NEEDS DRIVEN SELLING based on strategic listening (listen to know what to ask). Unless we observe and interpret what a client says, we never understand (any better than the competition) what he really wants.
CUSTOMER BUYING CYCLE SELLING explicitly focusses on the buying cycle of clients, not just the sellers cycle. It provides perspectives that most "sellers" avoid, missing real opportunities.
RELATIONAL SELLING focuses on developing client loyalty. Farmers often produce the same produce. Relational selling will help farmers more up the league table, not because their produce is better, but because they themselves are better.
VALUE ADDED SELLING formulates proposals offering clients a unique
advantage, relative to either known or unknown needs. It is not restricted to firms offering unique hard- or software.
NEGOTIATION is the art of making deals by changing the conditions of the deal. In a commercial setting, these are the conditions of a sale (price, delivery time, payment conditions, delivery location, intermediary storage, service levels, guarantee scope of guarantee, coverage and time, ...). In non-sales situations these relate to agreeing among colleagues, or to settle disputes with suppliers, clients, or sometimes third parties. There are various apporaches, the main ones being:
- principal negotiation
- positional negotiation
- negotiating with integrity (lost cases)
and in all negotiations, double logic and brinkmanship may be important.
The appropriate mix of approaches provides the appropriate commercial result. Several sales models/approaches exist.