Sales Hunting

The first year of developing a new sales territory is a daunting task-especially in dog-eat-dog industries. The traditional advice is to train quickly on product, grab a customer list, start calling for appointments, discover opportunities, and close deals. In fact, almost every sales model out there is based on nothing more than "opportunity" management. But jumping straight to opportunity will have new salespeople-or veterans developing new territories-chasing their tails for the first year or two.

As Sales Hunting: How to Develop New Territories and Major Accounts in Half the Time Using Trust as Your Weapon details, there is a significant problem you must overcome when opening up new accounts and territories. No matter what you are selling, your prospect already has a trusted relationship with an incumbent vendor and will continue to buy from that vendor even when you have the better solution. The playing field is not level-and you're on the wrong side. So how can you compete to win?

"Trust is the grease that makes business sales effortless," writes sales pro and trainer Dave Monty. Opportunity metrics are important, but trust-and a few sharp insider tactics Monty reveals-is the guidepost that leads to success. His sales model therefore incorporates metrics based on trust along with traditional sales measures. That is the fuel that helps you not just turn virgin territory into a consistent revenue generator, but helps you win over potential accounts that now use competitive products.

Sales Hunting helps you start establishing trust before you step foot in a prospect's door, and it shows you the tactics necessary to penetrate new accounts. Once you gain access, trust can be used as systematic way to build long-lasting relationships that pay dividends well beyond that first sale you make. Among other things, this book explains:

• Why most customers don't want to buy from you . . . yet
• Why trust-based relationships enable you to open up territories and bag the biggest customers quickly
• How to qualify and rank customers based on traits
• How to get in step with the customer's buying cycle
• How to establish trust-based and traditional sales metrics to guide your efforts

With advice based on Monty's twenty years of IT sales and sales management experience-along with principles confirmed by academic research-Sales Hunting is an easy-to-read book that is packed with real-life examples and prescriptions for achieving sales success. It will prove a lifesaver for any salesperson or sales manager developing a new territory or trying to penetrate new accounts.