Definition
A sales process is a structured, repeatable set of steps that a salesperson takes to move a prospective customer from the early stage of awareness to a closed deal. It is a formal playbook that defines the specific actions a sales team should take at each stage of a deal. Unlike a « sales pipeline » (which is a visual representation of deals), the sales process is the action plan for moving deals through that pipeline.
Examples of Process Stages
While they vary by company, common stages of a sales process include:
- Prospecting: Identifying and finding new potential customers (prospects) who fit the Ideal Customer Profile (ICP).
- Qualification: Contacting the lead (e.g., via a discovery call) to vet them, confirm their need, and determine if they are a good fit.
- Needs Assessment: Deeply understanding the prospect’s specific challenges and pain points.
- Presentation/Demo: Presenting the product or service as a specific solution to the prospect’s pain points.
- Proposal & Objection Handling: Sending a formal quote or proposal and addressing any concerns the prospect has about price, features, or timing.
- Closing: Obtaining the final agreement, signature, and payment to officially make them a customer.
- Follow-Up & Onboarding: The post-sale process of ensuring the customer is successful and identifying future upsell opportunities.
Advantages/Benefits
- Scalability: A defined process is easy to teach, making it simple to train new salespeople and scale the team.
- Improved Efficiency: Sales reps always know the next step to take, eliminating guesswork and reducing time wasted on inefficient activities.
- Accurate Forecasting: A standardized process creates a more predictable sales cycle, which leads to more reliable revenue forecasts.
- Continuous Optimization: Allows managers to identify and fix bottlenecks (e.g., where deals are getting stuck), improving the team’s overall performance.
Related terms
- Sales Pipeline
- Sales Cycle
- Lead Qualification
- Sales Funnel
- CRM (Customer Relationship Management)
- Sales Cadence
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