Our Approach The Buying Cycle

If you understand how people buy, you'll learn how to sell.

Detailed above are the stages of the buying cycle and, in grey text, the key issue that a buyer focuses on. This is a simplification of a complex process in which buyers weigh several issues at once and can even recycle back to an earlier stage. The situation is further complicated when multiple people are involved in making the decision because one person may be at a certain stage while another person is at a different stage.

Effectively addressing buyer concerns moves them to take action. We help our clients understand how the buying cycle unfolds in their sales environment. It is critical for sales and marketing to understand the concerns that a buyer has, be sensitive to their vacillations, and align their activities to move buyers through these stages. With that understanding, marketing can design campaigns to initiate buying cycles and provide collateral to help address specific concerns within the cycle. Sellers can then anticipate buyer concerns, proactively take actions to address them, and even use them to the seller's advantage. Understanding the buying cycle and aligning your activities with buyers will:

  • Increase sales

  • Reduce costs

  • Shorten sales cycles

  • Increase productivity

  • Improve customer satisfaction

  • Improve forecasting accuracy

As a cycle, the implication is that any customer or prospect, even one who doesn't make a purchase at this time, is a rich resource for future business. Customers and prospects can contribute to your future success by:

  • Being a source of future sales

  • Serving as a reference

  • Providing data on their success with your products or services

  • Providing referrals

  • Providing input or data on how to improve your business or products

Most companies claim to emphasize customer satisfaction, but buyers frequently tell a different story - that a company's actions, intentional or not, are frustrating and even hinder sales. To help you improve your sales performance, we will assess the comprehensive experience a buyer has with your organization. That assessment includes:

  • How user-friendly your website is

  • How well your messaging aligns with your target market(s) - its concerns and interests

  • How your sales reps treat prospects

  • How responsive and effective your customer support is

Intimately understanding the experience of your customers can be eye opening, illuminating what is in need of improvement and highlighting unrecognized strengths.




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Testimonials

  • "HSG designed and implemented an online ordering and financial system for our client that far exceeded expectations." Jackie Townsend, President

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  • "During our merger, Paul's guidance helped us navigate the challenges we faced integrating the two organizations." Jayne Hancock, President

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  • "Paul's training, coaching, and tools helped me with specific accounts and grow overall as a sales professional." Rex Klein, Account Executive

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  • "Paul's marketing and project management expertise was critical in successfully launching our first Security Summit." Michael Jones, President

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  • "Revenue has increasd by 25%. New customers are coming in...We've developed new revenue streams and more are on the way." Steve Wilson, Proprietor

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  • "...Paul gave us the crucial information, tools, and coaching to convert more of our enterprise level opportunities into wins..." Eric Albertson, President

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  • "Paul helped us move into larger accounts, which resulted in an opening sale of $280,000." Rex Klein, Vice President of Sales

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  • "Paul's...program reduced the time my new reps took to reach quota by two months..." John Sedlacek, Vice President of Sales

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Tools & Tips

Sell unto others as you would have them sell unto you.

The Golden Rule applies to selling as it does to life.

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Common practices are not necessarily best practices

Learn what the top sales performers do to increase their win rate and consistently make quota.

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