Although invisible to the naked eye, COVID-19 is currently hitting French-speaking Swiss businesses hard, leaving behind very real after-effects: paralysis of the economy, decline in investments, loss of consumer confidence. If we add to this the imperative of social distancing, we can then make the following observation without hesitation: It has never been more difficult for a business to make sales. Our world has changed. And yet, have we been able to adapt our way of selling? As Einstein said: “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.” However, in this period of uncertainty, it is decisive for a company to demonstrate agility and question its sales processes. It’s the changes you make today that will allow your business to bounce back once the crisis is over.
Here we offer you 3 tips to help you adjust your sales strategy during this pandemic period:
1. Don’t stick your head in the sand
One thing is certain: 100% of your customers are impacted by the current situation. Therefore, two attitudes should be avoided to avoid losing their confidence:
- Continue to sell, as you did before: in such a context, your speech will seem disconnected from reality and will demonstrate your lack of empathy.
- Stay silent: The fear of making a misstep probably paralyzed your communications at the start of a crisis, this is understandable. Now just ask yourself: how can you develop a relevant digital presence?
With confinement, the use of social networks increased by 61%. Why deprive yourself of such an opportunity to build relationships with new prospects?
2. Be the hero your customers dream of
It is often said that a good salesperson is someone who knows how to listen and attract customers without ever trying to sell. To win new contracts, your company must be sensitive to the needs and expectations of its target customers. According to a recent study by Edelman, 65% of respondents in a survey answered affirmatively to the question “how a brand responds to this crisis will have a huge impact on the likelihood of me purchasing from this brand in the future“. What should be your company’s “right response” to the crisis? Two companies have recently stood out on the issue:
- The Morand distillery has launched a disinfectant based on pear brandy to compensate for the general stock shortage in supermarkets.
- The CEO of Silicom Group, Bertrand Fournier, shared a message on LinkedIn inviting all French-speaking Swiss SMEs to benefit from free training to strengthen their IT skills.
And you, how can you help your target customers cope with the crisis? They will remember it.
3. Focus on the presence of your sellers on LinkedIn
Since its acquisition by Microsoft in 2016, LinkedIn has become THE Social Selling platform par excellence. This professional social media does not only aim to highlight businesses. Expert employees, such as salespeople or members of management, can take on the role of opinion leader, becoming ambassadors for the company. Faced with uncertainty, your customers will trust the faces that make up your company much more than your logo. In this time of social distancing, every sales manager must learn to become a Digital Business Developer, which means knowing:
- Have an impeccable LinkedIn profile, making any prospect want to get in touch to find out more about the services offered.
- Frequently publish relevant content that highlights your expertise and that of the company.
- Increase the size of your network by using software that automate B2B prospecting on LinkedIn, such as Phantombuster or ProspectIn.
To be able to learn this new profession, it is important that your employees feel supported and can benefit from adequate training.
Why offer Ricochets training to your employees?
>We have developed online training specially designed for people in charge of sales:
Social Selling: Develop your sales thanks to LinkedIn.
This two-hour online training course is organized on Zoom and can accommodate up to 10 people. Always adapted to each company, our training covers the following subjects:
- How to build a great profile
- Explanation of using the platform
- Know how to communicate well on LinkedIn (in general and during COVID-19)
- How to prospect effectively
- Q&A with participants
“Involving your employees in communication will become the norm. Effective and pragmatic, this training is the best way to get started.”
Gregory Feret, entrepreneur and CEO chez Qualibroker
Are you interested in this training?
To get to know each other and get more details, write to us at in**@ri*******.ch
Take care of yourself.
