Companies that want to work in a more data-driven way should consider these five things before embarking on their journey. Whether it’d be marketing, hr, finance, or sales… The foundation has to be solid. To measure is to know; hence not knowing exactly what you are measuring doesn’t propel a company forward on its journey, au contraire.

Imagine a company that wants to identify so-called high potentials. What it means to be a high-potential could be drastically different in Europe as opposed to Asia or America. That’s why an unambiguous, shared language is required, so definitions are clear.

Ideally, a baseline is established. Without one deciding if trends are positive or negative becomes more of a guessing game. Also, data should be measured continuously. A one-off measurement can never represent the context and nuance that it needs.

If a company can only rely on analysts to reveal insights, there is a chance a lot of other valuable insights remain uncovered. The data should be accessible to the right people and presented in a comprehensible format.

Apples and apples or apples and oranges? Without the ability to compare, the data remains isolated. Comparisons in time or benchmarking with industry standards help with orienting where the company is.

Garbage in, garbage out. The adage doesn’t surprise anyone. Yet, dubious data input happens relatively often in analytics journies. These five pillars revolve around laying the right foundations, and quality is an absolute must.

Those five pillars once again; shared language, baseline & continuous measurement, comparing, and quality.

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In the first scenario, you can enter in sales-mode.

In the second scenario, you have to go in, in evangelism-mode. Meaning, a whole lot of convincing has to take place for the lead to convert into a paying customer.

When your lead isn’t ready to buy (at all), consider leaving it there. You can always reiterate in a year or so.

No is better than maybe.

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Being in sales means taking no for an answer repeatedly.

As such, handling no’s takes resilience, lots of it. Not being able to control all outcomes requires acceptance. Nourish both to improve selling skills.

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Hot leads might already be convinced before a sales meeting. There is not much left to do but to clarify the details and seal the deal.

Cold leads might need a lot of convincing. If you manage to do so throughout a meeting, the art is knowing when to stop. Overloading the customer with compelling information after the customer signals buying intentions is detrimental.

More (convincing information) isn’t better. It might confuse the customer. Know when to stop.

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Typically people need some confirmation now and then. A pat on the back or a mini-win that empowers.

Many jobs, outside of what is strictly considered as sales or business development, entail sales-like activities. More specifically, persuading people. When a nurse has to administer medicine to a patient, and the patient refuses, the nurse has to persuade the patient. Even though they might experience resistance, they will succeed eventually. Which feels like a win. People in sales have to be willing and able to go for prolonged periods without wins.

Persuading people to buy a product will inevitably be met with a lot of no’s. Brush that dirt off your shoulder and on to the next.

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When products and services are offered for sale, there has to be a customer on the receiving end. How many times is there a customer in the meeting room, though? If it isn’t a focus group, but a good old regular meeting, there is almost never a customer among the attendees.

Obviously, having a firm empathic understanding of the customer is the job of some of the people within the company, especially the people in marketing and sales. However, without the voice of the customer in the room, the risk of concluding with critical assumptions is substantial.

Keep your customers close.

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Big tickets may have longer lead times than small ones; however, the effort to land a big client or the equivalent (expressed in revenue) for numerous small clients may be relatively similar.

What, if there is such a thing, is the ideal balance then?

Like a gearbox to a car, you need the smaller cogwheels to get going. Shift up once you reach the red line.

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What’s true of boxing is true of business.

Landing a new client or account doesn’t happen with a one-off stunt. The sequence must be clear prior to engaging with the client.

Follow up and – through relentlessly.

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The risk increases depending on the emotional engagement, better yet, the lack thereof, with the actual object. It’s hard to form long-term emotional connections with things we possess. Post-purchase disappointment often kicks in hard when fantasy becomes a reality.

That’s why deferred gratification is often so rewarding. Resisting a temptation today in favor of a later (perhaps more significant) reward tomorrow.

Even though these principles are well known, they are poorly applied today. When you buy a new car, a rather significant purchase for most of us, nothing happens after signing on the dotted line. That’s basically adding fuel directly to the raging buyer’s remorse fire. After some months, you get a message from the dealership. You go to pick up your car, drive it off the lot, and that’s it. Good riddance.

Whether it’s a once-in-a-lifetime purchase or an ordinary commodity that gets bought all the time, leave your customer with something (extra) to be desired.

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Some people seem to excel at selling, whereas to others, selling doesn’t come as natural (straight away).

References, on the other hand, aren’t optional either. Whether it’s a photographer’s portfolio, a corporate company’s case studies, a restaurant’s reviews…

If selling isn’t a particular entrepreneur (and their company’s) forte, the importance of the references increases. A portfolio that the creator can take genuine pride in is bound to ooze out passion. When your heart is all the way in it, it rubs off, selling your work for you almost automatically.

Selling and (the ability to show) references aren’t optional. If one doesn’t come naturally, compensate with the other.

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