By understanding the elements of a successful sales process, sales teams can have more success in sales by improving, measuring and automating their process. In this article, we describe the foundation of an effective sales process which includes the management of opportunities, calls, accounts, and territories.

Calls
In the sales process, the management of calls includes researching and planning for the calls, executing them and asking questions, then making a record of the call and determining next steps. Before a call, the salesperson should identify the goal for the call, questions to ask, and possible objections that may come up and how to address them.

Opportunities
During opportunity planning, salespeople should address questions such as who is their ideal customer, what are the problems they help customers to solve, and how will they differentiate themselves from the competition.

Accounts
Good account management helps to increase the value of customer relationships over time by meeting customer needs. For the accounts management element of your sales process, ask questions such as what business needs do your customers have, what goals does your company have for the relationship, and how will you maintain a good and profitable relationship.

Territory
When managing territories, a salesperson prioritizes the potential value of buyers and plans calls to maximize efficiency and return. Some of the elements that territory management looks at are the top prospects and customers in a territory, how much attention they need, and how great service will be provided to them.  

Understanding the elements of the sales process will help you to improve your sales calls, get more customers, and better manage your customer accounts and territories.

A coach can help you to create an effective plan for your sales process that is tailored to your business.