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Thought Leadership

Thinking ahead in sales

Tue, 08 Nov 2011 16:15

What does it mean to have thought leadership in sales? In the current competitive market your business should do more than sell products, it should add value to the lives of your clients and sales professional Colleen Francis talks about how to achieve this reputation.

Thought leaders go beyond ordinary business operations and practices like networking at industry events, or selling to the economic buyer to increase their profits or extend their reach.

Colleen Francis, a recognized sales professional for over 20 years says, “When you develop resources that showcase your expertise and values specific to each customer you serve, you transform from being a seller to being a thought leader.”

This transformation has a number of benefits as it moves you into a place where you establish loyal and profitable relationships. This is critical in cementing your place in the market.

Thought leaders are also able to obtain and secure leads from the best prospects, asserts Francis.

Colleen says the first step to becoming a thought leader starts with reaching out to your existing client base and collecting success stories and cases studies.

This information can be used to identify your unique selling points. “Deeply understanding the value you bring and the problems you solve for your clients helps you define the value you can bring to others”, advises Francis.

Simultaneously this information can be published in articles and trade magazines to show potential customers the quality of your service.

Establishing yourself as a thought leader is necessary to make that shift from seller to resource. According to Colleen, “Resources have a unique perceived value to all organisations”. Ultimately every business should aim to provide a product or service that is unique, or find that selling point that separates them from the competition in order to succeed.

By Cindy Payle