Killer Sales Tips to Make Contact, Develop Prospects and Close Deals

You've built solid services, set competitive prices and hired great technicians. But how can you improve your sales efforts? Check out these killer sales tips from an expert who specializes in helping channel and managed services businesses.

Jessica Davis

May 2, 2013

2 Min Read
Kendra Lee is an awardwinning author and sales consultant
Kendra Lee is an award-winning author and sales consultant.

The sequester, an uncertain economy and tight IT budgets may have made managed services sales over the past few years just a little more challenging. But great sales techniques and sales representatives still yield the best results, no matter what the environment looks like. With that in mind, here are some top tips, strategies and tactics from a channel sales expert to light the fire under your MSP’s sales engine.

KLA Group’s Kendra Lee is an award winning sales consultant, author and, yes, sales representative (she got her knowledge in the trenches), and she’s been sharing her wisdom for free with readers over at The VAR Guy for close to a year. The following are some highlights that may help your business, too:

  • How to Fill Your Pipeline with High-Value Prospects – This is the antidote for the low success rate that comes from cold calling. Here’s a look at how to nurture your prospects before you reach out.

  • The Value Curve that Wins More Sales – Are you focusing on your customers’ top priorities?  Here’s why you should and how to identify what those needs are. Plus, how to figure out the hidden priorities behind what’s been identified as the top priorities.

  • Build the Perfect Business Case – When you make recommendations during the sales process, follow through in your proposal with supporting financial justification. Including a business case in your proposals  creates a sense of urgency. Your customers want to save money, increase revenue and streamline productivity. Urgency will increase your probability of closing the sale—and doing so more quickly.

  • Get the Information to Build the Perfect Business Case – Creating a business case isn’t as hard as you might think if you know what information you need and what questions to ask to find out what they want to accomplish, and why. This article also looks at the three key areas to pay attention to as you discuss a customer’s needs. 

  • Go Straight to the Source –  Sales representatives often hesitate to go straight to the top to make contact with prospects, and instead prefer dealing with mid-level staff. Here’s why your sales reps should shoot for the top of the organization instead of the office manager or IT director. 

For more great insights and strategies on sales topics, check out Lee’s other articles at The VAR Guy.

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About the Author(s)

Jessica Davis

Jessica Davis is the former Content Director for MSPmentor. She spent her career covering the intersection of business and technology.  She's also served as Editor in Chief at Channel Insider and held senior editorial roles at InfoWorld and Electronic News.

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