Generating viable leads is a difficult part of any sales process, and telecom sales are no exception.
In the telecommunications industry, however, you’re not just completing a straightforward transaction. Rather, you’re selling complex solutions and custom configurations of business Internet, data networking and business phone services.
This complex sales cycle means additional obstacles for your sales team, especially when it comes to lead generation. Here are the four most common obstacles in the telecom sales process and how your team can overcome them with ease:
Obstacle #1: Finding The Decision Maker
The biggest challenge in the business telecom sales process is getting to the ultimate decision maker for the purchase. Often, your sales team will have to get past many different gatekeepers and influencers before they’re finally able to reach the decision maker.
While it’s easy to grow frustrated over the time and effort spent getting through to the decision maker, remind your sales team of the significance of gatekeepers and influencers. These early contacts are most likely the individuals who will be using your business telecom solution in their day-to-day jobs, so it’s important to have their input and feedback as you complete the sale.
Obstacle #2: Product Knowledge & Training
In order to effectively execute lead generation in the telecom industry, your sales team must have in-depth knowledge and training around your products and services. Otherwise, they won’t be able to hold the necessary conversations to close the deal, especially when your telecom sales go beyond solely transactional.
This product knowledge should begin with initial training and continue with ongoing training and development sessions for your sales team. Furthermore, when a member of your sales team isn’t sure of an answer, they should conduct the necessary research before giving your prospect a solid response.
Obstacle #3: Understanding The Decision Tree
Another major challenge in telecom lead generation is understanding your prospect’s decision tree or IT roadmap. This challenge is particular to the telecommunications industry because your solutions must be cleared by the Chief Information Officer (CIO) or the Director of IT within the company.
In order to gain trust within the IT department, you must understand their long-term roadmap. You also need to understand other IT-related factors such as:
- How their purchasing decisions are made
- What they’re looking for in a solution
- How many people are involved in the purchase decision
- Who must sign off on a particular given solution
Once your team understands the factors of the IT decision tree, generating a solid lead – and closing the deal – is much more achievable.
Obstacle #4: Showing Ultimate Value
Within such a complex sales process, showing the bottom-line value of your telecom offering or solution isn’t always easy, but it’s completely necessary.
Whether your team demonstrates long-term ROI, budget savings or time efficiencies, communicating the value of your solutions is imperative to closing the deal. However, merely stating these values may not fully resonate with a decision maker. Instead, have your sales team follow up with case studies, demos or other proof to bolster their pitch and demonstrate credibility.
Generating leads in the telecom sales process isn’t always straightforward. But when you’re able to overcome these four main obstacles to lead generation, you’re well on your way to a closed deal.
Looking for warmer lead generation as a business telecom provider? Click below to download this industry guide from Invenio Solutions® to start turning cold-call targets into prospects who are ready to buy.