Next steps in sales are one of the most important aspects in B2B sales. During your interactions you aren’t trying to close a deal, but to keep moving the deal forward.  Buyers have steps they need to go through to make a decision.  This usually doesn’t happen after an initial cold call or Linkedin message.  The key is to keep moving through the sales process with next steps in sales.

Buyer’s Journey

The buyer’s journey are the steps your prospect uses to make a decision. It is important to understand what these are and then integrate the associated next steps into your plan. This could mean creating a proposal, setting up a demo, providing a reference, or having a meeting with additional team members. Keep in mind that your prospects may not have all the same buyer’s journey, but they will likely be very similar.

Steps in the Sales Process

Every B2B sales organization should have their steps in the sales process. These should be documented and integrated into your systems and processes. You can group a number of steps into a stage to make management easier.

Sales Activities Next Steps

Each specific stage and/or activity should have a number of next steps. As an example, as you get to the end of a discovery call I like to ask what the prospect would like to see as a next step. For the most part we have a good idea of what some possible next steps could be, but it is good to hear from them. The client can provide some insight into their intent and how they make decisions.

CRM

Your CRM will help you significantly with your next steps in sales. You can of course record what you have done in your CRM, but you can also plan your future tasks. These tasks can be tied to your contact, company, and deals. CRMs typically allow you to modify the stages in the funnel to tie it into your sales process.

If you would like some help with your sales planning please connect with me.