I learned recently that when planning for sales success, it is important to ask the right questions.

I was at a technology event in Waterloo and I ran into a budding entrepreneur. He had a new mobile solution and was very close to being able to launch this solution. I was interested in hearing about the sales and marketing plan. The sales and marketing plan had one aspect word of mouth. The entrepreneur thought that because the solution was so technically good that it would sell itself. No special intervention was needed on his part.

I believe strongly that a sales and marketing plan is essential to the success of a new venture. Don’t just take my word on it, a sales consultant, look at results from surveys in profit magazine. It consistently indicates that the best reason for success was the sales and marketing plan with the 50 fastest growing companies in Canada.

Here are a few simple questions that you can use to create a sales and marketing plan.

• Who is your customer and how do they buy?
• Where does your prospective customer get their information?
• What pain does your solution fix for your customer? Can you monetize that pain?
• Who are your competitors and how is your solution better?

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