Selling to an Industry
Selling to Copyright and Trademark Services Businesses
The territory of copyright and trademark services businesses is fertile ground for B2B sales. Don't forget that copyright and trademark services businesses aren't easy sales marks -- here's what you'll need to close sales in this niche market.
Drive and diligence are admirable characteristics for sales professionals. But selling to copyright and trademark services businesses requires more than a desire to succeed.
In today's fast-paced B2B economy, intelligence and hard work are two things that never go out of style � especially for companies that sell to copyright and trademark services businesses.
Casting a Broad Net
The first step in selling to copyright and trademark services businesses is to take a broad approach to the marketplace. Strategies that are isolated to the local market are not likely to succeed in an environment that leverages the benefits of long-distance sales techniques.
Although a geographic concentration may be a useful strategy for new sellers, you will eventually need to broaden your focus to include prospects outside of your initial range. You can also broaden your prospect base by expanding your product line or by creating strategic partnerships with suppliers of complementary goods.
Marketing, Promotions & PR
Young B2B companies are often tempted to buy their way into the market. Rather than taking the time to develop relationships with copyright and trademark services business owners, these companies blanket the market with high-priced marketing content in hopes of scoring fast conversions from buyers.
Marketing is useful and necessary. But new businesses should channel their energy toward initiatives that support their value proposition. Although lead lists obtained from third-party vendors like Experian can dramatically increase the quality of your prospects, the effectiveness of your marketing efforts is limited to your team's ability to connect marketing, promotional and PR messaging with your company's unique product traits.
How to Evaluate Sales Staff
Periodic staff assessment is essential for companies that sell in this industry. Businesses that achieve significant market share recruit the cream of the crop and routinely evaluate them against performance goals and benchmarks.
Although annual reviews may be enough for other business units, sales units should be evaluated quarterly with monthly or weekly reviews of sales totals. Training, coaching and sales incentives can be useful for improving performance and revenues. In some instances, it may be appropriate to team underperforming sales reps with reps that have more experience selling to copyright and trademark services businesses.
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