Sales Support and Training
Including sales guides, competitive analysis and tactical sales tools
 Sales support documents either a) customer-facing communications used directly by a sales force or distributor/integrator; or b) tools and information used by the sales force internally to improve their sales strategies. Examples might include sales scripts, direct response letters/emails, competitive analysis, win/loss reports, function/feature/benefit guides, and so on.
A properly written sales tool with the right information can turn a salesperson's job into a much easier one, accelerating the sales cycle, improving close rates and overall revenue.
Gregg Astoorian, principal of Ergo Communications, has spent over 15 years directly or indirectly supporting sales and distribution channels. Ergo understands the challenges and importance of good sales support, and knows what works and what doesn't.
Some of the types of documents that fall into this category include:
- Sales Guides
- Competitive Profiles and Grids
- Objection Handlers
- Attack/Defend Documents
- Feature Guides
- Inside sales scripts and tools
- Sales letters and direct response copy
How to Write for a Sales Force
There are two big challenges in writing for a sales force.
The first problem is that sales people aren't compensated for training, research and other activities that aren't directly selling and closing business. The best sales tools are written to make needed information easy to find, often through grids, charts, tables and so on, with good cross referencing and the ability to quickly "drill down" to needed information.
The second issue is more difficult, which is that a lot of the information provided to sales isn't what ultimately closes the deal. It may provide a good overview of the company and its products, but often they don't provide the crucial information of how past deals have successfully closed, what the customer's real problems are, what competitors' tactics are and how they can be countered, and so on. If this type of information can be gathered and kept current, sales support documents become extremely effective and powerful.
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