Ways to Reduce Long Sales Cycles in Patient Engagement Sales Process

One of the biggest obstacles for Patient Engagement and Education salespeople is reducing the long sales cycle. As you know, unlike B2C, the B2B sales process includes involving a variety of decision makers and informing them of your product. It usually takes a very long time persuading each of them that your service is the best to meet their needs. Nevertheless, since everyone has different opinions, and since there are so many people involved in making decisions, the sales process can become agonizingly long. On top of that, according to a current nofollow external noreferrer”>Demand Gen record, the Buyer’s Journey for several B2B buyers is getting longer and a lot more complex, which does not help with the already laborious sales process. But there are solutions. There are many strategies that could help reduce your Patient Engagement and Education cycle:

1. Understand your Buyer Personas

Don’t waste your time trying to engage those you don’t know anything about. You might find yourself in a long sales cycle which won’t lead to any sales in the long run. Before you start the sales process, take some time to define who you are targeting. Your Buyer Personas (also known as your ideal buyers) can be ‘Physician Philip’, ‘Hospital Administrator Alice,’ or ‘Medical Director Daniel’. Preferably, your Buyer Personas must be the primary decision makers of the companies you are targeting, and also occasionally vital influencers. After recognizing your Personas, you could describe their top qualities by asking these questions:

• What are your responsibilities?
• What are your objectives?
• What issues do you have?
• What makes you want to buy?
• What stops you from buying?
• How do you get your information?

2. Send out an initial video

Leads are usually introduced to how a salesperson looks in their face-to-face meeting. To develop awareness prior to the first meeting, consider sending the prospective customer an nofollow external noreferrer”>intro video discussing why you want them (flattery), something useful to them (a study that you conducted, etc), and a call-to-action (setting up a time for the next conversation). By doing this, when you engage with them by phone, they are already aware of you. This doesn’t mean, however, that you should invest a lot of money in the video. A good cell phone video camera with lights with work fine. Our preferred tool to produce these videos is called nofollow external noreferrer”>Soapbox by nofollow external noreferrer”>Wistia.

3. Supply pre-sales meeting content

One of the biggest mistakes you could make is to have a sales meeting with a prospective client that doesn’t have any information to engage with. This means that you may need a few visits before persuading the prospect, but that can be tough with everyone’s busy schedules. Instead, send out lead nurturing emails with informational content that they can look at before your meeting. For example, if you want to sell and x-ray device to ‘Hospital Administrator Alice’, send her a link to a blog post with stats on how managers save time with new devices. You can also send a comparison chart that reveals the benefits your item has over your competition. Keep strategically educating them throughout the process to position yourself as a reliable source.

4. Supply post-sales consultation content

After the first sales meeting, the prospect probably has questions or concerns. Your job as the sales rep of your Patient Engagement and Education firm is attend to all of those concerns and remove any barriers. You can send out follow-up emails with reports, case studies, and videos to resolve their big worries. This content can be used to help other customers, too. Getting rid of barriers with this content will reduce the sales cycle dramatically.

5. Be upfront with pricing

A big issue for your leads is the rates of your services and products. Many salespeople skirt around the issue of prices and delay the conversation until late in the sales process. All this does is put more time in your sales process, which you don’t want. What’s more, giving the prices upfront can eliminate those who aren’t interested. Being clear with your rates early in the sales process will help save time. So how do you tactfully offer price information without frightening your potential customers away? Be sure to calculate the value of your service, so the price is taken in content. You could also use phrases like “beginning at $…” or “from $…”

6. Use social evidence

Social proof can help win your prospect’s trust quickly and help close the sale. You can send them case studies showing ROI or the impact of your product or service. Be sure the companies showcased in the study resemble that of the prospect’s company. You can also find a common connection on LinkedIn that can introduce you to the prospect. This strategy works better than just sending out an arbitrary email. According to the nofollow external noreferrer”>B2B news network, 84% of B2B decision makers start the buying process from a recommendation. You could also invite the prospect to a live event that existing clients are attending. Then, your prospect is likely to make their buying choice more quickly.

The bottom line

It can be difficult to focus on anything else beyond closing sales and meeting your quota, but it’s critical for you to take time to better understand your leads. Your sales cycle should be linked with the lead nurturing process where you can act as a consultant to your potential customers while also building trust and boosting your chances of making the sale. This can be a big undertaking to do alone. Responsify partners with Patient Engagement and Education sales and business development pros to offer strategy, support, and help executing these tasks. By collaborating, we help marketing and salespeople purposefully bring in brand-new website visitors, convert them to qualified leads, and satisfied consumers. We’ve helped several sales pros like you include Inbound into their sales procedures. You can schedule a cost-free strategy session now to get tips and advice on how to better understand and nurture your leads and close sales more quickly.