March 28, 2017

192: How to use scripts to empower your sales team

In today’s episode, Steli and Hiten talk about the importance of having scripts and templates in your sales process. While it may not be needed during the early days of a startup, documents and scripts are crucial in helping your salespeople communicate your value. Listen as Steli shares how he learned the value of scripts from his own experience in sales and crucial tips that will help you make the most of your own templates.

Time Stamped Show Notes:

00:05 – Today’s episode is about using scripts and templates in your sales process

00:50 – Steli talks about his early experience in sales

01:42 – Steli did sales training when he was just 19 years old and realized the trainees were struggling with their work

02:28 – Steli remembered a workshop he attended

03:06 – Another participant in the workshop used a workbook and Steli thought it was a bad presentation

04:20 – The participant told Steli that the workbook he used was for his employees so they can replicate what he does

05:22 – Steli had an “ah-ha moment” where he realized that his employees could not replicate what he was doing because what he was doing worked for his personality and not their own

06:15 – In the startup world, there is a resistance to documentation and scripts

07:15 – Hiten says the lesson is to help other people know what you know

08:31 – Sales ends up as an afterthought because the founders think they can do it themselves

09:25 – The way you think as a founder is very different and you should embrace that

10:07 – As a founder, you must accept that other people may think differently than you

11:02 – In documentation, what you are aiming for is the middle ground

11:17 – You should create a script that is flexible and for different circumstances

12:15 – Make it in a way that people can still use their own language and allow space for creativity

12:54 – Scripts should be updated and developed regularly

13:29 – Salespeople will have bad days and the script can help them still have good conversations that will convert and have value

14:40 – In sales, repeatability is critical

15:04 – It is crucial for startups to be able to repeat everything – revenue, marketing, sales, product development and even fundraising

15:32 – Whatever NEEDS to be repeated should be documented

16:00 – The Ultimate Sales Bundle has 20 different sales templates for free

16:40 – End of today’s episode

3 Key Points:

While it might be boring, scripts and templates is a valuable resource that can function as a guide for salespeople.

Make your scripts and documentation in a way that allows creativity and flexibility for those who use it.

Repeatability is crucial to the growth of your business—especially in regards to the information that NEEDS to be communicated to future clients.

Steli: Hey everybody, this is Steli Efti.

Hiten: And this is Hiten Shah.

Steli: And in today's episode of the Startup Chat, we wanted to talk about why you need to use scripts and templates in your sales process. But even in general, I think why too many startups try to avoid documentation in any form and want to embrace creativity and individuality and why that is counterproductive, especially as you scale, right. So let me set the scene here with a quick story that I learned really, really early on.

Hiten: Sounds good.

Steli: One of the main reasons why I've always struggled ... For most of my career, I struggled being a good sales manager, right. When I started in sales, one of the things that I figured out fairly early on was that I was ... I had some natural gifts when it came to selling but I also was fairly creative in the interaction with my prospects. And I thrived on that creativity that made the job fun for me and it made...

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By Steli Efti & Hiten Shah: Serial Entrepreneurs, Sales & Marketing Experts, Startup Investors & Advisors, CEOs running multi million dollar SaaS Startups

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