8 Important B2B Sales Skills to Help You Win New Clients

The biggest driving force for B2B companies is the sales they make. But then, selling is never easy for these companies as modern-day B2B customers have become difficult to convince. Thus, the strategies that worked for you a couple of years ago may no longer be productive.

The best you can do is learn what modern-day B2B selling is and how best you can win new clients. This article takes a more in-depth look at the skills that will work for B2B salespeople today.

Let's dive into it.

1. Learn Social Selling

Social selling is one of the most effective skills you need to learn as a B2B salesperson. Although it is popular with business-to-consumer selling, it still works awesomely for B2B interactions. You can use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, etc., for prospecting and creating connections.

Social media for B2B takes a completely new approach compared to when used for business-consumer interactions. You can research more about businesses through social media before you plan what you'll share with them. Besides, social selling will help you learn more about a brand.

2. Be Great with People

It is always important to be nice to people in whatever you do. For B2B selling, how you communicate with prospects will determine the results you'll get. Research shows that phone calls' productivity focuses on how you're speaking at 86% and not what you're saying.

Thus, B2B salespeople need to learn how to communicate effectively. Interacting with customers positively makes it easier to sell a product to them or take the desired action. You should seek to be as helpful as possible in your conversations and strive always to sound knowledgeable.

3. Be an Active Listener

It is easier to think you're a good listener, but are you really one? Well, salespeople in the B2B industry need listening skills to sell more effectively. An active listener is good at listening and makes proper use of the information they gain from listening to someone.

For instance, in the B2B sales industry, you can use your clients' information to create your pitch. It becomes easy to define the problems your prospects are facing if you can listen to them keenly. Thus, you will get better results if you can take your time to learn and master this skill.

4. Be an Avid Researcher

A salesperson's day is usually a mixture of researching, talking to clients, etc. The efforts that salespeople put into research win their companies new clients and increase their sales. Thus, you need to be an avid researcher to get the results you desire with B2B sales.

The best thing about being good at research is that you can extract lots of information about your customers. For instance, you can discover the latest industry updates and learn more about the company's product line. The more time and effort you take to research, the better the results you get.

5. Be a Team Player

A salesperson working alone cannot guarantee a company enough sales and profits. There has to be a team that comprises strong players who'll give the desired results. You will win more clients if you can work perfectly with your company's sales team to find solutions for various sales problems.

The company's work should be creating a perfect environment for its employees. Failure to collaborate well with employees, especially the sales team, can be disastrous for a business. Both employees and businesses should recognize the value of a strong B2b sales team.

6. Be Coachable

Being coachable is a skill that many people overlook, especially when it comes to B2B selling. The best way to improve your sales in B2B is by learning from your past clients. It would help if you considered checking out client feedback and reviews to understand how satisfied people are with what you offer.

Consequently, you'll understand the exploitable opportunities that you can take advantage of as a seller. Often, businesses will engage you in constructive criticism, unlike individual consumers. Being willing to learn from them and change makes the difference.

7. Learn Inbound Marketing

Inbound marketing is another essential skill that you should learn as a B2B seller. It makes it possible to have customers come to you instead of spending fortunes trying to look for them. One of the reasons you should consider this technique is its intent to buy attached to it.

Another reason why you should consider inbound marketing is because it allows you to sell freely. It is also easier to learn and become a pro at inbound marketing than it is with outbound. A company that exploits this method increases its chances of growth. 

The ability to lead and manage a marketing team is a valuable sales skill. If you already know the nitty-gritty of inbound marketing, taking a management course will help you implement it better. You’ll be able to learn some vital skills as well as tips and tricks for managing a team. 

8. Practice Account-Based Marketing

A more dominant trend in the B2B sales environment has to be account-based marketing. You'll reap more profits and attract new clients once you learn how to sell to clients as if they're the only ones in the market. Remember, clients, including those in the B2B universe, love feeling special.

You'll need to improve your research to succeed with ABM marketing. You should also develop real personas for your customers and personalize messages and adverts for them. Learn how this strategy works and how you can integrate several of its practices. The better you implement this, the more successful you'll become with this strategy.

Consider leveling up your ABM game by implementing intent-based marketing.

Final Thoughts

The B2B sales process can be daunting and time-consuming. But then, succeeding with it boils down to how you can blend the skills and strategies mentioned above. It would be best to speak to other businesses' challenges and show them practical solutions.

Remember, the modern world's B2B selling environment has changed. Prospects no longer come to sellers, but it's the seller's job to find them. It will be best to work with your company's marketing team to build strong business relationships and succeed in modern-day B2B sales.