Sales Mastery Certification Program for Lenders, Regional and Branch Managers and Calling Officers
The Sales Mastery Program is ideally suited for any bank staff that sells bank products and services to small business owners, entrepreneurs, corporate decision makers, middle market companies and real estate developers. The three major themes developed and reinforced throughout each Module of the Sales Mastery Program are:
- How do your bankers differentiate themselves and their bank in a highly competitive industry such as banking?
- How do your bankers sell a true banking “relationship” as opposed to a bank “product?”
- How do your bankers win business based upon providing the “best overall package of value” as opposed to competing based upon simply rates and fees?
From years of enhancing the sales skills of Commercial Lenders, Regional Managers and Branch Managers, we know that many bankers rely on their years of experience and “wing-it” through many aspects of the sales process. However, “winging-it” is not an effective business strategy! Instead, The Sales Mastery Program emphasizes the value of simple planning and preparation as the central strategy to achieving differentiation, increasing deal volume and quality and closing deals with higher margins and fees.
The key to your long-term success revolves around the commitment of managers to manage their staff, in part through the weekly usage of the tools provided in the Sales Mastery Program. The Sales Mastery Program curriculum involves the following training Modules:
On-line Assessment
Prior to the start of the program, all participants in the program take an on-line confidential assessment related to their own behavioral and communication style. The summary report generated from the assessment will be used throughout the certification program.
Focus – Upgrading Communication Skills:
Module One: Developing Adaptive Communication Capabilities (One-Day)
The fact is bankers sound pretty much alike. Banking buzzwords and acronyms are commonplace and often excessive in many customer interactions. It is therefore imperative bankers know how to communicate more effectively as a key strategy in establishing differentiation. Prior to the attending this Module, participants take an on-line assessment that focuses on identifying their primary communication style.
Through the class, participants learn the four primary styles in which customers (and co- workers) communicate. Armed with this information, bankers become better able to adapt their communication style to more closely match the style of their customer, which builds trust and rapport. In addition, bankers become better equipped to convey all aspects of the value customers receive by doing business with your bank. Selling value is key to achieving higher fees and margins and it is through our ability to communicate that this happens.
Focus – Upgrading Business Development Skills:
Module Two: Effective Business Development Strategies (One-Day)
Maintaining a Full Deal Pipeline
This Module teaches participants how to be more focused in their business development activities as well as how to establish key activity metrics to build and maintain a full deal pipeline.
Module Three: Referral Marketing Strategies (One-Day)
This Module teaches participants how to generate more referrals quickly from their existing network of customers, personal and business contacts, greatly increasing the number of referrals currently being generated.
Module Four: Strategies for Effective Cold-Calling (One-Day)
Networking in a Business or Social Setting
This Module teaches techniques and strategies to improve the results from the time and energy invested in cold calling and networking as business development activities.
Focus – Upgrading Differentiating Skills:
Module Five: Differentiating Yourself from the Competition (One-Day)
Pre-call Preparation Strategies
This Module begins to teach the fundamentals of how differentiation occurs between a banker and a customer. In addition, participants learn key techniques for preparing for a sales call as part of an overall differentiation strategy.
Module Six: Finding the Decision-Maker’s Wants and Needs (One-Day)
Forming an Unbreakable Bond with Decision Makers Mid-Program Review
This Module continues to deepen the banker’s understanding of how differentiation occurs and more specifically looks at the myriad of reasons customers “buy” beyond just issues of pricing. In addition, participants learn how critical the first 30 seconds are in a sales call and how to “open” that call in a unique manner as a differentiation strategy for quickly building rapport and trust.
Focus – Upgrading Relationship Development Skills:
Module Seven: Profiling a Prospect – Asking Strategic Questions (One-Day)
Incorporating Attentive Listening Skills
This Module focuses on assisting bankers to understand how to truly sell a banking relationship as opposed to a product. In addition, bankers learn how to do a far better job of understanding a broader range of deal related factors through more effective questioning methods in addition to learning how to be far more effective in listening to the customer’s verbal and non-verbal communications.
Focus – Upgrading Negotiation Skills:
Module Eight: Value-Focused Negotiation Strategies (One-Day)
Few bankers today have ever had any formal negotiation training. In today’s highly competitive rate sensitive market place, lenders must know how to calm their emotions and how to develop a “strategy” for defending their pricing, making concessions and refocusing the customer on tangible value as opposed to simply negotiating rates and fees. This Module utilizes research to substantiate the techniques and strategies taught.
Module Nine: Presenting Features and Selling Benefits (One-Day)
Overcoming Obstacles and Handling Objections Closing the Sale
Most bankers speak “features” as if they are “benefits.” The result is bankers who speak and sound exactly like every other banker and thus achieve no differentiation. This Module helps bankers to be able to convey all the forms of value and benefits a customer enjoys from doing business with your bank. In addition when objections occur, bankers need a communication process that helps them uncover the true source of the objection and how to resolve that objection.
Focus – Upgrading Your Professional Sales Image
Module Ten: Enhancing Your Professional Sales Image (One-Day) (Class size limited to 8 participants)
This Module teaches participants how to enhance their confidence and sales image while learning techniques to improve their body language, speaking voice and ability to instill confidence with their customers. Videotaping is incorporated in this Module in addition to one-on-one coaching.
Call us for more information at (858) 720-9202, or email Ray Adler at ray@btitraining.com.