Pssst...do you want to know the secret of sales success?

You might be expecting some sensational disclosures in response to our question. If so you will be sadly disappointed, for the truth is more mundane: spending time exploring and developing client needs, in depth, is the key to sales success.

Who says so? HuthwaiteFleming does. Our research into effective selling over the past thirty years has shown that there is no magic formula that translates into instant sales success. Instead, thorough and painstaking exploration of the client's needs, early in the sales cycle, lays the foundations for a successful sale.

Developing needs effectively makes the biggest single contribution to sales success.

Working on needs development with hundreds of clients over the past thirty years has produced typical sales increases of 20% and increases in profitability of around 13%. No other area of activity produces such a significant increase in results, which is why it's the first area we address when clients ask us to help improve fee earner business development productivity.

Why is developing needs so important?

There are several answers to this question:

• Exploring the client's problems and their impact on the business develops a stronger case for change and a stronger case for your solution.
• Developing needs where you are strong builds your competitive position.
• Exploring the client's needs, and the benefits of meeting them, develops strong perceptions of the value of your solution.
• The profile of the client's needs developed early in the sale forms the basis of a persuasive proposal and an effective sales presentation later in the cycle.

This area of sales activity, above any other, contributes the most to developing a powerful case for choosing your solution. So if you want to increase your rate of success, invest more time in careful exploration of the client's needs you can satisfy, the returns will be well worth the investment.

If you would like further information on our research findings then why not download our whitepaper, Developing needs. It might not be the magic formula you were quite expecting but would you rather learn of some hocus pocus which might work on a full moon, or a researched based formula which, with some practice, is your real secret to business development success?

Pssst...will you keep it a secret?