Field Positioning And The Easy Sale

Hey there! Corey here to talk to you about field positioning and your business.

It goes without saying that every company and every sales team would like to have the shortest possible sales cycle.

We have some prospects that convert in a relatively short period of time and take little effort, while we have others that take what seems like an eternity and require a considerable amount of energy. Why is there such a broad spectrum in our sales cycle? The answer is all about field positioning.

In football, the offense’s ‘field positioning’ refers to where they are on the field when they start their possession and attempt to score a touchdown. They might start on their own 20-yard line and have to march the ball 80 yards downfield. They might start at their opponent’s 5-yard line and only have to move the ball those 5 years to score a touchdown.

Your company’s marketing and sales divisions are your offense and their job is to put points on the board for your company. We might have a lead that requires a simple phone call before they close. We might have another lead that takes months of phone calls and emails and appointments before finally closing. Ultimately, we have a starting field position with each sales opportunity.

How can an offense start with better field positioning? The answer can be found by looking at the other primary aspect of your team: your defense.

The goal of your defense is to prevent a negative outcome in points and provide an easier scoring opportunity for your offense. Your company’s fulfillment division (everything necessary in delivering and supporting the product or service to your customer) is your defense.

Great fulfillment will help prevent cancellations and create happy customers who will be more likely to become repeat customers or even refer to others. In doing so, they are giving your offense better field positioning and making it easier for them to points on the board.

Bad defense (fulfillment) can lead to bad field positioning for your offense. Even worse, your defense can give up too many points (cancels) and put your offense in the position of needing to score an unrealistic number of points in order to catch up.

There is an age-old saying in football: The best offense is a good defense. This is equally true in business. The best sales process occurs when your fulfillment is providing incredible value for your customers and delivering consistent results that keep your customers happy.

If you can do this, I guarantee that you will see a shorter sales cycle and ensure that you have great field positioning.

How does your offense and defense work together? Drop a comment below and let us know.

-Corey