Virtual Selling

3Necessity Is the Mother of Virtual Selling

When I started my company, Sales Gravy, in 2007, right at the cusp of the global financial crisis, I found myself in unfamiliar waters. For my entire career, I'd sold face-to-face. I was damn good at it. I never considered that there was any other way.

But, my prospects were spread out all across the country. I had limited startup funds and could not afford to take the risk of buying a plane ticket, only to lose the deal. If I wanted to grow my business (and I did), my only choice was virtual selling—face-to-face was not an option for me.

It required a massive mindset shift. I had to change my belief system about selling. Most of all, it required me to get past my fear and just do it. Out of pure necessity, and many mistakes later, I eventually mastered virtual selling.

Today, Sales Gravy has grown into one of the most successful training and consulting firms in the world. We have customers on every continent except Antarctica. Virtual selling is how we go to market because it is the most practical and cost-effective means of engaging prospects across the globe. We regularly close six- and seven-figure deals within a completely virtual sales process.

Everything Works—Blending Works Best

This, of course, begs the question: Do we ever make face-to-face sales calls? The answer is yes. When we have big, company-changing deals on the line, and it is practical, we visit face-to-face—usually late in the sales process when it matters most. ...