The effective retail selling strategy of “No Conversion, No Conversation” (NC²), i.e., disengaging from a prospect when a sale seems unlikely, can also work in B2B sales. It works in settings with time constraints and when salespeople have a focus on relationship-building. However, it fails if used too frequently or without a strong relationship orientation. B2B firms with low-complexity sales environments can adopt this strategy. They can also train their salespeople to recognise purchase intention cues and disengage appropriately if needed.
Retail salespeople often practice the adaptive selling strategy “No Conversion, No
Conversation” (NC²). In this strategy (which can increase revenues between 6 and 68 per cent), salespersons disengage from interacting with a potential customer if they realise that the interaction won’t lead to a purchase. Such significant results raise the question of whether a similar strategy would be effective in B2B sales, where revenues depend on relationship building and reorders by existing customers rather than prospecting for new leads. So, a study investigates: Is NC² an effective strategy for B2B sales?
The study found that the NC² selling strategy works well in B2B selling if the salespeople
operate in an environment marked by time scarcity (both in the number of hours available to sell and a number of customers), and if the salesperson applying it has a relationship-building orientation. These conditions are common to both retail and B2B selling. Yet, specific purchase intention signals differ in B2B as sales depend on ongoing relationships, and salespersons approach customers rather than vice versa. Hence, B2B salespeople practising the NC² strategy need to adopt appropriate disengagement behaviour.
However, there are some conditions under which the strategy fails to improve sales revenue
in B2B selling. Firstly, if the salespeople apply the NC² strategy with a low relationship-building orientation, it does not work. Secondly, if B2B salespersons use it too frequently, there are detrimental effects over time. In this respect, the strategy’s application in B2B differs from its application in retail sales. The reason these conditions cause NC² to fail is that B2B selling is essentially highly relational, whereas retail selling is far more transactional.
Ad hoc sales constitute only a small portion of B2B sales, yet it was important to manage them the right way. Here’s how B2B firms can do so.
Interestingly, the study showed another critical difference between the strategy’s functioning
in B2B versus retail. In B2B sales, the strategy’s effectiveness does not depend on salespersons’ experience the way it does in retail sales. This difference is because 80% of B2B sales calls are on existing customers with whom salespeople have an ongoing relationship, making it easier for them to gauge whether a purchase is likely. On the other hand, in retail, most potential customers are new or infrequent buyers. As a result, salespeople need experience to judge purchase intention signals more accurately.
The study has valuable insights for B2B sales practitioners. It shows that NC² adaptive selling
works in low complexity environments, for example, involving products with limited or no customisation and a selling process involving a limited number of people. Therefore, B2B companies offering such selling environments can implement the NC² strategy advantageously. However, B2B firms that offer more complex products involving greater conceptual and consultative selling need to be cautious about applying this strategy as current research has not examined such selling environments.
B2B firms can also train their salespeople to be more sensitive to customers’ purchase
intention signals, both verbal and non-verbal. They can also train salespeople on appropriate disengagement behaviours. Based on identifying specific cues that suggest that a customer is not planning to make a purchase at that time, salespeople can implement the relevant disengagement behaviour to reduce the potential detrimental effects of the strategy. Such sales training can also include developing a relationship-building orientation among salespersons.
Another selling strategy that can help B2B firms is value-based selling. This post discusses why and how B2B firms should implement this.
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