It is common for large, mature sales organizations to have several salespeople who once acquired new logos, but haven’t signed a new major client in ages. These salespeople won some gargantuan clients because they developed relationships with them and effectively pursued them. Since the contract was signed, these clients have been generating enough commissions that the senior salespeople are comfortable with their income and become complacent. This highlights the importance of senior sales representatives in B2B sales strategy and client acquisition in competitive markets.
Over time, the best and most reliable salespeople stop acquiring new clients, becoming more like account executives or account managers, basically transitioning from hunters to farmers. By focusing on two large clients that generate millions of dollars in revenue, they contribute little or nothing to net new revenue, a scenario that underscores the challenge of sales role transition in client retention.
Senior Salespeople Create Greater Value
Senior salespeople often create greater value for prospective clients because their experience far surpasses that of salespeople who haven't yet had the time to learn what can only be learned by doing. This aspect of leveraging senior sales reps’ expertise for client engagement becomes critical. When senior salespeople refuse to pick up the phone and book a meeting, sales leaders ask other salespeople to pursue large and desirable clients, pointing to the necessity of proactive sales strategies in securing new business accounts.
When a salesperson lacks the gravitas and experience of a senior sales rep, the client has a conversation that lacks a deeper understanding of their problems and the best ways to solve them. They also miss out on discussing how to take advantage of an opportunity that a neophyte salesperson may not recognize. This situation brings to light the impact of sales experience on successful client acquisition.
It is crucial for sales leaders responsible for producing net new revenue to deploy a highly effective salesperson who has much better odds of winning a client's business compared to a salesperson who hasn't mastered the sales conversation. This highlights the role of sales leadership in driving revenue growth through new logo acquisition.
The Certain Possibility of Losing a Client
Given a long enough timeline, a senior salesperson will lose one or both large clients they rely on for their income. This introduces risk management into sales account stability and navigating client turnover. Over time, these large clients will face numerous threats that may cause clients to make a change, displacing the senior salesperson and reducing their income.
The risk of a new leader taking over and choosing to sign a contract with a long-time supplier, who already knows exactly how to do things the way the leader likes, is significant. A long-standing relationship makes it easier for the leader to release the senior salesperson. Losing a client may only require the introduction of a new cutting-edge technology that lowers costs and increases results, or an envelope with a letter ending the contract, reflecting on the importance of innovation and adaptability in client retention strategies.
When a senior salesperson loses a large client, they often go into a tailspin, as their income is significantly reduced. This is the turkey problem: Every day, the farmer feeds the turkey without fail, until one day, the turkey gets the axe. The sales leaders, who were not concerned about losing a large client, now face churn that reduces their existing revenue, underscoring the consequences of client dependency risks in sales.
How a Lack of Prospecting Impacts Senior Reps
When senior salespeople lose a client, the lack of prospecting means they have no pipeline, making a bad situation incredibly stressful. The odds of winning a large enough client to replace the one they lost is almost zero. From a standstill, it is incredibly difficult to start the prospecting they should have been doing every week, spotlighting the critical need for ongoing prospecting in sales strategies.
Often, because the senior salesperson hasn’t had to prospect, they are frustrated, and depending on other factors, some decide to retire or try to find a new company where they can assume an account manager role to avoid starting over from scratch, highlighting the career impact of sales strategy on senior sales professionals.
Prospecting cannot be crammed. If one hasn't been prospecting for months or years, it will take some time to book meetings. Securing a large client often requires a longer timeline, as the biggest and best companies already have a supplier taking care of them. Few reps are fortunate enough to find a rare large company with a significant enough problem that they are considering changing providers. This indicates the challenges and strategies in B2B sales prospecting.
The Imperative of New Logos
There is never a time when a sales organization should not be constantly winning new logos, ensuring everyone, including senior sales reps, is working on acquiring them. Sales leaders and managers must insist that every member of their team pursues their dream clients. This may lead to difficult conversations, ones that no sales manager enjoys any more than the salesperson, reinforcing the importance of new client acquisition in sales team management.
As a sales manager, you need to ensure your salespeople are successful, preventing harm because the standard was lowered when it comes to selling. Indeed, for salespeople, there is never a time when one no longer needs to prospect, emphasizing the continuous need for prospecting in maintaining sales success.
Why Senior Sales Reps Must Secure New Logos
There are numerous reasons for senior salespeople to secure new logos, starting with the risk of losing a large client that will not be easily or quickly replaced. It’s also vital to continue creating net new revenue. And because senior salespeople have a greater ability to create value for their prospective clients, they have an advantage over salespeople with less experience. Often, your senior reps have better chances of winning clients because they have practiced the sales conversation, underscoring the strategic advantage of senior sales representatives in securing new business opportunities.
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