The Need:
In the beginning of 2017 Showcare Event Solutions faced a problem with their sales process. They had a stellar reputation in their industry and plenty of satisfied clients but they were floundering in their proposal development. They would receive RFPs from prospects and would have no choice but to send back 50 to 80 page proposals that sapped company resources to produce and buried the key selling points of their offerings. It seemed clear to me that the source of these problems started a further upstream, so I got to work on a solution.
The Remedy:
Upon further investigation, I learned that Showcare lacked a suite of sales materials that could concisely communicate the features and benefits of each of their offerings in both digital and print formats. As such, the sales team had no choice but to educate their prospects during the proposal process. Not an ideal situation. It led to proposals being treated as comprehensive sales slicks; hence, hefty documents were being presented to clients who were looking to comparison shop.
To rectify the issue, I worked with the Showcare sales team to develop a suite of sales materials that could be presented to prospects well ahead of the proposal process. I began by collecting the key value propositions, creating product mock-ups, and sourcing compelling imagery for each module before copywriting and designing each of the slicks. These were then organized on the company server and the sales team trained on how to best use this new tool. Each slick was designed to function as both a standalone piece or as part of a comprehensive whole (much like the Showcare product system) so that the team could target just the right literature for each client.
The Results:
“Proposal content could be reduced by 60%. ”
With the proper implementation of these sales materials, prospects could be educated about Showcare offerings at first or second contact and proposal content could be reduced by 60%. This refined sales process allowed the team to focus on the unique value propositions for each client in their communications and in the proposal development process. Within a quarter of the release of these materials, Showcare was able to land six key new clients and retain all contracts which were up for renewal.
