I like to ride, but not that far...

Why should we bothered to shorten our sales cycle?

• Generally the longer the selling cycle the higher the cost of sale
• Your team are less likely to be actively prospecting for new clients while you're working on an existing opportunity. Consequently, your pipeline thins out, and if the deal you're working on falls apart, you have fewer opportunities to fall back on.
• The longer you work on an opportunity, the more emotionally tied to it you become, and the more likely you are to make concessions (which typically eat into profits) to keep it "alive."

Here are five specific strategies to shorten your selling cycle:

Don't start the cycle unless there is a compelling reason to do so. 
The initial contact with a prospect should focus on uncovering (or helping the prospect discover) Pain - a current or impending (personal)  need or desire that can be fulfilled by your product or service. To accomplish that, you must have a prospecting message that not only resonates with prospects, but also differentiates you from your competitors.

Call the person at thetop. 
A big time waster for many salespeople is calling too low in an organisation. They call on and attempt to develop opportunities with people who neither have final buying authority nor play a significant role in the decision process. If your selling efforts must start at a lower level, it's imperative that you quickly determine who controls the corporate coffers and who makes the buying decision for this opportunity.

Deal with potential roadblocks early in the process. 
If history and your experiences suggest that for a particular type of sale (perhaps defined by product, market segment, prospect profile, or implementation requirements) there are likely to be roadblocks to concluding the sale, bring up the potential roadblocks as early as practical in the cycle. Don't wait for the prospect to bring them up in the form of objections or put-offs further down the road. Looks like a brave move, but in fact it makes sense!

Disqualify opportunities as soon as possible. 
Be as diligent qualifying prospects' eligibility to become customers as they are qualifying you to become a product supplier or service provider. Have they explicitly expressed the need or desire to obtain your product or service? Are they in a position to invest the resources required to obtain it? Will they be able to make a buying decision in a timely manner based on criteria to which you have both agreed?

Obtain firm commitments. 
To keep the selling process moving forward, and the selling cycle as short as possible, each step in the selling process should lead to the next step in a predictable and mutually agreed to manner. If you expect your prospect to discuss a particular topic, share specific information, or perhaps, make a decision at the next meeting, then you must obtain his or her firm commitment to do so at the time you schedule the meeting- not once you are there!
If you start with the right people... for the right reasons; deal with potential problems in the early stages of the process; rigorously qualify opportunities; and ensure that you and your prospects are on the same page at each stage of the process, you'll be able to complete the selling process in a shorter period of time.

Regarding insurance, you will get thousands of sales calls; only accept the ones from qualified professionals that know your business and understand your needs; anyone else will waste your time.

I will not waste your time, but could save you money and time and tears or regret