How to Formalize a Strategic Pre- and Post-Sales Call Plan

In our recent blog post, we discussed the importance of building a strategic sales process. In addition to identifying the best referral targets and creating targeting strategies, your sales reps also need to follow a strategic pre- and post-sales call process. These plans should always incorporate the steps below:

1. Review of Account Notes and Activity
2. Thoughtful Preparation for the Visit
3. Detailed Documentation After the Sales Call

Step 1: Review of Account Notes and Activity

Prior to a sales rep’s full day of sales calls and referral partner visits, it’s important they do their due diligence to review any critical background information on the providers they are visiting. This is especially important if they are a new rep and unfamiliar with the provider.

Important components include insight on the provider’s preferred visit days or hours, any previous or existing issues they should be aware of, or other influencing members of the referral partner’s organization. These are critical aspects to review to avoid a sales rep walking into a sales call blindsided and impacting the referral partner relationship. This information can be documented and referenced, on the go, with Customer Relationship Management (CRM).

Additional review prior to the sales call should also include evaluating how many referrals the provider has written in the last 12 months, what payers that specific provider has used, and what competitive organizations they are sending to.

This will frame the messaging and preparation, which we’ll discuss in step 2. By doing your research prior to the sales call or visit, sales reps are equipped with the insight they need to enter the discussion with confidence.

Step 2: Thoughtful Preparation for the Visit

Once the review of the referral partner has been completed, the sales rep should have a messaging plan for each organization they plan to visit. The planned conversation needs to bring value and provide new information about a process, payer, or referred patient your organization is caring for.

When planning this visit, your reps should also identify any new marketing collateral they can bring with them that contains information on your organization and the value that your services offer.

Having a talk track or sales script can be incredibly helpful to ensure the information you are providing your referral partner is relevant and valuable. A resource like Sales Spotlight equips your sales reps with metrics that show how your organization compares to benchmarks and competitors.

These insights need to focus on content that truly matters to your referral partner and should be presented concisely and in a compelling manner. A talk track tool with metrics saves preparation time for your sales reps so they can spend more time connecting with new and existing referral partners.

Step 3: Detailed Documentation After the Sales Call

Once the sales call has taken place, the post call process begins. Documentation should be completed, ideally into a mobile CRM, immediately following the visit so no critical information is forgotten.

Many CRMs provide a dictation tool, allowing your reps to quickly dictate their notes while moving onto their next referral partner visit. A challenge many reps face without a CRM is catching up on notes at the end of the day, which presents the risk of valuable conversations and updates being left out. When your sales rep is adding notes from their visits, they should also go ahead and schedule their next sales call.

Sales call notes are invaluable for a sales rep to reference, as well as any future sales reps that may take over those accounts. It ensures your goals and next steps are established for each individual referral partner to maintain or grow the relationship.

Reminders on referral partner requests will ensure that the sales reps will follow through, leading to a more trusting relationship which is likely to result in an increase in referrals.

A successful pre- and post-sales call plan will ensure your sales reps are thoroughly researching their accounts, establishing a communication plan and talk track, as well as documenting notes and next steps once the call has taken place.

Following this process will ensure you are building and maintaining referral relationships to continue boosting referrals.

To learn how a CRM with market insights from Trella Health can grow referrals, request a demo now.