There are two basic ways for making software sales. The first involves direct sales. There are three ways of direct selling. The first involves selling directly to the customers. These customers and their needs are found through marketing generated leads which are followed up by the sales team. Software sales can also be done through resellers. Resellers are any sort of store that sells your product to customers and can include superstores, software specialty stores and office supply stores. This method is used to directly sell to all sales force directly and possibly also to incoming calls, without undercutting the reseller in price. Not undercutting the reseller prevents channel conflict. The most common way within the hi-tech industry is a combination of the two. The third way of selling directly involves selling to national chains. In this method, the sales force acts as reseller sales managers. All of these ways are just samples of what you can do.

The second basic way for making software sales involves channel sales. This often involves using a wholesale distributor. Distributors are helpful for balancing inventory between resellers. Also, vendors do not have to extend credit to as many resellers if they use distribution. Instead they extend credit to just a few distributors. The disadvantages are that distributors increase costs 3-10 points and vendors do not always know which resellers are purchasing their products if the resellers are independents or regional.

Whichever way you choose for making software sales, experts agree that proper training makes the difference. Both initial and ongoing training will make your selling ventures more successful and more profitable. They say that no salesman is ever born, they are made, and just about anyone can learn the skills necessary to be successful. An excellent salesman is one who has learned thoroughly the steps of the sale. These include prospecting , the approach, the presentation, overcoming objections, visualization and closing.

The two components to effective selling are the soft skills and the hard skills. Motivation, personality, developing relationships and understanding people are generally considered to be the soft skills. Hard skills include the approach, the close and overcoming objections. Proper training in these areas can make your software sales much more successful.

The world of software sales is a competitive one. Fortunately there are a number of books, web sites and software programs to help you and your business succeed. These products can give your sales team the skills it needs to be successful. There are also customer relationship management products to help you keep track of your growing business. There are also numerous services that can provide your company with sales leads that will make your sales team more efficient and successful. With today’s internet driven economy, the ones who succeed will be those who have the most effective sales force. Those who maximize sales and profits will be the ones who come out on top, and with the proper training and the right products, you too can be successful in software sales.