This article originally appeared in the November 2010 issue of INTERNET TELEPHONY

Fourth quarter sales are always critical for resellers in determining if the year was a successful one. With only two month remaining, it is time to shift sales into overdrive.

First, let’s address strategies for driving business in the fourth quarter. Certainly, targeting all sales in the pipeline is fundamental, but prioritizing the opportunities that can close by Dec. 31 is crucial. I am not suggesting you to ignore the other opportunities but simply work them as usual so you can stay focused on the closable sales. 

Second, you can still open and close new opportunities if you develop and implement a plan now. Begin by setting realistic goals.

Step 1 is to review your catalog of products and select those with a closing cycle of 45 days or less. Next, review your customer base and determine which of your customers can use one or more of these products. Establish and implement a closing strategy immediately with your sales team.

Step 2 is determining which customers are in need of hosted services, upgrades, addition capacity, etc. These types of sales are excellent for driving end-of-year business since they have short sales cycles.

Step 3 is to implement a strategy I have always found very productive – get your support team engaged. They are online or on the phone daily as part of their regular support functions, positioning them to identify effortlessly customers in need of additional products and services. A commission or finder’s fee for any opportunity that goes to sale prior to Dec. 31 will definitely jump-start this process.

Fortunately, Internet communications is an ever-changing market segment with exciting advances being announced daily. Resellers are ethically obligated to keep customers up to date on these advances so that their customers can stay current. Plus, at this time of year, organizations are trying to exhaust their 2010 budgets. Avoiding any lengthy approval processes is critical. Hosted services, upgrades and add-ons generally fall outside of most approval processes, making them particularly suited for year-end reseller sales.

Max Schroeder (News - Alert) is senior vice president of FaxCore Inc. (www.faxcore.com)