--- title: Facilitating the Buying Process description: Advancing the sale by understanding the process of buying, using sales playbooks and practising selling though storytelling --- This is a search field with an autosuggest feature attached. - There are no suggestions because the search field is empty. # Facilitating the Buying Process ![Bob Apollo](https://app.hubspot.com/settings/avatar/78fa41976d534cacbb0e22e151bc6816) Post by [Bob Apollo](https://www.inflexion-point.com/blog/author/bob-apollo) March 7, 2009 OK.  So you've managed to engage with a well qualified prospect who has issues they cannot afford not to deal with, and you're well placed to help them solve them.  How can you increase your chances of winning? The most important decision you can now make is to concentrate not on how you are going to sell but on how you are going to help your prospect to buy - through facilitating your prospect's buying process.  How and why do your prospects choose to buy?  Who are they likely to turn to for advice?  Who else is likely to be involved in the process?  Hopefully, you'll be starting with a sales process that reflects the typical [process of buying](https://www.inflexion-point.com/our-solutions/advance/the-process-of-buying/) in your markets - and then adapting it to what you are learning about this particular prospect. If you're an eagle salesperson, knowing how to advance the sale will probably come naturally to you.  But if you're one of the vast majority of sales people who could do with some support, you'll hopefully be able to call upon a [sales playbook](https://www.inflexion-point.com/our-solutions/advance/sales-playbooks/) that provides a framework for having issues-led conversations with your prospect. Finally, you'll want to build credibility and trust.  Top performers distinguish themselves by having a rich collection of stories and anecdotes that allow them to [sell through storytelling](https://www.inflexion-point.com/our-solutions/advance/selling-through-storytelling/).  Somehow, when they talk with prospect, it always seems to come across as a conversation, rather than a pitch. Companies who have been able to master these three disciplines invariably manage to move more of their prospects further and faster through the buying process than their product-pitching competitors.  But they still have to ensure that the prospect is comfortable with committing to them. That's the subject of my [next article](https://www.inflexion-point.com/our-blog/bid/17721/Dealing-with-the-Consequences-of-Inaction)... ###### Tags: [CRM, ](https://www.inflexion-point.com/blog/topic/crm) [Complex Sales](https://www.inflexion-point.com/blog/topic/complex-sales) ![Bob Apollo](https://app.hubspot.com/settings/avatar/78fa41976d534cacbb0e22e151bc6816) Post by [Bob Apollo](https://www.inflexion-point.com/blog/author/bob-apollo) March 7, 2009 Bob Apollo is a Fellow of the Institute of Sales Professionals, a regular contributor to the International Journal of Sales Transformation and Top Sales World Magazine, and the driving force behind Inflexion-Point Strategy Partners, the leading proponents of outcome-centric selling. Following a successful corporate career spanning start-ups, scale-ups and market leaders, Bob now works as a strategic advisor, mentor, trainer and coach to ambitious B2B sales organisations - teaching them how to differentiate themselves through their provably superior approach to achieving their customer's desired outcomes. [Follow me on my website](https://www.inflexion-point.com) [Follow me on LinkedIn ](https://uk.linkedin.com/in/bobapollo) [Follow me on Twitter ](https://twitter.com/bobapollo) ### Comments ###### Related Articles ### [B2B Sales: Do You Need to Talk More Than Your Prospects Want to Listen?](https://www.inflexion-point.com/Blog/bid/69278/B2B-Sales-Do-You-Need-to-Talk-More-Than-Your-Prospects-Want-to-Listen) Posted by **[Bob Apollo](https://www.inflexion-point.com/blog/author/bob-apollo),** **Aug 09, 2011** Have you ever felt a sigh of relief when that unwanted - and probably intrusive - sales conversation finally comes to an ... ### [B2B Sales: Eliminating the barriers to the buying decision journey...](https://www.inflexion-point.com/Blog/bid/31299/B2B-Sales-Eliminating-the-barriers-to-the-buying-decision-journey) Posted by **[Bob Apollo](https://www.inflexion-point.com/blog/author/bob-apollo),** **Mar 11, 2010** The past year has provided abundant evidence that driving sales people to "sell harder" and hoping that this will boost ... ### [Do you *really* understand your prospect’s pain?](https://www.inflexion-point.com/blog/do-you-really-understand-your-prospects-pain) Posted by **[Bob Apollo](https://www.inflexion-point.com/blog/author/bob-apollo),** **Mar 03, 2016** For many of your potential prospects, most of the time, sticking with the status quo is usually the comfortable choice. It’s ... 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