C-Level, Relationship Selling Blog

C-Level Selling: Are You a Tiger, a Phil or Struggle to Make the Cut

I can't help but compare Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson to selling.  Tiger Woods came in second place at the Tour Championship, yet walked away with $10 million as the FedEx Cup champion and $800,000 for his second-place finish.  Phil Mickelson walked away with $3 million for the FedEx Cup and $1.35 million for winning the tournament.  The comment by Phil was "Let me get this straight.  I shoot a 65 and win $1.3 million and Tiger shoots a 70 and wins $10 million?"  That's right.  Tiger was consistent over time.  Phil had a great day.

How many Tigers do you have in your organization?  How many Phil’s?  How many struggle to make the cut?

Think about your salespeople, (or yourself, if you're a salesperson).  Does your salesperson, or you, close the sale, 7/10 times, or do they score big every once in a while?  Which would you rather have?  What are you willing to invest, if anything, to get it?

Selling is a process and like golf  -- Read on at C-Level Selling: Are You a Tiger, a Phil or Struggle to Make the Cut

C-Level Selling Tip 5 – Identifying the Final Decision-Makers

Your focus should be all the senior executives of the profit center where you’re selling. Notice I didn’t say department or area of responsibility such as engineering, manufacturing, or purchasing.  Your products and services impact the profitcenter – believe it.   

Most sales people only target those who are solid-line responsible for the departments or project that their services directly touch.  Powerful decision makers are those senior staffers that are significantly impacted (either personally or through their subordinates) by your offering.  However, the other members of the profit center leader’s direct staff get involved, even if his or her department is not responsible or impacted.  Purchasing and investment decisions are discussed by the entire staff during lunches and in staff meetings because they impact the profit center, division or company.  In addition to covering all the bases, these senior staffers are a great source for insights and networking.

Common Situation -- You Don’t Know Who’s In Charge

Resulting Problem -- You lose the sale.  You didn’t know all the decision factors.  You weren’t connected to the right people. 

To learn what to do --

Read the complete C-Level Selling Tip 5 – Identifying the Final Decision-Makers

or

Watch the  Video C-Level Selling Tip 5 – Identifying the Final Decision-Makers

C-Level Selling - A Sales Person's Best Resource

Up and out -- that is my motto.  Whenever I'm pursuing a contract, project or deal, I find out who all the top level people are in the organization.  Then I focus on how I'm going to spread like a virus in an organization and get to them.  But the leaders who are always the most helpful are those in the sales department. 

 

Sales managers and sales people are sympathetic to other salespeople.  They’ve been there.  They know what you're going through, and they'll help you as much as they can, if you ask.  They're not threatened or annoyed by other salespeople.  They know you're not going to pitch them and they are usually the talkative type

 

Sales VPs are the most connected to what's going on in the organization.  They are joined at the hip to the CEO or Profit-Center Leader because sales mean everything to a business organization.  Sales VPs are privy to all that's happening in the company from operations to HR to R&D.  That's because all these functions eventually impact sales and attracting customers -- and that's the sales VP's turf.

 

Therefore, no matter what your selling -- from electronics to healthcare -- get connected to the sales managers and interview them.

 

To learn more read the full article at C-Level Selling - A Sales Person's Best Resource

C-Level Selling Tip 4 -- Relationships with C’s Produces Business, but You Don’t Have a Relationship

People Say Relationships Close Sales.  

This is true, but most sales people feel a relationship is a social connection. They then strive to become chummy.  Unfortunately this is very tough to do with C's, Doctors and at high levels. 

Resulting Problem

Lots of entertainment and little business.

Here's what to do.

 

Read the full article at C-Level Selling Tip 4 -- Relationships with C’s Produces Business, but You Don’t Have a Relationship

 

OR

 

Watch the 4 minute Video at Video C-Level Selling Tip 4 -- Relationships with C’s Produces Business, but You Don’t Have a Relationship

Salespeople's Biggest Weakness – C-Level Selling

Salespeople know how to prospect -- although they hate to.  Salespeople can certainly present -- and they love to. They know they should ask questions -- although most don't and the ones that do ask self-serving ones.  Salespeople can close -- even though they usually let the customers do it for them. But there is one thing salespeople do not do -- selling at the C-Level or to the profit center leaders.

If you want to be an overachieving salesperson you must know how to and be comfortable C-Level Selling.  Most sales people deliver mediocre results because they lack this skill set. Learn how to put this missing major element into your salespeople.

Read all the details at Salespeople's Biggest Weakness – C-Level Selling