C-Level, Relationship Selling Blog

C-Level Selling Tip 13 - Replacing Embedded Competitors

Competitors’ accounts are great opportunities for you. Unfortunately, you either block yourself assuming the customer is totally satisfied, or if you’re a little more aggressive, you’ll put them on the defensive by touting how much better you are. Both avoiding and attaching will ruin this tremendous opportunity for you.

 

Steal share from competitors within 6 weeks.  Learn how easy it is to get business from your competitors’ top customers. 

 

Just click here:  C-Level Selling Tip 13 - Replacing Embedded Competitors for the article or

 

Video click here: VIDEO C-Level Selling Tip 13 - Steal Your Competitors's Customers

 

 

Tip 12 - You Don’t Need an Upper Level Title to Sell C-Level Executives

CEO’s and other C-level people don’t refuse to meet with people because of their level.  They reject them because they have not developed any credibility.  Titles indicate credibility, and that’s why it may seem easier for a senior executive to get a meeting granted.  However, title credibility only lasts until the titled person opens his or her mouth.

C-level and other powerful people will almost always grant a meeting if .....

Read the rest at You Don’t Need an Upper Level Title to Sell C-Level Executives

or Watch the Video at C-Level Selling Tip 12 - You Don’t Need an Upper Level Title to Sell C-Level Executives Video

C-Level Selling Tip 6: Networking, Use Your Resources

Everyone needs more business, and the best way to get more is to network your way through the doors to the low level and then to the C-level offices. 

If you want to get to people, no matter who they are, network to them.  You know people.  You also know people who know people who can get you through to them.  These are your resources.  However, you have to stop and think, and search your mind to realize who and how many people you really know. If you don’t, you’ll say you don’t know anyone.  Once you realize all the people you know, then, you’ll have to determine who the right contacts are to connect you with the decision makers you want to meet.  Finally you’ve got to know what to say in order to get the right introductions.

 

Learn more about networking with this C-level selling tip

 

Article: C-Level Selling Tip 6: Networking, Use Your Resources

 

Video:  C-Level Selling Tip 6: Networking, Use Your Resources

Secure Additional C-Level Sales Post Contract, Win or Lose

Win or lose, post contract is a the best time to to get more business. You now have access and know people you didn’t before.   Win or lose, you now have relationships and if you don’t use them, you’ll really lose.

You can also learn why you won or why you lost the project which are data points for your ideal profiles.

Now here's how to get to see all these people and leverage them for more business.

Read on at Secure Additional C-Level Sales Post Contract, Win or Lose

The One Liner to Differentiate Yourself from Competition

What is the one thing a sales person can say to a prospect or client to set himself apart from others?

 

After the hello and pleasantries, ask what the issues /challenges /expectations the person in front of you is facing as it relates to the solutions you provide.  For example, I sell my sales consulting and sales training services to help sales people and companies make more sales.  So when ever I’m in front of someone that could be a prospect, I'll ask, “What are the issues you’re facing as it relates to revenue generation (or sales or business development)?”  I then sit back and wait for the person to tell me his or her story - all of it.  Most sales people, after the hello, want to tell their story.   For example, “Let’s talk about me and when we’re finished, you can talk about me.”

 

For more on this topic see my selling article “Be Distinct or Become Extinct Differentiating Your Company To Your Customers”

 

Make the Leaders Believe You've Got Their Back

Executives want what’s good for them personally.  This is usually different than what you hear they want for from subordinates.  Why, because the subordinates don’t know either.  They never really ask.  They just assume.

Executives don't really care about the bidding, pricing, or competitive issues. What they really value is finding solutions that make themselves look good to their directors and stock analysis.  So to win their favor you have to maximize their chances of success and/or minimize their chances of failure - as each sees it.

To do this you have to show each executive that:
1. You know what he values, and
2. He can get it through you better than any other alternative.

Do this and you'll develop a solid relationship with the real decision-makers. To learn more of how to do #1 and #2 above, read TAKE ME TO YOUR LEADER$.

Once executives see you as the provider of what he is paid to provide, you win. Then you can use his power and influence for more and more sales.

Sales End in the Executive Suite. Believe This or Lose to Those That Do.

To make sales, you must focus on the executives, not just the subordinates.  Find a way to get to them (read TAKE ME TO YOUR LEADER$) and then:

1.      Interview the executives to learn what's important to each of them. 

2.      Show you can consistently deliver the results and benefits each one personally wants and you'll continue selling to that account.

3.      Never doubt that senior executives are involved with the initiation and/or approval of a sale.
 

4.      To build credibility and executive trust, you must score high on each one’s measuring system, which is different than the spec’s or what subordinates tell you.  If you do, the sales will continue.

5.      The executive—not the subordinate—is the one with the power to make the decisions.

6.      Powerful professional relationships in the executive suites can be leveraged for more sales, introductions to other executives and referrals about your products and services to other prospective customers

Look Beyond Your Main Contacts

Focusing your attention beyond your main contact to your profit-center leaders and their staffs is your best bet for on-going business.  If these people associate you with solutions, then getting more deals and cross-sells is 3 times easier.

Most sales people stay close to their main contacts, but this isn’t enough.  Contacts are influenced by their bosses and the bosses are influenced by their associates and the profit-center leaders.  These same sales people argue that indirect senior staffers are not involved.  If you feel this way, just do this simple test. Ask your profit center leader or any of his staff if they get involved or listen to discussions about expenditures in the dollar magnitude of your typical sale for your company.  You will quickly hear a “yes” whether it’s related to their department or not.

In some cases it may be unnecessary to go this extra mile. If you feel this client is a win-lose client, I wouldn’t put the energy into building high level relationships. If they don’t do business they way your company wants to do operate, or you feel there isn’t enough additional business or cross-sells to be had, I wouldn’t waste time there.

However, if one of your clients (or more) is good for more sales or cross-sells, you can gain a significant competitive advantage by forging upwards to the whole staff.  Why, because you need to be associated with solutions by the whole staff.  If you only meet with these people when there are problems, you’re associated with the problems.  If you only meet them when there’s a deal on the table, they know you just want to sell them.  If you never meet them, they think you’re just one-of-the-bunch vendors and will not support you, and may go against you when it’s discussed in the staff meetings.

Here are my rules:

1. Spread like a virus so that all the powerful people, directly or indirectly, know you and you know their thinking and motivations.  Saying hello isn’t enough.
2. Ask yourself, “Can my direct contact make the decision without input or approval from above?”  If you answer, “No”, then get to these other people.
3. Ask yourself, “If my competitors developed relationships with the VP’s and the profit-center leader, would that worry me?”

So it’s your call.  How will you utilize your selling time? Make an effort to get professionally close to more senior staff people and your sales will grow quickly.

Build Action Plans to Hold onto Your C-Level and Influential Relationships

What would you do if someone at a high level, who you felt you had a good relationship with told you he was going to use your competitor instead of you?  I’ll bet you’d put together a series of actions involving phone calls, meetings and lots of activities.  And you’d still probably lose.

If you hope to maintain your existing accounts and get more business from them, you’ll need to refresh your relationships at high levels continuously.  Refresh means delivering something of value to your contacts value, and value is defined by them, not you.  And for the record, calling regularly and having some chit chat is not enough. 

So start setting-up value meetings with your contacts.  They can be by phone or in person, on site or off site.  Plan to discuss how they want you to stay current with them.  Set up questions to determine what they value and how they want you to deliver to them.  And prepare yourself to ask for what you want from them.  Remember selling is win-win.

The outcomes of these conversations will become your relationship action plans.  They can be casual or formal.  It’s your call, but put them in writing - email, letter, document, etc. This will make it real (accountable) for both of you rather than a casual gesture. The last item for every plan should be when you will meet again. When you meet again, spend time describing what you’ve delivered so that you are constantly being associated with solutions.  This will make you stand out from other competitors.  Then develop new actions for both again.

Now these actions can be tiny, low energy tasks, i.e. updates or new product releases, a referral, or a white paper.  Rest assured that without definitive interactions, however, you will quickly become stale in his mind (even though you chit chat) and you’ll lose whatever leverage that relationship has.  If so, when it comes time for more business you’ll just be another, one-of-the-bunch vendors. In business, it’s all about “What have you done for me lately?” 

An action plan will give you the mechanism to stay top of mind.  Now, what’s that worth to you?  So do the math.  If it’s a valuable account and contact, put the effort in now rather than wait until you’re about to be replaced.

C-Level Relationship Selling Tips: Starting a Selling Relationship

A sale begins anywhere you get your foot in the door. A sale ends in the executive suite.  Never doubt that senior executives are involved in the initiation and approval of a sale. To start building your relationship learn what's important to executives by interviewing them.  Show you'll deliver the results and benefits that each one personally wants and you'll continue enhancing the relationships. To further build credibility and trust, learn how to score and then score high on each exec's measuring system. If you do, the sales will continue. Then you can leverage these powerful executive relationships for more sales, introductions to other executives, and referrals to other prospective customers.

Test Yourself (True/False): The sales decision authority lies with the committees or subordinates of a company; build trust with them and you'll keep getting the sales.

Answer:  (False)

Who Is the Ultimate Decision Maker?

The people to target for business to business sales over $50,000 should be the leader of the profit and loss center where the product or service is being sold and his direct reports. If your product or service (1) requires a capital authorization or (2) impacts an operation's costs or functions or (3) changes one of the company’s products, it will be approved by the Profit/Loss (P/L) leader and his staff. If the investment is large enough, it may go even higher. Many of these managers are not solid-line responsible for the departments, projects, divisions, etc. that your services directly touch, but they get involved. These managers help the P/L leader make decisions that are good for them and the company. So it is good that they know you. Don't underestimate their importance to your sale.

The lower level people that are significantly impacted (either personally or through their subordinates) by your offering are your first step. Get to their manager, but don’t stop there. This intermediate manager will be the one to take you to the top where the final yes’s and no’s happen. Remember, it is not only the top power executive. He will discuss this investment during lunches and in staff meetings. The more managers you interview, the better you’ll be known and positively positioned for when the decision is discussed.

Check Yourself Score: 4=Always; 3=Most Times; 2=Usually; 1=Sometimes; 0=Never.

1. When selling a product or service do you feel the decision process is a strait line up? I.e. Purchasing to engineering, to operations, VP, CFO, CEO?

2. How often do you meet with auxiliary C-Level or Senior Executives such as, the VP Human Resources or the VP Sales?

Scoring: 2 – 1 = ??
___ – ___ = ___

Positive is good; Negative means read my C-Level Selling Reference Manual and Work the Exercises
http://sammanfer.com/productpage.htm

The Sale - A Beginning, an End, and What’s In-Between

Sales begin wherever you get in, but always end with the power executives saying yes or no. What happens in between is a lot of due diligence work with subordinates and administrators. Even though there are many obstacles, your focus should always be to eventually get to the high influence executives.

Check Yourself Score: 4=Always; 3=Most Times; 2=Usually; 1=Sometimes; 0=Never.

1. When your initial contact asks for a presentation or quote, do you typically provide it and then wait for her to get back to you before moving forward?
2. Do you interview a bunch of people at different management levels before the quote and/or presentation?

Scoring: 2 minus 1 = ??
___ - ___ = ___

Positive is good; Negative means request the PDF for Chapter 2 by clicking the link below.

Request the PDF for more info:

Leaders Make Decisions - Subordinates Do the Legwork

Leaders decide whether there will be any purchases or investments. They decide what level of spending they will make depending on the magnitude of the problem/s it solves or the expected revenue reward it yields. They don’t decide based on price.

They also decide who the supplier will be. They base their decision on whose product or service will do the most, with the least risk for them professionally and personally.

They delegate their subordinates to do all the investigations, bidding, and jawboning, but the leader makes the final call.

Executives listen to each other for suggestions and concurrence. Subordinates can be and are often dismissed.

Check Yourself Score: 4=Always; 3=Most Times; 2=Usually; 1=Sometimes; 0=Never.

1. When you approach a sale do you focus on getting to the highest level managers, especially the profit-center leader? ____
2. Do you find yourself giving information to one or two people and typically sticking with them? ____

Scoring: 1 minus 2 = ??
___ - ___ = ___

Positive is good; Negative means request the PDF for Chapter 1 by clicking the link below.

Request the PDF for more info:

Kick Off the New Year with Real Impact.

Sorry for my absence on posting to my blog, but you’ll be pleased with what I’ve been preparing for you.

My next blog Tuesday, January 16 and the next 24 Tuesdays will be C-Level selling concepts. They are from my new TAKE ME TO YOUR LEADER$ manual, which is really a reference guide. By that I mean you can search in the guide for answers and ideas about problems or tough situations you’re having getting to and/or impacting high level people. Each of the indexed 50 common problems or typical situations has at least 10 different actions, techniques and/or ideas that address the issue or challenge.

For the next 25 weeks I will present to you a different Take Me To Your Leader$ / C-Level Selling concept for you to absorb. It will be followed by a SELF TEST. If you score poorly, you will eventually face problems with ultimate decision makers. Therfore, to learn relevant strategies, techniques and action plans to prevent or overcome these issues, all you’ll have to do is click the mailto:sam@sammanfer.com link and request the whole PDF file for that concept and I’ll bounce it back to you – no charge. If you score well, you can request it also.

So start now. Forward this blog as an alert to your associates, subordinates or bosses and they will be able to get in from the beginning. On Tuesday, January 16 they will start coming and continue for the next 24 weeks. They’ve already been queued in the system.

Any comments, suggestions, criticism, or whatever, please feel free to use the Comment Section of this blog. I’ll post them for all to see.