Zero-Time Selling: 10 Essential Steps To Accelerate Every Company's Sales by Andy Paul

Author:Andy Paul
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Publisher: Morgan James Publishing
Published: 2011-07-31T14:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER WRAP-UP

1. Every interaction with every prospect and customer must be entered into the system.

2. Use of the CRM system is mandatory. This includes you, Mr. and Ms. Big Shot.

3. All prospect and customer follow-ups and reminders must be scheduled in the CRM system.

4. Customer support must use the CRM system.

5. Use the CRM system to manage Zero-Time responsiveness.

SOLUTION #8

SELL LOW

How many times have you heard the following rules over the years?

• Always sell to the decision-maker. Don’t waste your time with anyone else.

• Sell as high as you can in the organization.

• Talk to the CEO; tell him that we want to create a partnership between our companies. Make him understand how strategically important our products are to his company.

The drumbeat has always been the same: Sell high. Sell higher. What I’m about to tell you runs contrary to nearly every directive you’ve heard about selling and surely contradicts all the sales articles and books you’ve read and your sales training over the years: Always sell to the lowest responsible level in the customer organization.

Shocking, I know. Although your weakest salespeople might briefly feel some vindication (“A-ha! I told you so. I was doing the right thing all along.”) Unfortunately for them, they’re still missing the boat. Let’s define some terms to clear the air here and you will see what both you and they have been missing.

In every organization there are people who decide which products to buy and those who have the authority to approve the purchase orders. In large organizations, these are usually different people at different levels. If the customer is a small to medium-sized business (SMB) then they might be the same person.

In most B2B environments, the people who typically decide whether to buy your product or service are the functional employees who will use it on a regular basis. They are the individuals or team who create the specifications or requirements for the products they use. They often are the people who take your product out of its box, plug it in, power it up, and call you if it doesn’t work. These are the people the higher-ups depend on to conduct the product research and make the decision to buy either your product or your competitor’s. They are the Actual Decision-Makers. (Let’s call them the ADMs.) They are the people you want to sell to. If they don’t like your product, your company, or you, then you won’t get the order.

The people who authorize the expenditure of funds are the Bosses. An ADM needs to get the Boss’s signature on the requisition before anything gets purchased. The ADMs will want your assurance that the product you’re selling can do the job they need. You may have to jump over some bureaucratic hurdles to get the necessary signatures on the purchase requisition.

There are exceptions to this rule. Product and service purchase decisions are made at the lowest responsible level in most companies. The actual level is usually determined by the strategic value and price of the product or service being acquired and the size of the purchasing company.

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