How to Win More, Higher Margin Opportunities through Financial

Impact

March 3, 2015

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Today’s Speakers

S  John Holland, Chief Content Officer of CustomerCentric Selling® (CCS®)

S  Michael Higgins, CEO of Selling at the C-level

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The Fifth Evolution

The Fifth Evolution: Salesperson as business consultant (nationwide survey sponsored by the Association for Talent Development):

S  Current state of sales evolution.

S  Salesperson must understand the economics of his/her own products and services and the the economics of competitive products and services.

S  Salesperson must be able to explain his/her product’s advantages in terms of net savings and cost reduction (and impact on crucial assets).

S  This is a major shift in the salesperson’s skill set. Most salespeople have little, if any financial training.

Why Is CCS® Championing This Mini-MBA?

S  CCS® Concept #1: No Goal, No Prospect.

S  The primary goals that SDMs are interested in are financial ones stated in “financial impact” language.

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Why Is CCS® Championing This Mini-MBA?

S  CCS® Concept #2: It’s not what where you show up, it’s what you say when you get there.

S  What you need to say to SDM’s is, “This is my impact on your crucial metrics.”

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Why Is CCS® Championing This Mini-MBA?

S  CCS® Concept #3: You get delegated to people you sound like.

S  You sound like SDMs (people above the “Power Line”) when you talk about (and understand) crucial metrics such as Days Sales Outstanding (your product’s impact on Cash Flow) or Interest Coverage Ratio (your product’s impact on improving EBIT).

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Why Is CCS® Championing This Mini-MBA?

S  CCS® Concept #4: People buy from people who are sincere and competent and empower them.

S  With SDMs, part of the competency equation, in addition to your subject matter expertise, is speaking in the language of numbers and metrics. You don’t have to be an expert; you do need to be good enough.

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Why Is CCS® Championing This Mini-MBA?

S  CCS® Concept #5: Take time to diagnose before you offer a prescription.

S  Again, the diagnosis needs to be in the language of business which is finance.

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Why Is CCS® Championing This Mini-MBA?

S  CCS® Concept #9: You can’t sell to someone who can’t buy.

S  In any meaningful deal, the financial approvers are SDMs and their native tongue is finance.

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Why Is CCS® Championing This Mini-MBA?

S  CCS® Concept #11: Make yourself equal, then, make yourself different.

S  There are different ways to be equal, e.g., with unique industry knowledge or a focus on company or industry-specific concerns. An “easy” way to foster equality is to speak in the same financial language as the financial buyers. In a situation where you are in the “B” column or up against tough, competent, comparable competition, a distinguisher like financial acumen can be a game changer.

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Today’s Speakers

S  John Holland, Chief Content Officer of CustomerCentric Selling® (CCS®)

S  Michael Higgins, CEO of Selling at the C-level

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What We’ll Cover

S  The Miyagi Factor

S  Two questions that must be answered to secure face-time with any high-level company decision maker.

S  How to succeed (win more) in the land of SDM (Senior Decision Maker) with financial impact tools and approaches.

Why does this matter?

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From: David LaDue (National Sales Manager) To: Jay Costello Subject: Requesting your thoughts on use of a learning curriculum

Jay,

My first thought is: to avoid FEAR and PAIN!

I believe that the #1 reason our National Accounts salespeople do not attempt to engage at the C-level, P-level, VP-level or D-level (and perhaps any other level that isn’t purchasing or maintenance) is based on their FEAR of being asked financial questions that they CAN’T answer…or the avoidance of the embarrassment of not being able to answer.  That equals PAIN and FEAR of loss of the sale.  If you were in their shoes, which you have been, wouldn’t you feel the same? David

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The Miyagi Factor

S  How financially literate do salespeople need to be?

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Two Key Questions to Win More SDM Face-time

S  Question #1: How does your product or service support my strategic objectives (and make sure you explain it to me in my language, not yours)?

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Two Key Questions to Win More SDM Face-time

S  Question #2: What impact does your product or service have on my crucial metrics (and, again, if you don’t talk to me in my language, I will quickly lose patience and interest)?

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#1: How Does This Product Support My Strategic Objectives?

S  What are strategic objectives? Big-picture, often enterprise-wide, concerns of every senior manager that guide their day to day actions and decisions.

S  The more closely a salesperson aligns their competitive advantages to a decision maker’s strategic objectives and can speak about those advantages in the language of business, which is finance, the more likely they are to be seen as an equal or trusted advisor.

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Approach #1: Use of Financial Impact Testimonials

S  The Surprise: We have discovered that customers are willing (and able!) to tell you with often amazing precision and accuracy what the actual financial impact of your product is on their Income Statement, Cash Statement and Balance Sheet concerns.

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Process Must Be Precise

In each of the impact categories are sample questions that open up a “financial impact” conversation around that issue:

1.   Elevate the discussion to the more strategic, financial level where competitive advantages can be financially quantified and financial impact is as or more important than price or even features and benefits.

2.  Make the customer realize that you as a salesperson have a strategic view which broadens the conversation to issues that were hidden or not obvious.

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Approach #2: Deploying Strategic Objective Q’s to Open/

Move a Sale

  *Growing sales, revenue or market share:

S  When talking to senior decision makers, how would it impact your sales if your salespeople could confidently speak at every step in the process in the financial language of those buyers?

S  Given the capability that my product provides, how could market share be improved by helping your sales team feel more confident and competent to focus on your customer’s more senior decision makers?

*The language of the questions will match your specific offering.

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Examples of Using Strategic Objective Questions

  *Improving costs and expenses:

S  When approaching a new customer, how could your Cost of Sales efficiency and Gross Profit be improved if your salespeople felt confident to approach more senior buyers for whom talking about value and financial impact is more important than pricing and discounts?

S  In prospecting for new business, what would be the potential impact on your Operating Margin if salespeople went directly after your customers’ senior buyers and were able to communicate with some fluency in their financial-impact language?

*The language of the questions will match your specific offering.

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Examples of Using Strategic Objective Questions

  *Increasing operating cash flow:

S  On an ongoing basis, how would your operating cash flow be improved if your sales force understood the impact of their negotiations on your own company’s Days Sales Outstanding or Receivable Days? By how much?

S  When reacting to and plotting forecasting, could your sale managers help their counterparts in Operations better manage your company’s Inventory Days on Hand if they knew that the forecasts from salespeople were more accurate?

*The language of the questions will match your specific offering.

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Examples of Using Strategic Objective Questions

S  What are key measures (and what are the key measures/metrics /

ratios that are driving this decision maker?)?

S  Key measures take two or more of the raw numbers from a company’s

financial statements to give a snapshot of a crucial financial area.

S  For SDMs, key measures are the shorthand of every interaction. Key

metrics tell a story.

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#2: How Does This Product Impact My Key Measures?

Here’s an example of what we do – and you could do – to guide that discussion:

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Example of Key Measures

Another example of how to graphically show an SDM your precise financial impact:

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Example of Key Measures

S  Option #1: We’ll send you a FREE assessment to measure your own

financial/SDM acumen.

S  Option #2: We’ll setup for your team to take a (FREE) confidential

assessment and give you a summary of the results.

Ready? Send an email to: mhiggins@sellatclevel.com and ask for the option of your choice above.

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Discover for Yourself