B2B sales of services can complicated, for me at least. There are always multiple targets, and we have to find the bulls eye for each if we’re going to make the sale. B2B selling is very different to B2C and the sales process must accommodate the extra dimensions.
Business Strategy
In today’s controlled world businesses never do anything which isn’t aligned with strategy. The C suite has to be agreed whatever investment will help them deliver their plan. This might be a competitive advantage, a response to a competitive threat, or simply another way to cut costs. Whatever, if those guys haven’t agreed something needs to be done the sale won’t happen. And we wont win it if we can’t convince them our offer will help achieve it.
The Business Case
Whatever we might think of the accountants they’re the guys with the purse strings. If the offer doesn’t provide a Return on Investment they’ll shut the door. Business Cases are always fairy tales, but still an essential dimension in every B2B sale.
The Personal Agenda
The decision makers, and influencers, will always have another angle. They need to support the strategy otherwise colleagues will hang them out to dry. They need to satisfy the accountants about impact on the balance sheet. Once those requirements are satisfied they’ll be looking for personal wins. Those personal wins will guarantee us the business. Especially if we can help manage the individuals’ risk of the project going wrong.
Check Selling is About People for a more detailed discussion of these points.
The Sales Plan
We need to invest time understanding these three dimensions and figuring how to address them.
- What’s the business strategy and how will we convince decision makes that we’re the low risk choice?
- Where’s the Return on Investment and how will we deliver it?
- Who will influence the decision, and where’s their personal angle?
Too Complicated?
Maybe – the thinking certainly challenges every sales plan – but there’s a simple way to figure if this is for us.
Will our competition approach the sale in these three dimensions?
If so what’s our risk of chasing a deal we aren’t going to win?
If no, how much of an advantage can we gain when we’re playing Chess and the competition is playing Checkers?
Which team would you rather be on?
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Nice writing. You are on my RSS reader now so I can read more from you down the road.
Allen Taylor
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