Sales Leader's Playbook on How to Coach to Messaging, shared by Angelique Sweeny, Director of Sales Learning and Performance at ADP

1. Sales Leader’s Playbook
Coaching to
Messaging
May 2011

2. The key sales associate behaviors that drive success at this step include:
Pre-Planning:
• Research Market & Industry Trends as well as company info to learn the buyer's
language and connect message to buyer's world
• Incorporate Power Messaging grabbers into pre-gaining access activities such as emails,
voice mails and marketing. Make sure message is Simple, Differentiated, Memorable
• Fill in company info to POV Pitch, collect proof and data points
• Identify and articulate risk of no change
• Research key value points to emphasize with your buyer. Identify what is important to
them financially and personally – Check Google/Linked In/Zoom info/company website
for information on the company, key executives, mission statement
Selling Skills:
• Challenge the buyer by bringing them a new idea or approach to solving their challenges
or furthering their goals
• Provide bold new ideas/fresh perspective buyer may not have heard before through story
and grabbers. Recognize that only 14% of the value on the phone is in your words and
86% is in your voice
• Hold conversations about buyer/their industry/market/company - not about ADP. Utilize
"You" phrasing
• Connect ideas to financial impact using client success stories
• Use provocative open-ended questions to engage buyer, and reframe objections
Buyer Alignment:
• Have Business Impact Story or Customer Story with Contrast ready to demonstrate how
ADP helps companies
• Deliver POV Pitch over phone to demonstrate ADP's value
• Use 3rd party statistics to prove that challenges do exist and can be solved
• Monitor buyer's response to pitch and power positions, in order to learn more about their
cares and concerns
• Identify what the buyer connected with, and why they agreed to meet with you
.

3. Coaching Questions:
• What truly matters in the world of this buyer?
• What is keeping them from their goals?
• What Power Messaging techniques can/did you use during your call?
• What are you doing to position your message uniquely? What are you doing to create
impact? How will this conversation be different from what they have heard in the past?
• What are the Organizational/Financial/Personal wins, drivers, motivators or challenges
for why they would buy?
• How are the above problems preventing the buyer from achieving their business
goals/objectives?
• How will you articulate to the buyer a better way to achieve business goals/objectives?
• How will this insight be new or provocative to the buyer?
• How will you create urgency for how it will threaten or accelerate business results?
Leader Observations:
Next steps for the sales associate:
Date these steps need to be complete:
Next steps for the sales leader:
Date these steps need to be complete

4. The key sales associate behaviors that drive success at this step include:
Pre-Planning:
• Prepare relevant grabbers such as word plays, mini dramas, props, and stories that are
connected to why you got the appointment
• Practice POV Pitch and include buyer details in its delivery
• Meet with Sales Leader to strategize
• Create provocative open- ended questions to engage buyer
• Create message to emphasize the Does and Means relevant to this organization’s needs
Selling Skills:
• Use grabbers to open/conduct meeting to drive impact and catch the buyer's attention.
Highlight ADP's unique ability to impact business goals/challenges (Power Position/PP)to
gain permission to move forward. Use customized Point Of View (POV) Pitch
• Leverage Voice, Body, Words face to face. Give 7% value to words, 38% to voice and
55% to body. Identify and leverage the concept of mirroring in rapport building
• Ask thought- provoking questions that are open-ended - wait for response
• Recognize when an objection is anchored - use Reframing to overcome anchored
objections
• Look for learning style of buyer - visual, auditory, kinesthetic and adapt message to it
Buyer Alignment:
• Use 3rd party stats to prove that challenges in the buyer’s industry/market/business do
exist and can be solved
• Use Business Impact Story or Customer Story with Contrast to demonstrate how ADP
helps companies attain goals. Highlight/parallel the value of change for this company
• Monitor buyer's response to pitch and power positions - look for learning style/
communication clues to help reinforce message to buyer. Use this to plan first-level
analysis questions based on buyer's response to pitch
• Verify that buyer can articulate back ADP's positions of strength
• Ask - "So, what do you think?" Wait for answer

5. Coaching Questions Leader Can Use:
• What have you prepared to create impact? And how does that connect to the buyer's
world?
• What do you know about this buyer that you can include in your POV Pitch?
• What 3rd party stats or customer stories do you have to prove ADP's value?
• What is your new provocative idea for this buyer? How will this provoke them to
understand a problem exists?
• What open-ended questions do you have prepared to uncover strategic
initiatives/business goals/challenges? What will you use to show ADP's unique ability to
help execute against them?
• How would the person you are meeting with measure success (in terms of position?)
• How will you focus on means for this person? How can partnership with ADP help this
person with business/personal/financial goals? How will they look good?
• How will you simplify your complex message so contact remembers you?
• How will you differentiate yourself from the competition - what are your PP? How will you
articulate that ONLY ADP has this UNIQUE ability?
• Why will the buyer remember YOU?
• What parts of this message did the buyer and others seem to respond to when gaining
access?
• How will you know when you have uncovered what the buyer values and needs?
• What will you ask to determine where they are in the buying process?
• If nothing else, what ideas or messages do you want the person to remember from your
meeting
Leader Observations:
Next steps for the sales associate:
Date these steps need to be complete:
Next steps for the sales leader:
Date these steps need to be complete:

6. The key sales associate behaviors that drive success at this step include:
Pre-Planning:
• Create Big Picture that shows the buyer's world before and after ADP
• Develop and practice grabbers (flip chart use, prop use, etc.) to open meeting and spike
retention throughout the presentation
• Prepare 3rd party stats and customer stories that relate to the buyer and the analysis
findings
• Prepare cooking demo that will resonate with the decision maker. Ensure that all ADP
experts (internal/external partners) that will be present at meeting are well connected to
buyer’s priorities
• Ensure you can articulate and defend the ADP Power Positions and that they are in fact
unique and important to the buyer
Selling Skills:
• Open meeting with a grabber that highlights ADP's competitive Power Positions
• Make sure agenda is about the buyer, not ADP
• Speak with passion; Make eye contact with audience; Use relevant stories
• Present cooking demo using a script tailored to emphasize buyer’s priorities
• Ask open-ended provocative questions; ask for public positive feedback
Buyer Alignment:
• Use Big Picture to show what better looks like with ADP
• Use Business Impact Story or Customer Story with Contrast to demonstrate to buyer
impact on their business goals and challenges
• Use 3rd party stats, Whitepapers, Articles, BIS, Success Stories, ROI, References, etc.-
prove that challenges do exist and can be solved
• Check for understanding and agreement from buyer by asking for public positive
feedback. Ask, "What do you think?"
• Look for specific buying signals as you present

7. Coaching Questions Leader Can Use:
• Where do they lack resources? How does your message show your unique value in this
area?
• Why should this buyer choose ADP? What makes you different from the competition?
• What Power Messaging techniques will create the biggest impact?
• What are the implications if this buyer remains status quo? Is this an option?
• How will you articulate the consequence of no change?
• Explain how your message is buyer focused? How will you stay in the Does and Means?
(PP in Does and Value in means)
• What specific buying signals did/will you look for as you present?
• What parts of this message did the buyer and others seem to respond to?
• What did you learn from this process that you can use in your messaging from now on?
Leader Observations:
Next steps for the sales associate:
Date these steps need to be complete:
Next steps for the sales leader:
Date these steps need to be complete