Particularly useful for solution salespeople

1. From Walking Catalogue To Trusted Advisor Professionalising The Sales Function Building A Value Proposition Presented By: Peter Gilbert

2. Brain Break 1: The Fire Hydrant

4. Asking high impact questions to clarify the scope of each issue

5. Focusing on the relevant business drivers

7. The Changing Sales Environment The Changing Sales Environment

8. What are the market forces that are driving radical change in business to business buying / selling relations?

9. What’s Driving Change? The usual suspects Commoditisation Competition Pricing pressure Capacity excess High selling costs Mergers & acquisitions . . and some newer ones The internet Consolidation of suppliers Continuous improvement instead of the RFP process

10. Four acquisition mega-trends supplier consolidation increased sophistication: new supplier segmentations superior economics of continuous improvement over RFP total lifetime cost concept

11. supplier consolidation higher stakes: “all or nothing” increased sophistication: new supplier segmentation customers box you in business chain value – not just solutions total lifetime cost concept enterprise commitment/action required – not just sales team superior economics of continuous improvement over RFP Consequences of purchasing trends

12. How do trends like these change the way that customers acquire products and services?

13. Hi Strategic or cost importance of supplier’s product Lo Hi Difficulty of substitution or of obtaining alternatives Supplier Segmentation Matrix Leverage size Partner Shop around Manage risk

14. What These Purchasing Trends Mean even complex services will be increasingly commoditised and bought transactionally customers are becoming ever smarter and more aggressive about capturing a bigger share of the value their suppliers create relationships that seemed protected and locked-in are being questioned and are under threat metrics driven, continuous improvement relationships have the best chance of resisting the new purchasing pressures new enterprise relationships are supplanting traditional major account relationships

15. Is this your sales conundrum? Consultative Most sales forces are in no-man’s land Too expensive to succeed transactionally Too lacking in resources and skills to succeed consultatively Too misaligned and understaffed to succeed in enterprise relationships No man’s land Transactional Enterprise

16. Brain Break 2: The Alsatian Syndrome

17. Pick Your Battlefield Carefully Where you and your organisation choose to fight your sales battle, will have a profound effect on the form, structure and nature of your value proposition.

18. Entry Sales - Return on Investment Productivity Strategic Value High Level 4 Business Value Level 3 Chasm Solution Value Level 2 Commodity Value Level 1 Low Time

19. Chasm Levels of Business Relationship Value Created Relationship Level Trusted Advisor Impact Strategic Issues Exec Solution Provider Impact Business Issues Senior Management Middle Management Problem Solver Impact Operational issues Operations Offer product, service and support Product Vendor

20. Event Process System Outcome Transaction Solution Value / Innovation Relationship / Partnership Considered Competitive Preferred Dominant Ignorant Aware Agile Astute Price Cost of Ownership Return on Investment Business Value Operations (Transaction) Management (Trust) Executive (Political) Business (Partner) Make the list Make the sale Make the Rules Set the Standard Selling Levels Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Level 4 Focus Orientation Status Political Finance Relationships Engagement

21. Product Expert Potential Resource Business Analyst Business Consultant Interruption Sales Pitch Joint Discovery Business Meeting Past Event Informative Creative Ideas Explored Compelling Value Ignored Sent Down Considered Continued Access Selling at the Executive Level Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Level 4 Customer’s Impression of You Customer’s Impression of the Sales Situation Customer’s Conclusion Outcome

22. Strategic Resource Solution Provider Problem Solver Vendor Relationships & Role in the Decision Process Corporate Planning Assess Problems /Opportunities Forming Corporate Initiatives Analysing Results Initiate a Project Tracking Results Identify Suppliers Project Implementation Evaluate & Shortlist Products/Suppliers Select Suppliers Negotiate Contracts Prove theConcept

23. What Is A Business Driver? A business driver is any source of pressure (either a problem or an opportunity), that is impacting on an executive and/or the company, and creating a need for change.

25. Cost

26. Metrics of Industry

27. Shareholder Equity

28. Financial Analysts

29. Militant customers

30. Satisfied Customers

31. Delighted Customers

32. Loyal Customers

33. Retain Customer Base

34. Grow the Customer Base

35. Quality

36. JIT

37. One Stop Shopping

38. Share Information

40. Niche Players

41. Potential Threats

42. Sell With

43. Sell Through

44. Impact

45. “Co-opetition”

46. Making, Selling,

47. Delivering Products

48. Right Skill Mix?

49. Reorganise

52. Specific to the customer

53. Creates a specific or measurable business outcome

54. Sets the customer’s expectations

56. Understanding the Customer’s Business Business Drivers Business drivers are the internal and external pressures that create the need for change. Business Drivers Business Profile Business Initiatives Business Initiatives CSFs Business initiatives are the projects, programs, or plans that address the business drivers. CSFs CSFs are things that must happen or resources that must be in place to ensure the success of the initiative. Compelling Reason to Buy ‘Selling Event’ Compelling situations that cause the customer to make a decision or a change in their current situation.

58. Losing customers

59. Repeat sales to customer base are slowing

60. Opportunities exist to double branded goods exports to East Africa during the next year

61. Customers demand quality products and competitors are gearing up to take advantage

62. Re-engineer service offerings and introduce Premier Service Plan

63. The Integrated Export Initiative

64. Train employees to deliver higher levels of services

65. Customer involvement in design of new services

66. Web-based Premier Service Plan

67. Understand quality, logistical and legislative requirements

68. Overcome the logistical / manufacturing capacity constraints

69. Develop brand awareness in East African markets by mid-yearExamples of Business Drivers, Initiatives and CSFs Example 1 Example 2 Business Drivers Initiatives Critical Success Factors

70. Brain Break 3: It Is Better To Be Wrong Than To Be Confused!!

72. Periodicals: Financial Mail, Finance Week, Business Week, Economist etc

73. Subscribe to the customer’s industry trade journals

74. Subscribe to industry consultants’ newsletters

76. Get on the customer’s PR mailing list

77. Get on the customer’s Investor relations mailing lists

78. Visit the customer’s website regularly

81. Value Proposition Formats You will be able to ______________ resulting in ________________ _____ § business initiative specific or measurable outcome by implementing our _____________________. We delivered similar solution results at ____________________ which resulted in ______________ ____. similar situation or customer past value delivered By changing from _________________ to ________________, you will § current situation our solution affect __________ which means ____________________. We will trac k the business driver specific or measurable outcome value delivered by _______________ and report it back to you ___ ______. frequency/time value tracking system We can help you address __________________________ by installing § compelling event _________________ which will result in _________________________ ___. specific or measurable outcome solution We will insure your return on investment by ____________________ ____. shared risk/reward strategy

82. Constructing Your Value Proposition Customer Business Driver Your Capability Mutual Value Business Initiative Critical Success Factors Unique Solution Products Services Processes People

83. Business and Personal Value When you can combine business value for the customer with personal value for the individual, you create competitive advantage. ©2002 Consiliat Marketing. All rights reserved. Using Consultative Selling Skills

86. Validate your perceptions, while demonstrating expertise

87. Reshape the customer’s thinking of both the issue and the solution

90. Is this causing higher levels of staff churn?

91. Do you have the calibre of sales management to respond appropriately to this situation? which causes: Articulate the resulting impact of the trend / business driver on the second line of theValue Proposition template. If you identify a wider audience, you may decide to have a number of different versions of the same Value Proposition for these different targeted individuals.

93. Does management understand the difficulties of making this transition?

94. What improvements in margins might be possible, if you make this change successfully?

99. Never EVER Apologise To A Customer! Brain Break 4: A simple “sorry” would suffice

100. Consultative Questioning Situational What is the situation / How do you handle this? Asking Listening Issue Informing What’s wrong / What needs to be done? Asking Listening Consequence Informing So what? Asking Listening Value Informing How much? ©2002 Consiliat Marketing. All rights reserved. Using Consultative Selling Skills

102. Which of the following two issues are the most important…..?

103. Who will you be looking to compete with in the new market sectors?

104. How many contractors are involved?

105. How do you feel about growth prospects for next year?

106. How ready are you to raise the bar against the competition?

107. What is your opinion on import substitution?

108. Which non-core assets do you plan to dispose of this year?

109. Once you have divested your non-core operations, where will you look for growth? Examples: Ask open ended questions to get the discussion going Remember The Four Cs - Customers / Competitors / Commercial / Channels

111. What opportunities look most attractive?

112. How are these challenges impacting you?

113. Where do you need to improve?

114. What effect will ………………have on your business?

115. Why isn’t it working as you’d like it?

116. How are you going to protect and grow your margins?

117. What’s keeping you awake at night?

118. What’s preventing you from being more cost effective?©2002 Consiliat Marketing. All rights reserved. Using Consultative Selling Skills

120. What will happen if you don’t solve it?

121. What is this issue costing you?

122. How difficult would it be to solve the problem with internal resources?

123. What’s the worst that could happen?

124. If you don’t solve it, how will it affect your performance?

125. If you don’t act what do you stand to lose?

126. What do you gain by addressing this issue?©2002 Consiliat Marketing. All rights reserved. Using Consultative Selling Skills

128. What solutions have you considered?

129. Would it be helpful if…………………………………..?

130. Do you really need (……….) or do you need (…………)?

131. What will it take to address this issue?

132. What would the ideal solution be?

133. If solving this problem by yourself were an option, what would you do?

134. What other approaches have you tried or considered?©2002 Consiliat Marketing. All rights reserved. Using Consultative Selling Skills

136. How would this approach make it easier for you?

137. How much would that save you?

138. Can you quantify the payback on this opportunity?

139. How would you assess each of these options?

140. Which of these potential solutions would have the greatest impact? Least Impact?