I am really interested in this since we are trying to sell our TagandFile document management
service into corporates right now.
I went through IBM's sales training before leaving to do the startup and we have also done part-time contracting to bring money in doing technical sales roles and sales re-organisation consultancy. Here's a braindump, but do contact me if if you want to discuss further - use the email address on the TagandFile.com site.
Sales Process:
The buying cycle for a corporate takes months and you won't succeed if you try to rush it. At each stage in the process you must seek to move on to the next stage in line with the speed the corporate wishes to move at. Do not expect a high success rate, you will need to generate hundreds of leads to get a handful of sales. At each stage you need to QUALIFY the opportunity (i.e. decide whether it is strong enough to be worth investing more time in). This high cost of sale can only really be justified by deals > $10K minimum.
1) Identify opportunity - you need to have a means of identifying / creating opportunities in your target market. You will waste a lot of time on this unless you have a very clear idea of what your target market is. Typical ways to create opportunities are cold calling, networking at industry events, getting introductions through contacts. Once you have identified the opportunity, your aim is to get a face-to-face meeting with someone close to the opportunity with-in the corporate.
2) Explore need - when you have your face-to-face meeting, your goal is to understand the corporate's CRITIAL REASON TO ACT (CRA). This is a fundamental thing and should have a timeframe associated with it. If you cannot identify one then do not waste more time with this opportunity, focus on generating others.
3) Refine requirments - you should seek follow-on meetings and calls with different people in the corporate (e.g. end users, business sponsor, IT manager...) in order to fully understand their circumstances and needs. This will help you to propose the right solution, but you are also trying to identify the KEY DECISION LEADER (KDL). Another fundamental concept - without the support of the guy who has the power to decide in your favour, you are wasting your time with this opportunity.
4) Propose solution - if you have done the previous steps correctly, you will know what solution to propose, who to propose it to and when, and you will be confident that it meets the requirements. In fact, ideally the KDL has specifically asked you to propose something at this stage. The proposal will usually consist of a 10-20 page document (I can send examples if interested) plus a set-piece presentation plus demonstration to key people in the corporate. You are most likely to succeeed if can demonstrate UNIQUE VALUE - the risk here is that after
all your hard work, you have persuaded the KDL that he should do something, but then he puts it out to tender so all your competitors can bid since he does not recognise the uniqueness of what you offer.
5) Negotiate terms - if your proposal goes down well, you will move into a negotiation phase where you agree the final price and terms and conditions. As a startup you won't have much leverage in this phase, but you will do better if you can present the TOTAL VALUE PROPOSITION
- i.e. a business case showing that your solution will created business benefit, preferably using their own numbers rather than your own estimates.
6) Close sale - get the necessary paperwork signed. Typically this will involve you presenting a contract or Statement of Work for signature and receiving a Purchase Order from the customer's procurement department. Remember, the sale is not complete until you have the
purchase order since until then you cannot be sure that whoever has signed your contract did in fact have the authority to close the purchase on behalf of the company.
7) Maintain relationship - look for more opportunities in the customer, keep them happy, deliver on your promises, send accurate invoices and chase them for late payement!
Sales Skills:
This is an absolutely massive topic and I've already written a lot, so I'll restrict myself for a few key points.
- EARN THE RIGHT. In any conversation with a potential customer whether you have cold called them or this is the final presentation, you need to keep giving them reasons to keep talking to you otherwise you are out.
- LISTEN. I mean really listen, deploy your antennae, stop worrying about what you are going to say next when they have finished talking. Ask open questions, listen for 'Hooks' that will allow you to ask follow-on questions and dig a bit further on a particular topic.
- Always be on the look out for key pieces of information that will help you qualify the opportunity. Think BANT - Budget, Authority (who is the KDL), Need (what is the CRA), Timescales. Don't be afraid to ask for these pieces of information directly.
- Understand who you are talking to. There are plenty of 'Empty Suits' who will waste your time in corporates and seem important when really they have no intention or authority to do anything. You want to be on the look out for 'Rising Stars' who will sponsor your proposal.
- Amir Nathoo