The following is an extract from Ace the Sale! A Practical Methodology for Selling B2B Enterprise Software, Hardware or Services by Nick Gomersall.
Who this book is for
This book is for you if you are engaged in the selling or sales management of major capital projects, software, or services that have multiple people involved in the buying process.
- This book is primarily aimed at sales reps, and offers practical real-world advice and strategies that close more business.
- There is also lots of information in this book for when sales reps move up the corporate ladder and become sales managers. Existing sales managers should also find valuable information in the methodology.
Ace the Sale is about turning ordinary sales reps into tournament pros, and good sales reps into world beaters who can consistently win new business.
Co-existing with existing sales methodologies
This book is designed to be a fast track guide that will complement some existing sales methodologies, or even become one of its own. The information is structured around a ‘round of golf’ – a hole by hole approach to the sales cycle and sales success.
Each hole represents a step towards a ‘close’ that I believe to be critical to sales success. In turn, I have tried to include lots of stories and anecdotes (‘On the tee’ sections) to show the principles in action which hopefully makes reading this book more fun and very different from normal archetypal sales books.
There are times where I might suggest marketing strategies or tactics that need to be implemented by management which will be out of your control as a sales rep. These ideas should be brought up and discussed at sales meetings to instigate change if need be. I will point these out along the way and you never know, these suggestions just might help push along your promotion.
What we will cover
Let’s go through what each hole will cover. Don’t let my golf analysis put you off this book – if you are a non-golfer or hate the game, just treat these holes as 18 steps towards a successful close.
The 19th Hole – The Clubhouse
Normally ‘played’ at the end of the round but we’ll tackle it first. On this hole you will see that there are many times when you should head straight off the course, maybe even in the middle of a round!
The 1st Hole (par 5) – The Right Equipment
Without the right equipment you won’t shoot low. We will be discussing what a good sales process can do for you together with the value of embedding information into a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system.
The 2nd Hole (par 5) – Emotional Intelligence
Emotional Intelligence (EQ). Are you born with it or can it be learned? Great sales people have EQ; but can you learn to have empathy and communication skills if you aren’t a natural?
The 3rd Hole (Par 4) – Competition
Knowing your own strengths and weaknesses is essential; but are you studying the competition hard enough as well?
The 4th Hole (Par 4) – What’s your Sandwich? Why Good Marketing Matters
Marketing will generate the leads that supply the sales team; but who is in control, and what can be done to ensure the sales team has the fuel to drive business?
The 5th Hole (Par 4) – The First Meeting is Critical
Meeting your prospect for the first time can tee you up for success. Setting the right level of expectation will ensure no surprises later in the sales cycle.
The 6th Hole (Par 4) – The First Presentation
Meeting all the decision makers for the first time will enable you to find out who the movers and shakers are. Find out how to spot the informal hierarchy of your potential customer and why cultivating ‘the weakest link’ will give you strength in the sales cycle.
The 7th Hole (Par 5) – How are we Doing?
How are we doing? Here we will look at a process that enables us to take a critical look at just how well we are progressing on an account, and what needs to be done to ensure success.
The 8th Hole (Par 3) – Commit to the deal, Multi-Level Selling
Doing anything half-heartedly will not bring results. Understand why working on fewer deals will generate better returns.
The 9th Hole (Par 3) – Last One through the Door
Continuous communication with your prospect is essential and you need to make sure that you always have the last word. This hole will lay the foundations for you to ensure that you always have a valid purchasing reason to call your prospects.
The 10th hole (Par 5) – Do you need Birdies or Pars?
The game does not start until the last nine holes on the last day. Have you got your strategy right, do you need to walk, or can you get part of the deal? If you are winning you need to close as soon as you can, if you are losing you need to delay the sales cycle.
The 11th hole (Par 4) – Complex Pricing and Clauses you don’t need
Complex pricing and clauses in the contract you don’t need will ensure you leave little money on the table and enjoy a smoother negotiation.
The 12th hole (Par 4) – Internal Selling: why is it so important?
Selling internally is just as important as external sales if you want presales and management support.
The 13th hole (Par 4) – The Final Presentation
The final presentation is the last time you will see all the buyers together in one room. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to show them that your solution will solve their individual issues.
The 14th hole (Par 3) – The Reference Visit
The reference visit will sort out the men from the boys. Have you got a user base that will be willing to help? Have you spent enough time with your customer?
The 15th hole (Par 3) – The Board Presentation
The board presentation is your last opportunity to influence the key decision makers. Presenting in a relaxed manner will show confidence but you need to plan and prepare fully beforehand to pull this off.
The 16th hole (Par 3) – Decision Time
Decision time is like waiting for your exam results, there is nothing you can do. If you lose – do you have a strategy?
The 17th hole (Par 5) – The Negotiation
Negotiation is the most fun part of the sales cycle but some prospects take it more seriously than others.
The 18th hole (Par 4) – Contract Signature
Getting the contract signed and the cash in your hand is sometimes harder than you might think. Don’t delay. Go down and wait in reception if you have to, and collect the signed contract.
The 19th hole (again) – The Clubhouse Revisited
Revisiting the 19th after a long and successful sale campaign is essential and here is the place when you can share your funny sales stories and celebrate your wins.
Appendix A – The Empathy Selling Questionnaire
Appendix B – Sample Large Account Strategy and Sales Splits
Terminology
If you already know your golf terms, feel free to play through this section. For those of you who don’t play golf you’ll notice how this book uses some golf terminology here and there. It’s not critical if you don’t know the terms fully, as principles will be laid out anyway. But it is worth taking a moment here to explain some basic expressions. Here is a super quick primer.
A golf course has eighteen holes and each hole has an optimum number of strokes (shots) that a player must take in order to get the ball in the hole.
A par three, for example, is a short hole and requires three strokes. This may be made up of one shot to the green and two putts. If you took three strokes to get the ball in the hole, it is called a par. If you do this in one shot under par (i.e. 2 strokes) it is called a birdie and two shots under par is called an eagle. If however you take one more shot than the par, then this is called a bogey, two over the par is a double bogey, and so on.
You want to get the ball around the course in the fewest number of strokes, and to do that you use different golf clubs. Drivers which send the ball a long way and which are used off the tee (the tee is where you start on every hole) to putters which you use on the greens (where the holes are).
There are normally par threes, fours and fives that make up the eighteen holes. So a typical golf course might have six par threes, four par fives and eight par fours. Each hole, once you are on the green, should only take two putts.
Okay, so that’s everything we need to cover right now. Let’s get to the 19th. Yes, the 19th!