5 Tips to Sell Senior Executives
If you've been in sales for any period of time, you know that part of the sales process involves getting past the gatekeeper with the goal of ultimately reaching the senior executive, the decision maker. How many sales do you lose because a competitor has a connection to a senior executive and you don’t? How often do you invest your time with managers only to find out that they have no authority to make a purchase?
First of all, don’t jade yourself into thinking that you can automatically get the business as soon as you can get in front of an executive and make a presentation; there’s more to it than that. You have to make an effort to build a relationship and establish yourself as an expert with an executive. Remember, they are an executive, which means they are at the top of their field and their company so it’s important that you establish a level playing field with them. They need to understand why a relationship with you will be beneficial to them. Therefore, you must establish yourself more as an expert and advisor rather than just another salesperson; you must gain their respect.
Additionally, you must understand the agenda of your business executive which will take some time and effort. Your typical business executive’s priorities center around three core business drivers: finance, quality and competitiveness. Financial drivers center around increasing revenue and decreasing expenses. Identify your executive’s key financial drivers and develop solutions to meet their needs. Quality drivers focus on customer satisfaction. How can your product or service help them serve their customers better? Competitiveness drivers are about creating a unique product or service to sell. How can your relationship with your business executive give them a competitive edge in the marketplace? These are all things to consider when you are trying to sell to an executive. But, how do you sell to them in the first place? Here 5 key steps to help you sell more effectively to executives:
Establish an “executive team” mindset. What exactly does this mean? Earlier I mentioned that you need to level the playing field with your executive and earn their respect. This is often a stumbling block for many salespeople because they are intimidated by executives and don’t see themselves on the same level as them. This is a side effect of a low self-image. Don’t be intimidated by the success of the executive you’re trying to see. Have confidence in yourself and your products. When you know that your relationship and the products and/or services that you offer will make the executive’s life and business better, it will shine through and they will see you as an equal.
Create relevancy for the executive. The executive needs to know how your presence and your products can positively impact their business. Remember the 3 business drivers: finance, customer satisfaction and competitiveness. Use these drivers to determine how you can help make the biggest impact in their business. They need to know that you are not there just to sell a product, but that you care about their business. Positioning your solution as a contributor to the executive’s agenda takes you from being a “sales person” to a trusted advisor.
Create an incentive to change. Many executives are in the mindset, “if it’s not broke, don’t fix it,” and this kind of thinking can often be damaging to their business. As their new advisor, you can show them how taking a proactive approach to their business can help them uphold their goals in their 3 driving areas for business.
Show them that their business objectives are understood. By identifying what their business objectives are and how your product or service and help them maintain those objective, you begin to establish trust with your new executive.
Verify the absence of the value you are providing. This requires a little homework on your part because you will need to learn enough about their business and their processes to find gaps. By identifying those gaps with your executive, you can easily show how you can fill them and increase their effectiveness as a company.
Show the dollar amount at risk. This plays right into one of their key drivers and also uses the element of fear to drive home this importance of filling your well before it runs dry. Show them how partnering with you can save them money and increase their bottom line.
Create the confidence to invest. By reviewing their agenda and responding directly to their needs and business drivers, the executive now knows that you take their business seriously. Your focus on their business over your own agenda will create trust which will lead to confidence, followed by a sale.
Create measurable results. Executives often see things in dollars and cents so do your best to quantify the value of your product or service and the impact it will have on their business. If they invest with you, they want to make sure they receive adequate return on their investment and they want measurable results. Therefore, it is up to you to explain how value will be achieved, measured and reported during the delivery period and on an ongoing basis This will require a proactive approach in which you track and report results, solicit feedback from those involved ,and continue to identify opportunities as well as changes.
Utilize these 5 tips in your sales journey and you will save time previously wasted selling to middle managers and be well on your way to developing multiple sales with executives and key decision makers.
To increase your sales visit www.ewcconsultants.com and www.mrthomasellis.com.
Have a question? Thomas has the answer at 301-343-0001 or[email protected]
If you've been in sales for any period of time, you know that part of the sales process involves getting past the gatekeeper with the goal of ultimately reaching the senior executive, the decision maker. How many sales do you lose because a competitor has a connection to a senior executive and you don’t? How often do you invest your time with managers only to find out that they have no authority to make a purchase?
First of all, don’t jade yourself into thinking that you can automatically get the business as soon as you can get in front of an executive and make a presentation; there’s more to it than that. You have to make an effort to build a relationship and establish yourself as an expert with an executive. Remember, they are an executive, which means they are at the top of their field and their company so it’s important that you establish a level playing field with them. They need to understand why a relationship with you will be beneficial to them. Therefore, you must establish yourself more as an expert and advisor rather than just another salesperson; you must gain their respect.
Additionally, you must understand the agenda of your business executive which will take some time and effort. Your typical business executive’s priorities center around three core business drivers: finance, quality and competitiveness. Financial drivers center around increasing revenue and decreasing expenses. Identify your executive’s key financial drivers and develop solutions to meet their needs. Quality drivers focus on customer satisfaction. How can your product or service help them serve their customers better? Competitiveness drivers are about creating a unique product or service to sell. How can your relationship with your business executive give them a competitive edge in the marketplace? These are all things to consider when you are trying to sell to an executive. But, how do you sell to them in the first place? Here 5 key steps to help you sell more effectively to executives:
Establish an “executive team” mindset. What exactly does this mean? Earlier I mentioned that you need to level the playing field with your executive and earn their respect. This is often a stumbling block for many salespeople because they are intimidated by executives and don’t see themselves on the same level as them. This is a side effect of a low self-image. Don’t be intimidated by the success of the executive you’re trying to see. Have confidence in yourself and your products. When you know that your relationship and the products and/or services that you offer will make the executive’s life and business better, it will shine through and they will see you as an equal.
Create relevancy for the executive. The executive needs to know how your presence and your products can positively impact their business. Remember the 3 business drivers: finance, customer satisfaction and competitiveness. Use these drivers to determine how you can help make the biggest impact in their business. They need to know that you are not there just to sell a product, but that you care about their business. Positioning your solution as a contributor to the executive’s agenda takes you from being a “sales person” to a trusted advisor.
Create an incentive to change. Many executives are in the mindset, “if it’s not broke, don’t fix it,” and this kind of thinking can often be damaging to their business. As their new advisor, you can show them how taking a proactive approach to their business can help them uphold their goals in their 3 driving areas for business.
Show them that their business objectives are understood. By identifying what their business objectives are and how your product or service and help them maintain those objective, you begin to establish trust with your new executive.
Verify the absence of the value you are providing. This requires a little homework on your part because you will need to learn enough about their business and their processes to find gaps. By identifying those gaps with your executive, you can easily show how you can fill them and increase their effectiveness as a company.
Show the dollar amount at risk. This plays right into one of their key drivers and also uses the element of fear to drive home this importance of filling your well before it runs dry. Show them how partnering with you can save them money and increase their bottom line.
Create the confidence to invest. By reviewing their agenda and responding directly to their needs and business drivers, the executive now knows that you take their business seriously. Your focus on their business over your own agenda will create trust which will lead to confidence, followed by a sale.
Create measurable results. Executives often see things in dollars and cents so do your best to quantify the value of your product or service and the impact it will have on their business. If they invest with you, they want to make sure they receive adequate return on their investment and they want measurable results. Therefore, it is up to you to explain how value will be achieved, measured and reported during the delivery period and on an ongoing basis This will require a proactive approach in which you track and report results, solicit feedback from those involved ,and continue to identify opportunities as well as changes.
Utilize these 5 tips in your sales journey and you will save time previously wasted selling to middle managers and be well on your way to developing multiple sales with executives and key decision makers.
To increase your sales visit www.ewcconsultants.com and www.mrthomasellis.com.
Have a question? Thomas has the answer at 301-343-0001 or[email protected]