What’s the secret to getting a C-Suite executive to talk to you? Forget being a salesperson! Yes, I know that’s what it says on your business card. And you wake up each morning, pumped up to be the best salesperson you can be. And here I am telling you to forget about it! But read on and you’ll see why what I say makes sense.
Each day, the average business executive is bombarded by a number of calls on his land line and cell phone. They may be from customers, vendors, and partners. And a few will be from sales executives as well. Now if the business executive is savvy, he’ll get his calls fielded by his secretary or the company receptionist, and will apply filters by way of caller id to block out unwanted calls.
Getting past the gatekeeper can be challenging!
Think of it from his point of view. You need 10 minutes of his time, as do say 5 other sales people. That’s 50 minutes in his already over-booked schedule. If each of you go over the appointed 10 minutes, that could add another hour to it. And in all this, is he really thinking this new offering is a ‘must-have’? Or is he thinking of the sale his company is gearing up for? Or the expansion plans his division has?
So how do you slip past these obstacles and persuade your prospect to speak to you?
Forget being a salesperson and jam on the business person’s hat. You’ll need to possess enough knowledge and acumen to be able to convince your prospect that not only do you know something he doesn’t, but you can use your knowledge to help him.
We’ve seen how preparation can help, and in particular, the strongest means of securing a phone call is by way of a direct introduction or referral. Ask your current clients if they can help you. Networking online using sites like LinkedIn and Biznik is another powerful way to get your foot into the door.
And as with anything, research, is of paramount importance! Are you sure you’ve got the right person? As Graham Lind, Managing Partner for Sales Performance International (Solution Selling) says, “You can’t sell to someone who can’t buy”!
When you establish long-term relationships within a company, you automatically gravitate toward the person you know to help you out. But what if that person is not the right individual? What if he or she can’t make a buying decision? Getting out of such a relationship can be awkward, but it may be your only option.
Planning to enter into a new industry or a new company needs advance strategizing, and you need to get the right decision maker on your side. If you eventually are asked to deal with an executive, always keep the senior or power executive in the loop. This could be with a simple email that apprises him of how things stand and includes your latest correspondence or buying information.
So your aim is to start off at the highest level possible and if necessary work your way down to the appropriate decision maker.
One way to do this is to think like your prospect. Make sure you’ve mapped your call. What are the problems he’s currently facing that he would like addressed? Are there stories he might be interested in hearing about? Making an instant connection is really important. Your goal here is to obtain as much information as you possibly can – think of it as reconnaissance mission of the highest level.
Initially, you will be calling to research the situation, not to sell something. If you learn something from this call, you’ve succeeded in your main objective, which is to find out the appropriate person/s to target.
From this initial call, you will try to gain information on the following:
- Map of sales/support teams: Where are the sales/customer teams?
- How many sales/support people are there?
- Current systems: What are the systems in place at the various sales/account management teams?
- Best contact: Who is the best person to start with (at each division)?
- Internal Referral: Can you get an internal referral to this executive?
Here are some of the steps you can follow, which make climbing to the top much easier:
- Gain permission: Begin by asking for permission to have a chat, with a simple, but effective statement like, “Did I catch you at a good time?”
- Get your contacts in order: Preliminary research will help you understand the potentially right people to approach.
- Clarify the customer’s buying processes: If they have a particular protocol they follow, which most companies do have, you need to be aware of it.
- Dig deep for pain: Guide your prospect to admitting pain, and convert it to a dollar value. It’s hard for a buyer to take action without having a vision of what to do to solve their problem. A good salesperson knows that by accurately diagnosing a buyer’s business issue or ‘pain’, they can help create this vision of a solution. This is known as ‘solution selling’ and is one of the most acknowledged paths to successful selling. Remember when it comes to diagnosing pain, if the buyer doesn’t like your diagnosis, they won’t trust your advice, prescription, or dosage.
- Agree to a next step: Once you’ve got your research done, it’s time to move forward with the next step; either arranging for a meeting or a phone call. The former is preferable as it gives you a chance to conduct a more detailed presentation. But a sales call can also work well if you’ve prepared yourself in advance.
In the end, it all boils down to the correct contacts – those prospects who will admit to a pain are easier to convert to customers. Don’t waste your time if the customer refuses to acknowledge his business pain. Similarly, ensure you have covered these questions before you move further:
- Who is involved in the business decision?
- Who is impacted by this decision?
- Who needs to sign off on the paperwork?
- Can this decision be vetoed? If so, by whom?
- Is there a budget allocated for this purpose?
- Can you get funding for this?
As a final thought and to quote W. Clement Stone, “Sales are contingent upon the attitude of the salesman, not the attitude of the prospect”. So give your attitude a rehaul and go get some clients!
