Selling is a beauty contest, not a race. Unfortunately, the majority sales reps and sales leaders focus on their goals, their quota and making the numbers in the forecasted time frame, thus creating the sense of a race. This race approach is very seller centric, not customer centric. According to a recent Salesforce.com study, 82% of sellers are out of sync with their customers.
Think about a beauty contest. The contestants are not in a rush. They focus on each stage of the contest and give it their best effort. They take their time and focus on the judges, not their desires. The ones who wins the contest focused not only on the rules, but intently on the judges. The best contestants even research if the judges have judged other contests and how they judged, i.e. who won and why.
A great beauty contestant is willing to be innovative in addressing what the judges are looking for. They need to stand out and show how they will best represent the organization such as a state or national beauty contest.
A beauty contest is a great metaphor for the sales process. A sales organization needs to not only understand what the customer wants (the rules of the contest), but also why rules are important and what specific, personal criteria will the buyer be using to make his or her decision. A critical question is “What evidence does the customer need to see to make his decision?” Another way to ask that question is “Mr. Customer, what do you need to see to know our offering is the best or right decision?”
In the last 15 years, the world of sales has greatly changed making the metaphor of a beauty contest even more pertinent. The Internet has changed the entire paradigm of selling. Suddenly the buyer or customer is empowered. The customer could do research on your product and services, get feedback on your company and even get pricing without the input of the sales executive. The playing field of sales has forever changed. Have you adjusted to the new playing field? Have your sales teams adapted? Have your internal operations conformed to the 21st century buyer? Are you still using sales techniques birthed in the 1990’s? Consultative selling is no longer enough. The customer demands more!
Consultative Selling is focused on finding a need or problem and solving it. Today's customer wants to be served throughout the sales process. The customer is open to new ideas, even for the sales rep to offer to change the current situation or status quo, not to just solve a problem. Just as most winners of beauty contest are innovative, today's customers want innovation too.
Are you prepared to give more than just solving a problem or meeting a need?
Customer Aligned Selling goes beyond the point of consultative selling. Learn what the judges, your prospect buyers, really want and deliver it in an innovative way that makes them a better organization.
