The business of knowing your customer’s business

The Business of Knowing Your Customer’s The Business of Knowing Your Customer’s Business – The Key to Selling ValueBusiness – The Key to Selling Value

Julie ThomasValueSelling AssociatesApril 19, 2013

© 2013 ValueSelling Associates Inc. All Rights Reserved.1

This document contains proprietary information of ValueSelling Associates. Its receipt or possession does not convey any rights to reproduce or disclose its contents or to manufacture, use, or sell anything it may describe. Reproduction, disclosure, or use without specific written authorization of ValueSelling Associates is strictly forbidden.

• What is business acumen and why is it important

• How to engage in a business conversation

• The relationship between business issues and justifying the sale

• How to be a better business professional

Today’s Objectives

Business Acumen

Business acumen is keenness and quickness in understanding and dealing with a business situation.

Business literacy the knowledge and understanding of the financial, accounting, marketing and operational functions of an organization

Acumen as "the ability to make good judgments and quick decisions"


The relationship:


The steps to create business literacy


InvestigatePredictPrepare

InvestigationLocal information

– Business Journals

Industry information

– Associations

– Trade Press

– Lists

Company Information

– Financial statements

– Executive Messages

– Analyst Reports

Investigate: Research

Research about them and the company/agency (looking for challenges they may be facing – helps us connect to Business Issue…)

- Company/agency website

- Earnings report if public

Look for trends in key financial metrics

How does this company describe, manage and measure the business health

Predict

Business Objectives

Business Goals

Business Strategies

Business Initiatives

Business Issues


Value created by resolving business issues

What the organization needs to accomplish to maintain or grow their business/entity

Problem

BusinessIssue

BusinessObjective

What the organization needs to address and resolve to achieve business/entity objectives

Difficulties that prevent them from being able to satisfactorily deal with or resolve business issues – technical/process/people

© 2013 ValueSelling Associates LLC. All Rights Reserved.10

Characteristics of a business issue

Has a direct (business) impact

Will align to a (business) objective

May need to be discovered

Has a cost and a corresponding value


Questions to uncover business issues

What’s your #1 priority or challenge?

What stands in the way of you contributing to organization’s objective?

What’s most important concern this year?

What customers need to address/ resolve to achieve business objectives



Executive dialogue – question types

Designed to surface customer’s view of current conditions.

Aimed at getting prospect to momentarily experience the consequences of not having your product or service.

Verifies shared understanding and confirms what we heard customer say.

Raises issues that didn’t surface on their own. Used to differentiate and create need for your products and services.

AnxietyAnxiety

ConfirmingConfirming

ProbingProbing

OpenOpen


Value created by resolving business issues

What customer needs to accomplish to maintain or grow their business – could be labeled a business goal

Value

Problem

Solution

BusinessIssue

BusinessObjective

What customers need to address and resolve to achieve business objectives

Difficulties that prevent them from being able to satisfactorily deal with or resolve business issues

Capabilities any vendor needs to supply to enable customer to properly address their business issues – could be labeled a business strategy or initiative

The only thing that matters is customer's perception of the value of being able to resolve their business issues; always a combination of tangible and intangible components


Justifying the Sale


Tangible Business Value: Measurable or quantifiable positive impact on the business issue.

What can you do today?

Commit to staying current and relevant!Industry Financial literacySpecific company knowledgeeExecutive ValueSelling Course


Summary

We must become business professionals first, sales professionals second

Business executives expect peer-level value-added relationships

Investigate, predict, prepare – all three steps are key to execution!

Invest the time and effort to stay current and relevant to your customers and prospects

At the end of today’s webinar

Download a copy of today’s presentation from our website:

• Go to www.valueselling.com

• Under the Knowledge & Insights tab, scroll down and click on Webinars

• Left-hand side of page, click on Webinar Archive


Questions

Next webinar

“Creating Urgency – When and How to Insert Anxiety into Your Sales Conversation”

May 14, 20131:00 PM Pacific Standard Time


Julie [email protected]

(858) 759-7954


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