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Sales
"How
to Get CEOs to Love You, Your Technology and
Get Your Contracts Signed Faster!"
By Oreste "Rusty" D'Aversa, President
- SELL More Technology NOW!
Having personally sold millions of dollars of technology based products
and services, I know the challenges encountered to get your deal closed
and your contract signed in a timely manner, especially when you have
quotas to achieve, sales forecasts to complete and a management team who
are seeking answers as to when you will be picking up a signed contract.
At times it may seem easier to perform the events of a modern day
reality show of walking through fire or playing in a cave full of snakes
than to get time with a CEO or senior member of the management team to
find out when you can get their signature.
You are a sales
professional, on top of your game, working your deal. You qualify your
prospect, do your need analysis, do your presentation and supply your
references. You work your sales process (and if you don’t have a sales
process to close technology deals you better get one immediately!), the
deal is going well, moving at a good pace, you go in for the close, they
like what they see…you are the “Black Belt” of technology salespeople!
You submit your contract - then the deal goes into the “black hole” of
“it needs to be signed by the President”. Then you ask - When will it
come out? When will my contract be signed? What do I tell MY
management team about when the deal will come in?
To get your contracts
signed faster you need to know what is important to the CEO or the
Contract Signer. The contract signer, depending on the size of your
technology deal and the size of the company you are selling to, is
sometimes the President or someone in senior management. You need to
find out what is keeping these people up at night! Since some of my
clients are CEOs and Presidents of small to medium sized businesses and
being in the position of “Trusted Advisor” they confide in me as to the
concerns
they have regarding the business issues in operating their
organizations.
Business
Issues versus Technical Issues
Having asked the question to CEOs/Presidents, “What are the most
important issues when making an investment in technology based products
and services?” Their answers had nothing to do with the technology
itself but rather the business problems they solve.
People who run companies are concerned with how your technology based
product or service can: save them money, make them money, increase
company productivity, do things quicker – faster – smarter, is user
friendly so that the employees will use it and if there is a problem
know they can get their problem solved in a quick, efficient and
courteous manner.
Very few senior management individuals will not know the difference
between a firewall and a “hole on the wall” nor are they paid to do so.
Senior executives are concerned with Profit and Loss type
business issues. When a technology based sales person meets with a
prospective company and starts discussing how “128 bit WEP Security
needs to be used in your WAN” you might as well be speaking a foreign
language. While this is an important Technical
Issue
it is not a business issue that most senior management will understand.
Now take that same statement and say “the importance of using 128 bit
WEP Security in your Wide Area Network it protects your company from
financial exposure and liability from hackers and other bad people.” Now
senior management clearly understands that if
they do not deploy this type of technology the company is at risk.
Senior management is in the business of Risk Management – how can
they manage or mitigate business risk to their organization.
It is critical when speaking to senior management that you talk in terms
of Business Issues and discuss only Technical
Issues when and if warranted. You will find that Technical Issues tend
to be discussed with department or divisional management and Business
Issues tend to be discussed with senior management. While this may not
always be the case is it true more times than not.
Understanding the difference between Business Issues and
Technical Issues will give you the advantage over your competition.
Many a deal has been lost because the sales person was focusing more on
the technical issues rather than the business issues. Technology is a
business tool for companies to work more efficiently and effectively, it
must reduce costs and increase productivity or it is not a good
investment. Simply put, companies are in business to make money. Your
technology based product or service must have answers to these issues.
Don’t Lower Your Price
When deals don’t close with your necessary time frame don’t be quick to
lower your price rather increase the value of your offering to your
prospect. When your prospect is dragging their heels to sign your
contract build more value in your deal to get them to move forward
faster. The value may be in the form of extended services contract, 24
x 7 support or any other product or service that does not cost you much
but delivers much value in the eyes of your prospect. Also if you give
something, you must receive something, so when you give additional
value, put a price on that value and a date as to when the additional
value will expire. By doing so there is an incentive to your prospect
to sign your contract to get the extra value added “goodies”!
The
Company You Keep
Another tactic to get
your contract signed faster is to supply client references to your
prospect - with a different twist. References are extremely important
especially if you’re selling technology based services. The twist is -
having your references call your prospect as opposed to
your prospect calling your client. Ask one of your current clients with
which you have a very strong relationship to call your prospect on your
behalf. You will be pleasantly surprised as to your prospect
willingness to talk to your client, especially if your client is a
CEO/President or a senior member of the management team. This technique
also known as “Executive Bridging” and has closed many a stalled deal.
I have spoken about what the CEO is looking for from your
technology based solution now what is the CEO looking for in the sales
professional who is working the opportunity.
Know, Like and Trust
Know, like and trust are the three most important
characteristics senior management people like to see in sales
professional when doing business with your organization. Though these
are “soft” quality they are extremely important. People buy
emotionally and justify intellectually. If you do
not strike the right cords with the senior management team chances are
very good they will not sign your contract. These characteristics can
be achieved by any number of ways. Know – perform a needs
analysis consultation, by doing so you are spending time with your
prospect. Like – when talking to senior management and ask them
about their professional needs, wants and desires. Trust –
keep your word on every thing – say what you mean and mean what
you say!
Consultative Seller
Another very important characteristic of a technology based
sales executive is to be a strong consultative seller. When meeting
with senior management learn about their business and what the real
problems are with their technology operations. Many times you are told
what the “symptoms” are of the problem and are not being told the true
cause. Do your best to get to the core or root of the problem. By
doing so you may even find a larger deal than you anticipated. Also,
be an active listener when speaking with senior members of the
management. Many senior management team members tell me that too many
sales people come in and really do not “hear” what is being said but
rather are just interested in getting their deal signed and their
solution installed as quickly as possible.
Persistent
but Professional
Senior management people are extremely busy with running the
affairs of their companies. Your technology contract may not be the
number one priority on their mind. Fear not if it is on their list they
will get back to you. What to do in the mean time? Be persistent and
professional. When calling always ask for a time that is good for
your prospect. Morning, noon or night, be accessible for senior
management to call you. Make it is easy to buy from you. Leave your
office number, cell phone number and email address so you can be
contacted immediately. If you are working a hot opportunity and your
deal is in the contract phase, you’re getting ready to close. So how
often should to contact senior management? While there is no rule
written in stone, I would suggest no more that three times within a
given week. A tip is to call before or after business hours as these
are the times when there is no one in the office and you may get a
senior member of the management team to pick up the phone.
Conclusion
What you have learned in this article have been real life – battle
tested techniques that are currently being used in the field to get
members of the senior management team to like you, your technology based
products and services and to get your contracts signed faster. While no
one technique is absolute and works every time like having a “Swiss Army
Knife” (different techniques for different circumstances) approach will
greatly increase your probability of closing more technology based
deals.
About the Author
Oreste "Rusty" D'Aversa has more than 20 years experience in technology
based sales. He is a speaker, consultant, author, university lecturer
and advisor to senior management providing strategic sales planning,
consulting and training services to technology based: corporations,
small to medium sized businesses, entrepreneurs, sales people and
consultants. He is author of the book, SELL More Technology NOW!
Proven Sales Methods and Established Practices that Deliver Results.
He can be reached at 201-391-1921 or email
Rusty@SELLMoreTechnologyNOW.com Visit
www.SELLMoreTechnologyNOW.com for more information.
SELL
More Technology NOW!
Strategic Sales Planning – Consulting – Training
- Coaching
www.SELLMoreTechnologyNOW.com
Direct:
201-391-1921
