Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Congratulations on getting a meeting set up with a new prospect. That’s a major accomplishment
today—especially when it’s so difficult to connect.
Your first conversation is a make-or-break situation for you. If you do well, you’re given an opportunity
to advance the buying process. If you don’t, you’re shoved out the door as quickly as possible. Or, it’s vir-
tually impossible to set up a follow-up conversation.
So how can you ensure it’s a success? By studying and replicating what top sellers are doing. To start,
top sellers spend lots of time preparing for this critical first meeting. They research their prospects in
depth. Then, they scrutinize the research looking for ways that they can add value with their products or
services.
As part of their prep, top sellers also identify success stories to share, cull out the key points, and
practice the stories aloud. They plan their meetings to achieve a specific desired outcome. They even
write down questions to ask and take this list into their meeting.
What top sellers do may seem like a lot of work, but it’s what it takes to move the buying process
forward. That’s why their meetings end with prospective buyers saying things like:
“Thanks for your time; if we ever need one we’ll give you a call.”
● “We’ll think about it and get back to you.”
● “It’s not exactly what we were looking for.”
● “You’re too pricey for us.”
Here are three critical reasons why most sellers don’t ever make it
past the first meeting:
They focus on their own offering—not the prospective customer’s business needs.
SALES
prospects and identify potential areas where you can
help them.
MEETINGS
Once you master this process, you’ll be able to move
more deals forward to close—more quickly.
Unfortunately, many sellers omit this critical step. Failure to invest time in this area upfront significantly impacts your
ability to successfully sell your product or services.
Your knowledge of their business is the first thing that differentiates you from most of your competitors. Plus, by
understanding their company, you’re able to ask intelligent questions and align your offering with their needs.
Here are seven things to look for while you’re doing research. They’ll
help you understand your prospect’s business better.
Primary business: What industry are they in and how do they help
their customers?
● Business unit/division: How is the company divided? What is
the role of each division? Where’s the best fit?
● Market segment: Who is their target audience? What characteristics
make up their ideal customer profile?
● Financial position: Are they growing or shrinking? Borrowing money
or cash rich?
● Their customers: Who are some of their customers and what are
their success stories?
● Key strategic initiatives: What specific objectives are they trying
to achieve?
● Industry trends: What is the growth pattern in the industry? How
are the buying patterns changing?
How are they handling things today without your product or service?
What is their status quo?
What kinds of problems or challenges might they be facing because of
how they’re currently doing things?
Because of their current status quo, what gaps might exist between
where they are today versus where they want to be?
Looking at the problems, challenges or gaps that may be present, what
are the potential business implications? (This is important!)
If this company used your products or services, what business value
would they realize? (At this point, it’s a guess. But, if you’ve done your
homework you should have some ideas.)
What difference could your product or service make? (Net it out to the
best of your ability, making sure you’re focused on key business
drivers that your prospect is measured on.)
While you might want to walk away with a signed contract, the likelihood of this happening from just one meeting is
slim to none. So don’t set yourself up for failure; plan on having multiple conversations from the beginning.
Think process. Today’s buyers don’t make snap purchase decisions. First they need to determine if it’s even worth
the effort to change from what they’re currently doing. They’ll likely involve multiple people in this discussion. And,
unless it makes good business sense, they’ll stay with the status quo.
Once people decide to change, they need to look at multiple options to ensure they make the right decision.
You might say, “As I explained earlier, we work with B. Transition to questions (less than 1 minute)
high tech firms to increase brand awareness and As quickly as you can, shift the focus to your
drive sales. In our time together today, I’d like to give prospect—where it belongs.
you a little background on how we address these
issues, find out what your company is doing in these To do this, simply say, “That should give you a good
areas and see if we have grounds for further overview about how we help our customers solve
discussions. How does that sound?” their problems (or achieve their objectives). The most
important thing is to find out if this makes sense for
Notice the professionalism and leadership in this your company. In preparing for today’s meeting, I
overview. It shows that you have a clear plan for the noticed that (insert data re: company’s direction,
meeting. Buyers feel better immediately; they know trigger event, other info uncovered in research). I was
their precious time won’t be wasted. wondering how …”
II. LEAD THE DISCUSSION (40-45 MINUTES) Unless you plan your transition, it’s sometimes hard
to stop talking—especially if your prospect is
You want to create a dialogue—not make a pitch. Lay goading you on with questions about your product
the groundwork by sharing information of high interest or service. Please realize that this most likely means
to your prospects. Then invite them into a discussion by they’re trying to rule you out. That’s why you need to
asking questions that make them think. lead the conversation and why effective transitions
are so crucial.
A. Set the stage (5 minutes)
Your prospects will need more grounding about
C. Focus on business issues (35-40 minutes)
Prior to the meeting develop a minimum of ten
what your company does than the brief
insightful, powerful questions you can use to lead a
one-sentence description given above. When you
business-focused discussion. Decision makers are
arranged the meeting, something you said was
always interested in talking about their business.
enticing to this person.
III. ADVANCE THE PROCESS (5 - 10 MINUTES) You might say, “Usually when I work with companies
on product introductions, the next step is to have a
When you focus on questions, your one-hour meeting conversation with the product manager to get a
flies by. Even if your prospect seems oblivious to the better understanding of the launch plans already
time, it’s important not to overstay your welcome. Draw in place and where gaps might exist. Can we get a
attention to the clock. See if you’re invited to stay meeting set up with this person in the next couple
longer. If not, it’s time to wrap up and advance to weeks?”
the logical next step.
Ending meetings like this advances the sales process to its next logical
step. It’s honest and full of integrity. It’s just simply suggesting the next
logical thing that you both need to do to determine if your offering is a
good fit for their business.