by Tom Fedro
The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity. – Amelia Earhart
The salesperson’s role in the proposal
We’ve touched on developing winning proposals in Chapter 2, so you know that the entire company must step up to deliver the win. The CEO sets the tone by letting everyone know that a well-qualified prospect’s proposal is a top priority and everyone needs to help to develop a compelling offer. All hands must be on deck to make that document shine including sales, marketing, customer support, R&D, finance and operations.
While departments within an organization collaborate on the overall shape of the proposal, one person must own the document. The salesperson is the one with the ultimate responsibility to close the business and bring the dollars in the door. Collaboration is critical, but enforceable accountability is crucial as well.
How the team is structured to develop a proposal will naturally be different from organization to organization. Perhaps somebody from the marketing or technical teams acts as the project manager for the proposal and has the broad authority to bring in anybody within the organization to create a client-focused, compelling articulation of value. The project manager pulls it together using all hands on deck, while the salesperson ultimately presents it to the buyer.
The salesperson’s role in implementation
Implementation or execution is the process of putting your plan into effect. Once you’ve won the business, and everybody agrees to terms, and the sign-off has happened, congratulations are in order. You’ve completed Step 1 of implementation. Now it’s time to get to work at solving your customer’s pain.
The six steps of implementation
Close the deal.
Assign roles and tasks for the implementation process.
Prepare the people for implementation.
Make sure everything is ready for launch.
Launch!
Measure success and resolve problems.
Step 2 includes assigning roles to determine who is ultimately responsible for various tasks involved in implementation. Project managers on each side of the table are named to get their teams in line so the rollout will happen on time and on budget. Responsibilities and project timelines are laid out and agreed upon.
Step 3 addresses the people impacted by this decision; the user community or the people who will use the solution directly. Internally, your client should be getting their users excited about this new solution that will save them time, increase profit, or reduce expense.
For your part, instruct your team to explain carefully how the user wins, while elaborating on the most impactful and meaningful wins for the team. Ensure that the management team who will ultimately be responsible for the success of this system wholeheartedly believes in it. Any naysayers must be addressed and their questions resolved so there are no saboteurs. Once the user community is on board and ready to roll, keep moving with your implementation and training.
At Step 4, ensure that your product or service is ready to implement. Whatever implementation of your particular solution requires, map out the homework and preparation necessary for a successful launch of the system.
Everyday tasks that happen during Step 4
Define the processes and workflows.
Set up new customer fields, categories, time zones and business information.
Import business data from existing systems as necessary.
Put together details for any required integrations or engineering work.
Ensure security is in place.
Set up the key performance indicators (KPIs) so that you can track the metrics.
Here is also where you begin your training to ensure that the folks who will use the system can hit the ground running. Any particular bugs or pre-production wrinkles should be ironed out here. Your goal is for the first people on the system — your early adopters — to become strong advocates for you to the rest of the company. If yours is a highly technical solution, select the right tech-savvy individuals to ensure early training is successful and that the rumor mill is all positive. Don’t shock the end users with too much change, complexity or overwhelming technical jargon.
Step 5 is the launch. Your product has been tested, you’ve put training in place, and you’ve optimized it. Now you launch, and get it into production or into use!
Step 6 is when success is measured. Ensure the metrics are being measured, the KPIs tracked, and that the promised return on investment is taking place. If there are any holes in the system or any training issues that come up, address them immediately so that you have only happy users on the network.
There can be significant differences in implementation between hardware offerings and software or service offerings. You can have hiccups in any technical execution. In many cases, you’re going to have hiccups with all three — hardware, software and service — at some point. New software could be going on new hardware, along with new services and maintenance offerings. With so much going on, be conscientious and alert. Your team should be ready to jump in, and clean up any messes immediately.
Each area has its challenges. If you’re selling a SaaS (software as a service) product and it’s in the cloud, everything’s already been tested, and it’s clean before it goes into a new account. That might be the most straightforward implementation. You turn it on, and it works. When you show up at the loading dock with a bunch of servers and cables to install, as well as new software to be loaded up and then launched, that leaves more potential for issues.
Fall down seven times and stand up eight. – Proverb
Hopefully, it never happens to you, but if your solution blows up in implementation, you must be prepared to correct any issues as quickly as possible while minimizing loss of confidence or enthusiasm in your user base. If something goes wrong, you’ve hopefully done an excellent job at Step 3 by setting realistic expectations. When you worked with the end users, you should have provided a clear understanding as to what they should anticipate and why. Your other asset in keeping users on board while you fix any issues is that group of early adopters who should have become strong advocates within the company for your product.
Encourage feedback and make the process for providing it easy so the end user has an opportunity to state comfortably if something doesn’t make any sense to them. Any dirty laundry must be aired so that everybody’s on the same page in an environment of trust and understanding. Get to those pain points before you implement your solution. If, when you are in production, something goes wrong after you’ve y invested money and time and effort in training and testing, that’s not good for anybody. That scenario should never happen.
If, however, you find yourself in that scenario, do some forensic investigation to understand where your team dropped the ball, and learn how to improve in the next implementation. To save a botched install and make sure it sticks, you may have to roll out a brand new training program. It might have new features or changes based on feedback. Showing that you’re responsive can go a long way toward satisfying the end-user community and getting them back on board with your solution. The goal is to get in front of a situation like this at the beginning of the project by setting clear expectations, making sure everybody’s on the same page, and rolling out in a controlled fashion with regular end-user check-ins
Where’s the salesperson when something goes wrong in implementation? Right in the thick of it, making sure the deal sticks and refunds don’t happen. It’s his job to climb on desks, stomp his feet, and get in front of the CEO of his company, if necessary, to keep the system in place with their client. He needs to ferret out any miscommunication or misunderstandings while discovering what happened. The role of the salesperson is to identify the problem and make sure that the system is providing the value the client expected. The salesperson coordinates on the logistics side and works with the customer to make sure they feel heard and their concerns are addressed.
The salesperson is the liaison for the vendor. She i
s the mouthpiece and advocate for the customer within the company. Perhaps she says, “The end users are not satisfied with the interface. It’s much too difficult, and there are way too many steps involved. We’re going to have to do some quick updates or changes to the way users input the data, or this deal’s going to go south in a hurry.”
In this type of scenario, the salesperson has to be intricately involved in problem identification and in coming up with ideas to solve it. Along with all the other implementation people that are involved in a project deployment the salesperson will have the closest relationship with the decision makers. You don’t ever want to hear these people say, “This is not what we bought. We want our money back.”
You just can’t beat the person who never gives up. – Babe Ruth
Hiccups in implementation can happen, and depending on the technology being implemented, they can happen quite often. For example, when your solution involves taking many different data feeds, integrating them, and building many pipes that must seamlessly incorporate your solution into their existing system and network, some hiccups are to be expected. An implementation rarely goes as planned, and a good project manager will mitigate risks up front by doing whatever it takes to ensure a successful launch — which often comes down to ensuring crystal clear communication.
One common hiccup involves trying to go too fast out of the gate. You must take the time up front to be completely organized, and follow a proven process. To minimize issues, proper training and communication are critical elements that must be in place at the beginning of a project. Once a lousy experience hits the rumor mill, it’s going to spread quickly, so you’ve got to be very careful that your first users are happy with your product and remain excited about it.
Once you’re at a point where users can start working with the solution, ensure a suitable mechanism is in place to collect their feedback in real time. If a glitch is causing problems in their daily work, you have to act fast to kill any negativity, and get their feedback, and implement a responsive fix into the system. Eliminate the glitch. You want nothing but good, solid feedback from the community that your product is doing what was promised, and that when any issues are found, you respond immediately to fix the problem, and get back to exceeding their expectations.
Carefully selecting early adopters who are technically savvy to receive training and see the value of your offering is critical, as is the useful feedback they can provide at the water cooler. Not setting proper expectations for the community is the most significant potential hiccup in the whole implementation process, so you have to nail this at the earliest step.
The only strategy to address issues is open and transparent communication with the client. Let them know up front to anticipate some issues and when they pop up, explain how you’re going to handle those problems. Explain your resolution process so that everybody understands that if something unforeseen happens, you’re going to make it right. Have a clear roadmap so everyone on board knows where you’re headed and has confidence in you.
Success is never final. Failure is never fatal. It is courage that counts. – Anonymous
The salesperson’s role in growth and renewal
After a big deal is closed and implemented, it’s critical to be in touch with your buyer, your champion and all the people you’ve worked with so closely when you closed a million-dollar deal. They should hear from you every quarter. Engage them in a check-in call on a regular basis. Ask your new client to be a part of the technical advisory committee or the user group. Find some way to keep them involved with your business and what’s coming up so that you can leverage their expertise into new product offerings that they or other potential customers might like to see in an ideal solution.
Keep your customer on the team in whatever way you can. Consider incentivizing them to be a reference account, and keeping them involved in new product offering discussions and industry updates. Invite them to social outings that you know they’d enjoy — a sporting event, lunch or out on the golf course — to get them out of their typical environments, and help solidify your relationship into something long-term that you’ll be able to leverage for years to come.
If you discover a change in their industry — perhaps something with one of their competitors — immediately get in touch to let them know you are thinking about them and their business. Maybe you have information about which they’re unaware that’s going to impact their position in their industry. You want to show up in their inbox with the insightful commentary that shows you’re there to help them by providing value. When they go to their next board meeting or budget session, they’re going to remember you as one of the critical resources that helps them keep an ear to the ground.
Become an advocate for the business so they call you to learn what you’ve heard in the marketplace and from the analysts. What are you hearing from the other customers? Where are we going with this government regulation or this acquisition that Amazon made? How is that impacting other people in our industry? Answering questions like these from your clients solidifies your position as not just somebody in the sales role taking their money, but as an industry expert who helps them achieve their business goals. The next time a deal comes around, price and margin won’t be nearly as important to them. They’ll want to do business with you because they know you’re looking out for their best interests.
The salesperson’s job is to anticipate the client’s future needs, and ascertain how the company can fulfill those needs. You want to ease the pain that these people feel or will be experiencing by understanding the industry and your particular product category better than anybody else. The salesperson, along with the company’s product marketing and management, should constantly be querying what’s going on in the industries they serve. Learn the two or three most important initiatives for each client, and ask what’s keeping them up at night.
Take all that feedback, along with that of other clients, and synthesize it to form new offerings and products that will inspire them to take ownership of and invest in for faster, more effective achievement of their objectives. In many cases, this feedback is a natural by-product of their participation in your technology advisory board or user group. Those responsible for sales, product marketing and product management must stay in front of the curve, and use that information to fulfill your clients’ future needs. This practice is key to enjoying a long-term relationship that delivers value to both parties.
As a best practice, salespeople should always ask clients to provide testimonials or referrals. In some cases, they won’t agree to do so, depending on the competitive positioning and what your product does. If it’s a competitive advantage for them, or they believe it’s in their best interest to let the public think the solution is part of their proprietary offering, they might not want to acknowledge your participation in their product. Regardless, always try to get a public reference on the relationship, such as a press release, to secure their endorsement as a referral for new business. If they won’t go public on the relationship, don’t worry about it. Continue to provide competitive landscape data and industry expertise that give your clients the insight necessary to their growth and development. This establishes a transformational relationship rather than a transactional one. In fact, always be looking to create a mutually-beneficial, transformational relationship in which you bring more value than cash received. That’s the sales professional’s job.
It’s not about having the right opportunities.
It’s about handling the opportunities right.
– Mark Hunter
It’s much easier to keep an existing customer than to find a new one, so it’s in this phase that you start looking for ways to expand within the account and increase your footprint. Create opportunities to sell them additional products, or to offer your existing solution to other departments if it makes sense. Spread your wings within that account, deepen your relationships, and leverage your insights to solve their additional pain. That’s what
growth and renewal are all about.
The salesperson’s role in education
A salesperson’s day should be analyzed and allocated based on two different time states — selling hours (when you can realistically reach customers) and non-selling hours (when you perform various administrative tasks, and process paperwork). I recommend that 20 to 30 percent of salespeople’s non-selling time be spent on the education necessary to keep their saws sharpened.
Salespeople must see themselves as the chief executives of their own business. They’re just outsourcing their product development, administration, marketing and finance. Regardless of the company you’re working for, you must invest in yourself first by continually seeking ways to develop your skill set, and improve your craft. Make training a continual effort. There’s a whole world of training options out there to keep you sharp.
I encourage you to get out and do a training program once or twice a year. Depending on where you want to spend your time, you can choose between business-to-business, inside sales training, driving to the close, impact sales training, strategic social selling for use in social media, prospecting and advanced questioning techniques, for example. They cost money, so you’ll have to decide how much you want to make this year and how much you want to improve your approach. Remember that the only way that you can stay up on the latest sales strategies and techniques is to be continually working on your methodology.
If you’re offered a seat on a rocket ship, don’t ask what seat! Just get on. – Sheryl Sandberg
While some people attend training in person for a few days, there’s plenty of online follow-up and training and resources available as a part of different programs. It’s a good idea once or twice a year to get into a classroom setting where you’re dealing with people who aren’t your colleagues or part of your day-to-day career life. They’ll put you in the hot seat, ask you hard questions, and make you better at your craft. I highly recommend that experience whenever you can get it on the calendar.