Straightforward Strategies for Winning Major Accounts
A Next Level Getting Into Your Customer’s Head Program

INTRODUCTORY MODULE:
Understanding Organizational Buying Behavior

• Why understanding the Complex Sale is critical to sales success today
• The Sell - Learn Process
• The Complex Buying Team: Gatekeeper, Integrator, Virtual authority, User, Power broker, and Sponsor/antisponsor (GIVUPS)
• Understanding buying behavior: Team and Individual
• Understanding relationships within the buying team
• The four sources of conflict in the buying team

ONE:
Preparing to Sell at the “C” Level

• The Business Model (customer values, strategy, goals, systems, people, culture, structure and work processes)
• Locating Information Sources
• Analyzing the customer’s business through the Annual Report, Internet and 10-k report
• Understanding what the numbers mean and how to impact them
• Developing "Critical Case References" for gaining access to the C-level
• Developing an account penetration plan that begins with access to the C-Level decision makers

TWO:
Demand Creation

• Preparing to create demand through your meeting with the C-Level Decision Maker
• Fully understanding your value to the C-Level Decision Maker
• Offsetting the cost of change in the decision maker’s mind
• Identifying common customer problem areas and potential causes
• Developing diagnostic questions
• Presenting preliminary prescriptions / testing feasibility
• Determining Meeting Outcomes and Go Forward Commitments
• Keeping the C-Level Decision Maker door open
• Cross-training your sponsor
• Developing the components of the "Memo of Understanding"

THREE:
Influencing the Buying Team to Gain Competitive Advantage

• Analyzing your position with the Buying Team: Relationship Strength, Degree of Influence, Buying Criteria / Solution Fit
• Identifying strengths & weaknesses with each member of the buying team
• Techniques for emphasizing your strengths, off-setting weaknesses
• Influencing buying criteria and leveraging relationships to gain access to power

FOUR:
Analyzing Your Competition

• Analyzing competitors’ sales strategy
• Considering all the intangibles
• Unlocking competitive information
• Determining your competition’s fit with the complex buying team relative to: Relationship Strength, Degree of Influence, Buying Criteria / Solution Fit
• Using four strategies to defeat your competitor’s strategy

FIVE:
Presenting with Power

• Assessing your audience: Attendees, Power Balance and Timing
• Using your timing to your advantage
• Selecting your content
• Using four tips to enhance your presentation
• Presenting positive and negative cash flow situations
• Cost justifying your solution
• Preparing for a wide range of questions
• Effectively responding to questions
• The power of practicing your presentation

SIX:
Negotiating from Strength to Close the High-Margin Sale

• Using the NO TRICKS method to analyzing your power with the Complex Buying Team
• Establishing your range: best case, target, and minimum acceptable
• Areas to consider in your negotiation
• Identifying high-value/low cost "bargaining chips" for each Complex Buying Team member
• Being aware of common customer negotiating tricks
• Using Quid Pro Quo as a basis for your negotiating discussions
• Destabilizing demands for price reductions without harming your relationship

SEVEN:
Ensuring Successful Implementations

• Understanding the difference between customer needs and expectations
• Determining how expectations change over time and why
• Managing your customer’s expectations to ensure satisfaction
• Analyzing the customer’s "Complex Implementation Team"
• Maintaining communication with the C-level
• Creating your "Early Warning Detector System"
• Avoiding the #1 Killer of Customer Satisfaction
• Driving Customer satisfaction on an ongoing basis

EIGHT:
Leveraging Your Cross-Selling Opportunities

• Using your existing contacts to leverage access to other C-Level Decision makers
• Exploring internal and external opportunities
• Understanding the prerequisites to gaining effective referrals
• Identifying the three levels of potential for referrals
• Creating and using critical case studies