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How to sell to businesses actionable insights from years in the
trenches
Sales Advice for Startups
Nicolas Deville Wayra UK, London
30th July 2015
[email protected] @ndeville
Today
B2C vs. B2B SME vs. Enterprise How to differentiate yourself How to get the first 10 clients
Sales
"Poor Sales rather than bad product is the most common cause of failure”
Peter Thiel (Paypal CEO & Co-‐Founder, Palantir Co-‐Founder, 1st Facebook investor)
in “Zero to One”
Sales
Done well, more complex than most think Changed a lot in last 10 years (Internet) Some core aspects always the same but all the rest different, depending on: -‐ Product/service -‐ Industry sold to -‐ B2C or B2B -‐ SME or Enterprise -‐ ACV -‐ etc..
B2B vs. B2C
Consumers buy what they want
B2B vs. B2C
Businesses buy what they need
B2B vs. B2C
B2B vs. B2C
Very Different Sales Methodologies Experience only in B2B
SME vs. Enterprise
SME vs. Enterprise
SME Enterprise Contact Business User Dedicated Finding Vendor Web search Analysts & Referrals Budget Use Growth Pains Budget Size Small Big Budget-‐conscious High Low Decision-‐Making 1-‐3 people 3-‐20+ Access Decision Maker Easier More difficult Sales Cycle Short Long Values Brand Less More
= Different Sales Approach
SME vs. Enterprise
0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350
SMB Deal #1 SMB Deal #2 SMB Deal #3 SMB Deal #4 SMB Deal #5 SMB Deal #6 SMB Deal #7 SMB Deal #8 SMB Deal #9 SMB Deal #10
Enterprise Deal #1 Enterprise Deal #2 Enterprise Deal #3
Sales Cycle (Days)
Work SME & Enterprise in parallel
SME vs. Enterprise
Work SME & Enterprise in parallel
£0
£50,000
£100,000
£150,000
£200,000
£250,000
£300,000
£350,000
£400,000
£450,000
£500,000
0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350
YTD
YTD
Enterprise Sale
The Moby Dick Theory Great post by Marc Andreessen
http://tinyurl.com/mobydicktheory
How to Differentiate yourself in a
Noisy World
Aspirin, Vaccine & Vitamine
Aspirin Vitamine Vaccine
Existing Pain Potential Pain Potential Gain
Sell solutions, not products
Sales is about creating value in the prospect’s mind.
A solution has value only if a problem is identified, acknowledged. To sell, one needs to identify the problem, and get client to acknowledge it.
Buyers are resistant to traditional Sales techniques
Buyers are resistant to traditional Sales techniques
COI vs. ROI
COI = Cost Of Inaction ROI = Return On Investment COI more powerful than ROI Qualify & quantify what prospect is losing by not moving to your solution. Creates a sense of urgency
Be Bold
“Timid salesmen have skinny kids.” Zig Ziglar
Be Human
Be A Doctor
Be Helpful
Be Different
My #1 Rule
Put Yourself In The Other One’s Shoes
Goals
Find what they need Solve a Business challenge Solve a pain Help them achieve their goals
Conversations, not Sales Pitch
ConversaLons, Not Sales Pitches
Avoid Common Mistakes
Just about the Product Confuse “looks good” for a buying signal Not qualify enough Not disqualify quickly No WIIFY
How to get the first 10 Clients
Be Extremely Focused
Could buy
Could buy
Could buy
Could buy
WILL buy
Be Extremely Focused
Define Ideal Customer Profile / Find your niche As “niche” as possible to begin with Who has the pain I solve most? Where are they? How to reach them?
Intro: Use Your (Linkedin) Network
Intro: Use Your (Linkedin) Network
Send Direct Message to ALL your contacts Ask for intro to ICP. Be specific. 1st, 2nd or 3rd degree Get intro then..
Qualify & Learn
“We have developed a product that solves [y]. Do you have this problem? How do you currently do this?” Start with questions to learn (Customer Discovery / Steve Blank & Eric Ries)
to qualify
Cold
Send Email / InMail first (use list builders & tools) SMYKM (Show Me You Know Me) Follow up.. Calls & Emails 3-‐12 touchpoints (emails & calls) – be consistent & persistent
Cold
If you need to find a contact in company.. Go high (CEO/VPs) Short email “We do [x], who do I need to speak to about [x] in your org?” (~10% answer rate vs. <1% for traditional cold emails)
1st Cold Contact: Ask For Help
“You are an expert in [x]. We have developed/are working on a product that solves [y]. Would you have 15mns to provide us insights?”
You
Expert
Champions
Your goal: Find a Champion No one wants to be guinea pig: Fake it til you make it (don’t lie though!)
“No one got fired buying from IBM”: manage risk
Drivers
What would make her successful?
What would make her look good?
Current Solution? Pains/Challenges?"why are you on this call today with me?" “what are you pulling your hairs out for?”“what is NOT working with your current process?”“could you be more efficient”?
Challenges / pain points / limitations of your current solution?
Activity?Number of xxx?Average number of xxx?Average number of xxx?
Improvements?“what could you improve?”“What are you dreaming your current product could do?”
Are your results good enough? Tell me about your ideal xxx?
(Get prospect to acknowledge/confirm understanding of improvements you can bring)
Authority?"what is the Decision Making process?" “how do approvals for software decisions like this work within your company?”“have you had a chance to gauge how [Decision Maker] feels about some of the potential value we have identified?”“what would make this deal NOT happen?”
Budget?"how much are you paying now?”“have you calculated ROI on your current investment?”"do you have budget for this?”“what is your budget cycle/fiscal year?”.. “I will send you a custom ROI calculation, based on your inputs”
Time?“when does your contract with [existing vendor] expire?”"when are you planning to make the switch to a better solution?”“is there an upcoming xxx that could be a good event/topic to upgrade to a better software?”
QualificationCanvas
Competitors looked at?
Other Platform? Other Platform? Integration? Yes/No
Company?What are they selling / who is target audience?Company's current goals / challenges?Average deal sizeAverage sales cycle
SUCCESS?What are your KPIs? What are you measuring?What are you paid on?What are you trying to improve/achieve? Personal: "what would make you successful personally?"
Results?Current process for dealing xxx? Conversion ratios?Results? Inline with quota/objectives?
Integration? Yes/No
Created by: Nicolas Deville
#1
#2 #3
Make them talk
Golden rule:
You should talk less than your prospect
Again: Help, Don’t Sell
Conversations, not sales pitches find their goals & pains “how can I help you achieve this”
You’ll be less nervous Less desperate Less “salesy” Different
Win-‐Win
Business is all about creating a Win-‐Win
Focus on making it a “Win” for your prospect If she becomes a client, you’ll have your “-‐Win”.
Inbound Lead Flow
Create Content, Get Leads
For each pushback or recurring question, create a blog post Helps you articulate your thoughts clearly How to do it, not What to do Needs to appeal to your Niche/ICP Gate content (registration page) & JUMP on inbound leads
MARKETING
Leverage your Linkedin profile
DO
Tools & Outsourcing
Be organised = CRM e.g. Hubspot CRM (Free) For list building (finding ICPs): Linkedin Sales Navigator Upwork Toofr, Rapportive, VoilaNorbert, etc.. For prospecting: Critical: use Email automation/tracking (e.g. Toutapp)
Automate / ensure consistency + see if emails is opened, clicked, forwarded (=true interest) If you need/want more: www.thesalesstack.com (coming soon)
To Recap..
Businesses buy what they need Sales is about creating value Be extremely focused (ICP) Leverage your network Ask for Help Have conversations, not sales pitches Put yourself in your prospect’s shoes Find the pain, sell the solution (aspirin) Focus on making it a “Win” for your prospect
