Jill Konrath | Selling to Big Companies

Passing the "Tell Me More" Test

Establishing a business relationship with a new prospect is a lot like walking on a balance beam. Every single move you make has consequences.

When you execute it flawlessly, you're in a perfect position for your next move. However, any misstep on your part sends you into recovery mode. Sometimes you're able to bounce back, but other times you fall off and are out of the competition. To make it even more challenging, stone-faced judges ruthlessly evaluate how well you execute each move and its level of difficult.

Sounds an awful lot like sales to me! The early stages of the sales process are fraught with difficulties. Prospects assess your every word to determine if it's worth their time to meet with you.

That's why so many sellers get excited when prospective customers say, "Tell me more." It means they've scored a perfect 10 on their first routine - one they've practiced and fine-tuned for months. Then, without thinking, they launch into their second routine. What they don't realize is they have to pass this "Tell Me More" test before they can advance further in the competition.

And it's so darn easy to blow it then.

How to Quickly Blow an Opportunity

Recently I was talking to one of my clients, the president of small technology firm. She was livid. Earlier that morning, a salesperson had contacted her firm and the conversation went like this:

"Who am I talking to?" he immediately demanded. She gave him her name - which isn't a typical one.

"How do you spell that?" he asked. She slowly spelled it out. Confused, he asked her to repeat it several times, which she graciously did.

"What does your company do?" he asked next.

That was the final straw. She finally butted in: "Are you selling something?"

"Yes," he said. Then, undaunted, he continued his interrogation. "So, what does your company do?"

"I can't believe you're asking me this," she said in disbelief. "You expect me to take up my time to educate someone who's too lazy to even visit my website and find that out? Why would you think I'd do that?"

He sputtered a couple of times and then apologized. But he'd already blown it. No recovery was possible.

The lesson: Contacting prospective customers before you've invested time learning about their business is a sure recipe for disaster. Don't do it!

Sales Is Not For the Faint of Heart

When I first started my sales career, I was a virtual sponge. I was on a mission to learn as much as I could in the shortest possible time. I looked to the experts for guidance and took their advice as the gospel truth.

One of my hot prospects at the time was a growing construction firm. I was working with Tinsey, a very articulate woman who told me she was making the copier decision for her company.

Shortly after our first meeting, I read a book that said salespeople shouldn't waste their time on the underlings. Instead, they should work directly with the ultimate decision maker - the person who had the power to say "yes" or "no."

That was a real wake-up call for me. I didn't know that and had been calling at the wrong level. Tinsey was simply the administrative assistant to the CEO. Clearly I needed to take some corrective action - fast.

Are You Creating Your Own Sales Obstacles?

As a seller, I'm sure the last thing in the world you want to do is to make your job even more difficult. But the truth is, many of you are doing just that - all the time and without even knowing it.

This past week I was talking to one seller about a particularly challenging sales issue he kept running into. As it turns out, he was his own worst enemy.

1-Stop Shopping & Other Worthless Tripe

When pursuing big companies, most sellers want to ensure that decision makers know all about the full range of products, services or solutions that they provide.

Proudly, they brag:
•  "We offer a full breadth of services."
•  "We provide our customers with 1-stop shopping."
•  "We can handle all your _____ needs."

These killer phrases are detrimental to their sales objective and actually create massive roadblocks for them. But they don't want to believe me.

Why I Hate Closing Techniques

"My salespeople need to get better at closing," the Vice President of Sales said to me shortly after I arrived in his office.

If I've heard that line once, I've heard it a hundred times. Despite being on an important sales call, I couldn't help but cringe. You see, I will never, ever train people on closing techniques if they sell to the corporate marketplace.

Why not? When you analyze what happens when you teach sellers how to be great closers, you'll understand my perspective.

Why Passion Doesn't Sell

Are you passionate about your product? Think your service is pretty slick?

If so, you may have lots of trouble getting into big companies and winning their business. Your own eagerness and enthusiasm may actually create significant obstacles in your sales efforts.

For years I've worked with companies who love their offerings too much.

How to Prevent the Most Common Sales Mistake

If you're selling to big companies, it's highly likely that you've succumbed to this most fatal of all sales mistakes. It's not that you meant to, but those darn corporate buyers suck you into making it before you even know what's happening.

You start out the meeting, focused on their business.  Leaning back in your chair with a notepad on your lap and a pencil in hand, you transition as quickly as you can to asking questions.

You ask about their goals, strategic imperatives, trends in the market and the challenges they're facing. 

And before you know it, they set the trap for you.  With a feigned look of genuine interest they say, "So tell me about your product/service" or "I've heard you're using some new, exciting technology."