STRATEGY - SOLE SOURCE
In our February newsletter we addressed Julie's question about strategy. We determined that Julie was trapped in a Frontal Attack strategy, defined as blindly facing off against your competitors exactly the way the customer tells you to, by agreeing to all of the customer's decision criteria and to her buying process. We agreed that most reps fall into this method by default, lacking a more appropriate response to a customer's demand for a bid, response, or action of any kind.
Exploring the point that a Superstar adjusts her sales approach depending on conditions, leads us to today's search for other strategies which might be useful in your sales scenarios. I propose that there are twelve Major Account Sales Strategies available in any sales situation.They are:- Frontal Attack
- Sole Source
- Change the Game - Expand The Pie
- Change the Game - Reduce The Pie (Fractionalize)
- Change The Game - New Game - New Process
- Change The Game - New Game - Re-Prioritize Criteria
- Change The Game - New Game - New Criteria
- Change The Game - New Game - Redefine Criterion
- Change The Game - New Game - New Players
- Accelerate
- Delay
- Disengage
Having discussed the Frontal Attack last month, we will examine other available strategies in the upcoming newsletters.
This month we will address The Sole Source Strategy.
The Sole Source strategy is appropriate when your company is the only game in town and there are no other contenders in your customer's view. As sales reps we fight for this opportunity but rarely encounter it. It is generally reserved for the true superstar who has achieved the status of trusted advisor and is considered a genuine inside sales consultant. As you have 'heard' me say before, there are three types of sales reps: the product peddler, the visitor, and the consultative rep, who is either a problem solver or a problem avoider. The Sole Source strategy is reserved for the rare rep who helps the customer avoid major problems and has therefore earned the right to proceed without competition. Let's see how it works:
STRATEGY: Sole Source
DESCRIPTION:
No Competition-- Go It Alone
WHY/WHEN TO DEPLOY:
When you have earned the right to "go it alone" as a result of your consultative selling (problem avoidance).
HOW TO DEPLOY/EXAMPLES:
Get in early! Know your client's business better than she does. Uncover issues, pains, challenges and opportunities before your client does. Be proactive; be a problem avoider. Put tactics in place to convince your client that your offering has a higher ROI (return on investment) and lower TCO (total cost of ownership) than alternative solutioins. Demonstrate how competitive solutions will not be able to address her needs. Explain that the delay required for a formal bid/comparison/evaluation will only delay the benefits to the client (time to benefit). Caution: This may be a very risky strategy, since you must be prepared that some corporations may have created fiscal and fiduciary policies requiring competitive bids. If you believe this may be the case be sure to position yourself as the consultant to assist them with a process to evaluate multiple vendors.
Sometimes the sole source strategy works, and sometimes it doesn't. In the worst case, the customer still decides to contact your competitors and you act as his consultant through the entire buying process, resulting in great benefits all the way around. In the best case, you secure a deal with no competitors. For these reasons, the sole source strategy is the goal of every superstar.
I hope this strategy session was helpful to you.
Good Luck, and Close 'Em!
p.s. For a preview of the other strategies, be sure to visit www.salesstrategizer.com for the new Selling Power Sales Strategizer iPhone app. There are two apps: the
fee app will give you a simple description of all 12 Major Account
Strategies, while the "Pro" version:
Analyzes data input to provide intelligence in the form of
recommendations for the proper major account sales strategy (strategies)
to employ. Consolidates user inputs to illustrate the chances of winning with
an indicator gauge and digital readout. Submits "red flag" coaching feedback with action items to improve
chances of winning. Coaches and explains why inputs are critical by providing
hyperlinks in each question Presents a simple and concise summary report to facilitate coaching
& major account review. Provides summary report e-mail capability for sharing and printing.
Creates a database to store account Strategizer results for
subsequent updates and modifications.
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