Pop Quiz
If there are five people on the customer's buying committee, how many different sales do you need to make?
If they are all different demographics (Historian, Boomer, Buster, GenX, Millennial), how many different types of presentations do you need to make?
If you will role play the scenario prior to the call, how many different "objection sets" can you anticipate?
How many different behavioral styles will you need to be prepared to address?
Answers: 5, 5, 5, 4.
Mental and verbal flexibility are more necessary now than ever before. Pre-call planning needs to become an automatic and increasingly sophisticated process. When selling to a committee or other group of people, professional salespeople know they must be prepared to address the specific concerns of each individual. This does not mean that they will, necessarily, address them, only that they must be prepared to do so.
The demographic of each person on the selection or buying committee must also be taken into account. Historians are usually more impressed with companies and salespeople who have been around for a while and have proven themselves. Meanwhile, GenX'ers and Millennials will want to see the latest technology, trend or, in some cases, the latest fad included in the presentation.
Objection sets arise from the position a person holds, their demographic and their behavioral style. Using DISC, we prepare for four styles: the Driver, the Influencer, the Steadfast and the Calculator.
To further complicate matters, the vehicle we use for communication must also be determined intentionally. While the high C Historian may want a thorough, documented, bound proposal, the High C Buster may be content with a bulleted email. (I recently closed a project with a 200-word email that was primarily bullets.)
With more options than ever, how are salespeople supposed to keep up?
The answer is training, coaching and mentoring. In-house, DIY training is no longer an option - it's essential. Coaching, especially peer-to-peer coaching is irreplaceable. Everyone has a need to be mentored and almost everyone can be a useful mentor.