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Successful sales professionals are good quarterbacks
If you are a sales professional it s quite likely that you have experienced a big deal fall through in the 11th hour. This kind of experience can take the wind out of us. How do we reduce the probability of a big sale crumbling at the last minute? We need to be a good quarterback!
One of the joys of coaching is sharing in the success of your clients along the way. I am thinking of one client in particular who absolutely crushed his sales goals for this year. His name is Mark and he sells high-end industry machinery. As you might guess, selling can be more complex when the average cost of your product is well into the six figures.
Mark received a call from a company that was interested in buying one of his machines. He met with the engineering manager and felt good about the call afterwards. The next step to advance the sale was set, and the process seemed to be moving along. Then, all of a sudden things quit advancing. Mark was frustrated and we discussed the problem. At the conclusion of our discussion Mark decided to call for a meeting. This meeting would include the CFO, the CEO, the production manager and the controller. Mark convinced the engineering manager to put the meeting together. The meeting went great. All agendas were on the table. They asked questions. He knew his stuff. The answers they received gave them confidence to move forward. Instead of buying one machine, they ordered 7!
The “big meeting” had been the turning point for the sale. The production manager wanted to meet delivery times. the engineering manager is concerned with things working right. The CFO is concerned about the profit margin of the company, and the CEO is committed to driving the company vision. Each person was looking through a different lens. Mark pulled all the agendas into a winning effort. Great quarterbacking!