When Selling, Start at the Top

By Terry Booton, president of Advanced Marketing Instruction

How many times have you or your salespeople spent weeks or months trying to close a deal only to see it suddenly die?  It is probably more times than you care to admit.  My guess is it was because you were not talking to the right person.

One of the main reasons salespeople aren't as productive as they could be is that they don't call high enough in an organization. One of the things that has made Donald Trump so successful is that he deals only with the person in charge. That same principle should apply to every time you go to make a sale.

Many of the prospects that salespeople are calling on are only trying to gather information. They're recommenders, not buyers. Salespeople can't afford to waste time with a bottom-up sales strategy in today's market. The average sales call costs more than $500, and it takes six calls to close a new account. At this rate, it costs no less than $3,000 to seal a deal - a dreadfully high expense, especially for a small company.

The problem is, salespeople often lack the confidence to approach the 'C-suite.' Instead, they'll talk business with lower­level managers without sufficient authority. 

To identify real opportunities and expedite closings, salespeo­ple need to ferret out the person who can actually write a check.  If you start at the top and they don't get involved in the decision of what your trying to sell, they will certainly direct you to the right person or tell you quickly there is no opportunity for you.

That person, the decision maker may not be the CEO or president. In small shops, you'll deal with the owner or president. In midmarket companies, you'll likely deal with vice presidents, presidents and CEOs. In large corporations, you'll deal with division managers and vice presidents. The one complication in large organizations are purchasing departments, which often take over once you have a manager on the hook. Regardless of their title, the decision-maker is the person who can come up with money even when there isn't a budget for a purchase.

The dynamics of the sales call change when you're talking to more than just a recommender. People on the lower rungs will want to hear about the product and functionality or services. When talking to decision-makers, you need to focus on the value of the deal to the business. Decision-makers want to hear about efficiencies, performance improvements, competitive advantages and new business opportunities and the expected ROI.

If your solution changes the way a company does business, the president or CEO will most likely be involved in that decision. So why not start there?