Selling CRM Correctly

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In tough times, pushing what you need to sell (software) isn't going to get it done for you or your prospect

***tier3square.shtml***Selling CRM Correctly: A huge challenge in transforming a CRM consulting business to one that actually consults takes some seriously different thinking.  As I've slowly transformed myself, I've reached out to those that are where I want to be. You know what they say, if you want to be rich, get to know a rich person, you might learn something.

I've done this in a number of ways. But one of the best ways today is to follow those that actually share what they've learned by way of blogging or article writing. One great source is www.customerthink.com where I've found a large population of interesting writers. Twitter? 140 characters doesn't get it done for me.

One of the big questions a CRM business faces, especially when the economy tanks - but works just as well in good times - is how to engage your prospects and customers. Selling CRM correctly may seem like an easy question to answer.

In good times, totally un-trainable but otherwise aggressive salespeople can make product sales based on some of the most worthless features a product offers. In good times, they make the sales and they reinforce the belief that they are adding value...especially to their own business.

What's really disturbing to me is in bad times, when these marketing and selling tactics begin to fail, they just do it faster and harder. Well, at least the totally un-trainable ones do. You know who I'm talking about. The kind of person that has the need for strokes right now and they will do or say anything to get them, even if it stops working.

Adding value simply requires more than selling. It requires some listening, a consultant. Someone who knows what to ask, who to ask, and can change direction based on the answers they are receiving.

The thoughts of Andy Rudin

I am part of a group on LinkedIn where I asked a simple question about...how to begin asking questions. Andy Rudin, who is a blogger at CustomerThink, deals with this sort of issue regularly on his blog.  He responded to my inquiry with a post that sparked a lot of curiosity. So, I started reading his articles carefully.

A Sales Team Needs More Than "High ROI" and "Low TCO" To Compete

Andy starts off in this article with a scenario which is so close to home for me, I almost had to cry. I've been in so many selling situations over the years where the emphasis was on convincing the IT department that our software was a great deal. Who cares what the IT department thinks?

Andy shared a story about a COO who as confronted by a sales team ready to WOW him with charts and number and technical mumbo jumbo. Before they could start he asked "How will you help me sell more pizzas?" Umm....

Obviously, this COO wanted to solve problems at a more strategic level than they were prepared to discuss. Did they even have a discovery process? They probably asked all the wrong questions, like "Are you a SQL Server shop or an Oracle shop?" Great question!

What does Discovery look like?

I have to excerpt this because this is so dead on that I don't want to take my own stab at it. Andy tackles the question "why don't senior sales managers create a sales culture of finding out what the customer wants and needs versus what they need to sell?"

One reason is that in the quest to create a "sales-driven culture," companies push muscular sales tactics that often subordinate the importance of questions. "ABC—Always Be Closing," or "Show the ROI" or "Go for a trial close after showing our key features," are part of sales-process DNA.

Does anyone remember this recommendation--"When you get the customer to answer 'yes' to three consecutive questions, ask for the order."? One sales training tape I heard ignored asking questions altogether, offering this nugget: "If the customer voices an objection, give them a yes...but...." (I am not making this up—and I'm sure the phonic similarity to "headbutt" is not just a coincidence)

These superficial tactics fall short by not embedding strategic discovery into the sales process.

Read the rest of the article here

Before you can know what to sell, you need to listen. You can't assume you know all the answers because when you do, you aren't hearing what they are saying. When you hear responses that aren't what you may have expected, you need to probe deeper. And you also need the ability to think quickly and take the conversation where it leads you. And that should be the toward real problem that has to be solved.

I read a good book on demoing software called Demonstrating to Win!: The Indispensable Guide for Demonstrating Software Beyond the physical act of performing a demo, it focused a lot on how to conduct a proper discovery. If you do it with the wrong set of people, and in the wrong order, you could come away focused on the wrong problem. Have you ever wondered why that cheesy competitor came away with the business? They may be cheesy, but they probably figured out the problem. This problem is their true "Buying Motivation." The book had some great real world stories of learning this the hard way.

Finding the true motivation for a CRM purchase will likely come down to something that is solved by process and not a software feature. The software will support the process, but the software will not define the process (as though best practices for front office processes can be canned that easily).

So getting back to Andy Rudin, here is how he responded to my question...

"What's the best, first question to ask a client who doesn't realize how their current process is hurting them?"

Michael: Asking visceral, top-level questions is one of the best ways to develop other questions. As you imply, asking "What is it that this prospect hasn't figured out yet?" is a great starting point. From there, we can formulate more customer-ready questions such as:

"What are the (short/medium/long-term) risks you see that would have the greatest impact on your current business strategy?"

"What assumptions are you making right now that must be true in order for your strategy to work?"

I've written some articles and blogs about how to create sales questions. The one that connects most closely with this topic, "Strategic Questions Will Uncover Strategic Opportunities," has some further questions you can use for your sales process: http://www.customerthink.com/blog/strategic_questions_strategic_opportunities

Is your CRM consultant asking this kind of question? Are they probing deeply to ensure they understand the problem? Is it one question? Is it a 2 hour marathon with twists and turns? Do you think they walked away truly knowing what they need to show you in a demonstration?

Customers, think about this before investing in software. Consultants, think about this before selling CRM software!

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