Or take doeLEGAL, which sells software and services to law firms. In 2018, the company adopted the ValueSelling Framework to target buyer personas; get a customer- focused point of view; brand itself with the tagline “smart data, intelli- gently delivered”; maintain market- ing consistency; and differentiate itself from competitors. These changes tripled requests for demonstrations; doubled Website calls to action; nearly doubled linking domains; boosted Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn followers; and, most important, tripled RFP wins. “We get into a higher-level discus- sion,” summarizes CEO Tom Russo. “Everyone is putting their time into something that makes sense for both parties.” With ValueSelling, the com- pany has cut the time spent on RFPs with no chance of success. “We’re pursuing opportunities that we’re the


‘‘


Greed is a bottomless pit which exhausts the person in an endless effort to satisfy the need without ever reaching satisfaction. ERICH FROMM


strongest at, and this differentiates us from the competition.” Tealium, an Inc.-500 fast grower, sells tag management system and marketing software to giants like Cathay Pacific Airways, Domino’s Pizza, and the United States Postal Service. Global Revenue VP Laurie Schrager and the management team chose ValueSelling’s sales methodology, then ran all their sales, marketing, and related staff through a ValueSelling Framework workshop. The same approach was incorpo- rated in Tealium’s onboarding for


How to Get a Stalled Deal Back on Track SELLING TIP


In sales, there are generally three signs a deal is headed south. The first sign is frequent or prolonged delays: If you’re being deferred to other decision makers – or are being denied access – you’re in the delay zone. The second sign is a shift in information or key players: Are you sud- denly being introduced to new executives, new require- ments, or new caveats? The third and very obvious sign your deal is going nowhere is a flatline in communica- tion: If there is suddenly no connection or response from contacts, you’re definitely on the ropes. If and when any of the above signs crop up, don’t panic. Instead, admit it and deal with the problem head-on.


The first order of business is to bring your team together and determine where things got off track. Gen- erally, a deal gets stuck due to one of four factors: 1. Uncontrollable factors (a budget freeze, job changes, etc.)


2. Due diligence (i.e., no opportunity ever existed – the prospect simply had been following corporate protocol in soliciting RFPs)


3. The prospect believes your solution is a poor fit but hasn’t said so directly yet


4. Your solution is a good fit, but the prospect has concerns about some aspect of the deal (e.g., your team, process, or resources).


If the deal is stuck because of the first two possibili- ties, your best bet might be to cut your losses and walk away. If this is a solvable problem, however, you have some options: • Recruit more people from the prospect’s side. This can add energy to your campaign and lend support to your approach.


• Reconsider the problem and stakeholders. Did you accurately define the problem up front?


• Consider how you might more closely align with your prospect. If you’re proposing too much change, you’ll scare them; but, if you propose too little impact, you might not get their support.


• Find out if you can re-submit a business case. If the ROI from the business case is not compelling, go back to the drawing board and re-examine.


• Trade out some of the people on your team. If you have reason to believe the prospect dislikes or mis- trusts someone on your team, send in a sub. Trust and likeability are critical to a successful close.


– SELLING POWER EDITORS


new hires. Sales development reps attended Vortex Prospecting training to break through fears of making calls. Once again, results were impressive: a 40 percent growth in sales and a 40 percent increase in average deal size. “We all agreed that we were going to drive outcomes by using a con- sistent sales methodology, and that created a better customer journey through all the hand-off points,” Schrager says. “The key to success is consistency.” For more information, contact julie.thomas@valueselling.com.


SELLING POWER MAY/JUNE 2020 | 37 © 2020 SELLING POWER. CALL 1-800-752-7355 FOR REPRINT PERMISSION.


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