CORPORATE CULTURE


Value-based Selling Touches Everyone Inside and Outside a Company


BY HENRY CANADAY


The concept of value is not exactly a new topic in high-end professional sales. Russ Walker, Senior Vice President of Revenue Enablement at Datasite, recalls a client of his once saying years ago, “Price is only an issue in the absence of value.”


What is new is that the value-centric approach is now changing the entire corporate culture at the best companies, as Russ explained to publisher Gerhard Gschwandtner in an episode of Selling Power TV. And the Datasite exec stated that this value- centric approach is woven into the fabric of the Datasite sales culture and enablement programs. “We put our sellers through a pretty robust


accreditation program,” Russ said. “The program is built around not only how to demo the Datasite platform, but how to ask the right questions and how to find the two, three, or four considerations that really make a difference to the buyer that enable the salesperson to add value. In other words, how can they make a customer’s operational day more efficient and reduce risk.” At Datasite, sellers then have to tie all this


together—after asking the right questions, they must illustrate the platform’s value through client stories and capability overviews. The aim is to make each person at a prospect company want to partner with Datasite. Gaining and earning trust is a huge part of


value-based selling. “We want to make sure our sellers are really prepared to have this dialogue and not just compete on price,” Russ summarized. “There’s always the cheaper option; you have to make yourself stand out. A lot of


people buy based on relationships and trust.” Additionally, buyers are looking for reps who are consultative in nature to bring suggestions that are relevant to the buyer’s day-to-day operations. That requires reps to understand the buyer’s industry, speak the language and vocabulary of that vertical, and be aware of recent developments and challenges facing that sector or account. The value-based mindset must also be cultivated


in the other departments of the organization. Service and support departments will be critical to customer success. Buyers must be confident that when they need someone on the phone, by email, or by chat, they can get that person, Russ emphasized. “The platform must be secure and operate every day and night, 24x7x365. When you sell an essential business application, the client must have total confidence in its ability to fully function.” You can have the best platform, products, and


training at your organization and these strengths will both attract and enable reps to be successful. However, to truly build a value-focused culture, a company must value its own people. “We live and breathe that,” Russ stressed. Valuing reps starts with a careful interview


process to ensure cultural fit and continues with engagement surveys, which give employees an opportunity to anonymously voice their views on career opportunities, benefits, compensation, communication, and other concerns. “It’s been a highly effective tool to make sure we are listening and taking the right actions,” Russ said. It’s also vital to collaborate extensively and avoid


silos of employees or activities. “It may sound corny, but we genuinely like each other,” the SVP joked. “People across the globe from different cultures love to interact with each other and learn what makes each other successful.” What exactly is a value-based culture? “It’s what


you do every day to add value to yourself, your teammates, or to the external market.” 


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