marketing myths and sales follies€¦ · avoiding the myths and the follies 1. selling is about...

Marketing Myths and

Sales Follies

Martyn Lewis

Principal, Market-Partners Inc.

Examining complex selling

• How do organizations think that their stuff is gets into the market

• What is really happening• What can we do about it

“There is only one valid business purpose: to create a customer”

- Peter Drucker

How do we go from a series of marketing leads to happy,

satisfied, and profitable customers?

Valuable customer

Step 1. Lead Generation

Direct mail

www.website.com

Cold calls

Trade shows

Advertising

Step 2. Presentation

Step 3. Proposal and Order

big $$$

Step 4. Objection Handling and Negotiation

A Case Study

At your company...

• Who would respond

• Who has the authority

• Who would be involved

• Who are the decision makers

• Where would the funds come from

• How would you make the decision

and...

• What about internal politics

• Who would champion

• Who would support

• Who would oppose

……. is it clear, and would it change???

What’s really happening in today’s Customer Acquisition Department?

Sales cycles are often significantly longer than imagined, and still getting longer

Leads needed for each new order much higher than planned

New customer

Successful sales depends more on listening and coordinating than pitching/presenting/persuading

Many sales organizations are still challenged to complete the transition to a

true solution-selling model

Ramp-up time is longer than expected

Actual selling time is often massively less than assumed

Great products rarely imply great sales

So you think you’re different?

If only our sales people would “get it”

Sales and Marketing are rarely aligned

The Selling Crisis: Root Causes

• New organizational models• Fully deployed resources• Technology• Increased business demands• Decreased product lifecycles• Lack of engineered sales process

LeadCustomer

SupplierDiscovery

ProposalClose

Buyer NeedInitial

evaluation Explore alternatives

Decision Order

Telesales

MarketingSales

Specialists Delivery

Executive

ExecutiveEnd users

Purchasing

Specialists

CompetitionIndustry

dynamicsMacro trends

A simple rule

It helps our sales process to be successful if we also have involved a third-party who is engaged in a

purchase process

The Sales & Marketing Matrix

Commodity Value

Product

Solution

Commodity Value

Product

Solution

The Prospect’s Perspective

I have a need, and I know what I want

I have a need, and I don’t know what I want

Any one of many suppliers can offer

what I need

Only one supplier can provide what I need

Strategy

Commodity Value

Product

Solution

Price and Price and AvailabilityAvailability

Brand and Brand and AwarenessAwareness

Ability and Ability and AccessibilityAccessibility

Expertise and Expertise and ConsultationConsultation

Selling/Buying alignment

• Sell the way the market buys• There are no “bad” quadrants• “Bad” is when you are trying to sell in a

fashion that the market isn’t buying• The market may be shifted – usually only

horizontally or vertically• You have to shift the market to the new

quadrant, before selling in that fashion

Avoiding the myths and the follies

1. Selling is about more than sales2. Understand how the target market(s) is buying3. Sell the way the market is buying, or develop

realistic plans to change this4. Design the sales process5. Granularity is good6. Coordinate and align all the activities of the

organization to this selling process7. Don’t drink your own Kool-Aid

Resourceswww.market-partners.com

White papersSolving Solution SellingSales is about more than SellingOur Research Findings

Sales Effectiveness BriefingSales Wise“Quest for Customers” from 21st Century Selling

Martyn LewisMlewis@market-partners.com

707 575 4722

marketing myths and sales follies€¦ · avoiding the myths and the follies 1. selling is about...

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