Deal Review

The overly-optimistic sales person is the person that says their next deal is "guaranteed to close" but never will.

But how can you help these types of sellers?

Here is our essential checklist of points to cover in any deal review:

1) Is the decision-maker involved in the buying process?

This one’s obvious but often the answer is "they aren’t but my champion is talking to them." In this case, ensure your champion is updating you on their goals and challenges.

2) Are you speaking to multiple stakeholders?

Multithreaded deals are 3 x as likely to close. If your first meeting is only with one person, ask "Who else from your team is looking to solve this challenge at the moment?"

3) Consistency of comms - when was the last time you interacted with the account?

If it was 2 weeks ago, call them, send a video or LinkedIn voicenote. But don't say "any updates?". Instead ask "how’ve you been dealing with X challenge since we last spoke?"

4) Have you shared helpful content with them outside of what your product does?

Don't be a transactional buyer that just gets on scheduled calls with them to talk about what you're selling. Instead share content that can help them with goals identified in discovery.

5) How many channels are you using with your leads? 

Modern sellers rely on emails but reply rates are at an all time low. So send a video, leave thoughtful comments on their LinkedIn or the best way - pick up the freakin' phone!

6) Have you identified their main objections?

Objections are a sign that people are serious about buying, so don’t shy away from them. Ask "What obstacles do you foresee that would prevent us from partnering together?"

7) What are your next steps?

Last but certainly not least, if you don't have a follow up call in the diary, or an agreed next step, then your deal is not so hot.

If you'd like to see a coaching scorecard incorporating all of the above, reply here and I’ll share it.

Cheers,

Michael Hanson

CEO Growth Genie