Mistake No. 6 of the 10 typical mistakes in complex b2b sales

Value propositions as general value-added statements

“The value propositions presented to customers are general value propositions that lack customization to individual contacts.”

As the complexity of a project increases, so typically does the number of people directly or indirectly affected by the project. These people seek to exert their influence on the internal decision-making process to achieve their individual goals.

As described in other posts, many sales processes suffer from a lack of connectivity with all these people. The overall project goal is assumed to be equally relevant to all contacts because it supports the central company goal.

However, most people only support this goal if their individual goals are also achieved or at least not damaged.

A highly professional sales process therefore links us with as many people as possible in the buying center and helps us to understand individual goals and to present and communicate them individually.

An example from our environment: Our customers’ CRM systems are often affected by our projects. However, the IT manager’s goal is not to increase the hit rate or generate more leads, for example. The goal of the IT manager is to keep the system stable and the data consistent.

My favorite question in this context is, “When would you personally say the project is a success for you?”

This question shows that you take the contact person and his or her goals seriously, and puts you in a position to address them appropriately and thus differentiate yourself from the competition.

How do you handle this issue in your sales process?

Contribution by Pierre Martin,
Managing Director

#sales #sales productivity #smartinsales #sales process #valueproposition #buyingcenter

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