Good to Great
Tips and takeaways to go from a good sales team to a great one
Hello friends (Jim Nantz voice),
If you’re reading this - I appreciate you! What started as me just trying to spread the love has turned into a bit bigger project than I probably realized. This weekly newsletter often includes some late nights - but the kind words, emails and LinkedIn messages - make it all worth it.
So THANK YOU for subscribing and sharing.
Excited for this week’s content with helpful tips and takeaways to lead your sales team and build upon your success. Let’s all get better together and go from good to great.
In this week’s edition of Stretch Weekly -
Nick Cegelski walks us through his “Deal Mechanics” and how to work/close 3x as many deals
13 Great Discovery Questions to help you close more deals from Refract
Jason Eatmon gives us 4 Tips For Breaking the Mold With Virtual Selling
And don’t miss my own post on what sales leaders can learn from Urban Meyer’s coaching philosophy on why teams struggle…
Let’s go…
STRETCH SHARES
Deal Mechanics: How to Work (and close) 3x The Deals
Nick Cegelski, Account Executive at SurePoint Technologies (and host to one of my new favorite podcasts - 30 Minutes to Presidents Club), joins Sarah Hicks on the Predictable Revenue podcast and drops some great words of wisdom as he explores "Deal Mechanics" - or what happens in the "white space" between meetings.
Top Takeaways:
Use video to engage stakeholders. Especially useful when sending proposals so that champion doesn't have to sell for you.
Most reps lean too heavily on Collateral to sell. Use better discovery to customize collateral and discussion points on feedback. Do the work FOR the customer.
Use the phone, but use it beyond prospecting. Use it to respond. Use any and every excuse to have a conversation with a customer. Ex: Group Demo - Calls each and every person that was on the meeting. "Was there anything you were hoping to see that we didn't address today? What reservations do you have right now - anything you need me to do that would help me feel comfortable moving forward?
Set the stage for next steps - Give buyer "space" to uncover next steps. Reserve adequate time for this and give them an out. Advise on next steps "Here's typically where we'd go for a next step". "Number one goal here is to see if there's a match".
13 Great Sales Discovery Questions
I’ve been a vocal proponent (not so hot take) of discovery being the most important part of a sales process. So it was great to see more validation from Refract on this very subject.
I’d probably tweak some of these to more open-ended questions, but check out their recommendations and reasons for 13 Great Discovery Questions.
Tell me more about that?
Why is that important to you?
What happens if nothing changes/you don’t do x?
Can I ask you a difficult question?
Is it (current solution) working?
Who else cares about (solution/problem)?
Where is this on your priorities today?
If we fixed that, what would that mean?
Are you ready to solve this now?
If I can propose a solution, what would we need to do to make that happen?
What’s going to stop us working together by xx (‘end of this month’)?
What’s stopped you solving this previously?
What are your other options to solve this?
4 Tips For Breaking the Mold With Virtual Selling
Check out this applaudable post from Jason Eatmon (via Sales Gravy) on the state of virtual selling and 4 tips to differentiate yourself.
Things to remember:
Everyone is your competition
Virtual selling breaks down geographic barriers
Everyone is on the same - virtual stage
Buyers have accepted this new engagement model
Negotiation is easier for buyers -
Ways to stand out:
Leverage Multiple Prospecting Approaches
PHONE!
Always be video sales call ready
Stick to your sales process
STRETCH VP POST 👇
What Sales Leaders Can Learn From Urban Meyer’s Coaching Philosophy on Why Teams Struggle
Urban Meyer gave a brilliant two-minute coaching class during a segment on FOX last week while discussing several of the elite college football programs that are struggling in 2020.
This video clip went viral and drew praise from seemingly everyone including me.
I couldn’t help hear this and relate it to us as we coach our own sales teams.
When things aren’t going as they should, when teams aren’t performing – instead of making excuses, we need to look under the hood and diagnose the real issues.
STRETCH SNIPPETS
⏱ The top 100 managers spend 71% of their time reviewing calls from specific deals involving fully ramped reps.
📉 According to HubSpot's first-party data, the number of Sales Emails being sent have now DOUBLED since the pre-COVID era. But guess what's happened to response rates? Spoiler: Not doubled. via Tyler Lessard
📂 Andrew Mewborn says: If you’ve not added the 10K to your sales arsenal, you’re missing out. Jamal Reimer discusses how to read it like a rockstar. [Podcast]
📃 What does the P in MEDDPIC stand for? Paper Process. Andy Whyte explains...
🚀 Lemkin says that after $2M in ARR - you need to start specializing your sales team. Openers open, closers close, renewers renew etc.
🔑 Enterprise sales is complex says Amy Volas. As a leader, it's key you're tuned into what's involved and what's at stake.
📊 Shawn Parrote says the fastest growing companies use analytics effectively. He gives us 10 Types of Sales Data Growing Sales Teams Need to Track
⏎Hey Salespeople: Reply rates are 61% higher when you ask for 5 or 10 minutes versus asking for 20 or 30 minutes. via Jeremey Donovan.
🧠 Mindset
Thanks for reading!
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— Grant 👋
About stretch vp: confessions, learnings and insights from sales leaders in SaaS
Compiled and aggregated from a network of sales leaders in SaaS, Stretch VP showcases learnings, insights and experiences as well as best practices to overcome common hurdles, obstacles and setbacks in your quest for excellence as a sales leader in SaaS.
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