Myths and Slumps
How we can break the myths and bust through any slumps this summer
Inevitably in sales, we’ll see our share of highs and lows. I’ve never met a rep that closes every deal they see.
So this week is all about busting through some Myths and Slumps to set us up for success.
In this week’s edition of Stretch Weekly -
Andy Whyte talks about the 10 Myths of MEDDIC and how we can fully understand how MEDDIC can help us qualify out, find that champion and close more.
Scott Leese points out the Dog Days of summer are upon us and how we can bust through any summer slump in sales.
And like always, a collection of recent snippets to help our teams bust through the summer selling season.
THANKS for reading!!
-Grant
And lastly - as always, if you find this newsletter valuable- subscribe or share it with someone who might as well 👊.
STRETCH SHARES
The 10 Myths of MEDDIC
I can’t remember where I first started following Andy Whyte - perhaps a podcast or two he’s been on, LinkedIn or Twitter - but since reading his book MEDDICC, I continually recommend him to anyone looking to learn, or get better with their MEDDIC skills for Enterprise Selling. He’s since taken the leap into MEDDIC full time and I’m excited to follow his success.
Check out his 10 Myths of MEDDIC and see what you’ve been getting wrong. Lots more behind the bullet points in the video (or the article), but I’ve summarized them below.
Myth #1: MEDDIC is a sales process.
MEDDIC is not a sales process. It’s a methodology or framework used to help revenue teams better qualify their opportunities.
Myth #2: Customers Dislike MEDDIC
How does the customer know you are using MEDDIC?
Myth #3: MEDDIC is just for forecasting
If you see MEDDIC as just a tool to help you forecast, you aren’t using it to its full potential.
Myth #4: If we use MEDDIC, we will qualify out of too many opportunities.
Using a soft approach to qualification to create more pipeline is daft.
Myth #5: You don’t need any more letters than MEDDIC.
Dick Dunkel literally invented MEDDIC, and he uses MEDDPICC
Myth #6: MEDDIC is just for sales teams
One of the best things about MEDDICC is that it acts as a common language that can be used across the entire revenue team.
Myth #7: We are Different
MEDDIC has success in the private sector, public sector, any industry you can think of, all different types of product and service…
Myth #8: It has to be implemented
The more thought you put into implementing MEDDIC to complement your revenue operations, the better value it will give to you, it doesn’t have to be implemented for you to get value from it.
Myth #9: MEDDIC has a bad culture
If you are thinking about MEDDIC as something that is culture or leadership-related, then you are thinking about it wrong… MEDDIC is a tool that is actually most valuable when used by individual contributors.
Myth #10: MEDDIC is for leadership
You can get value from MEDDIC merely by just using it to check yourself against your own deals.
Avoid the Summer Slump (by Scott Leese)
Couldn’t find a way to link to this specific post, so decided to copy it in it’s entirety because It’s that good.
It’s that time of year, folks. The summer blues. The June Gloom. The Dog Days of August. Pick your favorite moniker.
Whether personally or on your team: productivity is about to dip.
People have not taken a vacation in over a year and everybody’s about to do so at the same time. There has been a ton of chatter about “The Great Resignation” that is coming, and I wonder what your company is doing to prepare for or prevent that.
It’s nice out, the world is discovering its “new normal” amidst COVID, the skies are blue, boats are getting revved up, and people want to get out and away from their desks.
It comes in with a vengeance and is fully in your control to make sure you don’t get sucked in too far.
But how do you go about doing that?
Tip number one: lean into it. Accept that it’s going to be harder to stay focused and productive at work when you’re staring out the window beyond your desk looking at how nice it is outside and how much tequila you can drink outside in the backyard while the sun is shining.
Find time to get outside throughout your day and enjoy the sun or else you’ll just feel like a prisoner to your office. Allow yourself to take the dogs for a walk or take calls away from Zoom.
The more you lean into, the better you’ll feel mentally and physically while recharging enough to maintain your focus at work.
Tip number two: figure out what works for you. Are you more productive in the morning? In the afternoon? Do you like to wake up and get outside immediately or jump right into work while listening to music?
Whatever it may be — find out how you operate and don’t pressure yourself to work the way that doesn’t work for you. Accept that your focus will wane and spike.
With remote culture, it’s never been easier to find your work rhythm but simultaneously has made it harder to escape. Don’t fall into that; your mental health comes before anything else.
Tip number three: if you’re managing a team and dealing with the summer blues it’s also on you to encourage people to step away.
Show your employees that you understand what they’re experiencing and switch it up. Some companies adopt ‘Summer Fridays’ or carve Friday out for zero meetings.
Flockblog wrote about no-meeting days allowing employees to achieve states of true ‘flow’ in their workday. With meetings taking up an average of 30%-55% of their time, the more people feel unproductive and bogged down during their day, the more they’ll retreat to needing more freedom.
If you combat that proactively by giving time back in their week to partake in less meetings and also step away from their computer more, the better off employee happiness and work fulfillment will be.
If you’re concerned about sales plummeting along with your team’s productivity, just remember to muscle through. Harvard Business Review wrote an article several years ago linking freedom in the workplace to a 10% or higher increase in revenue so imagine what this could look like in the current climate of COVID and working remotely? Push your employees to take time for themselves away from their desks and watch summer blues dissipate.
Forecast accordingly to make up for the lack of sales during the summer months so that your team doesn’t feel your fear or anxiety in the hardest season for productivity as well.
The summer slump shall pass — now, go get yourself a tequila.
STRETCH SNIPPETS
🤔 Belal Batrawy gives salespeople a quick objection handling tip. He advises when someone says "Send me some more information..." Just be blunt. "No problem. Who do you plan on sharing it with?"
🎬 Execs hate your demo...still. It's just so boring. Says Mark Kosoglow. A demo is a movie, and bad scripts are boring. Here's how to make your demo script a summer blockbuster.
📧 John Barrows sits down with some of the JB Sales team for a very honest conversation on email effectiveness. In this podcast, the team discusses their thoughts on email, how they’re using it to be successful, and offer some tips that will hopefully help you.
🗓 Brian Nordli asks: “Is your daily schedule based on data, or are you shooting from the hip?” How to Turn Your Annual Quota Into a Daily Sales Plan.
🧠 Mindset
Thanks for reading!
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— Grant 👋
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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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