Samurai Business Training – Fifth Session in the Dojo – Why They Buy

You rarely hear anyone say, “I’m going out today to be sold a new car!” Or someone in the office sending out a memo saying, “We need to be sold a new server. Our current server is not sufficient.”

Yes, we have been sold. But if the truth is told, we were planning to buy. So why do prospects buy? Robert Lambert, Sensei of the Samurai Business Group, led as we continued our path to Mastery on the Fifth Day in the Dojo.

So why do people buy from you, me or Bob Lambert? Spoiler alert – because we answer the WIIFM (what’s in it for me) question. That’s it! You’re now trained to sell. Well, maybe not. The hard part is getting to WIIFM.

You get a referral to the CIO of Samurai Aeronautics, LTD. Having completed the Samurai Sales Mastery series you listen intently as the CIO provides the Apparent Reasons for the meeting. The company’s servers are five years old, tech support is non-existent and she is considering either adding additional servers or replacing the entire system.

During the meeting, you uncover the Underlying Causes. A great deal of the CIO’s time is responding to complaints and system problems from aeronautic engineers, office support staff and finally the executive suite. “Not only are our computers slow, but seems like the servers are down more than they’re up.” (PAIN)

You then begin asking a lot of questions. A LOT OF QUESTIONS. “Have you considered integrating additional servers? Can you upgrade your servers working with your current vendor? Are there other systems that can effectively integrate with your current servers?”

As you continue the conversation, Ms. CIO says she has other concerns. There is the projected growth of the company. The future needs for storage, and she can’t store information off site due the security issues. And other members in the “C-Suite” want to not only have the best current technology, but the ability to upgrade in the future. And there are budgetary constraints. (FEAR)

She wants a system that is reliable, secure and easily upgradable, with minimum cost. (GAIN)

As you work through the process of providing the solution, you provide options and alternatives. You research upgrades and costs for her current system. Your firm provides servers that can integrate with her current servers. And your firm will provide easy migration and 24/7 technical support for the entire system – your company’s servers and those currently on site. And using your servers, you can easily expand the system as the company grows.

The WIIFM? She wants to look good in the eyes of the corporate president. Through your work, she does. And you do to!

For further details on the buying model, please contact either Dan Kreutzer or Robert Lambert or visit the Samurai Business Group website.

Spencer Maus, of SpencerConnect, is a senior-level, public relations executive. Samurai Business Group is a client and providing compensation to SpencerConnect.

Samurai Business Training – Fourth Session in the Dojo – The Buying Model

When I was told our next session would cover the “Buying Model,” my visions of a field trip to study to habits of models shopping were soon dashed. Our class would focus on the human decision model, created by J.P. Guilford while at U.C.L.A, and its application to sales.

Dan Kreutzer, Sensei of Samurai Business Group, presented the process of how a prospect buys. Every decision we make is a buying decision. Most of our “buying decisions” are transactional – price, location, ease of purchase, etc. Buying coffee, toothpaste or going to work (if I show up I get paid, if I don’t buying coffee is not an option).

However, the more complex the decision, the longer the process will take. Buying coffee for the office is easy. Selecting a vendor for an ERP system is not.

Typically before meeting, the decision maker will have already identified the issues and consequences of a right or wrong decision. Going with the wrong software program, or the wrong provider, could cost the company profits and the executive her job. And a first meeting may or may not be a part of her discovery process.

No executive will meet with a sales professional, unless she has a real need (or perhaps curiosity) for the products or services that you represent. Even before you’re invited for first meeting or before it takes place, the executive will have researched and compared your company and your competition.

You need to avoid the temptation of a “brain dump” during this meeting. You must listen, ask questions, ask more questions and clarify (this will be a redundant theme). A “brain dump” or “show up and throw up” will immediately put you at a disadvantage. You will appear as an order taker and trust will be nearly impossible to gain.

In a first meeting, the critical issues, or apparent reasons for meeting will be discussed. In that meeting it is imperative to understand the apparent reasons. Ask questions and listen, and more questions, clarify and listen. To gain trust, your role is to help the executive make the right decision – which may not be what your company offers.

As you continue the discovery process with the prospect, you need to help her fully consider alternative solutions, products or perhaps services. Assume for a moment you are a corporate law attorney. A current client comes to you needing assistance with an employment matter. If this is a simple matter, law school training may have prepared you for this situation. If it is a more complex situation, perhaps a claim of sexual harassment by a terminated employee, you may want to bring in a colleague to represent the client.

The discovery “loop” of  Situation Analysis, Self Education / Gathering Information, and Considering Options(exploring alternative solutions) will be repetitive and take longer than the traditional sales models (Feature, Advantage Benefit and even Problem – Solution if done without integrity).

But when you and the prospect reach agreement on the best course of action, or best alternative  (Select “Best Fit” – aka “close”), you will have gained trust, perhaps a client and potentially further opportunities through referrals.

But your job is not finished. The Post Sale Evaluation is as important as the sale. As the solution is being provided, you must remain in contact with your client. Is the process going smoothly? Have there been any unplanned consequences you can address? After one month, six months or one year, you should ask if the product / service has performed as expected, better than expected, not met your expectations? What adjustments need to be made?

Again, the more questions asked, the better you can present alternatives, aid the prospect and make the right decision.

For further details on the buying model, please contact either Dan Kreutzer or Robert Lambert or visit the Samurai Business Group website.

Spencer Maus, of SpencerConnect, is a senior-level, public relations executive. Samurai Business Group is a client and providing compensation to SpencerConnect.