Present
How to Coach and Train Your Sales
Team in the Five Selling Skills
That Can Best Increase Your
Competitive Advantage
Day 2
Questions? You may contact Jim at:
800-526-0074
jim@pancero.com
Name _________________________________________________________________________________
© Copyright 3/2016 Jim Pancero, Inc. Dallas TX
www.pancero.com
ABOUT JIM PANCERO
If you are interested…open… and ready to improve your team’s success, then Jim Pancero has
answers for you. The proven selling philosophies, processes and structures Jim shares all have just
one goal…to increase your personal “Powerhouse Selling Advantage.” The leading-edged ideas Jim
shares have been researched, validated and fine-tuned through his over 30 years influencing and
guiding top performers selling higher priced and/or competitively complex distribution materials,
large equipment, or business services. Jim has conducted extensive work within the agricultural
industry including training over 3,500 John Deere dealer team members in the US and Canada.
Even during a sixty-minute keynote, Jim’s combination of humor and real-world examples
provides even experienced audience members who think they’ve heard it all before and are
convinced there’s nothing new in sales with immediately implementable concepts that work. Jim’s
proven concepts center on showing you ways to strengthen the messaging and positioning of your
uniqueness and value, gaining more control of your selling processes, and strengthening your
leadership team’s abilities to coach and lead in today’s hyper-competitive economy and global
marketplace.
Jim’s background includes being a top performer selling large computer systems for the Data
Processing Division of the IBM Corporation. During Jim's prestigious IBM career he earned several
awards including the coveted "Golden Circle" designation annually awarded to the top 5% of their
international sales force.
Since founding his sales training and consulting company in 1982, Jim has conducted over 3,100
speeches, in-depth seminars or consulting days for more than 600 companies in over 80 different
industries. Over 90% of Jim's clients have utilized his ideas and services more than once. Jim has
also been recognized by the National Speakers Association having earned their CSP (Certified
Speaking Professional) designation and been inducted into their Speakers Hall of Fame. This
combined honor has only been awarded to less than 3% of their 3,500 professional members.
For more on how to increase your competitive selling advantage visit Jim’s www.Pancero.com
website, download his free Apple or Android mobile app, and check out his video clips on
YouTube® (YouTube channel “2Sellmore”).
“We know you’re good. Now the only
question is…are you ready to get
even better?”
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
Page 1
UID
HOW STRONG ARE YOUR SELLING SKILLS?
(Without looking ahead in your workbook)
Skill #1 – Sales consistency and professionalism
Test #1 - Write down the steps of a sales call:
Skill #2 – Thinking and planning multiple moves ahead selling new
business
Test #2 - List the steps of your multiple-stepped “Identify to close” selling process you follow
going after new business (within a prospect or existing customer)
Identify
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
Close
Page 2
UID
HOW STRONG ARE YOUR SELLING SKILLS?
(Without looking ahead in your workbook) Continued
Skill #3 – Thinking and planning multiple moves ahead with your support
of your most important customers
Test #3 - List the activities or efforts you have planned to support and grow your most
important customer over the next twelve months
Skill #4 – Connecting within your most important accounts
Test #4 - Identify your plan to get higher, wider and deeper within your largest and most
important customers
-
Higher - Up to the top customer executives
Wider - Getting to others that are impacted by your product or services
Deeper - Talking with front line operators or users
Skill #5 – Communicating a stronger message of competitive positioning,
value and uniqueness
Test #5 - Write down the major bullet points you would explain answering a prospect or
customer asking “Why, based on all the competitive alternatives available to me do I want to
buy from you?”
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
Page 3
UID
PROGRAM AGENDA
Section I – How to strengthen the “selling best practices” of your sales team
Section II – Improving Your Team’s Operational Selling Skills
- Improving your personal selling skills and persuasive structures
- Test #1 – Write down the steps of a sales call
Section III – Increasing Your Team’s Tactical Selling Skills
- Increasing your customer control and future-focused account planning
- Test #2 - List the steps of your multiple-stepped “Identify to close” selling process
you follow going after new business (within a prospect or existing
customer)
- Test #3 - List the activities or efforts you have planned to support and grow your
most important customer over the next twelve months
- Test #4 - Identify your plan to get higher, wider and deeper within your largest
and most important customers
Section IV – Strengthening Your Team’s Strategic Selling Skills
- Strengthening your team’s ability to communicate a stronger message of
competitive positioning, value and uniqueness
- Test #5 - Write down the major bullet points you would explain answering a
prospect or customer asking “Why, based on all the competitive
alternatives available to me do I want to buy from you?”
Section V - Suggested “Next Best Steps”
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
Page 4
UID
SECTION I
How to Strengthen the “Selling Best
Practices” of Your Sales Team
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
Page 5
UID
SELLING ‘BEST PRACTICES’
Intuitive
Structural
Reactive
Proactive
'Only One Move
Ahead' Focused
Selling
Planned 'MultiStepped' Selling
Strategies
'Memories of
Customers'
Control of
Customer
Information
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
Page 6
UID
SELLING SKILLS REQUIRED FOR SELLING SUCCESS
Strategic
Focus and Positioning
 Communicating your philosophy and market position
 Test #5 – Answering the question "why, based on all of the competitive
alternatives available to me, do i want to buy from you?"
Tactical
Tools and Controls
 How to utilize the rest of your team in your selling process
 Test #4 – How to call "higher and wider" within a customer's organization
 Test #3 – Understanding and controlling your “January 1st to December 31st”
existing customer support plans
 Test #2 – Understanding and controlling your new business "id to close" selling
process
Operational
Skills and Abilities
 Test #1 – Steps of a sales call
 Personality awareness skills ("Why people buy")
 Product and industry knowledge
Attitude & Energy
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
Page 7
UID
INCREASING YOUR SELLING SKILLS
- What to expect from strengthened strategic selling skills
- The ability of your sales team to sell at higher margins because they
understand you are not in a price driven market
- The ability to answer persuasively a customer asking them “why, based on all
the alternatives available to me do I want to buy from you?”
- What to expect from strengthened tactical selling skills
- Sales professionals planning their daily and weekly activities or travel
schedules in advance and in a logical way that is visible to everyone
within your sales team.
- Sales professionals better able to answer where any customer currently is and
what they have planned to maintain or grow their business
- Sales professionals being more proactive and initiating competitive protection
activities sooner and with a higher degree of effectiveness
- More ongoing new business prospecting efforts
- What to expect from strengthened operational selling skills
- A more consistent and persuasive sales professional able to handle a wider
range of customers, their concerns, their needs and expectations.
- A sales team who will come across to your customers as more customer
focused, more professional and of more value than your competition.
- What to expect from strengthened attitude and energy selling skills
- A sales team who has earned customer's loyalty due to their proven professionalism,
values, and commitment to helping.
- A more energized, excited and harder working sales professional.
- A "coachable" sales team open to your suggestions and guidance.
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
Page 8
UID
SECTION II
Improving Your Team’s Operational
Selling Skills
Improving your personal selling skills and persuasive structures
Skill #1 – Sales Consistency and Professionalism
Test #1 – Write down the Steps of a Sales Call
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
Page 9
UID
SKILL #1 – SALES CONSISTENCY AND PROFESSIONALISM
Test #1 – Write down the steps of a sales call
- Mastering (and utilizing) the steps of a sales call…
- Increases your control, consistency and organization of your sales calls
- Increases your ability to complete a successful sales call even when given only a few
minutes
- Steps of a sales call gives you control
- Control gives you calmness (even under pressure)
- Calmness gives you professionalism and the ability to successfully
complete your sales call
- If you ignore or are unaware of the steps of a sales call
- Some sales calls will go well, but others will “crash & burn”
- You will appear unfocused, unorganized or scattered in your thought processes
- Your sales call will fall apart if you receive any resistance or objections
- You will likely not leave yourself a reason or excuse to return and continue calling
- Ideas to help you evaluate your team’s mastery of the steps of a sales call
1) Ride with your sales reps to observe how they handle a sales call (did they follow
the steps?)
- You will likely observe a lack of control or consistency in the steps they follow on
a sales call
2) In a sales meeting ask your sales reps to write down the steps of a sales call they are
using
- Most cannot complete the exercise having little written down
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
Page 10
UID
STEPS OF A SALES CALL
1st - Lower resistance
2nd - Ask questions and qualify
- ID customer needs.
- Learn/understand their environment.
- Qualify the relevance and appropriateness of your solution.
3rd - Present your solution
4th - Close
- Where do we go from here?
- What happens now?
- What do we need to do next?
5th - Agree to your next contact
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
Page 11
UID
THE THREE MOST CONSISTENT SELLING WEAKNESSES FACED BY ALL SALES
PROFESSIONALS
Weakness #1 – Sales people without control of their steps of a sales call will talk too much
of the time in front of customers
- What percent of a sales call do you talk vs listen?
- Most sales calls are interactive, but the sales person still does as much as 90% of the
talking
- Customer asks a 5 second question “Why are you so expensive?”
- Sales person provides a 10 minute response
- Take a test – Next time you are making a sales call over the telephone record your side of
the conversation on your cell phone. You don’t need to record your customer, just
assume any silence on your recording was when your customer was talking. Go
back afterward with a stop watch and record what percent of your call you talked
versus listened
- What do you think would be the best persuasive balance of you, the sales person talking
compared to your customer talking?
________ % sales person talking / ________ % customer talking
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
Page 12
UID
THE THREE MOST CONSISTENT SELLING WEAKNESSES FACED BY ALL SALES
PROFESSIONALS
Weakness #2 – A sales person without control of their steps of a sales call will collapse
under pressure and only present/talk
- Pressures caused by:
- Selling pressures
- Relationship pressures
- Time pressures
- Competitive pressures
- Environmental pressures
- A sales person without control of their steps of a sales call will forget about lowering
resistance and asking questions and will only talk…sometimes not even asking for
an order or next contact
- How would you handle a customer saying “You’ve got five minutes…what do you
want?”
- The impact of selling under pressure without selling structures.
Sales professional in control and
using their steps of a sales call
Sales professional without control
of their steps of a sales call
1st – Lower resistance
2nd – Questions and qualify
3rd – Present
4th – Ask for the order
5th – Agree to and/or set up next
contact
Will show a visual of a collapsed steps
with only the word “Present” in really
large letters.
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
Page 13
UID
THE THREE MOST CONSISTENT SELLING WEAKNESSES FACED BY ALL SALES
PROFESSIONALS
Weakness #3 – All sales people are using the same steps…even the high pressure
“Slime Balls”
- The problem…they are using the exact same steps of a sales call you are using
- The difference between the most ethical customer-focused sales professionals and the
highest pressured “slime balls” is in how they apply the steps of a sales call
"Slime Balls" sell by talking and "pitching"
1st – Lower resistance
2nd – Questions and
qualify
___________________________________________________
< 25% Asking
> 75% Talking
© Copyright 3/2016
3rd – Present
4th – Ask for the order
5th – Agree/Set up next
contact
Jim Pancero, Inc.
"Low Pressure Selling Professionals" sell
by asking and listening
> 75% Asking
1st – Lower resistance
2nd – Questions and
qualify
____________________________________________________________________________
< 25% Talking
Page 14
3rd – Present
4th – Ask for the order
5th – Agree/Set up next
contact
UID
HOW TO GET MORE HELP WITH THE STEPS OF A SALES CALL
- This is the easiest skill to receive help for your team
- Do a search on “Steps of a sales call”
- Google search generates over 68 million hits
- YouTube search generates over 100,000 free videos
- Check out local sales training organizations
- Franchised businesses such as Sandler Systems and Dale Carnegie
- Local independent sales consultants and trainers
- Whatever training resources you utilize, make sure they are not teaching a higher
pressure style of selling and are teaching a selling process (ending with setting up
your next contact) instead of a selling event (ending with asking for the order)
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
Page 15
UID
SECTION III
Improving Your Team’s
Tactical Selling Skills
Increasing Your Customer Control and Future-Focused Account
Planning
Skill #2 – Thinking and Planning Multiple Moves
Ahead Selling New Business
Test #2 – List the steps of your multiple-stepped “Identify to Close”
selling process you follow going after new business (within a
prospect or existing customer)
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
Page 16
UID
SKILL #2 – THINKING AND PLANNING MULTIPLE MOVES AHEAD SELLING
NEW BUSINESS
Test #2 - List the steps of your multiple-stepped “Identify to close” selling process
you follow going after new business (within a prospect or existing customer)
Mastering (and utilizing) the steps of your “Identify to Close” selling process
- Increases your control and effectiveness selling new business to either a prospect or
existing customer
- Allows a sales rep (and their team) to predict and anticipate customer buying
expectations and needs
- Allows for the entire sales team to learn (and improve their “ID to Close” selling process)
from the successes and losses of the rest of the team
- If you ignore or are unaware of the steps of your “Identify to Close” selling process
- You will be constantly surprised by the demands of your buyer or the selling efforts
of your competition
- You will be outsold and will lose more business (if your competitors are thinking and
planning more moves ahead than you are)
- You will slow your selling process down (and waste a lot of time) by not knowing what
to do or suggest as a next step to your buyer
- Ideas to help you evaluate your team’s mastery of the steps of your “Identify to Close”
selling process
1) Drawing this visual, ask each sales rep to write down the steps they have been
following from the time they identify a new selling opportunity until they have a
signed order
Identify
Close
- Expect to learn few (if any) sales reps are thinking or planning multiple moves ahead
with their selling efforts and instead just keep repeating a "next best step"
approach to selling
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
Page 17
UID
SUGGESTED SELLING PROCESS FOR A TRADITIONAL SUPPLIES DISTRIBUTOR
Step 1 – Set up, Positioning and Establishing an Appointment
- Identify Potential Selling “Success Factors”
Step 2 - Initial Sales Call, Plant Tour & ID of “Next Best” Application to Promote
- Can you position your customer’s evaluation/decision process by recommending
your four questions?
1. What’s my total cost?
2, Can you support me?
3. How much risk am I taking doing business with you?
4. How will you help me improve my business?
- What step are you on as an organization?
1st – Decide pain
2nd – Decide direction
3rd – Decide solutions
4th – Decide vendors
5th – Decide process
Step 3 - Do More Research/Positioning and get “Higher wider & deeper”
Step 4 - Proposal Positioning & delivery
Step 5 – Justify Your “Higher Price – Lower Total Cost” Philosophy
- Have you walked your customer through the ROI of buying from you?
Step 1 – “Apples to apples” (Are we talking the same products and specs?)
Step 2 – Prove “Hard Savings” (Can be quantified and validated)
Step 3 – Prove “Soft Savings” (Not as quantified and harder to validate)
Step 4 – Explain your “Insurance Policy” (Can’t quantify or prove the savings
of this point…but it is important to the buyer)
Close is to say…”For only $xx/month (or unit or assembly) you get all of this
extra coverage and protection”
Step 6 – Post sale support to identify and position your next application solution
Step 7 – Evaluate, Adjust & Prepare For Your Next Sale
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
Page 18
UID
HOW TO GET MORE HELP WITH THE STEPS TO YOUR "IDENTIFY TO CLOSE"
SELLING PROCESS
- This is one of the toughest sales training topics to get help since few sales trainers or
publishers understand or teach the tactical skills of thinking and planning multiple
moves ahead
- The majority of the selling industry thinks of "steps of the selling process" as the steps of
a sales call…not the steps of a multiple sales call selling process
- The first two pages of website listings for a Google search of "Steps of the selling
process" only shows definitions of the steps of a single call and talks
nothing about how to manage or sell through a multiple sales call selling
process (the reality of the majority of distribution and manufacturing sales)
- Meet with your team to discuss and debate the multiple-stepped selling processes
included in this workbook
- Work with your team to define your own unique "Identify to Close" multiple stepped
selling process
- Even a weak plan is better than no plan
- Actively coach and lead your team through the planning and implementation of these
steps
- The more you try to follow the steps of your defined selling process, the more
feedback you will receive that will adjust and improve your stepped selling
plan
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
Page 19
UID
Improving Your Team’s
Tactical Selling Skills
Increasing Your Customer Control and Future-Focused Account
Planning
Skill #3 – Thinking and Planning Multiple Moves
Ahead With Your Support of Your Most
Important Customers
Test #3 – List the activities or efforts you have planned to support
and grow your most important customer over the next twelve
months
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
Page 20
UID
SKILL #3 – THINKING AND PLANNING MULTIPLE MOVES AHEAD WITH YOUR
SUPPORT OF YOUR MOST IMPORTANT CUSTOMERS
Test #3 - List the activities or efforts you have planned to support and grow your most
important customer over the next twelve months
1/1
12/31
- Mastering (and utilizing) a multiple-stepped plan to maintain and grow your most
important customers
- Increases your customer's loyalty and satisfaction with you and your company
- Provides a great response when a buyer asks "What have you done for me lately?"
- Provides a support plan that can be understood (and supported) by your entire sales
and support team
- Customer support and inside sales teams can provide better customer support
when they understand what you, as the sales rep, are trying to accomplish
or achieve with a customer
- If you ignore or have no multiple-stepped plan to maintain and grow your most
important customers
- Your most important customers will likely see less value, or uniqueness in you and your
company opening you up to lower priced competitive threats
- Your customers will treat you more like a vendor than a trusted advisor
- Without a plan you will likely just keep repeating the same sales call to a customer
asking them (in the same order every time):
- "Anything you need?"
- "Anything coming up?"
- "Anything I can help with?"
- "How's the family?"
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
Page 21
UID
SKILL #3 – THINKING AND PLANNING MULTIPLE MOVES AHEAD WITH YOUR
SUPPORT OF YOUR MOST IMPORTANT CUSTOMERS
- Ideas to help you evaluate your team’s mastery of a multiple-stepped plan to maintain
and grow your most important customers
1) Drawing this visual, ask each sales rep to write down everything they have planned for
their most important customer over the next twelve months that will help
maintain and grow their business
1/1
12/31
- Expect to hear three sets of responses from your sales reps:
1st – "This is how often I call on this account"
- But only solving problems and asking the same four questions of:
- "Anything you need?”
- “Anything coming up?”
- "Anything I can help with?"
- “How's the family?"
2nd – "This is the social activity I have planned with this customer to
strengthen our relationship"
3rd – "The only efforts I have planned are the things I plan to
personally do"
- Notice no efforts being done by the rest of your team will be
part of their list or plans
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
Page 22
UID
WHERE ARE YOUR CUSTOMER’S SUPPORT LEVELS NOW?
- Write down the five best “things” your customer services team are doing now to
contribute to your customer’s experience
1. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
4. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
5. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
- The four levels of customer service
4. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
1. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________
- The evolution of customer service and support as a competitive advantage
1st – (Oldest) – Service based on responsiveness
2nd – Service based on preventative efforts
3rd – (Newest) – Service based on predictive efforts
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
Page 23
UID
WHERE DO YOUR CUSTOMERS SEE YOU?
Trusted Advisor
- Increasing customer order size and loyalty
Business Growth and Profit Generator
- Offering new ideas and suggestions
PROACTIVE
REACTIVE
"Specials" Presenter
- Covering as many "special deals" as possible
Order Taker / Problem Solver
- Taking care of your customer's problems
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
Page 24
UID
WHAT EXTRA "WOW" EFFORTS CAN YOU OFFER YOUR MOST IMPORTANT
CUSTOMERS?
- Customers do not tend to remember reactive service and support efforts (unless there
was a problem)
- Invest in your most important customers by offering or initiating efforts to help
- Your proactive selling efforts will separate you from your competitors
- Helps improve a customer's overall satisfaction and loyalty
- Gives you an excuse to get "Higher, wider and deeper" within your account
- What can you offer or suggest to provide extra value to your most important customers?
- In-house safety or skill training for their workers
- Personal contact (phone or face-to-face) with your senior leadership
- Senior management asking "What kind of job are we doing for you?" and "What
can we do to make it even better?"
- When your customer's business is significantly smaller than yours, offer free business
training seminars or consulting conversations with your corporate experts
- How to make more money (or lower your costs) in your business
- HR or management organizational issues
- Participation in special projects looking for new opportunities or efficiencies
- Arranging a private meeting with your support team to discuss how you can improve
your support and make working with you easier
- Attended by your sales manager, outside sales rep, inside sales rep(s), service or
warehouse manager
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
Page 25
UID
SUGGESTED ACCOUNT PLANNING COACHING SESSION AGENDA
1) History (Brief time)
- “What’s been happening?”
- “What’s the latest?”
2) “Crisis” and transactional closing problems (Brief time)
- “What’s it going to take to close this business?”
- “What’s it going to take to solve this problem?”
3) Review and discuss planned actions with your selected account
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
To whom are you talking?
What equipment/products do they currently have?
What additional equipment/products do you think they will need?
What other competitors do you expect to be going after this business?
Who do you think you should be strengthening your relationship with at this account?
How do you plan to position our company’s philosophies and messaging with this
customer?
7. What is your 90-day plan to work to win this business?
8. What can you do to increase your competitive advantage with this account?
9. What else can you do to get your profitability up on this sale/proposal?
10. How can you best position our higher price?
4) Recap and summarize identified action plans and completion deadlines
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
Page 26
UID
ACCOUNT PLANNING FORM - Page 1 of 4 - Where we are now
Account Name: ______________________________________________
1. Important top contacts you have already met:
Status - Champion (and supporter of your company)
- Friend (of your company)
- Neutral (toward any company)
- Biased (toward another company)
- Unknown (where they stand)
Name
______________________________
Job Title
_________________________
Status
______
______________________________
_________________________
______
______________________________
_________________________
______
______________________________
_________________________
______
2. Current products used:
Products
______________
Quantity
Part #
_________ ______________
Date first purchased
_________________________
______________
_________ ______________
_________________________
______________
_________ ______________
_________________________
3. Products requested by customer or expected to be proposed
Products
______________
Quantity
______________
Why?
_________________________
Expected
Delivery
_________
______________
______________
_________________________
_________
______________
______________
_________________________
_________
4. Who else do we expect will be proposing?
Competitor
Strengths
Weaknesses
______________
_________________________
__________________________
______________
_________________________
__________________________
______________
_________________________
__________________________
5. Who currently has the competitive advantage to win this business?
_____________________________________________________________________
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Jim Pancero, Inc.
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UID
ACCOUNT PLANNING FORM - Page 2 of 4 - Where we want to go
Account Name: ______________________________________________
6. Most Important top contacts still want/need to meet:
Importance
- Critical (to us winning this business)
- Important (to us winning this business)
- Positive (for us to be talking with them)
- Unknown (what their real impact will be on their final decision to buy)
Name
______________________________
Job Title
_________________________
Status
______
______________________________
_________________________
______
______________________________
_________________________
______
______________________________
_________________________
______
7. Our current competitive strengths and weaknesses with this customer:
Strengths
Weaknesses
_____________________________
____________________________________
_____________________________
____________________________________
_____________________________
____________________________________
8. How we plan to position our company and our philosophies and messaging with
this customer:
Our selling message ______________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
9. Key goals we want to accomplish with this customer
Goal #1 _________________________________________________________
Goal #2 _________________________________________________________
Goal #3 _________________________________________________________
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
Page 28
UID
ACCOUNT PLANNING FORM - Page 3 of 4 - How we plan to win this business
Your planned selling strategy with this customer
Selling “to-do’s” and action plans to win this business
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
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UID
Sales Professional: ___________________________________________
Account Planning Form For Existing Accounts – Page 4 of 4
Account Name__________________________
1st Quarter
2nd Quarter
Date Prepared ___________
3rd Quarter
4th Quarter
Account Growth
Plan
- New products to
propose
Contact Growth
Plan
- Existing accounts
- New contacts
- New locations
Business/Executive
Review & Growth
Planning
Introduce New
Products and
Technologies
Executive
Involvement
Social
Entertainment
Customer Service
Reviews
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
Page 30
UID
HOW TO GET MORE HELP WITH YOUR MULTIPLE-STEPPED PLAN TO
MAINTAIN AND GROW YOUR MOST IMPORTANT CUSTOMERS
- This is also a challenging sales training topics to get help since few sales trainers or
publishers understand or teach the tactical skills of thinking and planning multiple
moves ahead
- Lead your team in a discussion of what you can do that will have the most value and
impact on your important customers
- Could be done for all customers
- Could be done for all of your most important customers
- Could be done (and of value) to just one of your important customers
- The key to this planning effort is to identify ideas and areas you can suggest and initiate
with a customer that they will find of interest and value
- Goal is to prove your interest, support and value to this customer
- How will you help them: (The Four Core Values)
- Lower their risk?
- Make their lives or work easier?
- Increase their profitability (or lower their total costs)?
- Increase their competitive advantage?
- Look to other industries for creative ideas
- How can you involve other members of your support team and upper management?
- Include these ideas and plans in your account planning efforts
- These types of proactive efforts will only continue to occur with involved
management coaching and multiple-stepped account planning
- Organize your year into selling campaigns
- One campaign cycle is long enough for a sales rep to talk with all of his/her important
accounts (Most selling campaigns are four weeks long)
- During each campaign each sales rep will talk about those ideas to as many of their
customers as possible as they make their normal sales calls in their territory
- Have a maximum of two ideas highlighted in any campaign
- One campaign idea focuses on how to better use, or get more value out of your
products/services
- One campaign idea is to help improve your customer's business that doesn't
necessarily require them to buy your products to take advantage of your
idea or suggestion
- Work with your team to plan and prepare multiple campaigns in advance
- What literature or support material will be needed to support this selling
campaign?
- What additional information or training does our sales team need for this
selling campaign?
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
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Improving Your Team’s
Tactical Selling Skills
Increasing Your Customer Control and Future-Focused Account
Planning
Skill #4 – Connecting Within Your Most
Important Accounts
Test #4 – Identify your plan to get higher, wider and deeper within
your largest and most important customers
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
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SKILL #4 – CONNECTING WITHIN YOUR MOST IMPORTANT ACCOUNTS
Test #4 - Identify your plan to get higher, wider and deeper
within your largest and most important customers
- Getting “Higher, Wider and Deeper”
- “Higher” - Calling on more senior managers or company executives
- “Wider” - Calling to other departments or users who are impacted by your products or
services
- “Deeper” - Calling on the front line operators or users of your products or services
- Getting "Higher, Wider and Deeper" within an account
- Potentially opens up additional business opportunities because of your conversations
with a wider range of people within your customer account
- Increases your competitive advantage (reducing competitive threats) because you have
a wider range of people aware and interested in your company and products
- Improves your customer service opportunities by receiving feedback from a wider range
of connections at your important customers
- If you ignore or make no effort to get "Higher, Wider and Deeper"
- How many of your accounts are "One car wreck" away from you losing the business (or
having it put out to competitive bid)?
- The "Car wreck" sales test – "Did you hear the news? Your main buyer contact at your
most important account was just killed in a car wreck…will you still keep the
business?"
- The average distribution sales rep has over 50% of their accounts exposed due to
them only calling and being connected with a single buying contact at their
customer
- You expose yourself and your company to an "end run" where your competitor
convinces other departments or more senior executives on the value and
uniqueness of doing business with them instead of you
- Ideas to help your team get "Higher, Wider and Deeper"
1) Look for exposed accounts where a sales rep has not successfully gotten "Higher, Wider
and Deeper"
- Put those customers or prospects through your account planning coaching to
identify plans to correct this situation
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
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ADJUSTING YOUR LANGUAGE AND SELLING MESSAGE TO YOUR BUYER
Owner/CEO Level
STRATEGIC LEVEL
(Proactive)
“How will this help me improve our brand,
profitability or market share?”
Direction, profitability, growth
and market share
Vice President Level
“How will this help me improve our
performance, profitability or effectiveness?”
Department Head Level
“How will this help me improve my
department’s budget, performance or quality?”
TACTICAL LEVEL
Department profitability, budget,
tracking, product and quality
improvement
Manager Level
“How will this help my team by making their
job simpler, faster or lower cost?”
Worker Level
“How will this make my job easier or improve
the quality of what I do?”
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
OPERATIONAL LEVEL
(Reactive)
Maintaining productivity
and quality
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HOW TO GET MORE HELP GETTING YOUR SALES TEAM "HIGHER, WIDER AND
DEEPER" WITHIN THEIR MOST IMPORTANT CUSTOMERS
- This is best handled as an account planning and sales coaching opportunity
- Include discussions about how to get "Higher, Wider and Deeper" within all of your
account planning discussions
- Getting "Higher, Wider and Deeper" does not happen naturally within an account
relationship
- It takes creative planning and selling to get around or above a main buyer
- Ideas to help your team get "Higher, Wider and Deeper"
1) Never go around a buyer…take them with you
- They will need to see the value to them in you getting higher, wider and deeper
than just calling on them
- Use the four core values (How can you help lower this buyers risk, make
their life easier, help them save money or increase their competitive
edge?)
2) Change your message
- The higher up you go within a company the more your language and focus of
discussion will change
3) Have a reason to meet them
- "Just wanted a chance to meet you and introduce myself" just tends to irritate
customers
- Great reasons to get a few minutes in front of senior customer management
- Explaining a new industry direction (and its impact on their business,
profitability or usage)
- Significant new industry technologies, products or services that can
dramatically impact this customer, their business and profitability
4) Use your senior managers
- The easiest way to get a meeting with customer senior management is when "My
senior manager would like to meet with your senior manager to discuss
how we can be of more value and assistance to you and your company"
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
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SECTION IV
Strengthening Your Team’s Strategic
Selling Skills
Strengthening your team’s ability to communicate a stronger
message of competitive positioning, value and uniqueness
Skill #5 – Communicating a Stronger Message of
Competitive Positioning, Value and Uniqueness
Test #5 – Write down the major bullet points you would explain
when answering a prospect or customer who asks, “Why, based on
all the competitive alternatives available to me do I want to buy
from you?”
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
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SKILL #5 – COMMUNICATING A STRONGER MESSAGE OF COMPETITIVE
POSITIONING, VALUE AND UNIQUENESS
Test #5 - Write down the major bullet points you would explain when answering a
prospect or customer who asks, “Why, based on all the competitive alternatives available
to me do I want to buy from you?”
- Mastering (and utilizing) a consistent message of competitive uniqueness and value
- Increases the consistency and persuasiveness of your sales team by having a brief and
effective message of why you are unique and have more value
- Helps you sell more at higher prices
- The more of a differential in value you can communicate, the higher a price
buyers will pay (compared to your competition)
- Helps provide a common message or focus for all employees to work to fulfill for your
customers
- If you ignore or have no consistent message of uniqueness and value
- Inconsistent performance results from the sales team due to each sales person
communicating a different message of value and reasons to buy from them
- Sales people will be promising support the rest of your team doesn't know about or is
able to fulfill.
- The weaker your message of uniqueness and value, then the weaker your competitive
advantage and justification to win the business at anything other than the lowest
price
- Ideas to help you evaluate your team’s mastery of your message of uniqueness and value
1) Ask your sales team to write down the major bullets they would cover if a prospect or
customer asked them "Why, based on all the competitive alternatives available to
me, would I want to buy from you and your company?"
2) (After everyone has written down their answer) build a list on the board of everyone's
answers
- Notice how 1) everyone has different answers and 2) Few of the responses are
actually of value or unique from what your competition is already saying
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
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DO YOU HAVE A STRONG STRATEGIC MESSAGE OF
COMPETITIVE UNIQUENESS?
- How are you answering the question, “Why based on all of the competitive
alternatives available to me, do i want to buy from you?”
1. ____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
2. ___________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
3. ___________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
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THE FOUR CONSISTENT PROBLEMS WITH A SALES TEAM’S
MESSAGE OF UNIQUENESS
Problem #1 – Everyone’s Saying the Same Thing…
- Four most common answers:
- “Our high quality products or services”
- “Our strong level of support”
- “Our competitive prices”
- “You get me”
Problem #2 – Everyone Has Different Answers (when they aren’t saying
the four same points).
- How many different responses did your team generate?
Problem #3 – Sales Reps Only Talk About Themselves.
- Give your answers the X’s and O’s test…
- “X” out every time you say “us,” “we,” “our,” your name, your
company name or your product/service names
- “O” circle every time you say “you,” “your,” or mention the customer
by name or use their company name
- What is your balance of “X’s” to “O’s”?
Problem #4 – Your Answers Assume You Are Alone in the World.
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
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USING THE “FOUR CORE VALUES” ON A DAILY BASIS TO INCREASE YOUR
COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE
- Focus On Core Values, Not Just Product Intangibles.
- Why do your customers really buy?
- The closer you identify to your customer's core values, the stronger
your position of uniqueness.
- Positioning Your Product vs. Your Competitors.
- How Can You Incorporate the Four Most Critical Core Values Into Your
Selling Message?
- “Lower my risk”
- “Make my life or work easier”
- “Lower my total costs or increase my profitability”
- “Increase my competitive advantage”
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
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THE EVOLUTION OF A COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE
Connectivity
& Info Control
Speed, simplicity
& ease of doing
business
Brand
Service
Products
Location/Proximity
BOOMERS
Most Value
MILLENNIALS
Most Value
Connectivity
& Info
Control
Connectivity
& Info
Control
Speed, simplicity
& ease of doing
business
Speed, simplicity
& ease of doing
business
Brand
© Copyright 3/2016
Brand
Service
Service
Products
Products
Location/Proximity
Location/Proximity
Jim Pancero, Inc.
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UID
TEN STEPS TO STRENGTHENING YOUR TEAM’S MESSAGE OF
COMPETITIVE UNIQUENESS
Step 1 – Agreement - You are not in a price driven market.
- All markets are value focused. You increase your ability to win against lower priced
competitors by increasing your value and uniqueness – not by dropping your
prices.
- Your goal is to communicate how you are not the lowest price…but can prove how
and why you are the lowest total cost for your buyers.
Step 2 – Identification - Your uniqueness and competitive edge will no longer likely come
from your products, but from your support organization to help your
customers increase their utilization and ease of using your products.
Step 3 – Build a team list - on a flip chart pad or white board, of the major points to
answer a customer or prospect asking you, “Why, based on all the
competitive alternatives available to me do I want to buy from you?”
Step 4 – Put your completed “Why buy” list through the four consistent problems or tests
of your uniqueness message.
- This proves to your team how and why their current responses need to be strengthened
and improved.
Step 5 – Discuss the “Four Core Values” and how they apply to your organization.
- To prove these core values fit all buying opportunities ask your team to identify any
terms on their “Why buy” list that do not tie directly into at least one of the four
core values.
Step 6 – Discuss as a team how you can repackage your value and uniqueness into one
consistent message delivered by all members of your team.
- Once you develop your new message do not put it in print, in a brochure or on your
website so you can keep your message away from your competitors
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
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TEN STEPS TO STRENGTHENING YOUR TEAM’S MESSAGE OF
COMPETITIVE UNIQUENESS...
Step 7 – Test your message to insure you are moving in the correct direction.
1st - Share your new message with some of your best customers (“We’ve been
working to clarify why others would want to buy from us…do you think our new
message accurately describes our competitive value and uniqueness?”).
2nd - Share your new message with prospects (“We’ve always described our uniqueness
and value based on…”).
3rd - Start sharing your new message with everyone your distributorship talks to, either
existing or new.
Step 8 – Discuss your expectations of how much of your message you expect each member
of your team to be able to communicate.
- Sales people – all message levels.
- All managers – at least the first two levels.
- Service and support people (including your drivers) – at least the first level.
Step 9 – Work with all members of your team to learn and consistently communicate your
new message of value and uniqueness to all prospects and customers.
Step 10 – Monitor your customers and competitors to insure your message continues
to accurately communicate your competitive value and uniqueness.
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
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UID
SECTION V
Suggested “Next Best Steps”
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
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KEYS TO COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE AND INCREASED SALES
1) Strong response to “Why buy from you?” consistently delivered by your entire team.
2) Defined (and coached to) “Selling Process Best Practices.”
- “ID to Close” new business selling process.
- “1/1 to 12/31” processes to support your best customers.
- Operational “Steps of a Sales Call” and “personality flexibility” skills.
3) Proactive “Selling Process” coaching to all team members.
- One hour a week, (for each assigned sales person), discussing “Future Focused” account
and territory planning and strategy.
- Free up time to coach.
- Each sales person prepares written plan for his or her five most important accounts.
- Break up the year into 2-4 month selling campaigns.
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
Page 45
UID
APPLYING THE SIX PHILOSOPHIES OF SUCCESSFUL
SALES COACHING

Be Proactive
 Be Tactical
“Can I stop reacting and start
initiating?”
“Am I following
my multi-stepped
selling process?”
 Be Strategic
 Think Multiple Moves Ahead
 Be Politically Aware
 Be Value Focused
© Copyright 3/2016
Jim Pancero, Inc.
“Have I communicated my
value and uniqueness?”
“Can I think and plan
more moves ahead?”
“Can I get ‘higher, wider, and
deeper’ with my customers?”
“Am I selling ‘lowest total cost’
instead of lowest price?”
Page 46
UID
VISIT PANCERO.COM TO ENHANCE YOUR
SALES AND SALES MANAGEMENT TRAINING
- Blog Articles for Sales Pros and Sales Managers to
help you with In-House training. Each article has a
"Print & PDF" button that will format the article for
your printer or create a PDF, your choice.
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to while on the go, can be played from your phone or
tablet. http://www.pancero.com/videos-audios-
evaluations/
- Videos - Watch training videos from Jim. Sales and
Sales Management topics are covered, including new
videos covering SWAT Team Selling and more
coming so bookmark the site.
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that, if improved, could most help you increase your selling abilities. www.pancero.com/sales-evaluation
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improve your leadership success. www.pancero.com/sales-leadership-evaluation
Both tests can be taken multiple times to see how your skills are increasing and all tests results
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Jim Pancero, Inc.
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