# Revenue Inside Out
> Practical guides and ideas for SaaS companies to faster revenue growth with a scientific approach to sales & marketing funnels, tech automation, and sales team processes.
Public Ghost content for AI and LLM tooling. This file includes a bounded export of public pages first, then recent public posts.
Append `.md` to any post or page URL to get the content in Markdown (for example, `/example-post.md`).
## Pages
### Account
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/account/
Last updated: 2022-11-05T14:22:15.000Z
_No content available._
### Sign-up
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/signup/
Last updated: 2022-06-28T12:35:24.000Z
_No content available._
### Sign-in
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/signin/
Last updated: 2022-06-28T12:36:05.000Z
_No content available._
### Privacy Policy
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/privacy-policy/
Last updated: 2022-07-01T09:52:38.000Z
Effective date: 01 Jul 2022.
Revenue Inside Out ("us", "we", or "our") operates the www.revenueinsideout.com website (hereinafter referred to as the "Service").
This page informs you of our policies regarding the collection, use, and disclosure of personal data when you use our Service and the choices you have associated with that data.
We use your data to provide and improve the Service. By using the Service, you agree to the collection and use of information in accordance with this policy. Unless otherwise defined in this Privacy Policy, the terms used in this Privacy Policy have the same meanings as in our Terms and Conditions, accessible from www.revenueinsideout.com
**Definitions**
Service :
Service is the www.revenueinsideout.com website operated by Revenue Inside Out
Personal Data :
Personal Data means data about a living individual who can be identified from those data (or from those and other information either in our possession or likely to come into our possession).
Usage Data :
Usage Data is data collected automatically either generated by the use of the Service or from the Service infrastructure itself (for example, the duration of a page visit).
Cookies :
Cookies are small files stored on your device (computer or mobile device).
**Information Collection and Use**
We collect several different types of information for various purposes to provide and improve our Service to you.
Types of Data Collected :
Personal Data
While using our Service, we may ask you to provide us with certain personally identifiable information that can be used to contact or identify you ("Personal Data"). Personally identifiable information may include, but is not limited to:
Email address
First name and last name
Phone number
Address, State, Province, ZIP/Postal code, City
Cookies and Usage Data
Usage Data
We may also collect information how the Service is accessed and used ("Usage Data"). This Usage Data may include information such as your computer's Internet Protocol address (e.g. IP address), browser type, browser version, the pages of our Service that you visit, the time and date of your visit, the time spent on those pages, unique device identifiers and other diagnostic data.
Tracking & Cookies Data
We use cookies and similar tracking technologies to track the activity on our Service and we hold certain information.
Cookies are files with a small amount of data which may include an anonymous unique identifier. Cookies are sent to your browser from a website and stored on your device. Other tracking technologies are also used such as beacons, tags and scripts to collect and track information and to improve and analyze our Service.
You can instruct your browser to refuse all cookies or to indicate when a cookie is being sent. However, if you do not accept cookies, you may not be able to use some portions of our Service.
Examples of Cookies we use:
Session Cookies. We use Session Cookies to operate our Service.
Preference Cookies. We use Preference Cookies to remember your preferences and various settings.
Security Cookies. We use Security Cookies for security purposes.
**Use of Data**
Revenue Inside Out uses the collected data for various purposes:
To provide and maintain the Service
To notify you about changes to our Service
To allow you to participate in interactive features of our Service when you choose to do so
To provide customer care and support
To provide analysis or valuable information so that we can improve the Service
To monitor the usage of the Service
To detect, prevent and address technical issues
**Transfer Of Data**
Your information, including Personal Data, may be transferred to - and maintained on - computers located outside of your state, province, country or other governmental jurisdiction where the data protection laws may differ than those from your jurisdiction.
If you are located outside Switzerland and choose to provide information to us, please note that we transfer the data, including Personal Data, to Switzerland and process it there.
Your consent to this Privacy Policy followed by your submission of such information represents your agreement to that transfer.
Revenue Inside Out will take all steps reasonably necessary to ensure that your data is treated securely and in accordance with this Privacy Policy and no transfer of your Personal Data will take place to an organization or a country unless there are adequate controls in place including the security of your data and other personal information.
**Disclosure Of Data**
Legal Requirements
Revenue Inside Out may disclose your Personal Data in the good faith belief that such action is necessary to:
To comply with a legal obligation
To protect and defend the rights or property of Revenue Inside Out
To prevent or investigate possible wrongdoing in connection with the Service
To protect the personal safety of users of the Service or the public
To protect against legal liability
As an European citizen, under GDPR, you have certain individual rights. You can learn more about these guides in the GDPR Guide.
****
**Security of Data**
The security of your data is important to us but remember that no method of transmission over the Internet or method of electronic storage is 100% secure. While we strive to use commercially acceptable means to protect your Personal Data, we cannot guarantee its absolute security.
**Service Providers**
We may employ third party companies and individuals to facilitate our Service ("Service Providers"), to provide the Service on our behalf, to perform Service-related services or to assist us in analyzing how our Service is used.
These third parties have access to your Personal Data only to perform these tasks on our behalf and are obligated not to disclose or use it for any other purpose.
**Analytics**
We may use third-party Service Providers to monitor and analyze the use of our Service.
**Links to Other Sites**
Our Service may contain links to other sites that are not operated by us. If you click a third party link, you will be directed to that third party's site. We strongly advise you to review the Privacy Policy of every site you visit.
We have no control over and assume no responsibility for the content, privacy policies or practices of any third party sites or services.
**Children's Privacy**
Our Service does not address anyone under the age of 18 ("Children").
We do not knowingly collect personally identifiable information from anyone under the age of 18\. If you are a parent or guardian and you are aware that your Child has provided us with Personal Data, please contact us. If we become aware that we have collected Personal Data from children without verification of parental consent, we take steps to remove that information from our servers.
**Changes to This Privacy Policy**
We may update our Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of any changes by posting the new Privacy Policy on this page.
We will let you know via email and/or a prominent notice on our Service, prior to the change becoming effective and update the "effective date" at the top of this Privacy Policy.
You are advised to review this Privacy Policy periodically for any changes. Changes to this Privacy Policy are effective when they are posted on this page.
**Contact Us**
If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, please contact us: admin@revenueinsideout.com
### Terms and Conditions ("Terms")
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/terms-and-conditions-terms/
Last updated: 2022-07-01T09:53:00.000Z
Last updated: April 12, 2019
Please read these Terms and Conditions ("Terms", "Terms and Conditions") carefully before using the website (the "Service") operated by Revenue Inside Out ("us", "we", or "our").
Your access to and use of the Service is conditioned on your acceptance of and compliance with these Terms. These Terms apply to all visitors, users and others who access or use the Service.
By accessing or using the Service you agree to be bound by these Terms. If you disagree with any part of the terms then you may not access the Service.
**Links To Other Web Sites**
Our Service may contain links to third-party web sites or services that are not owned or controlled by Revenue Inside Out.
Revenue Inside Out has no control over, and assumes no responsibility for, the content, privacy policies, or practices of any third party web sites or services. You further acknowledge and agree that Revenue Inside Out shall not be responsible or liable, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with use of or reliance on any such content, goods or services available on or through any such web sites or services.
We strongly advise you to read the terms and conditions and privacy policies of any third-party web sites or services that you visit.
**Termination**
We may terminate or suspend access to our Service immediately, without prior notice or liability, for any reason whatsoever, including without limitation if you breach the Terms.
All provisions of the Terms which by their nature should survive termination shall survive termination, including, without limitation, ownership provisions, warranty disclaimers, indemnity and limitations of liability.
**Governing Law**
These Terms shall be governed and construed in accordance with the laws of Switzerland, without regard to its conflict of law provisions.
Our failure to enforce any right or provision of these Terms will not be considered a waiver of those rights. If any provision of these Terms is held to be invalid or unenforceable by a court, the remaining provisions of these Terms will remain in effect. These Terms constitute the entire agreement between us regarding our Service, and supersede and replace any prior agreements we might have between us regarding the Service.
**Changes**
We reserve the right, at our sole discretion, to modify or replace these Terms at any time. If a revision is material we will try to provide at least 30 days notice prior to any new terms taking effect. What constitutes a material change will be determined at our sole discretion.
By continuing to access or use our Service after those revisions become effective, you agree to be bound by the revised terms. If you do not agree to the new terms, please stop using the Service.
****
**Contact Us**
If you have any questions about this, please contact us: admin@revenueinsideout.com
### Disclaimer
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/disclaimer/
Last updated: 2022-07-01T09:50:58.000Z
All the information on this website - is published in good faith and for general information purpose only.
Revenue Inside Out does not make any warranties about the completeness, reliability and accuracy of this information. Any action you take upon the information you find on this website (Revenue Inside Out), is strictly at your own risk. Revenue Inside Out will not be liable for any losses and/or damages in connection with the use of our website.
From our website, you can visit other websites by following hyperlinks to such external sites. While we strive to provide only quality links to useful and ethical websites, we have no control over the content and nature of these sites. These links to other websites do not imply a recommendation for all the content found on these sites. Site owners and content may change without notice and may occur before we have the opportunity to remove a link which may have gone 'bad'.
Please be also aware that when you leave our website, other sites may have different privacy policies and terms which are beyond our control. Please be sure to check the Privacy Policies of these sites as well as their "Terms of Service" before engaging in any business or uploading any information.
**Consent**
By using our website, you hereby consent to our disclaimer and agree to its terms.
**Update**
Should we update, amend or make any changes to this document, those changes will be prominently posted here.
### What's your most pressing challenge today?
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/topics/
Last updated: 2022-11-05T14:18:55.000Z
_No content available._
### Articles & Guides
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/guides-data/
Last updated: 2022-11-05T14:21:24.000Z
_No content available._
### ETH Launch - Innosuisse Deck
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/eth-launch-innosuisse-deck/
Last updated: 2022-11-06T09:24:05.000Z
## Selling is a Science - Download the deck below
Sign up using your email below to download the deck from the session at the Launch event at ETH on 14 Oct 2022 below.
_This page is for subscribers only._
### Membership
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/membership/
Last updated: 2022-11-02T13:17:11.000Z
_No content available._
### Ideas & Hacks
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/hacks-data/
Last updated: 2022-11-05T14:20:02.000Z
Hacks & tips
### What's your most pressing challenge today?
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/tag/
Last updated: 2023-05-07T20:12:44.000Z
_No content available._
## Posts
### Offer engineering: The science of pricing
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/the-science-of-pricing/
Last updated: 2025-01-10T15:52:05.000Z
_No content available._
### Boosting Your Sales Game: 9 Right Ways to Write Follow-Up Emails
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/boosting-your-sales-game-9-right-ways-to-write-follow-up-emails/
Last updated: 2023-05-07T22:10:11.000Z
How do you follow up with prospects who initiated a conversation, but didn’t come back to you lately? Do you send a "just checking in" email or bubble your message to the top of their inbox?
Some of the worst follow-ups that you've either seen, you've received, or even sent (no judgment here, okay? I did the same):
- Did you see my last email/voicemail?
- Noticed you didn't reply to my email…
- Just bumping this to the top of your inbox…
- Just bubbling this to the top…
- Just checking in to see if…
- Just following up here…
- Just poking my head back in…
- Any update on this…
- Any thoughts…
- Happy Monday…
- Hoping you had a good Easter Holidays…
- Hope your family is doing well in these challenging times…
LinkedIn did a study on the most damaging word in follow-up emails and it's the word “just”.
Because it sounds like:
Oh, I just wanna do this, just wanna do that, just passing by, just trying to sell you stuff.
You see the pattern right? They make you come across as just another seller, and here I want to demonize the normal sales behavior a bit.
Typically, what are the characteristics that salespeople are known for and the things that they're known for doing?
- pushy.
- annoyingly persistent.
- speak a lot
- hard sell
- overbearing
- relentless
- coin-operated
- seller focused.
- selling unnecessary stuff
- single-minded agenda
- not trustworthy
- inauthentic
- self-serving
- intrusive
- not customer oriented
- slimy
- irrelevant
- impersonal
- too persistent
- overbearing
That is a lot of adjectives, I know, but they're all within the line of a salesperson image that your clients automatically see you as.
So within the structure of thinking like a salesperson, there is a normal pattern to how salespeople are reaching out.
Hence, the most toxic thing to your sales process is your buyer seeing you as a seller. If they see you as a seller, they're gonna associate all of this with you and this, in turn, is gonna make it really, really hard on you to sell.
Why? Well:
- They're not gonna tell you their pain,
- They're not gonna tell you their problem.
- They're gonna choke back all of that in discovery because they don't trust you.
- They're not gonna tell you if they have money.
- They're not gonna tell you how much money they have.
- They're not gonna tell you what the extra steps are in the process.
- They're not gonna tell you what's going on in the middle of the deal.
- They don't trust you.
So the most dangerous thing to you is someone looking at your email or someone hearing your cold call and thinking “Oh, this is a salesperson”.
But what if there was a way to keep your prospects warm without resorting to typical sales tactics? Can you flip this on its head and focus on building genuine connections with your prospects?
In this article, we'll unpack nine different ways to prove to your prospects that you're not there to sell unnecessary stuff - you're there to help them.
[The printable & high-resolution version of this is available to download below.](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/from-spam-to-inbox-a-practical-guide-to-cold-email-deliverability/#download-worksheets)
By pattern interrupting and engaging your prospects in a more authentic way, you can effectively communicate your message from front to end of the selling process.
So, let's dive in and learn how to keep those deals warm without crossing the line into annoying territory.
## Send over relevant content
Flip your mindset from:
“I need to follow up with this person, and I need to be aggressive about it.”
Into:
“I need to be aggressive about finding and adding value to my buyer.”
Imagine shifting from a routine to-do of following up with a person and asking about a proposal, to a more thoughtful approach of finding a valuable piece of content to share with them. Not only does this show that you're not only interested in just closing deals, but it also gives you a way to tactfully reach out. Even though the person might know what you're up to, the charm lies in how you do it.
This strategy has been a game-changer for me in closing deals. Rather than straight-up asking for an update, I comb the internet for something useful to send them. It's a way of continuously adding value to my prospect along the way, which increases the chances of renewal, upselling, cross-selling, closing deals, and scheduling meetings.
To step up your game, focus on sending over relevant third-party content. It provides a wider range of perspectives and builds credibility, so give it a shot. Remember, every time you send something, there's first, second, and third-party content to choose from.
Here, let’s stop for a second and explore the value of first, second and third-party content:
- First-party content is data that you collect and analyze yourself.
Now, this can be a bit of a tricky subject, especially when it comes to prospecting. There's always a slight chance that people might doubt whether the information you're sharing is unbiased or not.
After all, you're selecting which bits of data to present and which ones to exclude. It's like being both the judge and the jury - and that's where the trust factor comes into play.
- The second party is essentially your evaluation of someone else's data.
So basically someone else's first-party data. It’s honesty neither here nor there in terms of credibility and trust.
- And third-party is basically, I want you to think like a review site.
Let me show you a neat tactic that works wonders - the power of third-party content:
**STEP 1.** Find an article or piece that was written by someone else in your industry, and send it over to your prospect.
By doing this, you're sending them something from an impartial source, and it shows you're not trying to push your own agenda onto them.
Preferably, something that doesn’t tie directly to your company, product, or even value proposition.
**STEP 2.** Make sure to highlight one specific point that really resonated with you and make it digestible for them.
When looking for articles, go for [click-bait-style headlines](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S2xHZPH5Sng&ref=revenueinsideout.com), even if they sound cheesy. The key is to find something that strikes a chord and is easy to read.
For instance, instead of sharing bland articles on weight loss, go for the ones that promise you'll lose 20 pounds in a week by eating just three foods. It's the kind of thing that people want to read.
**STEP 3\.** Now, when you send out the email with the third-party content, make sure you add that you're not expecting a response - this removes any unnecessary pressure.
So, I would look through for my buyer persona, what are the articles, that would really hit home for them. And I would just send them an email something like:
*Hey…,*
*Saw this article the other day and thought of you.*
*And I especially liked point number…, where they said….*
*You're gonna think it sounds crazy, but no need to respond just thought you might wanna take a look.*
*Best,*
*Maddy*
Still, they might just reply with an update on the buying decision within their company or let you in on what's happening with their business. It's a great way to build rapport and cultivate trust without the overt sales pitch.
## Send over an idea that will make things better for them
Here's an idea that will instantly elevate your selling game - try sending over an idea to your prospect that would make their lives better. It's not always about pitching your product or solution but providing value to their business in any way you can.
Let’s say you’re selling a call transcription tool to the VP of Sales in a SaaS company.
Think about it - your prospects have a hundred different things on their minds, and chances are they're running into various roadblocks on the way:
- Are their reps sending out enough emails?
- Are their reps held accountable?
- Are they sending out quality emails?
- What's the lead routing look like?
- Are they sending it to the right accounts?
- Are these the right people?
- How's our collaboration with marketing?
- How's the inbound team doing?
This list of problems is **endless**.
But if you can send them an idea that's easy to implement, doesn't require time or investment, and doesn't involve anyone internally, you're golden. And you’ll win a lot of rapport with them.
Surprise them with a killer idea that makes their world better without having any strings attached - it's a surefire way to win their hearts.
Your follow-up can look like this:
*Hey..,*
*I heard this idea the other day and thought you might get some use out of it.*
*……*
*I know that you're using … for outreach. If you want to do X, Y, and Z, you can go to your settings and…*
*Best,*
*Maddy*
💡
**Pro tip:** The more unrelated the idea is to your product, the better. They're probably expecting a sales pitch from you, so it's a pleasant surprise when you show up to help regardless of what's in it for you.
## Knowing what's going on in the world
Staying up to date with the latest news and events is crucial in establishing genuine connections. It's all about being mindful of your prospect's time and attention. After all, it's their most valuable asset.
Take note of any recent developments in their world - whether it's a company acquisition or a shift in their role. Use this information as a starting point for reaching out to them. While this may seem outside of the sales realm, it's all about building a relationship that's not based solely on business.
Sending over an email that shows you understand their world can go a long way in earning their trust. Of course, this approach is harder to control, as it relies on external factors that are out of your reach. But when done well, it can lead to invaluable connections that stand the test of time.
So the first three points in this article are the ways that work least effectively. Now, we moving on to a real deal starting from the next point…
## Assist with a pain point
Learning about your prospect's true pain points is key to building a successful relationship. As a salesperson, you either learn about these in the discovery phase or through conversations with your prospect.
But, here's the thing - if you can provide them with an easy solution to a problem they didn't even know they had, you'll instantly become a valuable asset. And the best part? This solution doesn't always have to be about your product - in fact, it's better if it isn't.
Showing prospects that you genuinely care about making their lives easier is a powerful way to earn their trust. Take a little time to find out what kinds of pain points your buyer persona typically experiences and then send over a solution tailored to their specific needs. It might take a little more time than the usual follow-up emails, but the payoff is much greater.
Remember to wrap up your email with a statement like, "No need to respond, just thought you might find value in this." It's a subtle way to let them know you value their time and that you're not just in it for sale.
## Direct mail
If you're considering sending a direct mail package to a prospective customer, it's important to make it as personalized as possible. Think outside of the box and consider what they may enjoy or what's relevant to them.
For example, receiving a bottle of wine as a gift does nothing for your prospect if they’re a non-drinker. When you're personalizing your package, think about what would be meaningful and relevant to them.
But let’s say your prospect (VP of sales, for example) is a wine connoisseur. So you can send her an aerator with a message tailored to her passion. Something like “Letting wine breathe, enhances the flavor. Enabling sales reps to air out their sales conversations could help highlight their best practices.”
The lesson here is clear: when sending a direct mail package, don't just send something generic like cupcakes. Think carefully and creatively about what would be meaningful and relevant to the recipient. By personalizing your package, you're more likely to capture their attention and forge a lasting connection.
## Make them aware of potential threats that they didn't know about
One of the biggest keys to closing deals quickly is identifying and solving your prospect's long-term problems. And while it may take a lot of effort, the payoff is well worth it.
So, instead of sending this boring just-checking-in kind of email you could send a personalized message with relevant stats, like “Do more than 30% of your demo requests don't lead to an actual demo? If yes, let me know and I’ll send over a process to alleviate that problem. OR Give me a call and I’ll share some solutions we use for the same”
**The important thing is to find something that's not directly related to selling your product.** Your goal should be to make yourself a trusted advisor and valuable resource to your customers.
This could be anything from an industry regulation change to a new competitive threat.
The reason? When you show your prospect that you genuinely care about helping them and their business, they'll be much more likely to trust you. This builds rapport and sets the foundation for a successful business relationship.
Sending a personalized email with data or insights that could be hurting their business is a powerful way to earn their trust. Remember, executive leaders spend all day searching for people who can tell them things they don't know about their business - this could be your chance to be that person for them.
And don't fall into the trap of just being nice or empathetic. Your real goal should be to earn credibility and rapport by finding and solving your prospect's problems.
If you can't name your top four buyer personas according to data who have closed the most often with you in terms of the level of title and discipline of title, and then can't name four metrics that they care about (not related to your product), then you don't know your buyer.
The problem is, that as founders or salespeople, we usually have all product information but not enough information (or even one sheet) on such kinds of details on our buyer persona.
So take the time to get to know your buyer personas: their terms, metrics, and even their typical jokes. The more you know about them, the better equipped you'll be to have meaningful conversations and solve their problems.
In short, invest in understanding your buyer, find problems that they're facing, and then offer solutions. When your prospect sees that you're dedicated to helping them succeed, they'll be much more likely to buy from you and trust your guidance.
## Network connections
Play a matchmaker. And what I mean by that is you need to connect them to people, who might potentially be useful to them. So here you need to:
- Introduce them/give a contact of people, who have a common connection in their role, who might be interesting for your prospect.
- Focus on someone upmarket for them.
- Connect them to someone who is passionate about the same topic or working on a similar project.
Those connections might come from your customers, colleagues from different departments, your own friend, or a friend of a friend.
The key here is to play a matchmaker and provide your prospect with something, that they didn’t ask for but won’t be able to refuse. And at the end of the day, new connections are always important and very much appreciated.
## Referrals
Bring them leads, it’s the best way to conquer your prospect’s heart. Here I advise to:
- Refer leads to your prospects if you hear about anyone on the market.
Understand what they need and then provide it. It could be a great candidate for their departments, a new channel for lead generation, or sales leads themselves. The possibilities here are endless.
## Communities
What does your prospect’s company follow? What communities are they in? Which events do they go to?
Analyze their social media activities, stalk them a bit, and find a way to bring even more value by inviting them to some of the communities where their buyer persona is.
This way you’ll cover a few very important processes:
- You’ll learn more about your prospect.
- You’ll learn more about their buyers.
- You’ll bring more value and prove that you’re a very well-rounded sales rep, who wants to help, not to sell.
So, are you ready to take your sales game to the next level?
Then start thinking of value like a bank account: the more you deposit, the more you can withdraw later.
But what does that look like in practice? Well, I've introduced you to the nine ideas to get you started. These are tried-and-true ways to add value to your prospects and customers alike.
Now, here's the thing: these tactics aren't just for anyone. Use them strategically, when you've hit a roadblock in a deal or you're trying to get a foot in the door with a new prospect. By sharing these ideas without asking for anything in return, you're showing that you're genuinely interested in their success.
Is it hard to ask for nothing? Absolutely. But by playing the long game and focusing on building relationships, you'll see the benefits in the long run. So give it a try - send one, two, or even three of these ideas to your prospects and see what happens next!
## Download high-resolution image of the framework
---
_This post is for subscribers only._
### What can you do if a prospect doesn’t accept your connection request?
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/what-can-you-do-if-a-prospect-doesnt-accept-your-connection-request/
Last updated: 2023-05-07T20:02:41.000Z
If you're looking to build relationships with prospects on LinkedIn, one of the best things you can do is follow them.
But don't just add them as a connection – actually follow them so you can engage with their content.
By following them, you'll get their attention and start to build a rapport.
After a couple of weeks of engagement and comments on their posts, you can then send a connection request again and stand a much better chance of success.
### From Spam to Inbox: A Practical Guide to Cold Email Deliverability
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/from-spam-to-inbox-a-practical-guide-to-cold-email-deliverability/
Last updated: 2023-05-07T21:58:36.000Z
If done right, deliverability can potentially unlock the full power of one of your most useful tools - outbound prospecting.
For example, after hours of painstakingly researching your audience and crafting a flawless cold email with strong follow-ups, you may still find that the open rate remains low.
As a sales rep, you know how crucial email communication is in achieving success. But when your messages don't make it through to the people they're intended for, you miss out on opportunities for meetings and deals - often without even realizing it.
One step we must pay close attention to is ensuring that our emails actually reach our prospects' main inboxes instead of their spam folder or promotions tab (since nobody wants their personal correspondence ending up there).
If too many end up in either category then any campaign will struggle - but I'll cover ways here that’ll help us ensure our sales emails arrive where they should so they get read and responded to!
**[Worksheets are available to download later below.](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/from-spam-to-inbox-a-practical-guide-to-cold-email-deliverability/#download-worksheets)**
## Deliverability vs Delivery Rate
Delivery rates and deliverability are slightly different things even though people sometimes think it’s the same.
Your delivery rate tells you the success of getting emails accepted by the recipient’s server, while deliverability gives you an insight into which emails ended up in customers' primary inboxes.
For example, say you sent emails to 100 people. 80 out of the 100 got the email, but only 55 of them went into their primary inboxes. The other 45 probably didn't see the emails because they went into the wrong folder (or spam) and hence were deleted or ignored.
Spam emails are a big problem. Gmail said that 50% of the 293 billion emails sent every day were spam. That’s way too much. To help you understand how big this is, let’s explain it with an example:
*An SDR sends ten emails to his prospects.*
*Nine of those emails reach his prospects’ inboxes.*
*But:*
*Four of them land in the primary inbox.*
*Three of them land in the promotions tab.*
*Two of them landed in the spam folder.*
*Therefore, the deliverability rate is 40%.*
The difference between these two numbers is very big and exactly those numbers (and your understanding of them) depends on your outreach success.
So, to sum it up again: delivery rate tells you if your emails got received, and at the same time, deliverability rate tells you if they're in the main inbox.
## Why should you even care?
You can take a long time making your emails look nice, but if they go to the junk folder, there is no point.
As you know: cold emailing is different than sending emails to people who have signed up for them, plus it is more likely that cold emails will go into the junk folder.
In general, it's always harder to ensure cold emails get delivered than the ones people actually subscribed to receive or once already in email communication with you.
Why?
When you send emails to people who don't know you, the risk of their provider marking your messages as spam is alarmingly high. To fight this issue effectively, it's essential that you understand how email deliverability works in full detail.
ESPs and ISPs have put special systems in place to help protect us from unwanted and unexpected emails. Because of this, it's important to know how emails work, because learning the basics and rules of sending emails will help you get good results.
With each day, it’s becoming more complex to reach the inbox of your prospects due to the emergence of smarter spam filtering technologies.
That's why this guide provides a much-needed deep dive into everything you need to know about optimizing your emails for deliverability - so that they land safely and securely in the primary inbox of your prospects.
### Why email deliverability is critical to your email strategy?
Good email deliverability is critical to your email marketing strategy, and here’s why:
- You ensure your messages fly right into the inbox and wait to be opened.
- The more emails you put in the primary tab, the higher chances they will be read.
- You get a competitive advantage as you will have more chances to be visible among the tons of messages your recipients get every day. Not every competitor of yours tries their best to increase deliverability.
### The negative impact of compromised email deliverability
Saleshandy did a great job of pointing out the impact of your deliverability, both good and poor.
### Email Deliverability Checklist
There is always a possibility to miss out on some key elements that will make or break your deliverability rate. So, to keep your productivity here’s a small checklist that will help you keep track of all aspects that’ll get you the best deliverability rate possible.
**[Worksheets are available to download later below.](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/from-spam-to-inbox-a-practical-guide-to-cold-email-deliverability/#download-worksheets)**
### What's a Good Email Deliverability Rate?
It is difficult to find out how many emails will be delivered successfully. This is because companies like Google and Microsoft do not share information about their email data.
As well as that, you need to think about multiple metrics.
The main ones to consider are:
- % of emails delivered
- % of emails landing in the main inbox vs. spam
- % of emails bouncing
To do cold emails well, your emails need to be delivered 95% of the time. If it is less than that, you have a problem. Make sure those emails go to the right place - in your prospects' main inbox and not their spam folder.
A simple way to check your deliverability is by using special tools, that will give you an explicit deliverability report. We’ll talk about these tools in our deliverability audit section of this guide!
These tools can show you if your emails are going to the right place, and check that your SPF and DKIM records are working correctly.
Don't worry if you don't know what SPF and DKIM mean, we will explain it later in this guide.
If you’re consistently seeing a bounce rate above 3-5%, it’s a sign that you need to spend more time validating your emails.
[Suryanarayanan Pal](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LpAoTHCk5hg&ref=revenueinsideout.com), Growth and Product Marketer at [Mailmodo](http://www.mailmodo.com/?ref=revenueinsideout.com), simplifies deliverability by comparing it to a traveling salesperson.
A traveling salesman needs to enter someone's house and then sell the product and an email marketer needs to get emails into people's inboxes first. Then they can use copy, design, and strategy to help them.
That said, to figure out how to boost your email deliverability, you need to understand the whole email-sending process.
## Email delivery process
Say, you’ve just created an email for outbound prospecting. You’ve built and segmented your email list, and now you’re just about to press the “Send” button. Let’s see what follows step by step.
### Step 1\. Your email is sent
Most emails that are sent should be delivered. Those that aren’t accepted by the recipient server can be labeled as soft or hard bounces.
Once you’ve pressed the “Send” button, there are two possible scenarios:
**1.1\. Your email is delivered**
In this scenario, you successfully deliver your message.
**1.2\. Your email bounced back**
There are two types of bounces you might get: a **soft** or a **hard bounce:**
- A **soft bounce** happens to your email due to several reasons, for example, the recipient’s inbox is full. A **hard bounce** occurs when you send an email to an invalid address, i.e., the address that doesn’t exist.
In this guide, we’ll talk more in-depth about bounces, their types, and what they mean, but for now, just remember those terms and we’ll come back to them a bit later.
The important thing to note at this point is: the biggest problem with hard bounces is that by having lots of them, you risk being treated as a fraudulent email sender.
### Step 2\. Your email is delivered/not delivered
The way emails get to the recipient is controlled by companies like internet service providers or other organizations that make sure emails are safe.
They protect their customers from receiving unsolicited emails by:
- Establishing sending limits
- Blocking suspicious senders
- Default sending email to the junk or spam folder
- Blacklisting.
When you send emails, some will go to the inbox. Others might end up in a spam folder, be blocked by the receiving server, or hit a spam trap.
**2.1\. Your email gets to the inbox**
With everything in place, the only remaining step is to wait for your message to be read. However, it's useful to bear in mind that one out of every five emails can get blocked by receiving server or end up in a spam folder.
**2.2\. Your email gets to the spam folder**
Getting into spam is a multi-layered topic that demands a bit of time and words to explain. So, to not miss anything out I dedicated a whole section about spam later on in this guide.
**2.3\. Your email is blocked by the receiver**
Your emails may be temporarily rejected by the receiving server due to any of the following:
- Your content appears too "spammy" (overuse of capital letters, punctuation marks, promotional phrases, or words that could trigger spam filters).
- Receiving an excessive number of complaints.
- Sending emails to invalid addresses.
**2.4\. Your email hits a spam trap**
A spam trap is an email address that nobody uses. It might be one that someone used before but isn't using anymore, or it could have been made only to catch spam.
There are two spam trap types:
- A pristine spam trap is an email address that has never been valid.
- A recycled spam trap is an old email address that isn't being used anymore and was changed to a spam trap.
### Step 3\. Your email is opened/not opened
If you're not looking over someone's shoulder, how would you know if an email was opened? Modern email service providers include a tiny image in the emails they send - called a tracking pixel. When the recipient opens the email, the image is loaded (requiring a request to be sent to the server that hosts it). This request allows the provider to know that their message has been opened.
Open rate is one of the most important email performance metrics to track. And as for email tracking, you may get the help of [special tools](https://snov.io/blog/best-email-tracker-comparison/?ref=revenueinsideout.com) that track email opens right in your Gmail account for free.
### Step 4\. The recipient interacts with your email
What will your customer do after they get your email? They might click the link, close the email without clicking or mark it as spam. Each of these things means something different to you.
**4.1\. The recipient clicks the link**
When someone reads your email and clicks on a link in the email, it gives a slight positive indication to the recipient server about you.
**4.2\. The recipient doesn’t click the link**
Unlike the first scenario, if your email isn’t clicked through, it signifies you should work more on improving engagement. Yet, it’s not critical for the ISPs.
**4.3\. The recipient marks your email as spam**
If you send emails with content that is not important, people might mark your emails as spam. This will give you a bad reputation. Make sure to respect people and give them an easy way to stop getting your emails if they want.
**4.4\. The recipient reply the email**
The reply is the ultimate result that you’re looking for, as well as seen as the most positive indicator by the email servers.
How do you know if your emails are going to spam? Email Deliverability Audit
## Email Deliverability Audit
How do you know if your emails are going to spam?
### The Evolution of Spam Filters: From Rule-based to AI and ML
In the past, spam filters were relatively simple. To reduce the influx of emails from one particular source, they would just block anything coming from a specific set of servers.
However, spammers soon found ways around this by routing their messages through other countries. This led to the creation of the Sender Policy Framework (SPF).
Following this, rapidly improving filters such as those based on patterns, keywords, and special characters were developed in the early 2000s. These tools reduced ‘false positives’ - important messages mistakenly treated as spam - but they still made mistakes now and then.
It wasn't until much later that reputation scores became a thing, rating senders based on points like authentication & upkeep of mailing lists.
These days, some of the most cutting-edge spam filters use AI & ML technology to read billions of emails daily and improve how well they can detect malicious content.
Now it’s nearly impossible to recognize if your emails are going to spam from most email platforms. You can, however, do some detective work using your email analytics reports.
Start with testing how much of your emails are getting delivered to the prospect’s inbox.
Earlier in this guide, I already mentioned the fact that deliverability tools will become a must-have with a cold email campaign and now we're finally going to talk about it.
Introducing: Glockapps and SpamAssassin!
### 1) GlockApps
GlockApps is a comprehensive email deliverability and anti-spam testing platform, designed to help you evaluate your email campaigns and identify potential issues that may be preventing your emails from being delivered. It provides tools such as inbox preview testing, email authentication tests, and real-time monitoring of IP reputation scores.
GlockApps works by testing your email campaigns and then providing you with valuable data about their performance. It offers features such as:
- Inbox Preview Testing - this allows you to see exactly how your emails will appear in the inboxes of major email providers (such as Gmail, Yahoo, Outlook, and Apple Mail).
- Email Authentication Tests - this helps you to check that your emails are being sent from an authenticated domain, ensuring they reach their intended recipient.
- Real-time Monitoring of IP Reputation Scores - GlockApps automatically monitors the reputation of your sending IPs or domains and can alert you if it detects any issues.
To get started you can simply create a free account, and it will give you a detailed report of what’s happening with the kind of emails you’re sending in great depth, as shown below.
I had this case when my cold outreach just didn't work. My emails went unnoticed and were left unresponded, and I honestly had way too many ideas about why it was happening. But I decided to run the test in GlockApps and here is what it showed me:
The result wasn’t the best, honestly, it was far from the best:
- Inbox – 45.6% (Inbox rate is the percentage of messages that go through to the inbox)
- Tabs – 1.5%(Tabs rate is the percentage of messages sent to different inbox tabs such as Promotions at Gmail or Newsletter at Netcourrier.com)
- Spam – 52.9% (Spam rate is the percentage of messages sent to the Spam folder)
- Missing – 0% (Missing rate is the percentage of messages not delivered to test mailboxes)
In general, your report will give you multiple layers of information.
- It will give you info on providers' delivery: which provider delivered your message, who put you into spam and etc. In the report it will look like this:
- Also, Glockapps gives you a very needed content analysis, that helps you to track if you used spam words or something went wrong with your HTML code, or your links/images are considered spam. The content analysis will look like this:
But the most important thing apart from reports, Glockapps gives you action steps. This is a small but very effective manual of what you need to do to improve the state of deliverability.
In the tool, this manual looks like this:
You see? That's the ultimate deliverability report that I needed. At that point, I learned that most of my emails went into spam, and from that on I knew what I can change in order to increase deliverability.
### 2) SpamAssassin
**What is SpamAssassin?**
Apache SpamAssassin is a program that finds spam emails, it gives each email a score from 0-5, with 5 being very spammy. If your email gets a 4 or higher, then it might not be delivered at all.
**How is your SpamAssassin Score calculated?**
SpamAssassin developers keep the factors involved in the score calculation public. Also, it looks at other spam filter scores to help it decide if an email is a spam.
These are some key elements checked by SpamAssassin:
- Main Domain and IP blacklists/greylists/blocklists
- Collaborative spam identification databases
- SPF and DKIM protocols
- Header and Body content
- Broken or shortened URLs
- Multiple sender reputation systems
SpamAssassin is a complicated program. It looks at other spam filter scores to help it decide if an email is a spam.
**How to improve my SpamAssassin Score?**
The best way to improve your SpamAssassin Score is to follow clean emailing practices:
- Clean your mailing list to avoid bounce. Don't use bought mail lists.
- Set up authentication protocols (SPF, DKIM, and DMARC).
- Monitor blacklisting/greylisting.
- Send relevant content to avoid being reported as spam.
- Use List-Unsubscribe Header to make things simple for your subscribers.
- Take care of URLs in emails (avoid broken links and shortened URLs).
- Avoid using shared IP to fully control your sender reputation.
Now that you can tell if your email reputation is good or bad, let's look at what factors are important in calculating your email reputation.
## Factors for deliverability
Let’s look at the bigger picture.
To make your deliverability great you need to nail 4 out of 4 key elements that make your email not only deliverable but also desirable. Each element is a category of its own, so in this section of the guide, we’ll go into detail about each element one by one.
Before we start, here is a quick round-up of the 4 factors of deliverability!
### Trustworthy Sender
Email reputation is determined by two main things: IP reputation and domain reputation. Even though they are evaluated independently, both factors have a significant effect on the ability to deliver emails.
**What is a good domain reputation?**
Domain reputation is the overall “health” of your domain as interpreted by mailbox providers.
Look, your domain is known to providers and your domain already has some history. For example, you sent your previous campaign all in one go and all of your emails were marked as spam.
Or your emails look suspiciously like an ad and they landed in spam once again. Or you sent a lot, a ton of emails during one week a year ago, and already forgot about it.
But the providers didn’t forget.
They analyzed your domain and deemed it as unhealthy, a domain with a bad reputation.
What in turn made you a spammer in their eyes?
All of your past actions: good or bad - of them contributed to building your domain reputation.
**What is IP reputation?**
Emails are sent from a computer or server with a unique identifier, the IP address. ISPs find it easy to trace senders based on this IP address.
IP reputation is calculated solely on the basis of the IP address from which the email was sent. It does not have any direct association with the sender's brand.
Senders either have dedicated IPs or use shared pools for sending emails. IP reputation is necessary to ensure that your email reaches its destination; it determines how likely an incoming message is to be accepted by a recipient server.
**What's a dedicated IP address?**
Having a dedicated IP address for your emails ensures that all messages are routed through the same address. You are solely responsible for any content sent using this IP, so it's important to maintain emailing best practices to ensure successful delivery.
Dedicated IPs make more sense for organizations with large email volumes, as they have the capability to adhere to strict deliverability standards.
**What's a shared IP pool?**
A shared IP pool is when a lot of companies share the same IP address. This means that everyone in the group has a responsibility to make sure emails get sent correctly and if someone does something wrong, it can hurt everyone else's reputation.
Smaller companies might not send enough emails on their own to have a good reputation for sending emails. A shared IP pool helps them because other companies are also sending their emails with it and this makes everyone look better.
Also, a shared IP pool helps small senders avoid expensive problems. If one small sender makes a mistake, it won't hurt them as much because there is a lot of email coming from the shared IP pool. If they make the same mistake with their own dedicated IP address, it will be harder to fix...
We don’t want to come across as spammers, but that’s how email providers initially see us.
To change that, we need to maintain a good domain reputation and it’s easy if we include these «good» factors:
- **Personalization**. Make sure that your emails are highly personalized to avoid that staged, artificial feel of generic, bland messages.
- **Relevance.** Tailor your emails so that they’re relevant to your recipients, which means that your list should be properly segmented.
- **Authentication.** Your domain has to be authenticated before you engage in any cold outreach activities.
When it comes to cold emailing, it's important to make it as personalized and natural as if you had sent it yourself.
For now, we’ll go into the technical detail of this guide but later we’ll also talk about personalizations and about your email content in general, so stay tuned.
### Spam Traps
Now, let’s talk about spam traps, which I hinted at earlier in this guide.
Spam traps are used by inbox providers and blacklist providers to detect malicious senders, but legitimate senders with poor data acquisition practices can also get caught up in them occasionally.
These traps look like real email addresses but they don't actually belong to a real person, and their only purpose is to identify spammers and those who haven't implemented proper list hygiene.
No one is immune to spam traps – even a single instance of this on your mailing list can make it significantly harder for your emails to reach their destination inboxes. Emailing relevant content to old or invalid addresses can be considered an indicator of bad data collection practices, which could affect your sender's reputation.
To better understand how spam traps end up on your mailing list, it's important to look at the various types of these traps.
For example, Laura Atkins, email deliverability expert and owner of Word to the Wise, put together a [comprehensive list](https://wordtothewise.com/2011/08/a-brief-guide-to-spamtraps/?ref=revenueinsideout.com) of spam trap categories.
Sometimes, you can get spam traps without doing anything wrong. Different types of spam traps are created in different ways and they can cause different problems.
But what kinds of spam traps even are there? Let's look at them one by one:
**Pristine traps**
Pristine spam traps are email addresses created by ISPs or other organizations that have never been used by an actual person. These are hidden within a website's code and can only end up in your list if they're scraped from sites or bought from untrustworthy sources.
When someone sends emails to them, the ISP will return a hard bounce as a signal to remove the address from their list, but some senders ignore this and keep emailing them.
Spam traps can also come from people who enter fake addresses into forms or those who accidentally misspell their addresses - both of which could lead to you sending an email to a spam trap. If this happens, your domain/sending IP may be blacklisted and can have severe consequences for your sender's reputation.
**Recycled Spam Traps**
Recycled spam traps (also known as honeypots) were once valid email addresses but are now used by providers to catch spammers. These could be role-based emails (like sales@, info@, support@) or even of former employees.
Being on your list for more than a year or not receiving emails from you frequently can result in a recycled spam trap being present. While the consequences of hitting such a trap are milder than if you sent an email to a pristine one, it still damages your sender's reputation if done regularly.
Over time, this can lead to your emails being routed to the junk folder instead of the inboxes of your subscribers.
**Typo Spam Traps**
From typos such as 'gnail' instead of 'gmail' to fake email addresses like 'donotmailme@thankyou.com', spam traps can exist in various forms. While not as damaging as pristine traps, they still identify the sender as negligent and harm their sending reputation over time.
But how do you know if you are sending emails to a trap? Since they look like regular email addresses, spotting them on your list can be tricky. That's why it is important to regularly clean your contact list and monitor your emails for hard bounces and other red flags.
There are a few handy tools that help you evaluate your sender reputation and show whether or not you’re sending to any spam traps. [Microsoft’s Smart Data Network Service (SNDS)](https://postmaster.live.com/snds/FAQ.aspx?ref=revenueinsideout.com#TrapHits) is one example of such a tool.
**How to avoid spam traps?**
To tackle this question, let's shift our gaze and gain some perspective about spam traps, shall we?
If you're a business or an individual who regularly sends many emails, staying well-versed with spam traps and their significance is crucial.
So, let's dive into some noteworthy tips and tricks that you can use to keep your email lists safe from spam traps, and elevate your email marketing game!
**1) Periodic maintenance and combing**
To prevent falling prey to spam traps, it is essential to keep email lists up-to-date by cleaning them regularly. This will give you an opportunity to evaluate the list and identify any inactive email addresses that may be spam traps set up by people who no longer use them.
**2) Your actions define you**
Just like the physical world, your reputation is essential in an online environment. So you need to keep in mind that what you do will define your credibility online.
Therefore, it is important to stay away from any practices that portray you as a spammer for the sake of preserving your reputation.
**3) Avoid buying email lists or be careful when doing so**
Having an email list filled with spam traps is, unfortunately, a common consequence of buying or renting lists. This often results in damaging your business and reputation due to acquiring information through illegal and malicious means such as scraping or phishing.
Emails found on forums or sites can be difficult to verify and therefore should not be trusted. ISPs and anti-spam organizations are known to post fake emails across the internet to bait scrapers and spammers; being exposed to these emails may mean you have exposed yourself to spam traps as well.
**4) Scrubbing is good**
Just as you go through the effort of organizing and maintaining your email list, look out for any incorrect emails or misspellings. Also, be mindful of disposable and temporary email addresses which are often used to avoid spam or test certain services or software. Locating and dealing with these emails is essential in order to keep your list accurate and authentic.
**5) Email Validation tools**
An effective way to avoid spam traps in your email list is by ensuring that the addresses have been validated first. Utilizing a validating tool can assist in this process, helping you to guarantee that only authentic emails are included in your list.
**6) There is no short-cut**
It's true that there are no shortcuts to success, despite what some people might think. Wanting to expand your business and attract more customers is great, but it's important to be aware that the only way to achieve this is through hard work, honesty, and perseverance. Cheating is not an option.
### Bounces
If you're serious about avoiding spam traps and bounced emails, building a list of qualified contacts is essential. Relevant content must be sent to the right people - otherwise, too many spam reports and bounces could lead to blacklisting, an issue that we will explore further later on.
At a minimum, to avoid bounces, [verify your email addresses](https://www.voilanorbert.com/verify/?ref=revenueinsideout.com), and remove hard bounces immediately, and soft bounces after multiple attempts.
Quick note:
- **Hard bounces:** A hard bounce is when an email can't go through. Usually, this means that the address is wrong or not working anymore. Cleaned addresses will be excluded from all future campaign sends. Here are the two most common reasons an email may hard bounce:
a) The recipient's email address doesn't exist
b) The recipient's email server has completely blocked delivery.
- **Soft bounces:** Sometimes emails don't get sent due to a temporary problem. While tools like Mailchimp will usually show which addresses are being soft-bounced, many email tools will not distinguish between hard and soft bounces in your campaign report.
These are some common reasons why an email can soft bounce:
- Mailbox is full (over quota).
- Mailbox is not configured correctly.
- Mailbox is inactive.
- Recipient email server is down or offline.
- Recipient email server has been sent too many emails during a period of time.
- Email message is too large.
- Domain name does not exist.
- Email messages are blocked due to content.
- Email message does not meet the recipient server’s policies.
- Email message does not meet the recipient server’s DMARC requirements for authentication.
- Email message does not meet the recipient server’s anti-spam requirements.
- Email message does not meet the recipient server’s anti-virus requirements.
- Email message does not meet the recipient server’s sender requirements.
- Email cannot be relayed between email servers.
- Email cannot be relayed for unknown reasons.
The quality of your email list is pivotal in ensuring successful deliverability and preventing emails from getting sent to spam.
For top-notch contacts for deliverability and overall email success, look no further than LinkedIn.
Why?
- The data is fresh: most people on LinkedIn update their profile.
- The data is rich and complete: you have the name, job title, company, number of employees, industry, etc… That’s a treasure for cold emailers.
- The data is easy to extract: that’s pretty quick and easy to extract data and find emails out of LinkedIn thanks to third-party tools (list below).
**How to clean your list is the best way to prevent your emails from being marked as spam.**
Having an email list of quality contacts is awesome, however, that's just the beginning. To get maximum returns on your campaigns and ensure successful deliverability, putting in the effort to make sure your list is up-to-scratch is a must. The time invested in fine-tuning your contact lists will be more than worth it!
**This is the list of actions you need to do before going to the next step :**
- ****Correct first names and last names inversions:** Sometimes people put their last name first and their first name last on LinkedIn. If this happens, don't start your email with "Hi Last Name". That might make it obvious that you’re using automation.
- ****Remove irrelevant job titles:** When you look for people with "CEO" in their job title, some people may be listed as "Right Hand to the CEO" or "PA to the CEO". If these people don't fit what you are looking for, take them off your list.
- ****Remove irrelevant companies:** Irrelevant industries, competitors, nonprofits, actual customers, etc.
Do these steps to make your list better, without making mistakes. That way, people won't get mad at you and not send your emails to the spam folder.
**The best email verification strategy to avoid the spam folder in the long run.**
Maximizing the success of your campaigns starts with a verified email list - ensuring that all invalid addresses are removed. [Verifalia](https://verifalia.com/?ref=revenueinsideout.com) and [DeBounce](https://debounce.io/?ref=revenueinsideout.com) are great tools for this job, and if you'd like to compare check out [this article](https://www.accuwebhosting.com/blog/top-10-bulk-email-list-verification-validation-services-compared/?ref=revenueinsideout.com).
You'll want to categorize your list into the three main verification categories:
- Success (the best but not guaranteed 0% bounce rate);
- Risky (mainly Catchall emails with errors such as timeouts);
- Undeliverable (bad and ugly emails that should be excluded right away).
For optimal results, focus on the 'Success' contacts when first starting out - and gradually add more Catchall emails later, capped at a maximum of 25%. This way you have better control over your bounce rate, helping to ensure it remains below 3%.
### Blacklist
A blacklist is a real-time list that identifies IP addresses or domains that have a history of sending spam emails. Nearly all ESPs use this blacklist to protect their users against spam.
The IPs and domains of spammers are put on this list if they continually send out mass spam emails. If the recipient’s email provider utilizes blacklists, the IP of the incoming sender is checked against this list.
If the sender’s IP is listed on the blacklist, their email will automatically be rejected and will never get delivered - meaning it won't even make it to their inbox! Check out the image below for more information about how blacklists interact with emails.
*Source: Spamhaus*
Sometimes your ESP will notify you that you have been blacklisted, but generally, most people have to do a manual check.
Here are the two most common services that compile anti-spam lists:
1. [The SpamHaus Project](https://www.spamhaus.org/?ref=revenueinsideout.com)
2. [SpamCop](https://www.spamcop.net/?ref=revenueinsideout.com)
If you find yourself blacklisted, it's important to figure out how to get off as soon as possible.
Sometimes proving that you are not a bot or a spam account is all you'll need to do in order to get unlisted. However, it's also essential to understand why your IP address or domain was put on the blacklist in the first place and take action accordingly.
Some blacklists will automatically remove your IP after a certain amount of time- but only if you stop acting like a spammer! Being taken off the blacklist is always great news... But don't celebrate too soon - usually, you can expect close monitoring of your email-sending habits going forward.
**Domain blacklists**
Trust and reputation are key when it comes to sending emails - which is why Domain Blacklists exist.
These real-time databases identify domains that have been known to send out spam or malicious content. ISPs (Internet Service Providers) and specialized organizations use these sources as references to determine whether a particular incoming email can be trusted or not.
If your domain finds itself on the blacklist, it's likely your emails will end up in people’s spam folders. This is due to its history of negative behaviors.
Your domain has risks to be added to a blacklist if:
- You have a high bounce rate (soft or hard) on emails you send.
- You have a low engagement (open rate, answer rate, etc.) on emails you send.
- You have a high proportion of emails sent that are flagged as spam by recipients.
- You send emails into "Spam Traps" (inactive email addresses that are used to spot spam behavior and poor list hygiene).
- Your domain is compromised and used by spammers against your will.
Good sending practices and active authentication protocols (SPF, DKIM, and DMARC) can help you to reduce the risks to have your domain blacklisted.
Don’t worry in this guide we’ll go into detail about each of the authentication protocols and will discuss why should they matter to you. But for now, let’s stay on the topic of blacklists for a little bit longer.
You can check for your domain in blacklists using [blacklist-checking tools](https://mxtoolbox.com/blacklists.aspx?ref=revenueinsideout.com). If you happen to come across your domain on a blacklist, you should contact the responsible party and ask them to remove your domain from the list.
Note: Creating new email accounts with new domains helps keep your main domain from being blacklisted and ending up in SPAM. Your new domains should be similar to your current domain so that the people you are trying to reach out to don't get confused. For example, if your main website is startuptoscaleupnow.com, you can use the following domains for cold outreach:
- startuptoscaleup.io
- Startuptoscaleup.ch (coz, let’s say you’re in Switzerland)
- startuptoscaleup.net
- startuptoscaleup.org
The process is as follows:
1. Buy the new domain (as outlined above).
2. For each domain, you make, create a new Google account using a different email address and phone number. This will help you keep track of everything and make sure your websites are backed up.
3. If you want to expand, buy some new domains. The older a domain is, the better it looks to others. But here are some key things: Make sure each domain has a different Google account. This is the account people use to access Google services. Ideally, the accounts should not be connected in any way and should have different backup emails and phone numbers.
4. Redirect all of your domains to your main site.
**Use this Email Setup Hub to maintain and keep up with your email accounts:**
Creating a lot of emails can bring a whole new headache that you do not expect. To help you keep track of all emails that you’ve created and now using I created this easy template.
So cure your headache before it even starts and use my template in your outbound campaigns.
**[Worksheets are available to download later below.](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/from-spam-to-inbox-a-practical-guide-to-cold-email-deliverability/#download-worksheets)**
**IP Blacklists**
**Let's talk about IP Blacklists -** powerful databases that keep an eye out for IP addresses that are notorious for transmitting spam or malicious content.
As in domain blacklists, these lists are put together by internet service providers (ISPs) and specialized organizations and play a vital role in email servers. They're like a trusted reference point that helps these servers decide in the blink of an eye whether or not an incoming email can be trusted.
Your IP has risks to be added to a blacklist if:
- You have a **high bounce rate** (soft or hard) on emails you send.
- You have a **low engagement** (open rate, answer rate, etc.) on emails you send.
- You have a **high proportion of emails sent that are flagged as spam** by recipients.
- You send emails into **"Spam Traps"** (inactive email addresses that are used to spot spam behavior and poor list hygiene).
- **Your IP is compromised** and used by spammers against your will.
- **Your IP is shared** between multiple senders, that may use it to send spam.
The same as in domain blacklisting, good sending practices and active authentication protocols (SPF, DKIM, and DMARC) can help you to reduce the risks to have your IP blacklisted.
### Volume
If you buy a new domain and send too many emails too quickly, people will think you are sending spam and this will make it hard for your emails to reach people.
What do you do then?
Here you need to start by sending a low volume of emails out, and slowly work your way up.
For example:
- Week 1 + 2: Purchase domain, only use it with co-workers and existing clients
- Week 3: 5 emails per day
- Week 4: 10 emails per day
As you go along, you can gradually send more and more emails. If people respond to your cold emails often enough, you'll have plenty of work to do. If you need to send a lot of emails, try using more than one email account instead of just one.
QuickMail has a useful[ inbox rotation](https://help.quickmail.io/article/337-inbox-rotation?ref=revenueinsideout.com) feature to help you spread email volume across your team and company.
Adding all of the email accounts from your team will enable you to safely send more emails than when using just one account. But be aware even after warming up your account, it's essential to take note of the sending limits in place.
For example, Gmail users are limited to [2,000 emails per day](https://support.google.com/a/answer/166852?ref=revenueinsideout.com) (you shouldn’t get anywhere near that), and Outlook users are limited to [1,000 emails](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/send-limits-in-outlook-com-23c93d9d-6b6c-4a49-a021-c529706463a6?ref=revenueinsideout.com) to ‘non-relationship recipients’, which means people you’ve never interacted with before.
How to Warm Up Your Email Address
If you prioritize email deliverability, you've likely come across the concept of 'warming up' an email address. When it first starts sending emails, the inbox you're using may not be seen as credible by ESPs (Email Service Providers), which can lead to lower delivery rates.
By 'warming it up', however, you can speed up the process of gaining trust from ESPs.
Traditionally, this would involve reaching out and emailing co-workers, clients and people who are likely to reply to you.
Nowadays there are [email warm-up tools](https://quickmail.io/email-warm-up-tools?ref=revenueinsideout.com) such as [MailFlow](https://www.mailflow.io/?ref=revenueinsideout.com) (it's free to use), which will automatically warm up your email account by sending emails to other people, creating automatic responses, and marking them as “important”.
Within MailFlow, you’ll be able to see a handy report, showing you where your emails are landing.
Over time, this will show ESPs that you’re using your inbox in a regular way, getting engagement, and don’t deserve to land in the spam folder.
**Each freshly set up domain needs time to earn a good reputation**
For the sake of IP/domain reputation security, it’s recommended to set up an email address on a separate domain for outbound communication.
However, it's not uncommon to see users set up a new domain and email address, and then start sending 50 emails per day automatically within three days or so – which is a very easy way to get blocked by the email providers.
Every domain has its own reputation – good, neutral, or bad – that can only be earned over time. A brand-new domain starts off as neutral but is often viewed with suspicion by hosting providers.
If you start sending bulk emails automatically from an address on this new domain, you confirm their suspicions that you may be a malicious user, i.e. a spammer.
This is why it's recommended that if you set up a new domain specifically for outbound campaigns, you should wait at least 12 weeks before sending out your first cold message - while also taking the time to gradually warm up your email address(es) registered with it during this period.
**Send a few emails a day by hand**
If you've got a domain that's less than 6 months old - sending a few emails by hand each day is essential to make sure it doesn't get flagged as spam. So it's best if you show your human side and don't use any kind of automation. Additionally, low engagement levels can be penalized for new domains.
Say you have a 10,000 contact list with 6,000 of these on G Suite or Gmail. You send out a 4-email sequence with only a 5% open rate. That leaves 22,800 unopened emails on Gmail servers from your domain which will cause your reputation to drop from medium to low and negatively affect future messages - dragging your score down from low to bad!
The solution? Start slow and simple: manually reaching out to family and business partners is the perfect way to reconnect with them outside the scope of sales emails. Plus, collecting addresses set up on different providers such as Gmail, Outlook/Exchange, GoDaddy, 1&1 Yahoo!, AOL etc. will help your domain reputation among various hosts.
**Write like a human**
When sending emails, make sure the content is worth reading. Don't just send any random bit of text - make it more human-like and add some personality to it. Not sure what to write? Try looking up funny stories or jokes on the web and share them with your contacts. Even better, ask some questions in those emails - this will encourage people to reply and get an invaluable engagement boost for your new domain!
**Collect a few responses and reply back**
Ignore those pesky unopened emails and start a conversation instead! Collect a few replies by sending some emails from other addresses to your new one - don't forget to reply too! Bonus points if the replies come from different email service providers - this way, you can interact with others on the same platform as your new domain. Before launching any automated campaigns, make sure to have some regular conversations with that address - it's the best way to get off on the right foot!
**What after the warm-up part?**
Give your email address the chance it deserves and perform a proper warm-up - don't rush things! Your activity will be closely monitored by your email service provider, so take the time to send personalized messages that you know will get to your prospects' mailboxes.
If you're short on time, find a reliable warm-up tool to help you out.
After an adequate warm-up period, your mailbox will be ready to start sending cold emails fluently, ensuring top-quality campaigns with great deliverability results. Of course, you'll need to keep a constant eye on factors like message quality and prospect base for long-term success.
Make sure to keep your cold emailing activity as human-like as possible. Limit your emails to 200 max per day per email address and domain for best results.
Remember, the fewer emails you send each day, the better for your reputation and deliverability - even when sending warming emails! If you can limit yourself to 100 emails a day, that's even better. Keep it natural and you'll see better results.
If you need to send a higher volume per day, follow these guidelines.
- Buy different domain names
- Create one email address per domain. Why? Because if an address lands in spam it will not affect all the other addresses on the same domain. That’s important.
- Keep generating positive engagement on each email address with constant warming.
To increase your chances of landing in the main inbox and getting high open rates, spread out your emails over several hours instead of sending one-shot blasts.
Doing this will make your email activity look more human-like, which is the #1 rule for preventing emails from going to spam. Real cold email automation tools should include a delay between each email - that way, you can send out emails in waves without sounding robotic.
You can't just rely on one-off warm-ups before you send emails - you need to stay consistent. Positive activity from your emails, such as people opening them, clicking them, replying, or marking them as important helps to prevent landing in spam.
Email providers like Google and Microsoft take these metrics into consideration when evaluating whether a message is suspicious or not. Without consistent warming-up activity, you'd need an amazing offer with the perfect subject line and copy for all of your emails - something that's nearly impossible to achieve without fail!
If you're sending out email campaigns, your deliverability, and reputation will take a hit when a portion of your emails are marked as spam. This can be balanced by warming up your account consistently.
Additionally, having a linear activity is paramount to successful email deliverability, so aim for consistent engagement and build up a strong reputation in the long run!
**Note:** make sure you set up an email account that will meet your sending requirements in the end. Different accounts from various email service providers offer different sending limits. You won’t get even close to the limits while warming up the account, but when you start sending outbound campaigns for real – this will matter. So think ahead and choose wisely.
### Authentic Email
**Use cold emailing software (not email marketing software)**
If you're about to start a cold email outreach, it's important to choose a platform that is specifically designed for this purpose.
Traditional email marketing tools like Mailchimp, ConvertKit, ActiveCampaign, or MailerLite may not always be the best choice. Even if they are used successfully, one might run the risk of being reported as spam and getting banned from these services.
Cold emailing software typically includes features such as inbox warm-up, tracking options, merge tags, automated follow-ups, A/B testing, and more. Moreover, most of them offer a plain text editor rather than an HTML editor to design emails. Choosing the right tool can help ensure better engagement with prospects and maximize your results.
**Use a Name in the From Field**
Are you more likely to open a cold email from frank@yourcompany.com, or [info@yourcompany.com](mailto:info@yourcompany.com)?
Don't use the generic donotreply@email address when sending emails. Instead, use your own email address and take it a step further by including your name in the message to help build trust with readers.
To maximize deliverability, you should also focus on factors such as reputation, authentication, and content quality as part of your overall strategy.
Here are some components for a deliverable email address:
- The ideal sending address represents a human, not a brand or a mix of the two.
- It has to be nominative (e.g john.doe@company.com), not generic (e.g sales@company.com)). Who wants to talk to “sales@youareacashcow.com”?
- For the sender name, use a First and Last name. DON’T use a brand name or a “Brian from XYZ” name, that brings poorer results.
**Your DNS Records**
When setting up a new domain for your email, it is essential to establish all the technical foundations that are necessary for successful delivery.
Email authentication is the key to keeping cyber criminals at bay, not only by providing extra security but also by verifying to ISPs that your emails come from a verified source and are not malicious.
By following this necessary step in setting up your domain, you will gain credibility with ISPs and gain better chances of successful email delivery!
There are three standard email authentication methods used, let's look at them one by one.
### SPF
**What is SPF?**
SPF (Sender Policy Framework) is a security protocol that prevents malicious entities from sending emails on behalf of your domain. By creating a list of authorized IP addresses, communication between DNS servers is made easier and your domain can be verified as trustworthy, adding an extra layer of protection to ensure successful email delivery.
The actual process is very simple:
- When an email arrives in your prospect’s inbox, a DNS check is performed.
- If the IP address matches the list of authorized addresses, then the SPF test is positive. The email is allowed to reach the inbox.
- If the IP address does not match, then the SPF test fails. This is called a Soft Fail. The email is still acceptable to the inbox, but since it failed the SPF test, it is discarded.
Let’s say you’ve sent an email to David. But how does David’s DNS server know that the email was in fact sent by you? The problem is, it doesn’t really. Unless you have SPF set on your DNS server.
SPF defines which IP addresses can be used to send emails from your domain. So let’s imagine two possible server “conversations”. To make it all easier, let’s assume your name is Jane.
**Scenario 1 – You don’t have SPF set up.**
Jane’s server:
\*Hey, David’s server. I’ve got a new message from Jane.\*
David’s server:
\*Hi Jane’s server. What’s your SPF?\*
Jane’s server:
\*Yeah, about the SPF… Who cares, really. I don’t have one. Trust me, it’s from Jane.\*
David’s server:
\*If you don’t have SPF, I can’t be sure it was Jane who sent this. Give me Jane’s allowed IPs, so I can compare them with yours.\*
Jane’s server:
\*I don’t have the list of Jane’s allowed IPs.\*David’s server: *Then I don’t want your message. Delivery denied. Sorry, buddy…*
**Scenario 2 – You do have SPF set up.**
Jane’s server: \*Hey, David’s server. I’ve got a new message from Jane.\*
David’s server: \*Hi Jane’s server. What’s your SPF?\*
Jane’s server: \*There you go, here’s my SPF. There’s a whole list of IPs that Jane herself declared as the ones which can be used on his behalf.\*
David’s server: *Ok, let me see… And the message you have for me is sent from IP 64.233.160.19\. Ok, it’s on the list. Everything looks fine. Gimme the message, I’ll show it to David. Thanks!*
**What apps should you include in your SPF?**
You should have all the programs that send emails using your domain name in your SPF. For example, if you use Google Apps to send emails from your domain, put Google in your SPF. Here are [Google’s instructions](https://support.google.com/a/answer/178723?hl=en&ref=revenueinsideout.com) on how to do this.
But it’s important to make sure, that Google is the only app that you should “allow” in your SPF.
**Why is SPF important for your case?**
Properly setting up SPF will give your emails an extra layer of security, leading to better deliverability. This means that having an SPF record published increases your chances of being accepted by email servers, as well as giving you fewer chances of being blacklisted.
Overall, setting up SPF will give you peace of mind and higher email deliverability!
**How can you set it up?**
You need to publish a TXT record on your DNS to enable SPF authentication.
1. Go to your domain provider (GoDaddy, Cloudflare, Namecheap, Gandi, etc.) and sign in.
2. Go to the page for updating your domain’s DNS records. It could be called "DNS Management", "Name Server Management", or "Advanced Settings".
3. Find your TXT records and check if your domain has an existing SPF record (starting with “v=spf1…”).
4. If your domain already has an SPF record, delete it.
5. Create a new TXT record with these values:
a. Name/Host/Alias: Enter @ or leave blank
b. Time to Live (TTL): Enter 3600 or leave the default
c. Value/Answer/Destination:
v=spf1 include:{{thirdparty.com}} \~all
{{thirdparty}} being the code snippet corresponding to the third-party tools that you are using to send emails.
It can be Email Service Providers like Google Workspace, Outlook, but also Email marketing tools like Mailgun, Sendgrid, Sendinblue, or Mailchimp.
Please refer to the [code list](http://help.warmbox.ai/en/articles/5239498-the-spf-snippet-code-list?ref=revenueinsideout.com) to find the code snippet corresponding for the tools you're using.
When the SPF record is published, wait for propagation (it can take up to 48 hours).
[Here’s how to setup your SPF according to your host](https://www.mail-tester.com/spf/?ref=revenueinsideout.com)
### DKIM
**What is DKIM?**
Say hello to Domain Keys Identified Message (DKIM) - a digital signature that's applied to outgoing emails at the point of sending. This signature stays with the email as it makes its way to its destination and is validated upon arrival by the email recipient.
Here’s how the process works:
Picture Ned Stark (from Game of Thrones) sending a raven with a message to King Robert. Just like a forged signature, anyone could take a piece of paper and sign it as Ned Stark - unless there is an authentication mechanism in place.
In this analogy, the seal is a sort of public key - everyone can see the dire wolf symbol that is Ned's signature seal, but only he has access to the original one (the private key). This way, his messages can be authenticated.
**What DKIM does:**
- DKIM adds an extra layer of security to your email.
- A public key is added to the domain's DNS, which allows a digital signature to be created with hashed details on the email header and footer. The encrypted individual private key is also included.
- When the email arrives, the server looks for and retrieves the public key, which is then used to create new hashes and compare them to the ones that were sent - if they match, it means the test was successful and your email will land in someone's inbox.
- If this test fails due to any altering in the hashes, then the DKIM test fails and your email is discarded.
DKIM is a more secure protocol than SPF as it carries more detailed information. To ensure your emails are authenticated properly, it is important to regularly update the public and private keys associated with your domain.
The whole idea is based on encrypting and decrypting the additional signature, put in the [header](https://support.google.com/mail/answer/22454?hl=en&ref=revenueinsideout.com) of your message. To make that possible, you need to have two keys:
- the private key (which is unique to your domain and available exclusively to you. It allows you to encrypt your signature in the header of your messages.)
- the public key (which you add to your DNS records using the DKIM standard, in order to allow your recipient’s server to retrieve it and decrypt your hidden signature from the header of your message).
To set up DKIM, all you need to do is add the public key information to your server's records. This should be done in the form of a text (txt) record, which must be placed in the appropriate location.
**Why is DKIM important for your case?**
Adopting the DKIM protocol for your emails will provide greater security and improved deliverability. If you don't have a DKIM record, some email servers will block access to the emails from this domain. To sum it up, setting up DKIM can help keep your emails safe and ensure they make it to their destination.
**How can you set it up?**
You need to generate a pair of keys and publish a TXT record on your DNS to enable DKIM authentication.
- Login to your Email Service Provider as admin.
- Look for the DKIM setup, likely to be in the "Security" or "Authentication" section.
- Generate a DKIM Key directly from your Provider or use a [DKIM Key generator](https://dkimcore.org/tools/keys.html?ref=revenueinsideout.com).
- Go to your domain provider (GoDaddy, Cloudflare, Namecheap, Gandi, etc.) and sign in.
- Go to the page for updating your domain’s DNS records. It could be called "DNS Management", "Name Server Management", or "Advanced Settings".
- Create a DNS TXT Record with the DKIM key generated in the previous step and the information given (Host Name, Record value, and leave TTL value by default).
- When the DKIM record is published, wait for propagation (it can take up to 48 hours)
Note: For Google Apps email users, you should know that on default the DKIM signatures are turned off, so you need to turn them on manually in your Google Admin console.
Here’s how to set DKIM in some of the other domain hosts:
- [Microsoft](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/security/office-365-security/email-authentication-dkim-configure?view=o365-worldwide&ref=revenueinsideout.com)
- [Zoho](https://www.zoho.com/mail/help/adminconsole/dkim-configuration.html?ref=revenueinsideout.com)
- [NameCheap](https://www.namecheap.com/support/knowledgebase/article.aspx/317/2237/how-do-i-add-txtspfdkimdmarc-records-for-my-domain?ref=revenueinsideout.com)
### DMARC
**What is DMARC?**
DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting, & Conformance) is a powerful email authentication protocol that unifies SPF and DKIM authentication into one common framework. This ensures the emails coming from your domain are authentic and protected from spam filters. Having all three protocols in place will keep your emails secure and make sure they reach their intended destination.
DMARC helps improve email security by allowing you to set up rules for when an email fails to pass authentication and providing reports on email performance. This makes it the best option for verifying the authenticity of emails.
Most hosting servers and ESPs provide instructions on how to set up DMARC, SPF, and DKIM. To verify your DNS records, you can use a [DNS Lookup Tool](https://dnschecker.org/all-dns-records-of-domain.php?ref=revenueinsideout.com).
Here’s how it works:
- When a DMARC-aligned email reaches your prospect’s inbox, an SPF and a DKIM check are performed as usual. Then, a domain alignment test is performed.
- Simply put, this test matches the sender’s email address with the one stored in the SPF and DKIM records.
- Once passed, the email reaches your prospect’s inbox.
You have the ability to change how strict or flexible the checks are. For example, if you make the domain alignment test very strict, fewer emails will pass the test. If you make the test more lenient, more emails will pass.
**Why is DMARC important for your case?**
DMARC is the perfect addition to DKIM and SPF for keeping unauthenticated users from sending emails from your domain. Not only does it protect your brand, but it also sends trust signals to ISPs which results in improved deliverability.
**How can you set it up?**
You need to publish a TXT record on your DNS to enable DMARC authentication.
1. Go to your domain provider (GoDaddy, Cloudflare, Namecheap, Gandi, etc.) and sign in.
2. Go to the page for updating your domain’s DNS records. It could be called "DNS Management", "Name Server Management", or "Advanced Settings".
3. Add this TXT Record to your DNS:
a. Name/Host/Alias: \_dmarc
b. Time to Live (TTL): Enter 3600 or leave the default
c. Value/Answer/Destination: Replace {email} with your email address.
**v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=mailto:{email}; pct=100; sp=none**
You can also generate a DMARC record using this tool: [DMARC Record Generator](https://mxtoolbox.com/DMARCRecordGenerator.aspx?domain=yourdomain.com&ref=revenueinsideout.com)
[Here’s how to setup DMARC if you’re on Google](https://support.google.com/a/answer/2466563?hl=en&ref=revenueinsideout.com)
[Here’s how to setup DMARC if you’re on Microsoft](https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/security/office-365-security/use-dmarc-to-validate-email?view=o365-worldwide&ref=revenueinsideout.com)
### BIMI
BIMI (Brand Indicators For Message Authentication) helps you protect your emails from fraud, build brand visibility and boost consumer trust. It works in tandem with other email authentication protocols such as DMARC, SPF, and DKIM to double verify that it's you sending the emails.
Additionally, BIMI also displays your brand logo next to the verified emails which not only set you apart but increases user engagement as well. This is further supported by ESPs who will recognize that you have existing security protocols in place for your domain.
### MX Records
Run a check with Google’s [Check MX](https://toolbox.googleapps.com/apps/checkmx/?ref=revenueinsideout.com) tool once you’ve added all authentication systems. This check will let you know if you set up your records correctly. If you didn't set them up correctly, you'll get a notification showing which records still need to be configured.
If you see the green checkmarks, you’re set.
### IP
Remember, your IP address also impacts the sender’s reputation that comes with each of your emails.
Platforms that allow you to send bulk emails usually offer Shared IP addresses as the default option. This makes their services more affordable but doesn't give you any control over your IP reputation.
The operators do conduct quality checks and rotate between several hundred IP addresses to keep deliverability rates high for all their customers. For most people, this will be more than enough - a Shared IP address is more than adequate for their needs.
If you have a large contact list and need to send emails regularly, having a Dedicated IP address can be beneficial. It gives you more control over your sender's reputation.
However, don't just blast out emails the first day - receiving servers need to be introduced to who you are and that your messages are both legit and wanted by your audience. Gradually build up the volume over time for best results.
Companies usually begin by sending small batches of emails and gradually increase the volume. How you send your messages also plays a role in boosting email deliverability - these tried-and-true practices will help you achieve success.
When you send emails from your own custom domain, you not only come off as professional but also gain control over your inbox placement rate. Your reputation is closely related to the practices you employ and the same applies to IP addresses, though on a somewhat lesser basis.
This approach gives you the power to protect your reputation and make sure that whatever messages you have to convey, reach their destination unharmed.
For small businesses, investing in a dedicated IP may not be the best idea - mistakes would be more costly and the sending volume might not be enough to balance it out. On the other hand, having sole responsibility over DNS records and being able to easily whitelist your IP can be great advantages when it comes to larger companies.
As I said earlier you can try to improve your sender reputation by using a dedicated IP address because you are the only one sending emails over the IP address. This means that you won't have to worry about other people's emails. But it is only good for businesses that send out a lot of emails each year, like more than 100,000.
For smaller organizations that send fewer than 100k emails a year, a shared IP address can be the perfect solution. Not only will they benefit from the best practices used by other senders, but they'll also gain from the increase in their sender's reputation. It's an excellent way to tap into the advantages of collective mail sending with minimal investment.
### Encryption
Commercial emails contain sensitive customer data that must be protected from unauthorized access. To ensure this, check if the email software of your choice provides TLS (Transport Layer Security) encryption.
Services like Zoho Mail or Sendinblue usually provide this type of encryption, but it will only work if the recipient server supports TLS as well. Otherwise, emails will be delivered using standard SMTP protocols.
**Note:** SMTP or Simple Mail Transfer Protocol is **an application that is used to send, receive, and relay outgoing emails between senders and receivers**. When an email is sent, it's transferred over the internet from one server to another using SMTP. In simple terms, an SMTP email is just an email sent using the SMTP server.
On the other hand, make use of the latest encryption standards [TLS Encryption](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transport%5FLayer%5FSecurity?ref=revenueinsideout.com) – Transport Layer Security (TLS) is a powerful protocol that helps safeguard the privacy of sender and receiver by encrypting messages in transit and preventing manipulation by third parties. For even more security, MTA-STS is a new encryption standard that provides an extra layer of protection for email transmissions, giving you peace of mind knowing your data is secure and confidential.
### Relevant Content
Are your recipients clicking on links, replying to you, and marking your emails as important? All of these behaviors are vital for ensuring excellent deliverability rates, which is why it's so essential that your emails are genuinely good and useful.
Taking the time to create content that resonates with your subscribers is key to ensuring good email deliverability. But if the emails you send don't match their needs and expectations, they won't engage, resulting in a drop in deliverability rates. So, once again, watch out for spam filters – even if you weren't trying to be deceptive, sending unsolicited or suspicious content can land you in hot water!
So take care when crafting your emails and make sure each one meets all the necessary standards.
Here are some factors that can improve the content of your email:
1. Make content that is tailored to each person and is interesting to them. Use tools to group people by shared interests or characteristics, and make sure the content in your email changes to match them.
2. Make your emails look good by arranging the information in a way that is easy to read. Use headings and sections to divide the information up, and include buttons people can click on that ask them to do something (but not too many!).
3. Prioritize mobile-friendly design. Make sure your emails are easy to read, even during a hectic commute.
4. Try not to include really big files with your emails. Email companies don't want to overwhelm people's inboxes with huge messages, so they might remove your email if it's too big.
5. Try to have a balance between pictures and words in your emails. If you only use pictures, it might look like spam. Try not to have more than 40% content as images...
6. Avoid spammy subject lines and all caps. A clickbait-like message is an immediate red flag for any email service filtering system.
7. Run A/B testing. Test different images, layouts, and buttons to find the right formula and increase your open rate.
Here is an important question that needs to be answered:
**Does a good copy protect you from being blacklisted?**
Yes, in general, a good copy that provides some value to the prospect helps you take care of the safety of your domain.
Writing effective cold emails that don't get flagged by spam filters or seen as 'spammy' by our target audience is becoming increasingly difficult. As the market becomes more saturated with cold emails, it's easy to make a mistake that can cause your email to be marked as spam.
It's essential to pay attention to the language and content of our emails, so as not to send off any negative vibes that could be interpreted as 'spammy'.
You may put a lot of time and effort into crafting the perfect email for your prospects, but even then it can be seen as 'spammy' and marked as such by the reader before they make it to the end. Even if you do all you can to ensure positive engagement, it pays to remember the possibility that your email could be seen as an unwelcome offer – so take care when creating your content!
In this section of the guide, I'll talk in detail about what makes your content inherently spammy and how can you turn it into a high-quality cold outreach (that works!!!).
### Set up the from line and signature
When getting your email account set up, one of the most important steps is getting your signature and form line straight. Make sure you're using accurate information – no need for fake names or identities; you're a real person, so let your email provider know that! For Gmail users, consider adding a profile picture too – it can go a long way toward making sure you don't get tagged as spam.
If you're opting for an HTML signature, make sure it's well-crafted so it won't take up more space than your actual message. Ensure the HTML is neat and tidy – if you're not sure how to check that, a text signature might be a better option, as a poorly written one could land your email in spam folders.
### Spammy Keywords
From the sender's reputation to the content of the email, spam filters scrutinize every aspect while filtering out messages. But how about our own human judgment? We can be just as critical, if not more, as an automated filter. Our own perception may lead us to flag emails as spam if they don't meet certain standards—no matter who sent them.
Now, brace yourselves, right now we'll go into detail about the main aspect of your emails' content that should be taken into account to avoid both automatic spam filters and spam reports from recipients:
**a) Spam triggering verbiage**
Yes, spam-triggering verbiage exists.
Words and phrases that seem too good to be true—they are. Too often, when an email is sent out, it's instantly flagged as spam because of certain trigger words that may be hiding in the content. We can't always trust the offer being made—it could be maliciously crafted to obtain unsuspecting victims' private information.
Marketers and salespeople must take extra care when crafting their emails, so they don't end up with a one-way ticket straight to the recipient's virtual trash bin. A study by[ Ortto](https://ortto.com/blog/email-spam-trigger-words/?ref=revenueinsideout.com) found that 14.7% of emails get caught by spam filters.
Here are some words and phrases that are regarded as spammy by ESPs:
1. Buy now!
2. Click here
3. Hurry up
4. XXX
5. Offer expires
6. Urgent
7. Best price
8. Free gift
9. Prize
10. Promise you
11. 100% free
Be careful with the words you chose, don't use too many big words, emojis, all caps, special characters, or weird fonts.
Don’t make your words too ‘salesy’, and avoid using the dollar sign, too many bolded words, all-caps, FREE!!, and emojis in cold and business emails.
**Note:** Here is a curated list of 400 spam-trigger keywords that you should avoid using in your emails. You can [find out the list in this article.](https://www.warmbox.ai/blog/400-spam-trigger-keywords?ref=revenueinsideout.com)
Email providers are taking extra precautions to make sure their users' data is secure and compliant with the new GDPR legislation. This can lead to stricter spam filters, which may be more likely to flag certain words or phrases as suspicious. To ensure your messages arrive safely at their destination, it's important to be mindful of these regulations and take special care when crafting your emails.
**b) Avoid spammy titles**
If you’ve got a legit mailing list and interesting content, you shouldn’t have to use BuzzFeed-like expressions to get people to open an email from you.
WRITING YOUR SUBJECT LINE IN ALL CAPS or including too many exclamation points!!! - this will get you into spam immediately.
While typos and red text can quickly label your message as spam, specific phrases included in your body copy can do that too. To ensure your email not only looks professional but also bypasses the filters, it's critical to be mindful of both spelling and word choice. However, one slip-up could cost you dearly; even a stellar reputation might not be enough to guarantee delivery if a filter takes an unfavorable view of your message.
Here are[ 455 examples](https://blog.prospect.io/455-email-spam-trigger-words-avoid-2018/?ref=revenueinsideout.com) of the phrases you just shouldn’t use in your emails. You can do better than that.
### Personalization is important to stop emails from going to junk
Personalizing emails is a fantastic way to stand out in the inbox and increase your chances of success.
Not only does it help build relationships with your recipients, but they're far less likely to be caught by a spam filter. So don't just send everyone the same content - take a few extra minutes to personalize each message and ensure your campaigns get the best results!
Writing email copies that convert is a skill. Investing time to learn to copyright will help you increase your email results, including avoiding the spam folder.
People can mark your email as spam for different reasons :
- Your email is irrelevant to them
- Your email contains an error they didn’t like (‘Hi Last Name’ for example)
- Your email is too pushy or sales
- They don’t like your offer or your brand
- Your email pisses them off
- They receive too many emails
- They’re having a bad day
I already have a whole series on the [personalization of your cold emails](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/personalization-the-best-way-to-improve-your-email-outreach/).
### Be aware of heavy attachment
When you send an email to someone you've never spoken to before, it can come across as a bit of a gamble. After all, your recipient may be hesitant to open any attachments from a sender they don't recognize.
At first glance, attaching files or images in emails might seem like a useful way to get the attention of your prospects. However, due to the history of malicious attachments used by scammers, email providers are understandably wary and will often block them from showing in emails sent by unknown senders.
Although it might be discouraging that this practice is required for safety reasons, there's still hope as long as you craft your message carefully and use the right words - you can turn this initial distrust into an eagerness to explore what you have to offer.
By steadily building the relationship and introducing them to what you have on offer bit by bit, you'll be able to get the most out of your emails.
If you do have important information you need to share, you can do this without using attachments, HTML, and images:
- Create targeted landing pages for different prospects
- Share a link to the file on DropBox, Google Drive, YouTube, etc.
It's understandable that email providers are concerned about protecting their customers, but that doesn't mean you have to abandon attachments, HTML, and images altogether; while they may be seen as red flags, there are still ways to use them safely and effectively in your emails.
With the right knowledge and careful crafting of your messages, you can avoid getting blocked by spam filters while still making an impression on your prospects.
### Be aware of inserting too many links and images
When crafting emails, it is best to include no more than two links and maintain an image-to-text ratio of 40% image and 60% text. Doing so will help you avoid any deliverability issues caused by spam filters.
If you are just starting out and unsure of the best practices, it may be better to avoid including any links or images in your content to ensure the successful delivery of messages.
When sending emails, it is best to keep the number of links, images, and gifs at two or lower. Doing so will help you avoid any deliverability issues caused by spam filters.
### Short URL
Short URLs are links that have been truncated through a URL shortener, such as Bitly. As they allow click tracking and branding of the shared links, they present a great advantage for marketers.
Unfortunately, scammers and spammers can also take advantage of them to hide the destination page of malicious links. To prevent emails from being put in junk, most spam filters track the presence of shortened links within emails.
Using short URLs can damage your deliverability and sender reputation, potentially resulting in domain or IP blacklisting.
### Broken links
A broken link or dead link is a hyperlink on a web page that no longer works and redirects the users that click on it to a 404 error page.
A link can be broken for different reasons:
- There is a typing error in the URL (can be a space, or an additional number of letters).
- The destination page doesn't exist anymore.
- The destination website of the link doesn't exist anymore.
- The user has software or is behind a firewall that blocks access to the destination website.
Broken links in emails can be especially deceptive for recipients, as they lead to error pages rather than the content you wanted to share. As a result, emails with broken links are more likely to be reported as spam and have a negative effect on your email deliverability.
Some spam filters directly flag any emails that contain dead URLs, so it's important to be sure all of your links are working correctly before sending out an email.
The best practice is to always verify the links you send through emails, or to test your emails with tools like Warmbox "Email Spam Checker".
### Engaged Recipient
Email engagement measures how your prospects interact with your emails - from opening and reading to clicking links or replying to your email.
It's the key metric of whether they're interested in what you have to say, so it's important to track and understand your email engagement levels if you want to ensure successful marketing campaigns.
When it comes to email engagements, there are two types: positive and negative. Positive engagements are when prospects read, reply, move to different folders, or mark as important.
Whereas negative engagements involve not opening the mail and deleting it without reading or marking your email as spam. Of course, positive engagements will help improve your sender's reputation while negative ones will have the opposite effect.
SDRs need to measure email engagements carefully. A lot of prospects might not even open or read the cold emails they send out, which can have a damaging effect on their sender's reputation, leading to worse deliverability rates. Tracking this metric is essential for successful outreach efforts.
To get high open rates and overall great cold email results, that’s important for you to…
### …Be picky concerning your email lists
Here’s what I mean by “picky”
**1\. Your email list should contain MOSTLY nominative professional email addresses**
When sending emails, it's important to target specific individuals and not generic email addresses such as contact@xyz.com. This is because generic emails are hard to personalize and can be sent to multiple people, increasing the risk of being marked as spam.
**2\. Your list should contain the basic personalization elements such as the name of your recipients and ideally their company name to maximize your results.**
When sending emails, you should always personalize them with the recipient's name and company name to get the best results. This will make sure each email is tailored specifically to that person, which increases your chance of getting a response without being marked as spam. Always include a personalized greeting like "Hi \[First Name\]" for maximum impact.
**3\. Your email list has to be TARGETED.**
You need people who might be interested in your product or service on your list. You cannot know if Marie will buy something until you talk to her, she needs to be someone that you are targeting for your product.
Let’s take an example:
You sell fundraising services to startups and small companies. You want to reach out to relevant companies that can be interested to raise funds with you.
When you’re at the step of working on your email list, you have to make sure it effectively contains CEOs / Founders of startups and small companies that CAN raise funds.
That means :
- excluding people who are not CEOs / Founders like (“PA to the CEO”, and “CEO’s Right hand”)
- excluding companies that can’t raise funds, like public companies/nonprofits, etc.
If you send emails to people who are not interested, it will make them angry. And because of that people may report your emails as spam. This, in turn, could hurt your reputation and mean that you waste time talking to people who don't care about what you have to say.
### Create positive feedback loops
Even if you haven't been marked as spam, it can still be discouraging when a lot of people don't respond to your emails. But the upside is that each time someone does reply or adds you to their contacts, it's a strong sign that you are an emailer with credibility, and this will improve your overall email reputation.
### Spam reports (or spam complaints)
A spam complaint happens when someone clicks the "mark as spam" option in their email. Email service providers take these complaints seriously because it means the recipient is unhappy with your content.
If your complaint rate continues to go up, your sender reputation will drop and it will become harder for you to get emails delivered to the primary inbox. But don't give up hope – there are still plenty of steps you can take to try and improve your sender reputation and ensure you're landing in the inbox!
As mentioned previously in the sender reputation section of this guide, try to keep your complaint rate less than 0.01%. If a user marks you as spam, immediately remove them from your list to avoid any further complaints.
One can mark emails in your inbox as spam, and this helps email providers like Gmail better understand what spam is. However, when someone reports one of your emails as spam, it will get added to an abuse report on you as a sender. If too many people do this, you may be seen as a questionable sender and your emails could be blocked from delivery.
The usual threshold over a month of sending is [anywhere from 0.5% down to 0.15%](https://kb.benchmarkemail.com/what-is-abuse/?ref=revenueinsideout.com), depending on the volume sent.
To avoid abuse reports, send only personalized and relevant messages to your recipients.
### Optimize Your CTA for Replies
Getting high open rates and click-through rates (CTRs) is great, but it's not the only thing that matters - focusing on getting real engagement from your emails is key too. Putting time and effort into writing personalized messages with a clear call-to-action will help you build lasting relationships and get better results.
Examples of call-to-actions that can work are:
- Is that something you’d be interested in?
- Are you available to chat?
- What’s your biggest challenge around {\[topic}} right now?
When crafting your emails, make sure to include a clear call to action that encourages people to reply. The CTA should be easy to answer and not require too much thought. Even if they're not interested, having people reply with a simple "No, thank you" is still better than no response at all - this means your email service provider will see it as engagement.
### Optimize some emails for replies instead of clicks
Having real people send out emails is a good move, such as salespersons, account managers, support staff, or even the CEO. You can make these emails more engaging by asking a question at the end - this will encourage customers to converse with you.
An example of turning a regular automated email into a conversational one
**Types of reactions**
**Positive reactions**
a. Message read – ISPs track which messages were read and which weren’t. In addition to that, the longer the message stays on the screen adds more value to this metric.
b. Moved to folders – When users place emails in folders, it means that they want to keep the message safe and wish to receive more from the sender.
c. Message forwarded – When an email message is forwarded, it indicates that the user expected and desired it
d. Sender’s email address added to address book – When the sender’s email address is in the recipient’s address book, it guarantees that emails will enter the inbox no matter how poor the metrics are.
e. Message marked as not spam – ISPs find an email marked as not spam by the recipient to be a crucial metric. It shows the sender in good light as marking a message as not spam requires the recipient to put in the effort.
**Negative reactions**
a. Messages deleted after the recipient read them – Reading a message may seem to be a positive reaction. Still, when the recipient deletes the message after reading it, it indicates that the message was of no use to the user.
b. Messages deleted by the recipient without reading them – This is an adverse reaction, and it makes the ISP understand that the message was not of interest to the user. Sending emails repeatedly to an account that doesn’t engage with the emails can result in future emails getting filtered out.
c. Blocking sender’s email address – Some ISPs allow recipients to block a sender’s address so that they don’t get messages from that sender in the future. This is by far one of the most negative reactions.
d. Message marked as spam – This strongly indicates that the recipient does not want to receive your email. All emails sent after this action will end up in the spam folder of the recipient. This increases the chance of getting filtered out in the mailbox of other recipients too.
## Deliverability checklist
So, now we are wrapping this guide lets make your life easier and email management simpler. For that purpose, I introduce you to a simple deliverability checklist**:**
- Good IP address reputation
- Good domain reputation
- Email account is warmed up (for at least a week)
- Sending habits mirror regular human activity
- Max. 150 emails per day per email account
- Max. 2-3 domains per IP (best is only 1)
- Max. 2-3 email accounts per domain (best is only 1)
- Minimum 3 minutes delay per email sent
- DKIM is properly set up
- SPF properly set up (DKIM, SPF, DMARC)
- DMARC properly set up
- Email contains no HTML
- Email contains as few links as possible
- Bounce rate less than 10% (all email addresses are verified)
- Emails are only sent to an individual's email addresses and not to any generic email
- Email copy contains no [SPAM-triggering](https://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/30684/the-ultimate-list-of-email-spam-trigger-words.aspx?ref=revenueinsideout.com) words
- Email copy passes [SPAM engine test](https://mailmeteor.com/spam-checker?ref=revenueinsideout.com)
- Open rates are not being tracked with an open rate tracker (Optional)
- Emails are personalized (minimum is name & company)
- Email footer contains only text (no links, no HTML, no pictures, etc.) and uses the same email that you are sending from
- No attachments are being sent on cold emails
- No link shorteners (goo.gl, bit.ly, …) are being used
- Emails are being sent during normal business hours in the IP server timezone (not sent over the weekend)
- The subject is short and simple
- Reply to all email replies even if they are not interested (except for ones that use vulgar language)
- Prospects have enough time between emails and don’t get bombarded (minimum 2-3 day wait before following up)
- No one ever gets sent the same email twice
- Your offer strongly resonates with your lead list and most people reply positively
- Automatically stop sending emails to people that have replied
This is the same checklist that I've mentioned before in this guide and you'll be able to **[download it at the bottom of the article.](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/from-spam-to-inbox-a-practical-guide-to-cold-email-deliverability/#download-worksheets)**
## Regulations to keep in mind
Anti-pam regulations are all about keeping spam out of your inbox. They set out rules and guidelines for all email senders, making sure they provide their contact info and follow data privacy measures — so that only legit emails reach you.
Many people are worried that these regulations mean that the cold outreach is doomed. But it’s not completely true.
Still, there are certain things that you should follow in order to stay compliant. Let’s look into some specific spam regulations and what you can do about them:
****GDPR – European Union**
GDPR is a set of privacy laws passed by the European Union to protect individual EU citizens and their personal data. It's all about making sure that companies don't abuse people's information, whether it be through spam emails or anything else.
In other words, GDPR helps keep your data secure and out of the hands of those who may misuse it. So if you're doing business in Europe, make sure you're compliant with this important regulation!
Here are some tips to stay compliant with anti-spam regulations:
- Personalize your emails. Get to know your audience and make sure that what you're writing resonates with them.
- Always provide an opt-out link in your emails so people can easily unsubscribe.
- Use your real name when sending emails - don't use a generic server or company name.
- Make sure the tool you use is GDPR compliant, meaning people can delete their name and email from your contacts list if they choose to do so.
****CAN-SPAM – United States**
CAN-SPAM stands for Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act.
It's a law in the United States that requires businesses to provide contact information, an opt-out option for further messages, accurate headers & subject lines and prohibits fraudulent activities like phishing or spamming in emails.
Those who don't comply can face penalties including fines up to $44,000 or even jail time depending on the severity of the offense.
But let’s not get ahead of ourselves and discuss simple tips that will help you stay compliant with the CAN-SPAM:
- Provide your details. Your email has to clearly identify who you are, and the name of your business (or your real name) - the “From”, and “Reply to”, and routing information sections have to be accurate and correspond with your personal or business information.
- Don’t use misleading subject lines. Do tell your recipient what they can expect to find in your email.
- If your email is an ad, admit it. This doesn’t mean that you should include the word “ad” in your subject line, but make sure to say “this ad has been sent to you by XYZ” at the bottom of your email.
- Provide your physical business address. In case you receive your business correspondence in the P.O. box, use it.
Make opting out as easy as possible. It’s essential to place an opt-out button in every email you send.
Remove opt-outs as quickly as possible. Once a prospect opts out, exclude them from all your ongoing campaigns.
## Your Toolkit
**1\. [Mail-tester.com](https://www.mail-tester.com/?ref=revenueinsideout.com)**
Mail-tester.com is a simple, efficient tool that tests email deliverability in one step. You just need to send a message to the provided address and get an accurate score. It shows what SpamAssassin thinks about your message if your mail account is on a block list or not authenticated, etc. The free version allows you to perform up to 3 tests per day.
**2\. [MxToolbox](https://mxtoolbox.com/deliverability?ref=revenueinsideout.com)**
MxToolbox provides a comprehensive deliverability report which analyses the headers, blocklist reputation of your outbound IP address, and your SPF records. The free plan allows for one monitor with access to the top 30 blocklists, and upgrading to the paid plan gives you access to multiple monitors and more blacklists.
**3\. [Spam Check by Postmark](http://spamcheck.postmarkapp.com/?ref=revenueinsideout.com)**
Spam Check by Postmark is a free, online tool that lets you instantly check the SpamAssassin spam score of your messages. It uses a variety of spam-detection techniques to determine deliverability and allows you to paste the full headers and content of your message - no need to send it anywhere.
**4\. [GlockApps](https://glockapps.com/?ref=revenueinsideout.com)**
GlockApps is a full-featured service that offers everything you'll need to maximize inbox deliverability. It includes an email tester, blocklist monitor, spoofing detector, HTML error checker, and more.
It checks against over 50 industry blocklists and tracks if your content or IP is blocked by Gmail, Yahoo, or other ISPs. MailChimp users can easily test their marketing campaigns directly on the GlockApps website. Free users get three detailed reports and there are plans available for an annual subscription, monthly subscription, or per-test basis.
**5\. [SendForensics](https://www.sendforensics.com/email-deliverability-test?ref=revenueinsideout.com)**
SendForensics is an email deliverability checker that highlights the issues that send emails to the spam folder by performing pre-emptive tests and real-time scoring of live sends. It provides a comparison with industry benchmarks so you can track how well you're doing as well as set alerts to quickly detect emerging issues.
**6.[MailFlow](https://www.mailflow.io/?ref=revenueinsideout.com)**
I mentioned this above, but if you’re sending cold emails, you need a well-warmed-up email address. Assuming you don’t want to do it manually, using an email warming service is a great shortcut.
MailFlow sends emails to people every day, simulating real exchanges between email accounts without interacting with spamming accounts. This helps to build trustworthiness with inbox providers. The email warm-up tool is free and integrated with QuickMail, as well as provides access to the entire sales outreach platform to send, schedule, and follow up with prospects.
**7.[Postmaster Tools](https://postmaster.google.com/?ref=revenueinsideout.com)**
If you’re sending a high volume of emails across your team, Postmaster Tools is useful.
It shows you data on your email account such as:
- Spam Rate
- IP Reputation
- Sender Reputation
- Delivery Errors
If your team sees a deliverability drop for no reason, you can diagnose it with Postmaster Tools.
**8.[Check MX](https://toolbox.googleapps.com/apps/checkmx/?ref=revenueinsideout.com)**
Before sending any cold emails out, your technical foundations need to be in place.[ Check MX](https://toolbox.googleapps.com/apps/checkmx/?ref=revenueinsideout.com) is a great free tool for this.
It’s simple – add your domain name, and it’ll automatically check if you have all the necessary records in place.
If you’ve forgotten to configure your DKIM signature or SPF records, it’ll show you.
**9.[Talosintelligence.com](https://talosintelligence.com/?ref=revenueinsideout.com)**
Talosintelligence.com is a website that provides cyber security intelligence and analysis. It helps users to defend their networks against malicious actors by providing real-time, comprehensive protection from emerging threats. It also offers insights through research on the latest trends in cyber-attacks, as well as actionable information on how to keep systems secure.
Talosintelligeure out if your IP is blacklisted or not.
**10.[Mxtoolbox.com/blacklists](https://mxtoolbox.com/blacklists.aspx?ref=revenueinsideout.com)**
Mxtoolbox.com/blacklists is a tool that allows users to check if their IP address or domain name has been blacklisted. It helps to ensure emails are delivered without interruption and protects website visitors from malicious activities online. The tool offers real-time monitoring, alerting, and reporting capabilities so users can take action before their reputation is affected by blacklisting.
You see, getting into spam is much easier than into the recipient’s inbox, but it doesn’t mean that getting into the inbox is impossible.
If you do your best to maintain the domain’s reputation and follow anti-spam guidelines – your chances to reach the prospect’s inbox will be much, much higher!
---
## FAQs:
### Q1: Can a domain be too old?
No such thing! Time is on your side in this case, provided the domain is well-kept and has always had a good reputation. Deliverability depends on a domain’s reputation to a great extent, so make sure your domain maintains its good reputation over time. Monitor open rate over time, don’t use the same email copy for too long, and take care of the high quality of your prospect list.
### Q2: Is there a list or tool to check my email for SPAM words?
Unfortunately, there’s no ultimate list of all the spam words. Spam filters constantly make changes to their algorithms. You may want to go through a few spam lists available on the internet, such as the [ultimate list of email spam trigger words prepared by Hubspot](https://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/30684/the-ultimate-list-of-email-spam-trigger-words.aspx?ref=revenueinsideout.com), and add a few tweaks to your email copy in order to avoid specific words, if necessary.
Also, there are tools that can analyze the content of your emails for spam words, such as [Postmark](https://spamcheck.postmarkapp.com/?ref=revenueinsideout.com).
### Q3: What can I do when my domain has a bad reputation?
If your domain has a bad reputation, you need to implement a recovery process. It’s actually quite similar to the warming-up process. Stop all your cold email [campaigns and get back to the starting point](https://woodpecker.co/blog/15-things-you-need-to-know-about-domains-before-running-a-cold-email-campaign/?ref=revenueinsideout.com). Send just a handful of emails per day to people you know and ask them for replies. Exchange a few emails. If your messages get into the spam folders, ask your recipients to unmark them as spam. This way the spam filters will be notified that your emails matter to the addressee and that you’re not a spammer.
## Download worksheets
---
_This post is for subscribers only._
### Step-By-Step Playbook for Go-To-Market Strategy
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/step-by-step-playbook-for-go-to-market-strategy/
Last updated: 2023-05-07T22:00:09.000Z
Are you an early-stage startup founder, with zero sales or just the first few sales? Or launching a new product? Or entering a new market?
And are you wondering how to achieve product-market fit, in order to get ready for growth?
If the answer is “yes”, then you’re in the right place. In this article, **I give you turn-by-turn directions on how to achieve and prove product-market fit.**
Product-market fit has always been a mysterious thing.
As a founding team member of 13 startups, mostly in B2B SaaS, I’ve been through the cycle of zero-to-product-market fit quite a few times by now, while growing some of them to over 200 employees.
During this period, whenever I asked my mentors, investors, or VCs to explain product-market fit in tangible terms, they’d always reply along the lines of: “It’s really hard to define – you’ll know it when you see it.”
If I described the situation of my startup and asked whether I had reached product-market fit, the answer was usually: “If you have to ask, you probably haven’t.”
As for how to reach product-market fit, the most common advice I got was to just ask my customers and build what they want.
But that doesn’t always work, does it?
More or better products don’t always mean greater growth. We can all name at least a few examples of not-so-great products that made big companies – and vice-versa. David Bland, one of the gurus in San Francisco for product-market fit, calls it the [product death cycle – aka death by feature](https://twitter.com/davidjbland/status/467096015318036480?lang=en&ref=revenueinsideout.com).
Other definitions of achieving a product-market fit that doesn’t really work either:
- When you have more customers than you can handle.
- When you ask your customers how they’d feel if your product didn’t exist tomorrow, and the majority of them say “very unhappy”.
These are pretty vague (not to mention inaccurate) explanations.
At my core, I’m an engineer – and such approaches don’t really resonate with me. I see things in terms of processes and systems, which should be predictable and repeatable.
In this guide, I’ll provide a concrete, recognizable, measurable definition of product-market fit – based on my experience with 13 different startups. Then, I introduce an easy-to-understand framework that you can use to achieve product-market fit.
Not only that, but you’ll also be able to tangibly prove that your startup has achieved this goal and is ready to be in growth mode.
All kinds of startups will find value in this article, but it’s most relevant for B2B companies since my experience lies mainly in that area.
So first, we’ll get to a definition of measurable product-market fit. Then, we’ll go through the step-by-step process for you to achieve it.
## Defining Product-Market fit
What is product-market fit? And how do you know when you’ve achieved it?
To start with, take a look at this “valley of death”. Where do you think product-market fit happens?
Product-market fit is around point 4 in this graph. When you achieve it, you’re ready to grow.
Basically, the real product-market fit is between the product, market, and business model. That means your product is a fit with the market you’re trying to serve, and at the same time, your business model resonates with your target customers.
Based on this understanding, we can say:
💡
Product-market fit is having \[predictable sales\] of \[a product\] with \[positive Return on Investment (RoI)\].
Let’s look at each variable in the sentence above:
- **Product** is \[a solution\] that helps your \[target customer\] achieve \[success\] by solving \[a problem\] they have.
- In the most fundamental sense, gross **positive RoI** \= Average Annual Revenue Per User (AARPU) or Life Time Value (LTV) > Cost of Acquiring a Customer (CAC).
- And **predictable sales** are achieved when you know that if today you reach out to \[x target customers\] with \[a message\], you’ll have \[y sales\] in \[z days\], with \[a, b, and c steps\] in your sales funnel.
P.S. – I will use AARPU instead of LTV for the rest of this article for simplicity.
P.P.S. – I am not including the Cost of Serving a customer in the RoI, also for simplicity. If you have a considerably high Cost of Serving your customers – one simple way is to use Gross Profit instead of AARPU.
That leads us to the full definition:
**Product-market fit is knowing that if today you reach out to \[x number\] of \[target customers\] with \[a message\], you’ll have \[y sales\] in \[z days\] with \[a, b, and c steps\] in your sales funnel, for \[a solution\] that helps them achieve \[success\] by solving \[a problem\] they have while having your \[AARPU\] more than \[CAC\].**
Once you have the values for all these variables, you’ll be able to know and prove that you have a product-market fit and that you’re ready to scale.
P.S. – Obviously, this is based on the assumption that your product works well and helps your customers achieve success.
## Guaranteed P-M Fit Method
Now, let’s see how you can find the values for these variables for your company, using my Guaranteed P-M fit method.
Let’s take a look at each of the 6 levels:
- The **target customer and problem** are the fundamental building blocks of the entire structure. They’re closely connected together.
- Then comes **success**. Think of it as a before-and-after scenario: problem = life before using your product, and success = life after using your product.
- The **solution** is your product. Essentially, it’s how your customer goes from problem to success.
- Then there’s **pricing**, based on how big the difference is in your before-and-after scenario, and what other solutions are out there.
- Next up, is **customer outreach**. This is how you get your customer’s attention.
- **Calculating sales** is the journey from your customer giving you attention to giving you money. Based on this, you know how much it’s going to cost you (CAC). With all the above information, you can easily calculate x, y, and z: how many people become your customers (y sales) out of the people you contacted (x customers) and how long it takes to complete the process (z days).
Just by looking at this framework, you can see that:
- Whenever you change anything at one level, you’ll need to adjust and recheck everything above that level. For example, if you change the solution, you need to re-verify and redesign everything above it, starting with pricing.
- Product-market fit is a spiral model, not a one-time exercise. As a company, you’ll never achieve it once and for all. You’ll always be improving your product, tweaking your messaging, expanding to another customer segment, and so on.
On the other hand, if you start really niche, you can reach product-market fit quite early. Then, you’ll always have it for a specific segment and a specific use case. And if you expand one step at a time – e.g. widen your target segment, increase the level of success your product provides, provide a better solution – then you’ll continue to reach quick product-market fit for each mini-expansion as shown in the image below.
- Simply by changing the variables, you can speed up or slow down your time to Product Market Fit. Basically, the narrower the target segment you start with, the faster it’ll be to achieve product-market fit for doing just one thing that helps this particular niche.
If you look back at the histories of today’s successful companies, every major company started with a very small market. Amazon began with books that you couldn’t find in bookstores. Facebook focused on Ivy League schools. PayPal started with eBay users. Zenefits focused on Californian tech companies with 100-300 employees. Zappos took off with shoes. Airbnb began with one city – San Francisco, and Google indexing a single topic – Linux.
In a way, most successful companies have been in a state of continuous product-market fit from early on – while simultaneously discovering new avenues to expand and reach new product-market fit at each step.
Now that you know the definition and overall framework, I’m going to take you through the different steps to help you achieve product-market fit quickly and efficiently. This will put your startup on the path to growth, taking it out of the valley of death.
## MAP THE PROBLEM
### 1\. Target Customer - Problem
If you know what problem you want to solve but have no idea how you’re going to solve it, that’s fine – just write down the problem and who has it.
But if you’re like most of us, who simply have an idea – well, now you have work to do.
### Step 1: Split your idea into problem and solution.
Are you unable to write down the problem you’re solving? Do you just have a solution idea right now? If yes, you’ve got to invest some serious time and effort into getting the fundamentals in place.
Right now, forget about the solution and just focus on the problem.
You need to think of the problem in its purest possible form. The risk here is that when you’re thinking about the problem, you might slip the solution into it.
When NASA was sending astronauts into space, they knew they wouldn’t be able to use ballpoint pens out there because of zero gravity. So, one of their subcontractors, Paul C. Fisher of Fisher Pen Company said: I think we can create a pen that writes in space.
This is a classic example of a solution polluting the problem space. Can you guess what the solution is?
It’s a pen. The pen is a solution. The pure problem would be: I think we can create something that astronauts can use to write in space.
It would be even better for you to ask: Why do astronauts need to write in space at all?
Let’s say the answer was: Astronauts need to take notes while working on xyz in space.
Then the problem statement would be: I think we can create something that helps astronauts take notes while working on XYZ in space.
This last statement is purely in the problem space, whereas the first statement was corrupted by a solution (I think we can create a pen that writes in space.).
After determining the problem, you need to split it into as many independent pieces as you can. If multiple customer segments face the same problem, list all the segments you can think of and see if there are some minor differences in the exact hypotheses of their problem.
You may even have multiple ideas or an idea/product that solves multiple problems. You’ll need to break this down further and write down each problem – as well as who has that problem.
### Step 2: Choose a niche.
You might not have the resources to go after and test every segment and every detail of the problem you hypothesized, so you’ll need to prioritize.
At this stage, you can do a quick prioritization based on the knowledge and assumptions you already have. As a startup, you probably can’t do months of research to figure out which market you should even “test” first.
Chances are that whatever target customer you came up with in Step 1, you can further sub-segment them in more than one way.
Here’s an example to make the process clear.
Let’s say this is the problem you want to focus on: independent professionals spend too much time every day filing bills and doing taxes. You can easily think of different professional segments that face this issue – doctors, lawyers, business consultants, etc.
Write down these segments in the table below, giving values to different parameters. Don’t worry about getting it exactly right – the values at this stage are simply based on what you already know or your gut feeling.
Then multiply the values in all columns in each row to get a total value. The highest number is your first priority segment.
Now take the segment with the highest priority and break it down further.
Say, doctors, emerge at the top in your segmentation. This can be narrowed down into smaller sub-segments.
For example, doctors who are fully independent, doctors who have a private clinic with 2-5 other doctors, doctors running super-small hospitals with a staff of 5-20 people – or even groups like psychiatrists who receive money directly from patients and might have different billing problems than surgeons who are independent but mainly work with on-demand calls from hospitals.
By this point, hopefully, you have one niche-enough target segment with which you can go ahead and test the problem hypothesis.
P.S. – The above are templates that have worked well for me in the past. Feel free to add and delete columns as suits your own unique case.
P.P.S. – It’s also possible to simply have all the columns in one template, list all the segments from lawyers to surgeons, and prioritize in a single step. But I’ve found that splitting the process into two (like above) helps you focus and dig out more niches.
### Step 3: Validate your assumptions.
The problem you identify could be something you’ve personally faced. Maybe you even know a bunch of people just like you who have the same problem.
But if you’re like most founders, you probably have a problem and target market “hypothesis”. You think the problem exists, but you haven’t yet validated it. You might assume that the problem is so obvious that it doesn’t really need validation.
That would be a mistake.
In Paul Graham’s words, “by far the most common mistake startups make is to solve problems no one has.”
So, it’s crucial for you to make sure that your problem really exists. Even if you’ve faced it yourself, you’ve got to see how other people explain it to you and understand their experiences.
Pick the group that came out on top in your second segmentation above – you now need to check if your assumptions about them are correct. Do they really have the problem you think they have? Do they consider it a serious issue? Are they interested in solving it? And so on.
You can validate the problem by interviewing potential customers from your chosen segment. To get the most out of these conversations, you’ll need to prep.
Entrepreneurship expert Steve Blank recommends coming up with at least 100 potential customers to interview. This may sound overwhelming, but it isn’t really that difficult. Remember, you can draw on social networks like LinkedIn and Facebook.
You also have to find the right people to talk to. When it comes to B2B sales, you may want to go straight to the CEO of a company, thinking that you’ve already got everything in perfect shape. That could be a disaster!
Especially in big companies and when you don’t have years of personal experience with the problem you’re trying to solve. In Blank’s words: “You don’t want to start with the highest-ranking person in the company. You want to start in the middle of the company, so you can learn exactly how wrong you are.”
In addition, aim for face-to-face or video conversations – online surveys and emails simply aren’t good enough. You need to watch the person’s face to read their emotions properly. Are they excited by what you’re saying? Are their pupils dilating? Is their breathing getting faster? You want to be able to see these signs.
This is also why you, as the founder, need to conduct customer interviews personally. Plus, if your hypothesis is proved wrong, only you have the authority to decide whether to iterate or pivot. Don’t outsource this critical task to consultants or junior employees.
Remember, these conversations are not for talking about or selling your solution – keep your focus on understanding the potential customer’s challenges.
This might be a little uncomfortable at first. At large companies, they sometimes can’t believe you aren’t pitching a product! So, it’s helpful to explain that you’re not trying to get them to buy anything right now. That you’re there to listen and understand how their business works – and how you can make it better.
Blank advises setting the scene in phone calls and emails before the interview, otherwise “you might end up with 15 people in a boardroom expecting a major presentation”. Giving them a heads-up will help to keep things relaxed and casual.
As for the interview itself, your ultimate goal is to find out the challenges your potential customer is facing – but in a B2B context, that can be an awkward question to start with. In the world of business, people aren’t used to a stranger asking about their company’s problems.
Instead, begin the conversation by focusing on the person’s job: how they define it and what success looks like for them. This helps you understand how their role differs from another individual’s role at a different company. For example, an HR manager’s role at company A might be very different from an HR manager’s role at company B.
You need to grasp how your potential customer sees their role and responsibilities. As they respond, make a note of the keywords and jargon they use. Refer to these over and over during the rest of the conversation. This will also help you to create a mental framework of what their job is like.
Finally, you can maneuver the conversation toward the challenges the person faces in achieving their version of success.
You can use the cheat sheet below as a rough guide for your conversations.
[Click here to download this questionnaire.](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/step-by-step-playbook-for-go-to-market-strategy/#download-worksheets)
Keep in mind that all the people you contact won’t become interviewees. Some won’t be available, others won’t be available in the period you want, and some will book meetings but postpone at the last minute or fail to show up. So, if you want to set up 5 interviews, contact at least 30 people to reach your goal quickly.
Finally, don’t rely on interviews via introduction. While these are low-hanging fruit and easy to get, it’s very rare that the person you’re being introduced to is actually in your segment. In other words, it’s unlikely that they’re a decision maker for the problem you’ve hypothesized.
Let’s say you want to sell something to P&G, and you have a friend who could introduce you to a friend who works at P&G. What are the chances that the person they’re introducing you to also just happens to be the person with the problem you’re trying to solve? Very, very slim.
An interview with someone who’s not in your segment is worse than no interview at all because it’s likely to lead you down the wrong path.
The second reason not to ask for an introduction is this: a person’s willingness to have a discussion with you about the problem is a very good sign of whether this is a real problem for them or not. If someone is giving you an interview as a favor to someone else, you’ll end up talking to a person who isn’t “paying” to solve the problem – which isn’t a great use of your time.
Basically, although it might be easier to get interviews through introductions, you won’t be able to rely on these conversations to collect data on the weight of the problem or gauge how eager your potential customers are to solve it.
One exception to this rule: if you can get an introduction to a person who’s “paying” to solve the problem, go for it. Just be honest with yourself.
P.S. – While prepping for interviews, you might find it helpful to watch this short video from Steve Blank.
Want to dig deeper and be the best at diving into the customer's mind? Check out the playlist below of 36 videos where Steve Blank goes in-depth on how to nail customer discovery in any and all scenarios.
### Step 4: Analyze the interviews.
As Steve Blank puts it, **“Customer discovery is finding patterns in the data.”**
Fill out the above form to analyze your interviews and draw conclusions. Here, “problem” is how your interviewees describe the problem, and “action” is what they’re currently doing to fix it.
If none of the people you interviewed are taking any action, then either the problem isn’t serious enough or they’re not aware that they even have a problem. At the very least, these people won’t be your early adopters.
On the other hand, you know you have a positive pattern if at least 3 out of 5 of your interviewees mention the same type of problem. When you find your early adopter segment, you’ll start to see an eerie similarity in the problems they’re trying to solve.
With a clear problem pattern, you’ll know:
- How to define and find your target customers (at least a few of them).
- How they think about their problem and what words they use.
- Who your major competitor is – and who you need to be better than at solving this problem.
However, if you don’t see a pattern and realize that one or more of your assumptions about those customers were wrong, move on to the second segment from your level 2 segmentation (under Step 2 above) and repeat this exercise. Keep repeating until you see a clear problem pattern among your interviews.
You might also want to keep an eye out for buried hints. Perhaps a couple of your potential customers mentioned a related problem that they’d be willing to pay big bucks to solve – that could definitely be worth exploring.
### Step 5: Clarify the problem profile.
Ultimately, you should have a problem profile that looks like this.
By this point, you should also have an ideal client profile (ICP).
Your ICP maximizes sales and marketing productivity by helping you do two things:
- Find great prospects more easily through smart targeting.
- Disqualify poor prospects more quickly.
To put it simply, ICP is a template to define your best customer as of right now. This will shape everything else about your company – the product, sales process, channels, and partners. And that, in turn, will drive your success or your failure.
So, it’s critical to define your ICP as accurately as possible, based on your current knowledge.
Keep in mind that ICP isn’t the same as a buyer persona. ICP is a composite description of an organization (company, government agency, or nonprofit) that finds a specific value in your offering and provides excellent value to you in return. Whereas a buyer persona is a profile of the decision-maker in that organization.
Creating your ICP helps you identify the types of accounts that will deliver on the key economics for your company, like close rate, potential revenue, sales velocity, and retention. It also forms the basis for your target account list, priority setting, and qualification criteria.
Remember, this isn’t a one-time exercise. The goal of creating your ICP isn’t to define just one type of customer that you’ll focus on forever. It’s to focus on your ideal customer at a particular time, stage, and situation of your company and your product.
### 2\. Customer Success
The next step is to quantify customer success.
Not only do you want to be unique, but you also want to offer something your target customers “need to have” – as opposed to something that’s “nice to have”.
To do so, you must be clear, measurable, and have a timeline. You want people to see the cost of not doing business with you or not buying your solution. You can’t describe your business in general or vague terms, presenting yourself as just another option.
### Step 1: Find the metrics.
To begin with, list down all the “metrics” related to the problem space for your target customer. A metric isn’t just limited to money. It includes anything that your solution can help to increase or decrease – time, profit, sales, body weight, energy, and so on.
Then, add a value and timeline to make each metric measurable. This is what gives your solution substance.
For example, a personal trainer’s metrics might look something like this.
### Step 2: Define minimum success.
Now that you know the target customer as well as the specific problem you’re solving, you must define the minimum success you need to deliver in order to make them your customer.
Define what the goal and success look like for your target customer, and pinpoint what steps they’ve taken to achieve success.
For example, the personal trainer might find that the biggest priority for his potential customers is weight loss – not energy, speed, or mental health. For them, success mainly means being thinner.
In such a case, the trainer could decide will simply offer workouts and meal plans that help customers lose a specified amount of weight. This could be good enough to get them to buy and satisfy them. The trainer doesn’t need to do every single thing, like speed training, meditation, stress management, and so on.
Going back to the example of helping independent professionals with taxes: you don’t need to do every single thing for them. Perhaps you found in your interview that independent surgeons end up wasting a lot of time reminding the account departments at hospitals about pending payments. In such a case, sending auto-reminders to hospitals whenever a payment is pending could be enough to make them a customer and satisfy them.
Think of several before-and-after (problem vs. success) scenarios that your target customers might be happy with.
### Step 3: Pick a metric.
Based on your metric options and minimum success, you now need to pick one or more metrics for measuring success. When you hit this defined value, both you and the client will definitely agree that success has been achieved.
You’ll see that some metrics are difficult to quantify – like wellness, happiness, peace of mind, and so on. It’s best to leave these out. Choose the metric that’s the most achievable, measurable, and relevant for your potential customers.
For the personal trainer, weight loss is a great core currency. With a metric and timeline, the trainer can make his offering super-specific. He could say, “I’ll help you lose 10 pounds in 30 days.” That’s a measurable success – it’ll appeal to his target customers and motivate them to try out his services. Once he helps them lose 10 pounds, he might upsell them a more advanced program to lose the next 10.
Compare this with a trainer who simply says, “I’ll help you lose weight” without mentioning a specific weight or timeline. Who would you be more likely to buy from?
If you’re struggling to pick one out of multiple metrics, you might not yet be sure about these points:
- Which metric does your target customer care about the most?
- Which one can you help them achieve the fastest and most easily?
- Which outcome can be most effectively quantified?
The best way to figure this out is to create a timeline and solution prototype for each metric. Then examine all your options and choose the one that meets the above three requirements.
## IDENTIFY THE VALUE
### 3\. Your Solution
Once you know exactly who your target customer is and what problem you’re solving for them, you can think about solutions.
By this point, you also know (or at least have several hypotheses) the exact measurable metric by which you can prove success to your customer.
This metric is your north star. It’ll be the key to designing possible solutions, prioritizing them, and choosing the best option. It’ll also clear up any confusion you might have about what to include in your minimum viable product (MVP), how you should structure your pricing, or even how to describe your solution to customers.
You’ll use this success metric to show your customer a clear path from point A to point B, from their frustrations to their measurable goals, as no one has ever shown them before. Remember, you need to show them – not just tell them. Once you actually show someone a map with the route and destination, their confidence and trust in you go through the roof.
I’ll explain this process using the Sweatpants to Swimsuit Roadmap as an example of a plan a finess trainer might develop.
### Step 1
Define their current state. Use the success metrics you selected in the previous step and put a number to their current state. In the above example, you can see this at the bottom of the pyramid – the sweatpants stage, with more than 32 percent body fat.
### Step 2
Define the final state. Think about what could be the best-case scenario that’s theoretically possible for your customer to achieve. In the above example, this would be the top of the pyramid – the bikini stage, with 14-20 percent body fat.
### Step 3
Create at least three (there can be more) intermediary steps or values of the metrics that can be achieved. These are the three big blocks or milestones of success that you can help your customer to achieve. Think of them as midpoints 1, 2, and 3.
In the above example, there are two intermediary steps between the initial sweatpants level and the final bikini level, i.e. the skinny jeans stage and the one-piece swimsuit stage. Each of these has a metric attached to it (the body fat percentage).
If the steps are quite large, you can further divide each into more steps.
Another way to think about it: imagine you’re writing a book to explain to somebody how they can go from point A to point B. How would you define your chapters?
### Step 4
Brainstorm potential solutions from point A to midpoint 1, then to midpoint 2, and so on – all the way to point B. In the above example, you can see the different keys to success on the right.
You don’t need to think of each and every detail of the solution. Just come up with ideas that are plausible and grounded in reality. At the moment, these are simply hypothetical.
### Step 5
Create a timeline and identify what your customer needs to do vs. what your product will do for them, based on the solutions you came up with in Step 4.
Define each step (including sign up, grand access to x employee, sync data, upload file, etc.) your customer will need to take from point A to midpoint 1.
In the above example, this would mean describing in detail how you’d get the customer from the sweatpants stage to the skinny jeans stage – e.g. a personalized fitness approach, daily workouts, diet meal plan, motivational app, etc.
### Step 6
Create a prototype of your solution that takes the customer from point A to midpoint 1.
While you should have a general idea of the timeline and major steps between point A and point B, it’s really important that you go into detail only between point A and midpoint 1 at this stage.
This is important because:
- It helps you to avoid polluting your testing with the customer or their buying decision with details about going from midpoint 1 to point B.
Firstly, the timeline and major steps will probably change when you sell the solution to the first few customers and get a better understanding of how they go from point A to midpoint 1.
Secondly, if your customer never reaches midpoint 1 successfully, nothing else matters anyway. In the above example, if you can’t even get your sweatpants-wearing customer to get into a pair of skinny jeans, then a bikini is out of the question!
At the same time, your ideation of all the points will make you look like somebody with a plan and vision. And it’ll show your customers how much better their lives can be at point B if they just sign up – so that you can prove to them that it’s real by taking them to midpoint 1.
In other words, if you can get someone from sweatpants into skinny jeans, you’ll win their confidence to go with you the rest of the way.
Once you’ve validated your mockup details for taking your customer from point A to midpoint 1, your MVP will simply be the minimum thing you need to do so your customer can reach midpoint 1.
So, you can see how identifying the success metric answers all the questions about what features you need to build.
Later, as you sell to your first customer and while he is in the process of reaching midpoint 1, you’ll simply add things to your product that are the minimum requirements for him to go from midpoint 1 to midpoint 2\. That way, your current customer won’t churn and will see a clear path ahead when he reaches midpoint 1.
### Offer to test
If you skip offer testing and go straight to selling something, or worse, straight to building something, your experiment will probably fail.
Failure isn’t bad in and of itself – after all, lots of your experiments will fail. What’s worse is that you won’t know why you failed. You’ll have wasted time, money, and energy without knowing how to address the problem or what you need to do differently.
Did you price your solution wrong? Was your marketing copy ineffective? Did customers not trust the product? Was the wrong channel used? With so many variables to test, you’ll probably drain your resources before landing on the winning combination.
To avoid this costly confusion, now that you have multiple metrics and a solution corresponding to each metric, it’s time to go and test with your target customer.
This is where you make prototypes or wireframes and test them with your customers. You can start with the people you already interviewed for the problem.
I highly recommend that you conduct the first round of testing face to face or via video because it’s important for you to see the emotional reaction of the customer – their body language and facial expressions. You don’t want to fall into the trap of polite people saying, “this is interesting”.
Remember, at this stage, selling isn’t your main purpose, so don’t start pitching and demo-ing your “awesome” solution right away.
Instead, focus on verifying if the solution you have in mind is correct from the customer’s perspective of the problem. Are your success metrics and solution a good enough fit to make them buy? Pay attention to these points:
- What words do they use to describe your solution?
- How do they see your definition of success?
- How do they see the things they have to do to achieve success?
- How do they see the success metric you came up with?
Using collaborative solution interviews gives you a chance to team up with your customer to create a solution that meets their needs as well as yours. Here’s how to go about it:
- Ideally, you should have more than one solution, success metric, etc. as a backup to test in the same meeting, in case your number 1 hypothesis doesn’t resonate with your target customer.
- Since you now have a list of metrics, ask about them one by one and see which one gets your customer most excited.
- Once you identify that metric, you can present the solution prototype you’ve designed corresponding to that metric.
- Don’t show the customer each and every feature and detail you’ve imagined.
- Just show them the steps they have to take to achieve success in that metric. Also explain how long it’ll take for them to tangibly achieve, realize and measure success.
- Validate your assumptions. Check that the timeline and actions they have to take are not only aligned with their thinking but also more than satisfactory.
- Ask them to share their thoughts and feelings as you show them your solution and they ‘progress’ through your solution towards success.
- Ask if they think you’re missing something, or if any of your assumptions are not completely right.
You can also use the **Three P’s** to structure your collaborative solution interviews:
1. **Problem recap.** Start your interview by recapping the problems that you understood in your initial interviews (i.e. the problems that brought you together). This is an opportunity to make sure you’re on the same page, as well as remind the potential customer of what you’re both looking for in this exchange.
2. **Proposed solution.** Next, share the solution you’ve come up with, based on your initial interviews.
3. **Progression discussion.** Finally, ask the potential customer something like, “What do you like and what don’t you like about this solution?” This is your chance to have a dialogue about whether this solution will work for them, and what they think could stop you from progressing.
Along with helping to define your metric ladder, this will also highlight which steps in the ladder they see as most difficult to climb. From there, you can collaborate on ways to make the journey easier for everyone.
Remember, even if you get your metric right, your solution may not be 100 percent perfect.
If that’s the case, don’t worry. Now that you’ve validated the target customer and the metric they care about most – and they can see a possible solution – even if you get a couple of things wrong, they’ll still be interested in helping you get everything right.
They might also introduce you to people in other departments of the company to get a more detailed understanding of how you can refine your solution to deliver success.
On the other hand, if the customer likes both your metric and your solution, that gives you a solid grasp of the minimum you need to build in order to get them to the first step of success. With someone who seems excited and tells you that the solution is a perfect fit for them, you need to pre-sell right away.
Pre-selling lets you test whether you’ll be able to achieve success before investing heavily in actually building a solution. If you’re not able to meet your success goals, there’s no point in building your product.
So, as soon as the customer validates your assumptions about metric and solution, that’s your chance to test if they’re serious about buying. Sometimes, people are engaged and want to help you out but have no real intention of buying. If that’s the case, you need to know as soon as possible.
If they were just being polite, they’ll probably say something like: “Your solution is great, but it’s not really applicable to us.”
Another possibility is that there’s still something missing from your solution, which is holding them back from buying it. Or, maybe the person you’re speaking to isn’t the correct decision maker or needs further approvals. You won’t know any of this unless you try to pre-sell.
Once again, though, you should only pre-sell if you clearly see that the person is excited, and it seems like a really great fit to you.
If your pre-selling attempt goes well, the goal here could be to get a pre-order.
A pre-order is any situation where someone puts money down based on the promise of a product to come. Kickstarter is a good example of this type of “ask”. Pre-orders work for both B2B and B2C.
If you’re unable to produce the promised product, you can offer your customers a refund. Or, you could simply not take their money right away – i.e. not charge their credit cards until the product is completed.
Remember, a pre-order doesn’t really count unless you get the customer’s credit card information or a contract in writing. Even if the contract is conditional on a subjective condition like "if they like your first version of the product".
Although putting down money is the best indicator of intent to buy, you can also test your potential customer’s seriousness in other ways.
For example, you could get a letter of intent. A letter of intent states that if and when you provide a solution that meets their requirements, the company (which is your customer) will pay you the agreed-upon price to buy the product.
This is a non-binding agreement that has no real legal weight. The idea isn’t to force a binding contract. Instead, the goal is to go through the process of getting buy-in from all the right people – they are the ones who will need to sign off on the letter.
Often, this is the same process you’ll need to go through to get your solution approved and adopted by the company. If they’re willing to go through the entire process for a letter of intent, chances are they’ll do the same for your product.
To put it simply, a letter of intent is an excellent way of testing the customer’s commitment before you actually invest in building your product.
So, how can you persuade your potential customers to sign a letter of intent? Here are a few compelling reasons you can offer them:
1. For the long-term sustainability of your business (which would benefit them as well as you), you want to ensure a minimum number of committed customers before proceeding with the solution. Any business will be able to understand this line of thought.
2. Letters of intent are valued by investors and will help you raise the investment capital required to build the solution. So, your customers can actually help you fund the company without touching any of their own money.
3. This works in non-profit contexts as well. Letters of intent can help you get large grants and donations.
You can find lots of example letters of intent online. Choose a format that best suits your company and situation, then tweak it as you like.
Another non-cash method to test your customer’s intent to buy is a detailed collaboration contract for building your product. While they might not want to pay money to build your product, they could be interested enough to provide access to the knowledge and facilities you need.
You could also try to get a signed contract or, if it’s too early for that, a memorandum of understanding (MoU). An MOU is a non-binding contract with no real legal weight. Like a letter of intent, the simple fact of signing it is a sign of seriousness.
The entire point of testing can be summed up as: **“If they come, you will build it.”**
### 4\. Product Pricing
Let’s first take a look at some fundamental principles of pricing.
### The first principle is: Costs do not determine the price.
Price has everything to do with how much your customers are willing to pay. In other words, your costs don’t drive your pricing – your customers do.
Sure, costs play a role. They determine whether it’s feasible to build the product you want. If the price customers are willing to pay is less than the cost of building the product, it obviously isn’t feasible to proceed. But beyond that, costs have little to do with pricing.
### The second principle is: Humans can’t infer prices.
We humans find it tough to look at something and determine its value. For example, check out the car in this picture.
Unless you have a ton of background knowledge on cars, you have no way of pinpointing their current value. It could be US$ 2,000, US$ 20,000, US$ 2 million – who knows? Without some additional information, you can’t know for sure.
The additional information we use to figure out a product’s value is the pricing of other products.
### The third principle is: Price implies quality.
Before buying, customers assess the quality of a product in different ways. For example, social proof like recommendations from friends, Yelp ratings, testimonials, and so on.
Customers also use other “proxies” to figure out the product’s relative value. For example, its design and aesthetics. If a product looks great on the outside, it’s easy to imagine that it looks and works great on the inside – and the other way around!
That’s why a luxury car seems to have higher quality, even if its actual functionality might be the same as a cheaper car. The same goes for a haircut: getting a trim at a basic chain salon feels different from a high-end salon with all the bells and whistles.
The other proxy customers often use to judge quality is the price.
A higher price doesn’t actually mean better quality – it simply implies it. This perceived increase in quality also boosts sales, up to a point.
Let’s take a look at the relationship between pricing and quality perception.
It’s generally thought that demand follows a simple path: as price increases, sales decrease. The logic here is that the cheaper a product is, the more people will buy it. The more expensive it is, the fewer people will buy it.
As it turns out, the idea behind this generally accepted demand curve is wrong when it comes to innovative products.
In 2010, Professor Min Ding of Pennsylvania State University published research in the Journal of Retailing which showed that [price is an indicator of quality – and that the indicator of quality can increase sales.](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022435910000047?ref=revenueinsideout.com) (By the way, this paper won the 2012 Davidson Best Paper Award.)
Professor Ding conducted tests in which the same product was presented at different price points to see what effect price had on sales. Over and over again, he found that price was seen as a sign of quality; up to a point, higher prices increased sales.
Based on these findings, Professor Min Ding concluded that the demand curve looks more like this.
In this curve, you can see that at a very low price, often free, a large number of products are sold. People like free things.
At a slightly higher price, sales drop pretty drastically.
However, at an even higher price point, sales actually begin to increase.
Of course, there’s always a limit. At some point, the price becomes too high and sales start to dip again.
Look at that “bump” in the middle. Your aim should be to identify at what price that bump is highest, so you not only maximize sales but also total revenue.
Unfortunately, many early-stage founders undercharge of their products. The fear of losing customers because of too high a price point is so great that they end up underpricing their products.
By pricing your product too low, you’re making a statement about the quality of your product. You’re saying your solution is of bad quality. And this will ultimately mean you’ll sell less, not more.
Instead of fear, you need to use logic while deciding on the price of your product.
That’s why I’m a huge advocate of value-based pricing. That means you define your pricing based on the value you provide to your customer. What does your product help your customer with? Does it save them time and/or money? Does it help them make more money? Does it reduce risk? Does it make it simpler for them to comply with regulations?
Always try to put a cash amount on the value a customer gets by using your product. Value-based pricing has two main benefits:
1. You can potentially begin at a higher price point if you can show a higher value-add and justify the price to your customers.
2. You can raise your prices as you find out more about your customers and add features to your product that provide greater value.
Now that you know what success looks like and how your target customers measure it, you also have a good hypothesis for what your product is worth to them. So, at least in the B2B scenario, you can figure out the answers to these questions with some certainty:
- Is your solution making them money? If yes, how much?
- Is your solution saving them money? or time? If yes, how much?
- Is your solution related to compliance? What is the average cost per year if they don’t comply?
A good rule of thumb is that you can charge at least 10 percent (if not more) of the value your customer is receiving thanks to your product. This is a logical starting point for your pricing. Not only is it justifiable but will also probably be perceived as fair by the customer.
Plus, this further gives you an idea of your average annual revenue per user/customer.
Once you’re clear about your pricing strategy, you can move on to addressing external factors like competition and substitute products.
Start by analyzing the pricing in the market and among your competitors. Invest some time into listing and assessing the packages and pricing offered by your competition.
Don’t forget to check out substitute products that can solve your customer’s problem in a very different way. For example, **the biggest competitor for a business class seat in one airline isn’t another airline but a good quality web-conferencing system.**
Since people can’t infer prices, they use comparison to analyze whether an item is too expensive or too cheap. This “anchoring” happens in different ways:
- What is the cost of not buying a product?
- What are the substitute products and the value they provide? Substitute products are your indirect competitors.
- What have they paid in the past for similar products?
- What are the value and pricing of similar solutions? What about your direct competitor?
- What is the original value vs. discounted price? You may have noticed that in supermarkets, some items seem to be permanently on discount. That means they’re trying to anchor a higher price.
Your first priority is to anchor your price in the value your product delivers, i.e. a percentage of time saved, or money saved/made thanks to your solution. What percentage to take, however, is often not clear. While 10 percent is a good rule of thumb, it doesn’t apply in each and every situation.
In such a case, anchors from the outside market can help you reach the highest justifiable price.
Use the table below to list all the anchors your customer could take as a reference when thinking about the value vs. pricing of your offer. Mention low-end and high-end pricing for each anchor.
Then, take the anchors that are most comparable with your solution. From among these, take a reference price between the highest-priced anchor and the high value of the lowest-priced anchor. This should give you a good point of reference for determining your own product’s price.
Remember, at this stage of your startup, you don’t want your solution to be seen among the cheapest options – unless being cheaper than everybody else is your UVP.
As you begin with one target segment of customers, start with one pricing plan until you achieve the product-market fit for this segment. In the next round of product-market fit, as you expand to another target segment, you’ll go through the whole process again and create another pricing plan tailored to the new segment.
## REACH THE MARKET
### 5\. Customer Outreach
### Messaging.
A great customer experience starts with the right messaging. That means focusing on what your customers need – as opposed to what you offer.
It’s important to understand that customers don’t care nearly as much as you do about detailed feature descriptions and what technology you’ve used to build your product. In the beginning, they simply need to know at a high level if you and your product can solve their problem and what benefits you can bring.
In other words, they need to know your Unique Value Proposition (UVP) and Unique Selling Proposition (USP).
The goal here is to design the first messaging for ideal customers and buyer personas for each channel that you later use in validation. As an early-stage startup founder, what you essentially need is an excellent elevator pitch – this should capture your UVP and USP in the most direct, understandable way for your ICP.
All these terms can get confusing really fast, so I’m going to break them down for you now.
**An Elevator pitch** is a short statement that defines who you work with (target market) and the general area in which you help them.
About 10 seconds long, the elevator pitch is used mainly at networking events to attract potential clients and start a discussion.
Here are a few elevator pitches in which people describe what they do:
- “I work with small companies that are struggling to sell their products or services to big corporate accounts.”
- “We help technology companies effectively utilize their customer information to drive repeat sales.”
- “I help small-to-medium-sized manufacturing companies that face challenges due to unpredictable revenue streams.”
### USP vs. UVP
USP is what a product does, and UVP is what it does for someone. A quarter-inch drill bit drills quarter-inch holes – that’s the USP. It allows me to make my kids happy by hanging a picture on the wall – that’s the UVP.
**UVP** is a clear statement of the tangible results a customer gets from using your products or services. In other words, it’s what you do for your customer.
A strong UVP is specific, often with numbers or percentages. It could include a snapshot of your work with similar customers as proof of your capabilities.
For example: “We help large businesses to reduce spending on their benefits programs, without affecting the level of services. As healthcare costs continue to skyrocket, this is a major concern for many companies. A recent client, a big manufacturer like you, was struggling to cut costs in this area. With our help, they were able to save US$ 500,000 in just four months. And the employee benefits remained unaffected.”
**USP** is a statement about what makes you and your company different from other vendors.
Its main aim is to create competitive differentiation. A USP is often used in marketing materials or talking with customers ready to buy.
Your USP could also include:
- Specialization. For example: “We specialize in working with financial institutions.”
- Guarantee. For example: “We guarantee service within six hours or your money back.”
- Methodology. For example: “We use a unique tool called XYZ to analyze your critical needs.”
Helping customers understand your USP is crucial when they’ve already decided to make a purchase. But it has zero impact when customers are satisfied with their situation or when they’re frustrated but haven’t yet decided to change.
In the world of tech solutions, you can think of USP as the features and UVP as the benefits of those features.
At this point, you know what problem you’re solving, for whom, and how your solution is unique compared to what they were using previously. So, defining your USP should be quite straightforward.
You also know how your customer defines success, what metric he uses to measure that success and how it compares to the current situation – that’s going to be your UVP.
For now, try to keep your USP and UVP short and sweet, using the words of your customers. It’s best to have one-liners – two at most. From these and the ICP, you can derive your elevator pitch.
You can use the table below to develop your initial market messaging map.
### Channel
Channel is simply a means to get the attention of your target customers and create enough interest for you to get them on the phone.
**For B2B startups**, at this point in time, you want a channel that:
1. Is precise. Your message needs to specifically reach the right decision-makers in your ICP.
2. Is simple. Your initial message must go via a channel that doesn’t require a long, complicated format or graphics.
3. Is cheap. The cost per contact should essentially be free. You could need to test and iterate your message several times, and you might also need multiple touchpoints per contact to get things moving.
4. Has a direct call to action. At this stage, you’re validating your assumptions, testing your message, and selling – all at the same time. So, the channel should lead directly to a phone call or a meeting.
5. Helps you test and iterate your message quickly to achieve message-market fit.
Out of all the channels out there, the only ones that meet these requirements and are historically proven to work well for B2B are emails and phone calls.
Emails and phone calls are precise and targeted to a particular person. Both are virtually free and can include a direct call to action. For each of them, your short and sweet elevator pitch is basically your message. In your first email or phone call, you can present your elevator pitch, followed by a call to action, e.g. “If that sounds interesting to you, we’d like to book a 30-minute call to explore this further.”
Finally, both channels allow you to contact 20-50 people per week, note how people respond, get feedback, see what works and what doesn’t – and quickly improve your messaging for the next week’s contacts.
For B2C startups, I highly recommend the [Bullseye Framework](https://brianbalfour.com/essays/traction-the-bullseye-framework?ref=revenueinsideout.com), which will help you identify the right channel to get traction. This involves a five-step process: brainstorm, rank, prioritize, test and focus on what works.
You can begin by tweaking your elevator pitch for different channels, as you use the framework to pinpoint the one that works best at this stage of your company and product. To get an in-depth understanding of the Bullseye Framework, check out [Traction: How Any Startup Can Achieve Explosive Customer Growth.](https://www.amazon.com/Traction-Startup-Achieve-Explosive-Customer/dp/1591848369?ref=revenueinsideout.com)
Of course, for both B2B and B2C, as your company grows you’ll experiment with other kinds of channels – outbound as well as inbound – and generate sales without ever having a phone call with customers. You’ll change or add more channels to your market outreach mix to make it more efficient and effective.
### 6\. Calculating Sales
**Steps of the sales funnel**
By this point, you know exactly what you’re selling, to whom, why they’d buy your product, at what price, and with what message. It’s now time to start reaching out to tens or even hundreds of potential customers while, at the same time, building your minimum viable product (MVP).
You may be thinking: “My MVP isn’t even finished. Isn’t it too early to reach out to my customers?”
The answer is: not at all. In fact, this is exactly the right time, since you want to achieve product-market fit as soon as possible.
You see, making a sale is like getting married – people don’t usually say “yes” and commit the very first time they meet you! It takes time and several meetings. If you reach out today, then you’ll have customers lined up and ready to buy by the time you have your MVP ready.
Along the way, you’ll also have to get feedback on your proposals, get approval at various levels, and see whether your product is being designed and implemented in such a way that the customer can use it to achieve success faster, more easily, or more cheaply. All of this needs to happen before you finally get to the stage where the budget is approved, and you receive your cash.
In addition, some of your potential customers may drop off the face of the earth. The companies you initially contacted might change their priorities. Your contact could switch jobs. Funding sources may change.
You really don’t want to be in a situation where you’re counting on a very small number of companies (say, 1-4) that showed interest in or pre-signed up for your solution – because when it comes down to it, they may not be ready to buy anymore. Then you’d have to start the whole process all over again, from scratch.
So, to maximize your chances of early success, reach out to as many potential customers as early as possible at this stage. This is something you have control over – unlike the possibility of certain potential customers vanishing from the scene.
You probably want to start by using simple channels, like emails, to contact your target customers. Soon, you’ll notice a cycle that’s typical with B2B interactions:
- Schedule a meeting, attend a meeting.
- Get introduced to the person representing the next step.
- Schedule another meeting, attend another meeting.
- Get introduced to the next person representing the next step, and so on….
At each step, either your target customer will ask for something or you will (for example, the next meeting, more details, contact with other decision-makers in the company, etc.). Note down and document everything for each prospective customer you contact.
As you have more calls with potential customers ready to buy, you’ll start to realize how many steps and how much time it takes for your customer to actually sign up and buy your product.
This will also shape your sales funnel.
The key here is to document the interaction with each potential customer – this will later help you to identify a pattern. As you interact with several companies, you’ll notice things like:
- How much do you have to educate the customer about the problem itself?
- Whether you have to deal with one or more decision-makers.
- How to help your first contact decision maker to sell the solution internally.
- Who else might say no to your solution (for example, IT guys), and how you can help them get on board?
This knowledge will help you define the steps of your sales funnel.
You need to continually reach out to new target customers – say, in batches of 10-20 per week. Keep recording all your data in a table like the one I’ve provided below. As you get 10, then 20, then 30 customers to buy your solution, you’ll get a good grasp of your sales funnel and the steps needed for you to make a sale in the target market.
There are several good CRMs that can help you keep track of your outreach to potential customers. At the most basic level, you can use the template below to keep track of your outreach.
### Cost of Acquiring Customer (CAC)
Once you have your sales funnel, getting your CAC and the average sales cycle is just a matter of putting your sales funnel and associated costs in an Excel file.
You have the necessary variables in place already, and I’ve provided the formulas in the table below.
Finally, take a look at [Brian Balfour’s Model Market Fit Threshold ](https://brianbalfour.com/essays/model-market-fit-threshold-for-growth?ref=revenueinsideout.com)below with respect to the assuptions about total addressable market of your current ICP. Where do you stand?
If you’re above the line, in the green zone, you’re good. Congratulations – you’ve achieved model-market fit!
However, if your product seems to be in the red zone, you don’t yet have a model-market fit. In that case, go through these points:
- Check each step of the process and see if there’s something you can improve, optimize, automate, or get rid of in order to reduce your CAC.
- Re-assess your pricing strategy and ask yourself, “Can I charge more?”
- If neither of the above is possible for the moment, with the given target customer and solution, then maybe it isn’t possible for you to go green at this iteration of product-market fit.
That might just be okay for now, if you have enough cash to burn while you wait for the next iteration of product-market fit as you expand your customer base, add more success factors to your product to increase pricing, or bring better optimization/automation to your product and lead generation.
Still, in order to be a profitable company, you should start strategizing now to prioritize the options you might have for the next iteration of product-market fit.
**x contacts -> y sales -> in z days**
The hard work is all done. For this final step, you already have the numbers you need and can easily calculate:
- x – how many customers have you contacted?
- y – how many sales have you made?
- z – how many days it took from first contact/email on average for a customer to buy?
## Conclusion
Using the Guaranteed P-M Fit Method, you should now have all the variables you need. It’s time to put them into the product-market fit statement that we defined at the beginning of this article:
**Product-market fit is knowing that if today you reach out to \[x number\] of \[target customers\] with \[a message\], you’ll have \[y sales\] in \[z days\] with \[a, b, and c steps\] in your sales funnel, for \[a solution\] that helps them achieve \[success\] by solving \[a problem\] they have while having your \[AARPU\] more than \[CAC\].**
You have not only achieved product-market fit but also proven it.
On one hand, this makes it possible for you to scale. You’ve reached a product-market fit for your niche, which means your startup is now ready to grow. You’re no longer “figuring things out” – you know exactly how to reach your target segment and how long it takes to make sales.
At the same time, you can start moving forward and thinking about other target segments. For the next niche you choose, you can once again use the Guaranteed P-M Fit Method to achieve product-market fit. In other words, you’re all set to begin expanding as a company.
Which part of this process is most challenging for you?
What’s stopping you to reach product-market fit and be a growth-ready startup?
## Download worksheets
---
_This post is for subscribers only._
### Ultimate Guide To Build Great Webinars To Increase Sales
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/ultimate-guide-to-build-great-webinars-to-increase-sales/
Last updated: 2023-05-07T22:03:37.000Z
So, you know you want to design a webinar to drive sales – but you aren’t sure how to structure it.
Or, you are already doing webinars – but they aren’t driving sales, unlike those of your competitors.
In this article, **I’m going to explain how you can create a great webinar that sells including:**
- What should you talk about in your webinar?
- How should you sell your product in a webinar?
- How should the webinar be structured?
I will take you through the entire process, step by step, so you can create a webinar that actually works. After all, the last thing you want to do is spend hours and hours putting together something that ultimately doesn’t help you sell your product.
Before we get down to it, let’s take a quick look at why webinars are worth your precious time and effort.
To put it very simply: a webinar is a fantastic touchpoint for connecting with your potential customers.
This makes it **one of the fastest and most effective ways to test and improve messaging.** If you happen to be an early-stage B2B startup, the payoff is all the more valuable – given that it’s crucial for you to nail down the product-message fit as soon as possible.
A well-designed webinar **opens a window into your potential customer base.** It helps you understand their questions, struggles, concerns, and language.
Thus, not only do webinars allow you to refine your message quickly, but they also help you to craft a smarter long-term content marketing strategy.
A webinar also makes for **a great call to action** – it can form a critical part of your lead generation machine, both inbound and outbound.
For many SaaS companies, it is a tried and tested method for attracting new customers. Bonus: it can scale smoothly as the organization grows.
Webinars open up all kinds of exciting new possibilities for your company. For example, you could come up with winning ideas for future features by analyzing your ideal customer's questions.
You could also identify opportunities to partner with companies that have complementary products and services. [Hosting a joint venture webinar](https://www.thinkific.com/resources/how-to-use-joint-venture-partners-promote-online-course/?ref=revenueinsideout.com) is a smart way to combine your resources. You could co-market the webinar and generate sales with combined offers.
## Meet the Ready-Set-Go Framework
I’m going to introduce you to my proven strategy for building a great webinar that sells. But before that, let me tell you a little bit about myself and about how this framework was born.
I have launched 13 startups, mostly in B2B SaaS. While some of them didn’t go anywhere, we grew one to over 200 employees and we just sold Teleport.
Over the years, I have had hundreds of sales-related conversations with a wide variety of customers – from freelancers to agencies, manufacturers to Fortune 500 companies.
During this time, I noticed that whenever I had success in selling to multiple leads, be it through a webinar, conference call, or in person, the process followed more or less the same structure – irrespective of the industry or product.
I also realized that a number of webinars created by uber-successful companies and experts reflected very similar elements and designs. The Advanced Customer Acquisition Webinar by Neil Patel is an excellent example, one that I will be referring to at different points in the framework.
Neil Patel is one of the most known Digital Marketing Guru. He is New York Times bestselling author and his blog about marketing generates 2 million visitors per month.
So, that is how the Ready-Set-Go Framework took shape. Each aspect is based on my own personal experience in online marketing and sales, as well as my research into the best, most effective webinars available today.
My inspiration for writing an in-depth article on this framework was the lack of genuinely helpful information out there.
There is a lot of content on the Internet, even some helpful tips – but no step-by-step approach that could actually help someone build a webinar that sells.
So, taking my framework and know-how, I have created this accessible guide for all the budding webinar creators out there.
Without further ado, let’s dive straight in and start building a webinar that really works. Ready, set, go!
## READY: laying a strong foundation
### 1\. Create the mindset.
It’s important to get into the right frame of mind before you start making key decisions about your webinar.
I am a huge believer in the power of marketing. If you get it right, your marketing will reach and serve more people than your product ever can.
The key to outstanding online B2B marketing is this: your content has to be genuinely helpful.
Your potential customers are out there, looking for ways to solve their problems. Effective marketing is about making sure that they get something valuable from your marketing efforts, whether or not they ever actually buy your product.
To put it simply, after interacting with your marketing machine, prospective customers should be better off than they were before. Aim for small but meaningful improvements. (Don’t worry – you don’t need to change their lives!)
> Pro Tip: As a B2B startup, it is crucial for you to nail down your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP). Once you define this, your webinar can be laser-focused on attracting the right type of companies and people.
Think of the webinar as a symphony, and yourself as the conductor. There are lots of different moving parts – and you must orchestrate all of them for a wonderful performance. You need to hit both high and low tempos to keep your audience enthralled.
Great webinars keep the focus on the audience: engaging them, educating them, and solving real problems for them. Again, this must happen regardless of whether they ultimately buy your solution.
Remember, many people may not purchase your product immediately after a webinar. But, if you really helped them out in some way, a lot of them will follow you and come back when they are ready to buy.
### 2\. Establish authority.
Why should people listen to you? Why should they pay attention to your advice?
Your audience needs to trust you and feel like you are the right person to learn from.
To establish yourself as an expert, you will need to dedicate a little bit of screen time to your own story. Share your experience, explaining how it gives you a unique perspective. Highlight your successes, proving that you have serious real-world credibility on the topic.
For instance, Neil Patel does a great job of establishing authority with the audience during his Advanced Customer Acquisition Webinar.
He tells us a little bit about the companies he has founded and the companies he has helped (including big guns like Amazon and HP). He also highlights a few numbers-driven accomplishments: drawing 800,000,000 ready-to-buy visitors to client websites and helping Cheezburger Media reach 500 million page views a month.
To make your personal story more compelling, you can refer to [the Hero’s Journey guide](https://www.storyboardthat.com/articles/e/heroic-journey2?ref=revenueinsideout.com). These fantastic tips, mined from the most memorable tales in human history, will help you craft a story that resonates deeply with your listeners and effectively establishes your know-how.
Neil, for example, takes the audience back to his childhood – his struggling parents, the constant comparisons with his academic superstar sister, and how hard it was to earn a little bit of extra money as a teenager. From there, he briefly traces his journey to becoming a successful online marketing expert.
### 3\. Choose the right topic.
Your webinar should solve a frustrating problem faced by your potential customers.
Your chosen topic must have urgency and clear significance. Forget about “nice to know” and “good to have” topics – these don’t attract people with the same intensity.
Focus on a specific paint point, emphasizing that you can solve it.
Those who register to receive this content are telling you that they’re in the market right now and that it’s time for them to fix this problem.
The right problem, combined with the right positioning, will draw your ideal customers to the webinar.
Next, make sure your webinar topic is aligned with the solution you are selling.
For example, it makes no sense to do a webinar on Instagram marketing if your solution is an email marketing tool.
For an email marketing software provider selling to startups or freelancers, an excellent webinar topic would be something like “How to get your first 1000 email subscribers”.
This is a great topic for two reasons. One, you filter the audience to potential customers who want an email subscriber list but don’t yet have it. This also means they’re not using any of your competitors.
Two, you can teach them how to get email subscribers – and this problem can be solved even better, faster, and more cheaply with the tool, you are selling. So, your webinar and solution are perfectly in sync.
> Pro Tip: If your ideal customers see “webinar” as too salesy or it has a bad reputation in your market, you can try calling it a free course, a masterclass, a seminar, or any other term that lets people know it is a free and high-quality educational session.
To quickly identify winning topics, search for your biggest competitors on [Google.com](http://www.google.com/?ref=revenueinsideout.com) and add “webinars” at the end. The top results are typically the best-performing webinars to attract your ideal customer.
Using my Ready-Set-Go Framework, there’s no reason you can’t create your own fabulous webinar on the same topics and snag those potential clients.
Remember, you don’t need to reinvent the wheel. What’s going to differentiate your webinar from theirs is this structure I’m sharing with you.
Another mini hack: head over to [Buzzsumo.com](http://buzzsumo.com/?ref=revenueinsideout.com) and run the blogs of your competitive set through it. This will give you a good idea of which topics the relevant audience finds most interesting. By all means, use these as inspirations for your own content.
Or, take a trip to [Quora](https://www.quora.com/?ref=revenueinsideout.com) and investigate the most-asked questions from your ICP.
## SET: crafting content that sells
### 4\. Educate your audience.
I can’t stress this enough: you have got to provide value.
Every webinar you put out should deliver specific training that offers a ton of value. You have to teach – with passion and a genuine desire to share knowledge. You can’t hold back.
Lots of people don’t actually provide real help in their online courses. I have seen too many webinars that are simply hour-long sales pitches, offering little to no value.
That is a big mistake.
If you can get a customer a result in advance, if you can help them achieve a simple yet meaningful outcome – then you win the opportunity to continue the conversation with them.
As I mentioned earlier, make sure that your content is aligned with your solution. The topic you choose and the value you deliver must be part of the same problem space that your product solves.
You also have to help your audience perceive your content as high value. For this, I recommend creating and using frameworks.
Frameworks are essentially ideas. These ideas go by different names – the aspects, the process, the steps, the dimensions, the methodology, etc. When you give an idea a structure, a visual, and a name, it becomes a framework.
Remember, this doesn’t have to be rocket science. At their simplest, frameworks can consist of circles, squares, and triangles.
For example, if you have a three-step process, you could display it in a Venn diagram, triangle, or quadrant – depending on its structure. Then, come up with a cool, catchy name, and voila! Your strategy is now a framework.
As soon as you do this, the perceived value of your content goes up. Your audience realizes that not only have you thought about the problem, but you have also solved it in a way that is logically structured.
Visuals are important. **Every time you draw for a customer, you draw them in.**
Make intelligent use of frameworks and diagrams to catch your audience’s attention and differentiate your webinar from all the other content out there in the market.
> Pro Tip: When designing your webinar, it’s good to think about a few essential questions. For example: what should your audience know after watching your webinar? And what should they be able to accomplish? You can work backward from these end goals.
The [Understanding by Design framework](http://www.storyboardthat.com/articles/e/what-is-ubd-understanding-by-design?ref=revenueinsideout.com) is a great way to approach course planning. It divides the process into three stages: 1) identify desired results, 2) determine acceptable evidence, and 3) create the learning plans.
### 5\. Introduce a new problem.
Once you have educated your audience and helped them solve a problem, it’s time to introduce a “new problem”.
The new problem is what your product solves.
Let’s go back to the example of the marketing email software provider, selling to startups or freelancers. If this were your business, a great webinar topic would be something like “How to get your first 1000 email subscribers”.
After teaching the audience how to achieve this, you can introduce the new problem. For instance: using the awesome framework, shortcuts and best practices you have taught them, it will take them five hours a day for a month to get 1000 subscribers.
Would they like to see a way in which they can accomplish the same thing in just half an hour a week, within two weeks?
You can be sure a lot of your audience will answer with a resounding “Yes, please!”
The answer to this new problem is, of course, your product.
Take a look at how Neil Patel follows this very structure in his Advanced Customer Acquisition Webinar.
First, he delivers a ton of great training to take his audience’s marketing knowledge to the next level. Then, he introduces the new problem, explaining that he has only scratched the surface in this webinar.
Neil goes on to say that in order to get all the marketing and customer knowledge needed to build up a successful business, the audience has two options: 1) they can spend thousands of dollars and years of their life trying to figure it out themselves, or 2) they can learn the proven system from someone who knows what they’re doing.
By this point, most attendees would be saying, “Yes, of course, I want option no. 2!”
Remember, it’s crucial to sell this problem with the same detail and intensity as your solution.
It’s wholly up to you to make your potential customers realize that this new problem is real – explain it in excruciating detail if you have to.
What does the opportunity cost? i.e. what are they not able to do because they are spending too much time, money, or brain space on this problem?
The costs are often personal: maybe they could spend more time with their kids, earn more money, take longer holidays, get a promotion or create greater job stability.
Or, the impact could be on their business: perhaps they could spend that extra time on fine-tuning their core product, innovating fresh features or growing their capabilities.
> Pro Tip: Having a good buyer persona can be a huge asset here. In B2B scenarios, your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) is a profile of the company to which you are selling – while the buyer persona is a profile of the decision-maker in that company.
A strong buyer persona can help you understand how your prospective customer will see and understand the problem – with regard to themselves as well as to the company. It also reveals what drives their decisions.
### 6\. Reveal your solution.
By this point, your audience’s focus should have shifted – from the problem for which they joined the webinar, to the new problem (solved by your product).
When you began the webinar, you probably started with something like: “Hey guys, today I’m going to teach you everything I can about XYZ topic in the next 45 minutes. And at the end, I’m going to share a way for you to move forward if you choose to do so.”
By the time you reach this last part, you have established yourself as the expert, your frameworks have increased your perceived value and you have got the audience results.
You have already solved the first problem, and they are still with you. So, they are likely interested in solving the second problem as well – which makes them prospective buyers for your product.
When you get to this point, it’s really important to be clear about the content that your product is automating or simplifying.
In fact, that’s an excellent way of figuring out the right topic and content for your entire webinar.
The idea is to get to the point where your audience goes, “This training is great, these are really actionable steps”. Then, you can offer them a way to carry out all these steps in a very automated, simplified manner. Once they say “yes”, you’ve got them. Then, it’s time to talk about the solution.
Neil, for example, creates a great setup by introducing the two options I described in the previous step: 1) the audience can spend thousands of dollars and years of their life trying to figure out advanced marketing and customer acquisition on their own, or 2) they can learn the proven system from someone who knows what they’re doing.
By this point, the audience is eager to get what they need in a simpler and more efficient way. Which makes it the perfect time for Neil to unveil his product – the Advanced Marketing Program, which promises to deliver the second option.
It’s crucial to shine a spotlight on the benefits here. Why would somebody want your solution?
A lot of times, people just assume that their customers understand the benefits of their product. This is a mistake.
There’s an old story told by sales professionals. A man who made mattresses was having trouble selling them. A friend asked him, “What are you selling?” The mattress maker replied, “Why, mattresses of course.” His friend shook his head and said, “No, mattresses are what you make. What you sell is a good night’s sleep.”
Remember, you and your team are fully immersed in your product, day in and day out. What seems obvious to you may not be at all obvious to your audience. Do not take it for granted that they already know all the advantages. You must explain these with passion and detail.
The best way to think about the benefits is by answering this question: “So what?”
Say, your product achieves a certain outcome. Well – so what? What’s the end benefit to your customer? This is what you need to highlight.
Think of the difference between USP (Unique Selling Proposition) and UVP (Unique Value Proposition). USP is what your product does, and UVP is what it does for someone. A quarter-inch drill bit drills quarter-inch holes – that’s the USP. It allows me to make my kids happy by hanging a picture on the wall – that’s the UVP.
A lot of founders are very technical in their thinking. They focus entirely on the product’s USPs. They are unable to step back and say what it is the customer wants to achieve by using this product – the UVP.
After revealing your solution and describing its awesome benefits, it’s time to drive the message home with proof – stories, testimonials, and case studies.
Share examples of regular people, similar to your prospective customers, who have got great results using your product. The more you know about your audience, the better, more relatable stories you can choose.
Neil, too, relies on the power of testimonials to emphasize that his product is truly worth it.
If you are promoting your webinar through a specific source, you could narrow your testimonials and case studies to the specific industry on which you are going to focus.
To do this, you may have to invest in some serious research. But pulling it off can be hugely powerful.
At the end of the day, **birds of a feather flock together**. If prospective customers see that other people just like them have succeeded by using your product, your solution will resonate all the more deeply with them.
> Pro Tip: Please don’t feel compelled to give the audience a guided tour of each and every aspect of your software. It isn’t necessary to show them every feature, every page, every click, every layout – for that, you have the free trial or money-back guarantee or onboarding calls.
During the webinar, your emphasis must be on selling the benefits. Show prospective customers enough to believe in the effectiveness of your product – but don’t overwhelm them with technical details.
## GO: making an offer that sells
### 7\. Increase value, reduce risk
In this final part of my framework, the focus is on selling.
Remember, nothing happens until someone sells something. If you analyze [the top 250 SaaS companies](http://montclare.com/saas-250/?ref=revenueinsideout.com) or even [the top 1000 SaaS companies](http://saas1000.com/?ref=revenueinsideout.com) in the world, they all have a proper sales process and dedicated sales force.
So, if you think you can just sit back, relax and scale – well, that’s simply not going to happen. You are going to need a process and people who can sell.
(When I say “scale”, I mean a million plus. If you want to build half a million ARR business, that’s cool – but it’s not what I’m talking about here.)
To me, **selling is analogous to serving**. If my ideal customer has a problem and I know that I can fix it and rock their world, then it’s my responsibility to at least present them with the opportunity to move forward with my software.
Moving on to specifics: how can you increase value and reduce risk?
To increase value, you provide add-ons. How can you make the offer absolutely irresistible, a golden opportunity for customers?
You could offer it as an exclusive – perhaps only available on your webinar. And you could throw in a few perks to seal the deal.
I’m going to walk you guys through four types of add-ons that work great specifically for SaaS companies. Use these to improve the odds of getting the outcome you want. Be sure to point out to your audience that this is an extra something for those who sign up for your software, meant to drive and increase their success.
**a. Implementation session.** One possibility is to offer consulting and onboarding services along with your product. Essentially, one of your consultants could conduct an implementation workshop or act as an onboarding coach.
This consultant would help customers set up and configure the product according to their requirements and run an implementation session tailored to their needs. They would also brainstorm with the client on how to meet their specific business goals by using your product.
**b. Digital course.** This could be an online course that goes with your product. For instance, if you are selling an email automation tool, the following courses would make for great add-ons: How to continuously and easily write emails that keep your subscribers engaged, How to build great lead magnets, and How to go viral with your content.
Where can you find the right course? If you have created or sold a digital course in the past, you now have the opportunity to add it on.
If you don’t have a digital course but would love to provide one, you could find the number one person in the market and partner with them. Buy one of their courses in volume, at a fraction of the original cost, and offer it to your customers.
**c. Templates.** This is an easy one. Think of templates as a do-it-yourself version of implementation sessions. You can provide templates specific to the customer’s situation, industry, and definition of success. In the case of an email automation tool, for example, you could offer a full set of email templates that can be used to engage the audience, ask questions, etc.
You may already have a number of exclusive templates that you have created for customers or partners. Sort these out and bundle them up for a very attractive add-on to your product.
**d. Related tools.** This is about what else your customer needs or will use along with your product to achieve success. Ask yourself what are the 3-4 other tools that your customers typically buy as part of solving the problem that you identified. Is there a way for you to partner with them?
With email marketing software, for example, a customer might also need website services like [Wix.com](http://wix.com/?ref=revenueinsideout.com), landing pages like [unbounce.com](http://unbounce.com/?ref=revenueinsideout.com), or Google/Facebook advertising credits. You can design your product to integrate with such tools and provide them as add-ons for free or at a discount.
The way I see it, you need to sell the add-ons as much as you sell your core tool.
I have seen software founders enroll an enviable number of new customers – and the way in which they sold the value of the add-on played a huge role. Each and every time they talked about an add-on, they sold it.
You really have to stack and present the add-ons in a way that is ridiculously appealing. You want to reach the point where your add-ons are perceived to be more valuable than the discounted savings for your product.
That’s the point at which your potential customer will think: “Okay, this is a no-brainer. I get all these other things that are super valuable and I essentially get the software for free.”
Think about the way in which Steve Jobs introduced the first iPhone. He sold it not just as a phone but as a three-in-one: a phone, an iPod, and an Internet communications device.
Or, have a look at how Neil Patel stacks his main product and all of his add-ons in his Advanced Customer Acquisition Webinar. The total value of all the inclusions is US$ 7982 – and he then goes on to offer this bundle to the audience at a massive discount.
Now that you have maximized value, you will also need to reduce risk.
To achieve this, you will want to provide a guarantee. Because at the end of the day, there is always that lingering objection in your audience’s mind: what if it doesn’t work for me?
If you offer a guaranteed 60-day free trial or a 100 percent money-back guarantee, then it is up to you to make sure that the product delivers and that the client is able to achieve success by using it.
To put it another way: if you are trying to get people to sign up for annual, multi-year contracts, then you need to get to the point where they feel like there is just no risk for them.
See, for example, the 100 percent 30-day money-back guarantee offered by Neil in his webinar. He clearly explains that, with this guarantee, the customer has everything to gain and nothing to lose. Such a risk-free offer is definitely hard to resist.
Sure, a guarantee makes things tougher for you: you will have to deliver 100 percent success, you will have to handle all issues, and you will have to work hard at activating and retaining your customers.
But at least a guarantee will give you that opportunity! Without it, they’re not even going to put their credit card in there or move forward with your software – you’ll never even get the chance to deliver to them.
So, I strongly recommend that you provide the guarantee as it reduces one of the biggest objections in the mind of prospective customers.
If the product doesn’t work for the buyer, they can leave – no harm done. The assurance of a guarantee – in whatever form you choose – get you moving forward.
> Pro Tip: I think most founders don’t understand that when an employee in a company buys a product from an unknown startup, it is a huge risk for them – for their personal credibility, their job, and even their career.
If they are still buying from you, you must be solving a real problem for them. And you owe it to them to do whatever it takes to help them achieve their goals and be successful.
### 8\. Design scarcity
The way scarcity work is that your audience needs to feel that the opportunity is getting away from them.
Imagine being behind a race car as it revs in anticipation at a traffic light. You know that any second, the light is going to turn green and the car will be gone – you’ll probably never see it again.
That’s the feeling you want to recreate in your potential customer – that if this deal gets away, it’s gone for good.
The window is flexible: you could decide that they have to make the purchase while the webinar is still live, or you could choose to make the offer available for a three-day or five-day period. Whichever it is, there must be a sense of scarcity, the feeling that they won’t have the opportunity to get the product in this kind of bundle with these particular add-ons.
Take a look at how Neil Patel creates scarcity in his Advanced Customer Acquisition Webinar. The bundle of offerings, valued at US$ 7982, is offered to the live webinar audience at just US$ 997.
To clinch the deal, Neil even throws in one more bonus for people who avail the offer directly from the webinar: one year of access to his private Facebook group as well as access to his team.
He sells this final add-on with the same passion and energy as every other inclusion. In fact, in his words, “People in the Facebook group are even saying this bonus alone is worth more than the whole course.”
Finally, he once again quickly reminds the audience that these amazing bonuses are only available until the end of this webinar.
Essentially, you have to somehow create scarcity around your offer. It could be time scarcity, price scarcity, add-on scarcity, quantity scarcity – or a combination. That’s up to you.
Hotel and flight booking websites, for example, rely heavily on quantity and price scarcity. You know those little warnings that come up while you’re browsing: “In high demand – only 3 rooms left!” or “Only 2 seats left at this price!” These are ways to persuade you to buy quickly before the deal disappears. You can take a look at more [smart scarcity examples to boost sales](https://conversionxl.com/blog/scarcity-examples/?ref=revenueinsideout.com).
Just remember: you have to be 100 percent honest and authentic about it. “Fake scarcity” can actually do you more harm than good!
For instance, if you claim that this fantastic bundle of products is only available through the webinar for two days, then make sure not to send out the exact same offer via email the following week. Something like that will cause your potential customers to doubt your word, thus damaging your reputation.
Another example of scarcity gone wrong was highlighted by [Peep Laja on his blog](https://conversionxl.com/blog/scarcity-examples/?ref=revenueinsideout.com). A digital product marketer, trying to create scarcity, sent out a message saying all monthly memberships were sold out – but a few yearly memberships were still available, at least for a couple more days.
[As Laja pointed out](https://conversionxl.com/blog/scarcity-examples/?ref=revenueinsideout.com), this scarcity was clearly a made-up affair, which wouldn’t go down well with potential customers. Using such tactics could seriously affect your credibility.
Next up, you need to make the call to action. Nailing this final step – how the audience can actually avail of the offer you have presented – is crucial.
You might think, “Oh, I’ll just put the URL on the screen and people who are interested will click on it.”
But that isn’t enough – stopping there will hurt your conversions. You need to explain where the link goes, what customers need to do, and what happens next – either tell them or show them.
It may sound silly, but you should ideally explain the entire process: here is the link, open it up, here is the browser, click on this, enroll on this page, etc. The goal is to make it explicit.
If you want, you can actually walk them through the steps. Include details of what will happen after they have done their bit. For example, they will receive your product and the add-ons instantly, plus they will be hearing from your team within 12 hours.
In his webinar, Neil talks the audience through the process while showing them this slide.
### 9\. Questions & Answers
About 82 percent of all webinars have a dedicated time slot for questions and answers. This is the most popular way of engaging with the audience as well as getting insights into their thinking.
There are a number of things you can do to pull off a successful webinar Q&A.
To begin with, make sure you list the Q&A session on your agenda. With this information, the audience will be more likely to think of and jot down questions during the webinar.
In order to have enough time for the Q&A, you will need to make sure that you start the webinar on time and stay on schedule.
Background noise can be a pain during Q&As, so do your homework on how to mute and unmute people using your chosen webinar program. You should also briefly instruct participants on turning on as well as muting their microphones.
Before the webinar, spend some time anticipating likely questions and coming up with answers. If possible, test your webinar with a few colleagues or friends who match your customer profile. Get them to ask you a bunch of questions (including a couple of tough ones!) at the end.
If you don’t know the answer, be honest. Giving out the wrong information is infinitely worse than saying you don’t know something – it damages your credibility.
Instead, tell the person you will get back to them with the information. Note down their details and make sure to follow up – this is how you build real relationships with potential clients. Doing so also boosts your reputation for being dependable.
Finally, stick to the time limit. The last phase of your webinar shouldn’t drag on indefinitely; that is likely to annoy many people in your audience.
> Pro Tip: Think of a couple of “cutoff phrases” in case a participant asks irrelevant questions or rambles on and on. For instance: “That’s a great point, we can talk more about that offline if you like” or “A very interesting observation – I’m sure that’s given us all something to think about”.
---
**Did you know? The best webinars…**
- **Demonstrate value:** You need to provide something of value that the potential customer really wants to know. Time is money; make it a must-attend session.
- **Spark curiosity:** Since the person has made time to learn, you must eloquently present the topic – but intentionally leave some things open-ended and allow room for questions.
- **Are not over-the-top salesy:** Yes, businesses exist to make money. However, a good webinar builds trust in a brand rather than whacks attendees over the head with a product (unless that is clearly the point emphasized in all marketing).
---
## Engaging your audience
Keeping an audience engaged is an art – one you will have to learn if you want your webinar to be truly successful.
One of the most important things to keep in mind is that your webinar is not a lecture. Keep it interesting and interactive – not a one-way monologue.
Be energetic. Be passionate. Be upfront about your genuine intent to help. These are the things that will take your webinar from “blah” to “awesome!”.
Consider using these tools to keep people engaged:
- Polling
- Group chat
- Questions
- Content download
- Social
- Surveys
- Idea storming
The thoughtful use of polls is a great way to keep the audience interested – you can include polls that prove your point, or contradict others to create some drama. I would recommend a maximum of three polls in the first half of your webinar when you are educating your participants.
At specific points, ask your attendees questions to recapture their attention. Explain that you want to make sure everything is clear; if there is any confusion, you can dig a bit deeper into the topic.
The questions you pose during the main webinar should be brief and direct, to which the participants can give quick, straightforward answers. You can simply ask people to text you the replies.
For the final Q&A, however, you can ask more open-ended questions – these can focus on things you have always wanted to know about your potential customers. Disguise and phrase these queries as clarification questions. Let the audience connect with you via voice and preferably video as well.
You could also try building your webinar around your prospective customers’ questions. Send out a call for questions to be answered live on-air. This will help to create excitement and buzz around what’s to come. Plus, the people asking questions will also be more likely to show up on the big day.
> Pro Tip: When people reply to your questions via text, shoot out their names, like: “Awesome, Alex! Happy to hear it’s clear” or “Marina says let’s move on, thanks Marina!”. This keeps your audience engaged and provides social validation and value.
People have super-short attention spans and they do not know the topic as well as you do. So, divide your webinar into several sections to make it more digestible.
Before you start a new section, quickly recap what you have covered in the webinar up till now: “By now, you guys can do this and this, next up is this…”. Then dive into the new topic.
We live in a visual world now, with[ the use of video growing steadily](http://communications.on24.com/rs/848-AHN-047/images/ON24%5FWebinar-Benchmarks-Report-2017.pdf?ref=revenueinsideout.com) over the past few years. So, try to use video as part of your presentation. When people see you, they are able to put a face to your name, which helps them form a better connection with you.
**The key is to be real, to be human – not a robot.** You can also [use your voice](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8S0FDjFBj8o&ref=revenueinsideout.com) to sound smart, authoritative, and engaging.
I have seen that discussion-style webinars are excellent at engaging audiences. In many of our live events, we have foregone slides completely and instead brought together two speakers with a host who asks live questions on air.
Last but not least: be prepared. Otherwise, you are just wasting everyone’s time. And remember, time is money.
> Pro Tip: Get someone to act as a live moderator. So, while you are giving the webinar, this person can keep track of queries, filter them, categorize them, and give you the relevant questions and answers according to the topics you are presenting – all in real-time.
---
**Did you know? Time allotment for webinars**
The average attendee stays in the event for about 55 minutes, so a one-hour webinar is generally a safe bet. Here is the ideal time allotment for each section:
- 5-10 minutes: intro, set the stage, establish authority
- 20-25 minutes: explain the problem, educate the audience (without your solution)
- 10-15 minutes: reveal your solution, explain the benefits, describe the add-ons, give the guarantee, call to action
- 10-15 minutes: Q&A
---
## What’s next: lead nurturing
The webinar is finally over – phew! You can breathe easy and celebrate your success for a short while.
Then, it’s time to get back to work and squeeze the maximum impact out of that awesome webinar.
To begin with, follow up with all your participants. Thank them and ask for their feedback. Send them a recording of the webinar for their reference – this gesture will be appreciated by those who want to double-check a detail or re-watch a particularly helpful segment.
Remind your audience about your offer and how they can get it, if it is still valid. Send out one final reminder again, a few hours before the offer runs out for good. (Remember, you’ve got to make the most of that “scarcity” feeling!)
When it comes to lead nurturing, you will need to continue working with all three types of participants:
**a) People who signed up but didn’t attend the webinar.** It’s important not to take this personally. Understand that people are busy and have a ton of different things to do. There may be other priorities or commitments that came in the way.
Design and send them a follow-up email sequence; if possible, try to set up a call to find out more about why they didn’t attend the webinar. Again, this will help you fine-tune your future efforts. For the people who don’t respond, encourage them to sign up for your next webinar.
**b) People who attended the webinar but didn’t sign up for your solution.** Don’t worry! This category is unavoidable: either they are not the right customers, they are not ready for your solution, or they don’t see the value of your product yet.
In any case, you should design a follow-up email sequence with a compelling call to action – this could change a few of those unsure minds.
This is also an excellent opportunity for you to learn. A quick phone call could help you understand why the customer felt that your solution didn’t address their problem. Maybe they misunderstood something or decided that it wasn’t the right time to buy. These answers will help you sell better in the future.
**c) People who attended the webinar and signed up for your solution.** Start onboarding your new customers. Helps them understand and start using your solution. Then, help them achieve the results they want as soon as possible.
You can also continue using your webinar content to generate leads.
Update your landing page and continue to use the video as a lead magnet. Re-purpose your webinar materials for content marketing: utilize all that excellent content to create blog posts, infographics, audio clips, SlideShare presentations, and more. The questions asked during the webinar can be turned into mini blog posts.
You could also use snippets of the content/video in short formats and end with a call to action that takes the audience to a signup page where they can access the complete webinar recording.
> Pro Tip: Develop thoughtful pre- and post-webinar email sequences to maximize attendance, engagement, and sales. Take a look at this excellent email sequence from Meet Edgar – it begins right after sign-up and continues until the final day when it is possible to snag a free trial of the product.
MeetEdgar's email chain for webinar registrants.
---
**Did you know? Tests build trust**
Rehearse and test your webinar by actually delivering it to a friend or colleague, using the same content, process, and tools as the final version. This helps ensure that everything is working right. Hiccups in technology are bad for business because:
- They subconsciously annoy people.
- They distract attention from you, your knowledge, and your product.
- They lower trust in your product. If your webinar has technical hiccups, then maybe your product also has problems.
---
## Frequently asked questions (FAQ)
### When should I start promoting my webinar?
You should begin promoting the event more than 15 days before your webinar. If you start when there’s just a week to go, you could lose out on up to half your potential viewers.
And don’t slack off as the big day draws closer. Another big chunk of the audience (about 25 percent) is likely to sign up on the day of the webinar itself.
A longer promotional cycle, punctuated with email reminders and social engagement, will give you a larger audience.
Here’s a handy tip: according to the ON24 [webinar benchmarks report 2017](http://communications.on24.com/rs/848-AHN-047/images/ON24%5FWebinar-Benchmarks-Report-2017.pdf?ref=revenueinsideout.com), avoid sending promotional messages on Monday, Friday, and the weekend. The most effective days to engage with your webinar audience are Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. (By the way, these are also the best days for scheduling your webinar, attracting the highest number of attendees.)
### How can I get more people who signed up to actually attend my webinars?
Once you have signed up enough people, you also have to work towards getting them to attend. According to most estimates today, out of every 100 people that enroll in webinars, about 35-45 actually show up.
That means anywhere between 35-40 percent attendance should be seen as a great result. Depending on your industry, you may want to tweak your goal slightly.
How can you improve a weak registration-to-attendance rate? Well, simply having a process in place will help you take up the number of attendees and improve your overall conversion rate. This means proper follow-up, including a notification process. (Check how Meet Edgar followup with registrants)
To make the attendance process smoother, I recommend selecting a webinar tool that works in the browser simply with a click and does not require any installation on the audience side.
### I cannot provide a guarantee. What if everyone asks for their money back? I simply cannot lose money.
First of all, if you are so sure that your solution will not deliver results, why are you doing all this anyway?
Practically speaking, if you are genuinely trying to help your customers and your solution actually works, then you don’t need to worry. You will sell to a lot more customers because of the guarantee, than the number of people who will ever ask you for their money back.
### Making a webinar takes a lot of time and resources. How can we reuse the same webinar again and again, while still maintaining scarcity in our offer?
The first thing you need to do is put a time limit on your offer. So, for people who attended the webinar, you could make the offer valid for say 6, 24, or 72 hours after it ends. Make it mandatory to create an account, make the first payment, etc. – whichever action you want to be done immediately.
If you are running ads for this webinar, take their email addresses off the list so they don’t see the marketing again and again. Also, make sure they can’t register again with the same email ID or an email ID with the same company domain name or any other filter you like.
### Can you use a webinar at the product validation stage? Or is it only useful for selling?
Yes, you can. In fact, webinars are one of the most effective ways to not only validate your product but also generate tons of leads. You can make contact with people who are interested in using your solution even before you build it.
You could also see this as a group of people from whom you can get high-quality input as you are crafting your solution. This is a great way to build the right features and stay on track so that your minimum viable product (MVP) is also your minimum sellable product (MSP) from the very beginning.
Plus, you can use this list to pre-sell your product with the same kind of offer and scarcity as early adopter programs – think Kickstarter style. The only thing that will change here is the delivery time, compared with when you use the webinar to increase sales.
## Conclusion
Using the Ready-Set-Go Framework that I have described in the above article, you will be able to create a compelling, effective webinar that hits all the right notes.
With this extremely useful tool in place, you can now connect with customers in the right way, enhance your messaging, and boost sales. Webinars also open up exciting new possibilities for your company, such as partnering with complementary products and services.
### How To Make Your Prospect Talkative During The First Seconds Of The Cold Call?
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/how-to-make-your-prospect-talkative-during-the-first-seconds-of-the-cold-call/
Last updated: 2022-11-06T09:04:25.000Z
Cold calls might be essential for your prospecting process - it allows you to book a demo or discovery call with prospects and move forward in the selling process. But cold calling is rarely our favorite method.
The scariest part lies at the beginning of the call. We are unable to think on our feet. We feel unprepared and not confident enough in the unknown situation. We overthink, over-prepare, and come off as not prepared at all.
So, how can you handle unknown situations in cold calls like a pro?
The trick is to treat a prospect like an old friend and not focus entirely on booking a meeting.
Creating an honest environment where the prospect feels comfortable telling you the truth is a secret gold mine for a salesperson. Your prospect’s comfort should become your primary concern.
Why? Because when your prospect is comfortable, they will feel confident enough to tell ether: yes, they see the value and are open to sharing a little bit more and continuing the conversation, or no, not at this time.
Even when they say no, they’re at least honest and not trying to say something to avoid you.
Right now your initial conversation might go something like this:
You: *Hi, this is John from XYZ company.*
Prospect: *I\`m on my way to the hospital. I can't talk right now.*
You: *Oh...I'm sorry, can I call you back later?*
But now imagine that the prospect is your friend. How would you react in that case? Perhaps something like this:
Prospect: *I\`m on my way to the hospital. I can't talk right now.*
You: *Oh god...are you okay? Do you need some help?*
You turned this conversation to your advantage in a matter of seconds just by being human.
Remember, **if you want them to treat you like a friend and not an annoying salesperson, you have to first start treating them like a friend and not another company to push your product to.**
But what if you mess up and end up annoying the prospect?
Try using phraseology and tonality to defuse the pressure. For example, your cold call started on the wrong foot. Your prospect is aggressive and has no desire to talk to you. How can you change it?
**Example #1:**
Prospect: *Why are you calling me at 6 AM?*
From the first seconds, we understand our prospect is in a confrontational mindset. When your prospect is annoyed, your task is to de-escalate tension. For example, you can apologize and explain why the hell you were calling them at 6 AM.
Prospect: *Why are you calling me at 6 AM?*
You: *I\`m sorry, I thought I was calling people on the west coast. I feel like such a jerk.*
Prospect: *No, it’s fine. Huh...what do you need?*
Let’s take a look at **example #2:**
Prospect: *I’m sorry, you caught me at the gym. I can't talk right now.*
Your usual response might be:
You: *I\`m sorry ...maybe we can set up a time for another call?*
But if you will get out of your sales mode, you can turn any conversation to your benefit:
Prospect: *I\`m sorry, you caught me at the gym. I can't talk right now.*
You: *What are you working on today? Is it a leg day?*
Forget that you don't know the prospect. Instead, assume you are friends, and you always have something to talk about especially when they’re in good mood, like in our **example# 3:**
When your friend picks up a call in pretty good spirits, you usually point it out. And now, do that with your prospect:
You: *You are in such a good mood! What's your secret? I want to be just like you!*
Or something like:
You: *Is it food? What are you eating, by the way? Avocado toast? Why does everybody eat that in LA? Is it that good?*
The key to a successful conversation is to forget about yourself and think about them. One indicator of who this call is about is who is talking most during the call. Remember:
**“As long as the salesperson talks - they are selling, as long as the prospect talks - they are buying.”**
While getting out of your goal-achieving mode, you are trying to make a connection with someone. And you are detached from the outcome.
Do not try to prepare for the prospect\`s mood or words. The best course of action for you - is to be open-minded and ready to listen. React at the moment, think about your prospect as if it was your friend, and don't be too afraid to come off as nosy.
The success of your call lies in the first few seconds of the conversation. So make your best out of it, using these examples!
### Word Of Mouth Strategy and Seven Ways To Make It Work Better
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/word-of-mouth-strategy-and-seven-ways-to-make-it-work-better/
Last updated: 2022-11-15T11:00:48.000Z
The success of your business depends on the experience that clients had with your product. You obviously want them to talk about the awesomeness of your product, but what if they don’t?
The main problem is that sharing experience is a natural process, and you can’t force it. At the same time, you know that word of mouth is one of the most effective ways to drive B2B buying decisions.
In this article, I’m going to share with you seven ways to improve your word-of-mouth strategy.
## 1\. Combination of product and customer success
It’s the most obvious one. When your customer is achieving ‘success’ using your product, you have a loyal buyer. This, in turn, has a higher likelihood of them sharing your product whenever they talk about their own success.
The trick here is having a clear picture of defining and measuring what success really means for your customer with respect to your product. And to make sure that not only do they achieve success, but also clearly understand that they’ve achieved it.
## 2\. Be human with your customer
For example, your customer just got a house or they just raised another round of funding. Provide them with a personalized gift that thoughtfully celebrates their achievement.
This gesture (strategy) drives brand affinity and retention. And if you do those gestures without expecting anything back often customers will go and share this with someone or post it on social media.
## 3\. Content
While in typical inbound marketing the focus is on producing content that can generate leads or improve SEO, here the focus is on shareability.
Sometimes, your content can even reach people who have never heard about your company or your service. And nevertheless, they share because your content is that good.
Before publishing the content, you should focus on these three key factors:
- **Content strategy.** You need to create content that your audience really wants to share. And after that, you need to place your content where the audience can consume it.
- **Consistency.** You need the ability to execute content on a repeatable basis, where you consistently get better. This way the audience will trust you because you already proved that your content is always good and only gets better.
- **Distribution strategy**. One piece of content that touches one person, if it hits appropriately, can spread in a bunch of different areas:
**Example 1**
*You posted a video on Linkedin → marketing manager saw it → they shared it with their CMO*
**Example 2**
*You posted → the marketing manager sees it → they share it to one of their slack channels that involve other people from the marketing department or perhaps leadership.*
## 4\. Events
While creating an event most companies start with the mindset of generating leads or email lists. However, if you approach events with a mindset of creating an incredible experience for the participants, so they will talk about it before and after the event, then you’ll create a very different type of event.
Doesn't matter if the event is physical, hybrid, or virtual. Think about events, not from the getting leads perspective but from the mindset to make people talk about things they learned (& interactions they had) and want to share.
## 5\. Community
Whether you own the community or you are a participant – does not matter. This point is about being active, being visible, and helping in real time. Spending time in the community just as a point of brand visibility is the key.
## 6\. Create a VIP customers list
Creating a VIP customers list involves taking a specific set of customers that love your product already. Those customers are power users that might already talk about you. Your goal is to fuel that relationship with your company by providing value in creative ways.
For example, create a special event that they can attend physically. Create a fully paid trip where your VIPs can spend time with all of their peers. There are a million things that you can do for people that already love your brand by diving deeper into what they need and want.
## 7\. Influencer marketing
Influencer marketing strategy helps your company receive more recognition in shorter, easier, and sometimes cheaper ways. Therefore, collaborating with the right influencers will help you catch the attention of your potential customers and earn their trust.
Because B2B influencers already established themselves as professionals, industry analysts, and experts with real and valuable experience. These thought leaders earned the trust of their audience and built their reputation over an extended period based on their experience, expertise, and voice in the industry.
Or you can work even with independent technology futurists: journalists, media professionals, investors, industry veterans, leaders of technology associations & standards bodies, heads of academic think tanks, and so many more can help your brand visibility and enhance trust in your company.
💡
**Pro-tip:** Don’t Focus Only on Social Strength. For example, in marketing, Seth Godin is a well-known and trusted source of information. Yet he has only seven connections on LinkedIn at the time of writing this article.
Building word of mouth strategy can take a long time, so start doing it today and improve it with each tool mentioned in this article!
### Three Steps For Overcoming Even The Most Difficult Objections
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/three-steps-for-overcoming-even-the-most-difficult-objections/
Last updated: 2022-09-27T20:20:57.000Z
“No” always means “no”, right? Well, in the context of the sales world “no” can mean a lot of things. As a founder of a start-up or an experienced seller, you must have had enough rejection for a lifetime.
Objections are common, and at this point, they are just a part of any sales process. But have you ever wondered why you even get those rejections and how you can minimize the number of negative responses?
I'm sure you did. And that is why in this article, I will take you into three steps for overcoming objections.
Sounds good? Then let's get going!
## Step 1: Assess the reasoning behind “no”
The word "no", in the sales world, most of the time means a possible yes. Sounds a bit tricky but only because it is. It all comes down to asking questions both yourself and the client.
When you hear no, what would you do? You assess the situation. Did you cover everything important in the conversation? Is there any information you can add to convince the client? What does the client's "no" actually mean? Is it a possible “yes” or a strict “no”? Did you qualify your client correctly?
There are millions of questions to assess. The best course of action at this point is to analyze your conversation and track back to the turning point for your client.
## Step 2: Turn their “no” into a “yes”
If you analyzed your conversation correctly, that means you can pinpoint the turning moment of your conversation. And now the time to change buyer reasoning has come, and you have an opportunity to do so. There are a few easy steps to change your buyer’s mind:
### Re-establish rapport
Rejection always makes us uncomfortable - that's a simple truth of life. So right now, your first step should be to get your rapport back.
Show your client that you are not disturbed or rattled. For instance, offer them additional comfort, so they will stay honest with you.
For example: *“I understand your hesitation, Jim. Perhaps I misunderstood that aspect of your situation”.*
What you are communicating here - is that it’s ok that your prospect didn’t buy from you right away.
### Ask more questions
It's never late to gather information. And I would say that asking questions after rejection is one of the most important steps to make.
At this point, you need to know more to fight their objection. Here are a few small points that will help you to move forward with your questioning:
- Listen well. If the client is saying "why" they don't wish to proceed further, it's your job to listen with full attention.
- Restate the client's questions and concerns. This will cause them to elaborate and allow you to really figure out the underlying issues.
- Try to find an agreement with the client. Making the client feel more comfortable will allow you to find more information.
- Confirm that the client has told you all their concerns. And that they are ready to move forward.
### Present answers but not all of them
Remember, now you are attracting your client to move forward with the main presentation, and are trying to score a meeting with them. The point here is to offer a bit of information and raise interest in the buyer's mind. After you present your answer, confirm that you have given the prospect the information they need to make a decision.
### Shoot again and ask for the sale
This is a pivotal point of the sale. So you should have the two or three sentences that you are going to say to close the deal scripted in advance.
## Step 3: Сreate a framework to handle objections
Sometimes sellers try to overcome objections with the wrong mindset. They try to win against clients, to close the deal for the sake of closing it. But the truth is, your main task should be to understand why the objection even occurred.
How often are you able to successfully change someone's mind or opinion when in disagreement? Probably not often. Now, how often are you able to come to a resolution when you try to understand them instead?
Understanding people makes them feel comfortable, and comfort will allow them to open up. This is where you can start to actually build the sale.
Here's the scenario for you:
You're trying to sell your sales training services to other B2B companies, but they think you charge too much money.
So the client has given you their objection - your price is too high.
Let’s look into step by step process I learned from Josh Braun and Chris Voss:
### THINK
Simple, right? When a client gives you an objection, just take 1 or 3 seconds to pause and really think about what they're saying. You want to mentally prepare yourself for this conversation.
### REVERSAL
A reversal is when you take key components of the client's objection and use those to reply with an innocent question. Using the example above, you would reply:
*"I'm sorry, too high?*
Now tonality is key here. You can't be hyper, aggressive, or condescending. You want to sound calm, curious, and genuine.
This step will most likely cause your client to keep talking and reveal more information so pay extra attention.
### ISOLATE
When you isolate, you cause the client to think about their situation and whether or not what they say is really what they think.
*"This might sound intrusive, but it seems like you have a limit on how much you want to invest in sales training".*
After you isolate, you want to make sure you do not say anything afterward. Silence is an incredible tool to prompt answers.
The client will tell you why they're happy in their current situation, and oftentimes they'll also tell you why they're not.
### NEGATIVE CALLOUT
A negative callout is when you label the negative emotion someone may already be feeling.
*"You're probably going to think I'm too expensive and not within your budget. But would you be opposed to seeing better results from your sales reps through the specialized sales training I can provide?"*
The goal here is to take the conversation further and start persuading the client into considering you as the new option.
By pointing out the negative emotion they could be feeling, you remove that as a potential objection.
### BE FIRM
Now let's say the client gives you a hard number instead after *step 3* such as $8,000\. You can instead try using a different technique which is just being *firm.*
*"Sorry, but unfortunately I can't do that price."*
The client will either end the conversation here, or the more likely scenario is that they come back with a counteroffer. If the counteroffer is still too low for you, you can use an inclusive ask.
### INCLUSIVE ASK
An inclusive ask is where you get help from the client. You will be asking the question, but the client will solve the problem. A client that helps is more invested in solving the issue.
*"That's a really generous offer, and I do appreciate you giving me the opportunity here. How am I going to reduce the price without reducing the number of sales reps I train?"*
With this question, you allow the client to solve the issue at hand. You are giving them an option of a lesser price, but in turn, they wouldn't receive the full benefit.
At this point, you are speaking as if they already chose you as the new sales trainer, and what business owner wouldn't want all of their sales reps trained on equal footing?
So, what have we got?
“No” is a powerful world under any circumstances. But in the sales world, the word “no” is special and can mean so much more than just a simple rejection. Sometimes people don't even understand why they object in the first place.
Hence, I offer you a new mindset: don't be rattled by an objection - be *intrigued.*
Look at every “no” as an opportunity to learn more about your customer, their needs, and even your product. And remember, every “no” offers you a new perspective and trains you better than any theoretical lessons would!
### Great Sales Questions And How To Use Them
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/great-sales-questions-and-how-to-use-them/
Last updated: 2022-12-07T14:08:12.000Z
Naturally, there is always a disconnect between the sellers and buyers world. And this prevents the seller from understanding the buyer, therefore selling the product.
Why does this happen?
The thing is, buyers rarely tell the truth. So, they will offer to sellers, in the best-case scenario, 80% of it.
Ironically, as it is, answers to all seller’s questions usually lie in that unspoken 10%. So, what do we do then? Sellers can't force answers out of their prospects and can’t read their minds...yet. Then what do we need to do to make prospects more open and honest with us?
The answer to this question is pretty easy: you just need to understand your prospects and customers on a deeper level than you ever thought possible. And to do that, you will need a few great sales questions.
Great sales questions are religiously studied by any sales professional. Why? To keep it short: great questions help you get the insight you need to close deals. When you know what those questions are and how to use them, they become your ultimate tool for any sales conversation.
With great sales questions, you will dive deeper into the buyer’s world. Targeted questions not only motivate your buyer to talk but will demonstrate your empathy towards prospects, and will establish you as somebody who will listen to their frustrations. Great sales questions will create an honest and trusting environment for both you and your buyer.
Remember, great salespeople, are talented listeners. If you let your prospect talk, you will allow them to facilitate awareness of their needs and help them draw their own conclusions. Your prospect must come to see their problems on their own and understand the need in taking action. And that is why you need to study great sales questions.
**Worksheets are available to download later below.**
So, there are six ultimate types of questions for your prospects, and we will look through all of them:
## Educational questions
As a seller, you need to make an impression on your client, right? You need to come across as a reliable, smart, and useful adviser. And the best way to show your intelligence to your client is to ask intelligent questions.
For this exact purpose, we’ve got educational questions. They will set you apart from your competitor and will give you some bonus points in the eyes of your buyer.
Show your intelligence, but don’t brag about it. What I mean here - is be attentive and don’t overuse educational questions. Once or twice is absolutely enough to show that you’ve done your research and are ready to offer a solution to your buyer’s problem.
Timing is very important as well. So, use educational questions in a few specific situations like a teaser on a voicemail to get prospects to return your call, at the beginning of a meeting to use as an icebreaker, or when a sales conversation is stalled.
**Example**: "A recent article in the Wall Street Journal suggests that 75 percent of technology companies use foreign developers to build out their platforms. One of the challenges seems to be the language barriers and laws governing foreign workers. How do you manage those issues with your IT staff?"
## Lock-On questions
To sell your product, you need to understand buyers’ real needs, and that’s where lock-on questions come in handy. You need to be attentive, and be able to grasp something that will help you to understand at least the initial problem of your prospect.
The biggest risk with lock-on questions is to turn your conversation into an interrogation. The seller must be forward but not aggressive, therefore you better use lock-on questions only if the prospect already feels comfortable with you and you showed empathy towards their problem.
**Example**: If your prospect says: "We have been trying to get this project launched for months now," you might want to follow up with: "I noticed you used the word trying. What has worked so far, and what's standing in your way?"
## Impact questions
Remember I said a perfect seller is a good listener? Well, the strategy of impact questions requires good listening skills and extreme attentiveness.
At this point, you need to be aware of the problem your buyer is facing. Because the purpose of this strategy is to show your prospects the potential impact of their problem.
Impact strategy is a turning point in the selling conversation and will become an important part of your dialog. Here you are allowing the prospect to talk about their frustrations and relive their problem. That’s how the buyer becomes extremely aware of their problem and wants to solve it almost ASAP.
In most cases, customers have never taken the time to deeply analyze their problems or calculate just how much they might be costing them. Phrase your questions to make the prospect think of the consequences and hit them with some well-targeted questions.
**Example:** "What do you think the impact on your company will be if you decide to do nothing?"
"What impact do you think this problem could have on you within the company?"
"When you have this problem, how much do you think it will cost you to fix it?"
"How much time do you spend dealing with this problem daily? What else do you think you could accomplish if you got that time back?"
## Expansion questions
This process helps you as a seller to get into the buyer's headspace and therefore understand the greater needs of your buyer.
For example, if your customer tells you a story, reveals their thought process, or gives you a peek into how their company makes decisions, the more likely you are to gain insight into how you can help them.
**Example:** Ordinary questions like “Who is the decision-maker?” or “What is your time frame?”
Can be easily changed into expansion questions like:
“Walk me through your company’s decision-making process.”
## Comparison questions
Comparison questions allow buyers to compare one thing to another. If you want to get more clarity on your prospect's priorities, comparison questions are the best tool for you.
These questions help you determine what has happened in the past, what is likely to happen in the future, and how priorities might change over time.
Comparison questions will also help you figure out who makes the big decisions in the organization. Comparison naturally helps to understand how your prospect differentiates themselves from their competition.
And the most important part, comparison can open the door to new solutions your prospects might not have considered before.
**Example:** Turn regular and boring questions like “Who are your competitors?” into comparison “Your customers have a lot of choices today. Tell me what you believe are the unique attributes that set you apart from others in your market.”
## Vision questions
After you’ve listened and talked the prospect through their problems and possible solutions - it’s your time to shine. Vision questions are there to present you as the best choice to solve a customer’s problem and achieve their dreams.
💡
**Pro tip:** All vision questions usually have the word “If” in them.
**Example:** “If we could eliminate that problem you have - the one that is costing you $2 million per year, what would it mean to you and your organization? What would it mean for you?”
To sell your product prospect needs to think about it. Great sales questions help rephrase your questions to make them more engaging and stretch the customer's thought process.
With these questions, you can gain more insight into your customers' personal issues, professional goals, corporate objectives, market trends, competitive threats, customers, industry trends, and more.
Try this basic yet powerful approach to understanding your customer’s values, beliefs, motivations, and aspirations, and achieve your sales goals better than ever before!
## Download worksheets
---
[ Worksheets Great Sales Questions Worksheets-Great Sales Questions.pdf 108 KB download-circle ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/content/files/2022/09/Worksheets-Great-Sales-Questions.pdf "Download")
### Want To Stay In Control Of Your Sales Proces? You Need To Ask The Right Questions
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/want-to-stay-in-control-of-your-sales-proces-you-need-to-ask-the-right-questions/
Last updated: 2022-12-07T14:08:24.000Z
We have all been in the situation when the sales process goes well until suddenly it doesn't, and you lose the prospect.
Unfortunately, it's hard to trace your misstep and even harder to predict the outcome of any other potential presentation. And somehow, it feels like we don't have control over the sales process at all. But what can we do to change it?
The truth is as long as the salesperson is well informed, they have the upper hand in any conversation. According to the Sandler method described in the *“Asking Questions, The Sandler Way”* written by Antonio Garrido, specific and well-timed questions are the key to having an upper hand in a sales conversation.
So, let's break down the questions and figure out how to stay in control of our sales process!
**Worksheets are available to download later below.**
## Use the Upfront Contract
The purpose of the Up Front Contract is to agree at the beginning on how what the initial conversation will look like.
To avoid miscommunication you should clearly understand the motives of your client, the purpose of the meeting, potential outcomes, the time, duration, and location of the meeting. The client should also know and understand these aspects, and this is what the Up Front Contract is all about.
To create your own Upfront contract ask your buyer these simple questions: :
*“So, Mark, it sounds to me like it might make sense for you to invite me over so that we can have a face-to-face meeting about the new manufacturing plant that you’re planning. Is that fair?”*
*“So, Tom, exactly where and when would be best for us to meet?”*
*“Let’s just agree on our top most-important items on the agenda. Is that fair?”*
*“Just so that we make sure that we are both on the same page, let’s agree on what the next steps might look like if we’re a good fit. Are you comfortable with this?”*
*“Experience tells me that we will be able to figure out in maybe 10–15 minutes whether or not we are a good fit. If we’re still talking after about 40 minutes, we’ll probably want to begin the process of working out how we can do some business together. Does that sound fair?”*
*"Are you planning to invite any others to the meeting?”*
*"Typically for the first meeting, we find the best way to go about it is if I ask you some questions around the issue—you know, to try to see the business issue through your eyes. Are you OK with that?”*
*“Is there anything else you think we need to add to the agenda?”*
## Explore the client’s pain
Pain is the gap between where the individual is and where he wants to be. Basically, pain is a discovery of what is going on in real life. To be in control of the selling process, you need to study your client. Buyers rarely tell the truth, so they will offer the seller, in the best case, 80% of it. And answers to seller’s questions usually lie in that unspoken 10 %. The best way to uncover the truth is to make prospects talk about themselves. This is why the second step of conversation with your prospect is talking about their pains.
And, most importantly, pain makes people look for solutions, which you can potentially deliver.
You must understand that pain has three different levels and each of these levels has to be hit with a targeted question:
### Initial pain
This level allows you to learn the surface level of prospects' problems, which later will lead you to the core of their pain. To investigate this level, you may use some of these probing questions:
*"Tell me a little more about what you have experienced - why are we even talking right now?"*
*"What's the one thing you wish were better with your current provider?"*
### Pain on the business level
You explored initial pain and that conversation led you to this level. Now it’s time to start digging into the pain as it relates to the business and expand the issue using the following questions:
*"How long has this been a problem?'*
*"What have you tried to do about it? Did that work?"*
*"How much do you think that this has cost you in lost opportunity or revenues - or threatened loss in revenue over the next few months?"*
### Pain on the personal level
At this level lies the core of the prospects’ pain. You’ve learned the problem and now you can understand the consequences of not dealing with it.
And these consequences certainly have personal implications for the prospect, financial losses, missing out on a promotion, etc. for instance. Use probing questions to have a better understanding of this level:
*"How would you feel if the revenue losses continued to occur?"*
*"Would it affect your performance review if this happened?"*
*"Have you given up trying to fix this?"*
## Determine if your prospect is ready to take the action
You went through an exploration of the pain, and now it’s time to move the conversation in the way of action. And by action I mean budget.
There are two types of clients: those who are willing to invest in a solution, and those who are both willing and able to do so. To determine the type of your clients, you can use some of these probing questions:
*"What kind of investment were you expecting to make for this project, Tom?"*
*"To use a hotel analogy, were you expecting to make a 1,2,3,4, or 5-star investment for this, Jamie?"*
*"Will you share with me the sort of range where this budget might start and then go up to in your experience on projects like this, Sam?"*
This stage will allow you to understand if you can move towards a real discussion with your client or if it won't be necessary.
## Time for your decision
At this point, you either disqualify or qualify the prospect for a detailed presentation. You assessed your potential buyer and have enough data to make the right call. But do not forget to ask your prospect a few easy questions to be sure in your decision:
*"When would you like to see the benefits of a solution implemented, delivered, or in place?"*
*"What should the presentation I need to make look like?"*
*"Where should it happen?"*
*"Who will be there at the presentation?"*
*"Why does it all have to be done this way?"*
## Detailed presentation
If your prospect is qualified for a presentation, which means being able and ready to invest in solving their problem, then you can move forward with a detailed presentation.
At this point, you need to pay extra attention to reactions and gauge the temperature of your prospect. Every step of your presentation is a chance to ask more questions about prospects' thoughts on your product (solution to their problem).
To assess the prospect during the fulfillment stage - ask them similar questions as in stage two.
## Deal with buyer’s potential remorse after-sale
Well, you made a sale, and now you need to be two steps ahead of your client. Deal with their remorse before it even happens. For example, ask the prospect:
*"Can I tell you my biggest fear, Terri? I'm worried that I might have pressured you into this deal. Could that be true?"*
This type of question will either make you a real sale or will cancel it altogether.
Also, don't forget to prepare your client for what they will say to their boss and your competitor. They may find it unexpected that you and your client have already moved forward. To prepare your prospect, ask them this:
*"What will you say when (name of a competitor) decides to drop their price at the last minute to buy your loyalty?"*
*"What do you think your boss will say to you when you tell them that you've decided to go with us? And what will you say to that?"*
💡
**Pro Tip:** Before you get going with your conversation, you’ve got to get permission to ask a lot of questions. Remember, If you are granted this permission, then there is no issue in asking any of your questions.
**People might misunderstand when you say "some questions" or "a few questions" but nobody misunderstands "a lot of questions".**
As Antonio Garrido says: *“Selling begins when you start asking good questions”.* Study your client, engage them in meaningful conversation and ask them the right questions at the right time. And to do so, try using the examples mentioned in this article!
## Download worksheets
---
[ Worksheets Asking Right Questions Worksheets- Asking Right Questions.pdf 116 KB download-circle ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/content/files/2022/09/Worksheets--Asking-Right-Questions.pdf "Download")
### DELTA: 5 Secrets Of Building Trusting Relationships With Your Prospect
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/delta-5-secrets-of-building-trusting-relationships-with-your-prospect/
Last updated: 2022-09-27T19:36:50.000Z
Working with the right intent, a demonstrated sales process, proper preparation, and a zeal for relationship building, salespeople of all kinds can achieve their goals.
The best part about this approach is how good you will feel about being in sales - how rewarding and valuable your relationships with customers can really be.
DELTA method of asking questions is a strategy described in the infamous book “Stop Acting Like a Seller and Start Thinking Like a Buyer: Improve Sales Effectiveness by Helping Customers Buy” by Jerry Acuff. This method is the sorcery of building trusting relationships between you and the buyer. And in this article, we will gladly touch upon the main principles of the DELTA method - Develop, Engage, Learn, Tell, and Ask.
## One: Develop Interest
To have an opportunity to ask questions, you need to develop an interest in the eyes of the prospect. And the first step of DELTA helps you to do exactly that. The beginning of the conversation is your chance to set the tone for the next steps of your presentation. So, how can you develop an interest? Easy:
1. **Do your research.** You need to grab customer attention from the first minutes of the conversation, and you can do that by showing and providing knowledge. Tell your prospect something unique, unexpected, and by all means relevant to your topic. This way, you can smoothly open the path for a meaningful dialog.
2. **Create a safe environment.** People don’t like being interrogated or pressured, therefore you need to try your best to create a pleasant environment for conversation. Show your prospect that you are here to help and not to sell. That’s how the prospect will feel free to open up in the course of the conversation.
3. **Bring value to the interaction.** This step isn’t necessary but is useful nonetheless. You can give the prospect a small yet thoughtful gift, like a book, for example, and add a personalized message to it. This is all about finding something that's inexpensive, unexpected, and thoughtful, before you know for certain what they treasure, but not before you know what’s important to them.
## Two: Engage Customers in Meaningful Dialogue
Developing interest will get you a meeting with the prospect, but what will make the prospect invested in a meaningful dialog? And that’s why your next step of sale should be engaging customers in the dialog. To do that Jerry Acuff advises the next principles:
1. **Prepare for the call.** Not for your sake, but for client’s. Mirroring advice about doing research from the last point above, you should be prepared before the call. If you want to show your prospect that you are a reliable professional and you value their time - you need to be prepared.
2. **Focus on buyers’ concerns.** Yes, you need to impress your client but do this in a thoughtful way. Do not brag about your capabilities and knowledge, but show genuine concern for clients’ problems. Listen attentively to their answers, this way you can have a dialogue.
3. **Establish a safe environment through the words.** Do not start selling from the first seconds of your conversation. Focus your attention on the comfort of your customer. Listen, ask insightful questions and listen again. At this point, your task is to learn and collect as much information as possible.
4. **Encourage dialog.** There is a misconception that a great seller should talk a lot. No, a great seller will do everything they can to create a dialog with the customer. Remember, **when the salesperson talks - they are selling, but when the buyer talks - they are buying.**
5. **Do not forget to assess.** Always take your time to reflect on the dialogue that happened. This way, you will know how to act in the next steps or what to change in future conversations with prospects.
## Three: Learn the situation, problem, or challenge
As Acuff said, sometimes prospects are not even sure they have a problem that needs fixing. The goal of this step is to figure out what your buyer really needs. And you can do that by asking questions.
Asking questions will give you an opportunity to have a glimpse of how your customer thinks and how the problem looks in their eyes. So, before the conversation, invest your time into creating useful questions.
How? For instance, keep these three key concepts in mind while you are developing questions:
1. **Intent.** Set your intentions straight and figure out why you want to ask this or another question. The main intent behind your questions should always be to learn more and to deepen your understanding of the issue on both sides.
2. **Content.** You need to understand what you have to learn from the conversation. Work on probing questions to uncover more information from the prospect.
3. **Condition.** We keep talking about a safe environment, but this is too important to miss. Create questions in a way that won’t scare your customer and won’t make them uncomfortable.
The more needs and wants you can uncover with questions and then address, the easier it is for the customer to buy.
## Four: Tell your story
Well, the previous steps were targeted at collecting data from your customer, and now it’s your time to shine. Between the previous steps, you were trying to figure out the connection between the prospect’s problems and the solution you can offer.
So, the time to tell your story has come. To make an organic transition from questioning to offer, you should follow a few basic rules. Your story should be based on your competitive advantages. As well as that, your story should be a combination of features, benefits, questions, and anecdotes. It needs to be relatable, clear, and simple. Also, combine emotion and logic in your story to deliver a more powerful message.
Most importantly, you need to have your story based on solving a customer’s wants and needs. Then your story must help customers see you as a reliable and trustworthy seller.
And never forget that your story needs to be honest.
## Five: Ask for commitment
The last step of the DELTA process is to ask your client for commitment.
Commitments are always appropriate to end a conversation, and you should never let a conversation end without one. This is the mindset for you to go in this step.
Do not confuse asking for commitment and closing the deal. Sometimes during the closing-the-deal process, you start pressuring the client. On the other hand, asking for commitment means the appropriate end to the current conversation.
There are a few principles to consider in the last DELTA step:
1. **Commitment is a powerful psychological force.** If you ask for commitment, people usually feel more responsible and committed (pun intended). You can use it to your advantage to keep the process heading towards closing the deal.
2. **Do not forget about comfort.** People are naturally defensive with their space, thoughts, and decisions. Questions should always stay comfortable for both the client and you.
3. **Plan your questions.** Always think a few steps ahead and craft your questions in advance.
4. **Make sure you are ready to move to the next step.** There are a few "sensory" agreement questions to ask before the commitment stage. For example: "How does that sound?" or "Does this seem like a reasonable way to look at it?"
If you get a yes, you can move on with the commitment conversation. But if you get a no, it's time to take a conversation to a deeper level. Be aware, that more often than not you'll get a "yes, but." These "buts" often reveal the real reasons somebody is not ready to buy from you. In the case of "buts" you can follow this three-step process to get things back on track:
- **Acknowledge:** Make sure you acknowledge the concern and show that you understand it.
- **Clarify:** If you are not clear on the objection, ask clarifying questions to gain a deeper insight into the matter. Remember, assuming is much worse than asking, so don't be shy to probe deeper.
- **Respond:** Finally, deal with any misperceptions they may have. For instance, when somebody says "we don't have the money right now," you might respond by asking them what the cost of doing nothing would be. Or how implementing your solution would pay for itself quickly.
Turning selling into buying - is a true art. Use the DELTA method to turn your sales process into a pleasant and useful conversation targeted for understanding and solving a problem.
### The Seven Great Rules And Common Mistakes Of Email Personalization
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/the-seven-great-rules-and-common-mistakes-of-personalization/
Last updated: 2022-09-27T19:14:54.000Z
Imagine you spent a ton of time personalizing your email outreach and your work got ghosted. You didn’t get a reply, your message wasn’t even opened, what can you do then?
Surely you will try to track down your mistake and solve it. But what if you just can’t pinpoint the key problem? Well, your email seems fine, well-personalized, and overall good. How can you solve this problem or, more importantly, what do you need to change in order to create a scalable email that won’t get ghosted?
Here is the thing, sometimes we are looking too deeply into the problem and don't see obvious mistakes on the surface. Maybe you did choose the right point of personalization and structured your email well enough, but you made simple mistakes like writing “Hey” but not “Hi”.
In this article, I will share 7 rules of attractive messaging and then introduce you to the 7 most common mistakes that you probably have made in the past.
So, let’s dive deeper into the topic, shall we?
## The 7 rules of attractive messaging
It’s important to be creative and think outside of the box, but some rules are there for help and help only. That’s the case for the rules of attractive writing - with them you will take your already good personalization to the next level!
### Be prospect-centric
It’s important to only discuss your prospect, not your company. Personalizing means writing about the prospect to the prospect themselves. So, don't waste your time writing about yourself when the prospects won’t even read it.
💡
**Pro tip:** try writing the whole email never using the words like “I”, “We” or “Our”. That’s a good exercise for shifting focus from you to your prospect, so feel free to try it out.
### Be pain-centric
Pain is a powerful motivator behind any decision. When you are making a value proposition to your prospect, bring the prospect’s attention to what pains you alleviate.
### Be pride adverse
Be sure to make the prospect the hero/authority in your email. As I said the email must be about them and them only. You can use a thing called passive submission - show your prospect that you are their fan and you really enjoyed their **[article/post/ career path (personalization way of your choice)](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/six-ways-of-personalization-that-will-make-your-emails-stand-out/).**
### Fluidity
This is more of a technical rule - here the main point is to be able to [**connect the premise, the body, and the call to action**](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/how-to-engage-the-prospect-into-reding-your-cold-email/). You need to carry the logic through the course of your email and deliver a clear message.
### Relevance
Personalization enhances the need for relevance. You need to analyze different types of buyer persona and figure out the particular relevance of your product to each and every one of them.
### Brevity
Listen, prospects don't have the ability nor the desire to read novel-like emails. **[The main rule here is - do not write 7 words, when 4 will do the job](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/how-the-structure-of-personalized-emails-should-look-like/).**
### Noticeability
Here we are talking about the subject line. It should grab your prospect’s attention but only in a positive way. So the rule here is simple - create a cool subject line but don't be provocative or offensive just for the sake of getting attention.
## Be aware of the 7 common mistakes
Sometimes we aren't able to see the mistakes because we don't know about them.
For instance, a simple and cute one-liner to us can offend someone on the receiving end of the email. So here are the 7 common mistakes that you’ve probably made if your emails keep being ghosted:
### Being too casual or too silly
Any personalized email is still a representation of you, your company, and your product. Yes, the tone of the email must be easy and less formal but don't cross the line and be too casual or too silly. Remember, you’re still talking to a buyer that will potentially become your customer.
### Wasted text
I can’t stress enough one point - personalized emails should be brief. You can't imagine how much-wasted text you actually have in your emails. For instance, here are a few examples of wasted text:
- “I know you’re busy, but…”
- “Just want to follow up”
- “Just want to circle back”
Prospects want you to get to the point, so the best way for you is to be brief, polite, and direct.
### Being the authority over the prospect
Being patronizing isn’t the right way of writing your emails. Commanding tone triggers the prospects and makes them want to rebel, so be careful with your tonality because it can create complications for your outreach.
Those commanding phrases can almost be unnoticeable but still have a negative effect on the prospect:
- “Be there at five…”
- “Send me a reply…”
- “Call me…”
### Questioning authority
Asking people about their power is the wrong move. When you are pitching the prospect, you already assume that they are the right person and they are the key to your success. Here are a few examples of wrong phrases you better not use:
- “Are you the decision-maker?”
- “I guess you’re not the right person”
### Making your prospect feel not OK
Here we can divide this mistake into two small points:
- “I’ve emailed you 7 times, but you haven’t responded…”. Don't blame your prospect - they will simply ignore your email. They will feel guilty, pressured, and won’t have the right motivation to answer you.
- Mudslinging against competitors your prospects use. That’s a universal rule - don't talk poorly about your competitors because you will just lose the authority of your company in the process.
### Glorifying yourself
You are the tool for your prospect to achieve their dreams. They don't really care about your success, about how good you think you are. They want to know how you can actually help and that’s pretty much it. So, choose to avoid phrases that start like this:
- “We are the …”
- “We are the #1…”
Instead, be sure to tell the prospect how amazing your customers are and that you had a blast working with them. That’s how you will make a good impression without actually glorifying yourself.
### Making the prospect feel stupid
Some questions have the power to doubt the prospect’s ability to understand certain things. For instance, popular questions like this:
- “Do you know what we do?”
- “Does that make sense?”
When you are asking those questions you are automatically challenging your prospect’s knowledge and making them feel truly stupid. Instead, try asking questions like “Am I making any sense?”.
That’s how you show that it’s not the prospect’s fault if they didn’t understand something and that you are willing to explain information better.
You need to understand that the main hero of your email is the prospect. And when you are writing to them, you aren’t focused on how you would come across but how the prospect will react.
If you are getting ghosted a lot - be sure to check out the seven common mistakes of personalization. And if you’re already good at writing personalized emails, then enhance your skills with the main rules of attractive messaging.
Learn more about the four main components of personalization in [**this article**](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/personalization-the-best-way-to-improve-your-email-outreach/)**.**
### How To Engage The Prospect Into Reading Your Cold Email?
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/how-to-engage-the-prospect-into-reding-your-cold-email/
Last updated: 2022-12-07T14:08:32.000Z
There is always a debate about what is the most effective force behind cold email outreach: relevance or personalization. Some people state that relevance is all that is needed to reach out and some say that personalization is the key to successful outreach. There is a partial truth behind both of these statements but let’s dive deeper, shall we?
Personalization means tailoring your value proposition for a specific customer but would you tailor something that solves a problem that a prospect doesn't even have? The answer is an absolute no.
And would your relevant but not personalized outreach be able to get attention? I don't think so either.
You see that’s the thing people tend to overlook: If you personalize email without being relevant – people will read it and maybe even respond but they won’t buy because the product is not relevant to them. And if your product is relevant but the offer is not personalized - the prospect can just simply miss your offer in the sea of similar emails.
The truth is, we need both personalization and relevance to create a unique and efficient cold email. So instead of choosing between two options, I offer you to stick with both and in this article, I will show you how.
**Worksheets are available to download later below.**
## PART 1\. Create a “hook” to carry your logic from the beginning to the end of your email
The “hook” is a string that ties the whole email together in a logical and natural flow connecting your prospect to your value proposition & call to action. This technique will be the driving force behind your outreach that will successfully tie relevance to your personalization.
To create said “hook” you need to do three important steps:
### Step 1: Tie your words to a personalized intro.
**[The intro is the main part of your email](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/how-the-structure-of-personalized-emails-should-look-like/)** and will start the whole personalized sequence. In the intro, you need to use **[personal information](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/six-ways-of-personalization-that-will-make-your-emails-stand-out/)** and turn it into an attractive starting point that later ties in with the body of our email.
So basically in the intro, you are just planting the seeds on which you can create a hook that connects with your value proposition. You can do that by tying 2 -3 words from the end of your intro to align it with the start of the second paragraph (the body of your email).
**Example:** *Rex,*
*Read your book and love it! The way you simplified outbound sales is just genius. As Einstein said, if you can't explain it simply, you don't understand it well enough. In your recent post on LinkedIn, you recommend saying something specific about YOU or about ME to stand out in your next ad or cold email…*
### Step 2: Navigating your way back to their buyer’s persona and what they care about
In this step, we are moving from the intro to the body of your email, where the main action of the hook technique takes place. Here you need to understand your buyer’s persona. What does your prospect care about? What do they want and how can you/your product help them with it?
As I said before, you planted the seeds and now you have an opportunity to hook your value proposition. You can do it by continuing the thought you started in the last part of the intro. Here you want to state one chief thing that your prospect (their buyer persona) cares about in relation to your product.
There are two primary ways to connect the intro to your value proposition, but we will go deeper into those details in the second part of the article (Use one of the two case scenarios to actually hook your value proposition).
**Example:** *A hack that I recommend is to use your customer’s words to write an ad or cold email. It helps to maximize relevancy and ensure you only use words that resonate with prospects. It also saves hours on copy creation…*
### Step 3: Stating the one chief thing that the buyer persona typically cares about
The last step of the hook takes place in the second half of the body. You planted the seeds in the intro, continued the thought in the first half of the body and now you are ready to write down your punchline. You can do that by mapping out the outcome of purchasing your product.
**Example:** *I would like to show you how this hack could help you and your team save hours on copy creation. If you are not impressed, I promise I won’t blow up your inbox with follow-ups.*
*Does this sound worth exploring?*
So, if you know your buyer’s persona well - then creating an area for a hook won’t be a problem for you. You just plant the seed of your offer in the intro, carry your thought to the first part of the body of the email, and then cement it with the second part of the body.
## PART 2\. Use one of the two scenarios to actually hook your value proposition
To create your hook you need **[personalized information](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/six-ways-of-personalization-that-will-make-your-emails-stand-out/)** and here can be two case scenarios: you either have the prospect’s words to hook on or you don't.
By prospect’s words I mean information that they put out there by themselves, for example, their posts on LinkedIn, their profile line, or their comments on someone else's content**.** So, you either have this kind of information or you are without it. But don't worry, either way, you have a good chance to create a hook, and here is how you can do that:
### First scenario: Hook on actual words
If you have information and actual words from your prospects, then there are three ways to hook them:
- what if you could...
- imagine you could...
- I have an idea of how you could...
Remember, you put this part in the third step of your hook after the intro and continuation of the thought.
**Example:** *Imagine if you could save hours on copy creation.…*
*What if I told you, to save hours on copy creation…*
*I have an idea of how you could save hours on copy creation…*
### Second scenario: Hook without actual words
Hooking without actual words isn’t as difficult as you might think. In this scenario you need to follow a two-step process that will create a nice engaging hook:
### Step 1: You want to create a hook, to then hook into
You need something to hook on to and if you don't have the actual words, then you need to assume those based on the buyer’s persona. Remember, the worst thing you can do is to put words in the prospect’s mouth, so you need to be ahead of any arguments by stating, that you are not entirely sure about your next words and you are open to correcting them:
- I imagine that…
- Correct me If I'm wrong…
**Example:** *I imagine that gathering paperwork, and fact-checking information can take up to 2 hours a day…*
*Correct me if I’m wrong but gathering paperwork, and fact-checking information can take up to 2 hours a day…*
### Step 2: Hook your words with the following phrases.
Well, now you have the words right? So you can repeat the process like in the first case scenario using the following phrases:
- what if you could…
- imagine you could...
- I have an idea on how you could…
Being relevant and personalized - is the key to successful outreach. Don't choose one when you can tie both and use them to your benefit. If you want to be relevant and stand out with personalized email then try out the hook technique!
Learn more about the four main components of personalization in [**this article**](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/personalization-the-best-way-to-improve-your-email-outreach/)**.**
## Download worksheets
---
[ CREATING A PERFECT HOOK CREATING A PERFECT HOOK.pdf 32 KB download-circle ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/content/files/2022/09/CREATING-A-PERFECT-HOOK.pdf "Download")
### How The Structure Of Personalized Emails Should Look Like?
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/how-the-structure-of-personalized-emails-should-look-like/
Last updated: 2022-12-07T14:08:41.000Z
If you are pitching a new contact with a personalized cold email you need to know a few things. **[What content you are personalizing your email on](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/six-ways-of-personalization-that-will-make-your-emails-stand-out/), [how do you do that](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/how-to-engage-the-prospect-into-reding-your-cold-email/)** and what is the structure of your email?
In this article, I will cover the structure and walk you through the basic flow of personalized email.
Creating a consistent flow and keeping up the structure of your email are the difficult parts of creating personalized emails. Because there is always an element of doubt which can look like this: Did you cover the topic in the right order? Did you personalize the email enough? Did you place the value proposition in the right section of the email?
To know what to include in your email, first of all, you need to have the structure of the email. We all know how easy it is to get lost in information and lose the right sight of the topic. If you will have a proper structure for the email, you will be able to create an efficient personalized email without unnecessary information.
There are always a million thoughts in a moment, right? So, let’s check out the structure that will help you to keep your personalization process in control.
The perfect and easy structure for personalized email consists of three main paragraphs: the intro, the body, and the call to action. And sometimes professionals in personalization tend to include in their structure a fourth paragraph called the push-pull technique, but will touch upon it later in the article.
**Worksheets are available to download later below.**
Now I offer you to take a look at every paragraph of the article one by one:
## Intro
As I said, a personalized email consists of 4 main paragraphs and the intro is the most important of them. It is the starting point for your email and includes the main amount of personalized text. This paragraph is designed to intrigue the prospect and engage them in reading more.
In the intro, you need to use **[personal information](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/six-ways-of-personalization-that-will-make-your-emails-stand-out/)** and turn it into a cool start that later ties in with the body of your email/ the part with the value proposition.
**Example:** *Hi* *Rex,*
*Read your book and love it! The way you simplified outbound sales is just genius. As Einstein said, if you can't explain it simply, you don't understand it well enough…*
## Body
In the body of the email, you need to map your company's value proposition to the intro of your outreach. Be as curt as possible - prospects don't have time for reading novel-like emails. Make sure to actually **[tie the body to the intro](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/how-to-engage-the-prospect-into-reding-your-cold-email/)** and carry the logic of your words through the whole email.
**Example:** *In your recent post on LinkedIn, you recommend saying something specific about YOU or about ME to stand out in your next ad or cold email. A hack that I recommend is to use your customer’s words to write an ad or cold email. It helps to maximize relevancy and ensure you only use words that resonate with prospects. It also saves hours on copy creation.*
## Call To Action
The call to action, in this context, is a request to unpack the content you’ve written above. In the third line of your email be sure to map out very briefly what you want to discuss in the future meeting. Remember, you don't want to give your prospect the whole picture of your future presentation, instead, you want to intrigue them by giving them a little snippet of information.
💡
**Pro tip:** This should be the shortest line out of all four.
**Example:** *I would like to show you how this hack could help you and your team save hours on copy creation.*
### Push-pull technique
This technique sometimes can be the best way to finish your email because here you would show that in any case you still like the prospect's work. That you are not writing to get money, connections, etc. The finishing lines tend to help the prospect to make a decision and sometimes the finishing line can screw up the whole personalized email.
Show your prospect that in any case, even if they don't want to have a meeting with you, they are still the best and it’s your pleasure to send them this email. In this part, you can include caring language, such as: take care of yourself, hope you’re doing OK during this crazy time, etc.
**Example:** *If you are not impressed, I promise I won’t blow up your inbox with follow-ups.*
*Does this sound worth exploring?*
My advice here is while creating a personalized email follow the simple structure and write in simple words. You actually never know what will work in your email - either you will hit the right personalization information, or you will attract the prospect by simplicity.
Try out this simple yet efficient structure and create your emails better than ever before! Also, learn more about the four main components of personalization **[with this article](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/personalization-the-best-way-to-improve-your-email-outreach/).**
## Download worksheets
---
[ Structure for your email Structure for your email.pdf 39 KB download-circle ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/content/files/2022/09/Structure-for-your-email.pdf "Download")
### Six Ways Of Personalization That Will Make Your Emails Stand Out
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/six-ways-of-personalization-that-will-make-your-emails-stand-out/
Last updated: 2022-11-15T11:23:27.000Z
Imagine receiving hundreds of similar sales emails every day, would you read them all? Probably not.
Whenever you need to pitch a new B2B prospect to sell your product, you might face the fact that your email can simply get lost in the sea of other emails that your prospect receives every single day. And what can you do about it? How can you change this situation?
Or in other words, what do you need to do to stand out and make the prospect at least open your email?
Well, one of the efficient solutions is to personalize your message in the best way possible. More often than not people think that personalizing means adding the name of the prospect or their job position and letting it be. To some extent, it really is a personalization but not a high-quality one.
The biggest trick of personalization is to find this exact point from the prospect’s biography and [tie it into your value proposition](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/how-to-engage-the-prospect-into-reding-your-cold-email/). Generally, there are six ways of personalization, where you can find the best pieces of biography to base your intro on.
You need to make your prospect intrigued, engaged, and even invested, so they will read your email and respond to it. If you are still confused about how to do that, don’t worry.
Because in this article, I will tell you about six ways of personalization that will drastically change your outreach for the better.
## 1\. Self–authored content
This is one of the most effective ways of personalization. Self-authored content is effective because the prospect writes it themselves, freely embracing their opinion and offering it for the world to judge. So, responding to their content feels like you are validating their thoughts and opinions. This way of personalization works the best because prospects share their thoughts to have more engagement, and they are already interested in hearing your thoughts on their insights.
For instance, you can use the posts or articles written by your prospect. Basically, use their own content to reach out to them and your prospect will more likely respond.
So, in short, the self-authored content consists of:
- Speaking events
- Webinars
- Articles
- Posts
For example, *I liked your post on trading from a year ago. Specifically, I enjoyed your advice #5 “Use as many sources of information as you possibly can”. Information gathering is a crucial part of trading and needs to be treated accordingly.*
## 2\. Engaged content
What can you do if your prospect doesn't have self-authored content and stays pretty silent on LinkedIn? Well, prospects have a habit of social listening - even if they don't write their content, they read, like, and share content from other people.
Engaging content is the second-best option for personalization and will help you gain a deeper understanding of your prospect. Show interest in the topics that your prospect engaged with and do your best to tie them with your value proposition. To find the list of engaging content, go to the prospect’s LinkedIn (or other social media) profile and click the "all activity" button:
- Commented on content
- Shared content
- Liked comments
- Liked posts
For example: *“Recently you commented on a post about new hiring policy in the trading companies across the USA and really liked it because…”*
## 3\. Self–identified traits
When the prospect doesn’t write content and doesn't really engage with anything - your next move will be to analyze their self-identified traits. How do they perceive themselves? What are their achievements? What are their skills, and what can they do the best?
You can find this information in the next points on the prospect’s social media profile :
- Profile Line: about me-section is a great source for personalization.
- Company Line: talk about them and what they were able to achieve.
- Headline: right below picture – what your prospect can do. For instance, tell them how cool their headline is.
The secret is to genuinely admire their skills, commend them on their achievements and overall be the best fan of your prospect. Prospects can feel your lies from a mile away, so either try your best and be genuine or don’t use this way of personalization at all.
For example: *“As a professional who worked on terminal operations and continues to manage the hedging, basis, and spread positions for the shipping book, you must always strive to have an organized working environment…”*
## 4\. Non-business-related personalization
Well, if you tried the first three ways of personalization and found nothing, it’s time to take personalization to a bigger scale. Sometimes people don't share their business achievements and prefer to keep them under wraps. But what they love to share is their non-business-related information.
And guess what, you can absolutely use it for your personalized email. Don't worry you still have plenty of information to base your personalization on:
- Personal interests
- Charities
- Hobbies
- Recommendations
- Skill Endorsements
- Languages they speak
For example: *“As a former baseball player, you must understand the value of your energy and multitasking, you certainly recognize the worth of your time…”*
## 5\. Background centric
Information for personalization is hidden in layers from the easiest to the less efficient. If your prospect doesn’t write their content, isn't active on their social media, and doesn't like to write about themselves in a non-work-related way, then you can use the fifth way of personalization - the prospect’s background.
- Tenure at company
- Career trajectory
- Recommendations were given/received
- Boards they are on
- Mentoring. Professional related
- Awards received
- Certifications
- Mutual connections. But don’t start from that, you lose personalization and advocacy and show you are not interested in them.
- Skill endorsements
For example: *“It’s a pleasure to find such professionals as you! Not only that you are an experienced business developer, but you also spent a good 3 years as a CPA mentor... ”*
## 6\. Company-level
This is usually the least effective way of personalization and should be your last choice.
You see, in the previous five points, you more or less talked about the prospects themselves. They were the hero of your email and that is why those points are the most effective. The company-level way of personalization will switch the attention from your prospect to their company and at this point, many reps lose their personalization. But the truth is you still can find your way around with enough company-level information.
So, if the company-level information is the last resort, you can still turn it to your benefit by writing about:
- Problems insights/inputs
- News mentions
- Key hires made
- M & A
- Posts
- Blog entries
- Hiring
💡
**Pro tip:** This personalization can work pretty well with company owners and CEOs. Because at some point the company is an extension of themselves and they are proud to talk about it.
The secret of good personalization is well-analyzed information that your prospects offer voluntarily. There is always something out there that will help you to understand the prospect better and, hence, personalize your email in the best way possible.
But don’t forget one of the key points of high-quality personalization - be genuine.
Don't hesitate to commend your prospect on their achievement, to tell them they are doing great or that they are an inspiration to you. In other words, don't hesitate to be cheesy as long as you really mean your words and are writing them genuinely.
So, the next time you will personalize another email, you will know how to do it even better than before! Learn more about the four main components of personalization in [this article](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/personalization-the-best-way-to-improve-your-email-outreach/).
### Personalization: The Best Way To Improve Your Email Outreach
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/personalization-the-best-way-to-improve-your-email-outreach/
Last updated: 2022-09-27T21:21:33.000Z
If you feel like your email outreach is failing - it probably does and let me tell you why.
In the modern world, it’s hard to surprise someone with regular copy-pasted email outreach. Prospects became much smarter in recognizing sales pitches and prefer not to waste their time on random emails. They won’t read it, because they won’t even consider it a serious email.
And that is where your reply rate might start decreasing.
So, if you need to pitch a cold prospect you need to be both creative and attentive. Here I don't mean that you need to change your value proposition. No, you need to change the way you are doing it. Right now the best way to create a smart and successful cold email is to personalize it.
“It's not about what you say, it’s about how you say it”
You see, hyper-personalization is a way to stand out and will significantly increase your reply rate. And I say hyper-personalization because sometimes reps don't recognize the true meaning of personalization itself.
Some might say that mentioning a prospect’s name and their job title is enough of personalization, but that’s not entirely true. The biggest trick of hyper-personalization is to find this exact point from the prospect’s biography and to tie it into your value proposition.
It’s always a pleasant surprise to read an email that was directed specifically to you, that was created for you, and that the author of the email spent time researching you, right? So, become this pleasant surprise and impress your prospect with the effort you put into the email.
There are four components you’ll need for hyper-personalizing your outbound emails:
1. **[Informational resources that you will use](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/six-ways-of-personalization-that-will-make-your-emails-stand-out/)** \- this is a key component of any personalization because it is a piece of personal information about your prospect. It can be some part of the prospect’s biography, hobbies, articles, etc. Basically, anything that will help you to create a unique and targeted intro that will be tied into your value proposition.
2. ****[The actual structure for your email](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/how-the-structure-of-personalized-emails-should-look-like/) \-** to save your time and to keep your information in order you need to know the structure of a personalized email. What you will put in the intro, when to write a value proposition and how to finish your email - to answer all of these crucial questions you just need to know the basic structure.
3. **[The technique to combine personalization and relevance](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/how-to-engage-the-prospect-into-reding-your-cold-email/)** \- you’ve found a good piece of information to personalize the email on, that’s perfect. Now, how can you tie this information to your product? There is a cool technique called “the hook”, that will help you to do exactly that.
4. **[Be aware of the main rules and mistakes](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/the-seven-great-rules-and-common-mistakes-of-personalization/) \-** sometimes a simple word can destroy the whole mood of your personalization. To know what to include and what not, you need to know the basics. When you know the structure, you’ve found the information to personalize on and you skillfully hooked it to your product - just check your email for any mistakes and try to elevate it using a few basic rules of personalization.
High-quality personalization is a must for B2B salespeople and it will make any cold outreach much better. Don't waste your time on outdated copy-pasting and increase your email replies using hyper-personalization.
Feel free to check out my articles on personalization components and use the new knowledge to create a successful outreach!
### Want To Create A Convertable Sales Copy? Let Me Help!
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/want-to-create-a-convertable-sales-copy-let-me-help/
Last updated: 2022-09-30T00:45:10.000Z
Creating sales copy can be tough because this small text has too many important things to do, right? It is supposed to be persuasive, it's supposed to be clear, and intentional, and it should showcase your product in the best way possible. And, most importantly, it should start building trust between you and the prospect.
So, not an easy task to complete indeed. But don’t worry I got you covered!
If you’re looking for information and practical advice on how to create the best sales copy, then it’s the right time for you to read my series on building a convertible sales copy! With series you’ll learn the next things:
- In [the first article](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/how-to-make-prospect-so-engaged-in-your-sales-copy-to-the-point-of-buying/)**,** I’ll talk in detail about the universal structure of your copy, about rules of storytelling and so much more.
- [The second article](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/saas-sales-copy-how-to-make-your-solution-relevant-and-needed/) will guide you through collecting customer data:their pains, desires, and anxieties. These elements will become the key force behind your sales copy, so make sure you don’t skip this article before moving forward.
- What do you consider to be your UVP? Actually, what the term value proposition even means? In the [third installment](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/how-uvp-should-look-like-in-the-convertible-sales-copy/) of this series, I’ll cover more about why your UVP might not work and how you can fix it.
- Now, as you collected your data and got reintroduced to your UVP we can start writing. In [the last article](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/how-to-create-a-sales-copy-that-will-impress-your-prospects/) of this series, I’ll walk you through writing your first draft and then editing it to the best form possible.
I hope you’ll find this series helpful and your sales copy will bring you even more results!
### How To Create A Sales Copy That Will Impress Your Prospects?
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/how-to-create-a-sales-copy-that-will-impress-your-prospects/
Last updated: 2022-12-07T14:08:53.000Z
This is the fourth and final article in the [series](www.revenueinsideout.com/want-to-create-a-convertable-sales-copy-let-me-help/). Here is a quick overview of the topics covered in each article:
Highlighted with the orange is the topic covered in this particular article.
After a thorough analysis and uncovering your prospect's pains, you are ready to send them your UVP. But how to make sure your sales copy is clear and delivers everything that you need?
In this article, I'll guide you through the process of creating your draft and editing it to perfection.
As always, you don't need to be a copywriting expert to deliver your message loud and clear. But, what you need at this point is a thorough knowledge of your customers' pains and you need to have a solid UVP that will make your prospect want to buy.
If you’re still struggling with the mentioned requirements, then don’t worry. In my previous articles, I already covered [how to find the most important pains](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/saas-sales-copy-how-to-make-your-solution-relevant-and-needed/) and guided you through the process of picking your strongest UVP **LINK TO ARTICLE 3\.**
Before we start, take a look at the framework of this article:
Now, let’s talk business and create a sales copy that will impress and intrigue your prospects.
**The framework will be available to download later below.**
## LEVEL ONE: Creating a solid draft
In [the first article](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/how-to-make-prospect-so-engaged-in-your-sales-copy-to-the-point-of-buying/) in this series, I covered thoroughly the “world building” of your copy and how exactly it works. Feel free to check that article but for now, we will go briefly over the main points that are important to both know and understand.
### STEP 1: Create the structure
**1\. Set a context (Why: Why should they listen to you?)**
Here you have an opportunity to explain and cover what you’re selling, for who, and, most importantly, why. Here is your chance to show the value you can deliver.
**2\. **Rising intensity ( Try: Let them understand your product)**
Now that you know the problem, it's time to explain the solution. The best way to do this is by describing the benefits of using your product or service: explain how it will help your prospect achieve their goal. This will create excitement and anticipation around your solution, which is exactly what you want.
**3\. **Call To Action (Buy: Let them buy your solution)**
Now is the climax of your message. This is the result of all the tension you've built up. Guide your prospect into taking an action: offer them your solution and give them incentives to do so.
This flow is straightforward to follow for both you and your prospect. So, now that you've seen the major system of any sales copy, we can move on to the second paragraph of telling a complete tale in your message.
### STEP 2: Layer your gathered data
The framework described in the first step is simple, but the way you combine it with your data is even easier.
At this point, you should have thorough data on your prospect's motivation, perceived value, and anxiety. If it’s not your case, then feel free to check my article [here](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/saas-sales-copy-how-to-make-your-solution-relevant-and-needed/), where I guide you through the data gathering process.
Now, assuming you have this data, let’s apply it to our framework.
**1\. **MOTIVATION (Setting the context)**
(Desired outcomes/UVP/Pain points/Problems/Purchase prompts)
**2\. **VALUE (Rising intensity)**
(Unique benefits/Advantages/Product features/Deal breakers/Needs/Requirements)
**3\. **ANXIETY (Rising intensity)**
(Uncertainties/Objections Or Perceived Risks)
Here you can use my template to actually systemize your flow and turn it into an easy checklist process.
You see, creating a draft itself is pretty easy but requires a lot of groundwork behind it. Now, as we created our first draft, let it sit for a little bit because finalizing requires fresh sight, eyes, and readiness to change some things.
## LEVEL TWO: Editing your copy to perfection
I’m a believer that the editing process can both heal and harm your text.
Sometimes people do the right thing and indeed edit their copy to the best shape. But also there is a large possibility to edit out things that were necessary, and important; you can also add things that make your copy actually worse than it was in the draft state.
So, to save you from crisis and overthinking, let me introduce you to 7 secrets of editing that will change your copy for the better:
### Say what you mean.
Yes, I get it, that intriguing copy piques the interest of your prospect. It drives attention and can really boost traffic to your page. But when it comes to sales copy you can’t afford to be too intriguing and too vague.
Here you need to tell your prospect enough information to make them want to buy. You need to describe your product as best as you can and express the value as thoroughly as possible to pique the prospect’s interest. Though, don’t write too much, because if a person wants to really read something, they will choose to read a book, not the sales message.
### Match readers questions
Here I’m talking about specific voice-of-customer questions. It all comes back to the process of gathering data, that I talk about [in this article](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/saas-sales-copy-how-to-make-your-solution-relevant-and-needed/).
You can think of the headline or the main body text over and over again, but nothing will come close to questions/comments/reviews that your prospect leaves on the internet.
Make your copy hit the right target and make your text relatable by using words that your target audience really uses.
### Impress the reader with the value
Now, try to re-read your text, and ask yourself:
“Does my UVP really hit differently? Does it impress my customers?”
You want to be memorable and you need to be unique in your own way to sell. So, here re-read your text and just edit your value proposition to perfection.
### Quantify your proof
Numbers are known to behave much better and more predictably than people. That’s why if your copy has a number of positive reviews, clients, partnerships, and solutions - then you’re golden.
Fun fact though, people like odd numbers, somehow we tend to trust them more.
### Create a cinematic experience with your words
In our world, we always talk about business: it’s all about strict numbers, benefits, revenue, and all that is delivered in a dry tone.
But what I offer here is to create a whole cinematic experience within your copy. Make your prospect feel your solution, make them relive their pains and anxieties, and effectively solve them by offering your product.
Remember, movies always enhance dramatic scenes by using heart-wrenching orchestral pieces, or they emphasize the meaning of the dialog between the characters by silencing everything else to leave the words hanging in the air.
That’s what we can do too. In the sales copy, your perfect tool is words, they have the possibility to create said cinematic experience. So, let me explain how:
- Use metaphors and analogies. Make those analogies so on-point that your prospect would instantly see/hear them in their mind.
- Replace general nouns with specific ones.
- Replace generic adjectives with vivid ones.
- Replace weak verbs with punchy ones.
- Barke the 4th wall. Make your reader feel like you're talking to them.
The whole point of the experience is to become memorable and so unique that your prospect won’t be able to forget you, so spice up your text a bit by adding an emotional element.
### Show and Tell
The traditional fiction-writing rule of "show, don't tell" is risky for sales copy since it's often implicit. Sales copy can't afford to be subtle because people must understand your message in order to convert or act. So use imagery and express what people should notice with annotations and extra text.
### Cut out the unnecessary details
At this point, after thorough research, you’ll be able to edit your draft the way you want it to be. And that also means that you’ll not only see but also feel text that is out of place.
To sum it all up trying to do this:
To enhance and polish your page copy, apply the 7 sales writing secrets. Make an effort to accomplish the following (for around 400 words of text):
- Add 3-5 analogies.
- Replace 3 dull adjectives with 3 vivid ones.
- Replace 3 weak verbs with 3 punchy ones.
- Come up with ways to prove that your product is good. This can include testimonials, data, and press quotes.
Try to cut your word count by 30-50% while still including all the important information.
Now you’re a pro at both creating and editing your sales copy!
## Download worksheets
---
[ Template Creating Your Flow Template Creating Your Flow.xlsx 73 KB download-circle ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/content/files/2022/10/Template-Creating-Your-Flow-1.xlsx "Download")
[ Framework Creating Sales Copy Framework Creating Sales Copy.pdf 47 KB download-circle ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/content/files/2022/10/Framework-Creating-Sales-Copy.pdf "Download")
### How UVP Should Look Like In The Convertible Sales Copy
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/how-uvp-should-look-like-in-the-convertible-sales-copy/
Last updated: 2022-12-07T14:09:02.000Z
This is the third article in the [series](www.revenueinsideout.com/want-to-create-a-convertable-sales-copy-let-me-help/). Here is a quick overview of the topics covered in each article:
Highlighted with the orange is the topic covered in this particular article.
Imagine this situation: your copy seems to be fine and you understand that you got the right idea of prospects' pains but your solution doesn't get responses from prospects and stays ignored.
And what if you're really sure that your solution is the right fit for this prospect?
In this article, we will talk more about why your UVP might not work and how you can fix it. If your solution doesn't get responses that don't mean that your product is terrible. There is a possibility that you are just presenting it in the wrong way.
Sometimes all problems hide on the fundamental level and it takes us a lot to even come to an understanding of what might be wrong. If your sales copy doesn’t get responses when, from the first glance, everything seems to be just fine: the target audience is correct, customer’s pains addressed in their own voice, then your problem lies much much deeper.
In this particular case, we can fix this problem by addressing it on the fundamental level:
Here, the best thing you can do is to understand the right definition of UVP in the eyes of customers and then prove that your solution is the most fitting for the prospect's needs.
So, let’s start from the beginning and try to understand what the term **value proposition** really means.
**Worksheets are available to download later below.**
## What is the right definition of Value Proposition?
When you think about a value proposition, what comes first to your mind? And when talking to your prospect do you even use this term, **value proposition**?
Different reps and marketers have their own ways to talk to their prospects and they differently draw a picture of value. But what all of them have in common is that none of them use the term value proposition in their conversation.
Why?
Because, for one, this term is too official and too jargony to make a good impression. The value proposition itself is the reason to buy your product. It’s the reason why prospects would want to give you their money.
But here is one fundamental thing to understand:
Essentially your UVP is the answer not only to the question “Why should I buy?” but also to “Why should I buy from YOU?”.
This whole term value proposition has a tendency to create a misunderstanding while creating a copy. Sometimes it drives us on the wrong road when we think too much about our product’s unique benefits when in reality we should focus on one small thing:
What's in it there for the customer, in your sales copy? And then skillfully prove it.
### But how to make sure that you and your prospect have a common understanding of the value of your solution?
That's my cue to introduce the stress testing mindset “So what?”
This mindset will become your best test of the credibility of your UVP and let me explain how it works.
Imagine the most unagreeable prospect that you’ve ever had. You are describing the awesomeness of your solution in its full glory and the only response you get is a poker face and the words:
*“So what?”*
Customers like this one need a solid answer strengthened by the quality and real usefulness of your solution. You need to be confident that for every **so what?** you’ll have an answer that actually works.
Now, imagine you found the perfect answer to a prospect's emotionless question. And their next response happens to be:
*“Okay, prove it.”*
As I said, every value needs credibility behind it and such a mindset with these two questions will help you be on the same page even with the most unagreeable prospect.
If you were able to successfully walk yourself through these questions, then you are on the right path to presenting your UVP.
## How to find uniqueness in my value proposition?
The whole point of my first part of this article is thinking about your solution from a customer's point of view. So in this small section, we’ll talk a little about the true uniqueness of your product. And here I’ll help you to answer a crucial question:
Why should the prospect buy from YOU?
When we think about UVP we need to understand what it consists of:
1. What your customer wants and needs.
2. What your product really is and what it does.
A perfect value proposition overlaps these two crucial factors that later will help you specify the uniqueness of your solution. Said uniqueness separates you from competitors and makes your solution more desirable, more memorable, and ranks you higher on the market.
## How to effectively brainstorm your UVP?
Brainstorming is always a multi-step process that will take time but if done correctly will bring you decent results. So, to help you brainstorm your perfect UVP I have these seven steps that you need to follow:
### Step 1: List Your Product’s Key Features
What are the big things your product does?
### Step 2: Pinpoint Those That Are Unique
Figure those futures first because they will become the driving force behind your value proposition.
### Step 3: List Customer Pain Points for Each Feature
This step will help you move away from the mindset of what my product can do to what is there for a customer in my solution.
### Step 4: Define Desirable Outcomes for Each Pain
This is the value that you bring to your customer: what your solution will be able to fix and how it can fix prospects’ key pain points.
### Step 5: Score Pains/Outcomes by Severity & Frequency
You want to make sure that your UVP focuses on solving major pain points, not the ones that your prospects get from time to time. To do this you need to list all of the pain points that your prospect might have and rank them.
### Step 6: Edit Top Scored Pain/Outcomes Into UVP
As I said, we need to solve the major most impactful pains your prospect has. As soon as you rank all pains that you gathered, choose the most impactful ones and put them into your UVP.
### Step 7: Score the UVPs and choose the best one.
After all the previous steps and filtering, you’ll be able to find the best UVP that will bring you better results. Still, the UVP will need to be stress tested and proven, but if you’ve done your previous research correctly, then you’ll do stress testing with ease.
If finding the right pain points is a struggle, don’t worry! Feel free to check out my other article on this matter [here](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/saas-sales-copy-how-to-make-your-solution-relevant-and-needed/)!
I hope this information was useful for you, so don't hesitate to try it out!
## Download worksheets
---
[ Worksheets Creating Your UVP Worksheets - Creating Your UVP.pdf 59 KB download-circle ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/content/files/2022/09/Worksheets---Creating-Your-UVP.pdf "Download")
[ Template Brainstorming UVP Template Brainstorming UVP.xlsx 77 KB download-circle ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/content/files/2022/09/Template-Brainstorming-UVP.xlsx "Download")
### SaaS Sales Copy: How To Make Your Solution Relevant And Needed?
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/saas-sales-copy-how-to-make-your-solution-relevant-and-needed/
Last updated: 2022-12-07T14:09:10.000Z
This is the second article in the [series](www.revenueinsideout.com/want-to-create-a-convertable-sales-copy-let-me-help/). Here is a quick overview of the topics covered in each article:
Highlighted with the orange is the topic covered in this particular article.
Here is the thought: your sales copy should always be relevant because only then your prospect would even want to contact you or execute the call to action. But what if everyone's relevance is subjective and you cannot even guess the exact problems they are having?
In this article, I'll talk about how to hit your customer’s exact pain points in your sales copy to make your solution relevant and needed.
Don't worry, you don't need to go on a psychic quest or tarot readings to find out the customer's pain. You can figure it out by online message mining and collecting voice-of-the-customer data from your own prospects.
**Worksheets are available to download later below.**
## What is message mining and why do you need it?
To be frank, message mining is essentially an eavesdropping technique that helps you craft messaging in the voice of your customer.
When it comes to convertible sales copy your message needs to be relevant, strong, and very well-targeted. And you can create such a copy with the help of message mining: by simply googling and checking out the reviews that your potential customers have already left on your competitor's solution.
One of the key points of your message is customer pains and anxiety. It’s always a tricky challenge to find the exact and relevant pain that your prospect might experience.
And here message mining comes in handy.
Why do you need to guess customers’ pain and fears if they already told you in their reviews? They already covered what helped them & what didn’t, and prospect’s already written what they wanted & what they didn’t want in their solution. And, most importantly, they told you this in their own unique words that apply to your target market.
You can take their bare words and simply paste them into your message. This eavesdropping technique will help you to craft a well-targeted message that your prospects will be able to relate to. They will feel understood and your product will go up in their mental ranks.
So, don’t waste your time reinventing and overanalyzing your prospect’s motivations, values, and fears - just look at what they are telling you.
If you want to learn more about how this knowledge of customer value and motivation affects your copy - feel free to check out my previous [article](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/how-to-make-prospect-so-engaged-in-your-sales-copy-to-the-point-of-buying/) in this series. But for now, let's move into action.
## How to message mine with ease?
While this process is very easy, you need to be strategic about it. You don’t want to get some random information from some random site that hardly applies to your product, your target market, and your industry in general. So, here I offer to follow a simple 5-step process of message eavesdropping:
### Step 1: Gather your keywords.
What is relevant in your industry and specifically in your solution? Which words do your competitors use? Analyze this information and create a thorough list, that will help you to filter information in the next step.
### Step 2: Start googling.
Follow this pattern:
Your keyword + reviews/ Your keyword + forums, discussions/ Your keyword + complaints etc.
This will bring you to a large amount of information that will be at least somewhat related to your solution.
### Step 3: Check popular discussion sites + social media
It can be anything like Quora, Reddit, Saleshacker, and more. Usually, there you’ll be able to find the most relevant information and apply it to your messaging.
Also, it can be any discussion group on Facebook, private blogs on Linkedin, or even comments on Instagram/ YouTube - basically any platform that allows you to see your customers’ thoughts, complaints, and desires.
But be aware of fake reviews - some companies will write them themselves just for the sake of looking good for marketing.
### Step 4: Start spreadsheets.
You need to track new information and effectively collect it somewhere. And what is a better way to do that than creating a spreadsheet?
### Step 5: Categorize and rank your messages.
It always comes down to figuring out what is the most important question your prospects ask. What are their main concerns? Ranking and categorizing is the best way of filtering out your newfound information.
Once again, feel free to use my templates to optimize your filtering process.
The benefit of this whole process is that online message mining is a comfortable, non-invasive, and not bothersome process of collecting data. Not all of us are comfortable with conducting customer interviews and not all of us have had many clients to gather reviews from.
So, if you want to have quick and correct data - try online message mining.
## Сollecting voice-of-the-customer data from your own prospects
Let’s start from the main point: collecting data from your own prospects is much trickier than online message mining. Yet, at the same time results can be so much more rewarding.
So, here we will start from the beginning and break down the ways you can collect data and craft an interview process with a high response rate.
### Voice-of-the-customer research methods
When gathering messaging data from your prospect there are pretty much only two best methods for you to use:
### 1) Surveys and polls
The biggest crime you can do with surveys and polls is not to take them seriously. Well-crafted questions in surveys can bring you almost finished sales copy. So, spend your time and put thought into your surveys - this is a pretty rewarding method even if you receive a small number of responses.
But be aware that each segment of your prospects requires a different survey. In turn, they will reveal different aspects that will serve well in your sales copy. What do I mean by that?
For example, a visitor survey can easily reveal purchase prompts, pain points, and anxieties. And customer surveys are great for revealing unique benefits and desirable outcomes.
**Bonus tip:** Craft your surveys carefully including these 3 components:
Questions - for extracting key messages (motivation, anxiety, value);
Invitation - to get the recipient to pay attention and engage;
Targeting - to engage with a specific audience.
Before we move into the second method of research, let’s quickly cover the basics in which people tend to make mistakes while preparing a survey:
Survey for visitors:
- Use poll format or (softly appearing) modal boxes
- If possible, avoid mobile device-based audiences
- Avoid triggering the survey immediately upon site entrance
And survey for customers:
- Target PAYING customers (by email)
- Experiment with vague subject lines
- Avoid promotional email design (keep it simple: plain text and links)
- Make it a one-on-one dialogue, not a generic email from a company or team
And, most importantly, in both cases, it’s crucial to respect users’ time and explain why you’re asking them to go fill in this survey. Also, don’t use the words “survey” and “feedback” because we all hate them, me, you, and your prospects too.
### 2) 1 on 1 interview
Any 1 on 1 interview is great for bringing an emotional aspect to your copy. When online research and surveys can give you core information and build a direction of your copy, the phone interview (for example) can give this dry information more softness and emotionally compelling points.
In this kind of interview, you may hear something that you won’t ever read during any kind of research. So, for the sake of product story and narrative improvement - never forget about 1 on 1 interview.
I hope this information was useful for you, so don't hesitate to try it out!
## Download worksheets
---
[ Worksheets Message Mining Worksheets - Message Mining.pdf 37 KB download-circle ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/content/files/2022/08/Worksheets---Message-Mining.pdf "Download")
[ Template Message Mining Template Message Mining.xlsx 71 KB download-circle ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/content/files/2022/09/Template-Message-Mining-1.xlsx "Download")
### How To Make Prospect So Engaged In Your Sales Copy To The Point Of Buying?
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/how-to-make-prospect-so-engaged-in-your-sales-copy-to-the-point-of-buying/
Last updated: 2022-12-07T14:09:20.000Z
This is the first article in the [series](www.revenueinsideout.com/want-to-create-a-convertable-sales-copy-let-me-help/). Here is a quick overview of the topics covered in each article:
Highlighted with the orange is the topic covered in this particular article.
It's hard to capture your prospect's interest and it's easy to lose their attention after the first few words of your sales copy. But if the prospect won't read our copy we won't be able to even try to make them buy.
In this article, we will learn how to make sure that the prospect will at least read our copy and may decide to consider our solution.
You don't need to have copywriting skills or spend a lot of time learning how to write. All you need to do is to make sure that your copy addresses all customer’s pains, desires, & anxieties and does it in the right order. You can do that by following key elements of convertible sales copy and following the message hierarchy to create a persuasive and engaging message.
**Worksheets are available to download later below.**
## What Are The Key Elements of Your Sales Copy?
We can go over and over the necessary things you should absolutely include in your copy, but sometimes it may seem like we need or are about to include too much. Everything seems important, every word and every sentence, but here it’s necessary to recognize what are those elements, and what is really crucial for a successful and convertible copy.
So, let me introduce you to really-necessary-and-crucial elements that you absolutely need to include in your text:
### MECLabs Conversion Heuristic Formula
**C= 4M+3V+2(I-F) -2A**
The MECLABS Conversion Sequence Heuristic is a framework of five factors on which to focus your optimization energy. It brings **discipline, rigor and sustainable success to your copy.**
- **C** \- this stands for our probability of conversion.
And right after this, we can see five principal components that you need to address in your copy. Let’s break them down one by one:
- **M** \- Motivation. It’s all about when and why your prospect decided to open your page or your message and what they expect to get from you.
We always have a reason in mind when we close/open web pages, right? Prospects are the same, they always have expectations while opening your page. This isn’t something that you can control but it’s something you need to recognize and understand thoroughly. When you understand the prospect’s motivation then you can align your message with it.
- ****V -** Value proposition.
- ****I-F -** Incentive & friction and those two are combined. How do you motivate prospects to act? Are you making it hard for them to buy/give you their contact info?
- **A** \- Anxiety. People are always worried and your task is to reduce those worries as much as possible.
Now it’s time to address why all of these letters have numbers before them and the answer is easy: it’s the level of importance of each element. Each of these factors creates an ultimate recipe for a perfect copy, that will influence your prospect to act.
Motivation is perceived as more important than the value you can offer. Value is still uber-important, though. That means what the prospect can actually get from you, what you can offer that they can’t get elsewhere.
### Cialdini’s 7 Principles of Influence
Rober Cialdini is an American psychologist that is probably best known for his 1984 book on persuasion and marketing, Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion.
It was based on three years of studying how people are persuaded in real-life situations such as at used car dealerships, fund-raising organizations, and telemarketing firms. He found that there are six key principles of persuasion: reciprocity, commitment and consistency, social proof, authority, liking, and urgency. But now, years later unexpectedly occurred the 7 principles - of unity, are included in this paragraph.
So, let’s uncover every single one of them and what they truly mean in the context of a sales copy:
- **Social Proof**
Basically evidence that other prospects are buying your product.
- **Authority**
A third-party opinion (for example press, influencers, or other specialists) that proves your product's greatness.
- **Likability**
It’s easy to agree to your offer if people like you.
- **Urgency**
Why should anybody act now? What is the cost of simply doing it later?
- **Reciprocity**
If you give something to the prospect first, they'll be more likely to say yes to your call to action.
- **Commitment/Consistency**
Make people invested and make them engaged. If your prospect is consistently engaging and interacting with you, or publicly committed to something, that increases the chance of the prospect saying yes to the bigger ask later.
- **Unity**
People want to belong and if you’ll offer them a chance to be in the community, to be in a group, they’ll probably say yes.
All of these principles can be hard to gather in one sales copy but at least a few of them and their fundamental understanding will increase the chances of your copy being more successful and convertible.
### Claude Hopkins’ Scientific Advertising
Claude C. Hopkins was a pioneer in advertising. He used key codes to track the results of his advertising, and then tested headlines, offers, and proposals against each other. He used the analysis of these measurements to continually improve his ad results, driving responses and the cost-effectiveness of his clients' advertising spend.
The coolest thing is that Hoplins was way ahead of his time and became the first conversion copywriter even before the internet was exciting.
- **Be Specific**
If you write a copy that is generic, the less impact on the prospect it has.
Sometimes we tend to think that no one wants us to go into detail, that our details won't apply to anyone. But the truth is as long as you have memorable details (aka specificity), there is a higher chance that the prospect won’t forget your copy.
The other side of this rule is that prospects are always suspicious and don’t trust easily. And as a salesperson, we are used to battling these untrustworthy assumptions almost daily. But this rule of being specific eliminates this problem. and makes it almost non-existent.
Because when you’re specific it’s very hard to lie.
And when you give the prospect enough specifics in your sales copy they tend to trust it more. Because you’re not hiding information (as prospects always expect us to do), you don’t avoid details in your copy, so you've become memorable and worthy of attention.
- **Offer Service**
Here is the deal: you don't sell to your prospects, instead you help them.
This is a fundamental thing that we as salespeople need to understand: when we sell and care only about our own benefit - the prospect can absolutely feel it.
So, this rule stands for being in service rather than selling and taking your money away from the prospect.
- **Be A Salesperson**
Imagine that:
If you didn’t write to your prospect but instead talked to them in person, would everything you wrote in the copy help you to convince the prospect to have a deal with you?
Whether your answer is yes or no, the fourth rule means to always stay in your salesperson mode. Your copy is about the prospect and their wishes, but it is supposed to help you as well.
- **Tell The Full Story**
Sometimes, salespeople are too afraid to write a lot. We have this popular belief that no one will pay attention to our text, they will skim through it and that’s it. So we make our sales copies as short as possible covering the bare basics of information.
But that, in turn, creates an incomplete message that will only help us lose the prospect, not interest them.
The core of this rule is to not be afraid to tell the full story in your message. To deliver complete and understandable conversation that paints a pretty picture of what your product can actually help with.
As Claude Hopkins said:
**“But whether long or short, an advertising story should be reasonably complete.”**
Now, as I told you a bunch of heavy information you may ask me:
How the hell can I put everything he mentioned into the copy?
Let’s move to the second part of this article.
## How to create an engaging and natural flow in your sales copy?
Ok, one of the key problems salespeople usually have is that the flow of the sales copy is broken. And what I mean by that is that the message seems to be all chopped, jumps from one thing to another, and overall doesn’t make much sense.
As Hopkin’s rule states we need the full story and in this part, I’ll explain how to make sure that your message is complete, not overcomplicated, and not oversimplified.
So, let’s get your messaging just right.
### Building an actual flow.
Every story has its flow. That happens with novels, non-fiction, emails, landing pages, etc. And the coolest thing is that this framework of flow is a universal and can be applied to any type of messaging you would like to improve.
### STEP 1: Set a context (Why: Why should they listen to you?)
Here you have an opportunity to explain and cover what you’re selling, for who, and, most importantly, why. Here is your chance to show the value you can deliver.
### STEP 2: Rising intensity (Try: Let them understand your product)
As soon as you explain the context, you’re moving into the explanation: cover the benefits of your solution, and explain how it works. Here is your chance to build excitement around your product. Build this anticipation around your solution, and explain how it will help your prospect achieve their goal (that’s why you’ve set the context first).
### STEP 3: Call To Action (Buy: Let them buy your solution)
Now, this is the climax of your novel, this is the result of the tension you’ve built in context and intensity steps. Here, guide your prospect into actually taking an action: offer them your solution and strengthen them with incentives.
This flow is simple and easy to follow both for you and your prospect. So, now, as you understand the main system of any sales copy, we can move to the second part of creating a full story in your message.
### Layering your gathered data.
The framework described in the first part is simple, but the way you combine it with your data is even easier.
At this point, you should have thorough data on your prospect's motivation, perceived value, and anxiety. If it’s not your case, then feel free to check my article [here](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/saas-sales-copy-how-to-make-your-solution-relevant-and-needed/)**,** where I guide you through the data gathering process.
Now, assuming you have this data, let’s apply it to our framework.
**STEP 1: MOTIVATION (Setting the context)**
(Desired outcomes/UVP/Pain points/Problems/Purchase prompts)
**STEP 2: VALUE (Rising intensity)**
(Unique benefits/Advantages/Product features/Deal breakers/Needs/Requirements)
**STEP 3: ANXIETY (Rising intensity)**
(Uncertainties/Objections Or Perceived Risks)
Here you can use my template to actually systemize your flow and turn it into an easy checklist process.
Depending on your prospect’s awareness, you can figure out the approximate length of your copy. Here the logic is simple:
- If your prospect is from a low-awareness group, then they require a little bit more text to build a logical explanation of your product, tie it into value and reduce their fears that they didn’t even know about before your copy.
- But if your prospect is more aware, then pay more attention to the value and uniqueness of your product, that’s how you’ll separate from your competitors and become memorable.
I hope this information was useful for you, so don't hesitate to try it out!
## Download worksheets
---
[ Worksheets Creating The Flow Worksheets - Creating The Flow.pdf 64 KB download-circle ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/content/files/2022/10/Worksheets---Creating-The-Flow.pdf "Download")
[ Template Creating Your Flow Template Creating Your Flow.xlsx 73 KB download-circle ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/content/files/2022/10/Template-Creating-Your-Flow-2.xlsx "Download")
### Struggling With Closing?
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/struggling-with-closings/
Last updated: 2022-10-01T00:22:06.000Z
The sales process itself takes a lot of time and sometimes it seems like we are giving our everything to it and to our prospects.
That’s why losing your prospect in the middle of the progress hurts a lot. We invest our energy in the stranger and lose it under some unknown circumstances.
What if I tell you that it's possible for you to consistently sign deals?
What if you can maximize your progress and prepare such a process that will keep your prospects engaged and interested?
In my new series of articles, I assembled best practices, rules, and mindsets to help in the struggle of consistent closings. So, don’t waste your time and click ahead to learn more about the rules of perfect closing:
- In the [first article](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/why-your-sales-closing-are-not-consistent-and-how-can-you-make-it-better/), I’m touching upon the fact that how the closing techniques you might have learned before might be the reason for your challenges in signing deals consistently.
- In the [second article](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/sales-process-is-moving-but-not-closing-its-time-to-check-your-objectives/), we’ll go deeper into your goals and objectives to support you throughout a sale. With this article, you’ll learn how to not only move your prospect forward in their buying journey but how to actually close it.
- Do you get ghosted a lot even though your sales process is nearly flawless? In [the third installment](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/providing-the-right-value-how-to-not-get-ghosted-again/) of this series, I’ll talk more about communication of the value and how it can influence your prospect’s decision.
- What do you want your prospect to do? How do you want them to react to your words and solution? About this and more in [the fourth article](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/closing-the-sale-how-to-make-the-prospect-committed/) of the closing series.
- The perfect technique for closing exists! In [the fifth and final article](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/the-perfect-close-technique-your-tool-for-a-consistent-closing/). Here I’ll introduce you to the Perfect Close technique, created by famous author James. M. Muir.
Every struggle has a solution, and as a salesperson, you know this better than anyone else. So, don’t let some small missteps stop you, implement all the tips mentioned in this series and make your closing not only easier but also more predictable.
Happy selling!
### The Perfect Close Technique: Your Tool For A Consistent Closing
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/the-perfect-close-technique-your-tool-for-a-consistent-closing/
Last updated: 2022-12-07T14:09:27.000Z
The Perfect Close is a technique that even new and inexperienced professionals can use successfully and they can become productive with the technique immediately.
There are two questions you need to learn in order to use The Perfect Close. The initial question, and the follow-up question. It can be helpful to know some logical advances for your prospective client, but it's not r*equired.*
**Worksheets are available to download later below.**
## Initial Question: “Does it make sense for us to X?”
This question is really simple, but it's essential to understand the nuance of the question and why it works. So, one of the key things to understand here is the question, "Does it make sense...," doesn't mean or suggest "Will you buy?"
“Does it make sense...” is not one of the most common closing questions. And it's unlike the kind of questions you might have read with respect to closing techniques like:
- Will you buy?
- Do you want it in green or blue? (loaded)
- Where do you want it shipped? (assumed)
This question is not an ultimatum in any form. You are not asking your prospects to do anything. You're just wondering if a certain item (your advance) is appropriate. At its most basic level, the question is really a timing one. You're inquiring if now is the right time to execute anything.
When you ask if it makes sense to do something, what we're really seeking is a response from the client about whether they want us to go in that direction at this time. And when someone says "no" but doesn't reject our idea outright - rather they are just rejecting the timing of it.
Asking this question also eliminates the risk that buyers might see you as pushy. It is impossible to get the timing of this question wrong precisely because it IS a timing question. This keeps clients communicating freely throughout the entire buying process and paces the sale at the rate the customer is ready to go. This improves the client’s experience, makes them feel like they are much more in control, and makes your process feel facilitative.
Your client's response to this question (what you think is a reasonable advance) can tell you a lot about where they are in their buying cycle. If they decline to take your suggested step, it might mean that you missed something. This is because we didn't actually ask them to take this step like we would with other types of closes. We still have options though. We can probe further to figure out what we missed, or we might fall back to a backup advance depending on the circumstances.
Whatever your conclusion, it quickly gets you to the second component of The Perfect Close, but I'll touch upon it later in this article.
How to get the Perfect Close right, though?
Remember, there are two steps in the Perfect Close. The first question is usually enough, but if you need to use the second question make sure you are patient. Your client will let you ask your second question, they won't stop talking to you suddenly.
There are only two possible outcomes of The Perfect Close question “Does it make sense to X?" Yes or no.
If someone says "no" to your question about whether it makes sense to do something, they are telling you that at this moment, the timing is not right for them.
Now what? Well, if your suggestion was a reasonable and logical one, then you must be wondering what to do next. You need to take into account what makes sense right now. And now we're moving to the second question of The Perfect Close.
## Follow-Up Question: “What is a good next step?”
After you hear "no" to your first question, you should always ask your second (follow-up) question. And here, in most cases, your prospect will suggest a very logical next step for advancing the sale. This is a good thing because it means the buyer is telling us what feels like a logical and natural next step for them and they will always be comfortable with their own suggestion.
We don't need to be psychic or know everything about where the customer is in the buying process. In fact, we could be new to selling and not have a clue about what should happen next, and it will still work because the customer will tell us what to do.
So, one of the best traits of The Perfect Close is that this technique allows inexperienced professionals to be productive immediately.
Let's look at Muir's example:
**PROFESSIONAL:** “Well Jeff, now that you’ve seen a full demonstration it’s pretty common to want to see it humming in a live environment at a client site. Does it make sense for us to talk about scheduling a site visit for you?
**POTENTIAL CLIENT:** "No, I don’t think we need that yet.”
**PROFESSIONAL:** "Gotcha. Well, what do you think would make a good next step then?”
**POTENTIAL CLIENT:** "Well, there are some other people here that I think would benefit from seeing this. Would it be ok if we scheduled another demonstration for them?”
Also, there is one part of question two that is called a Softening Statement. This statement acknowledges that you heard the prospect, that you understand them, and it sets up question two - "What is a good next step then?". Here are some examples for you to check out:
- Got it.
- Gotcha.
- Ok.
- I see.
## Variations to Improve Your Success
Sometimes even the best technique needs some iterations to become truly perfect. So in this section, we will talk about some variations of The Perfect Close that will help you close your deal the best way possible!
- The Suggestion
Other clients at this stage typically take X + “Does it make sense for us to X?”
The Suggestion is another version of a perfect close. It's a simple change to the first question. This is particularly beneficial when dealing with someone who doesn't have much purchasing experience for your time of products in her organization. You must have a firm grasp on the most prevalent or natural sequence in which your prospects choose your type of product or service.
In this variation, you are simply going to add one additional statement before asking the first question. That statement is some variation of:
“Other clients at this stage typically take X as the next step in their evaluation.”
Here, X is the advance that you are about to check the timing of.
For example: “Other clients at this stage typically schedule a meeting between us and your team so we can get their input and participation on what would help them the most. Does it make sense for us to schedule a meeting with your team, so we can get their input on what would be most beneficial for them?”
- The Fall Back
If your ideal advance doesn't work out, you can try a different one. You suggest the backup advance after your ideal advance fails, before asking what the next step should be.
It looks like this:
Question One: “Does it make sense to do X?”
Question Two (if question one fails): “Clients at this stage typically do Y. Does it make sense to do Y?”
Question Three (if question two fails): "What’s a good next step then?”
Let’s look at Muir's example:
*PROFESSIONAL: “Hey Kelly, does it make sense for us to schedule some time for our technical teams to get together so we can get a clearer picture of the requirements?”*
*PROSPECT: "Mmm... I don’t think so.”*
*PROFESSIONAL: "Gotcha. Most clients at this stage will have us do a site assessment so we can see what we can leverage from your existing infrastructure. Does it make sense for us to schedule a time to come do a site assessment for you?”*
*PROSPECT: “I don’t know about that...”*
*PROFESSIONAL: “I see. What would you say is a good next step then?”*
*PROSPECT: “What I’d like to do is have you meet our CIO first. Would that be ok?”*
In theory, you can use as many secondary/backup advances as you have planned. But in practical application, using more than one or two can come across as pushy.
- The Add-On
The Add-On variation is the opposite of the Fall-Back variation. You will add on your alternate advances instead of falling back on them. In this variation, once you achieve success with your ideal advance, you will suggest one of your additional alternate advances.
Remember, you are doing this to match the client's buying cycle. If the client is ready to move forward at a faster pace than you were originally thinking, you can do that by incrementally adding advances.
Instead of falling back to “What is a good next step then?" ask “Are there any other logical steps we should be taking right now?”
This will allow your prospect to come up with any action steps that they think make sense, that you may not have thought of. Here is what the model looks like:
**Question One:** “Does it make sense to do X?”
**Question Two (after question one succeeds):** “Clients at this stage very often also do Y. Does it make sense to do Y?”
**Question Three (after question two also succeeds):** “We can also do Z if it makes sense. Does it make sense to do Z?”
**Question Four (if question three fails)**: "Ok. Are there any other logical steps we should be taking right now?”
Once again, we'll use Muir's example:
*PROFESSIONAL: “Hey Regan, does it make sense for us to talk about scheduling a demo for the rest of your team so we can get their input and participation?”*
*PROSPECTIVE CLIENT: "Yes. We need everyone on board.”*
*PROFESSIONAL: "Great. Let’s look at some possible dates. A lot of clients at this stage will also have us schedule time for both our technical teams to discuss the dynamics around the conversion. Does it make sense for us to schedule our tech people to meet?”*
*PROSPECTIVE CLIENT: "Absolutely. My guys are worried about that. That’s a great idea.”*
*PROFESSIONAL: "Ok. I’ll get some dates. My team is open, and we can coordinate. I think we have everything we need for a proposal. Does it make sense for me to put together a preliminary proposal so you can get a feel for the scope of the project?”*
*PROSPECTIVE CLIENT: "Yes. That would be really helpful.”*
*PROFESSIONAL: "Ok. I have some homework here. Are there any other logical steps we should be taking right now?”*
*PROSPECTIVE CLIENT: "Well, is there any chance I can see a copy of your standard agreement? Our legal team can be kind of slow sometimes.”*
*PROFESSIONAL: "Absolutely. I know what you’re talking about. I’ll get you a copy of that too so your legal team can start reviewing it.”*
This is by far the most pleasurable and exciting method because we just keep adding new steps until we match the rate at which our prospects would want to progress. This is yet another approach for shortening the sales cycle. Instead of assuming that each client will move at the same speed and prepare only one advance (or worse, no advance), we may pace it at exactly their level of comfort.
- The Reverse Order
The Reverse Order is the most open variation of The Perfect Close. It has both advantages and disadvantages. In this variation, you first ask question two of The Perfect Close and then question one.
**Question One:** “What would you say is a good next step?”
**Question Two (if the client is stumped):** “Does it make sense for us to X?’”
There are advantages and disadvantages to each approach. On the plus side, since it is big and open, it opens up more possibilities than you would think with your own ideas. This, alone, may be beneficial or harmful. A client-suggested improvement does not necessarily imply that it will be the finest option for them or for you. But on the good side: the client will feel as if they have greater control over this variation than any of the others because the suggestion is theirs.
If you have a strong-willed person who knows what they want, or if the situation requires it, you can let them take the lead.
Reverse Order is the least assertive way to get a client to do what you want. Most clients appreciate it when you help them achieve their goals. But some people don't like it when you are too assertive. These people don't usually make decisions, but this approach may work better for them. The biggest downside is that the client may not be able to think of a good next step or any kind of next step.
The Reverse Order is best used when you are not sure what the next step should be. When it is important that the client feels in control of the process, and when they have a clear vision of what they want to be done.
## Something Special
There is one application of The Perfect Close that is used far more frequently than others. James Muir coined it as Something Special.
"Can we do something special for you if we can get everything wrapped up by the end of the quarter?"
This is just a variation of the Perfect Close question that reveals your client's timing without telegraphing a concession. It can be helpful in end-of-quarter and upselling situations.
Here you can see how Something special can look like, accordingly to James M. Muir:
*PROFESSIONAL: “Hey Gary, does it make sense for me to see if we can do something special for you if we can get everything wrapped up by the end of the quarter?”*
*PROSPECTIVE CLIENT: "Hmmm, what are you thinking?”*
*PROFESSIONAL: "Well, I don’t know what my options are without talking to our CEO, but if we can actually do something this quarter he said he would be willing to work with clients.”*
*PROSPECTIVE CLIENT: “If the offer’s good enough we’re ready to do something. Why don’t you find out what he’s thinking?”*
*PROFESSIONAL: “You got it. Just to speed the process up a bit; is there any part of the proposal that you would get more value out of than another? I’ll see if that’s an area we can play in for us.”*
*PROSPECTIVE CLIENT: “There is. Michelle is concerned that some of our folks will need more training than usual, so anything you could do in that area will make me a hero to her. From my perspective, it would be great if there was something you could do with the maintenance. Lowering it or starting it later would be great. So that’s it, maintenance and training. See if there is something he can do there. Thanks.”*
You can use this technique in different ways, depending on your situation. However, it is important to use it the way it is written. In the "Something Special" application of The Perfect Close, we don't want to offer any concessions before we have determined what the client considers special. This will require further conversation.
Your attitude should be:
"Well, I don’t know what my options are without talking to some folks, but if the timing is right I’ll go see what I can do for us.”
This is a good approach because if the timing isn't right for the client, you will never have to discuss what that "something special" might have been, and your profits are preserved for the next period.
There are two things you can do if the buyer says they can wrap things up within your timeframe:
1. Ask what they would find most valuable. This doesn't promise anything, but it will help you understand what they want.
2. Tell them you will go see what is possible and that you will report back. Then talk to your organization or supervisor to see what is possible.
Before using this approach it's also important to know that Something Special accomplishes three important things:
1. It doesn’t telegraph any kind of concession or the size of that concession.
2. It reveals if the client is able to do something within your suggested time frame.
3. It positions you as an advocate for the client. You are doing all this on their behalf. If you’ve ever found yourself on the end-of-quarter discount rollercoaster, you will appreciate how Something Special preserves both revenues and your commissions.
If you've ever been on the end-of-quarter discount rollercoaster, you'll understand how Something Special protects both income and commissions. So, feel free the Perfect Close technique and make your closing easier, more predictable, and, most importantly, predictable.
## Download worksheets
---
[ Worksheets Closing The Deal Worksheets Closing The Deal.pdf 76 KB download-circle ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/content/files/2022/09/Worksheets-Closing-The-Deal.pdf "Download")
### Closing The Sale: How To Make The Prospect Committed?
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/closing-the-sale-how-to-make-the-prospect-committed/
Last updated: 2022-12-07T14:09:35.000Z
Previously, I already covered the true meaning behind advancing in the sales process [here](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/why-your-sales-closing-are-not-consistent-and-how-can-you-make-it-better/). But I haven’t explicitly talked about what you can do, to get those advances from your prospective client.
So, in this article, we’ll talk more about what you want your prospect to do and how you can make this actually work.
As I mentioned before, an advance is something your prospect does, that requires some action and energy from them. But what makes this topic more complex is that we have different kinds of advances and all of them require your attention. In this article, though, I'll explain the term ideal advance and how it's the key to your closing.
So, an ideal advance is the highest level of commitment you can reasonably expect your prospect to make as a result of this encounter.
Complex sales work like a flywheel. The more times we get an advance from a prospect, the faster it will go. Some sales require many advances while others just need a few. If you brainstorm and plan ahead, you can choose the best advance for your interaction and be prepared with alternatives in case our primary goal proves to be unrealistic.
You should aim for the biggest commitment you can get from your prospect during this encounter. Each successful advance will add momentum to your sale and bring your client closer to their goal.
Granting this commitment isn't easy, but 4 main rules will help you build a strong background to support you during your sales process.
**Worksheets are available to download later below.**
## RULE #1: Your objectives should meet all of the criteria
In one of my previous articles in this series, I talked more in-depth about objectives and how to set them, so feel free to check it [here](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/sales-process-is-moving-but-not-closing-its-time-to-check-your-objectives/)**.** But let's go briefly here and figure out what are those main criteria for your sales goal before the meeting:
**1) Your objective should be specific and measurable** \- Your call objectives should be as specific and measurable as your sales objectives. This way, it will be easier to see if the action occurred or not. It is simpler to measure an action than it is to measure a change in attitude or feeling. As you come up with new ideas, ask yourself: "What actions might show a change (or confirmation) of attitude or feeling?"
**2) Your prospect should be active and become the center of your objective** \- The goal of an objective is to help people do things that we want them to do. As you think of all the possibilities, keep in mind what customers might do as a result of meeting with you. Consider, "What can my prospect do to help move the deal forward?"
**3) Move the sale forward** \- Every step in the sales process should move the sale closer to being finished. Sometimes there are many steps, and sometimes there are only a few. The key is that each step should add some momentum to the sale. At the same time, not everything the prospect does will move the sale forward. Meetings, for example, don't do anything to make or break a sale. They are neutral. The meeting may help you close the sale, but it is merely a chance in and of itself (unless the prospect puts forth a lot of effort).
**4) Be reasonable from the prospect’s perspective** \- You also want to make sure that your objectives for each call match where the prospect is in the buyer's journey. For example, you probably won't be able to schedule a site visit to a plant on another continent before you discuss your initial value proposition with the prospect. This is because the prospect isn't ready for that yet.
## RULE #2: Understand the difference between Advances and Engagement
There are a number of interactions with a possible client that are positive, but they don't necessarily mean that the client is committed to buying your product or service.
You need to be careful because some of these positive interactions might not be strong enough to actually count as an advance. So here, you need to understand the difference between an advance and a so-called engagement.
An engagement means that the client is interested in your product or service and is willing to learn more about it. And here, sales engagement is an interest that does not involve seriousness towards a possible purchase.
An advance is when a client commits or agrees to do something. But there are also times when clients show seriousness for a purchase without any commitment. This can be shown through their actions.
One way to think about engagement and advances is to consider them on a scale. On one end, you have things that are interesting but not important enough to invest time and energy in. On the other end, you have things that are important enough to take action on.
Many professionals waste a lot of time on potential business deals that won't go through because they mistake people's curiosity or politeness as good indicators of seriousness for a sale.
Let's explore some of the most common indicators of engagement, that you can mistake as advances:
- Prospect asks you for a proposal.
This is, without a doubt, the most frequent engagement mistake. Prospects are intrigued and want to know how much something will cost. The issue with asking for the price is that it doesn't need any effort or commitment from the prospect, making it an easy question for them to ask.
I strongly advise against offering them a proposal unless they request one. If you suggest that someone give you a proposal, they usually won't say no. But if you wait and let them ask, you will learn more about their interests. If you offer it first, then you will know nothing because even uninterested prospects are curious enough to want to know the price.
If you can, try to upgrade the prospect's request to an advance. This means that they need to do something logical that represents a commitment or an expenditure of energy, like taking an assessment or doing a detailed discovery. Once they do this, then you can produce the proposal.
- Prospect asks questions regarding the proposal or solution.
It's a good indication of engagement if they ask specific, detailed questions about the offer or solution. You may often tell how interested they are and how much energy they have spent in the research they've done before your meeting by the quality of their queries. However, interest is not enough to constitute a commitment. Use the information you gain from their inquiries to propose a logical development that will advance the procedure gradually while also testing their devotion to it.
- Sending a proposal.
Sending a proposal is not the same as making an advance. It might be a step in the process, but it's definitely not an advance. The biggest mistake people make when selling is to email a proposal to a potential customer without agreeing on the key details first. Or even worse, without first scheduling a call to go over the proposal after you sent it via email.
After the prospect has received your proposal, they may determine that they have received all of the value you can provide and will only contact you on their terms. Especially, if you are not adding value or offering insight in each encounter.
So, here, instead of emailing or delivering your offer, set up a meeting to go through it with them.
- Read or study a copy of your presentation or supporting material.
It's a positive indicator of serious attention and perhaps an advance when a prospect invests considerable time and effort in analyzing your presentation or supporting material.
If you can tell by their questions and comments that they've really studied your materials, that means the prospect has shown interest. However, it is far more common for prospects to ask for these papers (or simply accept them if you propose to send them) than to do anything with them.
The ideal approach is to transform their enthusiasm into a meeting or discussion, and then propose a logical advance as a consequence.
- One of their personnel contacts you to gather additional information (IT, engineers, managers, supervisors).
If a member of your potential client's staff contacts you out of the blue to get further information, you should be encouraged. Because this person is already putting in an effort by phoning you. Chances are that there was an advance internally without you knowing about it. But here is the problem, you're not sure how committed this person is.
The ideal strategy in this situation would be to talk with the person about their responsibilities in the process, their feelings about the project, and any potential conflicts that might emerge as a result of the decision. Their responses will usually reveal whether they are friendly or hostile if you understand what to look for in terms of context.
If you want to convert this interaction into a next advance, be super helpful and make the other person commit to something. This could be gathering agenda items for a group meeting, reference client visits, etc.
- Request help in explaining an area related to the sale to another person.
When a prospect asks for coaching on how to sell your product to their superiors, for example, it's a positive thing. This is an engagement that suggests there may be more ahead. The ideal way to go about this is to have a discussion with your prospect first and figure out what they're trying to accomplish. Scheduling a call between you and their superior can be considered an advance.
- Attend a webinar or watch an online demo on your website.
These are things people do to get information about something. They may not be very interested, or they may be trying to find out information to use against you. If this happens near the end of your sale, it may mean that the person is not as far along in the buying process as you thought.
The ideal approach is to contact the individual who carried out these measures and continue the discussion. Learn everything you can about the situation, including the dynamics, and then propose one of your advances.
- Refers another prospective client to you.
In most cases, this indicates a very strong, positive level of involvement. If they've already spoken with the potential referral, you have an advance. Congratulations!
But if they're just tossing out a possible prospect's name without any explanation, though, you'll need to go further. Find out more about their connection with the referral and why they're making the suggestion. Then, if at all possible, improve this engagement to an advance by asking if they'd be willing on behalf of you to make an introduction for someone else.
Understanding the difference between an advance and an engagement is crucial to maintaining momentum in your opportunities. But now, you've learned how to avoid making the following most typical engagements look like advancements, so let's move further.
## RULE #3: Always Brainstorm And Plan Ahead
There is no one perfect way to sell a product. What works in one situation might not work in another. It's a good sign when you are tailoring your sales advances to fit the specific needs of a prospect. That means you are really thinking about what they want and trying to give them what they need.
Using the template below you can try out the brainstorming exercise created by James Muir in his book "The Perfect Close".
**Step 1** \-In the Possible Advance/Client Action column, work together to come up with all of your prospects' potential activities. For now, ignore the columns to the right and simply collect as many ideas as possible.
**Step 2** \- Review your ideas. Then, in the Measured by? column, discuss and write down how you will know when this action has taken place. This will help you discern advances from engagement or mere feelings.
**Step 3** \- Discuss and rate how beneficial this advance would be to your sales development under the Impact column. Rate them as High, Medium, Low, or None. This can assist you in determining which of your advances are most desirable.
**Step 4** \- For the Achievability/Reasonable column, rate each advance on a 1-to-5 scale (1=very difficult; 5=easy to accomplish) as a group. This process will aid you in determining how realistic each development is from your client's perspective. For now, we'll stick to the broad strokes
**Step 5** \-If you were planning a meeting, you would prioritize each advance and list them by priority in your encounter plan. But for now, we are brainstorming, so leave the Best Choice/Priority column blank.
The greatest salespeople can get prospects to agree to a continuous stream of little activities. This raises the chances that each encounter will result in one or more advances.
## RULE #4: Strengthen Your Advances
Now, knowing the concept itself, you can make your advances even more effective by making a few small changes. So, let's strengthen your advances together:
- Make your interaction as direct and personal as possible.
Just because something is efficient, doesn't mean it is effective. With the internet, there are many ways to interact with your prospects and clients that don't involve face-to-face contact (like email, chat, internet presentations, phone calls, etc.). Сommunication, understanding, and the development of relationships are all better when done in person, or at the least over a video call.
You can't see people's facial expressions when you're on a phone call. But if you can meet with your prospects in person (or on a video call), you will be able to understand them better and they will understand you better too.
- Add valuable people to your meeting.
The participation of key personnel from your company and the prospect's firm can enhance your meeting (which, in and of itself, may be beneficial) as well as the action items and advances that result from it. Depending on the current stage of the prospect's buying journey and the agenda of the meeting, this might include important decision-makers, technical experts, domain specialists, or even existing clients.
- Add value to every interaction.
Adding value is one of the keys to your close. I talked about it more in my previous article [here](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/providing-the-right-value-how-to-not-get-ghosted-again/), so feel free to check it out. But to sum it up: Do your best to strengthen every encounter by adding value in some way. By making each encounter worthwhile, you teach your prospects and clients to treasure every interaction with you.
## Download worksheets
---
[ Worksheets Brainstorming Your Advances Worksheets - Brainstorming Your Advances.pdf 37 KB download-circle ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/content/files/2022/07/Worksheets---Brainstorming-Your-Advances-1.pdf "Download")
### Providing The Right Value: How To Not Get Ghosted Again?
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/providing-the-right-value-how-to-not-get-ghosted-again/
Last updated: 2022-12-07T14:09:42.000Z
In my previous [article](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/sales-process-is-moving-but-not-closing-its-time-to-check-your-objectives/)**,** I touched upon a cool trick you can do to set and achieve proper objectives for each sales interaction to speed up the closing. As well, I’ve talked about annoying challenges every salesperson faces at some point in their career.
So, in this article, I would like to follow suit and talk more in-depth about another challenge a rep can face - being ghosted by your prospect during the sales process.
There is nothing more annoying than being ghosted. It hurts our process, it hurts our ego and it makes us doubt our abilities to make the sale. So, to avoid this common challenge I'd like to come back to the trick that I mentioned at the beginning of this article.
In the[article](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/sales-process-is-moving-but-not-closing-its-time-to-check-your-objectives/)I mentioned an exercise called Three Magic Pre-Call Questions:
Before every sales encounter— whether in person, by phone, or otherwise— answer the following three questions:
**1\. Why should this client see me?**
**2\. How can I provide value in this encounter?**
**3\. What do I want the client to do?**
In this article, I will touch upon two out of three of these questions. Feel free to check out my other [article](www.revenueinsideout.com/closing-the-sale-how-to-make-the-prospect-committed/)to learn more about the third question that won’t be discussed here. And you may ask me:
Why only two?
Because the secret behind any successful sales encounter is to make it about the client. The main reason you get ghosts most of the time is that you either:
1. Didn’t understand the client.
2. Didn't provide enough value.
Or sometimes it’s even both. So, if you want your prospect to come back and not disappear from all radars, you need to make your process better and reconsider the way you’re presenting the value of your help and your product.
This time, we will make this article about YOU, so buckle up, you’re in for a ride!
**Worksheets are available to download later below.**
## Justify by presenting your UVP in the best way possible
Why Should this Client See Me? - This is the first question I’ll answer in this article.
Your value proposition is what makes your offer, well, valuable. It is what makes your offer important to your prospects. You need to be able to explain how you help your clients in a way that they understand. This is important because it shows them why they should meet with you.
But what can be more important than the value proposition itself? Easy: the way you present it.
Your Unique Selling Proposition in a way is an extension of your value proposition. It's what makes you different from other companies in your industry. It's how people will know why they should do business with you, rather than someone else who provides a similar-looking service or product.
We know that a basic value proposition has three core components:
1. A Metric
2. A Direction
3\. Magnitude
Sometimes people use formal metrics to measure how well they are doing in a certain activity. Formalized metrics for sales might include things like:
- Number of Units Sold
- Close Ratio
- Revenue Growth
- Lead Conversion Ratio
- Number of Opportunities
Examples of formalized Metrics for Accounts Receivable might include:
- Days Sales Outstanding (DSO)
- Percentage of AR over 60 Days
- Average Days Delinquent
- Bad Debt Percentage
- Operating Cost per Transaction
Metrics can be anything from time, money, or counts. They can be less formal than the examples above, but they still exist and other times the metric will be something unique to that customer alone.
The problem here is that you have your metric, but your prospect has its own. So, to make your call successful you need to understand the metric your prospects use to measure their performance.
To do that you can ask the next questions:
- “What tells you when you are doing well in this area?”
- “What tells you if something is going wrong?”
- “What suggests to you that you could be doing better in this area?”
Listen, talking through the customer lens is always the key.
When you use your client's metrics in your value proposition, you are speaking their language and communicating on their level. So, using their terms will increase both your value and your credibility.
But how do you do that organically?
While enhancing the metric you're using, you need to enhance all parts of the formula, and here we'll talk about Direction and Magnitude. To put it simply:
- Direction tells you if something is getting better or worse. For example, we want Sales Revenue to go up and Material Costs to go down.
- Magnitude is how much the metric changes. This could be how much it increased or decreased, by a percentage or a fixed amount. You should also think about what this means for the overall level of improvement.
You need four things to create a good value proposition. The four things can be put in different orders to make it more clear and have more of an impact. Here is an example: Formula: \[Magnitude\] + \[Direction\] + \[Metric\] + \[Time\]. Example: We increase lead conversion by an average of 47% within two months.
So, you should be able to easily define a business reason to meet with your prospective client now that you have crafted your value proposition. This reason will be your answer to, “Why should this client see me?” Now, construct a complete sentence out of it for your sales encounter.
*Question: Why should this client see me?*
*Answer: This client should see me because with their new expansion it is likely I can reduce their human resource costs by as much as 19% using automation.*
## Consistently deliver value in every encounter
Many customers now research their options online before talking to a salesperson. They use search engines to find what they are looking for very quickly and the most important information is usually on the first few pages of search results.
Today, buyers can get a good idea of what is available without talking to a salesperson. They can compare options on their own, and find the best one just by browsing the internet. So, if the prospect is looking for the lowest price, they can often find what they want without ever talking to a salesperson.
So buyer now has two options:
1. Bypass a salesperson and do business transactional.
2. Engage a sales professional to derive value from the sales experience itself.
However, the buyers who choose to work with a sales professional want to receive added value from the sales process. This has raised the bar of what people expect sales professionals to deliver during the sales experience.
### 1) You are the number one influence.
Studies have been done over the years to figure out what is most important in buying a solution. For example, [HR Chally and the Corporate Executive Board (CEB)](https://www.thinkwithgoogle.com/future-of-marketing/digital-transformation/b2b-digital-evolution/?ref=revenueinsideout.com) found that the salesperson is two to four times more important than anything else.
Three main conclusions can be drawn from this data:
1. You cannot rely solely on your solution, your brand, or your price. You are the number one influence.
2. You have far more control and influence than you may have previously realized. How you sell matters more than anything else.
3. This can work for you or against you.
Every experience you have with a potential client must be a good one. If you make every encounter valuable and enjoyable, the prospect will think that the experience after they buy will also be good.
Imagine how much more effective you can be if you plan out each experience carefully and thoughtfully. We can't afford to have any poor experiences during our prospect's sales process.
One of the best ways to provide value is to train your client.
If we always provide value in every encounter, our prospects will see us as more than just agents who offer a given solution. They will see us as valuable experts and advisors they can trust.
When buyers see you in this way:
- They will share more information with you.
- They will ask for advice and accept your recommendations.
- They will refer you to others.
- They will forgive your mistakes.
- They will protect and warn you.
- You will increase your sales both in number and dollar volume.
So, there are two keys to becoming a trusted advisor:
1. Value.
2. Consistency.
People need to trust you to buy what you are selling. This is why it is important to have a good relationship with your buyers and to seem like you have their best interests at heart.
Prospects also rely on outside sources of information when they are considering a complex solution. This is because they know that they cannot evaluate all the possible options on their own. So, they use shortcuts (like trusting someone else) to help them make a decision.
Let's stop for a second. Try to remember: have you ever lost a sale to a competitor whose offering was inferior?
People can tell how you will solve a problem by how you sell. The time a prospect spends with a salesperson before the sale is an indicator of their experience after the sale.
Every time someone interacts with you, they are sampling what it would be like to have a future experience with you, your company, and your product.
So, how did your competitor that was inferior beat you?
Your prospect's sampling from your competitor may have been exceptional while their sampling of you may have been not as good. This is especially true with more complex solutions because prospects can never really get a good enough sample to understand all the dimensions of each offer. They might make a decision based on a limited experience they had with you.
So how did you lose to an inferior solution? Answer: You were outsold.
One common complaint sellers have is that a prospect stops responding. Often, this happens when the prospect receives the proposal. After that, communication from the prospect mysteriously stops. The primary reason this happens is that the sales agent has not been adding enough value throughout the sales process. As a consequence, once they receive all the information about our solution that they need, they have no reason to continue engaging with us.
The final thing a prospect usually receives from us is the price of our solution. And here they often think that this is the last useful piece of information that we as salespeople can deliver.
But the prospect may be wrong. It's not their fault if we're only providing facts and pricing about our solution. The problem here is that we need to provide additional value to our prospects on every visit.
When people know that every meeting with you is important, they will keep talking to you throughout their decision-making process. They will also continue to talk to you after the sale is over. The key is to make sure both clients and prospects see you as a valuable resource. You can do this by training them to see you as a trusted advisor.
Buyers now place more importance on getting insights from businesses before deciding to work with them. This shift in priorities means that buyers are looking for thought leadership from businesses they partner with.
But what makes a good insight?
1. It must be relevant. Your insight should be relevant to your customer.
2. It must be novel. The insight you share must provide something new—something that is not already known.
3. It must be actionable. The insight you share must be actionable—something they can do something about. If it doesn’t suggest an action they can take, your client won’t find it useful. Ideally, the insight you share will suggest something actionable that relates to the solution you provide.
According to research, buyers are willing to pay more for a solution if they feel that the seller is helping them in some way. For example, if the seller can solve a problem the buyer didn't know they had, or if they see an opportunity that the buyer missed, then the seller can charge more and buyers will be willing to pay.
*“Research has shown that buyers will forego price concerns when additional value is delivered by the sales process itself.”*
You can use this template for a self-check on the value you're bringing:
### 2) Practical Tips on Adding Value to Every Encounter
It is easy to say that you should add value to every encounter. However, it can be difficult to know how to do that. Here are some ways that might help.
Each meeting should have at least two purposes:
1. A compelling business reason—your answer to “Why should this client see me?”
2. A plan to deliver added value.
If you don't have a plan, you are wasting both your time and the buyer's time. When you contact them without a plan, it makes it seem like you don't care if they buy anything or not. It also makes it seem like you're only interested in their money and we don't want to make an impression.
- ****Be prepared to add value at every stage of the funnel.**
There are at least eight different stages that buyers go through when they are making a purchase.
- The first stage is when the buyer is unaware of what they want.
- The second stage is when the buyer becomes aware of what they need or want.
- In stage three, the buyer starts to define the problem they have.
- In stage four, the buyer considers all their options.
- In stage five, the buyer evaluates all their solutions.
- In stage six, the buyer justifies their decision to themselves and
- in stage seven, they make their final selection.
- The eighth and final stage is when they implement their decision.
And knowing which stage your prospect is in will help you give them more value and help them through the buying process.
Consider the context of where your prospect is in their buying process.
For example:
- If they are merely understanding that there is a need for change, you may offer them information about the gap between where they are and where they could be or should be.
- When potential customers become aware of issues that they may face, but which have not yet been crystallized in their thoughts, you may assist them to quantify the potential consequences of their present situation or the benefits of a certain opportunity by defining those difficulties and demonstrating how they can be overcome.
- If they've calculated the potential upside, you could assist them in determining various alternatives or trade-offs to consider to reach their goal.
- If they are considering a few specific solutions, you might help them understand which are best matched to their desired results.
- If they have identified a particular path to achieve their goals, you might help them outline the plan or steps they need to take to reach their goal.
- If they are settled on a particular approach or solution, you might alert them to pitfalls to avoid and suggest ways to reduce risks associated with moving forward.
- If they are at the stage of finalizing their decision, you might share strategies to get executive approval and advise them on the most beneficial business model or terms.
- You may talk about how to take their game to the next logical step if they are planning to implement a certain solution or technique. You might also suggest methods for leveraging their new skills once the new approach is implemented and how to go from strength to strength.
There are infinite ways to add value at any stage of the buying cycle. The point is to be cognizant of where your prospect is, so you can offer the kind of value they will consider the most important at that stage.
- ****Make Your Agenda Surprisingly Valuable**
Your prospective client must think that the meeting with you will be valuable. The focus of the meeting should be what the prospect wants, not what you want.
"But what about this additional value I'm going to be adding?" - this is the question you should ask yourself before the encounter.
When planning your meeting, be aware of these things:
1. The agenda should reflect what the other person wants. That is the most important thing. Just make sure you confirm your agenda with them before the meeting.
2. You should list what you can offer them on the agenda, but don't say it directly.
You might be wondering if you should explicitly state the value of participating in a meeting. Won't that make the prospect more likely to want to participate?
If we talk about the bonus value we plan to offer right away, it might not have as much of an impact when we offer it during the meeting.
You can use the following sheet to list down all the values you can bring to the meeting with respect to the agenda.
- ****Deliver Insight.**
To add value to your client encounters, you can give them insights. This can be done in many different ways. Here is a list of some ideas in different categories.
**1\. Prepare Powerful Questions.**
There are many different types of questions. The most valuable questions are the ones that help improve somebody's life. When you ask these questions, it helps the person understand better. You should ask these types of questions when you want to know more about somebody, especially if it can help them in some way.
Some questions are more valuable than others. Those are the questions to which the client doesn't already know the answer. They require thought and reflection and the answers to these questions add value to the people involved in the conversation.
**2\. Stimulate Your Buyer’s Thinking.**
There are two dimensions along which your questions stimulate thinking:
- Knowledge.
- Cognitive. Your questions help you to think more deeply about the concept. This deep thinking goes from remembering what you learned, understanding it, and thinking about how it applies to you, to analyzing and organizing the information, evaluating it, and then creating your ideas based on the information.
Buyers don't care as much about questions that make them remember or understand concepts. They care more about questions that make them think. When we ask higher-level thinking questions, it adds value.
Asking tough, powerful questions makes you stand out as a consultant and communicates your intent to help. This will add a lot of value to each encounter and set you apart from your competition.
When you ask clients higher-level questions, it forces them to think in a new way. This "Ah-ha" moment is where they see the value in the question.
People are more likely to buy something if they feel like they are in control. Because of this, be careful when you ask them high-level questions. They might not know the answer, and that will make them feel uncomfortable. Instead, wait for them to respond and then you can continue the conversation. Salespeople usually only wait for about one second before asking another question or trying to answer the first one for the client.
Though asking more than 4 high-value questions in a single encounter can make people feel like you are trying to take advantage of them. Your delivery of these questions is important, but I would suggest asking no more than two or three questions at a time.
Here are a few examples:
- As you assemble your evaluation team, how will you determine which priorities will be most heavily weighted?
- As you design what you feel will be the ideal solution, what criteria will you use to evaluate options?
- As you reflect on possible trade-offs or compromises, how will you determine which elements will be the most important?
- During your evaluation, what are the steps you will be going through as a company?
Many experts believe that questions are your most valuable tool. They can help you figure out people's agendas and the dynamics between the people involved in the decision.
The right questions will help you add value to your clients, steer their attention to the most important topics, help them understand new things, and increase their confidence. The questions will also help them articulate their thoughts, remember information better, and get feedback.
**3\. Help Clients Better Understand Their Needs**
When you help your clients understand their own needs, they can better see the path to success. When they know what they need and what the requirements are to meet those needs, they feel more confident in moving forward. This makes it easier for them to see the potential success of a new project, idea, or solution.
When you explain how your product or service can help someone reach their goals, you are adding value. In some cases, this added value can be more than the cost of the product or service itself. This makes you look like a valuable consultant and advisor. Make sure to bring up this extra value in every opportunity you have.
**4\. Share Customer Success Stories**
Ron Baker, the founder of VeraSage Institute and author of Mind Over Matter, says that new ideas represent an area of limitless value. Ideas are more valuable than physically carrying them out. In the business world, ideas can increase innovation and wealth.
Success stories are one of your most powerful tools in the box. In my other series of demo articles, I've talked deeply about success stories and how exactly they can help you in your process, so feel free to check out the [article here](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/demo-call-why-should-you-share-your-customer-success-stories/).
**5\. Deliver Education**
Delivering insights is really about education. Suppose you become a diligent student of best practices in your industry and educate your clients and prospects every time you encounter them. In that case, they will value and anticipate every interaction with you. They will be eager to share their new resource (you) with others, which will help you develop new relationships and opportunities. Consider developing educational sessions either occasionally or regularly.
**6\. Share News, Trigger Events, and Insights from Their Industry**
If you share news, events, or insights from your industry with your prospects, it can add value to your meetings as long as they don't already know about it.
We can train our prospects and clients to see us as valuable resources, domain experts, and trusted advisors who can help them achieve the outcomes they desire by consistently delivering value in every encounter.
Our selling process is a sample of how we solve problems for our clients, and prospects are sampling our value on every encounter. They sum up their experiences with us and extrapolate them into what they think their future experiences will be with both us and the companies we represent.
## Download worksheets
---
[ Worksheets Bringing Value Worksheets - Bringing Value .pdf 59 KB download-circle ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/content/files/2022/09/Worksheets---Bringing-Value-.pdf "Download")
### Sales Process Is Moving But Not Closing? It’s Time To Check Your Objectives
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/sales-process-is-moving-but-not-closing-its-time-to-check-your-objectives/
Last updated: 2022-12-07T14:09:50.000Z
Salespeople are always ready to face challenges, that’s what we do for a living. But challenges themselves can range from interesting to absolutely annoying.
And one of the most annoying problems that we often face is that our prospect is moving but not closing.
Everything seems fine, your prospect is ready to meet you again and again but it doesn't bring any visible result and just transforms into months of a never-ending cycle.
Well, If you’ve ever faced this challenge and still can’t figure out how to hack this problem then this article is for you.
Here I will give you some major rules that will help you get an idea of what might be wrong with your process and, in turn, will help you to solve it.
So, let’s not waste our time and solve this problem together!
**Worksheets are available to download later below.**
If you want to be successful in sales, it is important to plan and one of the most important aspects of planning is to have the right objectives in mind.
So the problem here is that although research shows that having a plan correlates with sales success, many salespeople do not set realistic goals for themselves for each sale. And that’s how we start this article:
## RULE #1: Understand what objectives really mean.
The main idea of planning and goal setting is to be clear about what you want. When you have clarity, then you can take steps to achieve those goals. This includes being clear in both your conscious and unconscious mind.
And right here it's time to say that "closing the deal" - isn't good enough of an objective.
Because it's very hard to close a sale during the first conversation in most cases. So, it's much more realistic to close the sale on the last call. That is why it is important to know the difference between your overall sales objective and your individual call objectives.
You need to know what you want to accomplish with your sale (the overall sales objective) and what you want to accomplish on this particular call (the call objective).
Setting specific goals for each opportunity and each individual interaction will create a successful chain of advances that will ultimately lead to closing the sale and getting the deal.
What’s the crucial Difference Between Sales Objectives & Call Objectives?
- *Sales Objective* \- the revenue (or outcome) you anticipate generating by closing this particular sales encounter.
- *Call Objective* \- an advance or commitment that is the desired outcome of this particular sales encounter with this particular person or group.
There is a contrast between your ultimate goal in selling this specific opportunity and your goals for each individual sales call. The more clear these are for you, the more quickly you will reach your desired outcome.
## RULE #2\. Set realistic sales objectives.
People can often be confused about what they want and what they should do next.
Usually, when you meet with a potential customer, you have a goal in mind. This goal could be something that happens six months from now or it could happen during the next meeting. If you don't have a goal for the meeting, then there's no good reason for you to be there. Time is a valuable resource for everyone, so don't waste it by not having a plan.
Let's roll back here and state the attributes of the well-defined sales objectives:
1.It is related to a specific product or service.
2.It is specific and measurable.
3.It has a specific target date for completion.
4.It should be realistic from the client’s perspective.
Here is an important note, though: If you offer more than one product or service, then your sales objective should state how many products or services you want to sell.
To help you set realistic sales objectives you can create deadlines. Have a target date for completion and make sure all of your goals are realistic from the prospect's point of view.
You need to set this time frame in which you think this sales objective can be accomplished. And when setting this deadline, it's important to consider what the client is currently dealing with and make sure the timeframe is realistic for them.
So for every single sales objective, you should be able to answer the following:
- The client I am engaging is...
- The product/service I am trying to sell is...
- The amount of the product/service I am trying to sell is...
- The date for this to be completed is...
When you create a sales objective for each opportunity, you will be more clear about what you want to achieve, and when your objectives meet all important criteria (specific product, measurable, target date, and realistic), your sales forecast will be more accurate.
**Bonus Tip:** To create a realistic sales objective, you need to find out some things about your prospective client. This includes learning about their needs so you can figure out what products or services to offer them. If you haven't had the opportunity to do a lot of discovery or haven't talked to your prospective client yet, then:
1\. Do what research you can and
2\. Make discovery the main focus of your next meeting.
It's like a prescription without first diagnosing the problem - basically, malpractice. Once you have met with the client and determined the scope of their need, you can craft your sales objective.
So, to conclude this part of the article I want to state this:
Most professionals realize that they only have one or two of the four elements of a well-defined sales objective. This means that their objectives are not specific or measurable, which can make it difficult to achieve them.
Having a well-defined sales objective for each opportunity you encounter will make each interaction more effective. Take the time to create clear objectives for each opportunity you are working on so that you can be as successful as possible.
## RULE #3: Always differentiate between Advance, Continuation, and Close.
There are three concepts you need to know about selling: closing, advancing, and continuation.
- **Closing** is when someone agrees to buy your product.
- **Advancing** \- a significant action that requires energy from the client - either during the call or right after it.
- **Continuation -** the situation where the sales process will continue yet no specific action has been agreed upon by the customer to move forward.
It's very important to understand the difference between these three concepts because not knowing can cause your sales to drag on and on in a never-ending state of non-closure.
To illustrate the significant difference and true definitions of these three concepts I'll show you a perfect example written in the book "The Perfect Close: The Secret To Closing Sales" by James M Muir.
One of Muir's reps was absolutely convinced that he had a fantastic possibility on the line. The trouble was that a sales journey should have only taken a few months but was going on for much longer than that and still with no result.
Muir started digging into what was going on during each contact and visit with the potential client. As a result, some interesting patterns emerged.
Muir asked the rep several questions about conversations he had with the prospect and received these answers:
- From an early contact, “They mentioned they know client XYZ and really respect them. I sent them literature.”
- At an on-site visit, “I gathered a lot of great information.”
- During an early encounter, “It was great. I did a demonstration, and they said they were really impressed.”
- On a phone call, “They asked me to come to the office next time I was in the area.”
- Upon visiting, “They acknowledged that we have some really great stuff, and I offered them a sample project plan.”
- Yet another contact, “We did a second demo over the web.”
- A visit, “We had lunch and really strengthened our relationship.”
- “She thought it might make sense to see another demo.”
- On another visit, “I visited and collected some really useful information.”
- And yet another call, “I asked them if they wanted a proposal and cost estimate, and they agreed.”
Unfortunately, these positive responses are not what we need and they barely signify the prospect's engagement. The rep has performed a large number of tasks while the prospect hasn't put any energy into it.
Now, let me explain why.
As Muir stated none of those answers were advances. Instead, all of them were continuations. Remember, I put this story here to show you the particular difference between three concepts: closing, advancing, and continuation.
So, an advance is something the client does that gets the sale moving closer to a decision. This can be something the client does during or right after the call or a meeting.
The thing is, Muir's representative had done a lot of work while the client had done nothing. And, consequently, the core problem of this situation lay in the rep’s wrong understanding of advancing.
And this whole story brings us to the next rule.
## RULE #4\. Make your prospect active.
Going back to Muir's rep:
This is not that uncommon to see a rep's pipeline is full, a lot of tasks are keeping the rep busy, but the closing of sales is hard to come by and at the least it's unpredictable. Once he realized this and learned how to make advances instead, his results improved dramatically.
So, continuation is a situation where the sale will continue yet no specific action has been agreed upon by the customer to move forward, nor they have spent any energy. They simply ask you to do things for them or accept when you offer to do things for them.
There are two important things to look for when trying to figure out if a potential client is interested in what you have to offer. The first is how active they are. Are they asking questions and paying attention? The second is how much energy they're putting into it.
“The larger the sacrifice the client is willing to make to continue the process, the better the indicator that they are serious about moving forward, and therefore worth our investment of time”, says Muir in his book.
Offering to do everything for a potential client can prevent you from learning about their sense of urgency or commitment to the project.
Not making prospective clients commit to anything can prevent you from qualifying them and wasting your time on unqualified prospects. Although there is nothing wrong with offering free services, it is important to be strategic about how you offer them to get the most benefit.
But fair disclaimer here: you need to be careful when giving out free services to clients. They might not be willing to do anything in return, but they will still take advantage of what you're offering. If the client doesn't have to do anything to get the free service, it's not an advance.
If you're still a bit confused about what advances really are, then here are some examples:
▪ Arrange for you to meet with a higher-level decision maker
▪ Agree to meet with your technical team and invest time to discuss requirements and options
▪ Share sensitive information needed for an assessment
▪ Arranging a group meeting with executives for you to review the details of your proposed solution face-to-face
▪ Have a meeting or conversation with a reference customer you provided
All of these require both action and a decent amount of effort (or even personal risk in the case of the introduction).
Unfortunately, many people don't take much action when it comes to sharing information, strengthening relationships, and gathering information. This can lead to them not making any progress.
When someone agrees to take a step forward, they feel a strong compulsion to continue taking steps in the same direction. This is called consistency bias. So each advance they make, makes it more likely that our prospective clients will keep taking steps until they reach the final conclusion of the sale.
And closer a prospect is to the conclusion of the sales cycle, the more committed they are to it.
That's because when we feel like we're getting closer to our goal, we work even harder to achieve it. There are many things you can do to make your client feel like they're closer to their own objective than they realized and that they're making progress. And this, in turn, will help the prospect to achieve their goal faster.
*“These two things: commitment/consistency and endowed progress are the two primary psychological reasons why utilizing sales advances are so effective in improving sales outcomes.”*
## RULE #5: Always follow the rules of a quality objective.
As I said before, to be successful in sales calls and meetings, you need to set specific goals for each one. Really, it's important not to just hope that things will work out because that's not a strategy.
So, in short, what do you need to know about call objectives?
1. **Your call objectives should be specific and measurable.** This will help make sure that you know whether or not the objective was met at the end of the call. Having specific and measurable objectives makes it simple to determine whether or not the objective was successful.
2. **Make sure your call objectives are realistic.** You also want to make sure that your objectives for each call match where the prospect is in the sales cycle. For example, you probably won't be able to schedule a site visit to a plant on another continent before you discuss your initial value proposition with the prospect. This is because the prospect isn't ready for that yet.
3. **It is important to set call objectives that will require the client to take action**. This way, we can see how committed they are to moving the sale forward. If the client does not take any action, then it is not an advance. If the action the client takes does not require much effort, then it is not an advance.
Until professionals receive training it is extremely common for their call objectives to focus on what they, the professional, will do rather than being client-focused and centered on what we want the client to do.
When you finish your presentation, you may feel good about yourself. Your client may also feel good. But this feeling can blind you to their true commitment level. Only action and energy can show how committed the prospect is.
Coming back to Muir's examples, he has another great story to illustrate the problem of not understanding the prospect's level of commitment. The story basically describes a long selling process:
*"One of our reps had an opportunity where the estimated initial investment was north of $1 Million, and because the organization had many child companies, there would be many additional sales to follow.*
*Our rep’s primary contact was a new CIO at one of the child companies who had recently been hired from one of our existing accounts. Knowing of the change and the CIO’s support for our solution, our rep convinced him to let us do a demonstration and orientation as the first step."*
Rep skillfully went through every possible level of management and had the best conversations with them. Everything seemed fine, everyone was interested and ready to talk more. The process itself took months and it was reported that many of the demonstrations were spectacular and met with great response.
It went so well that the rep's offer gained attention from executive management and the deal was almost closed at that point (well, it seemed like it).
*"As our rep and the CIO discussed the proposal, the new CIO mentioned that his organization had a very onerous legal process. In response, our rep suggested we get them a copy of our standard agreement to which he agreed. This activity was translated by our rep as “they requested a copy of the contract.”*
*Our executive management team deemed this a very strong sign of progress and that’s when I was asked to get involved and meet with the newly hired CIO. What I discovered, unfortunately, was that the new CIO had very little influence on the rest of the organization and that he had agreed to everything—the demos, the proposal, and the sample agreement—because he was friends with our rep. He genuinely hoped that all the demos and meetings would create a grass-roots demand for a system change, but in reality, the executive management in his organization had a strategic commitment to their existing system and had no interest in switching."*
So, the whole key takeaway here is that their own activity as sales reps basically tricked them into believing that the company was interested in their solution.
But how did they miss it?
The answer is they didn't perform activities that required commitment from the prospect's side.
In order to be successful, it is important that you understand your client's perspective as well as your own.
Your primary objective as a sales rep is to help your clients take action because you do get paid based on the things our clients do.
*“In a generic sense, every sales encounter has the same goal—to get the prospective client to commit to an advance.”*
**Bonus Tip**: To make everything easier there is a technique for you to do right before each call. And this technique is called Three Magic Pre-call Questions.
Before any of your meetings answer the following three questions:
1.Why should this client see me?
2.What do I want the client to do?
3.How can I provide value to this encounter?
If you answer the three questions before each encounter, you will be more effective in what is your main objective for any sales meeting.
## Download worksheets
---
[ Worksheets Objectives Worksheets - Objectives.pdf 39 KB download-circle ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/content/files/2022/07/Worksheets---Objectives.pdf "Download")
### Why Your Sales Closing Are Not Consistent? And How Can You Make It Better?
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/why-your-sales-closing-are-not-consistent-and-how-can-you-make-it-better/
Last updated: 2022-09-27T02:30:30.000Z
Struggle with consistent closing is real. And sometimes even the most skilled salespeople can have deals that drag on for a long time.
In this article, I will cover some advice to make your closing more consistent.
Are you ready? Let’s go.
## Closing should be easy (for the prospect).
Before diving deeper into how and why you need to understand one simple thing - closing is all about the prospect’s wants and needs. One of the biggest mistakes salespeople can make is to push their prospects. They don’t listen, and they just push their prospect for a decision.
Even if you have good intentions, this tactic won’t work.
If you keep asking for the sale, it will not help you close the deal. In fact, it might make the buyer less likely to want to buy from you. So, you should stop asking for the sale multiple times during each meeting.
Hear me out, closing, for your prospect, must be easy - that's the ultimate secret of a repetitive close.
The truth is, the best closings are the ones that you can do without thinking. They must be natural, easy, and quick so they don't scare prospects away or seem like sales tactics.
## What exactly is closing, though?
Some salespeople see closing as “Doing whatever you have to do to get the customer to sign,” but it's the wrong mindset to go with.
Closing isn’t something you do to “get the customer to sign,” but rather it's how well-respected your product or service truly becomes in light of any challenges faced by potential customers when making their decision on who will provide them solutions to their problem.
Let's look at Neil Rackham's definition of a close: *“A close is anything that puts the customer in a position involving some kind of commitment.”*
This definition creates the right understanding of what closing really is. Because overall what you want to do is to advance your prospect deeper into your funnel and closer to their decision and all due to their own will. And this brings my point to the main closing facts (proven by research) that every salesperson needs to know.
### FACT 1\. Closing techniques will help you in losing the deal.
Some people believe that if they say a certain phrase, their client will be persuaded to buy whatever it is they are selling.
Neil Rackham found that salespeople who received training on closing techniques used these techniques more frequently. However, this did not result in increased sales success. In fact, because of the training, the number of sales calls that were successful decreased. Here is the quote:
*“Closing \[as a technique\] turned out to be negatively related to success. After the training, the sellers used more closing techniques—so in one sense the training was effective. However, because fewer calls succeeded, the overall effect of the training was a decrease in sales.”*
### FACT 2\. Each value proposition demands a tailored closing.
Some salespeople think that closing techniques work on all kinds of sales but the reality is a little far away from that.
According to Neil Rackham's study, when the value of what you're selling is small, using closing techniques will speed up the transaction time and increase the number of sales. However, as the value of what you're selling increases, using closing techniques becomes counterproductive and can actually slow down the sale.
Rackham describes the situation like this:
*"The psychological effect of pressure seems to be this. If I’m asking you to make a very small decision, then—if I pressure—it’s easier for you to say yes than to have an argument. Consequently, with a small decision, the effect of pressure is positive. But this isn’t so with large decisions. The bigger the decision, the more negatively people generally react to pressure.”*
*“By forcing the customer into a decision, closing techniques speed the sales transaction*.” And that, *“Closing techniques may increase the chances of making a sale with low-priced products. With expensive products or services, they reduce the chances of making a sale.”*
This is an important thing to know when you are trying to sell something. For example, if the value of what you are selling is lower than $99, you might want to use the Double-Reverse Close. But if your solutions are more expensive than that, using closing techniques will not work and might even make people not want to buy.
### FACT 3\. Closing techniques can damage the basis of trust.
Sometimes we think that using a technique means we're showing our serious intentions towards the prospect. This is true. If someone doesn't want the house, they won't bother trying to close the sale. This isn't really the issue though.
The real question is how your client sees your use of a closing technique.
Jon Hawes, James Strong, and Bernard Winick researched six closure techniques in a study: The Assumptive Close, Yes Set, Model/Example, Reciprocity, If-Then, and Impending Event.
The study showed that all of the techniques tested damaged trust. Predictably, the most manipulative techniques damaged trust the most.
In his book "The Perfect Close: The Secret To Closing Sales" James M Muir brilliantly states:
*"If you want to show your client you want their business—tell them. Or, do something special for them. There are far better ways to show you want the business than insulting them with a closing gambit."*
### FACT 4\. Closing techniques can trigger buyers' remorse.
You may think that clients are happier after they make a decision. This is because they have finished making choices and can now relax and using closing techniques on them is actually helping them.
So, pressuring or manipulating the client into a purchase is actually good for them.
But the truth is that most people are less satisfied with the decisions they make under pressure. This is especially true when it comes to purchasing decisions. If you want to avoid buyer remorse, cancellations, and left-field complaints after the sale then avoid this toxic mindset.
### FACT 5\. You are assisting buyers in reaching a decision that is in their best interests.
Here, after all of this negative talk about techniques, you may think that you shouldn't do anything for the close and it will close itself. But let me save you from going to extremes and explain.
Studies have shown that you need to make an effort to close the sale in order to be successful. The impact of not making any effort is much worse than the impact of closing techniques. For example, one study showed that asking just one closing question raised the percentage of successful sales from 25% to 61%.
The sad thing is that a large percentage of deals is not lost to competitors, it's lost to no-decision.
Depending on the sector, 20% to 80% of losses are due to no decision, with the average appearing to be 45% to 60%. So, the key message is that you play a part in assisting buyers in reaching a decision that is in their best interests.
Some salespeople will say that their efforts are not paying off. That they do their best and still have zero results. And usually, there are two main reasons why closing efforts fail:
1\. Salespeople and professionals do not try hard enough.
2\. When they do try, their approach does not work or is counterproductive.
Of these two, managers prefer to see the skill as the main problem because it can usually be fixed with training. But sometimes the problem lies deeper than that.
There are a few reasons why professionals might be reluctant to close business. They might be afraid of being pushy, or they might be worried about being humiliated if something goes wrong. They might also be afraid of not being prepared, or of losing the sale altogether. Whatever the reason, reluctance is usually caused by fear or shame.
If we think about how we talk to our clients, we can avoid being pushy. We can make replies to our questions predictable so that people don't feel embarrassed. We should keep our questions simple and helpful so that we don't need to prepare too much. By using a clever question, we can get useful replies that will
Listen, making money is a wonderful side effect of closing well.
But the truth is, life is more than making money.
People want you to help them make changes so they can be better. They expect you to help them make commitments and achieve their goals, and it’s a noble purpose to do this for them. So, accept the challenge and be their guide through the process.
You are the person that helps your client reach their goals. They will be grateful and thankful for you, crediting both skills and techniques in achieving success but it's really about having an attitude towards selling that makes all this work worthwhile.
For example, The Perfect Close (coined by James Muir) technique relies on your mindset and intent. So let's talk about finding those qualities within yourself.
## Why is mindset important for closing?
Well, this is my cue to introduce you to mirror neurons.
In academic definition, mirror neurons are a type of brain cell that respond equally when we perform an action and when we witness someone else perform the same action.
But what is important for us to know is that mirror neurons help us feel what other people feel. We can understand other people's points of view, and we can understand their intentions, too.
And this sub-conscious information is crucial for us and we need to be aware of these distinctions so that we understand the involuntary messages that our prospective clients are receiving from us.
How?
Thanks to psychologist Paul Ekman (who conducted phenomenal research on non-verbal communication back in the 1950s), we can understand the brief, involuntary facial expressions that come from our emotions. And these expressions usually happen in high-stakes situations where people have something to lose or gain.
Micro-expressions are brief, fleeting messages that escape your control. For example, they can be seen when you try to hide how you feel.
It’s worth understanding that your subconscious and autonomic systems are always working. They are reading the body language of other people to understand their intentions and emotions and all this subconsciously gained knowledge turns into a thing called paralanguage.
People can control how they sound when they talk. Most of the time, people express their attitudes on purpose. But sometimes people express their emotions without meaning to. So, even though paralanguage is not as important as visual cues, it is still important to be aware of how we sound when we speak.
And you may ask me, why the hell do we have this long science introduction? It's pretty simple:
Your prospective clients are noticing the way you act and the things you do without realizing it. This forms their overall opinion of you and this opinion, in turn, influences their decision in the future.
You can't control these things, you can't just feel the way you want to feel. And at the same time, your prospect is a walking x-ray (as well as you are) and they can feel your intentions.
And this long introduction brings us to the main point I was trying to emphasize. Yes, you can't control your emotions, BUT you can successfully manipulate them and that's where the right mindset steps in.
With the right mindset, your body will naturally form positive micro-expressions, deliver the ideal tonality, and show the emotions you want your client to empathize with. This will help create trust and rapport.
## But what is the “Right Mindset”?
From a psychological perspective, our brain immediately assesses whether we are dealing with an ally or enemy. Because the first step in trusting someone is to figure out if they are capable of following through with what they say.
This, in turn, is also the first step in figuring out if someone is competent.
Here we need to talk more about definitions.
Attributes are qualities that something has. For example, "Her voice has a warm tone," describes an attribute of someone's voice. Traits are general behavior tendencies that a particular attribute produces. For example, "Her warm voice makes her very considerate and approachable."
The warmth attribute displays traits related to how people feel about your intent, how friendly you seem, how helpful you are, how sincere you appear, how trustworthy people think you are, and how moral they believe you to be.
When customers sense that you are only looking out for yourself, they become less inclined to trust your advice or recommendations. As one client put it: “He had such thirsty eyes; I could tell he wasn't really interested in my company."
This caused them not only to refuse but also to become resentful towards this particular individual's efforts on their behalf because there seemed no genuine effort behind his presentation.
That is exactly the type of feeling we are trying to avoid.
It is often hard not to think about what we can get out of interaction when the opportunity is big. We may have good intentions, but it is easy to forget them when we are focused on what we can gain.
There are two determinations that buyers are making each time they meet the salesperson:
1.What is this person’s intent (good or bad)?
2.Does this person have the ability to execute that intention?
There is not the most pleasant truth: When the prospect wants to buy something that is new to them, the sales agent can take advantage of the prospect because the prospect isn't experienced. Let's be honest, it happened to me and it happened to you.
We are vulnerable because we don't know as much as the sales agent does. So the main point here is that we want to make the prospect trust us, we want to show them that our intent is clear and all we want is to help.
## How do I get myself into the right mindset?
There are three simple steps you can take before any interaction to adopt the right mindset:
### 1\. Lose the Ego
Having a strong sense of self-esteem is important to feeling competent. However, it's important to be warm and seem like you want what's best for the prospect in a sales situation. That way, the prospect will feel like you're on their side and you're not above them (with all that knowledge that you have)
When you are in a state of ego-driven desires, your body sends out the wrong signals. By losing your ego your body will transmit the right messages and will show your intent in the best way possible.
### 2\. Create Positive Emotion
It's time to use a Positive Recall technique: think of a time when you felt really friendly and helpful. Remember what it felt like to be sincere, trustworthy, and moral. Try to relive that experience.
As well as that you can try The Posture technique. Amy Cuddy and Dana Carney recently discovered that the way you hold your body affects your emotions and hormone levels.
People can improve their hormone response by pretending to feel a certain way. For example, if someone wants to feel more powerful, they can try sitting or standing in power poses. This will increase their testosterone levels, decrease their cortisol levels, and make them more willing to take risks.
### 3\. Enter with the Right Intent
Positive self-talk is a great way to improve your performance in everything from decision-making and strategy formulation all the way down to academics. One thing you should make sure of though, before engaging with someone or talking yourself up so much that it sounds fake - think about how they might feel when hearing those words come out of their mouth later on downstream!
*“I’m curious to learn how I can best help these people. I’m thrilled to find out what I can do for them.”* These statements (when said genuinely) will cause you to project the right intentions to others.
Remember, warmth is weighted heavier than competence because the potential client is outside of their area of expertise. So it's vital to project the proper mindset.
### Bonus tip:
It is important to be warm and sincere when you first meet someone. This is when they will form judgments about your intentions. If your words and body language match, it will make a good impression on them.
There are many ways to let clients know what you can do for them. You need to adjust your message depending on the meeting. Sometimes, it is better to be short and sweet. Just say something along the line:
*“What I’ve come to learn after X years in the business is that every client is unique. So our goal is to get you a solution that is exactly what you want. Most of the time we can do that—but not always—and by working together, we can identify all the dimensions*
You want to make sure that you are providing the prospect with what they need. And you'll do this by finding a solution that meets their needs exactly. This way, we can move through the process of understanding each other smoothly.
### Ultimate Guide to preparing your startup to launch in the USA
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/ultimate-guide-to-preparing-your-startup-to-launch-in-the-usa/
Last updated: 2023-05-07T22:02:55.000Z
This guide is developed in collaboration with [Kaya Stattmiller](https://www.linkedin.com/in/kstattmiller/?ref=revenueinsideout.com), founder of Linque, and in partnership with Sean Sheppard, founder of [Growthx](https://growthx.com/?ref=revenueinsideout.com). Designs are provided by [Andy Stattmiller](http://www.andystattmiller.com/?ref=revenueinsideout.com).
**Worksheets are available to download later below.**
As the CEO of a growing company, one of your biggest decisions is expanding overseas. The US market is large and dynamic, leading to a constant demand for innovation.
A company that can meet this demand can secure predictable and scalable revenue growth. Also, the innovations and improvements the company develops for the US market can give you a competitive advantage in other markets.
Yet in such an aggressive market, a hasty move can cost you that opportunity.
Too often, international CEOs fall short in the USA because they don’t understand the United States. English is the international language, and American culture is everywhere, so many founders believe that they know all they need to know about the USA.
The real story though is in the differences between the US market and the markets they know: They aren’t prepared for American needs and tastes, or the tough competition of American companies.
Founders are eager to make fast sales and often don’t realize how important their company’s readiness and product-market fit are for the new market.
More often than not this results in costly failures. Expanding to the US market is risky, but a methodical approach can greatly increase your chances of success while reducing the cost of failure.
The scope of this guide is to provide international founders with a blueprint of how to prepare for the US market in order to maximize the efforts and results and focus on what matters the most — acquisition of new customers and not losing any opportunities that come their way.
## The Basics
Before we dive into the step-by-step process of preparation for the US market, this section sheds some light on some related fundamental elements, that in our experience not all founders are aware of.
Even if you are an experienced entrepreneur it might be worthwhile to quickly review the basics of:
****· When and How to Enter a New Market?**
****· Methodical approach**
****· Product — Market Fit**
### When and How to Enter a New Market?
When and how are two fundamental questions that all founders ask themselves when they consider expanding.
There is no one-size-fits-all strategy, but there are patterns that founders should take into consideration.
[Jason Davis](https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-davis-12075240/?ref=revenueinsideout.com), former MIT Sloan School of Management Professor and current INSEAD Professor conducted [research](https://www.insead.edu/sites/default/files/assets/faculty-personal-site/jason-p-davis/documents/Papers/Going%20Global%5FMIT%20SLoan.pdf?ref=revenueinsideout.com) that sheds some light on this matter. Here are his key findings:
****Timing***
Timing is everything nowadays in almost all aspects of business, and the same is true with new market entry.
Today’s companies can no longer afford to wait until they become major players in their home market before they go international. ****The sooner they expand into new regions and markets, the faster they will grow.**
****Single market or global?***
Definitely enter ****one new country at a time.** This allows your company to consolidate and digest the new experience before entering the next market.
It is highly recommended to test your product first in a smaller market before entering a larger market like the U.S.
****Seeding or soloing? It’s all about learning.***
Successful companies use two dominant strategies when entering new markets: seeding and soloing.
****Seeding** is when executives begin learning about foreign market entry by looking at what others have done or by seeking advice from experienced consultants or experts.
****Soloing** is when managers learn about a foreign market through experimentation or improvisation, and then rely on similar approaches over time.
Jason Davis’s research shows that soloing companies, in the first two new countries they entered, took less time to capture their first sale, took less time to break even, and reported higher overall ratings of success than the seeding companies.
But while companies that used seeding did not perform as well initially, they performed better in the long run — when they entered their third and fourth international markets. No matter the method, you need to be ready to learn quickly and learn a lot!
****Team***
Lastly, Jason Davis’s research reveals another very important insight — the importance of a ****team’s quality.**
Companies with management teams that have broad international business experience are more successful than those whose managers lack it.
Companies with a broad and diverse management team tend to lean more heavily on seeding and are therefore more successful in the long term. They have a bigger network so the knowledge they gain from others is much greater and richer.
### Methodical approach
> Products and markets are unique, but the path to product-market fit is not. - Sean Sheppard
Every product is unique and so is its journey. Nonetheless, each goes through the same steps or phases from its ideation to success.
This is also true for introducing products or services in a new market. Knowing the steps and where you are on the path can help you stay focused and take the right actions.
For example, there is no point in worrying about scaling your sales process or hiring when you have no customers.
By focusing on the right questions and tasks at the right time, you can execute without feeling overwhelmed or getting burned out. Not to mention a systematic approach usually helps to prevent unnecessary mistakes and find the truth early. This leads to smoother processes and faster results.
If you follow a proven method of learning, testing, measuring, and validating, you’ll be able to decide whether you should iterate or you are ready to scale.
This process allows you to create a functional learning organization, find the proverbial product-market fit, and begin to generate predictable, profitable, and scalable revenue, or hit the traction milestones you need to ultimately secure your next round of funding.
Our experience has shown that during the early stages of a company, having a data-informed and market-validated awareness of the predictability, profitability, and scalability of revenue is far more important than the sheer volume of revenue.
### Product - Market Fit
There is no doubt that the best early customers are the ones in your backyard. Physical proximity to them helps you to get rich feedback and reach product-market fit faster.
Unless you plan to move to the US early on, it’s usually a good idea to confirm the problem that you solve and prove the benefits of your solution/product with customers that are located near you.
****For the purpose of this guide, we assume you have traction and steady growth in your home market.** This means your product or service is solving a problem and satisfying a need that people are paying for. Congratulations, you have a product-market fit.
However, do not let your local product-market fit mislead you. Success in your home market is no guarantee of success in the US market. Understanding your market fit is vital to any company that wishes to enter the USA.
When entering the US market, you need to refine your product-market fit. Even if you have already done these things in your existing markets, remember that the US market is unique. Be prepared to do this work again as you enter this market.
At this point, we would quickly like to remind you of the basic reasons why companies lack product/market fit. As Clement Vouillon explains in [his article](https://openviewpartners.com/blog/product-market-fit/?ref=revenueinsideout.com#.XkF2DxdwmfX), you might identify yourself with one of the ****3 main scenarios**:
1. Nothing is aligned: you have an idea, but you are not sure yet who your customers are and how to market your product/services to them.
2. There is no market or the product is not good enough.
a) When your product answers a need that is a “nice to have” and not a “must-have” and it’s hard to make users excited and generate repeat business, it means that there is no market.
b) If competing products are better-known, or your current product just doesn’t answer the needs of the customer well enough this means that your product is not good enough.
3. Distribution is broken: You have a product that answers a clear need for defined customers but your distribution doesn’t follow. Your customers are happy, but you have a few repeat customers and poor lead generation. This can be because:
a) You don’t know how to “market” your solution yet. New solutions or complex products can be extremely hard to explain and market to the end-users. Learning how to market a product can be a long and difficult process.
b) The sales model is not adapted. For example, you sell to Small and Medium Businesses (SMBs) in your local market, but don’t have a lead generation engine that scales to larger companies. Or you sell to the enterprise market but don’t have a great sales team, or your end-user is not the real decision-maker, etc.
c) Distribution brings the wrong type of customers. It’s totally possible to have a marketing team that performs well in terms of lead volume but that brings the wrong type of leads.
Whichever scenario applies to you, keep these points in mind when you evaluate product-market fit in the USA:
- Learn how your competitors solve your customers’ problems. This will help you emphasize the advantages of your solution for the US market.
- Be your own worst critic, and never assume that your solution is the best. You need to study your market deeply, until you know your customers’ problems as well as they do, if not better. Only then can you be confident that you are competitive.
- Don’t underestimate your customer’s urgency — customers solve urgent problems first. This is the difference between a necessity and a luxury — between a real pain point and “nice to have.” If your customers are out of time and money before they even consider the problem you solve, then you don’t have a market.
## The Approach
As we stated in the section Methodical approach, the process of entering a new market is similar for most types of companies. Knowing the steps and where you are on this path can help you stay focused, take the right action, and lower the risk and cost of failure.
We want to share with you the approach we have developed while helping international companies to enter and tap into the US market.
On a high level, entering the US market consists of 3 main phases:
In short, **Market Preparation** is about checking whether you are ready for the US market and building your hypothesis about potential customers in the US.
****Validation** is about testing your hypothesis and determining whether you can scale in the US market. If your hypothesis is right, it allows you to build the first version of a market playbook for the US market.
****Scaling** is about testing, measuring, and pivoting accordingly to the market playbook that you created during the Validation to scale in the US.
****As the title of this guide suggests, it focuses on Market Preparation, which consists of the following steps:**
## Step 1: Company Snapshot
****How ready are you for the US market?**
****Company Snapshot** is the first step to the US market. Before taking any further steps, you need to answer the fundamental questions about whether you are internally ready. Being internally ready means having resources to support early market presence and having sales, marketing, and product development process in place and optimized to support early scaling.
You can check how ready you are by following these activities:
During ****Company Review**, you want to analyze your company to create a map of the people, processes, and technologies. Later during the Customer’s Review, you will compare the data from Customer’s Review against your Company Review data to learn whether your sales and marketing approach led to the acquisition of your customers.
The goal of ****Customer Review** is to learn what kind of customers your company is acquiring and how they really were acquired, as opposed to the previous activity where we were just mapping your approach to sales and marketing along with technologies used. You will do it by taking a deep dive into your current accounts. Later, this data will also help you to build your Ideal Customer Profile(s).
### ****Step 1 \- Activity 1: Company Review**
The Company Review consist of the following activities:
****Company Resource Mapping — *What resources do you have available today?***
The goal of this activity is to learn about your company’s internal capabilities. This information will help you later during Market Outreach and Market Scaling to explore how these resources and capabilities can be adapted to increase competitive advantage in the US market.
A company’s resources can be divided into three basic stacks: tangible, intangible, and human resources.
Tangible assets are typically financial and physical resources to which the company has access to. Intangible assets are — for example — patents and technology, brand names, valuable relationships, exclusivity contracts, etc. Human resources and capabilities, on the other hand, enable these tangible and intangible resources to create value and a competitive advantage for the company.
During this activity, you will have ****three tasks**:
1. Create a list of all tangible assets with the necessary details.
2. Create a list of all intangible assets with the necessary details.
3. Identify each team member’s roles and responsibilities (in-depth) on both the market and product sides.
a) Identify the distribution of time between roles and responsibilities.
b) Identify and pinpoint opportunities for specialization.
c) Identify and pinpoint potential capacity stress factors and necessary hires to scale.
d) Gain clarity on the product and market-focused teams.
Use the following templates to complete these tasks.
****Tangible / Intangible assets:**
**Who should perform this task: Founder | Product Manager | Head of Sales*
****Team members:**
**Who should perform this task: Founder | Product Manager | Head of Sales*
****Marketing Process Mapping — How do you generate inbound leads today?***
The goal of this activity is to map the company’s approach to generating inbound leads in the current market(s).
Later during the Customer’s Review, this map will help you to determine how effective your marketing efforts have been so far and which one can be improved. You may skip this step if you do not generate any inbound leads at this stage.
Process mapping is a visual way of identifying activities, tasks, and steps in a work process. Process mapping defines what gets done in a process, who does what, and what is produced at each stage.
A process map is a flowchart that can be drawn from a “higher altitude” to show only the major parts of a process, or from a more detailed, “lower altitude” perspective to show all activities, tasks, and steps that go into the process.
The following everyday example shows you how process mapping looks in practice:
Getting back to the marketing process, a higher altitude process map covers all stages from the selection of channels through which a potential customer can reach out to you to become a lead and continue through prioritization to becoming sales-ready. This should also include who is doing what and which tools are used.
Map all the activities, tasks, and steps of your marketing process based on your marketing playbook or any other documents that provide guidelines and instructions for your marketing efforts.
You should also interview employees responsible for marketing. Your employees will be your main source of information if you do not have any internal documents about your marketing efforts.
During the mapping of your existing marketing process, you have to answer the following questions:
1. **What are your current marketing channels?*
2. **What is the number of inbound leads per month/year per channel?*
3. **What is the overall number of inbound leads per month/year across all channels?*
4. **What is your monthly/annual budget per channel?*
5. **What are your inbound leads’ prioritization criteria per channel?*
6. **How many leads are handled to the sales team as sales-ready per channel?*
7. **Who is responsible for each channel?*
8. **What tools do you use for each channel?*
9. **What is your average cost of acquiring each lead per channel?*
10. **What is your average cost of acquiring each qualified lead per channel?*
The following template will help you to do that.
**Who should perform this task: Founder | Marketing Manager*
Additionally, you should know the answers to the following questions:
1. **Is your website in English?*
2. **Is your website Search Engine Optimized (SEO)?*
3. **Do you have a content marketing strategy?*
4. **Do you have any content in English?*
5. **Do you use social media? If yes, how often?*
6. **Do you have a lead nurturing process?*
7. **Do you have a lead scoring system?*
**Who should perform this task: Founder | Marketing Manager*
****Sales Process Mapping — How do you reach out to potential customers and close deals today?***
The goal here is to map the company’s approach to generating sales in the current market(s). This will help you later in the Customer’s Review to determine how effective your sales efforts have been so far and which one can be improved.
We have found that by mapping your sales process, people in various areas of the company learn how they all fit together to contribute and create value for the company to achieve the ultimate goal, which is sales.
In sales, a higher altitude process map covers all stages from a lead being sales-ready (at the end of the marketing process) to closing or losing the deal. It will also include outbound efforts that are handled by the sales team from the very beginning. The map should also include who is doing what, and which tools are used at each stage.
Map all the activities, tasks, and steps of your sales process based on your sales playbook or any other documents that provide guidelines and instructions for sales. You should also interview employees responsible for sales. Your employees will be your main source of information if you do not have any internal documents about your sales efforts.
When mapping your existing sales process, you have to answer the following questions:
1. **What is the number of outbound leads that you generated per month/year?*
2. **Out of all outbound leads, how many are qualified per month/year?*
3. **What is the number of deals won and lost per month/year?*
4. **What is the churn rate per month/year (If applicable)?*
5. **What are your outbound lead qualification criteria?*
6. **What does your qualification process look like?*
7. **How long is your average sales cycle?*
8. **What is your cost of acquiring each customer through outbound?*
9. **What are the most common friction points in the sales cycle?*
10. **Do you have any supporting marketing collateral prepared for salespeople to send to prospects?*
11. **What system do you use currently to track sales performance & metrics (e.g. CRM, Google Docs, etc)?*
12. **How are the responsibilities shared among team members for the sales process?*
13. **What are your conversion metrics at each stage of your sales process?*
14. **What is your pricing model?*
You can document those answers in any way.
**Who should perform this task: Founder | Head of Sales*
### ****Step 1 \- Activity 2: Customer's Review**
Once again, **the goal** of this phase is to learn what kind of customers your company is acquiring and how they really were acquired, as opposed to the previous phase where we were just mapping your approach to sales and marketing.
We will do it by taking a deep dive into your current accounts. Here you will also compare the data from the previous phase to learn whether your sales and marketing approach led to the acquisition of your customers.
Later in Outreach Preparation, it will also help you to build your Ideal Customer Profile(s).
The Customer’s Review consists of the following activities:
****The Customer’s Profile Map — *Who did pay for your solution until now?***
The Customer’s Profile exercise asks you to lay out all of your customers for analysis. You will list out the granular details about each of your current and past customers to identify customer trends and characteristics.
Later, during the Outreach Preparation phase, it will help you to build your Ideal Customer Profiles (ICP) for your current market(s) and build hypotheses for the US.
Additionally, it will help you to deeply understand the pain points that your customers face, and how your product is solving them.
Fill out the account review template below in as much detail as possible — the more detail, the better you can build your ICP later on. By now, you should be able to ****answer the following questions**:
1. **Who are your past and existing customers? What do they use your product for?*
2. **Which industry(ies) do they belong to?*
3. **Where are they located?*
4. **What is their size in terms of employees and revenue?*
5. **What is the ideal size for each customer? What is the average deal size?*
6. **One-time or recurring (active) customer?*
7. **When was each customer acquired? How long they have been using your product?*
8. **What is the current status? Why did they churn (if applicable)?*
9. **Who are the decision-makers? Who are the influencers? Is there more than one decision-maker in the sales process? Who are they?*
10. **What specific reasons can you identify for why that deal was won?*
11. **How, how much, and how often are they currently using your product?*
12. **How many market segments do you have?*
13. **How many customers do you have in each segment?*
14. **Does each segment have the same use case? Why or why not?*
15. **What is the most common use case of my product? What features are they using and why?*
16. **Can you identify any trends across your current accounts and customers?*
17. **What is your hypothesis for classifying a good customer vs. a bad customer?*
Use this template to do it:
**Who should perform this task: Head of Sales | Founder | Customer Success Manager | Product Manager*
**Who should perform this task: Head of Sales | Founder | Customer Success Manager | Product Manager*
****Customer Acquisition Map — *How did you actually acquire each of your customers?***
In the Company Review phase, you analyzed your approach to sales and marketing according to your playbooks, interviews with your employees, and other documents that provide guidelines and strategies for sales and marketing.
****The goal** of this activity is to analyze how your company has really acquired customers. This activity will help you to understand where the leads are coming from, of what size, how much time it takes to close the deal, who generates the most leads, and who closes the most deals.
Later, during the Sales Funnel Review, it will help you to determine whether your approach to sales and marketing led to the acquisition of your customers.
Take the list of accounts that you created in the previous activity and map backward each customer’s acquisition path step by step in the following order:
1. From lead creation to qualification. Gather the following information:
- **Who brought the lead and how? Inbound or outbound? What was the channel?*
- **How many touchpoints did it take to qualify for the lead?*
- **What type of touchpoints?*
- **What kinds of sales and marketing* materials *were used?*
- **Who did what?*
2\. From the lead qualified to deal won, gather the following information:
- **How many touchpoints did it take to close the deal?*
- **What type of touchpoints?*
- **What kinds of marketing and sales materials were used?*
- **Who did what?*
3\. What is the length of the sales cycle for each customer?
4\. What customer type had the shortest sales cycle? Why? What customer type had the longest sales cycle? Why?
Put everything in a spreadsheet for easy comparison. The template spreadsheet you can find below.
**Who should perform this task: Founder | Head of Sales | Marketing Manager*
**Who should perform this task: Founder | Head of Sales | Marketing Manager*
****Customer Journey Map — *How do your customers experience your product?***
For marketing, sales, and customer success purposes, mapping out your customer journey is a way to illustrate each customer’s buying process and the benefits they receive from your product or service.
While a customer journey map can take several forms, the goal is the same: to teach you and your team about your customers — how your customers discover their needs, how they learn about your product, what factors they consider before purchasing, how they engage with it post-purchase and what information they request at each stage of the journey.
Later, during Market Outreach and Scaling, it will help you to move customers from one stage to the next as quickly and smoothly as possible.
In order to accurately chart your customer journey, these are the following key steps you must complete:
1. Identify your customer lifecycle stages. One example of customer journey stages can be: Need, Awareness, Consideration, Selection/Purchase, Experience/Training, Loyalty, and Advocacy.
2. Identify Indicators. List down all the indicators that help you to identify which stage your customers are in. At this step, you further recognize what value (or not) your customers see at each stage.
3. Identify your activities that help customers move through the stages. List for each stage how you help your customers today to move to the next stage in their lifecycle. Identify the people who perform these activities and the tools they use.
4. Identify content strategy. List for each stage the types of content that you use to move customers to the next stage in their lifecycle.
Use the template below to perform this exercise.
**Who should perform this task: Founder | Head of Sales | Marketing Manager*
****Funnel Map — *How do your current sales funnel look like?***
In this activity, combine the data that you gathered during Marketing Process Mapping and Sales Process Mapping to create your complete sales funnel.
Now you can compare this with Customer’s Acquisition Mapping. The goal is to learn which parts of your marketing and sales process/funnel actually led to the acquisition of your customers.
Additionally, you need to analyze what strategies and techniques lead to customer acquisition and reallocate your resources accordingly. In terms of things that don’t work, you should dig deeper to determine whether they don’t work: because they are not a fit for your type of business, or whether they weren’t conducted in an effective way.
Once you discard the parts that are not working, you end up with a complete sales funnel that is actually working for you.
Later it will help to organize your sales and marketing approach for Market Outreach. Remember, only being internally ready can maximize your efforts and results and focus on what matters the most — acquisition of new customers and not losing any opportunities that come your way.
**Who should perform this activity: Founder | Head of Sales*
## ****Step 2: Competitive Analysis**
****How do other solutions solve the same problem?**
Even if your product or service is very competitive in your local market, the American market may have innovations or issues that you haven’t considered. Study your US competitors and learn about their products.
> Brian Stolle wrote in [Forbes magazine](http://www.forbes.com/sites/bryanstolle/2016/03/09/where-productmarket-fit-breaks-down?ref=revenueinsideout.com), “The best entrepreneurs know their competitors’ products as well as their own, and are honest and frank with themselves and their team about the competitors’ advantages.”
Allan Leinwand, CTO of ServiceNow said during [Norwest Product Summit](http://www.nvp.com/blog/achieving-maintaining-productmarket-fit/?ref=revenueinsideout.com)
> “buying decisions are often justified by specific product features or a price point. However, these factors are not actually the primary sales drivers: motivation for a purchase usually lies in achieving a competitive advantage, reducing costs, and/or resolving a top pain point.”
Learn how your competitors solve your customers’ problems. This will help you emphasize the advantages of your solution, and you can begin to shape your own product to meet the needs of the US market.
Sometimes a company can have hundreds of competitors and substitute products. More often a small number (3–8) of key products/companies dominate the niche you are focusing on. While you can treat hundreds of competitors as a class or category, you must have a deep understanding of the key products and companies.
Use the template below to document a detailed comparison with your competitors. Remember that this is a continuously evolving document as your competition is changing all the time. It is recommended to review this every few months.
**Who should perform this activity: Founder | Head of Sales | Marketing Manager*
**Who should perform this activity: Founder | Head of Sales | Marketing Manager*
## Step 3: Ideal Customers Profiles (ICPs)
****Who are your ideal customers?**
The Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) is not your Total Addressable Market or your Total Available Market. These are estimates of your market size — the total of all potential customers.
ICP is not your “target customer,” which might be any company that would buy your product or service.
The ICP describes your most valuable customers and the prospects that are most likely to buy. It is a composite description of an organization (company, government agency, or non-profit) that derives particular value from your offering, and provides exceptional value to you in return.
A lot of founders are afraid to narrow down and focus on one ICP because of Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) among other customers. But in reality, if you don’t focus then you end up trying to sell everything to everyone.
Your marketing and sales become vague and it becomes difficult for any customer to see how your offering applies to their problem. In the end, you don’t connect with anybody including your ideal customers.
Understand that the goal of creating your ICP is not about determining the only type of customer you ever focus on, it’s about focusing on your ideal customer at a particular time, stage, and situation of your company and product.
Later you will use this information to construct your data acquisition, outreach strategy, buyer personas, and messaging and fill your sales pipeline with great leads.
****Below** is a step-by-step approach to defining ICPs
1. Identify and list your customer segments by analyzing your customer profile mapping across the existing customer base. If there are additional potential customer segments not in your current customer base, add them.
2. Dive deeper! Do additional research to further understand who the customer is, what pain points they face, and how your product solves their pain points. Understand what differentiates you from competitors solving their needs.
3. Make an ICP for each segment of customers using the following template:
**Who should perform this activity: Founder | Head of Sales | Marketing Manager*
**Who should perform this activity: Founder | Head of Sales | Marketing Manager*
Now in order to ****prioritize your ICPs, follow those three steps**:
1. Define one or more specific goals you wish to achieve at this stage. This can also be the value you need most from your customers. For example, goals can be — X number of new customers with Y average annual revenue, X number of customer advocates, etc.
2. Define a time frame to achieve this goal. Three to six months is generally a good time frame to start with, but it really depends. This is where you consider parameters that can affect your goal like your typical sales cycle, number of touchpoints, etc. from customer profile mapping.
3. Prioritize these ICPs based on the goal and time frame you decided in steps 1 and 2\. Revise goal, timeframe, and ICPs if needed until you have a clear fit between one or more ICPs with goals and timeframe.
Use the following template to perform this exercise.
**Who should perform this activity: Founder | Head of Sales | Marketing Manager*
Remember that these are hypotheses that have to be edited as you learn more about your customer segments.
These ICPs will be your first hypotheses about the ICPs in the US market. However, just as in your current market(s), you should prioritize them to meet the goal and timeline of Market Outreach. In order to do so, repeat the 3 step approach to prioritization from above to choose ICPs that are going to be the best fit for Market Outreach.
**Who should perform this activity: Founder | Head of Sales | Marketing Manager*
## Step 4: Buyer Personas for ICPs in the USA
****Decision-makers are humans, what do you know about them?**
Your ICPs describe potential customer companies but never forget that the decision-makers at those companies are individuals with their own needs, ideas, and constraints.
You need a deep understanding of those drivers to guide your content creation, sales channels, product features, sales techniques, and nearly every other aspect of your sales, marketing, and retention.
Buyer personas give you this understanding. They are fictional composites of the people who actually have the power to pull the trigger on a purchasing decision.
Ideally, you will make a separate buyer persona for each type of decision-maker in your markets. Think about why those people bought your product? What features do they use the most? What problems do you solve for each of them?
Building on your ICPs, collect the following information:
1. Create a list containing titles of the decision-makers from your past and existing customers that match each of your ICPs.
2. Find 5–10 companies in that USA that are most closely one of the ICPs in your current market(s).
3. Find names and profiles of titles from step 1 in each company from step 2.
4. Dive deep into these profiles to [create buyer personas](https://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/33491/everything-marketers-need-to-research-create-detailed-buyer-personas-template.aspx?ref=revenueinsideout.com).
**Who should perform this activity: Founder | Head of Sales | Marketing Manager*
## Step 5: Pricing
****How much your customers are willing to pay for your solution?**
The fastest and most effective way for a company to realize its maximum profit is ****to get its pricing right.** Setting the right price, however, is a process and can be difficult when a company is first (or one of the first) to market
All too often, companies charge well below or much higher than the real value of their product or service. This exercise will help you evade the pricing problem by helping you develop a pricing hypothesis that can be tested against the US market.
Let’s start with your current pricing. Based on the pricing model and the number of customers, define your ideal average deal size. Now, take the average deal size that you defined while creating the Customer Profile Map and compare it to your ideal average deal size according to your pricing
If they are close to each other, then it means your pricing is working and you got it right. You can just take it and test it in the USA market.
If your average deal size based on your pricing model is much higher than your average deal size, then your pricing is too high and you are giving a lot of discounts.
If your average deal size is higher than your average deal size based on the pricing model, it means that your pricing model is not adequate for what you offer and you customize it for different customers.
In both of those scenarios, we recommend the following exercise in order to decide on the pricing model that you are going to test in the US.
****1\. What are your current business goals?**
Consider the goal you created while discovering your ICPs in the last steps. Is this still compatible with your ICPs and buyer personas for the US market? If yes, keep this goal in mind while defining the pricing strategy. However, if you think it is not compatible, step back to identify the mismatch until these three pieces fit together: your current goal, ICP for the US, and buyer personas.
****2\. Analyze the market and the competition’s pricing.**
Once you are clear about your strategy, you can move on to address external factors such as competition and substitute products. Simply spend some time listing and analyzing the packages and pricing of your competitors.
While focusing on your competitors, do not forget to check substitute products that can solve the customer’s problem in a very different way. The biggest competitor for a business class seat in one airline is not another airline but a good web-conferencing system.
****3\. Analyze your target audience.**
Steps 1 and 2 give you a direction but always define your pricing based on the value you provide to your customer. This is called Value-based pricing. What does your product help your customers with? Does it save time/money? Does it help them make more money? Does it help to reduce risk? Does it help them to comply with regulations?
Always try to put a dollar amount for the value a customer gets by using your product. Value-based pricing has two main benefits. First, you can potentially start with a higher price point if you can show a higher value add and willingness to pay among your customers. Second, you can raise your prices as you find out more about your customers and add features to your product providing more value.
****4\. Define pricing options and packages**
Most companies have more than one type of customer or target market segment. In such cases, we advise you to break down your market segments into 3–5 ICPs. Find out as much qualitative and quantitative information as you can for each ICP with extensive research.
Based on your research and current customers, list all features and the main value proposition each ICP is looking for. In the end convert this into dollar amounts both in terms of the value proposition, customer acquisition cost (CAC) and lifetime value (LTV). This will not only define your packages and pricing for each ICP but also might tell you that some ICPs are not worth targeting.
****5\. Comparison**
Now take your current pricing model and compare it with what you have created in this exercise. If they are very different, we recommend testing the new pricing in the US market. If they are not, that means that your pricing is right and you need to dig deep to answer the question of why you give so many discounts or you customize pricing.
**Who should perform this activity: Founder | Head of Sale*
## Step 6: Market Messaging, UVP, and USP
****What do you say to your prospects to get them excited about your solution?**
Great customer experience with your company starts with the right messaging. It means focusing on what your customers need as opposed to what you offer.
Customers do not care nearly as much about features and what technology you use to build/deliver your product; they need to know at a high level if you and your product or service can solve their problem(s) and what benefits it can bring.
They need to know your Unique Value Proposition (UVP). The goal here is to design the first messaging for ICPs and buyer personas for each channel that you later plan to use in Market Outreach.
****What Is Market Messaging?**
The right market messaging allows you to ****convert new customers**, as well as reinforce to your existing customers that they’ve ****made the right choices**.
Effective market messaging is based on understanding who your customer is, how your product or service benefits them, and how your company ****delivers value**.
To deliver the right market messaging, you need to understand your customers, especially their pain points, how they address them without your solution, and how your product can change it.
Crucial at this point is to interview your current customers to discover how your product impacted them — for example, “Your tool helped us to speed up the sales process by 20%”. Any data that you can get from your customers would help you to create more powerful messaging, especially unique selling points.
As you probably have no or few customers in the USA, your first messaging will be based on your current customers’ needs and so may not resonate with your American customers. But that’s ok; it’s a good starting point. However, you should set up an A/B testing process and keep adjusting your messaging accordingly until you start achieving ratios in line with industry standards.
If you are not sure about specific pain points, how they address them etc. you should conduct a more in-depth interview with your current customers.
But remember, your US customers may see value somewhere else, or they may address the pain points differently, so do not assume that it is going to be 100% accurate. However, as we stated above it’s a good starting point if you don’t have anything else.
****Creating a Unique Value Proposition (UVP) and Unique Selling Proposition (USP).**
There’s an old story told by sales professionals in the US. A man who made mattresses was having trouble selling them.
A friend asked him, “What are you selling?” The mattress maker replied, “Why, mattresses of course.” His friend shook his head and said, “No, mattresses are what you make. What you sell is a good night’s sleep.”
Think of USP as what your product does, and UVP as what it does for someone. A quarter-inch drill bit drills quarter-inch holes — that’s USP. It allows me to make my wife happy by hanging a picture on the wall — that’s UVP.
Your UVP is what ****you do for your customer**. A unique value proposition is a clear statement of the tangible results a customer gets from using your products or services.
For each of your ideal customer profiles (ICP), you’ll develop a UVP that clarifies what value your product delivers, and how that ****differs from your competition.**
For example:
- Whole Foods: The groceries may cost a lot, but the value of being healthy outweighs the cost.
- Unbounce: Web-Page A/B Testing Without Tech Headaches.
- Zappos.com: The world’s largest shoe store delivered to your door with free shipping both ways.
The unique selling proposition (USP) is what your product does and how it is ****different from your competitor’s products**. The selling proposition is a promise of quality to be delivered and a belief from the customer that value will be experienced. That’s how you create competitive differentiation.
The graph below presents 8 questions that help you define your USP. Answer them all and you will be able to create your USP.
****Examples of USP include:**
- Specialization: We specialize in working with financial institutions.
- Guarantee: We guarantee service in 4 hours or your money back.
- Methodology: We use a unique tool called SureFire! to analyze your critical needs
Now it’s time to create specific messaging for buyer personas for each ICP.
Messaging is not only about making email copies or phone scripts out of your USP and UVP. It’s also about providing the right information in the right format based on your prospect’s stage in the customer journey.
For example, if the prospect is unaware of their own problem, explaining your product’s user-friendliness will do little to convince him/her. You can put together the content that is needed for each stage of the customer journey and each channel in English according to UVP and USP using the template below:
**Who should perform this activity: Founder | Head of Sales | Marketing Manager*
**Who should perform this activity: Founder | Head of Sales | Marketing Manager*
## Conclusion
By now we hope you, as a CEO, have answered the following questions in order to decide your company’s readiness to expand into the US market:
1. **Did you define your value proposition i.e. specific customer pain points that your product solves?*
2. **Did you define your unique selling points?*
3. **Do you have a clear understanding of customers in your home country?*
4. **Do you have a clear understanding of customers outside your home country, if any?*
5. **Did you map your marketing and sales process along with their effect on past sales?*
6. **Do you have a full understanding of your customer journey?*
7. **Do you have a competitive analysis for the US market?*
8. **Do you have your ICP and buyer personas ready for the US market?*
9. **Do you have your first version of your messaging and content ready for the US market in English?*
10. **Do you understand your internal assets and weaknesses?*
If the answer is yes to all 10 questions, then it means that you are ****ready for the next phase — Market Outreach.**
This part is hard to generalize as factors like the type of target market, pricing strategy, and others play a vital role in deciding the details and process of market outreach. You can start by gathering qualitative and quantitative feedback from your potential customers in the US to assess your product-market fit in this market.
Feedback — positive or negative — will help you to better understand how your customers interact with and feel about, your product or service. Their honesty will guide you to make smart adjustments to your product and increase your chances of success in the US market.
## Common Mistakes
While working with international startups, we noticed a number of common mistakes when entering the US market. Avoid them if you want to be successful in the US market.
1. Selling to US customers from the home country by a person who has little or no knowledge about the US market.
2. Inappropriate investment — Investing too much money or not investing at all.
3. Setting expectations too high while underestimating competition and differences in market needs.
4. Failing to involve the CEO in acquiring the first US customers.
5. Hiring a US representative with the wrong set of skills.
6. Failing to listen to US customers.
7. Reacting too slowly to customer feedback.
8. Lacking knowledge about competitors.
9. Applying the sales and marketing strategies from your existing markets to the US market.
10. Underestimating the fast pace of the US market.
## Download worksheets
---
_This post is for subscribers only._
### Ultimate Guide To Awesome Sales Message For SaaS Startups
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/ultimate-guide-to-awesome-sales-message-for-b2b-startups/
Last updated: 2022-12-07T14:09:58.000Z
The goal of the first contact message with your potential customers is to create interest, to get them on phone, or motivate them to try out your product. This can be in the form of your website homepage, cold email outreach, cold phone outreach, or even paid ads on third-party platforms like Facebook, LinkedIn, etc.
In this article, **I’ll walk you through the process of how to phrase your core messaging, which you can then reformat to fit the channel – be it website, email, phone, or ads.**
**Worksheets are available to download later below.**
As the founder or founding team member of 13 startups, mostly in B2B SaaS, I speak from experience. We grew from one company to over 200 employees and we just sold Teleport, my last startup.
Over the years, I’ve created first-contact messaging for all kinds of potential customers. While the details differ from startup to startup, the fundamentals remain the same.
Effective market messaging is based on understanding who your customer is, how your product or service helps them, and how your company delivers value.
**Your message is shaped by your customer.**
Before you even begin to create a message, you need to know who you are creating it for. You might have heard of the buyer persona. But in a B2B startup, a buyer persona isn’t enough – you also need an Ideal Customer Profile (ICP).
ICP is a composite description of an organization (company, government agency or nonprofit) that finds a specific value in your offering and provides excellent value to you in return.
In this context, a buyer persona means the decision maker/s in that organization who’ll decide to buy your product for the company. Remember, they may not be the user of your product – but without their approval, nobody will pay for your product.
For early-stage B2B startups, your initial focus should be on ICP much more than the buyer persona. Generally speaking, it’s easier to understand the need of client companies than the motivations and incentives of individual decision-makers. Not to mention that, in many cases, you’ll need more than one decision-maker to sign off on the deal.
So, in the beginning, you’re better off focusing on ICP. As you grow sales and have high-quality touchpoints with decision-makers across many client companies, you’ll get a clearer understanding of their motives and incentives – at that point, you can fine-tune your messaging to better suit the buyer persona.
In the meantime, your messaging can be focused on client companies, while still using language/words that resonate with decision-makers.
**Your ICP is the foundation of all your sales and marketing efforts.**
When you start to build your lead generation system, it’s critical to get the foundation right – just like when constructing a house.
If you build on a weak foundation, you’ll later be forced to spend a ton of time, money, and effort re-balancing the walls and roof. Otherwise even a slight wind, blowing at a certain angle, could bring the building down on your head!
A strong ICP helps you maximize sales and marketing productivity by doing two things:
- Find great prospects more easily through smart targeting.
- Disqualifying poor prospects more quickly.
To put it simply, your ICP is a template to define your best customer as of right now. This, in turn, will shape everything else about your company (not just first contact messaging) – from the features and functionality of your product and what makes up your service offering, to the words you use and the emotions you aim to evoke through your marketing.
And that, in turn, will drive your success or your failure. So, it’s crucial to define your ICP as accurately as possible, based on your current knowledge.
Creating your ICP helps you identify the types of accounts that will deliver on the key economics for your company, such as close rate, potential revenue, velocity, and retention. It also forms the basis for your target account list, priority setting, and qualification criteria.
Remember, this isn’t a one-time exercise. You’ll go through many revisions by the time you reach product-market fit for a certain ICP. But it’s definitely worth the time and effort – mastering this concept will help you throughout the lifetime of your company.
Even when you get traction and growth for your current product, you may need to redefine your ICP when you add new features or expand to another market segment or geographical area.
You see, the goal of creating your ICP isn’t just to define one type of customer to focus on forever. It’s to define your ideal customer at a particular time, stage, and situation of your company and product.
Your ideal customer *today* is someone who can achieve success using your product as it is *today*.
> Think about it like this: if you only got paid after proving to your customer that they’ve achieved success by using your product, who would you work with?
**Stop looking for Mr. Right – you’ve got to find Mr. Right Now.**
Take the example of Eric Howie, founder of [Life Detection Technology](http://lifedetectiontechnologies.com/?ref=revenueinsideout.com), a company that introduced a technology that captures heart and respiration rates without touching the human body. In the beginning, Howie was able to identify 41 industries as potential customer types. But, ultimately, he decided to focus on just one: baby monitoring. Later down the road, he changed the ICP again when the company reached another level in its path of growth.
I’ve noticed that many founders are afraid to narrow down and pick a single ICP. This is largely due to Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) on other potential customers.
But the reality is that if you don’t focus on a specific type, you’ll end up trying to sell everything to everyone. Your sales and marketing will become clouded and vague. It’ll be tough for any customer to see how your offering applies to their particular problem.
In the end, you won’t be able to connect with anyone – including your ideal customers!
Often, people associate the word “niche” with limited vision. Let’s get that misunderstanding out of the way right now.
When you nail down a niche, you’re not “thinking small”. You’re not curbing your dream or permanently shrinking your addressable market.
To find a niche means to find focus, to hone in on a specific target customer with a specific problem – no matter how many other types of customers you could help or how many other kinds of problems you could solve.
Don’t let your larger-than-life vision or big, audacious goal get in the way of taking the baby steps that are necessary for you to get customers *today*.
Hypergrowth (i.e. maintaining an average annual growth rate of over 40 percent) doesn’t come from selling various things to various markets.
Hypergrowth comes from focusing on where you find the best chances of winning customers, making them successful, and building a reputation for tangible results – and then growing from there.
You don’t have to think hard to come up with success stories for this strategy. Salesforce.com began with sales force automation. Zenefits focused on Californian tech companies with 100-300 employees. Amazon started with books. Facebook focused on Ivy League schools. PayPal began with eBay users. Zappos took off with shoes. And so on….
**The core of your message is your Unique Value Proposition (UVP).**
Remember – customers don’t buy products, they buy solutions to their problems.
There is an old story told by sales professionals. A man who made mattresses was having trouble selling them. A friend asked him, “What are you selling?”
The mattress maker replied, “Why, mattresses of course.”
His friend shook his head and said, “No, mattresses are what you make. What you sell is a good night’s sleep.”
Your UVP is what you do for your customer. It’s a clear statement of the tangible results a customer gets from using your product or service.
For each of your ICPs, you’ll develop a UVP that describes the value your product delivers, and how that differs from your competition. For example:
- Whole Foods: The groceries may cost a lot, but the value of being healthy outweighs the cost.
- Unbounce: Webpage A/B testing without tech headaches.
- Zappos.com: The world’s largest shoe store delivered to your door with free shipping both ways.
That brings us to a crucial question: How do you define and measure the success your customers receive after using your product?
Success doesn’t just mean that they buy your product with the promise that they’ll get value out of it.
Success means knowing for a fact that if you call a customer and ask them if they’re getting more value from your solution compared with what they’re paying for it, they’ll answer “yes”.
To define success, you need to first understand *why* someone is buying your product.
Consumers don’t buy what they need; they buy what they want. Just think of how much people spend on sleek cars and sugary drinks compared with broccoli and psychotherapy.
But businesses are a whole other story. They usually buy a product based on four key reasons: it makes them money, it saves them money, it gives them a competitive edge (if they aren’t already market leaders), or it helps them stay compliant (and therefore avoid fines and legal risk, keep management out of jail, etc.).
In other words, businesses don’t buy “nice to have” products. For example, a business may want a beautiful website, but what they *need* is a website that converts visitors to outcomes such as leads or purchases – and the latter is what they’ll ultimately spend their money on.
CEOs might *want* happy employees – but what they *need* is for people to show up and do their jobs, products to be released on time and cash flow to be improved.
Venture capitalists may *want* to invest in honorable founders – but they *need* to generate above-average returns, which may or may not come from companies with honorable founders.
You get the idea, right?
So, you have to focus on delivering something that businesses really need. But the way you describe it can’t be too generic. If you simply promise to “increase revenue” or “decrease costs”, you’ll sound just like everyone else.
Instead, you need to figure out what is equivalent to money or competitive advantage in their minds. Leads? Close rates? Social activity? Collections? Employee engagement or fulfillment?
For example, while everyone agrees that satisfied employees are important, how can they actually help a business make more money? How will better employee relations or better resources/tools improve profitability? How can you prove that your product is needed to do this?
(One exception to this rule is that in an enterprise environment, you may be able to sell your product if it helps the decision maker to protect himself against criticism or repercussions in front of his boss.)
Based on the above, it’s important for you to define and measure the success of your product in terms closest to these four reasons:
1. Make more money
2. Save more money
3. Gain a competitive advantage
4. Compliance (keeping management out of jail)
The definition and measure of the success created by using your product is your UVP. This also helps you to create an effective elevator pitch.
For example: “We help independent doctors \[ICP\] reduce income tax payment by 10 percent per year \[UVP\] by using XYZ \[solution\].”
Here’s another example of UVP, which highlights why the solution is valuable for potential clients and includes an example of past success: “We assist large businesses to reduce spending on their benefits programs, without affecting the level of services. As healthcare costs continue to skyrocket, this is a major concern for many companies. A recent client, a big manufacturer like you, was struggling to cut costs in this area. With our help, they were able to save US$ 500,000 within just four months. And the employee benefits remained unaffected.”
Another example: “I assist tech companies that are in the process of introducing a new product into the market. In such a scenario, it’s imperative for the product to be successful so that the company can meet its sales forecast. I help out in the hand-off between marketing and sales, an area that is often overlooked and dropped. The result: my clients are able to achieve their sales goals and reduce time to profitability.”
> *Pro tip:* If possible, put a number to the benefit offered by your solution. If you can say that past clients have saved 10 hours a week by implementing your solution, that’s far more compelling than simply saying they saved a lot of time.
I understand that in the early stages you don’t have enough data from previous customers to justify such a quantified outcome. In that case, make something up! Yes, I really mean it – it doesn’t have to be accurate, just logical. Do you really think your customer cares if you say you can potentially save them 10 hours per week – but they actually save only 8?
What quantitative value you can reasonably offer? If you’re thinking – well, it depends on the client’s needs and situation – then chances are you need to consider niching down at this point in your startup. You can always expand your market later.
**Unique Value Proposition (UVP) vs. Unique Selling Proposition (USP)**
USP is what your product does, and UVP is what it does for someone. A quarter-inch drill bit drills quarter-inch holes – that’s the USP. It allows me to make my kids happy by hanging a picture on the wall – that’s the UVP.
As explained in the previous section, your UVP is a clear statement of the tangible results your customer gets by using your product.
Your USP, on the other hand, is what your product does and how it’s different from your competitor’s offerings. It’s a promise of the quality that will be delivered and the value the customer will experience.
Here’s another way to differentiate between the two concepts: Think of USP as features, and UVP as the benefits of those features.
Your USP could include:
- Specialization. For E.g. we specialize in working with financial institutions.
- Guarantee. E.g. we guarantee service within six hours or your money back.
- Methodology. E.g. we use a unique tool called XYZ to analyze your critical needs.
**A step-by-step guide to creating your first contact messaging.**
Now that you’re clear on all the key concepts, here’s a step-by-step guide on how to find your ICP, UVP, and USP.
## Step 1 – Find and replicate your best customers.
If you already have existing customers that are happy with your solution, the best way to achieve rapid growth is to find other customers who are exactly like them.
Maybe there are only 500 companies in the world that are exactly like your existing best customers. That’s great – why not first grow your company with these 500 customers and only then expand to other types?
Get all the low-hanging fruits before you try to reach higher branches.
Begin by going through all your previous and existing customers. List down all those who you think have definitely achieved success using your product.
Fill out the account review template (provided after the set of questions below) in as much detail as possible – the more information you have, the better you can build your ICP later on.
By this point in your startup, you should be able to answer these questions:
- Who are your past and existing customers? What do they use your product for?
- Which industry(ies) do they belong to?
- Where are they located?
- What is their size in terms of employees and revenue?
- What is the deal size for each customer? What is the average deal size?
- Are they a one-time or recurring (active) payment customer?
- In the case of one-time payment customers, do they keep coming back to buy more?
- When was each customer acquired? How long have they been using your product?
- What is the current status? Why did they churn (if applicable)?
- Who are the decision-makers? Who are the influencers? Is there more than one decision maker in the sales process? Who are they?
- Is there a specific reason the customer bought from you?
- How, how much, and how often are customers currently using your product?
- How many market segments do you have?
- How many customers do you have in each segment?
- Does each segment have the same use case? Why or why not?
- What is the most common use case for your product? What features are they using and why?
- Can you identify any trends across your current accounts and customers?
- What is your hypothesis for classifying a good customer vs. a bad customer?
You can use the account review template below (or any tool that supports such functionalities) to map your existing customer profiles.
## Step 2 – Create the first draft of your ICP.
Create an initial hypothesis of what’s common among these customers – i.e. those who have definitely achieved success using your product – and what sets them apart from other customers. This is the first draft of your ICP.
Focus on what’s distinctive about this group. What gives them a clear understanding of the problem you’re solving? What enables them to achieve success quickly and effectively using your product?
You may end up with several hypotheses. That’s okay. We’ll prioritize and validate these in the next few steps.
Also, there might be certain exceptions to your ICP profile. List down any red flags and deal breakers. For example:
- They just installed a \_\_\_\_\_\_\_ kind of system.
- They already have an agency/service provider in place or a full-time in-house person dedicated to \_\_\_\_\_\_\_.
- They are located in \_\_\_\_\_\_\_.
- Their monthly budget for \_\_\_\_\_\_\_ is only \_\_\_\_\_\_\_.
- These industries never seem to work: \_\_\_\_\_\_\_, \_\_\_\_\_\_\_, \_\_\_\_\_\_\_.
- This area of work is totally new to them, and they don’t understand it yet. (I.e. you would have to educate the client a lot for them to even understand the value of your service.)
## Step 3 – Prioritize your ICPs.
Okay, now it’s time to prioritize your ICPs. You can do this based on a few metrics:
- Can they achieve success by using your product in its current state?
- How quickly can they see success?
- How long would it take you to reach decision-makers?
- How long is their buying cycle?
- How many of them are out there?
Put the answers in the following Excel file and multiply the numbers. Organize your priority from the highest number to the lowest.
## Step 4 – Discover how customers see your product.
Validate your true ICP by interviewing your existing customers. These conversations will also help you discover in detail how customers see your product’s USP and UVP – down to the exact words they use to describe the solution and its success.
Before the interview, conduct a deep dive into the clients and their usage of your product.
- Study the data you already have about how they’re using your product.
- Create a hypothesis of their problem.
- Create a hypothesis of what success might look like to your customer.
Study all the data you can acquire about:
- how,
- how much,
- how often and
- who in the company is using your product.
- What are they measuring, and does it give any indication of how much success they are achieving using your product?
At the interview, you’ll need to ask some key questions. Check out the prep document I’ve provided below.
> *Pro tip:* Record the interview, if possible. Knowing the right emotions and exact words will make it super easy not only to build your first messaging but also to seem expert in this field when on sales calls – which will help you close more sales.
> *Pro tip:* You might have heard that 93% of communication is non-verbal and only 7% is through words. Given the criticality of these interviews to deeply understand your customers and how they see the value of your product, I highly advise conducting these interviews face-to-face or at least via video call.
After the interview, adjust your hypothesis about your ICP. Then, based on the main insights from your conversations, create the corresponding UVP and USP. You can use the template below.
## Step 5 – Finalize your UVP and USP, then reformat for channels.
By now, you should have:
- One ICP you want to focus on right now.
- Validated UVP for that ICP.
- Validated USP for that ICP.
- Words, language, and tone (formal/informal/abstract/concrete/etc.) of the decision makers from the interviews you took.
- Testimonials from current customers.
Using the above, you should first rewrite your UVP and USP into the language of your decision-makers.
After that, you can simply use this core content to create specific messages for different channels. For example:
**Website homepage.** Use different versions of your UVP and USP on the homepage of your company website. You can include:
- A version of UVP – is above the fold. (I.e. the part of a webpage that’s visible without scrolling down.)
- A version of USP – is below the fold. (I.e. the part of a webpage that can’t be seen without scrolling down.)
- Testimonials from current customers – below USP.
- A more detailed version of how your solution delivers UVP and USP – below testimonials.
**Cold email outreach.** Tweak the components and tailor them to cold emails.
- Subject line – use a crisp version of the UVP.
- Body – describe your USP. You could also include a snapshot of client testimonials.
- Call to action – encourage a trial on your website or a quick phone call to discover a potential match.
Have a look at the four examples below to see how successful companies reformat their core UVP and USP to fit different channels – rather than simply putting links to their homepage in emails/Facebook ads. This makes the whole process of creating and testing messaging comparatively systematic, straightforward, and effective.
First up, Highspot. Take a look at their website homepage (above the fold and below the fold) and a sample cold email. Can you spot the different versions of USP and UVP they’ve used in both channels?
**Highspot's homepage - Above the fold.**
**Highspot's homepage - Below the fold.**
**Cold email outreach from Highspot**
Here’s another example, from Gorgias. Look out for the reformatted versions of their USP and UVP on the homepage vs. the cold email sample.
**Gorgias's homepage - Above the fold.**
****
**Gorgias's homepage - Below the fold.**
**Cold email outreach from Gorgias**
**Cold call outreach.** The format I provided above for emails can be easily and quickly tweaked to fit a phone call.
- Introduction – briefly explain your UVP. For example, “We do XYZ \[UVP\] – would you have two minutes to see if this would be interesting for you?”
- Information – elaborate on your UVP and add USP.
- Call to action – set up a 30-minute chat to discuss in more detail.
**Facebook ads.**
- Headline – this can be a short version of your UVP.
- Body – this can be your USP.
- Picture – this should capture your UVP or show how the user can use your product.
Take a look at the two examples of web pages and corresponding Facebook ads below. Can you see how they’ve tailored their UVP and USP to best fit the channel?
**Hotjar's home page - Above the fold.**
**Hotjar's home page - Below the fold.**
**Hotjar's Facebook advertisement.**
**Neoreach's homepage - Above the fold.**
**Neoreach's homepage - Below the fold.**
**Neoreach's Facebook advertisement.**
Do remember, that what you create at this stage is still the first version of your messaging.
You’ll still have to A/B test various texts and formats of these messages for different channels, to see what resonates best with your customers. By going through this process, you’ll be able to define the core of your message – which will probably remain the same unless you change your ICP or something in your product.
Here’s a great template to help you organize your message across channels – and to keep track of how it evolves over time.
## Conclusion
By now, I hope you’ve got a clear understanding of how to create the perfect message for the first contact with your potential customers. The fundamental concepts I’ve explained above apply to practically all B2B startups – even though some of the minor details might be different based on your unique situation.
With the step-by-step process I’ve provided above, you’ll be able to create the best core message for your startup, which can then be reformatted to fit different channels – website, emails, phone calls, and ads on third-party platforms.
## Download worksheets
---
[ Worksheets Sales Messaging For B2B Startup Worksheets - Sales Messaging For B2B Startup.pdf 81 KB download-circle ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/content/files/2022/07/Worksheets---Sales-Messaging-For-B2B-Startup.pdf "Download")
[ B2B CURRENT CUSTOMER INTERVIEW PREPARATION B2B CURRENT CUSTOMER INTERVIEW PREPARATION.pdf 52 KB download-circle ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/content/files/2022/07/B2B-CURRENT-CUSTOMER-INTERVIEW-PREPARATION-1.pdf "Download")
### How to win every (almost) sales proposal? – It's all about timing
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/how-to-win-every-almost-sales-proposal-its-all-about-timing/
Last updated: 2022-07-08T05:28:40.000Z
Do prospective clients stop responding after you send them a proposal? Do most of your proposals die a quiet death?
Among other things in this article, you’ll learn:
- The main goal of a proposal is to close, not sell.
- A proposal needs to be earned.
- How exactly to send and follow up on a proposal.
## The proposal dead-end
I’ve observed this as the typical sequence of interactions most first-time founders have with their prospects:
1. You schedule a call.
2. You do a demo.
3. The prospect asks for a proposal.
4. You say you’ll send a proposal with a follow-up email.
5. They say, “Thanks”.
6. You send the materials.
7. You never hear from them again.
To be clear, there will always be some prospects who don’t come back to you. But if you’re not hearing back from at least 80-90 percent of prospects you send proposals to, or ****if you’re not winning at least 50-70 percent of your proposals – it means you’re doing something wrong**.
It’s as if you’re giving out proposals like one of those people who stand on the street handing out flyers: “Here, please take one!
## Proposals are a tool to close, not sell
Closing isn’t the same as selling.
Selling is presenting, promoting, marketing, and building value. In the sales process, any interaction with the prospect – however small it might be – is an “engagement”.
Closing, on the other hand, involves putting the customer in a position to make some kind of commitment. It’s when you “advance” the prospect to the next step of your sales funnel.
During the sales process, you may have significant interactions with prospects who show genuine curiosity and interest. ****But to qualify as an “advance”, the potential client must make a commitment that gives you reasonable assurance of a positive outcome.**
I’ve seen too many salespeople waste endless hours on prospective businesses that will never close – because they’ve misjudged curiosity and interest (and sometimes simple politeness) as indicators of good sales opportunities.
## Don’t read too much into a proposal request
****I strongly recommend that you wait for the prospect to request the proposal – rather than suggesting it yourself.**
Prospects will rarely refuse your suggestion to give them a proposal. If you volunteer a proposal, you’ll learn nothing – because even disinterested prospects are curious enough to want to know the price.
Be patient, they will ask. And when they do, the context will give you a clue about where they are in the sales process.
But be careful not to read too much into a proposal request! Prospects are naturally curious. You should expect them to ask for a proposal. Remember, it doesn’t cost them any energy or commitment.
****A proposal request is a small sign of engagement – not an advance**.
## Prospects need to earn proposals
Try to upgrade the prospect’s request for a proposal to an advance, by asking them to take a logical next step that requires some commitment or effort. For example, you could request an assessment or detailed discovery before producing the proposal.
****There is a cost to giving out a proposal too soon or too easily: the prospect doesn’t value it or your time, and you lose the chance to set up a specific next step that would help them earn the proposal.**
Next time a prospect casually asks about pricing or getting a proposal, don’t give it to them until you know they really want it. Instead, respond along these lines: “I’d be happy to send you a proposal! To make sure it meets your specific needs, I’d like to set up a more detailed scoping call to decide on specifics with you and a few other key people. ”
If the prospect refuses, then either they aren’t a great prospect – or you didn’t prove your value to them in prior calls or demos.
If the prospect agrees, you get a chance to focus on how you can solve their specific problems – and then generate a proposal that nails it.
It’s scary at first but just try it. You’ll see the balance of power shift from being totally uneven and in their favor, to being much more even.
## How to send a proposal
****Send a proposal only when your prospect is ready for it.**
Are you talking to a decision-maker who’s genuinely interested in buying?
Did they ask you for a proposal?
Did they spend invest any time or energy in the process?
And have you reached an understanding of the details?
****The heart of a proposal is the conceptual agreement on objectives (outcomes), metrics (measures of success), and value (ROI).** This document in some cases can also function as a contract.
To put it another way, ****a proposal is simply the written form of what you’ve already* agreed on with a potential customer**. It’s a formality – the client just needs to read through it and sign.
Think of it as the minutes of a meeting. First, you discuss and resolve all the important points together; then, you send the minutes to everyone who attended.
You don’t add in new details at this stage and hope the prospect will understand them.
A proposal has two key goals:
1. To write down the conceptual agreement while it’s still fresh, so there isn’t a “he said, she said” situation later.
2. To confirm that both parties are on the same page, without any big misunderstandings.
****Probably the biggest crime in sales is simply emailing a proposal to a potential client –** ***before** **reaching a conceptual agreement with them** (in person or over the phone). You might send the proposal early because you want to “save time”, or the customer asks for it before agreeing to anything.
Whatever the reason, if you expect the prospect to understand an emailed proposal without any assistance, you’re shirking your responsibility.
What’s more, when you email your proposal, you lose the opportunity to:
1. review and confirm the accuracy of the proposed solution,
2. collaborate to make the proposal bigger or better,
3. discuss what will happen next, and
4. further, develop your relationship with the prospect.
****Those who prematurely email a proposal are likely to get no further response.**
With no real value from the interaction (beyond product information), the prospect may decide that they’ve already got everything you can offer.
So, next time a prospect shows interest and requests a proposal before agreeing on anything, turn that interest into a phone call/meeting – this is where you can gain conceptual agreement.
You could also send some supporting materials before the discussion. When a prospect invests time and energy in reviewing your materials, it’s a good sign.
Pay attention to their behavior during your conversation. Do they ask specific, detailed questions? ****You can often tell by the quality of a prospect’s questions how interested they are and how much homework they did.**
Once you achieve conceptual agreement, I strongly recommend sending the proposal via email/courier. Treat it like a summary – not a major event.
“Presenting” the proposal in a meeting/phone call is unnecessary because the proposal isn’t a negotiating document. If the prospect has questions or concerns, they can be addressed in the follow-up conversation.
## How to follow up
The best way to follow up on your proposal is by phone at an agreed-upon time and date – which should be decided as soon as you reach a conceptual agreement with the prospect (and **before* you actually send the written proposal).
****Never leave the conceptual agreement meeting without establishing:**
1. ****when you’ll send the proposal, and**
2. ****when you’ll have the follow-up call.**
You could say something like this: “I’ll email the completed proposal to you by tomorrow morning. Let’s talk the day after so that I can learn which option suits you best. What time is convenient for you?”
💡
Pro tip: Tell the prospect you want to know “which option” to move ahead with – rather than **whether* to move ahead.
Here’s how to handle the follow-up conversation, depending on the response you get:
1. ****The prospect says “Yes”.** Acknowledge when you will begin, thank the client for their trust, and ask how and when the first payment will be made. No, that isn’t “pushy” – it’s simply good business.
2. ****The prospect has questions.** Give answers to the best of your ability. Don’t make arbitrary commitments (for example, “I don’t know exactly how many days I’ll be on-site, but if you need me, it’ll never be a problem.”) Once the client’s doubts are answered, ask which option they’d like to choose. If they’re still uncertain, ask them: “What issues do you still see that are holding you back? Let’s discuss them while we’re on the phone together.”
3. ****The prospect wants more time.** Take the same approach as in no. 2 above, i.e. ask what’s holding them back from committing and take the time to address their concerns.
4. ****The prospect says “No.”** If at this point – with trust, conceptual agreement, a proposal with options, and a follow-up call – the prospect declines (they might say, “Let’s talk in six months” or “Let’s wait for the next budget cycle,” which are just other ways of saying “No”), then you need to back away.
Don’t press harder – accept that the prospect doesn’t want your product/service.
Still, you could ask them one question: “What could I have done differently to convince you to have accepted my help? I’d appreciate your honesty for my own growth.”
That way, at least you can learn what didn’t work.
## Conclusion
****To quickly recap, here are the four key steps for sending and following up on a proposal:**
1. Reach a conceptual agreement with the prospect in person or on the phone.
2. Confirm when you’ll send the proposal and schedule a follow-up discussion.
3. Send the proposal via email or courier.
4. Follow up at the agreed-upon time and date to learn which option the prospect has chosen, resolve any concerns, or simply set a starting date.
****Using this system, you should close 50-70 percent or more of your proposals.** You can also learn valuable lessons from the ones that you don’t manage to close.
As soon as you receive the go-ahead from the client, get moving. Kick-start the first project phase, especially any remote work like interviews or surveys. Begin invoicing immediately. Schedule your first meeting with the new client in the next 1-2 weeks.
****So, are you ready to start winning your proposals?** Which of the above insights do you think will help you the most?
### SaaS Founders: Are You Under-Pricing Your Product?
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/b2b-founders-are-you-under-pricing-your-product/
Last updated: 2022-07-08T05:28:29.000Z
Let’s start by first taking a look at some fundamental principles of pricing.
## The first principle: Costs do not determine the price
Price has everything to do with how much your customers are willing to pay. In other words, your costs don’t drive your pricing – your customers do.
Sure, costs play a role. They determine whether it’s feasible to build the product you want. If the price customers are willing to pay is less than the cost of building and selling the product, it obviously isn’t feasible to proceed. But beyond that, costs have little to do with pricing.
## The second principle: Humans can’t infer prices
We humans find it tough to look at something and determine its value. For example, check out the car in this picture.
Unless you have a ton of background knowledge on cars, you have no way of pinpointing its current value. It could be US$ 2,000, US$ 20,000, US$ 2 million – who knows? Without some additional information, you can’t know for sure.
The additional information we use to figure out a product’s value sometimes is the pricing of other products.
## The third principle: Price implies quality
Before buying, customers assess the quality of a product in different ways. For example, social proof like recommendations from friends, G2 ratings, testimonials, and so on.
Customers also use other “proxies” to figure out the product’s relative value. For example, its design and aesthetics. If a product looks great on the outside, it’s easy to imagine that it looks and works great on the inside.
That’s why a luxury car seems to have higher quality, even if its actual functionality might be the same as a cheaper car. The same goes for a haircut: getting a trim at a basic chain salon feels different from a high-end salon with all the bells and whistles.
The other proxy customers often use to judge quality is the price.
> **Higher price doesn’t actually mean better quality – it simply implies it.*
This perceived increase in quality also boosts sales, up to a point.
Let’s take a look at the relationship between pricing and quality perception.
It’s generally thought that demand follows a simple path: as price increases, sales decrease. The logic here is that the cheaper a product is, the more people will buy it. The more expensive it is, the fewer people will buy it.
As it turns out, the idea behind this generally accepted demand curve is wrong when it comes to non-commodity products.
In 2010, Professor Min Ding of Pennsylvania State University published research in the Journal of Retailing which showed that [price is an indicator of quality – and that the indicator of quality can increase sales.](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022435910000047?ref=revenueinsideout.com) (By the way, this paper won the 2012 Davidson Best Paper Award.)
Professor Ding conducted tests in which the same product was presented at different price points to see what effect price had on sales. Over and over again, he found that price was seen as a sign of quality, and up to a point, higher prices actually increased sales.
Based on these findings, Professor Min Ding concluded that the demand curve looks more like this.
In this curve, you can see that at a very low price, often free, a large number of products are sold. People like free things.
At a slightly higher price, sales drop pretty drastically.
However, at an even higher price point, sales actually begin to increase.
Of course, there’s always a limit. At some point, the price becomes too high and sales start to dip again.
Look at that “bump” in the middle. Your aim should be to identify at what price that bump is highest, so you not only maximize sales but also total revenue.
Unfortunately, almost all early-stage founders undercharge for their products. The fear of losing customers because of a too high price point is so great that they end up underpricing their products.
By pricing your product too low, you’re making a statement about the quality of your product. You’re saying your solution is of bad quality. And this will ultimately mean you’ll sell less, not more.
Instead of fear, you need to use logic while deciding on the price of your product.
That’s why I’m a huge advocate of ****value-based pricing**. That means you define your pricing based on the value you provide to your customer.
## Value-Based Pricing & Anchoring
What does your product help your customer with? Does it save them time and/or money? Does it help them make more money? Does it reduce risk? Does it make it simpler for them to comply with regulations?
Always try to put a cash amount on the value a customer gets by using your product. Value-based pricing has two main benefits:
1. You can potentially begin at a higher price point if you can show a higher value-add and willingness to pay among your customers.
2. You can raise your prices as you find out more about your customers and add features to your product that provide greater value.
If you know what value your product provides and how your target customers measure it, you also have a good hypothesis for what your product is worth to them. So, at least in the B2B scenario, you can figure out the answers to these questions with some certainty:
- Is your solution making them money? If yes, how much?
- Is your solution saving them money? If yes, how much?
- Is your solution related to compliance? What is the average cost per year if they don’t comply?
A good rule of thumb is that you can charge at least 10-20 percent (if not more) of the value your customer is receiving thanks to your product. This is a logical starting point for your pricing. Not only is it justifiable but will also probably be perceived as fair by the customer.
Once you’re clear about value-based pricing, you can move on to addressing external factors like competition and substitute products.
Start by analyzing the pricing in the market and among your competitors. Invest some time into listing and assessing the packages and pricing offered by your competition.
Don’t forget to check out substitute products that can solve your customer’s problem in a very different way. For example, ****the biggest competitor for a business class seat in an airline isn’t another airline but a good quality web-conferencing system.**
Since people can’t infer prices, they use comparison to analyze whether an item is too expensive or too cheap. This “anchoring” happens in different ways:
- What is the cost of not buying a product?
- What are the substitute products and the value they provide? Substitute products are your indirect competitors.
- What have they paid in the past for similar products?
- What are the value and pricing of similar solutions? What about your direct competitor?
- What is the original value vs. discounted price? You may have noticed that in supermarkets, some items seem to be permanently on discount. That means they’re trying to anchor a higher price.
Your first priority is to anchor your price in the value your product delivers, i.e. a percentage of time saved, or money saved/made thanks to your solution. What percentage to take, however, is often not clear. While 10-20 percent is a good rule of thumb, it doesn’t apply in each and every situation.
In such a case, anchors from the outside market can help you reach the highest justifiable price.
Use the table below to list all the anchors your customer could take as a reference when thinking about the value vs. pricing of your offer. Mention low-end and high-end pricing for each anchor.
Then, take the anchors that are most comparable with your solution. From among these, take a reference price between the highest-priced anchor and the high value of the lowest-priced anchor. This should give you a good point of reference for determining your own product’s price.
Remember, you don’t want your solution to be seen among the cheapest options – unless being cheaper than everybody else is your UVP.
As you begin with one target segment of customers, start with one pricing plan until you achieve the product-market fit for this segment.
In the next round of product-market fit, as you expand to another target segment, you’ll go through the whole process again and create another pricing plan tailored to the new segment.
Happy Selling!
### How To Partner With Resellers To Scale Your B2B Start-Up?
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/how-to-partner-with-resellers-to-scale-your-b2b-startup/
Last updated: 2022-09-27T21:20:53.000Z
(Whenever I say “resellers”, that includes B2B distributors or sales channel partners as well.)
By the end of this article, you’ll have a good idea of the investment (time, effort, money) it takes for such a partnership to pay off. You’ll also be able to avoid the most common mistakes made by startups.
I often see early-stage founders either looking for resellers or being approached by resellers with interest in their products.
Now, there’s no doubt that resellers and sales channel partners can be valuable. With their help, you could possibly generate tens of millions in revenue. This is a massive opportunity and a viable way to grow your business.
But there’s also a lot that can go wrong and sink your startup before it has a chance to succeed.
As the founder or founding team member of 13 startups, mostly in B2B SaaS, I speak from experience. Many times, as soon as our startup had a bit of success, we’d start receiving emails and calls from companies offering partnerships. They’d offer to sell/promote our product, become a distributor/reseller for us, or even cross-sell/up-sell our product to their customers with a revenue share.
As an inexperienced newbie, I saw these partnerships as a golden opportunity. I spent months talking to, negotiating with, and signing contracts with these resellers – but usually, it was a ton of invested time with zero sales.
Over the years, I learned that most reseller partnerships are a huge waste of time, money, energy, and (sometimes) even equity in the early stages. However, when done at the right time and in the right way, they can help you grow your business 10x or more.
## Starting with the basics
What exactly is a reseller partnership?
In many sectors, there are big organizations (that may/may not be producing their own products) that also sell other companies’ technology solutions and help implement them. For example, IBM doesn’t just sell their own products – they also consult on and help implement various third-party solutions for their clients.
These companies, called resellers, usually have a large existing customer base and invest heavily to build these relationships over years.
So, you could show these organizations your product, and if they like it, they could use their salesforce to sell it to their (massive) client base. That’s called a reseller partnership.
Sounds awesome, doesn’t it? So, why isn’t everyone doing it?
Well, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
Let me tell you straight up that resellers are **not* a silver bullet to make your startup successful. They’re not going to help you grow your business unless it’s already growing.
Once you’ve achieved the product-market fit and your startup is on the growth path, then resellers might help you grow faster – not before.
A reseller that helps a startup get its first customers or gain traction isn’t the norm – it’s a statistical anomaly.
## Wait for the right moment
You shouldn’t even be talking to a reseller at the Minimum Viable Product (MVP) stage. These organizations aren’t designed for experimenting, interviewing customers, and uncovering insights. They can’t help you adjust and pivot your product to reach product-market fit.
Resellers specialize in building relationships and trust with people in large organizations.
If they take an unproven, unreliable product to their customers, they lose credibility. Then, they may not even be able to sell the other products they were already providing to those clients.
That’s why resellers have a real incentive for selling established products – something that creates tremendous value, that makes them a ton of money, and that customers want, understand, and are ready to buy.
In other words, resellers aren’t in the business of innovating but of selling what already works.
So, here’s my strong recommendation: when you’re in the stage of acquiring your first 10, 100, 300 customers, a reseller partnership is **not* the way to go.
Wait until you have traction, are growing organically, and are able to sell successfully on your own. When your product is helping customers achieve success, your customers are happy and not churning, and you’re asking yourself how to accelerate this growth – **that* is the right time to start exploring resellers.
## Make the partnership work for you
Even when you’re primed to scale, it still takes an incredible amount of work to make a partnership successful for you.
Brian Balfour – who grew one of his previous startups, Viximo, from zero to millions of daily active users (DAU) through partnerships – [describes five stages for executing growth partnerships:](https://brianbalfour.com/essays/from-0-to-2-million-daily-active-users-a-guide-to-growing-via-partnerships?ref=revenueinsideout.com)
1. ****Evaluating the market.** Assess the opportunity at a macro level. Is this kind of partnership repeatable? If yes, how many potential partners are out there? Who’s your ideal first partner? Hint: it isn’t the largest one in the market!
2. ****Evaluating the partner.** Assess the opportunity at a micro-level. Find a metric that helps estimate how much the partnership could produce. At Viximo, they looked at DAU and MAU (daily active users/monthly active users). A site with high MAUs but low DAU’s (showing low engagement) produced poor results. Also, ask yourself, is the partner’s culture a good fit for your product?
3. ****Closing the deal.** Link your pitch to numbers (be it revenue or savings), and avoid exclusives that limit your growth. When you have a couple of partnerships in place, build anonymized case studies – many potential clients will want to see examples. Finally, try to get some money upfront for the time you’ll invest in integration – this gives your partner a vested interest in the deal.
4. ****Integration.** This is the first time both sides work together, and it sets the tone for the entire partnership. Smoothen the way by having a dedicated team and visually planning implementation.
5. ****Post-integration management.** As implementation ends, your relationship begins – and it needs nurturing. Ease communication by appointing a point person on either side. Set up regular meetings, continue to upsell, and let your partner know about any changes well in advance.
As soon as you start exploring the possibility of partnerships, you’ll see it’s easy to get a few meetings and get resellers excited about your product. They’ll start bragging about how many customers they have and how this product is suitable for all of them. They might even say, “Just sign the contract and we’ll make this happen.”
It’s what comes **after* this that’s crucial – and nearly all startups mess it up, at least the first time around.
It’s natural to think, “They have all the information and a signed contract. Now they obviously have enough motivation to push my product.”
So, you can sit back and relax. Right?
Wrong.
This is where your job actually starts. You have a ton of work to do before you can get anything out of your partnership.
Think about it from the reseller's point of view.
These organizations have multiple stakeholders, all kinds of problems, and lots of different departments and people – each with its own priorities, incentives, and politics.
You signed your contract with a person whose job is bringing in new products. At the other end of the organization are the salespeople, who actually go out and sell. (And between these two, your product has to travel through many other departments!)
A salesperson’s goal isn’t to sell a new product – it’s to make the most money possible for their organization, in the easiest way. That’s how they get their huge commissions. Plus, they want to constantly strengthen their relationships with existing customers.
Now imagine yourself as a salesperson who’s just received a bunch of documents about something new. She’s already under pressure to achieve her quarterly quota. She’s selling other products she already knows, to her existing customers (who are also familiar with the existing products).
Why would she spend time learning about this new product?
The only way that’ll happen is if she’s convinced that it’s amazing, it’ll make her big money, it’s going to be easy to sell and customers will love her for introducing it to them.
That’s why, as a startup, even though you spend months talking to resellers before signing the contract – you still might not get a single sale out of it. Most startups end up that way because they simply don’t realize the complexities within large organizations.
## Take charge of your own success
Commit to working with your partner for at least 2-4 months before they start selling your product – and at least a few months after. You’ve got to be there, physically and virtually.
You need to go to every person and department between the person who signed the contract with you and the person who’ll sell your product. Convince each one that your product is the next big thing and is going to make them a ton of money.
Practically, it’s best to form a small team inside your company to do this full time. Include a product person, a marketer, a support specialist, etc.
You’ll need to:
- write the announcement of the partnership.
- design your marketing around this partnership.
- work with your reseller's salespeople to create any and all sales material for them.
It’s also crucial to train their salespeople. Accompany sales reps when they go and pitch your product to customers, at least for the first 10-20 times. This will help you identify the kind of questions customers ask, understand your reseller's sales approach, and find out what they’ve sold to these customers in the past and how your product aligns with that ecosystem.
Based on this, you can coach and provide materials/scripts to the sales force. Without these, they won’t be able to sell your product easily – and it’ll become known as a “deadbeat” product.
You should also identify a few sales reps who are most excited about your product and able to sell well. Create internal case studies to show other reps how some of their teammates were able to easily sell your product, make lots of money, and strengthen their client relationships.
Do this repeatedly until your product has traction within the reseller organization.
Once it gains traction, the salespeople will start talking about your product among themselves. Then, they’ll start talking about it to their customers and closing deals. Managers will notice the success and bump your product up the priority list.
When you reach this threshold, you’re golden – success breeds more success, and the traction for your product will become self-sustaining.
## Challenges along the way
Mark Suster, entrepreneur-turned-VC, [gives some great suggestions to help you avoid common partnership mistakes:](https://bothsidesofthetable.com/the-fallacy-of-channels-startups-beware-681355695a7f?ref=revenueinsideout.com)
1. ****Limit the number of partners.** They demand serious training and nurturing – even more than in-house sales reps.
2. ****Continue to sell yourself.** You need to market and sell your product before your partner does. You need to stimulate demand. Only when they know it’s uber-easy to sell your product will they start pushing it. At the same time, partners can give you credibility. Imagine visiting IBM to sell your product. It would definitely be easier if you announced Intuit as your channel partner and they signed the master services agreement.
3. ****Don’t be stingy.** If you start thinking “But I did all the work! Why should I share a huge margin with them?”, you’re missing the point. You must invest in your partner’s success in the early phase so that they’re motivated in your scaling phase. And that’ll cost you margin.
4. ****Create channel resources.** Your channel partners need lots of attention. You need to constantly remind them about your product, take their sales reps out for drinks, make marketing materials for them, etc. For this, you need channel managers who are fully focused on nurturing partner relationships.
The intensive commitment is what most startups are unable to make in the early days. They don’t have the manpower or resources to spend months with a single potential partner.
Not to mention that even after doing all this, the partnership still might not work out for other reasons. For example:
- Their client base may not be best suited to your product.
- The sales team may not have the technical know-how your product needs.
- You may be unable to convince the sales reps about your product or to create enough momentum despite a few successes.
- The sales team could be selling other products directly/indirectly competing with yours.
- Some heavyweight clients could complain about your product.
All in all, this is a very costly customer acquisition strategy – even though on the surface it sounds like a free option.
Once again, the stage of your company is key to pulling this off.
When you have a few million in revenue, you can dedicate the resources to give it a try. But I’d definitely advise against it when you have, say, 23 customers with each paying $299 per month.
You can, however, start taking baby steps when you reach the half a million annual revenue mark and have organic growth with your own outbound and inbound working for you. At this point, you can start with smaller partners. Begin with small consulting firms (1-5 people) or agencies that sell complementary services to your target ICP (ideal customer profile).
You’ll still have to do all the work I mentioned above but it’s easier with small firms. You can get appointments with the right people faster, there are hardly any internal politics, there are fewer people to convince, and they’ll be more willing to take the risk and have you tag along for meetings with potential clients.
You could even start by experimenting with referral programs, then affiliate programs, followed by independent consultants, and finally agencies.
Think of these as pilots, before you approach big resellers.
## Top tips for successful partnerships
Itai Damti, founder/CEO of Antifragile, [offers five great partnership tips for startups founders:](https://www.techinasia.com/talk/partners-wont-save-startup-failure-clients?ref=revenueinsideout.com)
1. ****Obsess over customers before you touch partnerships.** You must validate your value to paying customers before you look for partners to solve your distribution challenges.
2. ****If it’s not spot-on, drop it.** If a real pain is not being solved for both parties and there is “value asymmetry”, the partnership is set up to fail.
3. ****Be super-specific.** Does this partnership serve your priorities? What’s the commercial logic behind it? What’s in it for you – and them? Why will it work in the long run?
4. ****Treat partnerships as experiments.** For the reasons above, limit your investment in partnerships. Don’t pin all your hopes on them. Define success/failure after a while.
5. ****Kill failed partnerships.** If a partnership doesn’t work, get rid of it – officially. Don’t let it drag on; this confuses your team and drains precious resources.
## A litmus test
When you’re early-stage, you may not yet be ready to approach resellers. Still, if they reach out, you might wonder: am I missing out on a great opportunity?
Based on my experience, here’s a trick to figure out if a reseller is worth talking to. You can avoid wasting time on duds, while still keeping the door open for a great partnership.
If a reseller contacts you, send them a reply along these lines:
**Thanks for reaching out. We’d be happy to explore what we can do together. But at the moment, we’re in execution mode and taking our product to the next level.*
**If you really think our product can be useful for your customers, I propose you bring one of them on board for us to sell together or simply close the deal yourself. We’d be happy to give you a good commission. This will give us both an opportunity to work together and see how we can step it up to the next level.*
Nine times out of ten – crickets. You won’t hear anything back.
But if the opportunity is real, the reseller will come back with a potential client, giving you evidence of a promising partnership.
## Conclusion
I hope you now have a good understanding of when to use a reseller partnership to accelerate your startup and the investment it takes to make it work – as well as the likely challenges along the way.
Remember, reseller partnerships are a mixed bag. Many are a huge waste of time, money, and even equity in the early stages. But when executed at the right time and in the right way, they can help you generate millions in revenue.
That’s why it’s crucial for you, as an early-stage founder, to create a partnership strategy that maximizes your chances of success. Before you dive into a partnership, be sure that you’re willing to put in the investment it demands.
Is your experience is aligned with this? What difficulties are you facing to make sales partnerships work for you?
### How to design UVP that makes sales easier for B2B & SaaS founders?
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/how-to-design-uvp-that-make-sales-easier-for-b2b-saas-founders/
Last updated: 2022-07-08T05:12:40.000Z
There is an old story told by sales professionals. A man who made mattresses was having trouble selling them. A friend asked him, “What are you selling?”
The mattress maker replied, “Why, mattresses of course.”
His friend shook his head and said, “No, mattresses are what you make. What you sell is a good night’s sleep.”
Your UVP is what you do for your customer. It’s a clear statement of the ****tangible results** a customer gets from using your product or service.
For each of your ideal customers or niche, you should develop a UVP (unique selling proposition) that describes the value your product delivers specifically for them. For example:
- Whole Foods: The groceries may cost a lot, but the value of being healthy outweighs the cost.
- Unbounce: Webpage A/B testing without tech headaches.
- Zappos: The world’s largest shoe store delivered to your door with free shipping both ways.
That brings us to a crucial question: ****How can you define and measure the success your customers receive after using your product?**
Success doesn’t just mean that they buy your product with the promise that they’ll get value out of it.
Success means knowing for a fact that if you call a current customer and ask them if they’re getting more value from your solution compared with what they’re paying for it, they’ll answer “yes”.
To define success, you need to first understand why someone is buying your product.
Consumers don’t buy what they need; they buy what they want. Just think of how much people spend on sleek cars and sugary drinks compared with broccoli and psychotherapy.
But businesses are a whole other story. They usually buy a product based on four key reasons: it makes them money, it saves them money, it gives them a competitive edge (if they aren’t already market leaders), or it helps them stay compliant (and therefore avoid fines and legal risk, keep management out of jail, etc.).
In other words, ****businesses don’t buy “nice to have” products, not from a startup anyway.** For example, a business may want a beautiful website, but what they need is a website that converts visitors to outcomes such as leads or purchases – and the latter is what they’ll ultimately spend their money on.
CEOs might want happy employees – but what they need is for people to show up and do their jobs, products to be released on time and cash flow to be improved.
Venture capitalists may want to invest in honorable founders – but they need to generate above-average returns, which may or may not come from companies with honorable founders.
You get the idea, right?
So, you have to focus on delivering something that businesses really need. But the way you describe it can’t be too generic. If you simply promise to “increase revenue” or “decrease costs”, you’ll sound just like everyone else.
Instead, you need to figure out what is equivalent to money or competitive advantage in their minds. Leads? Close rates? Social activity? Collections? Employee engagement or fulfillment?
For example, while everyone agrees that satisfied employees are important, how can they actually help a business make more money? How will better employee relations or better resources/tools improve profitability? How can you prove that your product is needed to do this?
(One exception to this rule is that in an enterprise environment, you may be able to sell your product if it helps the decision-maker to protect himself against criticism or repercussions in front of his boss.)
Based on the above, ****it’s important for you to define and measure the success of your product in terms closest to these four reasons:**
1. ****Make more money**
2. ****Save more money**
3. ****Gain competitive advantage**
4. ****Compliance (keeping management out of jail)**
The definition and measure of the success created by using your product is your UVP. This also helps you to create an effective elevator pitch.
For example: “****We help independent doctors \[ideal customer or niche\] reduce income tax payment by 10 percent per year \[UVP\] by using XYZ \[solution\].**”
Pro tip: If possible, put a number to the benefit offered by your solution. If you can say that past clients have saved 10 hours a week by implementing your solution, that’s far more compelling than simply saying they saved a lot of time.
Here’s another example of UVP, which highlights why the solution is valuable for potential clients and includes an example of past success: “We assist large businesses to reduce spending on their benefits programs, without affecting the level of services. As healthcare costs continue to skyrocket, this is a major concern for many companies. A recent client, a big manufacturer like you, was struggling to cut costs in this area. With our help, they were able to save US$ 500,000 within just four months. And the employee benefits remained unaffected.”
> Remember – customers don’t buy products, they buy solutions to their problems.
I understand that in the early stages you don’t have enough data from previous customers to justify such a quantified outcome. In that case, make something up! Yes, I really mean it – it doesn’t have to be accurate, just logical. Do you really think your customer cares if you say you can potentially save them 10 hours per week – but they actually save only 8?
What quantitative value you can reasonably offer? If you’re thinking – well, it depends on the client’s needs and situation – then chances are you need to consider niching down at this point in your startup. You can always expand your market later.
## Unique Value Proposition (UVP) vs. Unique Selling Proposition (USP)
USP is what your product does, and UVP is what it does for someone. A quarter-inch drill bit drills quarter-inch holes unlike all the half-inch ones available in the market – that’s the USP. It allows me to make my kids happy by hanging a picture on the wall – that’s the UVP.
As explained in the previous section, your UVP is a clear statement of the tangible results your customer gets by using your product.
Your USP, on the other hand, is what your product does and how it’s different from your competitor’s offerings.
Here’s another way to differentiate between the two concepts: Think of USP as features, and UVP as the benefits of those features.
Your USP is the bedrock of competitive differentiation. To define it, have a look at the questions in the image below – answering them will help you shape your own USP.
Your USP could include:
- Specialization. For E.g. we specialize in working with financial institutions.
- Guarantee. E.g. we guarantee service within six hours or your money back.
- Methodology. E.g. we use a unique tool called XYZ to analyze your critical needs.
Simply put, customer pains describe the things that annoy your customers before, during, and after trying to get a job done. Sometimes it prevents them from getting the job done at all. Value Proposition is the outcome after your product solves that pain. So:
1. Can you define the problem you are solving?
2. Can you define how customers will define success after the problem is solved?
3. Can you recognize a metric that measures the difference from the current state to the future state?
4. Can you identify key differences from competitors?
### 8 Steps To Win At Every Single Sales Meeting
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/8-steps-to-win-at-every-single-sales-meeting/
Last updated: 2022-07-22T07:26:27.000Z
In this article, I’ll take you through eight key steps to plan your B2B sales meetings in a way that sets you apart from the competition.
Preparation is the secret to closing sales – and it needs to happen for every encounter with a prospect. Before each meeting, answer three key questions:
**Why should this client meet with me?**
**What do I want my client to do?**
**How can I provide value in this encounter?**
## Why should this client meet with me?
### Step 1: Create the right mindset
> *“If your intention is flawed, the best technique in the world will not save you.”* – Jeff Shore
Get into an optimal mindset before your meeting. This will ensure that your non-verbal communication sends out the right signals.
Begin by completing the following sentence with each of your motivations: **“Thanks for meeting me today! My no. 1 priority is to \[fill in the blank with your response\].”**
Now, review your responses. Would you be willing to say these reasons out loud to a prospective client?
Maybe not. But guess what? **Your tone, expressions and body language are already communicating your true intentions, regardless of your words**. Prospects can pick up on these subtle signs faster than you think.
That’s why it’s crucial to create an appropriate mindset for your sales meetings – one that you don’t need to hide or be ashamed of. This is a fundamental first step to closing more sales.
When you’ve got the right mindset, your body language will reflect it by:
- Showing positive micro-expressions
- Delivering the ideal tone of voice
- Expressing appropriate emotions with which your prospective client will empathize
- Communicating the right intention to strengthen trust and rapport
You can unlock seven sales-friendly mindsets in [this article on creating the right mindset for B2B & SaaS founders](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/7-mindsets-for-b2b-founders-to-make-sales-easy-peasy/).
Reinforce your positive mindset by repeating a few statements aloud before your meeting:
- “I really care about this client. I can’t wait to see what I can do for them.”
- “I’m genuinely looking forward to helping these guys.”
- “I’m curious to find out what this client has going on – and how I can help them to make it better.”
### Step 2: Clarify your value proposition
> *“Don’t tell me what you do, tell me what you do for me”* – Sean Sheppard
**Why should a prospect spend even one minute talking with you?** What is it about your offer that can benefit your potential client? What tangible values does it create for them?
The answers to these questions form the heart of your value proposition.
Your value proposition is a clear statement of the measurable results a client gets from using your product/ service. In other words, it’s what you do for your customer. The best value propositions are specific, often with numbers or percentages.
**Most people tend to describe what they do instead of the value they bring – which is a big mistake.** You must learn to articulate the real value you deliver.
Without a clear value proposition, you’ll find it tough to command the price you want for your solution – because prospective clients will have no tangible value to compare against your price. That means your product/ service will end up simply looking like an extra cost.
The lack of a value proposition also means you’ll get lost in a sea of vendors. Your prospect will assume that your solution is just like all the others in this space – how can they know any better?
To put it another way, **your value proposition is mission-critical information that you must have in order to close a sale**.
A basic value proposition has three key components:
**1\. Metrics:** Metrics answer the question, “How do you measure whether you’re doing well in this area?” All businesses have metrics – sometimes formalized, sometimes not. Find the metrics your potential clients use to measure performance by answering a few questions:
- What tells you that you’re doing well?
- What tells you if something is going wrong?
- What suggest you could be doing better?
**2\. Direction:** Direction answers the question, “What’s happening to the value of this metric?”. Should it be going up or down? The answer depends on the context. E.g., you want sales revenue to go up and material costs to go down.
**3\. Magnitude:** Magnitude answers the question, “By how much is the metric going up or down?” What is the actual value of the change? Did it go up or down by a percentage? Was it reduced by a fixed amount?
With these three components, you can put together a basic value proposition.
**Here’s a formula to increase clarity and make an impact: \[Direction\] + \[Metric\] + \[Magnitude\]**
For example, We increase lead conversion by an average of 47 percent.
Developing a Unique Value Proposition for your product/ service is a comprehensive process that is beyond the scope of this article. For a better understanding, check out [my article on design UVP that makes sales easier](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/how-to-design-uvp-that-make-sales-easier-for-b2b-saas-founders/).
### Step 3: Research your client
> *“Want to sell more? - Forget closing techniques, master your discovery calls”* – Chris Orlab
If you’ve ever been to New York, you would have seen the city’s famous yellow taxi cabs. Did you know that to qualify as a full-fledged taxi driver, one needs to know the streets and routes of New York like the back of their hand?
Similarly, to navigate and lead a sale effectively, you must do your homework and gain all the knowledge that is relevant to your prospect.
Chris Orlob’s company Gong collects and analyzes data on millions of sales calls.[ According to their research](https://www.gong.io/blog/closing-techniques/?ref=revenueinsideout.com), there’s a linear relationship between the number of questions you ask earlier in the sales cycle and your likelihood of closing a deal.
**Learn about your prospect’s situation and figure out what you know – and what you don’t. This will help you create a realistic picture of the best value you can bring to them.**
Research means gathering, analyzing, and interpreting various types of information about your potential client, such as:
- drivers and characteristics
- industry, market, sub-markets
- challenges and risks
- financial status
- goals and objectives
- resources and constraints
- the priority level of specific issues
- details of this potential opportunity
- alternatives they may be considering
- decision-making process
**Keep in mind that even a large company has smaller business units that operate independently.**
For example, GE has 300,000 employees and annual revenues of more than $150 billion. Break it down a step and you’ll see that GE is actually made up of six companies. Each of these companies has various divisions, like marketing, IT, and HR, which function independently.
So, it’s crucial for you to **focus on who is “really” going to be your customer**. You should:
- identify the decision-maker
- conduct due diligence
- figure out where the problems and gaps might be in their operation
- create a tailored “getting in” strategy
Also, try to answer a few key questions about your primary prospect, so **you can anticipate their thoughts and responses**:
- What keeps them awake at night?
- What are their three top day-to-day frustrations?
- What trends are relevant to their business?
- What do they secretly desire the most?
- Who is their greatest competitor, and why?
If you haven’t yet had the opportunity to conduct discovery or talk much with your prospect, then:
- Do whatever research possible before your next meeting, and
- Make discovery the goal of your next meeting.
Points that you’re unable to clarify through independent research can be addressed in the meeting. Create a set of **information-gathering questions**, and prioritize them by importance.
In case there isn’t enough time, which questions will you ask and which will you leave out?
Once you have this essential information, you’ll be able to describe – confidently and accurately – why your prospect should meet with you.
**One final suggestion:** Just as you go deep into the prospect’s needs, you also need to fully understand your own product/ service.
The idea is to list every possible feature and benefit, then organize them by importance – from the prospect’s point of view.
Remember, nothing is perfect. **Every product/ service has some drawbacks.** Admit to yourself the limitations of your offer and – instead of looking at them as obstacles to a sale – view them as a way to make your message more believable and persuasive.
## What do I want my client to do?
### Step 4: Set your goals and agenda
> *“Hope is not a strategy.”* – Rick Page
It’s crucial to be clear about what you want to achieve in the overall sales opportunity – as well as in each sales encounter.
When asked what their objective is for an individual sales encounter, most people say “to close the sale”. However, the typical sales cycle involves 4-10 sales encounters. For more complex products/ services, it might be even longer.
So, closing the sale is a feasible goal only towards the end of the sales cycle. Saying that you want to “close the sale” during an early meeting is unrealistic.
Other people go into a meeting thinking, “I’ll engage the prospect, then let’s just see where it goes. Hopefully, something will happen!”
That’s not really a strategy – it’s a shot in the dark. **If you don’t even know your real goal for the meeting, how can you possibly hope to achieve it?**
Take a more intentional, organized approach toward sales by developing clear goals for individual sales encounters – which are separate from your objective for the overall sales opportunity.
Ask yourself, “What is the desired outcome of my upcoming encounter with this person/ group?”
**Once you are clear about your goal, the best way to ensure a productive meeting is to develop a solid agenda for it**. This ensures that the time invested has a valuable return for everyone involved.
Aim for a win-win scenario in which you achieve your personal goal as well as deliver great value to your prospect.
A meeting agenda offers a ton of benefits:
- It positions you as a true professional.
- It defines objectives, sets expectations, and shows attendees why they need to be there.
- It gives structure to the conversation and allows you to reserve time for important topics, such as establishing the next steps.
- It gives you a concrete way to measure the success of the meeting.
**Set an agenda for every single sales meeting, keeping the focus on the prospect’s stated interests.** Share and confirm your agenda with the prospect, and make sure it meets their expectations.
While creating your agenda, consider these questions:
- What is the meeting’s main purpose from my prospect’s point of view?
- What specific directives or expectations does my prospect have for this meeting?
- Who are the participants, and what are their individual objectives?
Also, think about the way you will position yourself:
- How will I open the meeting?
- What strengths do I bring to this opportunity?
- What might the prospect consider to be my weaknesses?
- What can I do to increase my credibility?
- How will I demonstrate my understanding of the prospect’s current situation and challenges?
Your agenda should include three key elements:
**1\. Logistics:** The date, start and end time, location, and invitees of your meeting.
**2\. Meeting objective:** State the purpose of the meeting in a single sentence, if possible. It should be:
- Stated from the client’s perspective.
- Focused on the outcomes they want to achieve.
- Specific enough to keep the meeting focused, yet also broad enough to engage all attendees.
For example: “Discuss strategies for growing business despite challenges with low customer engagement” or “Review implications of 100% cloud deployment”.
**3\. Items:** These are the “meat” of your agenda – the topics you plan to discuss, in the appropriate sequence. They show why your attendees are there and help to keep your meeting on track.
### Step 5: Clarify continuation vs. advance
> “Do not confuse motion and progress. A rocking horse keeps moving but does not make any progress.” — Alfred A. Montapert
Have you ever been trapped in an endless back-and-forth with a potential client, which ends up going nowhere? To stop wasting precious time and effort on such “pretend opportunities”, learn to differentiate between these three concepts:
1\. **Close** — a commitment to buy. This is the final step of the sales cycle, which marks the transition to ownership and use of the product/ service.
2\. **Advance** — a significant step that costs the potential client some kind of effort, time, or money. This moves the sales process forward, towards a decision.
3\. **Continuation** — no specific action is agreed upon by the customer to move forward. The sales cycle continues.
Closing the sale is an obvious step. **But it’s easy to get confused between advance and continuation, which can cause the sales process to drag on and on — without any concrete outcome.**
For example, you might find yourself in situations like the below, over the course of several months:
- From an early contact, “They mentioned knowing client XYZ. I emailed them some information.”
- At an on-site visit, “I was able to get useful data.”
- From a meeting, “It went well — they loved my demo.”
- On another visit, “We met for breakfast and I followed up with literature.”
- Upon visiting, “They were impressed by our staff, and I offered them a sample plan.”
- From another contact, “We conducted another demo.”
- From another visit, “We strengthened our relationship over coffee.”
- After yet another call, “I checked if they wanted a proposal and costing, and they said yes.”
All of these are continuations — not a single one of them counts as an advance because they didn’t cost the client anything significant. Continuations indicate only interest and curiosity — which are nice, but not a good enough reason to keep investing your time and energy.
**An advance, on the other hand, gives you reasonable assurance of a positive outcome. Without an advance, the sale cannot move forward.**
So, your objective for every sales encounter should be some sort of advance — not a continuation.
A continuation that is frequently mistaken as an advance is when the prospect asks for a proposal. Remember, this only indicates curiosity about pricing. It doesn’t require any commitment or effort from the potential client, so it’s an easy request for them to make. Don’t read too much into it!
### Step 6: Define your advances
> *“Without a ‘next step,’ you are likely working with someone who is fully not engaged. A ‘next step’ is a crucial delineator between real opportunities and pretend opportunities.”* — Tibor Shanto
You might say your goal is to get the prospect to show interest, strengthen your relationship or gather useful information. And you may judge the success of this goal on the basis of the prospect’s words, expressions, or body language.
While these activities and signs are definitely positive, they’re not enough of a reason to keep investing your time and energy in a prospect.
To keep the momentum going, you need to ensure regular, appropriate advances — which require the prospect to make a significant effort.
**Generally speaking, every sales meeting has the same goal — to get the prospect to commit to an advance.**
Remember, an advance should:
- be specific and measurable
- focus on the action the prospect will take
- move the sale forward
- be reasonable from the prospect’s point of view
**The test for an advance is action and energy.** If the potential client isn’t taking action, it’s not an advance. If the action they take requires little to no energy, it’s not an advance.
The action and energy a prospect expends during or after a meeting do two crucial things:
1. It shows you how engaged they are, and
2. It moves the sales process one step nearer to closing.
Typically, the more energy the prospect is willing to spend, the more serious they are about moving forward. Based on this, you can decide how much time and effort you want to invest in a specific sales opportunity.
**In other words, an advance is like a litmus test you can use to qualify your potential clients.**
In your enthusiasm for the sale, you might sometimes take on extra work on behalf of the prospect. Unfortunately, this is actually counter-productive as it prevents the possibility of an advance.
For example, let’s say the prospect needs to do an assessment before the sales process can continue. If you volunteer to do it, you’ll learn nothing — instead of healthy collaboration, you’ll end up in a one-sided relationship.
Instead, wait and observe how the prospect responds to the need for an assessment. Are they willing to spend the energy required? If not, you either need to convince them or walk away. On the other hand, if they invest in a comprehensive assessment, that tells you a lot about their seriousness.
**By offering to do everything and never getting prospects to do anything, you’ll miss out on the chance to gauge their commitment**. As a result, you’ll end up wasting a lot of your time on “pretend opportunities” that don’t eventually pay off.
There’s nothing wrong with offering free services to prospective clients to further a sales opportunity. However, do it sparingly. Keep in mind that no prospect will ever turn down such an offer — because it requires no commitment on their own behalf.
Here are some examples of advances:
- Arrange for you to meet with a higher-level decision maker
- Schedule a site visit to see the product in action
- Agree to meet your technical team for a detailed discussion on the requirements
- Share sensitive information needed for an assessment
- Arrange a group meeting to review a demonstration of your product
**For every meeting, you should prepare an ideal advance as well as a few secondary advances.** An ideal advance is the highest level of commitment you can reasonably expect a prospect to make by the end of your meeting. Secondary advances are your backup plan.
Write out the exact phrases you plan to use for each advance and practice them — this way, you’ll be able to recall them easily in the flow of conversation.
Here’s an initial question and a couple of follow-up questions that you can use to close an advance.
- Initial question: *“Does it make sense for us to \[ideal advance\]?”*
If the prospect says “yes”, take the conversation forward with:
- Follow-up question: *“Great — what is a good next step?”*
If they say “no, that doesn’t make sense yet”, it’s time to switch to your backup plan:
- Follow-up question: *“Okay, no problem. At this stage, most clients like to \[secondary advance\]. Should we go ahead and schedule that?”*
If the prospect says “no” again, ask them what they feel is a good next step — this will tell you where they are in the buying cycle and how far they’re willing to go to advance the sale.
## How can I provide value in this encounter?
### Step 7: Identify your unexpected value
> *“The true goal for a salesperson is to help the customer win.”* — Mike Weinberg
Since most B2B sales happen after multiple calls, your aim should be to leave a positive and memorable impression by providing unexpected value in every encounter — which comes from understanding what your potential client values the most.
You can deliver unexpected value to your prospect in different ways:
- Deliver insight
- Ask powerful questions
- Help them better understand their own needs
- Help them see the path to success
- Share new ideas
- Educate
- Share industry news and insights
Very often, the salesperson offers the solution far too early — as a result, the prospect isn’t able to absorb the information.
I totally get why you might want to give your solution as soon as possible: you probably feel like time is running out, and that you may not get another opportunity to present all the awesome benefits of your product/ solution.
**But if you want to close more sales, you’ve got to slow down and adjust to a pace more suitable for prospects.**
Instead of repeatedly selling your solution in every meeting, focus on providing unexpected value. With this approach, you throttle your sales process to a speed that allows the prospective client to digest information and receive your solution properly. You increase the value of every single step, ultimately leading to a successful closing.
There are two keys to creating unexpected value:
1. Genuineness: deliver what the prospect considers to be a true value
2. Consistency: deliver value in every meeting
In this way, you train your prospect to see you as more than just an agent who happens to offer a given solution. They start seeing you as a domain expert and a trusted advisor. **You become a valuable asset who can help them achieve their desired objective.**
When prospects see you in this light, they:
- Share more information with you
- Ask for your advice and trust your recommendations
- Refer you to others
- Forgive your errors
- Give you more business
Research shows that trusted advisors are 69 percent more likely to get away with the sale.
Questions are an excellent tool to add value. Before your meeting, develop a set of powerful, value-adding questions. **Value-adding questions** are those to which the answers aren’t obvious — the prospect has to think and reflect, which takes your dialogue into bold new territory.
By stimulating this type of higher-order thinking in the potential client, you add value and demonstrate your genuine desire to help. Aim for 2–3 high-value questions for every meeting.
### Step 8: Close like a pro
> *“Closing is the act of obtaining commitments, including all of the decisions that advance the sale.”* — Anthony Iannarino
Did you know that a huge percentage of deals are lost because no decision is made? That means the business isn’t lost to a rival — rather, the prospect simply does nothing.
**In many industries, no-decision failure is the biggest reason behind sales loss.** No-decision losses average at around 44–60 percent, climbing as high as 80 percent in certain sectors.
Are you failing to close sales because your prospects aren’t making a decision?
If yes, that’s on you.
**A sale doesn’t close itself: the salesperson must make an effort to advance the process and clinch the deal.** You can’t depend on your prospect to do this — you need to take charge of the situation, and firmly lead them towards a positive decision.
At the end of the meeting, you have the opportunity to finalize the actions and next steps that will keep the sales process moving forward. For each item, you need to agree on the responsible person and the target timeline. Also, take this time to schedule your next meeting with the prospective client.
Practice your closing questions and phrases until they become second nature, so you can use them effortlessly in the flow of conversation. Avoid making them too complicated or elaborate — they should come easily and naturally.
It’s also crucial to ask for a commitment in the right way. Don’t put pressure or be manipulative — this will leave the client with a bad taste in their mouth, which isn’t good for your long-term equation.
**Research shows that using even one closing question increases your chances of advancing or closing the sale by a whopping 36 percent.** Here are a few good questions you can use, depending on the situation:
- Does it make sense for us to talk about getting your budget approved while we go through the other details together?
- Does it make sense for us to talk about putting together a pilot so you can try it out?
- Does it make sense for us to schedule a meeting with the rest of your team so we can get their input on which features would be key for them?
- Does it make sense for us to spend some time with your technical team so we can get a clearer picture of the security needs?
- Does it make sense for me to meet your head of department so we can get some details about her goals for the project?
### 7 Mindsets for SaaS founders to make sales easy-peasy
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/7-mindsets-for-b2b-founders-to-make-sales-easy-peasy/
Last updated: 2022-07-22T07:38:12.000Z
In this article, I'll replace the preconceived notions that might be stopping you to excel at sales with 7 mindsets that will make sales come naturally to you.
> **Jim Rohn once said you shouldn’t wish that things were easier; you should wish that you were better.*
## Mindset 1: Own your mission
Let’s face it: one of the reasons you founded a startup is that you’re a misfit in some way. You aren’t satisfied with something in the world the way it is, and you want to make it better.
Embrace that mission.
From the execution point of view, your mission has mainly two parts:
- Build the product/service.
- Get more and more people to use that product/service – aka sales.
Luckily for us, we’re living in the best possible time for startups – it’s easier than ever before to bring your product to market. You can set up almost for free, thanks to countless companies offering services from company formation to cloud hosting. Up till a few years ago, this would have cost you thousands of dollars!
Along with costs, the entire approach toward starting a company has changed.
During most of the last century, the main question when starting a business was: “Can you build the product?” The great founders of this period were the ones who could envision a better way of doing things and building it.
However, over the last decade, developing a product has become more democratized. So, unless you’re working on some cutting-edge next-gen tech, the question for most businesses today is: “*Should* you build the product?” Today’s successful founders are the ones who can envision a better way of doing things and *sell* it.
They reject the old belief that “If I build it, they will come.”
Instead, they think, “If they come, I will build it.”
The fact is that most present-day startups fail not because they can’t build a product but because they can’t sell it.
And yet, so many founders I see are excessively focused on the product. Most of their daily and weekly activities revolve around building the product rather than building sales.
They forget that in today’s world, almost anyone can build similar products – and that their primary mission won’t be achieved until a lot of people/companies actually adopt their product, thus changing something for the better.
Owning it is the first step to achieving your true mission.
## Mindset 2: Always be learning
It’s very important for you as a founder to understand and differentiate between the two learning curves you have to deal with at the same time:
1. Your personal learning curve.
2. Your startup’s learning curve.
Your personal learning curve is about ‘you’ learning to be a better founder, a better leader, and above all a better salesperson.
Your startup’s learning curve is focused on learning about your target customers, their problems, different ways to solve these specific problems, and above all how to better sell this specific product/service.
The goal is to build a systematic and predictable sales system that you can later scale to have a successful startup. Once you have the first version of this system, you can further improve it by optimizing, automating, and thus ultimately reducing the cost of acquiring each customer.
In this phase, learnings are more important than results.
If you make ten sales right away but you have no idea why then you can’t repeat them.
On the other hand, if you get just two sales but you know how to replicate them, then you’re golden – you can ramp things up.
In other words, you have to follow the sales learning curve, a concept described in detail in[ this *Harvard Business Review* article](https://hbr.org/2006/07/the-sales-learning-curve?ref=revenueinsideout.com).
The authors, who have 25 years of experience with startups and new product launches, explain that increasing your sales force too quickly is a bad idea (although it may be very tempting!). Your top priority should be to learn how your customers will buy and use the product – a process called the sales learning curve.
This learning can only take place as customers start to acquire and use your product. Based on that new knowledge, you can modify your sales and marketing process to work better – and *then* expand your sales team.
If you hire too many salespeople before you understand how to sell your product efficiently, you’ll drain your cash reserves and still fall short of revenue expectations.
So, don’t hire a VP of Sales until you’re ready to scale, build and fund a small but growing sales team.
During the learning process, the velocity and cost of your experimentation are key. It’s all about getting to the truth of your ideas as quickly and cheaply as possible.
For this, you’ll need to experiment continuously.
Running experiments like Scrum can be very helpful. While Scrum is typically used in software development, it works pretty great in marketing as well. You can prioritize using three key variables – potential, importance, and ease. With frameworks like Scrum, you can:
- Identify mistakes early and nip them in the bud.
- Get things done and receive valuable feedback.
- Increase predictability while staying flexible.
- Set tangible goals.
To get a better sense of how Scrum can be used in marketing efforts, have a look at [this case study](https://medium.com/the-liberators/scrum-for-marketing-teams-a-case-study-b650b31d9ab8?ref=revenueinsideout.com), which explains how the content and marketing teams at Kaarten Carrousel used and tweaked it for greater success.
## **Mindset 3: Be a helper.**
The only way to get what you want in life is to give people what they want.
The whole reason behind your startup is that you want to improve something for someone. Sales are simply the process of showing and convincing people who have a problem that your product/service can solve.
Remember, nobody cares how great you or your product are until they understand how you can help them solve the problem they think they have.
In other words, your job as a salesperson is to teach, coach, share and ultimately help.
You’ve got to see yourself as an expert and mentor. Your clients might know more about their businesses overall, but you definitely know more about the domain of the problem your product is solving.
You know how other companies are solving it, you know what works and what doesn’t, and you know about other solutions in the market – all in much more detail than your customer does.
You’ve also got to learn how to sell without being overly aggressive. The act of pushing your product to customers actually prevents you from making sales.
While shopping at a store, have you ever been asked by a salesperson: “Can I help you with something?”
You probably replied with: “No, thanks. I’m just browsing.”
You’re obviously visiting the store with the intention of buying something – but you still don’t like being followed around by the salesperson.
Why is that?
It’s because you think that the salesperson will start pushing you to buy something you don’t need or like. You feel they’re more interested in scoring a commission rather than genuinely helping you.
Are you making the same mistake as that salesperson with your potential customers?
The truth is that while people love to buy things, they hate being sold.
Buyers actively resist or ignore sellers who are pushy, seeing them as manipulative and even sleazy. When salespeople make everything about closing the sale and not what the customer needs, they risk losing the sale altogether. What’s more, they risk never seeing the customer again.
That’s what makes the sales game really tricky.
While doing sales is essential for your success, you’ve also got to get it right – otherwise, you could end up turning potential customers away.
The best salespeople quickly build trust by acting as helpers rather than sellers. For them, it isn’t mainly about selling – it’s about helping clients succeed.
Remember, customers *want* to buy – and great salespeople make the purchase easier by informing and helping the buyer.
If you help clients to make smart decisions that are in their best interest, sales will follow.
A majority of B2B sales people long ago switched from selling product features/functions to selling solutions.
There’s also the [Challenger sales model](https://www.gartner.com/smarterwithgartner/power-challenger-sales-model?ref=revenueinsideout.com), which can help you get potential customers to think about issues that affect their business, in new and unfamiliar ways.
If you think about it, you’re actually helping people through sales every day – your spouse, your kids, your friends, your neighbors, your colleagues, your employees…
You’re basically selling them your views, opinions, and suggested plans of action. Apply that attitude of helpfulness to your startup sales as well.
When your primary aim is to help, not just sell your product, here’s what needs to happen:
- You listen to your customer’s problem first, instead of presenting your solution right off the bat.
- You mentor and coach your potential customers, helping them realize their real problem vs. the problem they think they have.
- When customers are open to you and trust you, they give you insights into their problems.
- Once you have insights into their problems, you can quickly show them how your product solves their problem.
- Also, you might realize that your product can’t solve the problem of a particular potential customer. In that case, simply be honest and say, “Our solution isn’t designed to solve this problem, but you could connect with XYZ company.”
## Mindset 4: Interrupting is good
In order to help, you need to interrupt.
Your ideal clients are out there, waiting for you to solve a problem for them.
But they aren’t just going to come to you. You need to go to them, interrupt their day, and let them know you’re there to help.
I know that most of the time as a startup founder, you probably feel like the guy selling wheels in the picture below.
You’ve got the wheels, but your potential customers are too busy dragging their stuff to pay attention!
If you want sustained success for your startup, if you want to maximize your revenue, then you’ll have to get comfortable with interrupting people.
You’ll have to pick up the phone, walk in the door, send an email or text message, or ping a prospect on LinkedIn, Twitter, Google+ or Facebook.
You’ll have to interrupt someone who isn’t expecting you to contact them (i.e. you don’t have an appointment with them and they aren’t waiting for you to call or write) and with whom you aren’t currently engaged in a sales discussion.
It might be a new business that you’ve stopped by to qualify or a prospect you met at a trade show.
It could be a prospect who filled out one of your web forms or downloaded your latest white paper. Or someone who just connected with you online.
It could be an old customer you’re trying to reactivate or a prospect in your defined database.
No matter what the circumstances, the simple fact remains that you have to interrupt their day to talk about something you want them to hear, do or buy – and you won’t have a scheduled appointment with them to have that conversation.
## Mindset 5: Less is more
Be precise: do less, do good.
Simplicity and focus are the keys at this stage. Don’t scale up for the sake of it; instead, figure out what works so you can focus on scaling *that* up.
To put it another way: you need to think like a monk.
Monks believe that “less is more” – and I totally agree with them. The same goes for your marketing and lead generation.
Many people believe that you have to constantly do a lot and fine-tune a lot. Sure, if you’re a big business like General Motors or a Tesla or an Apple, then you need to think like that.
But when you’re really small and just starting out, you don’t need to be thinking about and doing lots of things. You just need to do a few things and do them right.
In essence, less is more.
That’s why, at the start, I focus only on things that generate high-quality touchpoints to learn from your ideal customers and offer maximum chances of conversion with minimum effort.
I tell nearly all the companies I work with not to waste their focus on anything that isn’t cheap, doesn’t provide instant results or feedback, and isn’t hyper-targeted to their Ideal Customer Profile (ICP).
For example:
- PR/News – can be too much effort, slow results, and highly untargeted.
- Offline physical promotions – can be too costly, too limited, and hard to measure results.
- Startup events and competitions – can be too much effort, highly untargeted, and meeting potential “experts” who aren’t your target customers. If you’re bootstrapping and there’s a cash prize, by all means, go there to win. But it won’t help you generate good leads.
- Tradeshows – can be too expensive, too much work, and not targeted enough.
- TV/Radio – can be too expensive, too much work, not targeted enough.
- Listing websites such as Product Hunt – can be too much work. You get signups from startup enthusiasts and generally curious people, rather than your ideal customers.
Last but not least, you can only scale what works. As Paul Graham, founder of Y Combinator, recommends to all his early-stage startups, “[Do things that don’t scale.](http://paulgraham.com/ds.html?ref=revenueinsideout.com)”
Don’t automate things unless you know what exactly is working.
A startup has reached product-market fit, has predictable sales, and is ready to scale when it can fill in and prove the following statement:
> If today you reach out to *\[x number\]* of *\[potential customers\]* with *\[a message\]*, you’ll have *\[y sales\]* in *\[z days\]* with *\[a, b, and c steps\]* in your sales funnel, for *\[a solution\]* that helps them achieve *\[success\]* by solving *\[a problem\]* they have while having your *\[AARPU\]* more than *\[CAC\]*.
## Mindset 6: Sales is Science
Sales is a science.
Just like you engineer your product into existence, you need to build a sales and marketing machine to help people see how your product changes their life for the better.
For everything you do, whether you know it or not, you follow a process – whether it’s something mundane such as getting dressed and reaching the office, or something subjective such as how you review a job application.
Many of the processes we follow in life are funnel processes. The funnel concept is the bedrock of sales science.
If you have to choose one thing to master that can maximize the chances of your success – I would say focus on the creation and optimization of funnel processes.
For example, let’s say you’re recruiting and want to hire a sales VP. One way to do so is to think about the process as a funnel. At the broad top of the funnel would be the outreach – you send out hundreds of emails to potential candidates. Then, about 50 of them respond, so the funnel gets narrower.
Of those, only 20 are genuinely interested; and out of those, 5 make it past the phone screening. Through interviews, you identify 2 exceptional candidates and finally make an offer to one of them.
The point is that to get to that one great candidate (at the narrowest end of the funnel), you had to begin by sending hundreds of emails (at the widest end of the funnel).
This is an excellent approach for sales as well – have a look at the funnel snapshot below.
Remember, you don’t need to reinvent the wheel.
If you study what successful people and companies do, you’ll find patterns. And if you duplicate those patterns, you’ll also be able to duplicate their success.
## Mindset 7: Attitude is everything
As a founder, your mindset is the foundation of your startup’s success.
Attitude is everything. Your enthusiasm and passion are key – and that’s what people say “yes” to, more than anything else.
If you’re super excited about your product, that’ll rub off on your prospect and they’ll likely buy from you.
Of course, you need to genuinely believe in your product for it to work.
On the flip side, a negative attitude is also a self-fulfilling prophecy.
So, every day, before you set off to sell your product, get yourself in the right frame of mind. Don’t dwell on past failures – commit to focusing on the present.
A positive attitude will give you the highest productivity.
Have a look at these seven key mental traits for success, from the *Fanatical Prospecting* book by Jeb Blount:
- **Optimistic and enthusiastic:** Fanatical prospectors have a winning, positive mindset.
- **Competitive:** They view prospecting through the eyes of a fierce competitor. They’re hardwired to win and will do whatever it takes to stay on top.
- **Confident:** They approach prospecting with confidence. They expect and believe they’re going to win
- **Relentless:** Fanatical prospectors have a high need for achievement. They pull out all stops to reach their goal. They never, ever give up, believing that persistence always wins.
- **Thirsty for knowledge:** They welcome feedback and coaching.
- **Systematic and efficient:** They have the ability to execute with near-robotic and systematical efficiency.
- **Adaptive and flexible:** Fanatical prospectors have acute situational awareness. Because of this, they’re able to respond and adapt quickly to changing situations and circumstances.
### Sales Momentum: 12 Rules Of Demo Calls To Speed Up Buying Decision
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/presenting-pricing-12-important-rules-to-follow-before-moving-into-pricing/
Last updated: 2022-12-07T14:10:07.000Z
What is your initial goal for a demo?To successfully pave your way to showing product, presenting pricing, and then making the prospect excited about buying from you. So that the prospect leaves convinced of a positive ROI and clear next steps. Thus, making buying decisions a no-brainer.
In this article, I’ll guide you through the best practices to deploy during the demo call that builds positive momentum for the rest of the steps in closing the deal. There is a worksheet file at the end of the article that’ll for sure come in handy to make your demo more prepared.
****Worksheets are available to download at the end of the article.**
## № 1 Time management is the key
Being aware of your time is a crucial thing in every area of your life. And the in-demo process is not an exception, so here I’d like to point out two key points:
**1\. Leave enough time**
So many sales reps finish calls with two minutes left and then send an email instead of talking about pricing or asking questions - just because they didn't have time.
So, make sure to leave enough time at the end of your call to discuss any pricing questions or objections that the prospect may have. This will help you ensure that all of their questions are answered and they feel confident in moving forward.
**2\. Manage your closing 'project'**
Don't leave the call without discussing the next steps. Your buyer's buying process is like a project, and you're the project manager. It's very hard to manage any project if you don't really know the next steps, the people involved and the timeline - aka an agreement on the project plan.
Remember that even when clients are looking at other options or getting more information from others before making their decision - they're still largely relying upon YOU, to decide whether or not your company will be perfect for them!
## № 2 Discuss pricing during the call, not after
The one thing you should never do is send over the pricing after the call without presenting and discussing them during the call first.
People buy based on emotions along with a healthy mix of logic in their decision. So, instead of just throwing prices in their faces I advise you to:
**1\. Walk the prospect through each value point.**
The perfect client is one who can afford to buy your product, but they still want to receive more value compared to what they pay for.
When you just mention your pricing after showing your solution, you're leaving the job of connecting the dots between the product, its features, value, and ROI delivered to the prospect.
Most people are not very good at connecting the dots, especially when they are seeing something for the first time. You don't want them just shocked or dismissing it out of hand because of how much more money this will cost the prospect when compared with other options available in their area.
On the other hand, if you email the price after the call or give the price in the last two minutes of the call, you have a very high chance of sticker shock or confusion, or plain old ghosting.
At the least, they already forgot half of the points you mentioned during the demo by the time they see your price in the email, you end up having conversations over back-and-forth emails. This is not only a breeding ground for more confusion and misunderstanding but also a huge waste of time with respect to your sales cycle.
One of the best ways to explain pricing is by using a customer story.
Imagine you're in the prospect's shoes, what's going through your head? You want more information on how the other clients were able to make such an informed decision and find value in your product or service.
Think about yourself when you're buying something and you might be feeling anxious about it, either individually, or on behalf of an organization where you're putting your neck out and your name on the line to a certain extent, and so is this person.
So, here you want to make your prospect feel comfortable, happy, and clear about value vs price. And you can do this by showing them proof & value points, as well as quick customer stories.
**2\. Use the information from the discovery call to paint a picture.**
It is important to take your time when discussing price with someone. This is a complicated topic, and you don't want to rush it.
If the prospect doesn't see a value in comparison to pricing, then you should use the knowledge and information gained from this discovery process. For example: How will their pain be relieved? What is it going to cost them now vs after we implement our solution into production; how does that change over time as well?
So, feel free to utilize that knowledge to help you demonstrate the distance between their current state and the future state with your solution.
## № 3 Take charge of the call
As a sales rep, you need to make sure you are in control of the conversation and how much time is spent discussing what during the call, as well as the next steps will be.
But if so happened that you went overboard and your time is running out, then I advise you to:
**1\. Ask if you can go over or book another call**
It's absolutely okay to ask if you can go over or book another call. If you lost control over time, you have planned for a 45-minute call, it's already 30 minutes in and you are only halfway through your planned agenda, it is a good idea to pause the meeting and ask something like:
“Hey, I want to be mindful of the agenda we laid out, we're having a great discussion here but it seems like we're probably not going to actually get through everything we want today. So if it's okay with you, I would like to ask if we can go overtime here and if not, we can book another session now, where we have another 15 to 20 minutes because as we get through this part of the demo, we're gonna really want to have a healthy discussion on what your thoughts are, how it tailors to those specific questions you asked earlier. And I feel like we're running out of time for that.”
The point here is better to ask your prospect if you can book another call than say something like:
“Oh, look, we ran out of time, I'll just email you everything.”
**2\. Always have enough time for post-demo discussion**
If you notice that the time is running out and there are only 2-4 minutes left, don't just let the prospect linger in silence. Talk with your prospect about what they think should happen next. Ask them something like:
"So, what do you prefer? Do we go over time? Maybe we abbreviate the next five minutes of the discussion and then get into the healthy discussion and next steps?"
But don't do what most sales reps do, i.e. lose control of the call and only have 2-4 minutes in the end to ask post-demo questions or not get to them at all.
## № 4 Pretend you’re talking in the post-demo call
One of the best techniques to use when you're in the demo call is pretending that you are leading a meeting after the demo.
It's like when you attended a demo call as a buyer for a SaaS product for your company, you'll have an internal discussion after the demo call with other people in your team, especially who also attended the demo. So, when you're having this internal post-demo discussion you usually ask something like this:
“Hey there, what were your feelings on that? What was the cost? What were your thoughts on the pricing of that solution in comparison to our earlier meeting or other solutions? What did you think about the features of this new product versus what we have now?”
As sales professionals, we want to know what our prospects are thinking after our calls. So what I recommend is that, at the end of your sales call, in the last 10 minutes, pretend you're in a post-demo discussion, lead it accordingly and listen in on their thoughts.
If you use that mental model and think of it that way, it will help you ask questions that bring deep insights into your prospect's thinking process. And those questions, in turn, will help you figure out what to do next and also address any objections the person might have right then and there.
But what does this pretending should look like? For example:
*“I'd love to hear your thoughts on our solution so far as compared to your existing solution, and the one you mentioned you had seen earlier today."*
*"I'd like to know what you think about pricing and the value you expect to get from these different solutions.”*
So, a pretend-post-demo discussion with your prospect means asking insightful, thoughtful questions to better understand their thoughts and buying process.
- What are the next steps after you've set the price?
- Who else needs to see the pricing?
- Who makes the final decision?
- What are the decision-making criteria?
- What is the decision-making process?
And the coolest thing is, this way you'll provoke the conversation that your prospect will have later anyway, just without you. Using this technique you will know what your prospect is actually thinking.
## № 5 Wait until your prospect asks for a discount
If you're willing to offer discounts on certain deals, make sure they are tied to specific outcomes and returns. And don't just do it off the cuff - wait until your prospect actually asks for it
Remember that negotiation is a two-way street. If you're going to offer a discount, make sure you're getting something in return.
For example, ask for the deal to be signed today or this week. Or ask for a commitment from more people on the team or for more users. But always make sure that you're getting a good value in return for your discount. That's what makes a true value trade.
## № 6 Don't negotiate with yourself
When it comes to pricing, many people subtly lower the value of what they are offering. And the worst thing is, that they do this without even realizing it.
Words are our friends and enemies all in the same bucket.
What happens is some sales reps while they're presenting pricing, use certain words that can unintentionally degrade the value. For example:
*“Okay, I'm gonna walk you through the pricing and, of course, this is the rate card.”*
What that suggests to the prospect is there's room for negotiation, and most importantly, we must not negotiate with ourselves. And I mean by that is discounting before the prospects have even requested it. Because:
1. Your prospect might think that you're not worth as much as you're asking for. They might think that they can negotiate with you and get a better deal. This suggests that the first price you mentioned probably isn't the final price.
2. But it's also implying that you may be a little desperate for the bargain. This gives them more negotiating power on their side, in addition to suggesting that you might be a bit desperate for the deal. Maybe it's because nobody is buying your product.
So you want to stand confidently behind the value when you're delivering pricing.
To practice I'll leave small worksheets here for you to try out:
## № 7 Pause before pricing
The pricing presentation is the most important part of your call or sales process and can make or break it. If you don't get this right, then chances are high that it will be an uphill battle to close the deal.
The best thing that you can do is to quickly double-assess the situation before getting into the pricing presentation. And you can do this by following these tips:
**1\. “Just before we dive into pricing, really love to get your thoughts thus far.”**
So before you get a prospect's response on pricing, you're making sure you are addressing their pain points and objections before moving forward with a sale or proposal so they understand why your company will be beneficial for them in the long run.
Because we all know that prices are the crux of any conversation. It's not just about sticker shock, it really comes down to understanding what your true value is relative to cost when you're selling something and how much people are willing or able to pay for it.
The best way to separate the buyers from those who will not be buying your product is by nailing down the understanding & perception of value by asking a series of questions, before discussing pricing.
At the least, you will have a very good idea of who didn't buy because of the price, and who didn't even actually see enough value, with respect to your price.
**2\. As you're navigating through these discussions, really make sure that you're not just talking to the person that talks the most.**
This is an important part. You need to make sure that everyone on the call has a chance to speak. Some people might not feel comfortable speaking up, so you need to make sure you give them a chance. Silent participants might be the ones, who will make the final decision, but you missed the chance to talk to them because you've spent the time talking to someone else from their team.
So, try your best to talk to everyone and include every single person in the conversation. Ask people what their thoughts are and then respond to their concerns.
Here I advise addressing everyone by their names and this way include them in the conversation.
For example, Nicky expresses his thoughts right off the bat, and there are two other people on the call. So here you can say:
“Okay, awesome, thanks, Nicky. Okay, Andrew what are you thinking? And Neil, what are your thoughts so far on this before we dive into pricing?”
That way, each person can give you feedback and you can understand their thoughts on the solution.
## № 8 Check-in regularly
Previously I covered this topic in this [article](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/discovery-process-how-to-take-your-demo-call-to-the-next-level/), so feel free to check it out and learn more about the meaning of a two-way conversation with your prospect.
You need to do meaningful check-ins every one and a half to two minutes. And you are discussing everything, and you are asking questions such as:
- “What are your thoughts on this aspect of our solution in terms of its ability to deliver value?”
- “How does this compare to what you have today?”
You should do 10 meaningful check-ins throughout your discussion. At this point, you can ask them their thoughts so far. You should already have a good idea of where each person stands.
##
№ 9 Be a few steps ahead
One of the best pieces of advice I can give you is to never put the next steps in the prospect's court.
And it may sound counterintuitive to you because it feels like a rather natural question for salespeople to ask a prospect what they should do next. But let me explain why you shouldn't do that:
**1\. You're meant to be the consultant, the advisor**
You've been through a lot of deals in the past, so you're like a concierge here. You should be giving them the sense that you have a process that will help them and guide them through the buying journey. And you should recommend that process to them, and they can then come back and propose changes based on their own.
This enables you to not only get a deeper understanding of their buying process, but also you can adapt your process as you see more and more prospects asking for similar changes.
**2\. You can avoid getting into an argumentative position**
Let's suppose that you've already asked that question and your prospects recommended two or three next steps that you don't think are rational. Well, now you're in an argumentative position and at this point, you have to respond by saying, "Yes, but I disagree... "
It is better for you to explain what you think are good next steps based on the buying journey that your customers have gone through. You should state the value of those steps and why they are important. Then ask if they are still interested in taking those steps. That way, you are being consultative and advising them on what to do next.
But the most important thing is that you won't be in a situation where you have to agree to disagree with them.
## № 10 Book the next meeting
Getting the next call on the books: what does that look like? And why is it important?
How many times, after having a great call, you’ve been ghosted. Without any explanations and reasons. I’m sure it happened to you way more than once.
So, getting a new call on the books is a great way to increase your chances to drive accountability, not just on your side, but on the prospect side. And here’s how you can do it:
*“You know, in terms of the sort of the buying journey and the decision-making process, our current customers who went through the same process you're going through right now really find it helpful to just have a quick 15-minute placeholder for our next call, whereas you take this to your committee and your leadership to talk it through, this is then a placeholder to really have us answer those inevitable questions that come up, so we're not pinging back and forth by email now. Feel free to just cancel this placeholder if you don't need it, but would you be open to having a quick discussion for 15 minutes, as a placeholder let's say next Wednesday at 1 o'clock?”*
Say something like this at the end of your call. Sure, not everyone will agree or even consider this idea, BUT some of your prospects will say yes and will keep in mind your offer.
And yes, even half of the prospects, at the end of the day, might cancel this meeting and it’s totally fine. But at least some of them will stick with the offer and, really, what more do we need?
Those, who agreed to the offer will keep in mind your meeting and see it coming up on their calendar.
*“Alright, I've got that meeting with rep ABC. And oh yeah, in that email they said I had to do this and this, I committed to doing this and this before our touch base, I better go do those things.”*
Those kinds of thoughts drive emotional commitment and accountability from the prospect’s side. So don’t think that asking for a meeting is something that’s not worth doing.
Sometimes it can be hard to abandon your comfort zone to try this method out but keep in mind that you’re doing this in the prospect’s best interest. Explain to your prospect the value behind this call and drive this offer through a customer lens.
And look at this from the other angle: your competitors may not be that confident and willing to help their prospects, so be better than them and use this method as a way to leg up your competition.
## № 11 Use Access & Accelerate mindset
First of all, the Access & Accelerate is a mindset that’s meant to help discipline YOUR thought process. It keeps the buyer’s journey in your grasp, so you’re less dependent on their internal conversations and timings. It also gives you direct access to the decision-making process in your prospect’s company. Thus accelerating the sale.
The most successful reps go through having at least six stakeholders engaged within the organization before closing the deal, at least in the enterprise settings. Hence, the question to ask in this mindset is - Do I have access to the right people on this call? Accordingly, who should be on the next call?
This is a mindset that helps you think two steps ahead by:
- Recognizing who is the key decision-maker who will have the ultimate say in the decision.
- or asking the prospect who should be on this call, and what other potential cross-functional leaders or individuals should potentially be on that next call or have to see the demo in order for a decision to be made.
So at the end of the meeting, you're shaping collaboratively with your prospect in the call not only their buying journey and stakeholders in this buying decision but also who should be involved at what step, proactively & beforehand.
Take your time and try out this exercise:
## № 12 Become the project manager
Taking the time to map out your next steps is one of the key parameters to a successful meeting.
Take charge here, think and act like a project manager: map out your next steps and tasks, select owners of the tasks, and set a timeline/ deadline when the tasks are supposed to be finished.
Creating shared accountability is the best way to speed up the sales process. If you’ll arrange tasks for your process and will be confident in your next steps - then follow your meeting with an email right after the call, so everybody's clear on what the next steps are, who owns those next steps and what the timeline is.
Shared accountability is one of the easiest ways to speed up the sales cycle and increase the win rate. This way you leave the call with you owning some of the next steps and the prospects owning some of the next steps as well.
This also creates an emotional commitment for your prospect. You should now reinforce that agreement and commitment by saying something like:
“Okay, great, I'm going to follow up with a quick timeline on each next step, who owns the next step and by when and that should keep us all on track? Does that sound good?”
So be the leader, and be the project manager, that will help you're driving the deal faster.
Here is a bonus worksheet for you. Communicating can be tough & takes time out of your already busy schedule, especially when you're a project manager, so try this out and create the perfect email template beforehand:
## Download worksheets
And, as promised, feel free to download these worksheets to practice building sales momentum during the demo calls and increase your win rate!
---
[ Worksheets Keeping Sales Momentum Worksheets - Keeping Sales Momentum .pdf 209 KB download-circle ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/content/files/2022/09/Worksheets---Keeping-Sales-Momentum-.pdf "Download")
### Handle Your Demo Like A Pro: 11 Best Tips For Your Demo Process
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/handle-your-demo-like-a-pro-11-best-tips-for-your-demo-process-2/
Last updated: 2022-12-07T14:10:14.000Z
Once I said that demo calls just remind me of a field full of traps and your job is to walk this field professionally and with a confidence of a rock star.
Yes, demos are tricky but for every hidden trap, there is advice on how to handle certain situations. So, in this article, I’ll talk about the best tips and practices to handle your demo process like a pro.
**Worksheets are available to download later below.**
## Don't forget about check-ins
One of the biggest mistakes sales reps make in demos is they look at it, like, it's just simply a demo. Like, you know, if you wind up one of those wooden dolls and they just talk.
The Zoom meeting starts, and they share their screen and they say, “Welcome to our demo,” and they dive in. No discovery, no introductions, no agenda, and they make it about themselves and their product, their solution.
When you're thinking about demos, try and actually eliminate the term "demo" from your vocabulary.
And think of them really like conversations where each party shares their screen with one another so they can see what's going on in real-time while also getting some background information on who is viewing or listening to this presentation.
If you think of it that way, then you're much more likely to have a discussion that resonates with the prospect or even actually have a discussion.
### Do a "meaningful check-in"
Make sure you check in with customers regularly, every minute and a half to two minutes. When you do, ask if they have any questions on that? or am I making sense?
Nine out of ten times, the customer will say they don't have any questions or say "Yeah, make sense". But this doesn't actually help spur a meaningful dialogue.
****Use an open-ended question during check-in**
A check-in can be meaningful if it is done in a certain way.
For example, you could say, "Based on what you saw, and this feature here, I'd love to get your thoughts on how you would see that deployed within your organization." This is an open-ended question.
Or, “You mentioned that you saw a demo from competitor ABC this morning, love to get a sense as to how this compares to that.” Or, “Now that you've seen this aspect, how does that compare to the solution you have in place?” or “Love to get a sense as to how you would see this received by the sales organization or whatever stakeholder groups using it.”
When you ask open-ended questions, it usually gets the prospect to tell you how they feel about what you just showed them. They might compare it to their current solution or the one they are looking at.
Sometimes, you can also ask questions about your competition. If you know that the prospect is using a competitor's product today and that your product is better based on what you've heard from your customers, then this is a good opportunity to mention that or to ask the question yourself.
You're not just getting confirmation from the prospect verbally. They are telling you that they want your product or service.
You know what their needs may be based on things like competitors and features, but this gets them talking in an affirmative way about how great something could potentially work once it's implemented. This is why this works so well as a sales strategy!
### Get your prospect talking in the affirmative
Humans are a bundle of both logic and emotion. So if you get them nodding their head and talking about how they like, what you're showing them, it just makes your demo that much more powerful!
### Understand if your prospect is leaning in or leaning out
As you're going through the demo, you want to make a mental list or actually put a note down of X or a checkmark.
So an X would be when you do a meaningful check-in and ask their thoughts, they're like, “Ah, yeah, we don't really like that, here's why. Let's say you're not able to overcome that objection, you put an X either in your mind or on a little piece of paper without them seeing.
If it's a checkmark, it suggests the prospect is leaning in. This is something that they like, that they think would be an improvement on what they have today or an improvement on the other solutions they've seen.
The point is that at the conclusion of the conversation, many reps ask "Are you leaning in?” or “Does this sound like something you'd be interested in?" Both of those are excellent questions, and I suggest you ask them.
But the difficulty is that many sales representatives do not know what the answer is likely to be.
However, when you do meaningful check-ins, you should have a bunch of Xs and a bunch of checkmarks. So at the end of the discussion, you'll have a much better sense than if you simply say, "Love to get your thoughts on whether you're leaning in or not," or similar things.
You should be able to tell if the prospect is leaning in or out, as well as where exactly they're leaning in and leaning out.
### Leg up your competitors in a very subtle way
Another reason these check-ins are important is, just remember when you yourself were on the receiving end of a demo. And they asked at the end, what do you think? Did you remember every single thing you liked and didn't like?
Similarly here you're not asking people to rely on their memory for 20 minutes, a half hour, or 45 minutes. Because they're not going to regurgitate all the things they liked and didn't like. Prospects shouldn't even have to do that.
So, if you want to be better than your competitor, use check-ins as often as possible. Here I advise using a good mix of open and closed questions. Also, ask softball questions when you can because you know the competitor's solutions well and you know the questions to ask where you're going to shine.
When you're close to the end of the demo and ask the customer their thoughts on what they just saw. It is a great feeling to pretty much know where their head is at.
## Engage every single person in your process
Often we see sales reps navigate through a sales discussion with multiple people on the prospect side, and they only talk to one of them the whole time. Or they'll just talk to the person on the prospect side who happens to talk the most.
What about the poor introverts on the call, who have some really good things to say, but they're not getting any airtime, because someone on their team has kind of boxed them out a little bit. And we're not actually creating space for them.
Later, they might just become one of the stakeholders that need more time to get convinced, lengthening your sales cycle.
So, let me remind you, as a sales rep, you own the process. You need to make sure that the environment is positive for everyone involved and you can do this by engaging each person on the call.
But how do you do that?
First, use the introduction phase, make sure people go around, and do their own introductions.
But when you're going through the call, let's say there are five people on the call, and John just keeps talking. You know Jennifer hasn't had an opportunity to say a thing.
That's your turn to say:
*“You know, Jennifer, love to get your thoughts on this and your perspective on this particular feature. And Simon, you know, what are your thoughts on this and etc, etc,”*
And then give them some airtime calling by their name.
And there are a few reasons why you need to include everyone in the call:
1. It’s polite and respectful
2. I've seen more than once, people leave the call where the senior person on the call is the only person that the sales rep was really speaking to.
It actually happens a lot, when the sales rep targets their attention only on a senior decision-maker and forges about the other altogether.
And when they're having the post-demo internal discussion, a person excluded from the conversation might tank the deal and can say something like:
*“Oh actually I have had exposure to this solution in the past and it was a bad experience.”* And this way they stop the deal and ignore the rep.
They end up ghosting the sales rep and the deal never goes through.
So the best thing you can do is to give everyone on your call just as much airtime and space, even if they don't speak up. It's important that their thoughts are heard so make sure there isn’t any gatekeeping going down when it comes time for them to talk!
## Don't over-PowerPoint your prospect
Does anyone actually love watching PowerPoint presentations? Probably not many of us.
Consider the last time you went to a car lot, and there was a lovely, gleaming vehicle that you were interested in purchasing. You go to see the car, right?
What if the car salesperson says, "Hey, come on into the office first so I may show you something." And when you follow them inside, they present a PowerPoint presentation in their conference room about the automobile out on display that you just walk past. You'd be like, well, show me the car then. Right? It's no different here.
If you have a good solution that you can show people, do it! If people are interested in what you're selling, they'll want to see how it works.
Maybe you do need to understand a need, maybe you have the traditional logo slide. But outside of that, try and just get right into the demo.
But if your product or solution isn't very easy to demo, don't worry. Then your presentation is really about engaging your prospect.
Use videos, and pictures and turn your PowerPoint into a tool for conversation, not a boring presentation.
But the key point here still is: Less PowerPoint, the more impactful your presentation is probably going to be, the more it's probably going to resonate with your prospect.
## Prepare for screen sharing
You want to make sure that everything on the screen is meant only for your prospect. This includes anything they might see accidentally, like if you have other tabs open or pages in your browser window when someone walks by and looks into what's happening inside yours.
Make sure that you're tab-free and picture-perfect before taking your call.
A great way to ensure the best possible experience on our end is by going through all those pesky tabs, closing any unnecessary ones, and making everything look pristine in its picturesque glory!
Also, make sure the document you're sharing is big enough. It's usually 150% larger than what you need to ensure that the prospect can read it and then truly ask them, *“Can you see those numbers clearly or that typeface well?”* Checking on things like this is crucial.
Make sure that everything on the screen has a purpose. Don't look at anything else on the screen, like email or Slack, if it has confidential or personal information that you don't want the prospect to see. I can imagine, that your organization doesn't want the prospect to see that information either.
This way of screen sharing is professional and respectful for both you and your prospect. Sure, there can be situations when you NEED to dive into an email or a document, but in this case, you can stop sharing your screen altogether. There is nothing wrong with this approach. I talked more in-depth about screen sharing in one of my previous articles, so feel free to check it out [here. ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/5-technical-elements-of-your-demo-call-that-can-use-improvement/)
## "Tie it up with a bow" strategy
A lot of people don't realize that when you're answering questions and objections, it's essential to check with your prospect.
*“Did that answer your question? Or did that address your thought on that?”*
These kinds of questions are helping you to make sure that before you're moving on and speeding along, for the rest of your discovery or demo, you're really taking the time to understand that what you said, actually addressed what the prospect wanted.
This checking process is called “tie it up with a bow” and is essential during any objection handling.
You should always try to figure out whether your client is leaning in or out as you go through the rest of this discussion.
If there's an objection that has been answered but still doesn't seem to actually overcome their objection, it might be a limitation or a drawback of your solution relative to the competitors, but at least you know that at that point, and you can actually address the objection accordingly.
Remember, once you've answered a question or addressed an objection, wrap it up in a bow. Check-in with the prospect and make sure that you address their question or concern.
## Don't train the prospect
Sales agents often get so excited about the features and benefits of their product that they start acting like they are training the customer on how to use it.
But what you should be doing is trying to understand the customer's needs and then tying those needs to the unique value your product can offer. Once you have done that, you can walk them through that.
It's true when you are giving a demonstration, sometimes you need to focus on specific features, but before doing that, ask yourself if you are trying to sell or train.
Sometimes sales reps are actually aware that they crossed the line and started wondering, how to slim down the amount of time that they’re actually delivering a demo because they know that every minute counts.
You can improve your demo by recording it and looking at each 30-second segment. You need to ask yourself if you were training or selling in that section. If you were only training, then you might have gone too deep into the functionality.
Try this worksheet to make your process better:
## Remember about the tone and cadence
I’ve talked numerous times about adjusting your tone and how it can influence your sale. And a lot of sales reps underestimate the power of their tone and don’t consider their voice as an ultimate tool.
So, let me explain how your tone can actually help your demo and sometimes even save it:
- Make sure that your tone is confident.
It can be tough when you are talking to someone on the phone, really senior and they ask you a question that you don't know how to answer.
Sometimes you get nervous and lose all your confidence. So here it's important to find a way to center yourself and bring yourself back to a confident place so you can answer their questions.
- Slow down your tone.
The best way to get back on track is by slowing down your tone. When people feel nervous, they often talk fast and breathe quicker - if this happens take a deep breath before continuing with the discussion so that you can stay cool during these tense moments!
The second thing you should remember though - Your processes are key; having them allows you some comfort in knowing what steps will be taken next in case something goes wrong. When you have a repeatable scalable process, then you can actually usually calm yourself down, get back to the level of being confident and go back to that next step in the process.
- Don't be overconfident, but be passionate in your own way
You should be engaging, but don’t forget to show your humility. Confidence in the solution you provide is important because it will help prospects trust what you say and listen more closely for information that might otherwise go over their head or bore them rigid after a while - which can happen if reps are too loud/boisterous.
It goes back to the exercise of [how you want to make your prospect feel.](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/3-simple-steps-to-make-your-demo-unforgettable/)
People communicate differently depending on their personalities. If someone is more outgoing, they might come across as more bubbly and vivacious. But if they are an introvert, they might have a quieter passion for what they are saying. It's all good!
- De-escalate not just by your words, but by your tone and cadence
Sometimes it's hard to find a common language with the prospect. And you get an opportunity to get into a bad cycle where the prospect gets angry or upset and starts attacking us.
the trap I see sales reps fall into is that they'll pick up on that tone, and they'll then convey that same tone. The prospect will then probably get angrier and it will just keep going downhill. It's like a vicious circle where you lose control of the conversation. When this happens, you need to stay calm and not respond in the same way.
If the customer is starting to get angry or upset, you can calm them down by taking a breath and speaking more slowly. More often than not, this will make them match your tone and you will regain control of the conversation.
Although mimicking your prospect is important, there is an exception to this rule. This is actually a rare case where you can break the norm.
So, once again, if you find yourself in a situation where your prospect has lost interest, don't worry. You can usually bring the conversation back on track by controlling the pace and tone of your voice. This will help show that you are in control of the situation and that you are still interested in what they have to say.
## Remember about the customer lens.
Try to remember, how many times during the call you said these phrases:
- “I think this…”
- “We think this…”
- “We feel this…”
- “Oh, wait till I show you this part of the demo, I really like this.”
And I can bet you're using these phrases a lot, and all because it's natural to be invested in your product and utilize your own thoughts for the demo process.
But here is the thing, people often think that sales professionals are only interested in making money. They don't always think that you're acting in the best interests of the prospect. This can lead to a negative view of sales professionals.
So here is what you can do to adjust your wording to the customer lens. Listen closely to the difference in tone when you say:
*"This next section is going to be really exciting because our customers have told us how much their business improved after using one of these features. They rely on it for success, so I want your feedback too!"*
You see the nuance there, вuddenly, you're putting the spotlight on your prospect.
The salesperson used to be in charge of understanding their needs and desires; now it's all about what these people want!
A customer lens is a powerful tool for those who are looking to connect with their prospects on an authentic level. This means getting rid of “I” and focusing more on what your potential clients actually think, which will lead you to share fantastic customer success stories.
## Share customer success stories
Most salespeople don't use customer stories when demoing the product, which can be a huge missed opportunity.
Customer history is essential for understanding how your potential clients think and feel about their problems or issues in order to craft a compelling demo that resonates with them - but, remember, it's not enough just telling one story!
If you're having half-hour conversations with a prospect, I recommend weaving in two or three customer stories. Stories that are very quick, sharp, poignant, relevant customer stories sound bites.
You can learn more about customer success stories in one of my previous articles [here. ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/demo-call-why-should-you-share-your-customer-success-stories/)
## Always compare your solution
As you are going through your demo, make sure to ask how what they are seeing compares to their current solution. If the prospect has told you that they have already evaluated other solutions, be bold and ask them how it compares to those solutions.
You should naturally be asking, “How does this compare to what you've seen or what you've got today?” Because how else are you really going to understand how they're assessing things in their mind compared to what you're showing.
This is one really good way to check in after you show them an important aspect of your solution and ask how that compares to either the current solution or the ones that they're evaluating.
## Become an expert
It's a game-changer when it's deployed correctly. Positioning yourself as the expert.
You always want to leave a sales conversation feeling like the prospect learned something new. In fact, you can actually aim to make your sales calls so impactful that the prospect in hindsight would have actually paid for the call.
And you may ask why and how the hell I can do that.
Knowledge is power, and unique knowledge is the desired product, that pretty much anyone wants to buy.
Now, I want to ask you a question. If you're selling to a marketing department, how many people are you talking to each week, month, or quarter?
If you're a typical salesperson and make average discovery calls and demonstrations, and if that buyer persona is your main buyer persona or at least the economic decision-maker, then you'll probably talk to let's say around 10-15 individuals each month.
And when you talk to those people, you're not just having a casual conversation. You're actually asking them about their business and their pain points and challenges.
It means you have a very valuable, unique perspective close to the expert level, just by having these deep conversations with the peers of your buyer persona.
People who might want to buy your product would like to know what tips other people have and what they are doing. You have all of that knowledge living in your head.
You're gaining insider knowledge every single day and some of your prospects would kill for learning even half of it.
So, one of the many ways how you can educate your prospect is actually providing unique industry benchmarks. Using facts and statistics to your advantage is a great way of enlightening prospects.
You can also share some customer success stories, which will show the prospect other ways in which people have been successful using your solution, that you can provide to them as well. Ways which they haven't thought of yet.
You can be the expert and share stories that other people in your role have told them about how our solutions have helped customers with the same issue that you are talking about.
In summary, given that you're having these conversations with your prospects, and know a lot about your past clients, combined with the data you can get from your marketing, you can position yourself as an expert by providing:
1. A unique perspective
2. Industry Benchmarks
3. Customer Benchmarks
4. Customer stories and soundbites
Having this knowledge also means having a strong argument. This means that you don't have to agree with the prospect just because they are telling you what they think is true.
This comes in super handy when you're getting challenged on something or an objection and you want to handle it in a respectful way.
One where you know that you've got a unique sort of position on it. You could be the expert and actually say, “I hear, I understand what you're saying, I just love to share some stories that folks in your role have shared with me that have since become customers. Gosh, I might talk to 100 people in your role per year, most of them become customers, and here's what they've told me about how our solutions help them with that specific thing you're talking about.”
It is challenging, but you're challenging not from a position of your personal opinion. You're standing on the shoulders of your customers and other prospects.
If you are still a bit hesitant about how you can provide a piece of information, then try these questions and fill in the empty spaces:
## Download worksheets
And, as promised, feel free to download these worksheets to practice new knowledge!
---
[ Worksheets Enhancing Your Demo Process Worksheets - Enhancing Your Demo Process.pdf 215 KB download-circle ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/content/files/2022/06/Worksheets---Enhancing-Your-Demo-Process.pdf "Download")
### Discovery Process: How To Take Your Demo Call To The Next Level?
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/discovery-process-how-to-take-your-demo-call-to-the-next-level/
Last updated: 2022-12-07T14:10:22.000Z
The main goal of your call is to always learn more about the prospect and the way you can help them, right?
But the discovery process is tricky and it’s tricky because it’s intuitive.
You see, everyone is different and requires a different approach to them. As well as that, you need to be able to read the room, to know when to push and when to stop. All of this creates an extremely difficult environment for you to sell and sometimes even the easiest demo feels like a field full of traps.
But here is the good news for you: even the most challenging process can be simplified with the right points in mind.
So, in this long (but absolutely worth it) article I’ll guide you through the main points to consider, so your discovery process will feel more structured and ready for any unexpected turn.
**Worksheets are available to download later below.**
So, let’s not waste our time and start from the beginning:
## Always adapt your style
Now let's talk about adapting your style to match the prospect’s title and role.
There are two types of people you might want to sell your product to:
- Power-user and champion
- Decision maker and C-Suite
The first type is called the power user. These people will be using your product every day and they might become the champions who get other people on board with using your product.
The second type is the executive or C-suite. These are the people who make the decisions about whether or not to buy your product.
So, you can already see how those two types of prospects are different. One will use your product and the other will actually buy it. And your main task here is to adapt your style: questions, answers, and key points, so the other party will get information tailored to their area of interest.
For example, if you’re talking to a power user, it is a good thing to go into detail about how your product or service can provide value and how your solution can help them meet their needs. You even have the freedom to go deeper into the product and how it helps the prospect every day. Because your power user will be interested in that and will have the ability to understand the true value of your solution.
And now, imagine you're just talking to the person in charge of making economic decisions. They don't care about the details of how the system works - they want to know how it will help them and what benefits they’ll receive. Here you need to show them that you are addressing their pain and needs and that you are giving them a good return on investment.
So, basically, your prospect has different interests:
Power-user wants to learn about the system and the decision-maker needs to focus on ROI.
And now, you may ask something like:
*“Okay, well what happens when I have the economic decision-maker on the call, as well as the power user?”*
This situation happens quite often, so there is no need to stress about it. Here your task is to manage expectations with your key contacts on the prospect side (your champions).
Because you need to make sure that the people who will be using the product every day understand what they're getting and really want it. At the same time, you need to make sure that you are addressing the concerns and needs of the executives on the call. To tie all of the interests together, you may start your conversation with something like:
*“I want to make sure that we are exploring how we can navigate through this call together.”*
And this is your cue to invite your champion to help make sure that both power users and the executives receive the information each of them needs.
Another thing to consider here is the way your champion will help you. Champions are your greatest supporters but sometimes they tend to overtake the call.
Here I advise remembering that you are the one in charge of the conversation. You are the one who will make sure this deal goes through. So, relying on your champion is good but trusting your instincts (that come from your past experience with similar deals) is even better.
Before I move to the next point, let's cover one last thing: what can you do if you are talking to a key decision-maker and a power user starts to take you off course?
One way to keep people on track is to use an agenda. This will help you remind them of what is happening and why they are there. You can do this in a way that is respectful and delicate.
But number two, make sure you are in control of the meeting and don't let the champion take over. You should be the one asking questions and guiding the conversation. If they have more questions, suggest having a separate call so you can cover everything on the agenda.
## Talk less than 50% of the time
At some point, we all wonder: did I talk too much or too little? So here is the main question of this part:
What is the right amount of time for a sales representative to talk to a prospect during the discovery process?
And the funniest thing here is that even this question is wrong to ask. Whenever you are on a call with prospects it's always about them and how much they talk. So the right question to ask yourself is how much should your prospect talk during the call.
Now, we're looking for a real human connection with our clients. The discovery call is all about us getting to know them on a deeper level and truly comprehending what their requirements are, how they make decisions, and the influence of their pain. We'll never get there if we don't give them the floor; otherwise, we'd never really know what their current circumstances are.
So, here I advise making sure that you talk for 50% of the time or less when you have a discovery call. This way, you will be able to learn more about the other person and they will learn more about you. We will give you some tips on how to do this in a future video.
💡
**REMEMBER:** Discovery is about your prospect, and you cannot uncover their needs, pain, and the impact of the pain unless they tell you. So give them enough time and space to articulate their needs, pain, and the impact of the pain in their own words.
## Understand the reasoning behind the question
Understanding your conversationalist is a key factor for productive dialog.
Sometimes it is easy to figure out what the other person is talking about, but other times it can be hard. From your experience, you may remember strange questions asked by your prospect that you didn’t understand at first. And here it’s important to be curious and ask yourself:
*”Why did they ask this? Where is it coming from?”*
If a prospect asks you a question that you're not sure about, it's okay to ask them what they were thinking when they made the question. Usually, people ask questions because they want to find out more information.
This might be because they are curious, or they don’t understand something, or their boss might have asked them to find out more information. Sometimes prospects can ask questions for other reasons, for example, if there is an important event coming up.
And the mistake a lot of sales reps make is answering "Yes" or "Of course" when they really don't know if they can do something or don’t even understand the question. So, here I advise you to show curiosity and say:
*"I would like to understand more before answering. What is it you need?"*
This question from your side has a positive bonus as well: it would show that you want to help out your prospect and will add to the trust-building process.
And now imagine the prospect answering:
*“Oh, I've been tasked with absolutely making sure that we get a new solution provider by the end of the quarter.”*
So, they may be searching for other organizations now. But if you know that nugget, you'll know they won't stay with a current solution for long. And it really enables you to ask an excellent follow-up question: *"Wonderful, what's causing that?"* or *“Love to hear why that occurred?”* or *“Where did this idea come from?”* There are a lot of interesting questions you might ask about it.
It can be tough to stay focused on what is important when you are selling something. But that is what good salespeople do. They focus on what the customer wants and how they can help them.
##
Uncover the pain of the status quo
When you are making sales calls, it is important to remember that discovery is a key part of the process. Many sales reps make the mistake of talking about their products without first figuring out what their prospects need. This is called 'feature dumping' or 'showing up and throwing up. It's when you just talk about all your features and benefits without considering what your prospect wants. So make sure you're not guilty of doing that.
It is very important to understand not just how much pain your customers have, but also the consequences of not doing anything. This includes understanding how many deals you lose to competitors and how many deals you lose because people are happy with their current solution. Often, this number depends on the business. For example, some businesses lose 20%, 30%, 40%, or 50% of deals to their current solution.
Many times, this means that the sales professional did not do a good job of understanding what is wrong with the prospect's current situation. They need to understand what isn't working and how it is affecting the business. They also need to put a number on it to show how much it is costing them.
We want to create a good understanding with our customers of the current pain and the status quo. Some professionals refer to it as giving the prospect a headache first and then handing them Tylenol later. Sounds weird but that's how this process really is.
You are telling the prospect all the problems they are having, and how your solution can help. You are also saying how much better things will be for them if they choose your solution. You are showing them that it is worth the money to buy your solution.
Many sales reps talk about the future, but they don't talk about the present. They can't explain how things will be different if their customer or prospect decides to move forward. If a sales rep doesn't understand the difference between the current state and the future state, they will lose most of the time.
You need to be better than your competitors. Make sure you understand the pain your prospect is feeling and also understand the consequences of not taking action. Get your prospect to walk through that discussion with you so they can feel the emotion of it.
People make decisions based on their emotions and logic. When we are emotional, it is hard to think logically. We need to understand people's current situation and how our product or service can help improve their life. We should explain the future state and how our product or service can help them get there. That's the simple truth behind the deal.
## Ask them what they're thinking
When you ask your prospect how they feel about the other solutions they are considering, or their current solution, you should be honest. Don’t be afraid to tell them what you think. You might guess that this will make them think about your competitor more, but in reality, it is usually the most effective way to move forward.
This will help you figure out why the prospect might be thinking about those other solutions, and how you can convince them that YOUR solution is better. You can even ask them questions about their conversations with other companies. It's crucial to compare your product to competitor's. If someone liked a feature of your competitor's product, they are likely to enjoy yours too.
I know, we don't want to focus too much on our competition, but we do want to understand what our potential customers are thinking. We should ask them questions about the solutions they saw, including ours, and how it compares to what they already have.
And if you want to read more about how to talk about your competitors, feel free to check out my article [here](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/3-ti-on-talking-about-your-competitors-and-winning-your-prospects-heart/).
## Focus on THEIR end goal
There is a very popular saying in the sales world:
As long as the sales rep's talking - they're selling, as long as the prospect's talking - they're buying.
Remember that when you are selling, it is important to focus on your prospect. You need to think about what they want and what they are looking for. Don't think about yourself. That way, you can better understand what they need and how you can help them.
If you go into a discovery call with that frame of mind, you'll be more successful. Most sales reps just talk about themselves without realizing it.
Here is the thing, those who really seek to understand what is important to their prospect - the pain, the impact of the pain, and how much it is hurting them - are more successful. And that's as easy as that.
## How long should the discovery take?
People often ask what the ideal length for a discovery call is.
This really depends on whether it is a transactional sale or an enterprise sale. In most cases, it doesn't make sense for our customers who are selling into emerging markets to have a long phone call. The average contract value or order size is usually around $5,000-$11,000\. It's also not cost-effective for buyers to have a lot of follow-up calls.
When we are looking at an enterprise motion sale, and the ACV is high six figures or more, it is important to do a lot of discovery before moving forward. But I can share with you a few best practices on how much discovery should be done in these cases.
There are a few things that sales representatives often do wrong. One is that they think it's inappropriate to ask their prospects a lot of questions. But in reality, questions will help to make sure you understand prospects' needs so you can provide the best solution possible. So asking a lot of questions is actually what's best for the prospect.
There are a few things that I recommend when you're doing discovery.
First, don't assume that the prospect doesn't have the patience for your questions. Often, sales reps will ask questions based on their own thoughts and not what the prospect wants to know. So that's number one.
Second, it's important to remember that when you have a discovery call with someone, you need to ask them questions. This is in their best interest because it will help you understand their pain and what they actually need. Then you'll be able to provide them with a solution that is better tailored to their needs.
Sales reps seem to think that people only do discovery because they want something for themselves. They think the prospect will feel this way too. But you can overcome this by framing discovery in a way that shows the prospect you are doing it in their best interest. This is because you want to understand their needs better. You can create a custom solution for potential buyers that is specific to their needs and won't waste their time.
Good sales reps always explain why they are conducting a discovery process with a prospect, and they also demonstrate the value of doing so. This gives the prospect a roadmap of where the conversation is going.
People might not like it if you start asking them a lot of questions without any explanation. But if you explain why you're asking the questions, they will be more understanding.
Sales reps often say that they think it's because the prospect doesn't have tolerance for a long discovery, or that it would feel unnatural. And so what ends up happening is they deliver a boilerplate standard demo that actually isn't catered to the prospect's needs. That's not in the prospect's best interest at all.
It is really important for sales professionals to understand the needs of their customers. A lot of sales reps try to avoid asking questions during demos, but that can be a mistake. Asking questions during a demo is a good way to have a two-way discussion with the customer.
There are five things you can show your prospect. If you do a good job of understanding their needs, and you figure out that they are interested in two of those things, then you should spend most of your time demoing those two things.
Keep this in mind when planning your sales strategy. It is in your prospect's best interest and yours to figure out their needs before you start selling to them. You can do this by asking questions during the discovery process. This will help you focus on their needs and give them what they want.
## Checking in during discovery
How can you tell when you are asking too many questions?
This is a question for the ages but gladly I have an answer for you.
The answer is that you need to use your intuition. If you feel like you are asking too many questions or if it is making the other person uncomfortable, then it is probably best to stop. You should also rely on your intuition when deciding how to act around people.
Usually, you can tell when someone is getting impatient. If the prospect is getting a little short, or if they are getting annoyed, you should quickly check in with them:
*“I appreciate your patience, we are almost done.”*
This will help us tailor our discussion to the prospect’s needs.
It's a little like, you know if you're on hold with your telecom company and they say, *"Hey, you're the fifth caller and it will be another 10 minutes until your call is answered."* You feel a little less anxious because you have an idea of how long you will have to wait. You want to respect the prospect's time by giving them an idea of how long they will have to wait.
## Find out key voices
Now, we want to know the prospect's timeline and who else will be involved in making the decision. We also want to know who the final decision maker is and how they will make the decision. If there are people who are influential, they may not have the final say in what happens.
Here is the thing, in order to make a successful enterprise motion, you need more than six or seven people who have been involved in the process from beginning to end. If someone leaves the company, another person in the group will hopefully become an advocate for your product. Having more stakeholders involved in the process just improves your chances of closing the deal.
After you finish your demo, ask who else needs to see it. Make sure you understand who all the different stakeholders are and what their roles are. Find out who the key voices are and get their input.
There are two types of people you can talk to about your business: users and leaders. But you need to get permission from your champion before talking to them. If it is a bigger deal, it is worth spending time on. If it is a smaller deal, you don't want to waste time if it isn't going to be fruitful.
## Understand the true impact of the pain
There is one thing that all sales reps can agree on: we don't want the prospect to feel like they're being interrogated.
Making your prospect feel more at ease can be tricky. But one way to do this is to make it a bit of a give-and-take. So don't bombard them with questions, instead, add in the odd tidbit or a bit of information from time to time. This will help make the conversation more natural.
The other thing is if you have asked a question and the prospect gives you a lot of information back, it is helpful to keep the conversation going by responding in a similar way.
Sometimes people talk for a minute or three. And during this time prospects might give you some good information. So, it’s important to understand that information and to show that you understand it by acknowledging it, empathizing with what they said, and then unpacking it.
There are three key points that your prospect mentioned in their one to two-minute summary of their needs. You want to summarize and say "So, I think if I'm hearing you correctly, there are three needs. One, two, three. If it's okay with you, I'd like to unpack that one by one."
You're doing a mini agenda here. This is when you repeat back to the person what they said, to make sure you understand them correctly. This can be impactful because it sometimes triggers something else the person said.
Prospects might tell you things that are different from what you expected. When this happens, it is a good idea to check your facts and get more information. Then, summarize what the person told you and explain it in detail.
If someone is talking about one of their problems, it might be that they are feeling overwhelmed because they have a lot to do. You can start by asking them questions about what they said. For example, you could ask them how they feel when they have so much to do. Once you've unpacked that, and understood the impact of each of these pain points or needs, then, after you've quantified it then you go to the next one.
So the next point here is understanding the true impact of the pain that the prospect is feeling. And here you need to try and get to the impact of the pain. Some people feel very busy at their job and that they are bottlenecking things because their current solution isn't helping. What you want to understand is how many hours per week the prospect feels like the current solution doesn't help with the one task they're taking on.
If you multiply the number of employees who have this pain by the number of hours they work in a day, then you can see how much this problem is costing the company.
You want to measure how much the prospect cares so you can understand their feelings better. Later, when you try to close the deal, you might ask them how they're feeling. If the prospect is not interested or doesn't seem to care as much as you thought they would, you can remind them of the pain that you both understood.
And you can also quantify the pain to show them how serious it is.
If the prospect will say they don't care about the future problem, you can say that it’s ALREADY a problem for them. And you are sure about that because you went down the funnel and understood why their job was getting bottlenecked. And now you also understand how it affects their time and what the impact is in terms of hours and dollars per year.
When the prospect will say to you that they don't want to buy your product, they may say that they think they're "just good" with their current solution. But you can then ask them if they're still having problems with their current solution because you mentioned that they were in a situation where they felt like they were bottlenecking a bunch of things.
At this point don't be shy and just ask the prospect something like:
*"You're not the only one with this problem. Five other people are in the same situation. When we talked about it, we found that this was causing a lot of money to be lost. So I have to ask, what is your plan?".*
That is an effective way to respectfully challenge the customer.
Sales reps often don't ask challenging questions that will make the prospect think about things from a different perspective.
When you are conducting a discovery call and the prospect spends a few minutes giving you some interesting feedback on their challenges, here's what I recommend you do.
This is why the best salespeople are usually the ones who do the best discovery. They uncover the pain that a customer is feeling and they quantify it so they understand the current state very well. Then, when they go to actually close the deal, they can handle objections by explaining why their product is better than a competitor's.
Here, once again, I advise using customer stories to help the prospect to understand the impact of choosing your solution over the current solution. This helps you quantify the difference in terms of what is currently causing pain, and what their future state could be.
##
Write down the discovery questions beforehand
It doesn’t matter if you are a brand new sales rep or you have a lot of experience, it’s a good idea to have your discovery questions written out and in front of you.
And you may say that you don't need that because you are experienced. But I've seen some of the most experienced salespeople lose a sale, or forget a couple of important questions. And sometimes the newer salespeople do a better job because they are so structured, though, so methodical, as well as intentional about what they're asking.
No matter how long you have been selling, it is a good idea to have some questions written down that you can use to learn more about your customers. This will help you to better understand them and their needs. But be sure to practice asking these questions so it doesn’t look like you are reading from a list.
Even if you are a seasoned rep, you are still human, and we, humans, tend to forget even the easiest things. So, feel free to prove your experience and professionalism by actually taking notes and being absolutely ready for your call.
****Don't be a machine gun questioner**
Sometimes reps are overenthusiastic and go into "machine gun questioning” mode. And you may already know why this isn't the best thing to do for your prospect.
So, "machine gun questioning” that's when a rep will literally rattle off four or five questions at once. People usually expect the prospect to answer their questions in a logical order. But that never happens. The prospect usually just answers the first or last question and not the rest. Or don't answer anything at all because they just got annoyed with the salesperson.
If you are someone who asks a lot of questions, make sure you practice. Take the time to review some of your calls and listen to them. See if this is something you have been doing in the past. Instead, make sure you have a very systematic way of asking questions when you speak with people.
## Stay Present
As sales professionals, we have to do a lot of things and the best salespeople make it look easy. But we all know it's not. It's important to maintain this curiosity that you have and stay present.
Sales professionals need to be prepared for anything when they are conducting discovery or a demo. It is easy to get sidetracked, but you need to stay focused on the customer. No matter what happens, it is important to be responsive and continue the conversation.
Reps sometimes ask questions in order to learn more, but they don't listen to the answer. And this is a mistake because the rep can learn a lot from what the prospect has to say. So always remember this: good questions are important, but so is understanding the answer.
Sometimes you get the best information from your prospects when you ask them follow-up questions. This can be either during an open-ended conversation or a closed-ended conversation. But you won't be able to ask those follow-up questions if we're not listening carefully.
Try to have this mindset: imagine you piece together a literal puzzle. And every answer is like a missing piece that goes into place. Of course, you can be distracted by pretty much anything, but it's your job to stay focused and present to piece this puzzle together.
I know, sales reps always have pressure on them and they're extremely aware of it, but try to ignore this looming cloud of expectations and just imagine that you're doing puzzles with your family.
Remember, people usually have some good information to share when you talk to them. The best thing to do is listen carefully and ask follow-up questions. That's where you can get the most useful information. Next time you're talking to someone, remember this advice.
## Be naturally curious
It is important to be curious when you are talking to a potential customer. The best salespeople are truly curious and it really resonates with the prospect, they can really sense it when you are interested in what they are saying.
You should try to get into the moment when you are with your prospect. This means that you should not be thinking about other things while you are talking to them. It is also a good idea to have an idea of what their needs might be before the call. This is based on their job title, the size of their company, and what industry they work in. But don't forget that you might not know all the answers.
When you are in the discovery process, let's ask the right questions to understand their situation. This includes understanding their situation at an organizational level and an individual level.
Check out the worksheets later below to make your preparations much easier!
## Understand individual drivers
When you are doing your discovery, it’s crucial to explore the organizational needs and pain points. However, you also need to understand the individual's needs.
And here it's really important to understand what is happening organizationally but you also want to figure out what is driving this decision on an individual level, for the people who might be interested in your product.
For example, when you talk to your champion, why are they doing what they're doing? Is it because they want to make an impact on their career in the organization? Did their boss tell them to do it? Or are they trying to meet a deadline? There's often a reason why your prospect is doing what they're doing, and it's not just because of their organization. You need to drill down and understand that.
And thankfully there are some questions, that will help you to understand your prospect better:
1. “I'd like to know why you have chosen this particular approach.”
2. “When you're considering this option, you're thinking about rolling it out. It appears like organizationally, this is a major problem, but what are your personal views on it? What are your feelings and thoughts on where your company should go with this in the future?”
Some people might buy your product because it helps them reach their goals. For example, if you are a salesperson and need to hit certain targets, your product might help you do that.
Sales reps don't ask their customers enough how they are doing. For example, if you are selling a solution that helps sales organizations be better, the sales reps should ask how the organization is doing so far this year, this quarter, and this month.
Many people choose to ask their sales leader about their numbers. It is rare to see a sales professional take the opportunity to do the same.
When you get to the closing stage of a discussion and you're asking:
“Okay, fantastic, are you learning anything? Would you want to continue forward?”
If the prospect responds in the negative “Yes, actually no. I believe we're fine”, then you need to be ready to brace for this impact. You need to overcome this situation and let me tell you how you can do that.
To find the nuggets, you need to be effective when you are discovering things. You can do this by comparing and contrasting two different sales representatives. Sales representative A did not ask many questions, but Sales representative B asked a lot of questions and understood the pain that the customer was feeling. They also understood how the customer was tracking their progress.
If you get the same response from a prospect at the end of your call or sales process, it might be tough to convince them to switch to your product or service. If sales rep A says "So what do you think?" and the prospect says " I think we're gonna stick with our current solution," then sales rep A doesn't have much they can go on. It would be like saying "Oh, well, it sounded like you were pretty interested in this." This isn't a very compelling reason for the prospect to change their mind.
When sales rep B says, "Oh, so you want to understand what I'm thinking?" and the prospect says no, they can say things like, "I think we're going to stick with our current solution."Someone might say, "I would really like to understand that better. You said earlier that your team wasn't hitting their number last quarter, but next quarter you have a higher target. And you're not on track to meet your annual goal. But you don't have a current solution to help you meet your goal. Why do you think this isn't a good option?"
When you are at the end of a call and the prospect says they don't want to move forward, sales rep B has more information to work with. That's because sales rep B did a better job of discovery during the call. Make sure you are like sales rep B, not A.
## Understand their decision-making process
It is important to understand the decision-making process before you ask any questions. You need to think about whether you should ask these questions during discovery or at the end of the call. But no matter when you ask them, there are some questions that I think are really important for you to understand.
I find that sales reps go too close to the bottom of the funnel and ask questions like "When do you want to make a decision?" This is six questions down the funnel, so it's not very high up. To highlight what I mean by "down the funnel," I'm going to show you again with a quick picture.
Down the funnel means thinking about someone's process of making a decision. You want to know what that process is, and then ask questions based on how they answer the first one. They might say that they have a committee. That's great! Can you tell us more about who is on that committee?
Then you want to ask them what their timeline is for making a decision. Do they have a budget set aside? And where are they in the decision-making process? Did they come in late? Did they come in early? What are the criteria?
What are the decision criteria that have been set for this situation? What is important to them when making a decision? Once we know what is important, we can ask them to rank each criterion in order of importance. For example, if there are three things that are important, the first might be the most important. We wouldn't know this without asking them directly.
If you know what your competition is doing, you can sell more effectively, close more effectively, and tailor your presentation to their needs.
Learn more about your prospect's decision-making process with the worksheets at the end of this article.
## Ask if they’re meeting with other providers
You want to know if they are meeting with other providers. This is important so you can understand their decision-making process. The best sales reps are constantly asking these questions. For example, you might say where you are in the decision-making process and they might say, "We're looking at four companies right now, including you."
If someone tells you that they are considering other companies, it is okay to ask them what they think of those companies. You can also ask them how your company compares. This will help you understand where you stand in comparison to the other companies that they are considering.
## Always play the anchor position
Being the last person they talk to before they make a decision is always a good thing.
Let's say you're talking to a potential buyer and you're in the final stages of a deal. You know that there are other vendors being considered, and it turns out that there are four of them. Two people have already demoed their product. Today is your turn. And then the fourth person will demo their product tomorrow before the committee meets at, let's say, the end of the week.
Here I advise making sure that you are always the last vendor that the prospect has spoken to before they go into that meeting or final discussion.
There are several reasons why you should always go last in a presentation. One reason is people will remember you more if they hear from you last. But there's also another reason - so you can understand the other objections or de-positioning that the competitor might do. This way, you can prepare for it and have a response ready.
So how do we do this?
“We'd recommend that you have a brief conversation just before your committee meeting to save time. What our customers found to be really beneficial when they were in your shoes is to have a quick phone call just before the meeting begins, between each presentation, and then for any last questions regarding what you've seen, and if it's alright with you, can we put up a placeholder for Thursday at two o'clock?”
Some people will say no, but more often than not, they will say yes. Actually around 60% of the time, the prospect says yes.
Yeah, you may feel a little uncomfortable doing it, but remember that it's not just for you; it's actually in the best interest of the prospect as well.
## Step outside your comfort zone
It can be a little scary to do discovery the first time. This is because you might ask questions that push the prospect further than you are comfortable with. However, it's important to remember that you might not be pushing the prospect at all. Make sure that you are willing to take risks if you want to grow.
If you feel comfortable attending today's meeting, you'll want to try to attend as many of the best meetings as possible. This will help give you more confidence and allow you to take your discovery process to the next level.
Sometimes it can be tough to ask people questions that might be sensitive. For example, if you want to know how they did last quarter in terms of sales. You can make it a little easier for them by giving them a heads up or leading into the question.
One way to prepare for asking sensitive questions is by giving some background information. For example:
*“In these types of discussions, we often find it helpful to get a better understanding of your KPIs, specifically sales numbers. Is it okay if we take a closer look at that?”*
And here is the last piece of advice for you: when you ask someone a question, you want them to understand why you are doing it. So, you need to explain the value of the question and then ask for permission to ask it. This is different from just asking someone a question without any explanation. People can feel defensive as if they are interrogated.
As I said before, the discovery process isn’t easy but you can make it easier. At the end of the day, it all comes down to being present, open-minded, and ready to understand and help.
## Download worksheets
And, as promised, feel free to download these worksheets to practice new knowledge!
---
[ Worksheets Take Your Demo Call To The Next Level Worksheets - Take Your Demo Call To The Next Level.pdf 325 KB download-circle ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/content/files/2022/06/Worksheets---Take-Your-Demo-Call-To-The-Next-Level.pdf "Download")
### 13 Important Things To Do Right Before Your Demo Call
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/13-important-things-to-do-right-before-your-demo-call/
Last updated: 2022-12-07T14:10:29.000Z
It's one of those things where 20% effort results in 80% outcome. You already spent the time and effort in generating a lead and scheduling this call. Spending a few minutes before every demo call to prepare will make sure you're not wasting a lead, and [maximize your chances to close](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/struggling-with-closings/).
In my [other articles](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/tag/perfect-saas-demo/), I already covered different topics on how to prepare for your demo. But in this piece, we’ll touch upon all of the main steps to consider in your preparation right before the call. Some of them you already know, some information will be new and some tips will bring new insight to your own knowledge.
So, let’s dive deeper, shall we?
**Worksheets are available to download later below.**
## Check your tech
If you're going to have a meeting that is not in person, make sure that everyone who is attending will be able to access the meeting remotely. This means that they will have good Internet access and they will know the call-in or Zoom details.
In case you are meeting someone in person, make sure you show up on time, or even a little bit early. That’s how you’ll ensure everything is ready: the room is prepared for the meeting, and check if you have any adapters or connectors that you might need. To understand what you need to bring to a meeting you can reach out to the prospect or their assistant and ask about the room.
For example, do you have a TV? You should also take a look at what kind of cables they have before deciding if you need to bring your own.
Sales professionals need to be able to connect with tech in order to understand what their prospects are using. However, many sales professionals don't take the necessary steps to learn about the tech and end up being unprepared. They might not know how to use certain tech or they might not have the right equipment with them when they meet their prospects.
There's nothing worse than trying to get all of the tech set up for the first five minutes of a meeting while people are looking at you in the room. That also applies to remote meetings. It all comes down to having an Internet connection and making sure your team is ready as soon as the meeting begins.
## Prepare Supporting Materials
The small but important thing to do in your preparation process: if you're having an on-site meeting, make sure you've got all of the required supporting materials printed out or ready to go on your computer ahead of time.
Or do your best to open all the appropriate tabs and make sure that everything is ready to go if you're conducting a remote search. So there are no last-minute surprises. Because in the sales field last-minute surprises rarely mean something good.
## Research your prospects
That way, you will be aware of any important announcements they may have made. This is important so that you don't miss anything when talking to them.
So, make sure you research any current news that may have come up about your prospect.
As I mentioned earlier, not knowing basic stuff about your prospect is a way to lose them. On the other hand, when you know enough about the prospect and their company and keep up with their news - then it’s a good method to build a connection from the very beginning.
If we’re talking about SaaS sales, you can use this tip to research your prospect: try out sites like [www.builtwith.com](http://www.builtwith.com/?ref=revenueinsideout.com) or **[https://stackshare.io/stacks](https://stackshare.io/stacks?ref=revenueinsideout.com)** and check if you can actually see what their current tech stack is. It gives you a sense as to what competitors they may be working with today.
💡
**Tip**: There are a few ways you can use this information. It helps you build rapport with your prospects at the start of the meeting. It also keeps you informed of any changes in their organization. Showing that you showed up prepared demonstrates your respect for the prospect and their time.
## Review prospect’s LinkedIn
Make sure you review the LinkedIn profiles of all the team members that you are certain will attend the meeting from the prospect's side. Because, this will help you get a sense of their backgrounds, where they are based, and what their titles and roles are. Plus, this information can give you some insight into what to expect during your discussion.
If you won’t know basic info about your prospects - they will sense it immediately. They will feel as if you didn’t make an effort to study them, therefore they are not as important.
So, to avoid s hard feelings like that do your basic research and review their Linkedin.
## Adapt your style
You don’t talk the same way to a 5-year-old and a 50-year-old, right? That’s why I always advise taking your time and analyzing your prospect so, later, you’d be able to adapt your style.
For example, if we are talking to high-level decision-makers, we certainly want to ask more value-driven high-level questions. Because it’s what matters to this prospect the most: to-the-point facts-focused, and business case ROI-oriented conversation.
But it’s not the easiest task to categorize your prospect. But to that, I advise using segmentation to understand your prospect persona.
Let’s say, you've worked with the prospect before, or you've been on calls with them previously, then you can actually start uncovering their persona:
“Okay, based on what I understand to be the personality type of Joe, I'm going to really adapt my style in this call to Joe.”
Then you dig deeper and uncover it even more:
“I know Joe just likes to focus on the data so I'm going to be very data-driven. I'm going to be succinct, I'm going to be quick and I'm going to be exact and I'm going to move on.”
These are the areas that I really encourage you to think through the title and
the personality of the prospect if you have a line of sight into that so that you can adjust accordingly.
You can also use tools like [https://www.crystalknows.com/](https://www.crystalknows.com/?ref=revenueinsideout.com) to get an idea of the communication style of a prospect.
## Share Success Stories
In one of my previous articles, I’ve already talked about the importance of customer success stories. Feel free to check out the said article [here.](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/demo-call-why-should-you-share-your-customer-success-stories/)
To sum it up, in your preparation process take time and gather the best customer success stories relevant to this particular prospect. This way you’ll make the prospect more invested and prove that you’ve already worked with the same cases before.
Here some exercises you can do to become a pro in sharing customer success stories:
💡
**REMEMBER**: Everything you do during a sales call needs to have a clear purpose and intention behind it, which includes customer stories, examples, and case studies that you share with the customer/prospect.
## Prepare Discovery Questions
You never want to leave a call and then remember that you forgot to ask some key questions, right? That’s why I always advise having discovery questions prepared: printed or in digital format.
Sometimes even the most experienced reps can get lost in the conversation and forget to ask key questions. That’s natural, our memory isn’t perfect and when it’s overloaded with tons of information we tend to forget even about the basic stuff.
That’s why I offer to think ahead and prepare questions before the call. Obviously, you don't want it to look like you're reading from a script, but creating bullet points or a list of questions will be a good idea to be in control of your call and the information you’re receiving.
## Study the competition and deposition
If you can, try to find out information about your competitors in advance. This will help you prepare for what they might ask and how you should react. Besides, knowing your competitors has a lot of perks, which I covered in [one](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/3-ti-on-talking-about-your-competitors-and-winning-your-prospects-heart/) of my previous articles.
So, if you have any current customers who used to be with your competitor, find out why they left and use that information to your advantage.
## Prepare for Objections
The next thing you need to do is think about the key objections people may have.
Now, if you've been selling this solution for a while, you know the main questions or objections people may have. For example, if you know a CFO will be on the call, then have a list of questions that CFOs typically ask. This will save you from unexpected situations and will help you during mundane objections, that are typical to the person in that position.
But if you still have problems and sometimes struggle to study your prospect and their possible objections, then I advise this: treat this process as a learning moment.
“I will be willing to change my mind if I am wrong, and this will help me learn.”
This is a very positive mindset that will help you to fight objections with ease, curiosity, and even more desire than before. So, turn your nerves into excitement and move forward with your prospect.
## Add value to the call
One of the best tips that I can give you:
Come prepared in your pre-call planning, with any specific, relevant, and interesting insight that may add value to the discussion.
It could be customer benchmarks that you believe are going to be relevant to your hypothesis of what their need is. It may be industry benchmarks bring new insight that your prospect may not have thought of before.
That’s how you add and prove value right off the bat. You need to add enough value to your prospect’s calls that they get off the call with a thought:
*“I actually would have been willing to maybe pay for that service or product.”*
And think about this for a second: If you take the time to prepare for calls and your competitor does not, you will have a better chance of succeeding. Because you will be ready for whatever the other person says, while your competitors might not.
Make your process easier with the worksheets full of useful checklists and exercises!
## Start an Organization Chart
You should start creating an Org Chart of the company you are selling to. This will help you understand who the key decision-makers are, as opposed to influencers and users. It is important to know this information as you move through each step of your sales call. As you fill out the Org Chart, make sure it gets more and more complete.
In some cases, you might want to aim for as many personal contacts within the prospect company as possible, especially when it comes to upselling in the future.
You don't want to do anything without talking to your Champion first. You should ask them to introduce you to people in the company or help you figure out what is going on inside the company. But it is also important that you make sure you are aligned with your team, the other teams in the company, as well as yourself.
## Collaborate with your champion
💡
*“Champion” - that person who is “sold” on your solution, and can help navigate the internal structure and decision-making process at the prospect’s organization and help lobby for a successful outcome.*
As you get further along in the sales process, and you have talked to the prospect a lot, let's say you are getting ready for a call with a few people on your side to help support the discussion - for example, someone from your product team or finance. On the prospect's side, they are also bringing a few people.
Sometimes people waste time on calls because the sales rep didn’t spend enough time preparing. As a sales rep, you should work with your champion to determine how you will use your time with the people involved in the sale. This will help make sure that everyone gets what they need from the call.
So here, I recommend figuring out if it’s worth having a quick 15-minute touch-base call between you and your Champion.
This will help make sure that you have a clear understanding of the desired outcome of the meeting, the agenda, and any pre-work that needs to be done to make sure that your meeting will run smoothly.
Usually, if you and the Champion work together on a project, it will be more efficient and respectful of the prospect's time. And this in turn will help you move the deal forward more quickly.
And if you want to learn more about how to prepare your team and your prospect before the call, feel free to check my previous [article about demo planning.](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/6-questions-you-need-to-answer-while-scheduling-the-demo-call/)
## Set the right tone
Forget for a second that you’re a sales rep and try to remember this situation:
You are a prospect and you're waiting for a demo to begin. But your seller is late, as well as their team. They don't even seem to be organized and it seems like they're not working together well.
Doesn’t give you an impression of a trustworthy company, right?
Prospects don’t need or want to see your team as an unorganized mess. And more importantly, they don’t want to be a part of your unorganized mess.
You see, most things usually end the way they start. And you want to start your relationship with a potential customer in a positive way. The best way to do this is to make sure you have a pre-call planning checklist that you use every time.
In the previous article, I created a worksheet with all checklists that will make your planning much easier. You can download worksheets [here.](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/6-questions-you-need-to-answer-while-scheduling-the-demo-call/#download-worksheets)
To make your demo planning easier I created worksheets with all checklists and exercises that will change your planning process for the better.
## Download worksheets
And, as promised, feel free to download these worksheets to practice new knowledge!
---
[ Worksheets Preparing For The Demo Worksheets -Preparing For The Demo.pdf 208 KB download-circle ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/content/files/2022/06/Worksheets--Preparing-For-The-Demo.pdf "Download")
### 6 Questions You Need To Answer While Scheduling The Demo Call
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/6-questions-you-need-to-answer-while-scheduling-the-demo-call/
Last updated: 2022-12-07T14:10:35.000Z
Planning a demo meeting can be stressful. You don't want to forget anything, you want to be prepared and you want everything to go well.
But what can you do to reduce the amount of stress behind planning? How can you ensure that everything is ready without any chaotic and unorganized moves?
In this article, I will cover six main questions that will help you in planning your demo meeting. Asking yourself those questions, you will stay in check of your progress and will ensure the readiness of your team members.
And at the end of the article, you’ll be able to download a worksheet full of checklists that will help you in preparation for the demo meeting.
**Worksheets are available to download later below.**
## Who is attending the meeting?
A crucial part of call planning is to figure out who is attending the meeting: both from your and the prospect’s sides. Prospects may tell you themselves, who they’ll bring to the call but even if they don’t, you better find this information on your own as soon as possible.
And you may ask: why is this so important?
The thing is if you know who will come from their side, then you’ll know whom you need to bring with you and how to plan the strategy behind the call. For example, your prospect will bring their finance specialist to the call. Great, that means you need to be prepared for more money and revenue-focused questions or maybe you need to choose a tighter business case for your presentation.
Or, for example, your prospect will invite their developer to the call. Here you may need to figure out if you should bring someone, who’ll be able to assist you during the call. Someone, whose technical knowledge of the product is superior to yours and who will be necessary for this particular conversation.
Either way, as long as you know who’ll attend your call - you’ll have time to prepare.
💡
**Tip:** For each person attending the meeting, think through what they want or need and how you can best meet their needs.
## But whom do you bring from YOUR team?
Sometimes reps can’t figure out who exactly they need, so they bring …everyone. And no, that’s not the best decision for your work reputation.
First of all, you don’t want to seem unprepared in the eyes of prospects and your colleagues.
Second, you don’t want to irritate your team members. They have their own jobs and responsibilities and inviting them time after time without any particular reason will only provoke distrust and irritation from your supporting team members.
Here you need to have a clear purpose for every team member and you can have that:
- by making sure you and your prospect are clear on what the objective of the call is
- by making sure you know who's attending from the prospect’s team.
Only then you can determine team members whom you should bring to the call.
💡
**REMEMBER**: The more mindful, appreciative, and respectful you are of your colleague’s time, the more likely they are to go out of their way to show up for future calls and help you move deals forward.
## What should you do and why?
The success of the call always depends on the sales rep and you need to remember that. It’s your task to create an environment for everyone, plan out an agenda, and divide roles between supporting team members.
You need to be aware that some team members will need your advice or hints on how to act around the prospect. It’s your job to make it clear that your team members must be on time, must look presentable, and act politely.
And you may ask why it's my responsibility?
Being a sales rep you’re used to specific etiquette and attitude while being on call. At the same time your colleague, let’s say, from Product Development doesn’t spend even a third of their time around the prospects. And it’s not their fault, but it’s you who invited them to the call. And it’s your responsibility to prepare your colleague, to make them comfortable and ready for the meeting.
Here I advise you to give your team members a quick one-on-one on technical aspects of the call (camera angle, lighting, etc.), etiquette (like showing up a couple of minutes early), and the role you'd like them to play in the meeting ideally.
## How to manage your team before the call?
As soon as you pick your team, you need to find time to have a pre-game call. Here I advise having this call in advance, to make sure everyone is on the same page:
- they know why they’re on the team
- they're aligned on the objective of the call
- they know how you're expecting them to and when you're expecting them to converse with the prospect in that discussion.
As sales reps, we might not be that focused on detail. We always think about the bigger picture, about how fast we need to move and sometimes we’re not very thoughtful about our colleague's time.
As I said before, our team members have their own responsibilities and tasks to work on. So we need to be thoughtful and appreciative of the time of our colleagues and when we bring them on.
And pre-game calls will be your best way to make sure everyone is ready, everyone knows what to do, how to do it, and when.
Above all, be appreciative of the fact that they are taking the time to be part of both your pre-call alignment and your sales call.
💡
**Tip:** Make sure your team is comfortable with the etiquette of a remote customer-facing call (i.e., turn off screen notifications, mute when not speaking, turn the video on, and have decent lighting and professional background).
## What to cover with the prospect BEFORE the call?
In previous points, I’ve already covered how much agenda influences your team and their responsibilities. But what about you? How agenda (or its absence) can affect both you and your prospect?
It's important to position the prospect on a call before jumping in with both feet. You want them to know what the purpose of the call is, and ideally its agenda as well.
That way they can better prepare their own thoughts and questions, which will make for a more productive conversation. It also helps to build trust when you show that you're not just interested in using their time for your own ends - even if that may be true.
If that’s the first time you’re talking to the prospect, make sure that there's a purpose that’s stated either in the calendar request, hopefully, an agenda as well - at least a proposed agenda.
But be mindful, that you’re doing this call about them, not about you. So I advise you to ensure that the prospect has an understanding as to why they're spending that time with you.
Your goal is to make this conversation meaningful. Sometimes it means giving your prospect time to do their own preplanning. Proposing an agenda via email may trigger some questions that can be easily covered before your call, and that in turn will save time for a more productive conversation.
Also, I advise you to practice your email writing and create some templates like here:
##
How to improve your chances of success?
The answer is simple: start with the end goal in mind.
What is your primary objective? What does success look like at the end of the call?
If you know what you're aiming for, it will be easier to stay focused and on track. Plus, if you have a good sense of what success looks like, you'll be more likely to achieve it. So take some time to think about your objectives before making that call. It could make all the difference in the world.
Starting with the end goal in mind will help you navigate through the conversation more effectively and avoid any unexpected or unplanned turns or curveballs along the way.
By starting with this mindset, you can be sure that your efforts will be focused on achieving the desired outcome, whether it is getting the client's agreement to go ahead with a proposal, or simply getting their contact information so you can follow up at a later date.
Whatever your goal may be, having it clearly defined from the outset will allow you to make better use of your time and focus on what's really important. So start every sales call with this mindset and watch as your success rate increases dramatically.
To make your demo well-organized, you need to always be in check of your process. And to make your demo planning less stressful and easier to manage I created this worksheet.
## Download worksheets
And, as promised, feel free to download these worksheets to practice new knowledge!
---
[ Woorksheets Scheduling The Demo Woorksheets - Scheduling The Demo.pdf 145 KB download-circle ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/content/files/2022/06/Woorksheets---Scheduling-The-Demo.pdf "Download")
### 5 Best Planning Tips For Your Demo Call
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/5-best-planning-tips-for-your-demo-call/
Last updated: 2022-12-07T14:10:43.000Z
As you know: planning your demo call is a time-consuming process that requires a lot of small steps. And some of those steps may be forgotten in this chaos of preparations.
It happens with the best of us, right? No one is immune to forgetting details here and there. But what can you do to minimize your chaos and create a demo process that will increase your chances for a better result?
The answer is checklists.
If you know that you can forget something because of a busy schedule, and amount of daily responsibilities, then preparation checklists will become your savior.
In this article, I will talk about things and steps that you may need to include in your pre-demo checklists and which for sure will increase the quality of your demo.
**Worksheets are available to download later below.**
## Turn your video on
Here is a small fact for you: reps are underestimating the power of the camera.
When you’re in the meeting room, in person, do you like sitting close to your prospect? Do you see the benefit in their full attention and the benefit of seeing their reactions to your words?
Sometimes reps can book a demo and then just spend their time talking without a camera turned on. That creates a big wall between them and their prospects and lowers the effect of the demo itself.
So, here I advise you to always have your camera turned on. Let me explain why:
1. People are usually more comfortable with the camera turned on, because it builds a connection between you and the prospect. It’s true that sometimes your prospect won’t be comfortable with their camera on, but that’s completely ok. Yes, you may lose some non-verbal cues from them, but overall the comfort of the prospect is one of your main goals during the successful demo.
2. Prospects can read your non-verbal cues and that’s amazing. You can influence your prospect with your body language and make them even more comfortable with you. Nonverbal cues are small but important keys to building trust.
3. If you don’t see them, they will see you. Somehow prospects always pay better attention to you, even when their camera is off and yours is turned on. They keep their focus on you because you are looking directly at them, while not seeing them.
As I mentioned before, sometimes your prospects won’t be comfortable with their camera on. You never want to call your prospect out and tell them just to turn the camera on. Here it’s important to know how exactly you need to handle it as a rep:
1. If you’re setting up the meeting in advance, don’t forget to make it clear the future call is going to be a video call. Mention this in your calendar invite, so your prospect will be aware and ready for your demo.
2. Hey, can you see me? That’s how you can start your call and you'd be surprised how often the person says that yeah, they can see you but just decided not to turn the video on. Or sometimes they'll say, Oh, I didn't realize my video wasn't on. This situation actually happens quite often. So, “Hey, can you see me?” is a reminder that usually doesn't make your prospect feel uncomfortable.
## Book additional time beforehand
You know there’s always a possibility your call might take longer than you expected. For example, you had some technical difficulties ( check out my article on 4 main technical elements you need to be aware of before your demo **[here](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/5-technical-elements-of-your-demo-call-that-can-use-improvement/) ),** or your prospect was late, or simply the conversation went so well, that you or your prospect couldn’t stop talking.
Now imagine: you see that your ongoing call will take more time, but right after this call you have scheduled another call. What would you do? Postpone the next prospect? Stop ongoing call in the middle of progress? To make sure you won’t have any of these scenarios you need to think beforehand. And what I mean by that is to have some time gaps between your calls. Be mindful, that you need to have some pocket of time just in case.
So I recommend always blocking off 15 minutes to half an hour past the time that you're scheduled with your prospect.
This way you’ll reduce the chances to be in a very awkward position between an effective ongoing call and the next prospect.
Yeah, you can always schedule another call with your ongoing prospect (if they agree, of course), but we all know that time waits for nobody and if you've got the momentum going and a great conversation, you need to make the best out of it.
💡
**Tip:** If you're having a great conversation with a prospect and they're okay with running over, make sure you give yourself the space to do so. That way, you won't have to book another call and potentially lose the momentum of the discussion. Share this tip with anyone else who is going to be on the call from your side, so that if your team needs to stay on the call, they have the freedom and flexibility to do so.
## Be aware of time allotment
One of the main things you need to be aware of is your time. Let’s imagine a simple situation: you're in a sales process, you’ve built a rapport, you’ve proposed an agenda for the next call, and come to a consensus on sort of the roadmap for the discussion during the call. So what's next?
Well, there are two things you need to check:
### Check time for time allotment
Just for you and the prospect’s comfort, take your time to ask simply something like:
“Hey, we were booked for 45 minutes here, just wanted to make sure that still works for you”.
This way everyone's managing each other's expectations accordingly.
### Ask your prospect about their expectations from the call
If the prospect hasn't told you what they want to get out of the call, this is your chance to ask and find out. This way, you can ensure that the call is focused on topics that are important to the prospect and that will help them achieve their goals. Asking about what the prospect wants to get out of the call also shows that you're interested in helping them achieve their goals, which can build rapport and trust
So after we check for the time allotment it’s crucial to ask something like:
*“I really want to make sure we review the questions thoroughly and that we spend our time efficiently. I want to ensure that we cover everything that is important to you and that we come up with a plan that works best.”*
When you know what your prospect wants to talk about and what they want to achieve during this call, you will be able to control your time and the flow of the demo much better.
## Make sure your team members are prepared
To make your call smooth and efficient you need to make sure that your team is prepared. Take your time to ensure that everyone in your team knows their responsibilities, their roles, and, most importantly, they know what they are required to say.
When you're preparing for a customer call, you need to remember that not everyone on the call will be as comfortable as you are. Some of your team members may only have 5% of the customer interaction that you do in a year. Keep this in mind when you're preparing your materials and make sure everyone is on the same page. This will help the call go smoothly and ensure that everyone is able to contribute.
So, here I advise doing your best to have your team’s back and help them prepare as much as you can.
## Always be on time
And last but not least, the king of all time-management rules - always be on time. Sounds boring to even talk about it, I know. But you can imagine how many reps are still late to their own calls. Some of the reps don’t even say sorry and never apologize for being late.
The success of that call is up to you as a sales professional, so own that. You need to be aware of all the basics and follow at least the main rules to guarantee at least a partial success of your call.
So, try to always be on time and if you can’t do that, do your best to apologize and tell your prospect that you’ll be late beforehand.
Time is money, and in the sales world, you wouldn't find a truer statement. So, try your best to be aware of your and your prospect’s time to build an efficient demo process.
## Download worksheets
And, as promised, feel free to download these worksheets to practice new knowledge!
---
[ Worksheets Demo Arangement Worksheets - Demo Arangement.pdf 133 KB download-circle ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/content/files/2022/06/Worksheets---Demo-Arangement.pdf "Download")
### 5 Technical Elements Of Your Demo Call That Can Use Some Improvement
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/5-technical-elements-of-your-demo-call-that-can-use-improvement/
Last updated: 2022-12-07T14:10:51.000Z
If you're giving a demo call, you want to be as prepared as possible. That also means having all the right equipment set up and ready for your work. But sometimes we forget that equipment is one of the key factors of a successful result and don’t pay enough attention to it.
So, in this article, I will talk about the technical aspects of your demo that require your extra attention.
**Worksheets are available to download later below.**
## Camera
First things first, you need to make sure your camera is ready for the call. And what I mean by that are two things.
### Number one: Your camera angle is at least eye level or above.
This is usually the most flattering position and will help you avoid having your audience look up your nostrils.
This angle will help to ensure that you're not looking down on your prospect, which can create a sense of superiority. Instead, by keeping the camera at eye level or above, you'll appear more friendly and approachable.
There are a few different ways that you can achieve this. If you're using a laptop, simply stack a few books underneath it to raise the screen up to the right height. Or, invest in a laptop stand that allows you to adjust the height as needed. Either way, making sure your camera is at eye level or above will help create a more positive impression.
### Number two: Distance from Camera
The truth is your prospects like to see your facial expressions too. But sometimes reps prefer to spend their money on a fancy boardroom system and sit as far as they desire. And prospects can't actually pick up on their facial expressions, and nonverbal cues easily, and therefore, can’t build a connection.
When you're on a video call, it's important to be close to the camera so that the person you're talking to can see your face clearly. If you're too far away, they won't be able to see your expressions and it will be harder to communicate. So make sure you're close to the camera, even if you have a fancy boardroom system. And if the system can't get close enough to your face, I recommend using a good old-fashioned laptop instead. Being close to the camera is one of your secret nonverbal tools.
💡
**Tip:** When you're meeting with prospects over the video, sit as close to the camera similar to when you take a passport photo. This will help create a feeling of closeness and connection, which is essential for building rapport. By sitting close to the camera, your prospect will be able to see your facial expressions and body language more clearly.
## Background
Unfortunately, sometimes background can hurt more than help during your demo. So, the next thing you need to make sure of are three essential contents of your background. Let’s start with the first one:
### Lighting
Lighting is one of the key aspects of your demo. You want to see and to be seen clearly, so do your best to have good Lighting during the demo.
Natural Lighting is always the best but it’s not something predictable. Some reps are trying to put a regular lamp behind their camera but I advise rather to invest in either a ring light or LED camera lights.
### Background itself
As I said, the background can hurt more than help. And what I mean by that: you don’t want your prospect to see your drying laundry or a messy bedroom. I know, we all worked and some of us continue working from home and it's ok to take your call from bedrooms.
But the rule here is: that it’s not as important to have a professional background, as it is to make sure that your background isn't really unprofessional.
Here I advise you to use your background to build a good conversation. How? Well, instead of having some random objects in your background, try to place something there intentionally. Have a conversation piece in the background that can generate at least a small talk. We are all humans and sometimes all we need to do is to talk about some funny object in your/theirs background and have a laugh about it to kick-start your demo call.
So, the point here is: to be intentional about what you've got going on in the background.
### Background sounds
There is nothing worse than having background sounds that can irritate both you and your prospects. While there are things you can control, there are things that you can't control as well. So, here I advise making sure the things that you can control are dealt with. For example, there is a whole team that decided to join your call. Your job is to make sure they’re muted during your conversation.
There is no need to hear someone’s cough, or noize from their chair, or clicking of their mouse…well, you’ve got the idea.
Background noises are distracting and can lower the quality of your demo drastically.
💡
**Tip:** Have a list of guidelines that each person in your team adheres to on every call. This gives your prospect the impression that your team is respectful, professional, and in sync with each other. This is one of the many ways that you can distinguish yourselves from the competition and create a favorable impression with the prospect.
## Screen sharing
Sometimes we can forget that we’re actually sharing our screen. We may check our emails, looking for something, while our prospect is reading our emails, Slack messages and etc.
If you don’t want your prospect to be entertained by your messages, email headlines, and constant slack notifications, you need to be prepared in advance.
Before the call, open all the tabs that need to be open, and whenever you need to find additional information…just stop sharing your screen. There’s nothing wrong with it and it will save you some nerves about your prospect seeing something that you don’t want them to see.
The last thing you want is to have your conversation interrupted by a flow of messages and notifications. So, make sure to turn them off before the call, so you won't be distracted or disturbed.
## Internet
The last thing I want to discuss and the most important one is the internet. If you're planning on using video during your call, you'll need to make sure you have a good connection. Otherwise, you may experience choppy audio or video, or even dropped calls. So, to guarantee a high-quality connection you need to check the next few things:
### Speed
More often than not internet speed can fail you.
Imagine, you’re halfway through your conversation with the decision-maker and suddenly you don’t hear/see them or they don’t hear/see you. Sounds like one of the worst sales nightmares ever. And it’s understandable, that the last thing you want is to be glitched or frozen during your demo.
So, here I recommend investing in the higher internet tier, to make sure your internet connection and speed are great.
### Glitches
If the internet speed failed you, you need to figure out why you have connection problems as soon as possible. I recommend you go to something like[ fast.com](http://fast.com/?ref=revenueinsideout.com) and have a look at your speed. Sometimes it’s not your fault, so you may ask your customer to check their internet speed as well.
In some cases, your connection can fail because of screen sharing and too many opened tabs. Either way, you need to have plan B in case you won’t be able to continue your video call. Here I advise you to ask for the prospect’s phone number beforehand and take your conversation to the phone instead of video.
## Support
It’s important to remember that the prospect might not be as tech-savvy as you are. They might not be as familiar with your specific video conferencing provider technology and your task is to be there and to help at the very beginning of the call.
You can always tell when your prospect is struggling with audio or video during the start of your call and they feel very uncomfortable during those moments. So, at those moments it's important to be prepared for tech troubles and you need to be ready to solve them.
Here I advise you to practice troubleshooting with your colleagues and friends so that in the future, you’ll be able to instruct your prospect quickly, confidently, and effectively.
To be ready for your call is nothing but a simple checklist in your hands. To make sure your call is well-prepared, feel free to use the templates, that will help you to organize the call in the best way possible.
If you’re interested in more demo planning content, make sure to check out my other article on demo planning right [here.](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/5-best-planning-tips-for-your-demo-call/)
## Download worksheets
And, as promised, feel free to download these worksheets to practice new knowledge!
---
[ Worksheets Demo Logistics Worksheets - Demo Logistics.pdf 136 KB download-circle ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/content/files/2022/06/Worksheets---Demo-Logistics.pdf "Download")
### 3 Tips On Talking About Your Competitors And Winning Your Prospect's Heart
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/3-ti-on-talking-about-your-competitors-and-winning-your-prospects-heart/
Last updated: 2022-12-07T14:10:58.000Z
Prospects could ask about your competitors and you should get used to it. You can look at it as a test or even treat it as one. Assuming your prospects are not shy and they will more often than not ask you how exactly are you different from your competitors. And if you can’t deliver an effective high-quality answer, then you failed this so-called test.
Talking about your competitors is inevitable and you need to learn how to talk about them in the right, beneficial way. In this article, I will cover three basic tips on how to talk about your competitors in the right way.
**Worksheets are available to download later below.**
## TIP 1\. Be respectful
It’s a general rule to always remember - don’t talk badly about your competitors. Make sure to show your respect to competitors and their work, but never spend your time trash-talking.
## TIP 2\. Don’t talk too much
Listen, you don’t want to talk too much about your competitors, and, most importantly, you don’t want to talk too much good about them either.
There is always a possibility that your prospect is already considering your competitor. And yes, we don’t want to add to that. Sometimes reps choose to “admire” competitors so much. that they simply lose their prospect to that competitor.
So, overall my second tip is to save your time and don’t talk too much about your competitor. Use this time and effort to showcase the benefits of your product and company and in the next tip, I will explain how.
## TIP 3\. Explain why your customers chose you and not your competitors
“Oh, you know, deep respect for competitor ABC (assuming that's the case). Having said that, I would love to walk you through why so many of our customers have left ABC to come to us. I can share with you what they've actually experienced and why they decided to make the move.”
This is an example of how you can make a competitors-talk beneficial to you. Now, let me explain why this tactic works.
First, it plants a seed of doubt in the mind of prospects that they might come back to you anyway even if they decide to choose your competitor first.
The second thing it does is that it gives you an opportunity to talk through the customer's voice, and not just you as a sales rep saying why you think that they should choose you, but you're doing it in the voice of the customer, which is more than beneficial.
We are all aware of sales rep reputation, that’s why prospects are usually hesitant to talk to us and believe it’s better to take everything we say with a grain of salt. But if you’ll make an effort and will try to talk through the customer’s point of you - you will be much more appreciated by your prospect.
If you want to read more about customers’ stories and how they affect your demo call, check out my previous article [here.](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/demo-call-why-should-you-share-your-customer-success-stories/)
While not being disparaging towards your competitor, how can you plant a seed that gets your prospect thinking that your solution may be a better fit for their needs? To find out feel free to download my worksheets and go through exercises just like this one:
*Write your own version of the script below:*
*"We have a deep respect for competitor ABC. Having said that, I would love to walk you through why so many of our customers have left competitor ABC to sign on with us. I can share with you what they've actually experienced and why they decided to make the move."*
Of course, you need to study your competitor as much as possible. So that you can highlight your benefits in the best way possible. Knowing your competitors in-depth, you’ll be able to walk through your benefits with much more confidence than before.
Use this template to study 3 of your competitors inside-out.
## Download worksheets
And, as promised, feel free to download these worksheets to practice new knowledge!
---
[ Worksheets Talking About Your Competitors Worksheets - Talking About Your Competitors.pdf 70 KB download-circle ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/content/files/2022/06/Worksheets---Talking-About-Your-Competitors.pdf "Download")
### Is Everybody In Your Team Aligned On The Top 3 USPs?
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/is-everybody-in-your-team-aligned-on-the-top-3-usps/
Last updated: 2022-12-07T14:11:05.000Z
When I do our coaching for teams, one of the activities I ask everyone to perform is to write down the top three unique selling propositions of their product or business. It will surprise you how varied people's answers are.
**Worksheets are available to download later below.**
And I discovered that there was a significant difference between team members in how they saw and how they'd describe their company's unique differences.
The problem, in this case, is that everybody is using their own messaging for the organization. So any messaging strategy you create for your company is deemed to fail before it even starts.
So, it's critical for anyone who runs a sales team to understand and focus on the primary three distinguishing factors. Take all the time you need to sit down with your staff and really sync up on the top three important distinctions. Also, align on what sets you apart from your top two or three competitors.
Write down your organization’s top 3 differentiators. What makes you different from the competition? For more productive and most importantly effective work you can download our worksheet here:
💡
**Success Tip:** You want your whole sales team to be on the same page when it comes to how to explain your company's top three differentiators and how to do so effectively. Set aside time to discuss with your staff what your distinctive are and how you'll convey them to prospects.
## Download worksheets
And, as promised, feel free to download these worksheets to practice new knowledge!
---
[ Worksheets Know Your Top 3 Differentiators Worksheets - Know Your Top 3 Differentiators.pdf 42 KB download-circle ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/content/files/2022/06/Worksheets---Know-Your-Top-3-Differentiators.pdf "Download")
### 3 Simple Steps To Make Your Demo Unforgettable
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/3-simple-steps-to-make-your-demo-unforgettable/
Last updated: 2022-12-07T14:11:17.000Z
Typically we hear: I want to make the prospect feel comfortable doing business with me. I want them to be motivated after leaving the call. I want them to be passionate about my passion. So when they leave: they're energized and thrilled with how it may fulfill their needs.
I think it is also important to build trust. As we only have a very short time in a sales call to build trust, rapport, and credibility, anything you can do in that regard is critical.
When is the last time you made a purchase? I'll bet you remember how the salesperson made you feel as well as the features they explained about the product.
That’s how you want your prospects to feel when they're talking to you.
How many times do we stand there and obsess over how many slides do we have and what color pallet we have in graphs? Or do the fonts on slides match with our one-pager? But none of it really matters if we aren't connecting with prospects effectively or aren't creating a desired sense and feeling.
Do you want your customer to feel excited? Interested? Engaged? Trusting?
Once you know how you want them to feel, you can start tailoring your content and communication style around that emotion.
So here I offer you to figure out this task together by using the template below.
**Worksheets are available to download later below.**
## STEP 1: Ask yourself a question.
Start by answering the first question - What are the key three emotions you want your prospect to feel during the call? Or what are the emotions you want them to leave the meeting with?
Just take a minute right now to write down the emotion number 1, 2, & 3.
If you successfully did the previous instructions I offer you to move forward!
## STEP 2: Look back at your experience.
Now, try to recall your previous 5 sales conversations. For each call, rank yourself on each of the three emotions you wrote in the last step from one (Prospect was not feeling that at all) to ten (Definitely yes).
What would the prospect say if someone asked them right after you left - "Hey, how did that salesperson make you feel?" Circle your rank out of 10 for each:
Typically most experienced salespeople have some 1s, some 9s, and some 5s. So no need to beat yourself up if you don't get it right every time.
However, if you have more 5s and 1s instead of 9s, the clear lesson is that you need to be more intentional about the emotional aspects of your calls, not only the content and design of your presentation.
## STEP 3: Figure out the future improvements.
As a final step, list down things that you can do before or during your next sales calls for evoking each of the three emotions that you’ve listed in STEP ONE. So, from now on, you'll be able to pick and target at least one feeling that you want the prospect to leave with.
By taking a few seconds to really center yourself before that sales call and get a sense of how you want to connect with the prospect. And, I assure you, if you do that, your message will have a higher chance of landing successfully while evoking the emotion you want.
Go through each of the three feelings you identified and write down how you can be more intentional about creating this connection with your prospect. What can you do on your call to create this feeling and environment?
To get the most out of this activity, from now on rate yourself from one to ten for at least one of the three targetted emotions every time you get off a call. At least until you start getting mostly 8s and 9s.
I hope this was useful. And you now have a plan with different things you can do in your next call to evoke the kind of emotion you want your prospect.
💡
**Success Tip:** Add your three most important feelings to the pre-call checklist. Take a few minutes to center yourself and establish the goal for how you want to connect with your prospect before getting on a call. On every call, your aim is to achieve a perfect score of 10 in each of your three core emotions.
## Download worksheets
And, as promised, feel free to download these worksheets to practice new knowledge!
---
[ Worksheets How Do You Want Your Prospect To Feel Worksheets - How Do You Want Your Prospect To Feel.pdf 66 KB download-circle ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/content/files/2022/06/Worksheets---How-Do-You-Want-Your-Prospect-To-Feel.pdf "Download")
### 9 Important Steps To Take During The Demo Call
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/9-important-steps-to-take-during-the-demo-call/
Last updated: 2022-12-07T14:11:25.000Z
Previously we’ve talked enough about planning your demo call and ongoing preparations and you can check out my articles on planning [here.](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/tag/perfect-saas-demo/)
But what should you be doing during the call itself? What should be your main steps during the call? In this article, I’ll cover the main steps that will help you handle your next call as smoothly as possible.
**Worksheets are available to download later below.**
## STEP 1\. “Is it ok if I record this call?”
During any sales call your goal is to build trust and one of the key factors of trust is honesty. There is nothing wrong with recording your call, not at all. After all, you’ll need those recordings. But you need to understand that prospects might not like to be recorded and it’s their right to say “no” to that.
So, my advice here is, to be honest, and just ask your prospect:
*“Is it ok if I record this call?”*
It takes one second and a single sentence to add a little bit more to the trust-building between you and the prospect.
Plus, in some areas it’s forbidden by the law to record a person without their agreement, so be aware of that as well. We want to take actions that will help our relationship with the prospect, not actions that will damage it.
If you often forget to let the prospect know that you are recording the call, try writing it on a post-it note and sticking it on your computer screen so you see it every time you hop on a call.
Don't forget to check out the worksheets under to have a full set of exercises!
## STEP 2\. Take time to build Rapport
Yes, we've all heard that it's critical to establish rapport at the start of a conversation, also known as “the chit-chat part of the call.” But contrary to popular belief some sales reps hate building rapports and prefer to avoid it. Usually, those reps say things like:
*“No, no; I'm not like that; I'm a challenger rep and I don't do things like that.”*
What it all boils down to is that we need to change our style, whether we're a challenger seller, a regular seller, or a more relational one, in order to adapt it to the prospect's personality type and preference.
As salespeople, we have a really difficult job. And one of the tasks we must accomplish in a short time period is to really understand:
**Are the prospects on the other end of the call want to discuss their children and golf game or do they just want to get down to business?**
So, in the first few minutes, when I say establishing rapport is the first step, please keep in mind that I mean engaging the prospect on the call. So you can quickly determine whether it's time to dive into business right away or make a little bit of small talk.
The second thing to consider is that you don't have to discuss the weather or any other cheesy topic. My advice here is to do a lot of research on the company. Maybe you’ll notice they've established a new division or there was something newsworthy published on LinkedIn, and you can incorporate that.
And you may ask:
*“What if I’m not a small-talk person and want to stick to business?”*
And I say that it’s perfectly fine. However, this sales style has a trap. And that's what I see when reps ask questions that are too business-oriented in the beginning: the prospect takes it as an indication that you're ready to get down and dirty with business. What happens here is that the rep must withdraw it to return to the topic on hand.
Second, we want to have a clear agenda where we all know where we're heading and what direction we're going in.
But firstly, make sure that you're reading the other person, just to understand, hey, is it okay if we start by saying hello and being more relational? Or do they want to talk about business right now? Then act appropriately.
If you can, look up some interesting business items about their operation. If they're a smaller company, you won't find much on the news; but perhaps you go to their website and still discover some intriguing talking points.
Take your time and practice this exercise to prepare for your next call!
## STEP 3\. Introduce everyone
You've jumped on the call. Now what?
It's important to do introductions, just like you would do if you were meeting the prospect in person. Here is the thing, if you're ever questioning how you should navigate through a screen share or a video call, just start doing what you would actually do in real life if you were in the same room with the prospect.
Now, after you've asked the person how their day is going, you would introduce them to the people around. Here I recommend introducing yourself, and your role, and saying something like, "Hey, before we dive into a proposed roadmap for our call or agenda, I love to just go around the room and do some quick introductions. Introduce yourself, and your role, and then have your team introduce themselves and their role."
It's always nice to start introductions from your side first with your team rather than handing the reins over to your prospect. There are a few people on the prospect side who might try to avoid the awkwardness by asking if you want to go first or not, especially if everyone is calling remotely.
So, here I propose taking control of the situation and saying:
*"OK, Joe, I'd love to hand it off to you for intros, and then Joe can introduce himself before passing it on to Nick".*
And if he doesn't pass it on to Nick next, you might say:
*"Great, thank you, Joe. Then move over to Nick., OK, fantastic."*
When your introductions are done, it’s time to move to the agenda.
Exercises and checklists are waiting for you in the worksheets later below!
💡
**Tip:** Remember it’s up to you to stay in control of the call. After introductions, bring the focus back to the agenda and the next segment that you want to move into.
## STEP 4\. Propose an agenda
The next step is proposing an agenda. This is something that comes naturally for people who have been in business for a long time, but for people who are pretty much new to sales, it can be a little bit harder. If you are in the second category, don't worry - here is some information to help you with this step:
So, number one: Why do you propose an agenda?
People might not be aware of your time but they for sure want to know how they're spending their own. So, when you are on a call with a prospect, you want to show them that you respect them. This means proposing how you will spend the time together.
Number two: you want to make sure that the call isn't about you, but about the prospect.
So, you're coming in with a hypothesis on what their greatest need is. It’s very important to figure out what the prospect wants to achieve because this gives a shared understanding of that topic. It may take time to have a concept of your prospect's needs but it’ll be worth it.
So, lastly, when you're proposing an agenda, there are three steps that I advise to make:
1. propose the agenda
2. state the value
3. check for acceptance.
It should take you no more than 30 seconds to complete this task. It's crucial to have a clear sense of where you're going and that the prospect is on board with it.
An agenda, for example, might sound like this:
*“You know, today I'm really looking forward to diving in with a number of questions regarding your company just to get a deeper understanding of your present position, needs, and how things are going with your current solution. And if we do decide to go forward with a demo, on exactly where we can make the most effective use of your time, that will better position us. How does that sound to you?”.*
You went on to speak about visiting you and asking you a slew of questions so that they know what to anticipate, then you can say:
"When I ask you these questions, it will allow us to really make the most of our time if we move to a demo," and then checking for acceptance by saying, "How does that sound?" And this is their chance to say something along the lines of: "Hey, sounds great! But...” or “Yes!" or just “That doesn't sound good.”
Now, it's important to talk about what happens if your prospect says: *“I just want to know what the price is.”*
A lot of reps simply turn down prospects with an answer like this:
*“We'll get there later...”*
And the prospect feels ignored. If they asked you about the price early on, you need to make them feel acknowledged, not ignored. So, the best way to do it is to explain why it's not the greatest idea to jump into pricing right away.
The most important thing is: that how you might handle pricing questions will define our success. Now, how can you handle this situation though?
Here I advise saying something along the line:
*"We want to provide the best solution for you and to do that we have to understand your needs first. So what I wanted to propose is just asking you a handful of questions here to understand your requirements a little bit better, and walk through the right solution for you at that point, ‘ cause that'll then tell me I don't want to just give you the standard sort of off-the-shelf pricing or solution. We want to make sure it's catered to your needs, and then we walk through the pricing. How does that sound?".*
Around 30 to 40% of the prospect will respond, “No problem.” But 60 to 70% of them will say, "I just want to know the cost."
They're the prospect right now. So what should you do next? Say something like this: "Okay, absolutely. Let me walk you through a few things structurally how pricing works and how it's organized. And I can offer some ballparks as well."
Then I advise you to go into it like this: let's say you have an upfront charge as well as a monthly fee. So you may say, "*We have an upfront fee and a monthly fee depending on the number of users."* And hopefully, the prospect will feel acknowledged and that you are providing them with something.
Here you can suggest, *"Well, you know I really do need to learn more but I can certainly offer standard pricing."* on the low-end it would be X; on the high-end, it would be Y.
So you're giving them something without going into a rate card and displaying that on the screen at this time. The disadvantage to what I just said is that you might anchor them by low on the low side as well as scare them off high on the high side. But if they're hammering home pricing so early, what else are you supposed to do?
It's also a little hint to you to question the situation if your prospect is really looking for the best fit. And it's totally fine to call them on it and say, “I have to ask if the price is truly the most significant thing that interests you here.” Right. It's also acceptable to inquire about this.
The answer may be yes. If “Yes,” at the very least, when determining your pipeline and deciding where you'll invest your time with clients, now not with simply everyone who is price-sensitive, right?
Then you may go to your third line of resistance. If they don't want any of the options I mentioned, simply raise the price and guide them through it.
There are three main reasons why you should try to navigate through objections.
1\. It makes the prospect feel heard and not dismissed.
2\. It gives the prospect what they want while still highlighting the value of your product or service.
3\. It helps you pre-qualify potential buyers to see if they are serious about buying or just wasting your time.
Remember, don’t be shy about asking if the price is important to them. Say something like this:
*"You know, as you can imagine, we're talking to a number of folks per week in your situation. And typically we find that there are a number of things that are really important to them aside from price. But I'd love to understand your situation. Is price the highest-ranking thing for you?".*
Yes, that's a closed-ended question, but it will help you get to know where someone is thinking. They might say no, and that's okay.
Then you can ask them what else is important to them and continue the conversation from there.
##
STEP 5\. Check for time allotment and goals
Now that we've established rapport, done intros, proposed an agenda, and arrived at a conclusion on the discussion's roadmap? So what's next?
I have two suggestions for you.
Number one, check for time allotment.
That is simply stating:
"Hey, we were booked for 45 minutes here; just wanted to double-check that you understand."
And that way, everyone's managing each other's expectations accordingly.
As I mentioned before, we’ve already covered some stuff in the previous articles, and time allotment is one of them. You can check out my article [here.](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/5-best-planning-tips-for-your-demo-call/)
Number two, we want to ask the prospect specifically what they want to achieve on the call. Sometimes, when you propose an agenda, you anticipate that the prospect will tell you exactly what they want to get out of it, but they may not.
This is another opportunity for you to figure out what the prospect wants from the conversation. We must first check how much time they have before stating, "Hey, before I ask a lot of questions, I'd like to understand what you wanted to discuss today. What do you mean by success?"
But remember here is the tricky part. If your prospect will tell you that they want to see something in a feature, you don't want to go right into that specific feature. You need to follow the roadmap that you originally put out, which usually goes through a number of questions, etc.
Here I advise you to reassure your prospect, that you will get to that feature through the course of your conversation. This way you'll stay in control of your call and keep prospects engaged.
## STEP 6\. Present your company
One mistake that salespeople make repeatedly is not gaining a sense of how well your prospect understands your company.
I believe we've become accustomed to having discovery calls and demonstrations all the time. We just assume that everyone knows a certain amount about our company...And often they don't.
So, don't assume that your prospect knows all the proof points about you. Imagine having a call, talking for 10 - 20 minutes, and then suddenly your prospect says this:
“Hey, I don't really know too much about you guys. Tell me more about your organization."
Even if you are a well-established company, don't hesitate to tell the prospect about your organization, at least briefly. Take any opportunity to be very clear early on to talk about a few quick proof points.
But...there is always some hidden trap and in this case, the trap lies in talking about yourself too much.
Prospects want to know about your company, sure. But they don't want to spend minutes and minutes listening about how great your company actually is. This is a two-way street, they want to know about you as much as you want to know about them.
So let's make it about them.
## STEP 7\. Its time for Level Set
Okay, so now we're at the point in the conversation where you've created rapport, introduced yourselves, set up an agenda, and double-checked on time limits. You've made sure you covered all of these bases.
Now it is very important to do a quick level set on if this was a past lead, an SDR call, or inbound, maybe there are some notes you have wrt the origin of the lead.
Here I advise you to say something along the line:
*“Before we dive in with questions, I just want to review what Ana had passed over to me who you spoke with previously.”*
And here is why you need to say this:
1) It shows that you value the prospect's time. And that you're not going to make them talk about everything again that they have already covered with Ana, the SDR, for 20 minutes just the other day.
2) This will help you understand the current state of things before you move on. To understand what Ana told them and if she covered everything.
So, you see why this whole phase of your conversation is crucial right? When you know what is talked through and what is covered, only then you can move on with your own process.
Exercises and checklists are waiting for you in the worksheets later below!
💡
**Tip:** If you don’t have a system to capture and share notes within your team, then consider setting one up so that you can share information on prospects seamlessly across your team and even across other departments within your organization.
## STEP 8\. Preserve your enthusiasm
You can always feel when you’re not the first prospect of the day for your rep. And here is what I mean by that: you don't feel this special and you feel like you are just one of the hundreds for this rep.
And you don't want to make this impression on your prospect, we can agree on that. So, make an effort to gather your thoughts and get into the right, positive mindset before your call.
Because that’s going to assist you in expressing your passion for what it is that you're bringing to the table. So, the main point here is to stay passionate and enthusiastic.
But here is the thing, don't try to fake or overdo it, because prospects can smell fabricated emotions from a mile away. If you're a calm and reserved person - don't try to become someone else. Be enthusiastic in your own, reserved way. Or, for example, you are overly cheerful, that's great as well. Just be yourself and express emotions and enthusiasm the way you are used to.
In these kinds of situations there is only one rule: don't fake your emotions.
Still, remember, your objective is to have the prospect talk most of the time, so you want to minimize your own speaking. Here is a small piece of advice for you: you should strive for no more than 50% talking time during a discovery call; ideally 30%.
At this point, your goal is to build an engaging and trusting conversation, to show that you're human two and you're glad to build this honest connection through the course of your call.
## STEP 9\. Be passionate in your own way
So, here we go with the last but not least advice for you. I can always talk about building rapport, informing about your organization, and proposing an agenda, but here is the thing: your call and efforts will have less effect if you’re not passionate.
People buy from people that they like and trust. You need to be passionate about your product, or passionate about the perspective of helping your prospect. This emotion and this absolute enthusiasm charm people better than 10 minutes of case studies.
Ok, maybe I’m exaggerating but you’ve got the point.
So the message here is to be passionate about what you're selling. For some sales reps, it’s easier because being openly passionate about something is natural for extroverts. But if you’re an introvert it doesn’t mean that you can't charm or engage your prospect.
Introverts are charming in their own, quiet way. Introverts have the ability to listen, understand and charm prospects with their professional observations. So, the main point here is to be yourself and let your personality shine.
Remember, demonstrating your confidence in your ability to solve prospects’ needs once you know what they are is really important. It doesn’t matter how sociable you are. You can do this with your tone and cadence, in your own authentic way and this will charm your prospect better than anything else.
Navigating your demo call can be frustrating, but to make your process easier you can use the worksheets created for this article.
## Download worksheets
And, as promised, feel free to download these worksheets to practice new knowledge!
---
[ Worksheets Navigating Through Demo Call Worksheets - Navigating Through Demo Call.pdf 179 KB download-circle ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/content/files/2022/06/Worksheets---Navigating-Through-Demo-Call.pdf "Download")
### Demo Call: Right Way To Share Your Customer Success Stories
URL: https://www.revenueinsideout.com/demo-call-why-should-you-share-your-customer-success-stories/
Last updated: 2022-12-07T14:11:31.000Z
During a demo call, do you share customer stories? or just logos? or nothing at all, focusing only on your product & its features?
The reason why you should share stories from your previous customers during a sales call is that stories are a proven way to engage your prospects and build trust.
And still, we see salespeople doing these main mistakes regarding this topic:
**Worksheets are available to download later below.**
## Mistake #1: Talking about everything but customer success stories
How many client success stories do you typically share with your clients? If it's just one, good for you - that's more than most.
You need to leave more opportunities for your prospects to resonate with you. If you have two, that's great. If you have three or more, that's excellent.
The best salespeople have a library of customer success stories and can pick the ones that are most relevant to their current prospects.
You see, people are gossipers and storytellers by nature. That’s how we’ve been built and raised, that’s what our cultures and heritage are based on. So, by definition people will always have an emotional tie to stories.
As a sales rep, you want to be remembered because this is the key to closing the deal.
Now, imagine you are the prospect: you had a bunch of demos already, your head is just about to explode with offers and new information and you’re desperately looking for something, that will help you to make a decision. And here comes the emotional aspect of the rep’s demo.
Customer stories more often than not are tied to emotions. That’s why your prospect will always remember them.
It was proven by research, that most successful reps actually have three to five customer stories they share in a 45-minute to an hour-long conversation.
People always look for understanding, for a certain proof that they’re not alone in certain situations and your customer stories will provide them with a much-needed sense of fellowship.
So, if you describe a few customer stories with similar pain points and will stress enough that a solution has been found for those customers, the prospect will create an emotional connection associated with and tied to your demo.
💡
**Success Tip:** Make it a rule of thumb to share two to three stories in a 30-minute conversation and three to five stories in a 45 to 60-minute conversation.
Before each sales call, set an intention for how many stories you want to share. After each call, do a quick review to see if you met your goal or not and what you can do to improve the next time.
But keep in mind to always track how the story worked with your buyer persona and always adapt your demo for future meetings.
Not all of us have customer stories or case studies ready, but that’s absolutely fine. You might have a great marketing team and a great customer success team. But you keep asking for stories and you've got one or two but you know, we're waiting on them.
Own it. Just take your time and reach out to a few of your power users, and your current customers for a small interview. The folks that maybe you've already closed in the past and already have some level of rapport with, but if not, that's fine, too.
Just actually call them and say - *Hey, we're just wanting to call and see how things are going.* And be genuine about it. Like, if you really want to know how things are going and if there's any feedback that they've got for the customer success team, mark that down and let them know that a customer success person will get a hold of them.
Then ask them - *how it's been going for you, love to understand, based on what your expectations were coming in and based on what our solution has done for you thus far, what have the results been.*
*What can you share with me, walk me through how each stakeholder has really been using this in your organization, how it's impacted them, and what kind of ROI you've seen?*
You'll be shocked at how willing they are to share.
And when you hear it firsthand like that, it's a lot easier to be authentic about it than if you're reading a random case study of a customer you've never talked to.
And suddenly you should easily have a great list of quotes and stories from satisfied customers, that you can share with your prospects.
Simply, find at least three customers and fill in the gaps to create a perfect showcase for your prospects.
## Mistake #2: Saying "After this call, I'll send you a case study on this"
What are the chances, if you send by email a white paper or case study or a video, that they'll actually sit down and watch it? Pretty slim, right?
But if you communicate the story during the call, in their language, in a way that they can understand and see themselves in, it's a different case.
## Mistake #3: Talking too long about one story
When you share customer success stories with your prospects, make sure they are story soundbites, not long stories. You want to capture your prospect's attention, not put them to sleep.
Think of your customer story as a way to make a point, not as entertainment.
Story soundbites are a great way to add personality to your sales pitch and build rapport with your prospect. Plus, stories are a great way to highlight your product or service’s value.
A customer soundbite is only 60 seconds long. Usually, It covers the
- What (What we do),
- So What (Why does it matter to you),
- along with the Customer Story in one or two sentences.
So when a problem is revealed, you quickly reply with a soundbite that is analogous to the prospect in front of you.
For example, if a prospect says they're worried about prices, you might say, "I had a similar conversation with a client \[Insert Name\] last week. They were concerned about the price too, but after we talked about the 4% increase in revenue they would be getting, they decided to go ahead."
Usually, after your prospect has mentioned a problem, it's time to empathize and then discuss the What, So What, and Customer Story.
For example, let's say I'm talking to a SaaS Founder and he says he doesn't have enough time to coach his sales team as much as he wants. I would then say something like:
"You know, that reminds me of a prospect I talked to seven months ago. They too were a SaaS startup in a similar situation and stage as you. They too hired their third salesperson a day before this call. They are a customer now. So they hired us to review calls and coach every two weeks. Now, that team closes 10% more clients every month. The new guy took half the time from joining to start hitting his numbers compared to the guys before him."
Ultimately people want to know:
1. Proof Points
2. They're not the first ones to go down this path
3. And they're in good company
Using customer soundbites you want to paint a picture of the future state that they're working towards. Using soundbites, we're looking for ways to figure out their pain, its effect, and how we might quantify it.
Make sure you've got something that the prospect can relate to. Make sure your client's success stories are based on a return on investment. There should be a measurement that shows what they'll achieve.
You can improve your customer storytelling by working on an easy exercise presented in my worksheet here:
💡
**Success Tip:** There are a few good times to share a customer story.
One is when you uncover a pain or want to show how your product can help in situations similar to theirs. Another good time is when the prospect seems skeptical.
You can then share how you understand their concerns and how the customer story proves that your product works. The best stories are ROI-driven and show what success could look like in the future if they decide to work with you.
## Download worksheets
And, as promised, feel free to download these worksheets to practice new knowledge!
---
[ Worksheets Speak In Story Soundbites Worksheets - Speak In Story Soundbites.pdf 99 KB download-circle ](https://www.revenueinsideout.com/content/files/2022/06/Worksheets---Speak-In-Story-Soundbites.pdf "Download")