In our business, more than half of our deal coaching work focuses on “unsticking” deals, and believe me, it’s exactly how it sounds. Sometimes a deal loses momentum, gets lost in the fold, or just gets plain stuck. Some symptoms of a stuck deal are:

These symptoms are measured against my three indicators of the health of a deal: information, people and time.

The reasons that deals get stuck generally fall into two categories: “Problem” problems and “Us” problems. In this post, we’ll focus on the “Problem” problems. Next time, we’ll focus on the “Us” problems.

“Problem” problems fall into these categories…
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By Tim Searcy

“. . . but nobody wants to die.” Or, so the saying goes. This is so true for all management change. I’ve been spending time with CEO’s that are frustrated with their teams. Although everyone wants to see better outcomes, the sales leadership has been unwilling to adopt behavior change. The fact is that if a company keeps using the same tools, thinking and approach, it will get the same outcome. Change requires in a word, well, change.

If you’re implementing Hunt Big Sales’ methodologies, or the concepts originally put forth in Tom Searcy’s book Whale Hunting, and are frustrated with the pace of internal adoption, consider the following three questions:

1. Have you been crystal clear about your unwavering commitment to the new sales process? Change of this nature is not collaborative throughout the organization, nor does the decision require “buy in.” This is a radically different approach to change management, but simply assuming that you’ll be able to get everyone on board diminishes the elements needed to enact revolutionary change. The only group-think that has to be done is at the very top of the organization, and that is the firm’s commitment to begin. Now, the second step of implementation requires tremendous discussion and explanation. This is about helping people understand, “why?” In tough times like the current recession, it is possible that the reason is as simple as survival.

2. Do you have a step-by-step time line for implementation? In my client experience, it is wise to understand that everything cannot all happen at once. Take for example something simple in nature, but complicated in acceptance: the movement pipeline. Many companies attempt to put in place the movement pipeline in one afternoon. This approach is doomed to confusion and frustration. Instead, follow this order of introduction as an example for all aspects of the HBS system:

• Define your terms: Without a clear understanding of what words mean (in writing), too much interpretation will take place and misalignment is assured.
• Lay out the process: In the case of the movement pipeline, this means making certain that everyone understands what each step means, followed by agreement on the order of steps, and the policies if an account moves outside the process.
• Test the system: Take five or ten of your last accounts and put them in the pipeline report to see if reality matches design. If not, then change the design properly, or examine if reality has actually been the problem.
• Implement on a beta basis: The movement pipeline dictates strong accountability in both the positive and negative for failure to accomplish 10 movements per week, or to eliminate wasted accounts. For this reason, try out the system for 60-90 days prior to placing it into stone.
• Implement the system and review semi-annually: So often organizations get started on a process and then spend tremendous amounts of time tinkering with the process without allowing the system to just work. Let the process run for awhile before making changes, and resist the urge to modify on the fly when something does not feel right for a specific account.

3. Are you following the “prescription?” Medication does not work if you do not take it in the dosage prescribed or at the intervals directed by the physician

These questions should lead to the truisms of change excellence. In short, you have to mandate change as its most passionate agent, engage a plan that has clear milestones for assessment of delivery, and work the plan as it is prescribed by Hunt Big Sales.

And, obviously, if you need help in these three areas, just give us a call so we can talk about where you’re stuck. We love this stuff, and are happy to help.

(Start a dialog by calling or emailing Carajane Moore: 317-847-8037 or carajane@huntbigsales.com.)

What is a sales team’s likely response when their buyer involves a bunch of people in a sale who don’t know much about what they’re buying?

“These people are IDIOTS!”
[Paraphrased from frustrated sales people the world over, dealing with “new” buyers at their big targets…]

When big companies lay people off, the functions of those people get stacked on top of the already-full desks of other people. These new responsibilities most often don’t come with training, a manual, or any relevant experience on the part of the recipient. And these new job requirements just show up. Often times, one of these responsibilities is to be the buyer of products and services with which the “new” buyer is very unfamiliar.

So, what do these people do with their new responsibility? Most of the time they choose one of the following:

1. Do nothing. They don’t buy anything- they just put it off
2. Stick with the incumbent.
3. Buy from the lowest-priced vendor.

In the rapidly-shifting organizational charts of companies dealing with downsizing, ignorant buyers can be dangerous to your sales process for new accounts. Face it—there are a lot of options that are easier and safer than going with a new provider like you.

Getting these new buyers to sway away from the three easy options listed above will require you to adjust your approach. Here are some recommendations…

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In her book On Death and Dying, Elisabeth Kubler-Ross addresses outlines the five-stage process through which people deal with life tragedies:

1. Denial
2. Anger
3. Bargaining
4. Depression
5. Acceptance

On a slightly less depressing note, I’ve been noticing similar stages of grieving within big companies as they deal with the recession, specifically in terms of how they’re buying:

1. Freeze buying
2. Squeeze vendors
3. Look for trade offs
4. Buy for value

This isn’t scientific; it just represents some observations I’ve had in the last six months. I think one of the key findings of Kubler-Ross was that those who grieve can move back and forth between stages during the course of their journey towards acceptance. The same thing is happening to businesses—you see them move forward and backwards between the various stages, but I’m starting to see them move slowly through the cycle (even though we still seem to be a ways a way from stage 4).

Currently, the conversations I’ve been having are regarding Trade-Offs. Big companies are working through the trade-offs between what they are willing to pay and accept in performance with what they can receive in function and value. The trade-offs that I am seeing are…

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I’m working on some big sales right now with my clients. I act as either a member of their team or as a key advisor. We’re aiming at accounts ranging from $500,000 to $100,000,000. This is a great part of my professional life. People hire me typically for one or more of three reasons:

1. They’re looking to “double their double.” They want to double the speed with which they can double the size of their company and they believe that landing large accounts is the way to do it.
2. They want a manageable and scalable approach to running their sales process, measuring it and improving their success rates.
3. They have a mega-sale that they want to land and they want me to be their adviser and coach. I play the role of “deal-doctor” for lack of a better description.

I’m doing all of this work right now for a variety of clients, but it just so happens that in the area of mega-hunts, we’re in a very busy hunting season.

Every one of these deals is different – different size, industry, competitive landscape, personality mix… You get the idea.

But there are a few things that each of these mega-hunts has in common…

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(Sing ‘Happy Birthday’ to your prospect on the phone. Yes, really.)

In most horror films, at some point two people are in a scary place and they get separated. And at that moment, the tension begins because where there was conversation, now there is just the sound of the person’s breathing…the silence begins to play tricks with the imagination…and the suspense builds on itself until the character is at a level of irrational panic. Usually the person is calling out into the darkness repeatedly the name of the other character…and getting nothing back.

Silence is the worst when you’re on a hunt. One day there is a great dialogue and lots of discussions and the next you’ve entered some twilight zone of communication—emails aren’t returned, phone calls deadend at voicemail, and even your ace-in-the-hole contact (the one you’ve cultivated to give you the inside scoop) has dropped into some witness protection program, never to be heard from again.

Prospects smell fear and desperation; it’s pungent and unpleasant, so screaming into the night or begging for a returned phone call will not create a sense of strength and often doesn’t result in a returned call or email anyway.

However, humor can really work, so I want to share a few of the ways I have broken sustained silences in a big hunt and I want to hear some of your ideas in return. So, here are some cheap tricks and favorite techniques for reactivating the dialogue during a hunt that has gone silent…

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My son keeps telling me about a new show called “Lie to Me.” Evidently the main character has the ability to tell when someone is lying and, often times, why he/she is lying. Facial clues, tone of voice, body language are all indicators for him. He’s a scientist with years of study behind his abilities, but he has a few “naturals” on his team. These are people who can come to similar conclusions with accuracy, but have no formal training. [An ex-girlfriend of mine used to say that she had the same ability—she could tell when men were lying because their lips were moving. (Sigh.)]

Anyway, it got me thinking about our abilities in the sales process to identify liars, half-truth-tellers, concealers and the most dangerous buyers of all (I think): the delusionally hopeful, whose greatest sin is that they lie to themselves first and then repeat it to us.

I don’t have science behind me and I’m wary of the pop-psychology world of body language interpretation, (“If he crosses his arms that means he is defensive”). I do, however, tend to think that there are some indicators when the conversation is not completely truthful and those hints are worth watching for…
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A buddy of mine is working for a jerk. Unfortunately, he feels economically trapped at the moment, so he’s suffering through it. The question that keeps going through his mind is: “How come I didn’t spot this when I interviewed?”

He’s not stupid or inexperienced. But, he wasn’t looking at the right things. He was looking at the company, the job, and the compensation; not the boss. Of course, the boss is the most important thing a lot of the time. In fact, the boss is cited as the number one contributor to why someone leaves his or her job.

One of the things that I’m always curious about is how to figure it out earlier. Baseball players, the really good hitters, can figure out the pitch at the top of the wind up. And meteorologists predict hurricane seasons a year in advance. But how do you predict jerks? It’s not like they necessarily look like jerks.

To answer that question, my friend and I are working on a list of ways to spot jerks earlier. Here’s what we have so far…
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Talking heads are killing me lately…especially as I suffer during my morning exercise. Here’s what I mean (and it starts with this question): What is it about Fox News?

It’s like they called central casting with the following request:

“Infotainment News Station is seeking male and female models: Smoking hot, credibly conversant, pseudo-intellectual male and female models needed to portray newscasters in an ongoing melodrama series. Age range 28 – 38. Models must be able to look slightly naughty, (Sarah Palin-ish, but younger), while spouting economic, political and business terms. Little previous experience necessary. Please bring legshots along with the traditional headshots for the audition.”

For me, the blather creates an overwhelming sense of doom and gloom, but as if it were presented by the Pussycat Dolls. I received a tweet from a friend, Gini Dietrich, who clearly feels the same. She told me about a new drinking game and I’ve modified it just a bit for sales professionals everywhere…
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It has all of the excitement of the big game, the high school play and your first illicit smoke rapped up in one. It’s “all you can eat night” at the adrenaline junkie café.

I’m talking about the night before the pitch for the big piece of business—it could be the final interview in an RFP process, a proposal meeting with the big prospect or the next step with your biggest client. Regardless, it’s show time and you and your team, (which could be no more than your pet, yourself and your coffee pot), are up late getting ready with all of the final details.

I’ve been through it a million times and I’ve watched dozens of clients go through it. This experience has taught me some key things that you should do to get it right in getting ready. But before I do that, let me share my worst mistakes ever…

• Opening the shrink-wrap on a software package that we had decided to use to create some of the elements of the next day’s pitch for the first time at 2am the morning of the meeting.

• Taking the red-eye from one pitch to get to the next pitch – that day I got the names, business issues and even the terms of the deal mixed up so badly that the prospect asked us to come back in the afternoon when we were a little clearer on the details (this one is so painful, almost 20 years later I can hardly write about it)

• Taking a team of the CEO, CFO and COO to a meeting on which they had not adequately been briefed, assigned roles and gone through a Murder Board exercise (see below). They spent the majority of the meeting arguing with each other on the assumptions in the presentation in front of the client.

I’m not going to tell you that you should have prepared beforehand and that it is about organization and planning, blah, blah, blah. You already know all of that and you’re still pressed for time up until the last minute. What I will tell you is that if you focus on the wrong things, you may get through the pitch well, but you may hurt your chances of getting the business.

Here are the right things to prepare …
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