#4 - How to sell solutions instead of products?
Marcelo Leite
Solution Sales Executive | Data & Artificial Intelligence Specialist | Author | Professor | Mentor | LinkedIn Top Voice
A client asked me for a Power BI presentation, and I had two options:
?? Make the presentation, ask if he liked it, and show the price (basically what he could do self-service on the product website :) )
?? Tell him that it will be a pleasure to make the presentation BUT to be more assertive and relevant in the presentation, I would like to understand what challenges he is facing that he believes Power BI can solve.
And what will the result of this opportunity be like?
?? The first option is simple, but generates little value for your customer. I'm not worried about him, I'm just transitioning a product if he makes the decision to buy it himself.
?? The second option is to work as a consultant, not offering a solution just because the client asked for it, but evaluating their needs, and defining if it will actually solve the real challenge they have.
Questions such as:
? During my years in technology sales, I had the opportunity to observe excellent salespeople asking these consultative questions and thus creating lasting, win-win relationships with their customers. These sellers were those who made the difference and achieved the bigger goals.
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The Global Technology Market will be $5 trillion in 2023
?? This is the projection of an IDC study, it means a huge opportunity for technology sellers. But technology is evolving rapidly (Generative AI, Augmented reality, etc.), and IT sales professionals need to always be up to date in generating practical solutions for customers.
Something very common in the IT sales area is professionals getting busy with day-to-day activities and forgetting to advance their commercial techniques. A sales career is a constant learning experience, especially in technology, so doesn't matter if you have 5, 10, or 30 years of selling technology, we always have something new to learn.
?? A Harvard Business Review study showed that 70% of sales professionals who had a structured career plan, with the development of their techniques, reported greater job satisfaction and better sales performance.
?? I really like sales books, because I believe that no matter your experience, it's always good to re-apply some techniques in your everyday life. I will suggest the last 2 sales books, which I really liked.
?? "Predictable Revenue" by Aaron Ross and Marylou Tyler, which is a practical sales guide for subscription solutions (The writers were responsible for the sales model that made Salesforce grow in the market) and now I'm reading "Let's Get Real or Let's Not Play" by Mahan Khalsa and Randy Illig, which creates practical sales models for customer solutions, focusing on customer success.
? If you have a sales tip, please share it with me in the comments ?? Let's learn together!
#technology #opportunity #marcelointech #sales #business #it #career #work #success
Cross Copilot Solution LATAM | Global Black Belt
1 年Excellent article Marcelo!! This reflection is very pertinent today. What makes my day different from others in our world of IT sales is always thinking and staying ahead of the curve, so I would like to leave here some tips for technology salespeople navigating the evolving landscape: Rethinking the experience: Top sellers are not only those with the most knowledge, but also those who are open to rethinking what they believe they know about selling in the age of automation and AI solutions. In a dynamic technology market, rigidity can be a disadvantage. Being open to changing your sales approach based on the customer, their business challenges and available technology will bring more value to the customer's business. In the world of technology, the only constant is change. Adopting a mindset of continually rethinking and improving, as per Adam Grant's book “Think Again”, can allow you to navigate the challenges and opportunities of selling technology solutions effectively.