Fuentes Fridays #0010

Here is your end-of-the-week insight into what I see going on in the business world, what I’m thinking about, and what I’m learning about. Forward anything that you feel inspired to share.

What I’m Hearing From Sales Leaders/Professionals

By now, you have probably recognized that most of my days are spent making or reviewing sales calls. This gives me a unique advantage in pattern recognition, specifically because I get to see buyers and sellers from all walks of life interact.

One thing that I have noticed lately is sellers' desire to become the next Ron Popeil (check out this blues ode to the famous “but wait there’s more” pitchman). They often get a decent understanding of the problems that a buyer is trying to solve and then dive into the demo.

The problems that arise in the demo stem from not uncovering enough about the problems the buyer is looking to solve. Instead of diving into what the impact of solving the problem is, how long it has been a problem, what happens if the problem is not solved, how much value is assigned to solving the problem and by whom, etc., etc., sellers gather the initial info (the problem) and then dive right into the demo.

As the demos go on, they don't feel confident that they have delivered enough value. Thus, they start to feature dump, "But wait, there's more." Often, this leads to overly complicated demos and overwhelmed buyers.

There have been many demos this week in which the buyer has said something like, "Wow, that does a lot. It's probably more than we need. It seems complicated."

Oh no!

So how do you avoid this situation? You have to dive past the problem to the impact and value assigned to what they have said. You should question tree this to get very good at it.

Then, when you get to the demo, you can align your questions about what you are showing to the impact and value they articulated, e.g., “You said earlier that not solving X will lead to Y; how will what I just showed you help you avoid Y?” or “What have you not seen that will influence your decision on what solution to use to solve X?”

These types of questions will help you direct the additional parts of the demo. Remember, this is about them, not what you want to show!

What Made Me Laugh

This is a very familiar story wrapped in one minute of stupidity. I cannot stop laughing when I watch it and cannot stop singing the song after it’s over. Meow, meow, meow!

This Week’s 40/20

For every 40 hours of work, I believe you should spend 20 (additional) hours mastering your craft. This is how I spent some of my 20 hours this week.

This past week I sent many of my friends the questions Sahil Bloom shared in his email titled, “Seven questions that may change your life.” Many people said that I should share it more broadly. If you find the questions thought provoking, then I recommend you sign up for Sahil’s newsletter (it’s way better than Fuentes Fridays).

• If I repeated this day for 100 days, would my life be better or worse?
• If someone observed my actions for a week, what would they say my priorities are?
• If I were the main character in a movie of my life, what would the audience be screaming at me to do right now?
• What are the Boat Anchors in my life?
• Am I allowing more information to get in the way of more action?
• What lie have I repeated to myself so many times that it feels like the truth?
• If I knew I would die in 10 years, what would I do today?

Happy contemplating!

Potpourri for 800

Potpourri (shoutout Jeopardy!) is a category that covers a variety of topics.

My mother was and my wife continues to be completely wrong. The loudest sound on earth is not me. This article lists the six loudest sounds ever recorded. TLDR:

• Volcano
• Another volcano
• Sperm Whale (this blew my mind!!!)
• Bomb
• Rocket
• Meteor

Quote for My Son

Every day, I find a quote to share with my son. This was my favorite from this past week:

" We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then is not an act but a habit.” –Aristotle