Managing Complex B2B Sales with SCOTSMAN?

In complex B2B sales, sales leaders face the constant challenge of qualifying sales opportunities and planning how to win them. With lengthy sales cycles involving multiple stakeholders, how can leaders ensure their teams are investing time in the right deals and executing effective strategies?

The latest issue of Gartner’s The Chief Sales Officer Quarterly highlights the need for sales leaders to build adaptable sales strategies and measure deal quality.

The SCOTSMAN? methodology provides a framework for structuring both the qualification and planning processes in major sales.

The Problem with Major Sales

Lengthy sales with multiple decision makers are fraught with challenges. It's easy for sellers to get bogged down gathering endless facts. Political landmines may lurk unseen. Competitors lobby quietly in the background. The sheer size of the deal results in "analysis paralysis" with no clear path forward. Sales leaders struggle to determine if deals are properly qualified and what it will take to win.

SCOTSMAN? Qualifies the Opportunity

The SCOTSMAN? methodology is an established framework used to qualify B2B sales. It provides an easy-to-remember checklist to ensure all key elements of a potential sale are examined:

S - Solution

C - Competition

O - Originality

T - Timescales

S - Size

M - Money

A - Authority

N – Need

By scoring each area 0 (no issues), 1 (some data needed) or 10 (major obstacle), sales leaders gain insight into remaining work required. They uncover potential "Showstoppers" that could derail the sale. Most importantly, they determine what commitments are needed from the prospect to resolve concerns in each area.

For example, if the budget is unclear, the SCOTSMAN? commitment may be to meet with the CFO and get budget parameters. If the decision process is unknown, the commitment is to document the process and stakeholders. If competitors have an advantage, the commitment could be access to key influencers to demonstrate uniqueness.

These “Qualification Commitments” act as tests of the prospect’s seriousness. They represent conditions the sales team requires before investing extensive resources in a bid. If commitments can’t be gained, it may signal time to “qualify out”.

Gartner's Chief Sales Officer report emphasizes the importance of qualifying major sales through a team approach. Relying solely on the salesperson’s perception is risky. Management, technical experts and support resources should participate to determine if obstacles can realistically be addressed.

SCOTSMAN? Plans How to Win

While essential for qualifying, SCOTSMAN? is equally valuable for planning how to win a major sale once qualified. After detailing all meetings and activities required, sales leaders must define the key commitments needed from prospects to drive the sale forward at each step.

The SCOTSMAN? methodology labels these planning commitments as “Timetable Commitments”, “Lobbying Commitments” and “Criteria Commitments”. They provide structure for navigating complex sales successfully:

Timetable Commitments secure stakeholder participation and align buying/selling processes.

Lobbying Commitments identify internal advocates to influence unseen decision makers.

Criteria Commitments establish seller strengths and differentiators into buyer requirements.

With a planned sequence of milestone commitments, sales teams maintain control of unwieldy sales. They avoid reactive tactics and focus proactively on leading the prospect to an optimal decision. The Gartner report notes that commitment outcomes provide concrete measures of progress vs. vague activity metrics.

Supporting Sales Teams with Commitments

Major B2B sales challenge sales leaders to support their teams effectively. Through our training programmes, we develop a mindset using SCOTSMAN? combined with a commitments, which provides structure leading to greater odds of success.

In qualifying sales, leaders should guide teams to identify Required Commitments that earn the right to bid. If unable to gain commitments, leaders can reinforce tough qualification decisions without second guessing salespeople.

When planning sales strategy, leaders should push teams to define Key Commitments that drive the sale. This focuses execution and aligns leaders, sellers and support resources. As the Gartner report indicates, progress is tangible when defined as commitment achievements vs. generic activities.

With a commitment-based approach, leaders can objectively evaluate pipeline quality and forecast accuracy. They can attack problematic areas, whether qualification rigor, sales process, messaging or competitive factors. Targeted enablement, coaching and recruitment become data-driven.

Finally, post-sale reviews organized around SCOTSMAN? and commitments provide valuable insights into why deals are won and lost. Lessons learned become guidelines that better equip the sales team for future opportunities.

Major B2B sales will never be simple. But SCOTSMAN? combined with a focus on meaningful commitments rather than vague activities provides sales leaders a valuable framework. It brings structure, alignment and objectivity to qualification and complex deal strategy. Sales leaders using SCOTSMAN? will find themselves better positioned to guide their teams through the intricacies of high value sales.

Get in touch to find out how SCOTSMAN? could help your business.

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