Securing a conversation with your prospect is fundamentally essential to successfully gaining new clients for your company. When you have a meeting, you need to be skilled in building relationships and accessing information.
In the realm of business development, the term "DISCOVERY" is understood in definition, but how is it used effectively in reality?
In what I refer to as "collaborative solutioning," the significance of discovery cannot be overstated. To improve your prospects business, you must have a deep understanding of it, and any underlying problems.
The adage "information is power" takes on a different nuance for me – I prefer to say, "information is progress." Information unveils the issues and challenges within a prospect's business, allowing you to make informed decisions about how your offerings can truly help. Moreover, it can also provide insight into the decision-making process of the prospect.
Who Invited Who?
When scheduling a meeting with a prospective client, the distinction between being invited versus initiating the meeting is important. It reveals if you will you'll need to uncover the problem through discovery, or if the prospect will readily share it with you. If you were invited, they are likely prepared to share. If you initiated the meeting, then you’ll need to be prepared to ask questions and help the prospect feel comfortable sharing with you.
Starting the Meeting
Either way, your primary goal should always be to establish the basis of an authentic professional relationship, including the essential elements of rapport and trust. When you begin a meeting, you are mindful of several things. Begin with friendly engagement, but not intrusive. When you’re getting to know someone, you can offer easy conversational topics to ease into the business subject. Always thank them for making time to see you. Diving directly into your business purpose misses an opportunity to begin developing the relationship. Try to something like this: “Passing through your lobby I noticed you have a fundraising process underway for new research building. What kind of research are you planning?” Here is another possibility: “Your executive assistant was very helpful in scheduling this meeting. I wanted you to know how service oriented his demeanor is.” Be on the lookout for authentic ways to open easy conversation, rather than jumping right into business.
Bridge Discussion To Business
Of course, it becomes necessary at some point to shift to the business arena. Bridge building statements are useful. One example might be, “I’d love to chat more about this, but I want to be conscious of our time. Should we move into our business now?” Be respectful of the allocated time for the meeting.
The “5 Why Method”
A useful method for “discovery” is the “5 Why” root cause analysis. The idea is that you can get to the actual problem by asking five “why” questions. Be mindful that this approach should be conversational, driven by genuine curiosity, and not come across like interrogation. When a prospect presents a problem, use your emotional intelligence skills to resist the urge to immediately pitch your solution. Instead, try asking another “why” question.
Consider these examples.
Example 1
The Situation: You're meeting with an executive at a senior living facility, representing a food service management company. You initiated the meeting. After a friendly greeting, the conversation might unfold like this:
Sales Exec: Mealtimes are such an important part of the life of your residents. How do you feel about your current food service program?
Prospect: Well overall, the XYZ company does a very good job.
(Why #1) Sales Exec: Great! Are the residents delighted with the meals they receive?
Prospect: Well, they love the food quality, but they do complain occasionally.
(Why #2) Sales Exec: That’s unfortunate. What do they complain about?
Prospect: They say the menu needs to be revised.
(Why #3) Sales Exec: Why do they want to revise it?
Prospect: They say that there is not enough variety.
(Why #4) Sales Exec: I see. What type of variety do they want?
Prospect: Well, our residents are mostly local, and they prefer to have meals on the menu that reflect what they ate when they lived in their home.
(Why #5) Sales Exec: Yes, I can understand that. I still miss my mom’s pot roast! But why doesn’t the food company give them this?
Prospect: Well, the manager tells me they must stick to their corporate menus, or they get into trouble with their boss.
(Why #6) Sales Exec: Yes, most companies do have a standard set of recipes and menus they work with. But satisfying your residents is the number one priority. Why wouldn’t they step outside their policies and add a few local recipes?
Prospect: That’s an excellent question.
Example 2
The Situation: You work for a uniform services company. You’re meeting with the plant manager of a manufacturing company on your target list. The rep initiated the meeting. After a friendly opening conversation, the meeting went like this.
Sales Exec: Is your current uniform service working well for you?
Prospect: Generally, yes.
Why #1 Sales Exec: That doesn’t sound like a raving review. Why not?
Prospect: There are occasional problems with inventory.
#2 Sales Exec: Is there not enough in the system?
Prospect: I don’t know, we seem to purchase new uniforms quite often.
#3 Sales Exec: Why do you need to do that?
Prospect: We run out. Staff come to work and there are not enough uniforms for everyone.
#4 Sales Exec: Not a good way for the staff to start their day. What does the company say to you about this?
Prospect: They tell us that they don’t receive enough soiled back, and that they’re processing everything they get.
#5 Sales Exec Why haven’t they offered you a solution?
Prospect: That’s a good question.
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A phrase you may have heard is "information is power". This is true, but I prefer to say that "information is progress." We're not looking to use power in the relationship, we're looking to be collaborative.
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Of course these are hypothetical examples. But I hope they make the point that the “5 Why” method can help you get more information about the prospect’s current situation. Information helps you to avoid making assumptions that may steer you off course.
Emotions
Recognizing and understanding the emotions of others is a valuable human skill. During discussions, it is important to carefully watch and listen for outward signals that reveal the prospect’s emotions about their current situation. Do they have a problem that they are not too worried about, or are they in the midst of a crisis? If they are experiencing a crisis, their emotion will likely be evident by the the tone of their voice as well as their body language. They may appear anxious, and speak with a tone of desperation. Some convey anger.
Others may simply be open to finding better ways to improve their current situation - like both examples above. This is more difficult to discern outwardly than crisis, but the prospect will likely convey some level of tempered frustration. In this case, the prospect will be probably be open to hearing insights and your experience with similar situations.
If prospect is satisfied with their current situation, they will speak confidently about it. They may cross their arms or be easily distracted because they don't believe their situation can be improved. Naturally this tells you there is no real opportunity that will develop at this time. Things change. The top sales performers stay in contact with their prospects on some cadence.
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Being aware of outward emotional signals enables you to be empathetic. It also gives you a view into the prospects level of urgency and they’re likelihood to make change in their organization.
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Don't Pounce
In the initial meeting, it is important that the sales executive use their emotional intelligence skills and resist the urge to dive into a "pitch" about all the fabulous features of their product or service. Bluntly stated, don't do this. This will push them away. Instead, position yourself as a trusted professional resource. Alway stay in regular contact because their situation will change. You want to be "top of mind" and available to help when it does.
Timing
To gain new partners, you need to build a network. Only a very small percentage of your initial meetings will the prospect be thinking about change. Stop to reflect on this statement. It will change your mindset about prospecting. Build a network of people within your target market that meet your Ideal Client Profile. Position yourself as a valued resource. Then when the need or “buying window” opens, you won’t be starting from a cold position. Even if the buyer decides to conduct a formal competitive bidding process, isn’t it better to have a relationship with the prospect before the process begins? I think so.
About the Author
Ed Snowden, Consultant, Trainer
Leverage Experience, LLC
Ed has over 45 years of experience in corporate B2B environments. He worked for two well-known hospitality service companies ServiceMaster and Aramark. In the span of his career, Ed gained experience and proficiency in both account management and business development. This includes leading large teams in both areas of business.
Now, through his company Leverage Experience, Ed is passionate about passing on what he learned over the course of his career. He does this through coaching and training, and group workshops.
Ed hails from New York but he and his wife raised a family in a suburb of Philadelphia, living there for almost 30 years. In his personal time, he likes to walk, read and listen to audio books, play golf, travel, dine with family and friends, and spend time by the pool.
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