What has been described here represents a major departure from the way many of us have been taught to sell. This approach takes the focus off the product or services solutions that we sell. Instead, it puts the focus on the business results that our clients are trying to achieve and the business value they can produce by using our products or services to pursue their business goals and objectives.
This method, and the discovery process that it requires, is what I like to call the ‘diagnostic approach.’ It stands in stark contrast to the outmoded and archaic manner of selling that we have come to refer to as ‘broadcasting.’ We’ve all seen the broadcast approach in action. Most of us (including me) are even guilty of falling into it from time to time. It’s where the salesperson describes their product and services solutions, and their company, in intimate detail to make sure their customer hears all the advantages and benefits, as well as exactly how their solutions can be used in the customer’s business. It’s then left up to the customer to determine whether or not any of those benefits or functional capabilities happen to line up with the problems they are trying to solve or the business goals they are trying to achieve.
Our customers shouldn’t have to do that for themselves. In fact, we can’t afford to leave it up to them to connect the dots between our functional capabilities and their goals. They don’t know enough about how our solutions work, or the different ways they can be implemented, to effectively map our capabilities to their desired outcomes and results. That’s our job to do!
The diagnostic approach, which is at the foundation of everything in this book, requires that we engage in research and discovery ahead of time, so that when we do earn the right to sit down with senior managers and decision makers, we can ask intelligent and informed questions about what they are trying to accomplish and how they are currently going about it. Only when we understand that can we offer sound recommendations on how our products and services could be used to achieve those goals and objectives faster, at a higher rate of return, or with greater predictability, than they could otherwise achieve without them.
I believe that when we engage customers, we should be less like sales- people and more like doctors. We should take the time to get a good history, understand what’s going well and what’s not, conduct a thorough examination, and carefully arrive at a ‘diagnosis’ that our prospective client can truly have faith in.
Imagine walking into your doctor’s office for a standard check-up. You’ve been feeling pretty good lately except for one sore knee that’s been bugging you for a while. You’re seen into the examination room and seated comfortably on that cold table in one of those flattering little outfits affectionately referred to as a johnny. After a wait, the doctor walks in and says,
‘Hello there, my name is Doctor Johnson. Let me tell you about penicillin. Penicillin is the most exciting drug . . . This thing will solve just about any problem you’ve got. It’s been around for over one hundred years, and it’s been proven effective with millions of patients all over the world. I’ve prescribed it myself to hundreds of patients with tremendous success. Let me show you a list of people in your town who have taken penicillin. I know one woman who was on the verge of death, but after taking penicillin, she’s up and about and planning to run the Boston Marathon next year. It’s safe, it’s effective, and best of all it’s available right now at your local pharmacy. Should I put you down for one bottle or two bottles of penicillin today?’
People usually get a good laugh out of this in my workshops. But how different is this from some of the ‘Introductory Overview’ slide presentations you’ve seen lately? Do our customers want to sit through all those bullet points about ‘Who we are,’ ‘How many offices we have,’ or ‘Where our founder went to college’? Is that really what they care to hear about?
My critics say, ‘Bill, that’s how you build credibility.’ Nonsense! You build your credibility by demonstrating your knowledge of their industry, your knowledge of their business, and your ability to ask intelligent questions, diagnose problems, and discuss possible solutions to the problems that stand between your client and the achievement of their goals and objectives.
No doctor would dream of pitching you on penicillin as in the example above. A good doctor walks in and starts asking questions . . .
‘Good morning. Why have you come to see me today?’
‘Well, Doctor, I’m here for my check-up and I’m feeling pretty well except for a sore knee.’
Does she go right to the knee? No. She saves that for last. She takes you through the whole examination: heart rate, temperature, blood pressure, eyes, ears, nose, throat, and so on. She checks your reflexes. Then she gets out the stethoscope:
‘OK. Breathe deeply’
. . . the whole nine yards. Then, and only then, she says . . .
‘Tell me about that knee. How long has it been hurting?’
‘About two weeks.’
‘Did you do anything that may have caused an injury to it: sports, dancing, a fall, or something?’
‘No. Not that I can think of.’
‘Well, did it hurt more two weeks ago and less now? Or did it start hurting just a little two weeks ago, but now it’s getting worse?’
‘About the same all along, I guess.’
‘Do you have any family history of knee or joint problems, arthritis, etc.?’
. . . she takes the time to really diagnose.
No wonder we have so much faith in doctors. When they finally do get through with the examination and write the prescription on the little piece of paper, you don’t even ask any questions, do you? You can’t even read the thing! But you take it right down to the pharmacy and whatever they give you back you just swallow it, no questions asked. Wouldn’t it be great if we could sell like that? I’m not saying we can ever be as trusted as doctors, but we can work toward that. And it starts by being willing to quit broadcasting and start becoming an expert diagnostician.
If we intend to be perceived as something other than a ’salesman,’ and move beyond the status of supplier or vendor toward becoming a partner or an advisor, we have to do some things differently than our competitors do. The other vendors will be trying to get within earshot of an executive decision maker so they can deliver their ‘message’ or their ‘elevator pitch.’ What you and I will do is conduct enough research and preparation to craft two or three well-informed ‘elevator questions.’ Your prospective customers will quickly recognize the difference.
At this point in my workshops, someone almost always asks, ‘Bill, do we really need to invest all this time to get to know our customer’s business to this level of detail?’ All I can say is that if you don’t invest the time, somebody else will. But you’re not going to invest this much effort for every single prospect. In fact, the more proficient you become at analyzing and evaluating sales opportunities, the more you will be screening out the ones you think aren’t worth investing your time in. The return on your time and effort will be just like in every other endeavor in life. Eighty percent will appear to be completely wasted. But if you will go ahead and invest the 80 percent anyway, the other 20 percent will make you rich!