Salespeople think like swordsmen, when closing is a matter of life and death! 3 Maneuvers You Can Make Today to Advance Your Toughest Sale

1. INSIDE
3 Maneuvers You Can Make Today to Advance Your Toughest Sale
Maneuver 1-
Expose the Hidden Opponents
While we all know the usual suspects, your traditional competitors, are lined up and doing their worst to defeat you,
chances are there are ones operating without even being challenged. And that’s bad for you. The wound that can end your
duel is the one you don’t even see coming!
In addition to making sure you know exactly who is competing against you, look hard both inside your prospect’s
organization and out…these just scratch the surface, but it’s this kind of thinking you need to set your mind to:
• Who among your prospect’s colleagues stand to benefit most from your sale? How does that benefit impact others?
• Who has something to lose? Will a person, or department, be marginalized because the new acquisition makes their
expertise redundant? What vendor is being replaced, and who has a relationship with that vendor?
• Whose pet project took a backseat to the initiative your sale is supporting? Is this sales a part of a greater initiative?
• Who’s budget is this coming out of? Is there pressure to spend less so something else can be funded? Or, is there an
unspoken incentive to spend all the budget so next year doesn’t get eroded?
• Have you identified the last time an acquisition most like your sale was approved? Who approved it, and how was the
decision viewed once the check was cashed?
• Any talk of impending Executive changes? How long have the folks at and near the top, including your prospect’s boss,
been in place? Changes at that level can be your sales’ coup de grace.

2. OUTSIDE
Maneuver 1-
Expose the Hidden Opponents
While we all know the usual suspects, your traditional competitors, are lined up and doing their worst to defeat you,
chances are there are ones operating without even being challenged. And that’s bad for you. The wound that can end your
duel is the one you don’t even see coming!
In addition to making sure you know exactly who is competing against you, look hard both inside your prospect’s
organization and out:
• Market forces…how are they lining up with regard to your prospect’s spend? Is the timing vulnerable to effects of
projected sales? Sometimes bad sales numbers will scuttle an expenditure.
• Is your prospect a public company? How is the stock? When do they announce earnings? Are investors happy?
• Any chance of a merger or acquisition? Nothing delivers a death blow to spending like uncertainty.
• Are their top competitors going to make any major announcements during your sales cycle? Will your prospect?
• Are you keeping an eye on the weather? Is hurricane season coming up? Tornadoes? Blizzard months? If it’s looking
like the weather man is getting more TV time lately, you may be able to use this as a nudge with your prospect to
influence the timing of the decision.
3 Maneuvers You Can Make Today to Advance Your Toughest Sale

3. Maneuver 2-
Take Yourself On
At this very moment, chances are your competition is thinking about how to best get under your defense and deliver some
serious pain. After all, this isn’t the first time they’ve taken up arms against you. They have a pretty good idea how you
move and what your weapons of choice are. Remember, selling isn’t always a real-time contest. While you’re prospecting
and filling our expense reports, your opponents are talking with your prospect and scoring wounds your won’t know about
until it may be too late.
Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to know what their moves are in advance? Armed with that insight, not only would you be
able to parry their blows, but more importantly you would be positioned to deliver a painful counterstroke in reply.
• Look in the mirror and get into the head of your opponent. What do they see?
• What do they think your next move is? What do they expect?
• What did you de the last time you competed against them at this stage of the sales cycle? How did that work?
• What would they recognize as a fulfillment of their expectation, and, how can you deliver it while gaining an advantage?
• What mistake, if any. did you make last time you were in this situation…is your competition aware of it? Can you appear
to them to be making it again?
• If you were them, how would you make your next move?
3 Maneuvers You Can Make Today to Advance Your Toughest Sale

4. Maneuver 3-
Reinforce Value
While the best let their actions do the talking, it is important to your prospect knows the right person is on the job.
Remember, we’re working for them. Unless they know that you know what’s important to them, they may overlook your
value in hustle and bustle of the fray. It’s important to occasionally check in, and make sure there’s nothing left to chance.
With all the components of the sale being advanced according to their part of the whole, it’s easy for the prospect to lose
focus. After all, they’re managing this project with multiple vendors who are all moving at different speeds. And of
course, on top of all that, this project isn’t the only thing on their plate!
• When was the last time you sat down with the prospect and reviewed the project management metrics and
deliverables?
• As Mike Tyson was to have said, “Everybody’s got a plan until you punch them in the mouth.” What’s changed since the
last time you really talked to your prospect? Chances are, there’s something that’s keeping her up at night, and if you
can solve it you’re a hero.
• Remember maneuver 1, Expose the Hidden Opponents? Now’s the time to let your prospect know you’re not missing a
beat. Talk about the budget, who’s gonna hold the ball and what could go wrong. Talk about the weather (no, really!),
the stock market and their competition’s moves.
• Now would be a good time to praise the competition. If you’re doing things right, they’re looking a tad on the less-than-
Johnny on the spot…bring up their big strength and see how your prospect responds to it.
3 Maneuvers You Can Make Today to Advance Your Toughest Sale

5. Thanks for reviewing some of the maneuvers The Swordsmanship Seller employs to keep ahead in
the sales cycle.
These three: Expose the Hidden Opponents Both Inside Your Prospect and Out, Take Yourself On, and,
Reinforce Value, are parts of a greater whole. While there’s seldom a reason any individual part would
not be an effective measure at any stage of the cycle, the real value lies in the comprehensive use of
them as an integrated means of advancing the sale.
It’s important to note, swordsmanship selling reinforces a comprehensive process by which all fundamental sales motions
are thoroughly addressed. Prospecting, Qualification, Needs Analysis, Competitive Positioning, Presentation, Objection
Handling, Advancing the Sale to Closure, Recommendation and Referral Management. Don’t let the provocative moniker
fool you, Swordsmanship Selling is no gimmick. Professional selling at its best, with no room for fluff or flash.
This is where Swordsmanship Selling really shines. The use of a fresh perspective that effectively reframes your grasp of
the sales process. Too many of us fall into patterns born of our experience. While we all acknowledge the value of
continual professional education, we seldom challenge our fundamental point of view. It’s through the engaging and
dynamic frame of reference that the swordsman seller unmasks assumptions, unwelcome habits, missed opportunities
and other frustrations.
3 Maneuvers You Can Make Today to Advance Your Toughest Sale
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