Only 35% of buyers base their decisions on product and vendor characteristics. If your reps are caught up in the feature “bake-off” with competitors, you’ve already lost 65% of your sales potential. That’s because 65% of customers will make a purchase from the company that establishes the buying vision, according to Forrester Research. Learn how to create a buying vision.

3. Messaging Matters

4. Messaging matters
Biggest Inhibitors to Achieving Quota
24.3 26
21.4
16
13.3
Insufficient Poor Sales Skills Too Many Information Gap Inability to
Leads Products to Know (Industry, Communicate
Solution, Etc.) Value Messages
Source: SiriusDecisions PMM Survey

5. Messaging Matters

6. Malcolm Gladwell

7. Scientist for Tipping Point
Morton M. Grodzins

8. Malcolm Gladwell

9. Scientist for Deliberate Practice
Dr. K. Anders Ericsson

10. Messaging Matters

11. Failure to create impact
Only 14% of
14% messaging
salespeople
promote
creates
commercial
impact
Relevant
to Your
Prospect
86%
Unique to You

12. Your new biggest competitor
You
They don’t see enough reason to
do something different
20-60%
Status Quo
Sales Bake-off
Call
Them

13. 65 % 35 %
Buying Vision Bake-Off
-3 -2 -1 +1 +2 +3
Status Quo Identify Define Identify Review Make
Threatened New Needs Solution Viable Vendors Approaches Decision
“Why Change?” “Why Us”
Your Desired Outcomes Why our company and
are at-risk and here’s offerings are better
how you can fix that than the competition
SELL THE PROBLEM SELL THE PRODUCT

14. Your new conversations
You
Challenge Re-Define Align
Assumptions Needs Solution 20-60%
Status Quo
St
Sales Bake-off
Call
Them

15. Buying Vision Creation “Solution” Selling
Customer Status Quo Customer
Outcome Outcome Outcome Salespeople “Play 20 Questions”
at Risk at Risk at Risk ?
Pre-Determine Executive-Level Outcomes ?? ? ? ? ?
?
? ?
Threat Threat Threat ?? ? ? ? ?
Problem Problem Problem ? ? ? ? ?
Miss Miss Miss
Reveal threats, risks, problems and missed Wait to hear a couple keywords and
opportunities that put each outcome at risk then jump into prepared products
and need to be solved presentation and competitive matrix
Your Your Your
Solution Solution Solution
Align strengths of products, services,
programs to solve the re-defined needs
and “engineer“ desired outcomes

16. Do you have a music problem?

17. I don’t have a music problem!

18. Maybe a 10 CD changer?

19. 1000 songs in your pocket

20. …I DID HAVE A MUSIC PROBLEM!

21. Messaging Matters

22. You need a messaging system
Customer Conversations
Messages Tools Skills
DEVELOP DEPLOY DELIVER
MARKETING SALES
Integrated
Approach

23. On purpose vs. by accident

25. Who do you want to be?
Messaging Matters