"...out-learning the competition"
HEADLINES:
| Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind. | |
| Rudyard Kipling quoted in Roar | |
Tom Sant Webcast April 21, 4pm -- 6pm ET -- for those unable to join us in Vegas but would like to tune-in to a part of the Summit, we're streaming LIVE from the M Resort Tom Sant's keynote -- author of Persuasive Business Proposals (we all have to write them); Language of Success; and The Giants of Sales. He's also the creator of the famous software programs RFPMaster and ProposalMaster which improve win rates by 33%. Here's a link to sign-up -- $99/individual; $495 company license (view for a year).
ROAR!: Get Heard in the Sales and Marketing Jungle is the latest book by Kevin Daum along with fellow EOer Daniel Turner. Written as a business fable and available this week on Amazon, Kevin and Dan show how you can't communicate your message to all buyers in the same manner -- a fatal mistake made on websites, in marketing materials, and through personal communication. Here's a link to download the first 2 chapters for free -- take ten minutes to read (the whole book can be read in an hour or so)
3500 Year Old Principle -- In the Passover Seder, Jews are told to communicate to their four sons; the wise, the wicked, the simple and the son unable to ask. Kevin and Dan translate this to business as the Wise Buyer, the Cynical Buyer, the Simple Buyer and the Disinterested Buyer. In the book they show how to take your same value proposition message and make sure it's communicated on your website and other marketing materials in ways that appeal to all four buyers -- this is an original and clever insight -- congrats Kevin and Dan.
"VP" of Sales and Marketing -- but first you must get your VP right -- your Value Proposition. Beyond being a mere sentence, they use a three part framework: Pain, Solution, and Best Buyer. Download the first 2 chapters of their book for free and go right to Chapter 2 -- you'll see listed, a few pages in, a succinct example of a clear Value Proposition.
Construct Your Messages -- Once you have the VP, then it's time to construct your messages using these four steps (ROAR is the acronym):
| Recognize the buyer types | |
| Observe from their perspective | |
| Acknowledge who they are | |
| Resolve their need |
Wise Buyer -- for instance, if you recognize you have a Wise Buyer, you need to recognize that they are never satisfied with the initial information you provide and will ask several unemotional questions to seek more information. You need to acknowledge this need for more, concise, information and get them the information they require. I had a Wise Buyer on the phone just this morning and Kevin and Dan's framework helped me close the sale.
100 Questions -- Once you have a compelling message and know how to communicate to the 4 buyers, Kevin and Dan point out you have to integrate that message consistently into your sales process and marketing program. No one has money or resources to waste on marketing programs that don't work and yet most of us don't take enough time to really think through each detail of our sales process. Kevin created this great tool that gives you over 100 questions to break down the experience of buying with your company. Answer the questions with your team and then you can design and measure marketing initiatives based on desired results. It's better to plan than hope.
Drive Top Line Revenue Growth -- Kevin will be keynoting the Fortune Sales & Marketing Summit next week in Vegas, the week his book is official released. Over the past few months I've highlighted seven important sales & marketing books written to help drive top line revenue growth. Read these books (or come learn directly from the authors at the Summit) to stay ahead of the competition, to garner ideas for improving your sales and marketing process, and to learn from other sales and marketing professionals of growth firms. See you next week in Vegas.