B2B Sales Consulting Selling Consulting Services - Made Easy 5 Steps to Selling Consulting Services by Dave Pavitt

Summary: All the really gifted sellers of Consulting Services Ive met follow a sales model. It may be structured or instinctive but they all use the 5 Steps. They may not have recognised them as a simple methodology but when we discussed their selling model, they identified each of the 5 Steps in their way of selling. Most selling people resent bureaucratic sales management processes, so I designed the 5 Steps to be simple to use and a guide to identify the key sales milestones. They feel more like a natural discussion between two business people than a predictable pushy sales script. Clients have told me they got value from our sales discussions and they felt the assignments were jointly crafted and not force-fed on to them. There is one departure from conventional sales training. I see too many people rushing to show how clever they are and prematurely proposing solutions. This is dangerous because they could be solving the wrong problem, risking a No from their client unnecessarily or just showing off how clever they are! This article explains how to use the 5 Steps to maximise your sales success and avoid the pitfalls. Introduction: The 5 Steps to Selling Consulting Services was referred to briefly in my opening article, Combining Interpersonal and Structured Selling. This article develops the approach in more detail with real examples. It is the rational part of the sale, because it takes the sales logic and turns it into a compelling story that shows the way forward for your client. The complement to the 5 Steps is the Soft side of Selling Consulting Services, which is next weeks article. Between the rational 5 Steps & the Soft Side you will have a complete kit to guide you through the sales journey. The great advantage of the 5 Steps is that your client experiences a business discussion that has a compelling logic and is strongly empathetic. You both enter in to a mutually interesting discovery process that creates a jointly crafted approach. This is good for your client and good for you. Because the 5 Steps create a natural momentum and interest, there is rarely any trouble getting time in our clients diary for your next meeting to develop the sale. Start Point:

For convenience of language we might say getting your first sales meeting is part of Marketing. This then allows us to define the first meeting as the start of selling process. It is assumed that selling consulting services takes several meetings. The 5 Steps start when youve got a meeting planned with a potential client. It applies equally to new business contacts as much as to developing existing relationships. There may be a specific reason for the meeting or not. It applies equally. A small amount of thought will put you in good shape to

enjoy your opening meeting with your soon to be client. The first meeting becomes a discovery discussion that is enjoyable and valuable to both of you. The 5 Steps Issue(s) Identification Benefits Identification (desired) Change Obstacles Trial Approaches Close (winning proposals) Wheres the Solution. The Step that is deliberately missing at this stage is the Solution. Why? Because it is too big a risk and its not actually required! Typically, consultants feel pressure to show they can solve their clients problems straight away. They often feel this is a test they have to pass. Or, worse, they think its their golden opportunity to steer their client towards their companys preferred approach. In most cases this will switch off your client before your discussion has really started. Lets explore a way that deliberately postpones the formulation of the solution to a safer stage. Its based on the simple thought that its better to develop your clients attraction to the right benefits. The solution is secondary because its a means to the end. Clients buy benefits, not solutions. The 5 Steps are designed to protect the selling consultant, the client and the sales opportunity. Issue Identification: Todays executives and buyers of consulting services are probably under more pressure to perform than ever before. Its unlikely that they have no issues. Its more unlikely they will give you some of their diary time just to say hello and talk about holidays. Their time is too valuable. So what are their Business Issues and how can you find out? I strongly recommend you go in to your first client meeting with about 5/6 issues you think your client may be wrestling with. This is your Issue Hypothesis. Use it as an educated guide to probe and learn about your clients situation. Where do you get your Issue Hypothesis from? Most problems surface as revenue growth, margins, working capital or investment issues. Admittedly this is a very financial view of the worlds but it will help you to link your clients problems to potential tangible benefits. In todays hard financial climate you can say, No bottom line benefit, then no consulting engagement. Most companies business problems are in the public domain, so your client will expect you have done your homework. Now your objective is to get into an open discussion on relevant business problems. Its good to start at the industry level and then probe down to the company level and then to your clients level. Your war stories about similar issues you have met with other clients will be invaluable to this discussion and your credibility. You need to find out what are his high priority business problems and why. Its a legitimate question to ask what would happen if the issue were left untreated. No Hot Issues means No Need to Buy. Benefits Identification: Although its counter intuitive to go straight from Issues to Benefits by missing out any reference to Solutions, there are good reason to do so. You can say to your client you do not know enough to solve his issues before you understand his desired benefits. You can explore the size and nature of the potential benefits by temporarily ignoring the solution. Logically this allows you to reverse engineer the solution at the right time.

An able executive will have identified lots of problems but how does he decide his priority? A simple 2x2 matrix on Solvability & Potential Value gives us the key to direct your discussion and probing. High Value / Easily Solvable Issues are always the most attractive because the benefits are significant and affordable. Even at this stage you should be doing a mental RoI (return on investment) calculation to ensure there are tangible benefits you can deliver with your client. You should also explore what will be an acceptable RoI to your client. Sometimes Issues take a new perspective when the apparent benefits arent as big or interesting as your client first thought. Sometimes the issues are over-hyped and you risk solving a symptom and not a cause. Sometimes the issue is flavour of the month. Its better to find out now than later. Once, the issue I was discussing with a FTSE CEO was sales effectiveness. But, when I went back for our benefits meeting I was stopped in my tracks. He told me he had just appointed a new Sales Director & the Issue had disappeared. Always asked if anything has changed from the last meeting Qualifying the benefits also provides a second qualification on the issues. Your client will now be more committed to doing something, because the issue is defined and the benefits are accessible and attractive. Youve both had a business discussion and it doesnt feel like selling. Your war stories of similar benefits you have delivered to other clients will be invaluable to this discussion and your credibility. Its still too early to risk solutions and you want a 3rd dimension of Opportunity Qualification! Change Obstacles: Logically to go from issues to benefits implies something has to change. This delta is rarely simple to achieve. There are no magic wands. Especially as you have already agreed the issues are real and the benefits are significant. There may be some low hanging fruit but there will be serious difficulties to capture the benefits. Remember, if its too easy you are superfluous and your client can do it himself, or with a cheaper resource. Your client will respect you when you say its worthwhile exploring the likely Obstacles to Change. Your discussion can start at the high level and progress to whats specific to your clients organisation and his people. Probing for benefits will help your client grow his commitment to obtain the benefits or not. Its better to discover your client has no appetite for the fight earlier than later. Your objective is to build mutual confidence that the issues will lead to significant benefits and the obstacles are surmountable. Yet again, your war stories of similar obstacles you have overcome for other clients will be invaluable to this discussion and your credibility. Youve got 3 dimensions of qualification and your client now sees that the benefits are real and the obstacles are surmountable and you are still in a business discussion, which doesnt feel like selling. Better, your client is getting ready to buy. But its still too early to risk solutions. Trial Approaches: Now you are both coming up with possible ideas (not solutions) that could contribute to delivering the benefits. The discussions are exploratory and not definitive. You are both creating ideas and your both appraising their Pros & Cons. Again; your war stories will be seen as helpful wisdom to help evaluate possible approaches. Your questions will sound like, What would happen if we did..? What would be the reaction if we did.? How would we tackle.?.

By a process of elimination the preferred approach will start to emerge in a jointly crafted manner. Youre building mutual enthusiasm and confidence that you can successfully work

together to deliver your clients desired benefits. Youve eliminated the non-starters, agreed what issues are worth treating, built confidence the obstacles are surmountable and youre starting to jointly see workable approaches. Once I was looking at trial approaches with a financial services executive. As we built the different approaches it became apparent cash flow was more important than RoI. So we designed an approach to minimise the projects negative cashflow. He bought because our approach fitted his situation perfectly. You havent started to sell but your client is close to buying because he is attached to your mutual view of the way ahead. He will not be nave and commit to an unaffordable solution, as you will have already agreed minimum ROI rates. You will not be nave and be walking in to an unaffordable proposal because you will have been working with your colleagues to build high-level solutions within the RoI constraints of your client discussions. Once again, just because you have a solution, it doesnt mean youve got to show it yet. Closing: You show your solution when its right. Its right when your client says, "We want to tackle these issues. We want to get these benefits. We know we can overcome these obstacles together. We see the approach should look like. Lets pause and consider what we have created. Over several discussions with your client youve built mutual respect and understanding. Youve got a very close and privileged insight in to your clients thoughts and hopes. You havent been selling. Your client is enthusiastic and confident to work with you. You need an agreement to close the discussions and move to action. You have already obtained stage agreements i.e. youve agreed Issues, Benefits, Obstacles and Trial Approaches. Youve derisked the final YES. You now ask (in the conditional) if you did this would it work and be acceptable. The answer is probably YES. You then get your clients agreement to draw up the detail together in the knowledge you both want it to work for both of you. Conclusion: The 5 Steps are not bullet proof. They do not ignore price negotiation or collective decision-making or competition, which are all real world events. They are road tested, practical and proven steps that will help you progress your sales. They are particularly appropriate to selling Consulting Services because they encourage and facilitate customisation and personalisation. Theyre based on consultation, dialogue and mutual discovery. They provide the core principles for you and your client to find your Win Win Sale. Author details: Dave Pavitt Director B2B Sales Consulting B2B Sales Consulting is an association of experienced B2B Sales Professionals who work with Consulting and IT Service Companies to raise profitable revenues by improving sales effectiveness. This article is the opening chapter in the eBook, Selling Consulting Services Made Easy & it is available from

Other chapters cover whole selling model for consultants, including opening meetings, developing opportunities, closing and winning business and how to unlock the potential of your client accounts. The eBook is also supported by the seminar series of the same title. The eBook is written in a practical way that easy to understand. It lets readers find ideas and tools they can use straight away to help them in there everyday professional life. Its based on the authors experience as a DEC Global Account Manager, Gemini Consulting Vice President, Proudfoot Consulting European President and all the help friends and colleagues have been kind enough to give him.