Our Most-Asked Questions from the Industry Leadership Panel

We recently hosted an Industry Leadership Panel where we talked to three growth-oriented business leaders about what top organizations are doing to drive success in the current market. There were a few questions we saw over and over again from the audience, so we wanted to take the time to provide some relevant resources around those topics. Keep reading for podcasts, blogs and videos from our library that address the four most commonly asked questions from our webinar about economic change.

We got even more nuanced and unique perspectives on these topics from our panel guests during the event. If you missed the panel discussion, you can watch it on demand here. The conversation dove into specific lessons and action items for leaders in every industry on how to support teams, shift priorities, and drive growth outcomes in our current economy.

1. What skills do sellers need to be successful in the current economic environment?

Great selling is great selling, no matter the economic context. Still, there are a few seller skills that you can support to help reps overcome budget concerns and preserve margin right now. We recommend doubling down on enablement efforts in these areas:

Value-Based Conversations - ROI is driving every decision right now. Ensure that sellers have the language and metrics to drive conversations that are based on the positive business outcomes your solution can provide

Deep Discovery - With budget concerns on the rise, C-level decision-makers are becoming more involved in deals behind the scenes. Sellers need a formula for identifying possible objections and gatekeepers early on to avoid deal stalls and discounting. Consider developing a strategy around relationship mapping.

Champion Selling - Identifying and coaching champions who have influence with budget controllers is crucial to winning in the current economic environment. Many top sales teams are using multithreading or multiple champions in every deal. Ensure that sellers can tell the difference between champions and coaches and have the right materials to help their champion make a great case for your solution.

Negotiation - It’s critical that sellers are able to control conversations and move them away from price concerns, influencing the decision criteria by presenting a great value case from the first conversation. Getting alignment from your whole organization on negotiation skills will help preserve more margin in deals and justify a premium price for your solution, even in a cautious economy.

Here are some more resources that go more in-depth on the seller skills that get results in the current economic environment:

• 3 Skills Sales Reps Need to Hit Revenue Targets in a Tightening Economy
• Selling to the CFO: Prepare Sellers to Answer These 5 Questions
• Why Your Sales Team Needs Deep Discovery and Multiple Champions to Win Right Now

2. How do sales organizations combat indecision and budget objections from buyers to drive urgency for their solution?

The best way to reliably justify budget from buyers and drive demand for your solution is by getting your entire organization aligned on the negotiation process.

If you don’t have a clearly defined organizational approach to negotiation at every step of the deal, you risk giving away value at each stage. It’s critical that negotiation based on the value and differentiation of your solution begins from the very first conversation and continues as the deal reaches legal, procurement, and closing stages. Negotiation isn’t just a sales skill; it should involve every department of your organization that touches a deal. 

Read more about how to align your organization around a winning negotiation strategy:

• Preserve Margin with Budget-Conscious Buyers through Value Negotiation
• Four Negotiation Skills to Arm Your Sellers with Right Now
• Manage Deals to a Successful Close in a Shifting Economy

3. How do you offset reduced pipeline in a down market?

Most organizations have found themselves dealing with reduced pipeline in the recent economy. Outside of driving better prospecting, there are actions you can take to ensure your sales team is making the most of the pipeline you do have.

Qualification - When resources are scarce, it’s even more crucial that salespeople spend their time on highly qualified, high-value opportunities. Drive consistency in the qualification process with a customized MEDDICC framework. MEDDICC can help your sales team not only know which deals to pursue but also to identify the specific steps that will close the deal at the highest value and within your forecast.

Alignment - Reducing team silos, especially between marketing, sales, and customer success, can be a game-changer for your customer’s experience. By extending your sales strategy efforts to convey ROI across the entire customer journey, you create a new layer of value and differentiation that makes all the difference in justifying your price in a budget-conscious market.

These resources give specific strategies to help your sales team make the most of every lead:

• Convert More High-Value Leads with Sales and Marketing Alignment
• Changing economy? Help Your Salespeople Prioritize the Right Opportunities Faster
• 3 Behaviors That Can Impact Your Sales Numbers This Quarter

4. How do economic challenges influence C-level buyers in the decision-making process?

In today’s economic environment, C-level leaders don’t make any purchase decision without a solid prediction of ROI. Sellers should not only utilize metrics and outcomes in their sales conversations, but be fluent enough in the value language of their solution to customize their message to each party’s needs and priorities. Sales leaders implement elite value messaging by defining a clear cross-functional definition of their solution’s value and providing content around specific, measurable results their solution has delivered.

Get strategies for helping sellers have greater impact with the critical decision-makers by downloading our guide, Enabling the C-Suite Sell.