CustomerCentric selling

274 Pages·2004·1.368 MB·English

by  Holland, John R.;Bosworth, Michael T

CustomerCentric Selling
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CustomerCentric Selling
Michael T. Bosworth
John R. Holland
McGraw-Hill
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DOI: 10.1036/0071425454
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To my wife, Linda, who tolerates my passion for work and keeps things run-
ning smoothly during my frequent travels. To my children, Lauren, Johnny, and
Katie, who are a constant source of pride and joy. With special thanks to my
parents, John and Mary.
John R. Holland
To my inner circle—Alicia, Brendan, Brian, Steve, Sam, Dick, Dave, Susan,
Rosy, Ricki, Patti, and Suzanne—who keep me grounded, validated, and appre-
ciated. To my uncle, Jack Lester, who is my model for living life with a positive
mental attitude.
Michael T. Bosworth
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Contents
Acknowledgments xiii
Chapter 1 What Is Customer-Centric Selling? 1
What Is Customer-Centric Behavior? 2
Even the “Naturals” Can Improve 8
Chapter 2 Opinions—The Fuel That Drives Corporations 11
Who’s Responsible for What? 12
Hiring and Training: Where Selling Begins 14
Positioning: The Next Challenge 17
Why Not Lead with Features? 18
Opinions: Right and Wrong 20
Turning Opinions into a Forecast 22
Aiming for Best Practices 26
Chapter 3 Success without Sales-Ready Messaging 29
Understanding the Early Market 29
Understanding Mainstream-Market Buyers 33
Crossing the Chasm 35
Postchasm Sellers 36
Winging It 38
What about the Naturals? 38
Punished for Success 40
vii
viii CONTENTS
A Changing Context 42
The 72 Percent Zone 43
Chapter 4 Core Concepts of CustomerCentric Selling 47
You Get Delegated to the People You Sound Like 49
Take the Time to Diagnose before You Offer a Prescription 50
People Buy from People Who Are Sincere and Competent, 50
and Who Empower Them
Don’t Give without Getting 51
You Can’t Sell to Someone Who Can’t Buy 52
Bad News Early Is Good News 53
No Goal Means No Prospect 54
People Are Best Convinced by Reasons They Themselves Discover 55
When Selling, Your Expertise Can Become Your Enemy 55
The Only Person Who Can Call It a Solution Is the Buyer 56
Make Yourself Equal, Then Make Yourself Different—or You’ll 57
Just Be Different
Emotional Decisions Are Justified by Value and Logic 57
Don’t Close before the Buyer Is Ready to Buy 58
Chapter 5 Defining the Sales Process 61
Defining the Sales Process 63
The Trouble with the Data 65
Fire Drills and Hail Marys 66
Shaping Your Perception in the Marketplace 69
What Are the Component Parts? 69
More than One Process 74
Targeted Conversations 74
The Wired versus the Unwired 76
Further Segmentation Opportunities 77
The Clean Sheet of Paper 78
Process Is Structure 79
Chapter 6 Integrating the Sales and Marketing Processes 81
A Natural Integration 83
Learning from the Web 85
Toward a Selling Architecture 86