Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    10.4 Interactions: How to Develop a Sales Touch System, Guide the Customer Conversation, and Sell with Credibility in B2B Sales
    10.4 Interactions: How to Develop a Sales Touch System, Guide the Customer Conversation, and Sell with Credibility in B2B Sales
    10.4 Interactions: How to Develop a Sales Touch System, Guide the Customer Conversation, and Sell with Credibility in B2B Sales
    Ebook174 pages2 hours

    10.4 Interactions: How to Develop a Sales Touch System, Guide the Customer Conversation, and Sell with Credibility in B2B Sales

    By Michael Smith

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    In 2011, Google published research that brought a new term – “Zero Moment of Truth” – to the world’s attention. It derived from a study that found how, on average, consumers need 10.4 interactions from various sources to develop their buying knowledge before they make a purchasing decision.

    Additional research, looking at B2B sales, has found that the number of interactions – or touches between seller and buyer – needed to secure a sale is somewhere between 7 and 13. In essence, it is 10.4 interactions all over again.

    Whatever the exact number required for any sale (and this will vary by customer, sector, the level of competition, and more) salespeople in a multi-touch selling environment generate sales by creating compelling and credible journeys of discovery for the decision makers in any purchasing organisation.

    This book shows you exactly how to do that.

    In “10.4 Interactions”, sales expert Michael Smith breaks down the steps required for creating a sales touch system that generates multiple interactions with your potential customers. Irrespective of experience, you will be able to identify and target the people who authorise purchases, deliver compelling messages, learn how to create personal value and significance, and develop thought-provoking and change-enabling discussions. By following the book’s focused and specific methodology, you will stand out, create more opportunities, and make the sales that deliver real business success.

    Note: This is the sister book to Go Naked: The Credible Expert: How to Stand Out In Medical Sales, Create More Opportunities, And Grow Your Business. Content elements across both titles are related and readers are, therefore, advised not to purchase 10.4 Interactions if they already own The Credible Expert.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBennion Kearny
    Release dateOct 6, 2017
    ISBN9781911121374
    10.4 Interactions: How to Develop a Sales Touch System, Guide the Customer Conversation, and Sell with Credibility in B2B Sales
    Author

    Michael Smith

    Professor Michael B. Smith received an A.A. from Ferrum College in 1967 and a BS in chemistry from Virginia Polytechnic Institute in 1969. After working for 3 years at the Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Co. in New- port News VA as an analytical chemist, he entered graduate school at Purdue University. He received a PhD in Organic Chemistry in 1977. He spent 1 year as a faculty research associate at the Arizona State University with Professor G. Robert Pettit, working on the isolation of cytotoxic principles from plants and sponges. He spent a second year of postdoctoral work with Professor Sidney M. Hecht at the Massachusetts Insti- tute of Technology, working on the synthesis of bleomycin A2.? Smith began his academic career at the University of Connecticut in 1979, where he is currently professor of chemistry.?In addition to this research, he is the author of the fifth, sixth, and seventh editions of March’s Advanced Organic Chemistry. He is also the author of an undergraduate textbook in organic chemistry titled Organic Chemistry. An Acid-Base Approach, now in its second edition. He is the editor of the Compendium of Organic Synthetic Methods, Volumes 6–13. He is the author of Organic Chemistry: Two Semesters, in its second edition, which is an outline of undergraduate organic chemistry to be used as a study guide for the first organic course. He has authored a research monograph titled Synthesis of Non-alpha Amino Acids, in its second edition.

    Read more from Michael Smith

    Related authors

    Related to 10.4 Interactions

    Related ebooks

    Sales & Selling For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      4 Deploy Stronger Value Propositions Within A Sales Organisation Maturity Framework

      Jun 30, 2021

      ThinkSales' Sales Organisation Maturity Framework Mature Sales Organisations are built on a state of optimisation that is agile and iterative. This is the path they follow. • Your Sales Organisation has not defined a ‘value-led’ proposition. In clien

      2 min read

    • Article

      Account Based Marketing

      Jun 9, 2021

      Account Based Marketing
      2 min read

    • Article

      Strengthening Yourcompetitive Advantage

      Jun 30, 2021

      • Have you developed an up-to-date profit and loss statement?• Do you understand your current strengths and weaknesses?• Have you clearly articulated what needs to change in your organisation, and why?• Have you clearly mapped your change process? Ar

      2 min read

    • Article

      Strengthening Your Sales Management

      Jun 30, 2021

      1. Providing clarity and support • Is your team prepared for ongoing volatility and uncertainty in the months ahead?• Are your Managers adept at countering the emotional impacts of stress and its impact on productivity, for themselves and their teams

      2 min read

    • Article

      3 Influence Sales Success With Value-based Selling Tools

      Jun 30, 2021

      When developing content to support value-selling efforts, many organisations use excel spreadsheets to help Sales Reps calculate and communicate cost of the problem, total cost of ownership (TCO) and return on investment (ROI). While these are all cr

      2 min read

    • Article

      The Winning Edge Principle

      Jun 30, 2021

      The Winning Edge Principle
      1 min read

    • Article

      Sales Volume Or Sales Value: Which Is Best For You?

      Jun 24, 2019

      IN THIS instalment of our ‘8 levers of sales growth’ series we tackle the decision between aiming for a greater volume of new sales versus increasing the value of each sale. In some respect, this decision comes down to how many new sales can your bus

      2 min read

    • Article

      Shaping Customer Success

      May 26, 2022

      Consider this: As the sales arm of your organisation, you’re making certain promises to your customers around what your solution can do for them and their company’s success. The problem is that too often, once a sale is made, implementation is handle

      2 min read

    • Article

      Strengthening Yourcustomer Engagement

      Jun 30, 2021

      1. Value-based sales stories • Have you created a value-based sales story?• Have you taken the value gap into account, leveraging the CLOSE storytelling framework?• Have you leveraged social proof and referrals? 2. Aligning sales teams, marketing tea

      1 min read

    • Article

      Sales Engagement Process Design

      Aug 9, 2017

      Is it time to adapt your sales engagement process to align with today’s evolving buyers & buying processes? • Many sales engagement processes are informal and inconsistently executed • This makes it extremely difficult for sales managers to obtain co

      1 min read

    • Article

      It’s Personal

      Oct 24, 2019

      It’s Personal
      4 min read

    • Article

      Simple Works

      Jun 17, 2018

      Simple Works
      2 min read

    • Article

      Sales Engagement Process Design

      Dec 1, 2017

      Is it time to adapt your sales engagement process to align with today’s evolving buyers & buying processes? • Many sales engagement processes are informal and inconsistently executed • This makes it extremely difficult for sales managers to obtain co

      1 min read

    • Article

      How To Beat Price-focused Competitors

      Apr 22, 2019

      SO YOU’VE GOT a good share of your market. Your business is ticking along nicely, revenue is increasing, and profit is too. You’re feeling pretty great about your success so far. Then along comes an overseas competitor, with big buying power, a hefty

      2 min read

    • Article

      Master Class Training

      Nov 2, 2016

      Experiencing a reduction of profit margins? Battling to differentiate your offering? Struggling to win new business? • Prospects who don’t understand your differentiation increasingly commoditise your offering • Not creating greater value exposes you

      2 min read

    • Article

      Caring for Clients

      Dec 31, 2019

      Caring for Clients
      3 min read

    • Article

      Mailchamp

      Feb 1, 2018

      Mailchamp
      13 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for 10.4 Interactions

    0 ratings

    0 ratings0 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

      Book preview

      10.4 Interactions - Michael Smith

      10.4 INTERACTIONS: HOW TO DEVELOP A SALES TOUCH SYSTEM, GUIDE THE CUSTOMER CONVERSATION, AND SELL WITH CREDIBILITY IN B2B SALES

      *

      Michael Smith

      *

      [Smashwords Edition]

      *

      Dark River_logo_master

      An imprint of Bennion Kearny

      *

      Published in 2017 by Dark River, an imprint of Bennion Kearny Limited.

      ISBN: 978-1-911121-37-4

      All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher.

      This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise circulated without the publisher’s prior consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.

      Dark River has endeavoured to provide trademark information about all the companies and products mentioned in this book by the appropriate use of capitals. However, Dark River cannot guarantee the accuracy of this information.

      Published by Dark River, an imprint of Bennion Kearny Limited, 6 Woodside, Churnet View Road, Oakamoor, Staffordshire, ST10 3AE

      www.BennionKearny.com

      ABOUT THE AUTHOR

      Michael graduated from the University of Leeds after completing a BSc in Medical Biochemistry. In 2010, he was awarded an MBA with distinction from the University of Warwick where his final dissertation focused on strategies for market entry. In 2012, he completed his Professional Certificate in Coaching at Henley Business School.

      Michael has spent his career working in sales and marketing roles across three multi-national businesses. In addition he is co-founder of Developed Edge – a specialist sales training company, co-founder of Beyond Target – a magazine for sales and marketing professionals, and the best-selling author of GO NAKED: Revealing The Secrets Of Successful Selling. He has worked as a coach and advisor and is currently Vice President of Global Marketing.

      *

      Other Bennion Kearny Group books that might interest you:

      Awful Presentations: Why We Have Them and How to Put Them Right by Barry Brophy

      What Business Can Learn From Sport Psychology: Ten Lessons for Peak Professional Performance by Dr Martin Turner & Dr Jamie Barker

      Write From The Start: The Beginner’s Guide to Writing Professional Non-Fiction by Caroline Foster

      visit www.BennionKearny.com for more information.

      *

      THE TOUCH SYSTEM

      In 2011, Google commissioned a piece of research into how customers make buying decisions and coined the term, ‘Zero Moment of Truth’. [1] The Zero Moment of Truth refers to the period between a stimulus and the consumer making a decision to buy. Based on the research, they found that, on average, consumers needed 10.4 interactions before making a purchasing decision. With B2B sales, research has suggested the number of interactions is somewhere between 7 and 13 (and upwards). Accordingly, the 10.4 figure continues to resonate.

      From a sales perspective, we refer to these interactions as ‘touches’ – and so we’re aiming to develop a system that allows for interactions over a three-to-six month period.

      This is known as a Touch System.

      To win time with key customers, we need to find a way to stand out from the competition. Rather than asking for an appointment or meeting, the key is to give something instead; something of value so that you begin to become significant in your (potential) customer’s mind.

      A Touch System is a way to break down the value you will give to a key customer into a series of planned interactions. The plan needs to include two elements – the activity, and the communication route.

      These activities that create value could be varied but should be significant. Articles or summaries of articles of interest, industry publications, legislation, guidance, benchmarking, testimonials, or educational invites, to name but a few. Communication routes could be post, face-to-face, email, phone, message, Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and so on.

      A customer once told me, ‘The reason I would give a sales person time would be if I thought they could help me to achieve my goals or objectives. So I’d be looking for them to begin engaging with me – perhaps sending me information that is relevant to my market, organisation, or role, or identifying things that they thought I’d be interested in. I wouldn’t meet someone because of the product they sold but because of the help they could bring.’

      This is an incredibly powerful approach, and it requires us to:

      1. Select activities which create value and which positions the sales professional as a Credible Expert in their field

      2. Develop a series of 11 touches

      3. Plan to deliver regular and consistent value over a three-to-six month period

      4. Vary the communication route

      In doing so, you position yourself away from the rest of the competition as someone who gives value first before asking for a meeting, appointment, or sale. You begin to position yourself as a Credible Expert (a term we will cover in depth over the course of this book) within an extremely purposeful and effective Touch System.

      Let’s begin.

      RoadMapFINAL_leftRoadMapFINAL_right

      INTRODUCTION

      Old-school sales techniques are outdated, and anyone employing them will soon be outdated too.

      Need satisfaction selling.

      Solution selling.

      Feature-benefit selling.

      Pump and dump, pre-determined sales scripts.

      They’re history.

      What is required for success in our new economy are people who acknowledge their role as project managers, as professional change creators; those highly skilled people who can identify the right individuals to work with, who deliver Experience Insights, adapt their messages to their audiences, and who create value and significance.

      Does that sound like you?

      If those few words and ideas ‘click’ with you, if they resonate with you, and if they sound like they could describe the way you work – or hope to work – then what we’ll do over the remainder of this book is explore a structured approach to a set of key steps that will allow you to amplify each of them, to become even better at them, and become a top performer in your role.

      Then, as with everything, it’s over to you.

      The book is split out into three parts.

      Part 1 – How You Think, Act, And Interact

      Part 1 looks at the mindset required of the modern day sales professional, and the term I use for that person is ‘Intrapreneur’. It considers the changes required as a result of the changing market and the role the sales professional now plays in creating value and significance. And it considers the role of the system in which we operate, and how it influences our outcomes through a set of factors associated with human behaviour.

      Part 2 – Driving The Customer Conversation

      Part 2 lays out a six-step process to take a potential customer on a journey, through identification and winning time, to framing the conversation, provoking thought and discussion, and demonstrating your experience before highlighting your Unique Solution.

      Part 3 – Becoming The Credible Expert

      Part 3 breaks down the idea of creating value as part of the purchase experience to a set of key roles and activities that the sales person must adopt in order to succeed in the new economy and become The Credible Expert.

      I hope you enjoy this book.

      I trust it will provoke some thought and that on reading it, you’ll do something differently – even just one thing – which impacts you, your customers, and your business.

      PART 1 – HOW YOU ACT, INTERACT, AND THINK

      The world into which we sell has changed and acknowledging that change is a crucial first step. We must strive to harness the power of personal responsibility; combined with an open and creative approach to possibilities we will create greater opportunities. By skilfully navigating the complex human system we operate in, we can further develop our relationships and commercial outcomes.

      HOW YOU ACT – THE CHANGE

      2_0_TheChange

      People provide the greatest opportunity for differentiation in the market

      CHOICES AND TOLERANCE

      Imagine sitting, reading this book. Not today, but in the early 1900s instead.

      Okay, you’d be a little freaked out having ordered it online or when reading it on your tablet or smartphone, but putting that aside for a moment and suspending your disbelief, a couple of things would be true.

      Firstly, if you’d graduated in 1920, you’d be one of only 4,357 students [2] to have obtained a first degree in the UK that year – this during a period when the economy shifted from one being fuelled by agriculture to one driven by manufacturing.

      It was the era of the rise of Ford and the inception of mass production – of assembly lines and factories. In addition, you and I, in the early 1900s, would be hoping that our kids would leave school and get a steady job, working in one of these new and magical places. Factories had become the engine of that time, and you either worked in one or owned one. Either way, they dominated the economy.

      In an era when material possessions were based on and chosen by necessity rather than desire, choices of product and services available to consumers were limited and tolerance of sub-optimal performance or customer experience, on the other hand, was high. After all, when you have a choice of one, what’s the alternative? When you can have it in any colour you want, so long as it’s black, then that’s the one you’ll take.

      So in business, we began to think about our assembly line – the customer assembly line. It turned out that once customer-facing people had acquired so many customers or accounts, they could no longer sell and service to the same extent. And so the roles were now differentiated, and the first breakthrough occurred.

      Our sales organisations become factories as roles were broken down into their constituent parts, and those tasks were assigned to different people. As a result, growth began to accelerate.

      Fast-forward some 30 or so years to the next generation and by 1950, some 17,337 students [3] obtained a first university degree in the UK. There was an upward trend in the number of ‘qualified’ people in the

      Enjoying the preview?
      Page 1 of 1