WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.600 --> 00:00:04.599 Most sellers are not built to quit or to stop on a deal, so 2 00:00:04.639 --> 00:00:08.080 we need to reframe it a little bit. Instead of saying walking away or 3 00:00:08.119 --> 00:00:17.359 stop pursuing, we should say immediately take corrective action. You're listening to the 4 00:00:17.399 --> 00:00:22.280 audible Ready Podcast, the show that helps you and your teams sell more faster. 5 00:00:22.679 --> 00:00:26.160 We'll feature sales leaders sharing their best insights on how to create a sales 6 00:00:26.160 --> 00:00:30.559 engine that helps you fuel repeatable revenue growth. Presented by the team at Force 7 00:00:30.600 --> 00:00:34.600 Management, a leader in B to B sales effectiveness. Let's get started. 8 00:00:36.479 --> 00:00:41.119 Hello, and welcome to the Audible Ready Sales Podcast. Today we are talking 9 00:00:41.159 --> 00:00:45.159 about when you walk away from account, when do you shut it down and 10 00:00:45.359 --> 00:00:49.920 just move on, and also leaving in the right way. John Kaplan joins 11 00:00:49.960 --> 00:00:52.759 me to talk about this topic. Hi, John, Hey, Rachel. 12 00:00:52.799 --> 00:00:56.799 I'm going to throw a little curveball at the listeners today about whether we're actually 13 00:00:56.799 --> 00:01:00.520 talking about walking away or what we're talking about. Stand by, all right, 14 00:01:00.640 --> 00:01:03.280 Okay, here we go, Here we go. This is a question 15 00:01:03.319 --> 00:01:08.079 that we get a lot in the center community, and it really like knowing 16 00:01:08.079 --> 00:01:12.640 when to walk away from a dealer or a potential deal really requires you to 17 00:01:12.879 --> 00:01:19.599 understand what you know about the account and what you don't know, and you 18 00:01:19.680 --> 00:01:23.640 have a saying called veracious qualification. You tell people to be voracious qualifiers, 19 00:01:23.719 --> 00:01:29.040 and that's sort of the base for this idea today. Yeah, so let 20 00:01:29.120 --> 00:01:32.319 me first kind of explain what I mean by that. So when I say 21 00:01:32.359 --> 00:01:37.280 voracious qualification, I mean that you know, we're always qualifying, but we're 22 00:01:37.359 --> 00:01:42.879 qualifying with passion and conviction. We're not qualifying for compliance for our managers and 23 00:01:42.959 --> 00:01:49.879 our forecast, and that we're qualifying for confidence and conviction around our knowledge of 24 00:01:49.920 --> 00:01:56.159 an opportunity, which causes us to decide what our next steps are going to 25 00:01:56.200 --> 00:02:00.120 be. And so when I was growing up in sales, we used to 26 00:02:00.280 --> 00:02:04.239 have a saying and it's still around today. They say always be closing, 27 00:02:04.359 --> 00:02:07.599 always be closing. And so when I got to PTC back in the day, 28 00:02:08.080 --> 00:02:10.759 the thing to change for me. So the first company I worked for 29 00:02:10.840 --> 00:02:14.599 was said, always be closing, always be closing, and I still like 30 00:02:14.680 --> 00:02:20.879 that a lot. PTC changed my mindset to always be qualifying, always be 31 00:02:21.000 --> 00:02:23.800 qualifying, and this actually has changed mind not only my professional life, but 32 00:02:23.879 --> 00:02:29.520 my personal life as well. So a great mindset to have, especially as 33 00:02:29.520 --> 00:02:32.360 we think about when you want to work from an opportunity. What do you 34 00:02:32.360 --> 00:02:37.479 think are the common instances that are in place with a deal that make you 35 00:02:37.599 --> 00:02:39.599 know that you're going to stop pursuing it. Okay, so here's why I'm 36 00:02:39.599 --> 00:02:43.560 gonna throw the wrench in. So let me just kind of deal with this, 37 00:02:43.639 --> 00:02:47.240 because this is actually a really really hard question because most sellers are not 38 00:02:47.400 --> 00:02:52.360 built to quit or to stop on a deal. So we need to reframe 39 00:02:52.400 --> 00:02:55.479 it a little bit. Instead of saying walking away or stop pursuing, we 40 00:02:55.520 --> 00:03:02.280 should say immediately take corrective action. And sometimes that means that you'll stop pursuing 41 00:03:02.319 --> 00:03:07.080 an opportunity in that moment. But I think we all have to kind of 42 00:03:07.159 --> 00:03:12.039 level set ourselves. There's no metals for walking away from a deal, nor 43 00:03:12.080 --> 00:03:15.639 do you get any sales quota relief for walking away from a deal. So 44 00:03:15.680 --> 00:03:20.879 it's really it's really really important that we look at this concept as a kind 45 00:03:20.879 --> 00:03:23.479 of a mature concept. Let me give you a couple of more just kind 46 00:03:23.479 --> 00:03:28.680 of thoughts on this. So, if you're a voracious qualifier, you know 47 00:03:28.719 --> 00:03:32.120 you're going to constantly find gaps in your deal. They're going to cause you 48 00:03:32.159 --> 00:03:36.719 to take action immediately. Let me give you a few of them and you 49 00:03:36.759 --> 00:03:43.479 can write these down. No champion means no deal. No business issue means 50 00:03:43.680 --> 00:03:47.599 no business, no access to the economic buyer. We all know that's a 51 00:03:47.759 --> 00:03:53.479 massive risk and an opportunity when we ask ourselves how big is this problem and 52 00:03:53.560 --> 00:03:58.840 it's a small problem. It's going to create small opportunities and small deals. 53 00:03:59.479 --> 00:04:02.919 When I look at decision criteria and they're not favorable to me, and a 54 00:04:02.919 --> 00:04:09.120 better way to say it is the decision criteria does not reflect my differentiation. 55 00:04:09.680 --> 00:04:13.759 That's a problem. It means the lowest common denominator is always going to be 56 00:04:13.800 --> 00:04:18.399 priced. And in all these scenarios, if you proceed, you will lose 57 00:04:19.199 --> 00:04:24.480 full stop. Okay, so let me kind of reframe that. We're not 58 00:04:24.560 --> 00:04:30.399 talking about walking away today. We're talking about rattling your cage and saying, 59 00:04:30.680 --> 00:04:36.199 if you proceed with the information that you have and it has gaps in the 60 00:04:36.279 --> 00:04:43.519 common areas of qualification around Medican Medpick, you will lose full stop. So 61 00:04:44.160 --> 00:04:48.879 if you know you're going to lose and you can't fill those gaps, you 62 00:04:48.920 --> 00:04:53.879 should feel like your time can be better spend elsewhere. And in order to 63 00:04:53.959 --> 00:04:58.240 walk away or shift your focus a large component of this is really making sure 64 00:04:58.279 --> 00:05:02.000 you have the pipeline you don't if you don't have to like scrounge and hang 65 00:05:02.040 --> 00:05:05.319 on to things that aren't going to happen or discount your way to a deal. 66 00:05:05.720 --> 00:05:11.879 And having that understanding is critical to making sure your time is spent better 67 00:05:12.000 --> 00:05:14.920 elsewhere. Yeah, so let me say it a little bit more harsher. 68 00:05:14.959 --> 00:05:19.120 You said it a really nice way, Rachel. But look, pipeline cures 69 00:05:19.279 --> 00:05:24.920 all ills. And what I mean by that when you think about when you 70 00:05:24.920 --> 00:05:29.240 don't have pipeline, you can't negotiate. When you have pipeline, you're the 71 00:05:29.279 --> 00:05:33.199 greatest negotiator on the planet. That might be in hyperbole, but it gives 72 00:05:33.199 --> 00:05:36.639 you leverage and negotiation when you have pipeline. So all of this, like 73 00:05:36.720 --> 00:05:44.160 walking away or like your badge of courage, comes only if you have other 74 00:05:44.240 --> 00:05:48.480 opportunities that you could prioritize that needs your attention. And you know, maybe 75 00:05:48.519 --> 00:05:54.600 some of these other opportunities that aren't quite qualified yet would go you'd work pipeline. 76 00:05:54.639 --> 00:05:59.199 You'd put them in pipeline, and you'd work them in appropriately with your 77 00:05:59.240 --> 00:06:01.800 time. So, like I said, pipeline cares all ills. I think 78 00:06:01.839 --> 00:06:06.240 it makes you a more discerning seller. You got to have confidence and conviction 79 00:06:06.360 --> 00:06:11.319 around what you do for a living and know that what you do matters, 80 00:06:11.879 --> 00:06:15.120 And if it doesn't matter to you, why should it matter to your customer. 81 00:06:15.680 --> 00:06:18.879 So when you're looking at that pipeline and you can't figure out what do 82 00:06:18.959 --> 00:06:25.800 I do matters and can I attach it emotionally to my customers and get them 83 00:06:25.839 --> 00:06:29.720 emotionally connected to what they do matters, you wind up in a problem. 84 00:06:29.720 --> 00:06:32.839 And what you're really saying, Rachel, with all this is your time matters, 85 00:06:33.240 --> 00:06:38.519 and to use it wisely. And so if what you do matters and 86 00:06:38.600 --> 00:06:42.199 you can solve a business problem for a company, and you have the confidence 87 00:06:42.199 --> 00:06:46.279 and conviction to keep working to find the right people and business problems and attach 88 00:06:46.319 --> 00:06:51.360 yourself to them, then keep working the problem, keep working the opportunity. 89 00:06:51.680 --> 00:06:58.160 But if you can't put that opportunity in your pipeline and continue to nurture it 90 00:06:58.360 --> 00:07:02.399 and continue to do something, I find very few scenarios in the world, 91 00:07:02.480 --> 00:07:06.000 Rachel, where it's appropriate to walk away. Now, let me talk about 92 00:07:06.000 --> 00:07:10.000 a couple of them, because you know, I know that people may be 93 00:07:10.079 --> 00:07:12.639 signed up for this, they're like, oh, this is what's my walkway 94 00:07:12.639 --> 00:07:16.560 point? Okay, In negotiation, there's a walkaway point. And if you 95 00:07:16.639 --> 00:07:23.959 get into a situation in a sales cycle where you are negotiating and there's a 96 00:07:24.040 --> 00:07:28.519 point that they are asking you to do something on an opportunity, they are 97 00:07:28.560 --> 00:07:31.079 asking you to do something that is no longer good for your company and therefore 98 00:07:31.079 --> 00:07:35.360 it won't be good for their company, then you must have what we call 99 00:07:35.480 --> 00:07:41.279 a walk away point, which means it makes no sense to continue to negotiate 100 00:07:41.720 --> 00:07:48.000 for this opportunity under those terms. So walk away has some significant meaning and 101 00:07:48.079 --> 00:07:51.720 some real meaning. But I want you just to consider what we've talked about 102 00:07:51.759 --> 00:07:58.480 here today. This isn't an episode about walking away. It's more about taking 103 00:07:58.519 --> 00:08:05.240 a reality check every day on every deal where we have gaps and then deciding 104 00:08:05.279 --> 00:08:07.480 what am I going to do about closing them? And Rachel, my bottom 105 00:08:07.519 --> 00:08:13.360 line is, it's not a problem not to know or not to know about 106 00:08:13.399 --> 00:08:18.720 something an opportunity, or to have gaps and an opportunity. It is a 107 00:08:18.759 --> 00:08:22.120 crime punishable by death. That's a little harsh, but being dramatic. It 108 00:08:22.160 --> 00:08:26.279 is a crime punishable by death not to be doing anything about it. And 109 00:08:26.399 --> 00:08:30.600 Rachel, that was my bottom line. There you go. I think your 110 00:08:30.639 --> 00:08:33.799 points, John, give everyone a lot to think about. And it's not 111 00:08:33.879 --> 00:08:37.240 necessarily your walking away, But what do you say. It's not mister right 112 00:08:37.279 --> 00:08:39.919 now, it might be mister right later. I like that one a lot. 113 00:08:41.000 --> 00:08:45.320 That's good. Yeah, I like that thinking about like the timing of 114 00:08:45.360 --> 00:08:48.679 everything and if you don't have what you need, pull it out of the 115 00:08:48.679 --> 00:08:54.279 forecast and nurture it for later. So I think there's some good things to 116 00:08:54.320 --> 00:08:56.639 think about. And I would say my bottom line from hearing everything that you're 117 00:08:56.679 --> 00:09:01.200 saying, John, is also to remember that you're time it matters, and 118 00:09:01.279 --> 00:09:05.480 your time is valuable, and spend it where it matters the most. Love 119 00:09:05.559 --> 00:09:09.080 that one, right well, dub all right, Thank you, John, 120 00:09:09.159 --> 00:09:13.559 and thank you to all of you for listening to the Audible Ready Sales podcast. 121 00:09:13.440 --> 00:09:18.360 At Force Management, we're focused on transforming sales organizations into elite teams. 122 00:09:18.720 --> 00:09:24.879 Our proven methodologies deliver programs that build company alignment and fuel repeatable revenue growth. 123 00:09:26.279 --> 00:09:30.759 Give your teams the ability to execute the growth strategy at the point of sale. 124 00:09:30.879 --> 00:09:35.360 Our strength is our experience. The proof is in our results. Let's 125 00:09:35.360 --> 00:09:39.240 get started. Visit us at forcemanagement dot com. You've been listening to the 126 00:09:39.279 --> 00:09:43.360 Audible Ready podcast. To not miss an episode, subscribe to the show in 127 00:09:43.399 --> 00:09:46.799 your favorite podcast player. Until next time.