Part of the Closing Plan Program 6 of 6
Q4 = Every forecasted order is important, but especially the large/strategic must-win deals demand intense focus and constant tracking.
Your proposal (and any communications) must address the following 5 questions to have the highest probability of an order, on time and at the expected value.
In the customer’s internal meetings (you are not there) these are the questions that will be raised against your proposal:
- Problem: What is the problem we are solving with this proposal & when & why did the problem start, what’s changed since we installed the current system?
- Cost of Problem: What is it costing us -how much for how long (can’t we just do nothing)?
- Do nothing: Can’t we solve this with our existing system, or just use “work-arounds” – Big change = big risk
- Why this solution?:
- What is the / cost of change vs. benefit projection? When will we start to see net positive return on the investment?
- What other solutions have we reviewed, when and by who?
- Does it integrate with our other key systems? Who says it does, have we tried it?
- Can we have a free trial – or have we tested it already?
- Has the supplier successfully migrated other customers off a system like ours? Have we talked to some of them? How long did the migration take? What quantifiable benefits are they achieving?
- Do any of our competitors use this solution?
- What do our trusted advisors (internal and external) say about the proposed solution and the vendor?
- We operate in a volatile, changing world, can we be sure this solution is flexible to meet our operational needs for the next 3 years?
- Why now – what’s the urgency? We also have other important & urgent projects that need funding?
Volatility and uncertainty mean sellers must constantly re-visit these questions- and triangulate them – during the sales cycle. Facts must be dated and the source identified so that in account reviews assumptions are avoided!
Looking for more information?
Read our other 5 modules in the Closing Plan Program