tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33892521.post9124649730233449958..comments2023-06-22T06:08:32.457-05:00Comments on The Opinionated Marketers: Selling at C-LevelJohn Whitesidehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11043220283018147707noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33892521.post-32462205322831606992007-07-17T10:27:00.000-05:002007-07-17T10:27:00.000-05:00Glenn - Thanks for adding your insight to this. It...Glenn - Thanks for adding your insight to this. It's very helpful. It's also interesting to hear that the CIO wants business info - not nuts and bolts. <BR/><BR/>In general,it's always good to have the business story down. It's just that too often it becomes the predictable check list with no real proof points or connections to what the product or service actually does.Maureen Rogershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18010555449338575037noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33892521.post-28446847666113949482007-07-17T10:09:00.000-05:002007-07-17T10:09:00.000-05:00Maureen, excellent post.Selling at the C-level may...Maureen, excellent post.<BR/><BR/>Selling at the C-level may be the right thing to do, and should only be done (as you say) when it is the right thing to do, otherwise you are wasting your efforts. So how do you determine if it is the right thing to do or not, and if it is, how do you market and sell to them?<BR/><BR/>1) Understand the role a C-level executive has in the decision-making process. Are they an influencer? The economic buyer? A catalyst? A vetoer? <BR/>2) Depending on their role, determine when and how you want to communicate with them, if at all.<BR/>3) If their role is defined as a catalyst or influencer, you want to have marketing drive the communications. As the economic buyer, marketing can help, but sales needs to own how that communications happens. As a vetoer, you may want to fly below their radar, unless you …<BR/>4) Develop an extremely compelling value proposition for them. Regardless of their role, their influence may be the most significant in the entire sales cycle. <BR/>5) Recognize that you may not get a chance to present your case to them, so, enroll all the other decision-influencers in developing the value proposition for you. <BR/>6) Most importantly, speak to them (via marketing, or sales, or your internal decision-influencers) in terms of BUSINESS benefits. They don’t care how your product works. They don’t care about how great it is. They don’t care about it’s uniqueness. They care about how it enables them to achieve their BUSINESS goals.*<BR/><BR/>* Note that even CIOs want to be sold to in BUSINESS terms. We have validated this from many, many discussions with CIOs.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com