As sales professionals in today’s competitive market, customers and prospects demand more from you than ever before. You’re expected to bring something to the table—to be an advisor and consultant with relevant solutions for their business. That requires in-depth knowledge on your company’s products and services.

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This document contains proprietary information of ValueSelling Associates. Its receipt or possession does not convey
any rights to reproduce or disclose its contents or to manufacture, use, or sell anything it may describe. Reproduction,
disclosure, or use without specific written authorization of ValueSelling Associates is strictly forbidden.
Julie Thomas | President and CEO
ValueSelling Associates, Inc.
Boost Business Acumen
& Build Your Credibility

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At the end of today’s webinar
Go to valueselling.com > resources > webinars
to download today’s slides
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“There are no secrets to
success. It is the result
of preparation, hard
work, and learning from
failure.”
-Colin Powell

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Today’s topics
Why business acumen is important
How to engage in a business conversation
The relationship between business issues
and justifying the sale
How to be a better business professional

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What Customers Expect
from True Partners
My industry
My problems
My business objectives
My uniqueness
FOCUS: Customer is “buying”
versus Salesperson is “selling”
Show me
that you
know me.
Solve my
problems.
Don’t push!

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Engage – What won’t work!
They don’t listen
They talk too much
They don’t know anything about me
They don’t follow up
They don’t tell the truth
They don’t understand what I need
They are overly aggressive

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Business
Acumen
Keenness
Quickness
Good Judgment
Quick Decisions

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Business
Literacy
Knowledge and
Understanding of
Financial
Accounting
Marketing
Operations

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Engage Executive Decision Makers
with these steps
Investigate Predict Prepare

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Gaining Knowledge and Insight

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Investigate
Local
information
– Business
Journals
Industry
information
– Associations
– Trade Press
– Lists
Company
Information
– Financial statements
– Executive Messages
– Analyst Reports

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Investigate
Research about
them and the
company/agency
Look for trends
in key financial
metrics
How does this
company describe,
manage,
and measure their
business health?
Company/
agency
website
Earnings
report
(if public)

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Predict
Business
Executives
Business
Goals
Business
Objectives
Business
Strategies
Business
Initiatives

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Problem
Combination of people, process,
and technology challenges
Business Issue
What customers need to address and
resolve to achieve business objectives
Value created by resolving business issues
Business
Objective
What customer needs to accomplish
to maintain or grow their business

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Value
The only thing that matters is
customer's perception of the value of
being able to resolve their business
issues; always a combination of
tangible and intangible components
Solution
Capabilities any vendor needs to
supply to enable customer to properly
address their business issues
Value is created by solving business issues

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Has a direct and measurable business impact
Will align to a business objective
Is timebound
Has a cost and a
corresponding value
Buyer’s perspective or articulation may vary
depending on their level within an organization
Characteristics of a business issue

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Justifying the sale
Tangible Business Value:
Measurable or quantifiable positive impact on the business issue.
Value
Benefit
Cost

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Prepare

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Engaging messaging to gain access
What is the likely #1 priority or challenge?
What stands in their way of contributing
to your company’s objective?
What value can you add to that process?
Correlate the research to the individual

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Credibility
Believable and Convincing
“Credibility is a basic survival skill.”
-Rebecca Solnit

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The relationship:
Knowledge Relevance
Credibility

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What can you do today?
Commit to staying current and relevant
Learn your buyer’s industry
Strengthen your financial literacy
Gather specific company knowledge
Identify key executives to access
“Knowledge is of
no value unless you
put it into practice.”
-Anton Chekhov

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Summary
We must become business professionals first,
sales professionals second
Business executives expect peer-level
value-added relationships
Investigate, predict, prepare –
all three steps are key to execution, gaining access and
creating opportunities!
Be credible: believable and convinced

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Questions?

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SAVE THE DATE!
Our next webinar will be:
Team Dynamics: Leveraging a Team
Selling Approach to Increase Revenue
Thursday, June 15 | 10:00AM PDT

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The proven formula
for accelerating sales results.
Thank you
Julie Thomas
julie@valueselling.com