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Sales Tidbits
Sales Tidbits

Initial Outreach

Hi {{first name}} - Sorry for the random intro but I noticed your profile says you’re in {{lead location}}, I’m actually headed to {{adjacent location}} next month for my cousin's wedding. I never travel so I’m excited. 😆

Anyway - back to business. I’m hoping to get some information in front of you to make your life easier

{{Insert sales pitch - keep it to 3 sentences - break each sentence into it’s own paragraph for digestibility}}

Now, I'm realistic: you probably have a {{your solution/product category}} in place - but wouldn't it be prudent to see what's out there?

What do you think {{first name}} - can I show you more?

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Note: The grammatical errors are intentional. I know it seems silly, but it works. My head of growth says that it humanizes the sender.

We have a system that does the location bit automatically.

The activity can obviously vary i.e. “to see a college friend”

‘Realistic’ portion may not make sense for new/niche products.

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Engaging Interested Leads

Thanks for the reply {{first name}}. Would next {{day}} ({{mm/yy}}) at {{time 1}} or {{time 2}} PDT work for you? If it's easier, here's my calendar link or feel free to send me some times that work on your end.

-{{your name}}

{{Full email signature}}

Follow Up If No Response

Hi {{first name}}, I know we're into a new week. Would next {{day}} ({{mm/yy}}) at {{time 1}} or {{time 2}} PDT work for you? If it's easier, here's my calendar link or feel free to send me some times that work on your end.

-{{your name}}

{{Full email signature}}

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Qualifying

Our sales staff are not expected to ask all of these questions. Questions in blue are considered “core questions”. Sub-bullets are variations of the questions that can be used as an alternative and/or a way to rephrase the question to dig further. I’ve generalized some of the questions as well.

While most of our qualifying occurs at the top of the call, we also encourage our sales staff to keep the tone conversational/consultative. As a result, qualifying questions are often peppered in organically throughout the call as the sales exec builds rapport.

General Questions

How long have you been looking into this type of solution/product, and why did you start? (Their answer will likely reveal if they’re a junior decision maker responsible for the initial supplier research.)

Timing Questions

What is your implementation timeline and how does it affect your evaluation process?

Are there any upcoming events/deadlines that you’d like to have a solution in place by?

What is driving the decision to consider a new product or solution?

Process Questions

Are you the sole owner of this [project, initiative]?

Will anyone else be involved in this decision?

Who else is involved in this process?

What’s the purchase approval process like?

What’s your role in the decision-making process?

Is there a committee assigned to choosing a [vendor, supplier, solution]?

How have decisions like this been made previously?

How does your [team, department, business] make buying decisions?

What is driving the decision to consider a new product or solution?

Are there any priorities or concerns from other stakeholders we should consider?

How can I help you sell this internally?

Pricing Questions

Have you identified a budget range for this purchase?

What team’s budget would this fall within?

What’s the ROI you’re hoping to see?

How do you hope this solution will help you achieve your objectives of X, Y, and Z?

How heavily will price factor into your decision?

Open-Ended Questions

What does your ideal solution look like?

If you had a magic wand, what would you like to see in your new [product/solution]?

Are there specific features/functionalities you’re looking for?

If you’re not speaking to the decision maker...

Ask questions that typically only DMs would know the answer to. The goal is to help the gatekeeper come to the realization that they aren’t qualified/equipped to move things forward on their own. The answers to some of the questions don’t even need to be all that critical but gatekeepers don’t know that. As long as you ask the questions with confidence and they have a plausible degree of applicability, you’ll be fine.

If they happen to know the answer to one or two of your questions, don’t sweat it. Just keep asking questions until you’ve stumped them 3+ times or so - enough to where it feels a bit awkward to continue the discussion much further without bringing someone else (the DM) into the fray.

Examples:

These questions are obviously specific to Boon’s use case but you can likely identify similar types of questions.

What are your hiring targets for this year?

What is your current referral hiring rate?

What’s your target referral hiring rate?

Would a program like this come out of your budget or...?

Would a program like this come out of HRs budget or recruitment or agency?

What metrics is your department held to in order to measure hiring?

Who else would we have to loop in on the integration side?

Communicate how getting the DM(s) involved benefits them (and their company). Emphasize how this will make their life easier because they won’t be responsible for relaying all the information you have to share. You can also point out how you’ll be able to answer any questions the DM has directly.

If additional team members are required to make a decision...

For best results, help the gatekeeper to realize they aren’t equipped/qualified to move the project forward before you move to bring in other team members.

Something that’s been useful for other customers is inviting key stakeholders to a friendly Q&A session. That way everyone feels included, has their questions answered and has the opportunity to see the product in action if they want. Do you think that make sense for [company name]?

Is there anyone else we should schedule the demo with to get the full picture of how you and your colleagues will be using Boon and what your needs are?

In the past, other customers have asked [job title] and [job title] to participate in this decision. Does that make sense for [company name]?

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Email Template

Hi {{first name}}, as I mentioned during our last call, something that’s been useful for other customers is inviting key stakeholders to a friendly Q&A session. That way everyone feels included, has their questions answered and has the opportunity to see the product in action if they want.

If it's helpful, I can send you a scheduling poll link that you can share with team members as needed so it's easy to find a day/time that works for everyone. What do you think?