Authors Frank Cespedes and Tracy DeCicco bring us a look at the difference between selling to a lower level manager and a senior level manager. Each level has a different concern and a different objective in the sales process, and it is important to know who you are talking to.
The authors site research that shows at the C-Suite level you want to keep your discovery questions to around 4, with unsuccessful meetings having an average of 8 questions. This does not stay true when speaking with lower level managers, with those successful meetings coming in around 11-14 questions.
Understanding who your audience is is important, but almost equally important is understanding where you are in the sales cycle. In the earlier stage of a sale with Senior level management, it is important to demonstrate an understanding of their company's market and what strategic goals you will be able to help them with. At a later stage they are looking for how they will justify the decisions to the rest of their company.
Read the article here for further insights from the authors.
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