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SAVVY
SELLING - JULY
1, 2005
Face-to-Face
with a VITO
By Michelle Nichols
It's easy to freeze
when confronted with a Very
Important Top Officer. Here's
how to keep your cool and make
an offer they can't refuse
Let's face it -- selling to
top executives can be intimidating.
As a reader named Peggy wrote
to me, "Recently, I was
at a formal dinner and coming
toward me was the CEO of a Fortune
100 corporation. He didn't have
an entourage, and it would have
been quite easy for me to introduce
myself. Instead, I said 'Hello,'
and kept walking! This happens
to me quite often, and I've
been trying to come up with
a way to start a conversation.
I probably won't have but a
few seconds to speak."
Relax, Peggy. We've all seized
up, but congratulations for
looking ahead and planning for
the next time you run into a
VITO -- Very Important Top Officer
-- as author Anthony Parinello
calls them. Remember, part of
success is learning from your
mistakes and preparing so you
don't repeat them.
Peggy went on, "I'd thought
about saying something like:
'Mr. X, I'm Peggy Smith, and
my latest book and seminar help
busy professionals conquer e-mail
overload and save an hour a
day. May I send your assistant
a copy to forward to the appropriate
person in your organization?'"
FREEBIE MANIA. No matter what
you sell, whether it's time-management
books or gourmet chocolate-chip
cookies, my advice would be
the same. When you go to an
event that will probably bring
out people of influence, remember
the Boy Scout motto and "Be
Prepared." Bring a few
copies of your book or product
with you, not tucked under your
arm, but perhaps in an elegant
bag or case. Then if an opportunity
arises, you can offer the item
personally with your business
card inside. With this strategy,
you circumvent all their highly
trained handlers and gatekeepers.
Trust me, they'll take what
you offer. Everyone loves free
gifts, regardless of their career
or economic status. For example,
look at all the media coverage
on the bags of goodies at awards
shows (see BW Online, 2/11/05,
"Shmoozing Celebs is a
Whole New Bag"). These
stars can afford to pay full
price for all the bling and
gadgets inside, but they fight
over the freebies anyway.
This sales strategy works in
more situations than just formal
events. In fact, if you sell
a small product, you should
always carry a few clean samples
with you or in your car. You
never know what key executive
you'll meet at your local Starbucks,
dry cleaners, or youth soccer
board meeting. Putting your
product directly into their
hands, while they're looking
at your smiling face, is worth
a thousand cold calls.
COMMON DESIRES. Sheila Alldredge
of Alldredge Productions also
wrote me on the topic of selling
to upper management. She recounted
how she had been asked by another
woman, "How do you handle
walking into a room full of
suits?" Sheila wisely replied,
"Remember to look above
the suit to the face of each
gentleman around the table and
know they are all someone's
son, someone's brother, uncle,
cousin, or dad. Then remember
that salespeople know how relationships
work."
While Sheila's question was
about women selling to men,
it really applies to either
gender. Generally speaking,
if you can forget about other
people's differences in status
and focus on what you have in
common, it takes a lot of pressure
off your selling. Remember,
people universally want to feel
important, intelligent, and
successful.
I should warn you that there
are some differences between
selling to upper-level management
and those further down the chain
of command. While most customers
at any level care about increasing
sales and decreasing expenses,
those in the upper ranks have
additional concerns:
• The effect on personnel.
Top executives care whether
your offering helps them attract
top achievers or retain those
already on board. Let's say
you sell a state-of-the-art
factory-control system. Installing
such a system may help your
client hire the cream of the
crop, because top talent always
wants to work with the latest
and greatest equipment. Your
system may also help a company
keep their best performers from
leaving to use such a system
at a competitor. Therefore,
don't forget to mention the
impact your offering can have
on personnel companywide.
• Legal worries. Another
issue is decreasing their liability,
both corporate and personal.
In these increasingly litigious
times, one lawsuit, whether
of merit or not, can severely
affect a company or crater a
career. The loss to the company
isn't just monetary but also
a dilution of focus, resources,
and even opportunities. It has
been said it was the indictment
of accounting firm Arthur Anderson
that destroyed the company,
not the conviction.
This lesson hasn't been lost
on most VITOs. As a result,
remember to stress how your
proposal reduces all types of
liability.
• The bottom line. In
many companies, an upper manager's
bonus plan, including bonuses,
stock options, stock grants,
and other rewards can exceed
their salary. This intensifies
their focus on measurable results.
The more they can meet or exceed
their quarterly plan, the bigger
their reward. So have your radar
on for ways you can make your
client look successful in quantifiable
ways, so they can show their
boss their results. Don't forget
that everyone has a boss, even
presidents. They report to their
boards of directors and perhaps
to their bankers too.
Sure, we've all heard that
even presidents of top corporations
put their pants on one leg at
a time, just like we do. That's
true. But I hope discussing
Peggy's and Sheila's letters
give you some ideas on selling
to Mr. or Ms. CEO -- so when
you meet or call on them, you
say something much more powerful
than just "Hello."
Happy selling!
Michelle Nichols is a sales
speaker, trainer, and consultant
based in Reno, NV. She
welcomes your questions and
comments. You can visit her
web site at www.savvyselling.com
or contact her at michelle.nichols@savvyselling.com.
Her direct line is (281) 610-6307
and her toll-free number is
(877) 352-9684.
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