Insight Selling
Surprising Research on What Sales Winners Do Differently
Published on 30. April 2014
256 pages
978-1-118-87501-8 (ISBN)
Description
What do winners of major sales do differently than the sellerswho almost won, but ultimately came in second place?
Mike Schultz and John Doerr, bestselling authors andworld-renowned sales experts, set out to find the answer. Theystudied more than 700 business-to-business purchases made by buyerswho represented a total of $3.1 billion in annual purchasing power.When they compared the winners to the second-place finishers, theyfound surprising results.
Not only do sales winners sell differently, they sellradically differently, than the second-place finishers.
In recent years, buyers have increasingly seen products andservices as replaceable. You might think this would meanthat the sale goes to the lowest bidder. Not true! A new breed ofseller--the insight seller--is winning the sale withstrong prices and margins even in the face of increasingcompetition and commoditization.
In Insight Selling, Schultz and Doerr share thesurprising results of their research on what sales winners dodifferently, and outline exactly what you need to do to transformyourself and your team into insight sellers. They introduce asimple three-level model based on what buyers say tip the scales infavor of the winners:
Level 1 "Connect." Winners connect the dots betweencustomer needs and company solutions, while also connecting withbuyers as people.
Level 2 "Convince." Winners convince buyers that they canachieve maximum return, that the risks are acceptable, and that theseller is the best choice among all options.
Level 3 "Collaborate." Winners collaborate with buyers bybringing new ideas to the table, delivering new ideas and insights,and working with buyers as a team.
They also found that much of the popular and current advicegiven to sellers can damage sales results. Insight Sellingis both a strategic and tactical guide that will separate the goodadvice from the bad, and teach you how to put the three levels ofselling to work to inspire buyers, influence their agendas, andmaximize value. If you want to find yourself and your team in thewinner's circle more often, this book is a must-read.
Reviews / Votes
"The majority of experienced sellers would agree thatwhile a lot of existing sales wisdom is good, some things havebecome outdated and must change. The hard part is deciding what tokeep, what to change and what to discard. Insight Sellinglays out a convincing case for which parts of current practice weshould keep, which parts must be tweaked, and which parts must bechanged entirely. Whether you're an experienced seller orjust starting out in sales, you stand to learn something usefulfrom this book." --Professor Neil Rackham, author of SPINSelling "Wow! Even your most experienced strategic sellers willsharpen their game with these insights. RAIN Group's research andapplication to real life situations will educate your team on howto inspire buyers with possibilities and demonstrate the value addfor your offerings like never before." --Sandy Miller, Partner, Strategic Accounts, AonHewitt "While "solutions selling" isn't dead,it is now just the price of admission. In this book, Mike andJohn provide the fundamentals and techniques around advanced"insight selling" and how you need to become the changeagent for the customer to be a true sales winner! After all, insales the second-place finisher is just the firstloser." --Jim Madson, Vice President, Sales, TycoSimplexGrinnell "Professional salespeople a decade ago wouldn't evenrecognize the landscape, challenges, and skill sets required today.This content is essential for contemporarysellers." --Peter Ostrow, VP and Research Group Director, CustomerManagement, Aberdeen Group "The recipe for growth today is dramatically differentthan just a few years ago, yet many sellers have failed to adapt.For those aspiring to elevate their game, you've picked upthe right playbook." --Richard Tober, Senior Vice President, Capgemini "Few sales books are destined to become classics that willmake a real difference in the world of selling. This one will jointhat rare club that will stand the test of time." --Gord Smith, Partner, Hitachi Solutions "Schultz and Doerr are truly among the elite sales thoughtleaders. Insight Selling outlines exactly what youneed to do to set yourself apart and find yourself in thewinner's circle. It's a must read for even the mostexperienced sellers." --Jill Konrath, bestselling author of Agile Selling& SNAP SellingMore details
Other editions
Additional editions
Mike Schultz | John E. Doerr
Insight Selling
Surprising Research on What Sales Winners Do Differently
Book
06/2014
Wiley
€26.50
Shipment within 15-20 days
Persons
MIKE SCHULTZ is Co-President of RAIN Group and aworld-renowned consultant, speaker, and expert in sales trainingand performance improvement. His articles and work have beenfeatured in a variety of publications, such as BusinessWeek, Inc. magazine, and Fast Company. He is alsoon the faculty in the Marketing Division at Babson College andwrites at www.RainGroup.com/Blog.
JOHN E. DOERR is a leading authority on the skills andstrategies that make for sales success. As Co-President of RAINGroup, he has consulted with, trained, and coached thousands ofsales professionals, leaders, and business executives, helping themimprove sales performance and succeed with insight selling.
Mike and John are bestselling authors of RainmakingConversations: Influence, Persuade, and Sell in Any Situationand the groundbreaking research "What Sales Winners DoDifferently." To learn more or to contact Mike or Johndirectly, visit www.RainGroup.com.
Content
Foreword Neil Rackham vii
Preface xi
Chapter 1 Sales Winners Sell Differently 1
Chapter 2 What Is Insight Selling? 25
Chapter 3 Insight Selling and Value 37
Chapter 4 Insight and Level 1: Connect 57
Chapter 5 Insight and Level 2: Convince 79
Chapter 6 Insight and Level 3: Collaborate 101
Chapter 7 On Trust 121
Chapter 8 Profile of the Insight Seller 137
Chapter 9 Insight Selling Mistakes 161
Chapter 10 Buyers Who Buy Insights 177
Chapter 11 Getting the Most from Sales Training 199
Epilogue 219
Appendix 221
