miller heiman strategic selling blue sheet

It’s important to note that it doesn’t matter whether they really are on track or not, just that they think they are on track. Do their perceived desired results match the expected results based on their current course? If so, they are not good candidates to buy – they are in ' Even Keel' or mode 1. They won’t buy if they don’t see a problem.

Buyer Attitudes: Each buyer influencer falls into 4 modes regarding the problem you are solving.

Miller/Heiman offers a specific process – “blue sheets” to quantify these points, track progress, assess risks and allocate time. You want to manage down your red flags and find proposal alternatives that yield positive views. Anyone you haven’t spoken with or that is negative gets a red flag. The goal of the process is to identify how each one views your proposal on a scale of +5 to -5. Each has a different frame work/ agenda to be understood and mapped out: the Economic buyer (the key decision maker), Technical buyer, User buyer and your Coach.

Complex Sales = Multiple Constituents:Break down executives at prospect companies into four groups of buying influencers.

Sure there are new things to consider in selling and I will cover some of these in upcoming books but the program and principals here are as sound as they were when they were introduced. The book was first written in 1985 and updated/rewritten in 2005 as The New Strategic Selling, and this stuff works. Why should you listen to Miller/Heiman? These guys have provided sales consulting for hundreds of top Fortune 500 corporations. Just like you innovated your product, you need to innovate how to get people to listen and provide solid feedback on their needs, be it through purchases or by vocalizing unaddressed pain points. It will also help you understand the resources you need to provide to help get to the economic buyers in your customer base. If you have a non-sales background, this book is critical since it will give you a punch list of questions to ask your sales managers to gauge the quality of a pipeline. The real benefit is not sales process but sales management improvement and the ability to get to key decision makers effectively.

If you are sales oriented and know Miller/Heiman you may find some of my applications below of interest.

It is highly effective in developing a common language for prospects, resource allocation, marketing investments and growth expectations. I have employed these principals personally and have had one of my companies standardize on the methodology.

The single best book on sales I have ever read, it lays out a process that for sales management is intelligent, customer solution focused, and analytical. Who should read it: CEOs, Company Founders, Entrepreneurs, VP Sales, Sales Execs

Miller heiman strategic selling blue sheet