A few days ago, I wrote about Unmarketing. The same authors wrote UnSelling, a book about the bigger picture of sales.
You need a lot of experiences and in depth knowledge to get the bigger picture. Especially in innovation selling you need to unlearn the usual rules and conventional wisdom taught in sales organizations.
Replacing solution selling by insight selling?
means to upend clients' approaches to their business and not being afraid to push them out of their comfort zones - but remember, not too much.
Think of the fictive position of a Chief Executive Buyer. They research solutions, rank options, set requirements, analyze the possible cost frame…before they have talked to any seller.
How do they become aware that you have something (radically) new?
Educate the change agents
The insight-based sales ladder would be awareness-education-actions (simplified), but in innovation selling awareness needs already education. So, instead of looking for the CEB, look for those, who want to manage a change in a sector, where your innovation makes the difference.
To find them, offer educational events,…that give full explanation on your new approaches, models, methods and critical implementations... Not use training courses…but insight courses.
But remember, education takes time and passion!
Made to measure
To talk to change agents is easier if your offerings can serve users individually but are based on generic technologies (a made to measure system approach). That will help removing barriers that might lead to long decision procedures.
