At the highest level, B2B sales is really M2M sales. If you want to build a strong customer relationship that’s mutually profitable, you must be capable of managing some function of your customer’s business better than the customer could do it alone. And that means you’ve got to be able to call manager-to-manager. In a previous post, I presented a list of what’s needed to do this. Let’s go through each point and explain what’s actually required.
Requirement 1: Have a thorough knowledge of that function. The use of the term “function” rather than “product” or “solution” is intentional. Obviously, you need to know what your company offers in the line of product and service, but what’s important is to understand the role that those offerings play in the customer’s business. For example, if your company provides software that helps companies manage their supply chain, it’s far more important that you understand how supply chains work than how your software works.
Requirement 2. Understand how that function fits into the customer’s business. What’s important here isn’t the basic knowledge, but the deep knowledge that a manager in the customer’s industry would understand completely. Why is that function important? How does it add to profitability? How is it currently accomplished? How do other companies in the industry accomplish it? How does the function impact other parts of the company? Please note that, once again, the important point is the “function” not the “product” or “solution.”
Requirement 3. Be capable of ensuring that the function achieves the customer’s goals. This is basic management stuff. You must be able to “own” that function, not sell the customer something so that they can “own” that function more efficiently. You need to convince the customer that you’re personally committed, and your firm is organizationally committed, to making sure that the function happens on-time and on-budget. All the effort put into “customer satisfaction” is really just an attempt to measure whether this happens. By the way, if you have to check for “customer satisfaction” you’re not managing that function.
Requirement 4. Be able to manage the team that will provide that function (i.e. your firm). If you’re going to be a manager and deliver that function, you’re going to need a team that can deliver. You’ve got to understand how to work whatever systems and relationships are in place at your firm, so that your customer gets that function performed reliably and consistently. Once again, this is basic management stuff.
Requirement 5. Look, walk, talk and act like the managers inside the customer’s firm. It’s not enough to be a manager. You have to look and sound like one. Know how to talk the talk, and always wear the same cut of clothing that managers at that firm wear. Your target is the managers who manage functions similar to the one that you’re managing. Remember: even IBM’s sales reps stumbled when they tried to sell computers to alternative music labels while still wearing suits that the managers in that industry associated with their grandfathers’ wardrobe.
Requirement 6. Be willing to put the customer’s interest ahead of your team’s interest. This is a tough one because it runs contrary to the traditional notion of selling, but it proceeds logically out the notion that you’re job is to manage a function. If you’re truly a manager of that function, you need to be willing to sacrifice the profitability of your firm in order to make certain that the function takes place. That’s not to say that you should make arrangements that are unprofitable for your team in order to “benefit” the customer. In fact, that would be screwing the customer big time because if your company isn’t making its fair share of profit, there’s not a sustainable business model and the function will fail. However, if you sign up to manage a function, and you make promises and financial arrangements that end up unprofitable for your firm, it’s up to YOU to make sure your company delivers, even though it’s losing money on the deal. And, by the way, if that happens, you should consider yourself lucky if you don’t get fired, because that’s a management failure on your part.
Tomorrow, I’ll provide scientific research proving that “M2M” sales are the key to success in B2B sales. Meanwhile:
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