Any of us who played youth sports recall hearing someone tell us, “Its not whether you win or lose, its how you play the game”. This may be healthy advice for some ten year-olds however my Little League coach did not subscribe to that philosophy. ..he was out to win. In one case, he exploited our opponent’s inability to field bunts, so he had us bunt five times in a row in the 7th inning of the championship game and we won the contest. He worked with us on our bunting prowess all season long in practice and the tactic won us our third championship. While other coaches boasted they taught their kids how to be good losers, our coaches taught us how to be good winners…a lesson I have successfully carried throughout my life.
If you are a Sales Professional, try using that line with your management after your next loss. Odds are it will fall on deaf ears and in return you will get an earful of “advice” from your manager on how not to lose the next opportunity. No matter if you are a Sales Representative, District Sales Manager or Vice President of Sales, it really doesn’t matter how you play the game (as long as it is within ethical and legal boundaries), it IS whether you win or lose that counts. In today’s challenging economy, there are fewer deals to win or lose, so each one is even more important.
I’ve been in sales-focused positions my entire career…direct sales, partner sales, sales management and competitive sales support. Sales reps generally want more product functionality and lower prices to help them beat the competition, but what they get is “sell what’s in your bag”. If you can’t change the products or prices, what can you control to win more business? The answer is simple…have a better sales strategy. A good portion of your plan should be understanding and anticipating what the competition is going to do the next time you run into them in a sales opportunity. After all, we are all creatures of habit and competitors tend to sell against you the same way each time, so just like my Little League coach, it is up to you to exploit their weaknesses. As I have discussed in my previous blog posts, Win-Loss Analysis is an excellent post-sales diagnostic tool to identify competitive trends and behavior. Is your company using this tool? If not, why not and what would it take for them to implement a program to help the entire sales organization be more successful?
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
The Top Three Benefits of Win-Loss Analysis: Benefit #3
I started a series on what I perceive to be the Top Three Benefits of Win-Loss Analysis. The first benefit I discussed was the Ability to Gather the Most Current Competitive Information and my second post was Shifting the Focus Away From Product Comparisons to Competitive Sales Strategies/Tactics. I saved the most impactful benefit for this posting.
Benefit #3: The Business Value of Win-Loss Analysis for the Entire Enterprise
The benefits of Win-Loss Analysis are normally equated with improving sales results. This post-sales diagnostic tool does provide Sales with valuable competitive intelligence (CI), however, progressive companies using a well designed Win-Loss program have discovered it impacts several other areas of their operations. I call this the Win-Loss Wheel of Fortune.
Here’s an example of how it worked for a major software company. They started their Win-Loss program focusing on one key competitor for their primary product. Initially, the intelligence gathered by the Competitive Team was used exclusively in support of the Sales organization with impressive results. As the company expanded their product offerings, they attracted new competitors, so the scope of their Win-Loss program broadened. Word spread throughout the company regarding the successes of the Win-Loss program and other department representatives wanted to attend internal calls and be copied on the Win-Loss forms. As momentum grew, departments throughout the company leveraged CI in a variety of ways:
• Sales Operations used CI in a series of Competitive Webinars and often used the information in Sales Newsletter articles.
• Sales Enablement made effective use of CI in all of their worldwide sales training programs (i.e. New Hire training, Sales Kickoff, Regional Sales meetings).
• Field Marketing used the information in various webinars and podcasts.
• Customer Marketing was better able to identify potential references resulting in powerful Case Studies, Press Releases and
one-on-one reference calls with prospects to help Sales close new business.
• When the company launched a new product platform to address an emerging market, Product Marketing and Product Management wanted the competitive team to focus Win-Loss interviews on these products to better understand how customers were evaluating and using the new solutions and what the competition was doing in this new market. Based upon feedback from the Win-Loss calls, changes were made regarding pricing and product bundling strategies to help Sales close more business.
• CI was shared with R&D/Engineering for future product enhancements and new releases of multiple products.
• Executive Management used the intelligence in Board of Directors presentations. CI was also used to help justify recommendations to make several strategic company acquisitions to strengthen their product offerings.
What started as a program focusing on one product and one competitor in support of the Sales organization matured into a strategic program impacting all aspects of their business.
The myopic view of Win-Loss Analysis as a Sales-only support tool robs companies of the true business value of the program. Both Sales teams and prospects have valuable information to share and, if used appropriately, Win-Loss intelligence can have a strategic impact on the entire enterprise.
Monday, June 7, 2010
The Top Three Benefits of Win-Loss Analysis: Benefit #2
In my last blog post, I started a series on what I perceive to be the Top Three Benefits of Win-Loss Analysis. The first benefit I discussed was the Ability to Gather the Most Current Competitive Information. After serious consideration, here is the second benefit I have to offer.
Benefit #2: Shifting the Focus Away From Product Comparisons to Competitive Sales Strategies/Tactics
Many companies think competitive analysis should be product-centric, when in reality, most deals are won or lost in the marketplace where purchase decisions are made. As a Partner at a major technology consulting firm once told me, “Superior Technology does not beat Superior Marketing”. Product-focused intelligence is extremely valuable but this approach alone falls far short of truly understanding the competition. Unfortunately, a majority of companies do not adequately research how the competition markets and sells their solutions to the prospect. If the program is designed properly, Win-Loss Analysis takes the focus off of products and inspects the Sales Strategies and Tactics the competition uses in their attempt to win the business. For instance, did you know football teams use Win-Loss Analysis? The week before a game, teams watch film of their previous game in an attempt to improve their play execution in practice drills later in the week. They also watch replays of their next opponent’s previous games to better understand their typical game plan and how other teams exploited weaknesses to beat them. With this information, the coaching staff is better prepared to make changes to their own game plan (strategy) and play calling (tactics) for the upcoming contest.
In sales, just as in sports, developing a winning sales plan is crucial to your success. To help meet this objective, intelligence gathered in Win-Loss interviews might include:
• Key Win or Loss factors in recent engagements vs. a specific competitor
• Competitor’s pricing, discounting and product bundling strategies
• Effectiveness of their value propositions vs. yours with prospects
• Access to C-Level decision makers
• Use of references
• Identification of patterns and recent changes in competitive behavior
• Competitive landmines commonly planted in the prospect’s mind regarding your company
• Your need for more effective marketing programs and sales tools (i.e. demos)
Each competitor uses different techniques to win the business, so it is important for your Sales teams to understand how the competition “sells” to the prospect, allowing them to develop an effective, proactive sales plan to exploit competitors’ weaknesses. Combining product-centric information with sales-focused intelligence provides your teams with a distinct competitive advantage.
Benefit #2: Shifting the Focus Away From Product Comparisons to Competitive Sales Strategies/Tactics
Many companies think competitive analysis should be product-centric, when in reality, most deals are won or lost in the marketplace where purchase decisions are made. As a Partner at a major technology consulting firm once told me, “Superior Technology does not beat Superior Marketing”. Product-focused intelligence is extremely valuable but this approach alone falls far short of truly understanding the competition. Unfortunately, a majority of companies do not adequately research how the competition markets and sells their solutions to the prospect. If the program is designed properly, Win-Loss Analysis takes the focus off of products and inspects the Sales Strategies and Tactics the competition uses in their attempt to win the business. For instance, did you know football teams use Win-Loss Analysis? The week before a game, teams watch film of their previous game in an attempt to improve their play execution in practice drills later in the week. They also watch replays of their next opponent’s previous games to better understand their typical game plan and how other teams exploited weaknesses to beat them. With this information, the coaching staff is better prepared to make changes to their own game plan (strategy) and play calling (tactics) for the upcoming contest.
In sales, just as in sports, developing a winning sales plan is crucial to your success. To help meet this objective, intelligence gathered in Win-Loss interviews might include:
• Key Win or Loss factors in recent engagements vs. a specific competitor
• Competitor’s pricing, discounting and product bundling strategies
• Effectiveness of their value propositions vs. yours with prospects
• Access to C-Level decision makers
• Use of references
• Identification of patterns and recent changes in competitive behavior
• Competitive landmines commonly planted in the prospect’s mind regarding your company
• Your need for more effective marketing programs and sales tools (i.e. demos)
Each competitor uses different techniques to win the business, so it is important for your Sales teams to understand how the competition “sells” to the prospect, allowing them to develop an effective, proactive sales plan to exploit competitors’ weaknesses. Combining product-centric information with sales-focused intelligence provides your teams with a distinct competitive advantage.
Monday, May 24, 2010
The Top Three Benefits of Win-Loss Analysis: Benefit# 1
Last week, a business associate asked me, “What are the top three benefits of Win-Loss Analysis?” To impress him with my knowledge on the subject, I rattled off half a dozen or more in a minute’s time which was TMI – Too Much Information for him to digest. When I hung up the phone, I realized I hadn’t answered his question. The question was what are the top 3 benefits of Win-Loss…not 6, not 12, just 3. Since that call, I have put considerable thought into his question and decided my next three blog posts would answer it, one benefit at a time. Here is the first.
Benefit #1: Ability to Gather the Most Current Competitive Information
Wikipedia points out, “Given that competitor analysis is an essential component of corporate strategy, it is argued that most firms do not conduct this type of analysis systematically enough. Instead, many enterprises operate on what is called informal impressions, conjectures, and intuition gained through the tidbits of information about competitors every manager continually receives As a result, traditional environmental scanning places many firms at risk of dangerous competitive blindspots due to a lack of robust competitor analysis”
Porter Research, a marketing reserach and consulting firm, notes, “Win-Loss research is critical to the process of assessing the competitive arena”. One of the biggest benefits of doing Win-Loss Analysis is it enables a company to gather the most current competitive intelligence…what is the competition doing today, not last year. If conducted on a timely and regular basis, Win-Loss interviews will identify recent changes in competitive behavior (i.e. new sales tactics, new, innovative marketing programs, revised pricing and product bundling, etc.) thus reducing the number of competitive blindspots (surprises) based upon erroneous or outdated information. Intelligence gathered on internal calls with your sales teams and/or external calls directly with prospects keeps your teams up to date on recent competitive behavior changes, providing them with valuable knowledge of what to expect when they next encounter a specific competitor. It also gives Sales Management critical insights into how effective their teams manage the sales process vs. specific competitors, allowing them to develop new sales strategies and tactics of their own. For instance, one large software vendor was losing to a niche competitor 90% of the time. They focused their interviews on recent losses to that competitor to better understand how to successfully compete against them. In just two quarters, based upon the intelligence gathered on numerous Loss calls, they changed their strategies/tactics, and in so doing, improved their win rate to 50%; resulting in millions of dollars in incremental sales revenues.
The competitive arena is more dynamic than ever and companies are constantly changing their go-to-market strategies. Is your company using outdated competitive data based upon informal impressions, conjectures, and intuition gained through tidbits of information about competitors? If so, Win-Loss Analysis will provide your team with the most current competitive information necessary to win more business.
Benefit #1: Ability to Gather the Most Current Competitive Information
Wikipedia points out, “Given that competitor analysis is an essential component of corporate strategy, it is argued that most firms do not conduct this type of analysis systematically enough. Instead, many enterprises operate on what is called informal impressions, conjectures, and intuition gained through the tidbits of information about competitors every manager continually receives As a result, traditional environmental scanning places many firms at risk of dangerous competitive blindspots due to a lack of robust competitor analysis”
Porter Research, a marketing reserach and consulting firm, notes, “Win-Loss research is critical to the process of assessing the competitive arena”. One of the biggest benefits of doing Win-Loss Analysis is it enables a company to gather the most current competitive intelligence…what is the competition doing today, not last year. If conducted on a timely and regular basis, Win-Loss interviews will identify recent changes in competitive behavior (i.e. new sales tactics, new, innovative marketing programs, revised pricing and product bundling, etc.) thus reducing the number of competitive blindspots (surprises) based upon erroneous or outdated information. Intelligence gathered on internal calls with your sales teams and/or external calls directly with prospects keeps your teams up to date on recent competitive behavior changes, providing them with valuable knowledge of what to expect when they next encounter a specific competitor. It also gives Sales Management critical insights into how effective their teams manage the sales process vs. specific competitors, allowing them to develop new sales strategies and tactics of their own. For instance, one large software vendor was losing to a niche competitor 90% of the time. They focused their interviews on recent losses to that competitor to better understand how to successfully compete against them. In just two quarters, based upon the intelligence gathered on numerous Loss calls, they changed their strategies/tactics, and in so doing, improved their win rate to 50%; resulting in millions of dollars in incremental sales revenues.
The competitive arena is more dynamic than ever and companies are constantly changing their go-to-market strategies. Is your company using outdated competitive data based upon informal impressions, conjectures, and intuition gained through tidbits of information about competitors? If so, Win-Loss Analysis will provide your team with the most current competitive information necessary to win more business.
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Think Your Company Can’t Afford Win-Loss Analysis? Think Again!
As I talk with prospects about the business value of Win-Loss Analysis, I often hear comments like these:
“We already have a Win-Loss Program.”
Response: In a vast majority of cases, companies are only doing product comparisons, statistical analysis or “one-off” evaluations as the result of a recent loss, ignoring any scrutiny of a competitor’s Sales Strategies and Tactics in the marketplace where deals are actually won and lost.
“We can’t afford to dedicate internal resources to a Win-Loss program”
Response: They don’t understand how Win-Loss Analysis can positively impact the entire enterprise, so their workforce is consumed with other tasks of far lesser value. Outsourcing the task to an experienced third party is the alternative.
“We’re interested in doing Win-Loss but it will have to wait until we complete a number of other projects. Call me back next year”
Response: This is referred to as Opportunity Lost Cost which is defined as “The cost of an alternative that must be forgone in order to pursue a certain action. Put another way, the benefits you could have received by taking an alternative action.” (Investopedia). Win-Loss programs can have a direct impact on the bottom line…how about the “other projects” your teams are presently working on? Again, outsourcing is an option.
“How much does it cost? Due to the weak economy, sales are down and budgets have been cut.”
Response: What is the cost to the company to continue losing business because they do not understand how to more effectively compete in the marketplace? Most companies know their cost of sales. Here is a hypothetical example:
Deal Size: $1M
Sales Cycle: 6-12 months
Cost of Sales (COS)
Account Manager (25 hours - $85/hr)
Overlay Sales Rep (15 hours - 85/hr)
System Engineer (25 hours - 75/hr)
Tech Services (for POC) (20 hours - 50/hr)
Services Group (10 hours - $50/hr)
RFP Response Team (15 hours - 35/hr)
Executives (5 hours - $120/hr)
Product Marketing/Mgmt (10 hours - $65/hr)
Travel Expense $10,000
Total Cost of Sales $19,050
This company lost $1M in sales revenues and it cost them nearly $20,000 in “out of pocket” expenses to pursue the opportunity. Of course, COS will vary by company, length of the pre-sales engagement, how technical the products are and what resources are required during the sales cycle. However, in my example, Win-Loss Analysis could have saved this deal by better educating the Sales and Management teams on how to more effectively compete against the competitor who won the business.
To summarize my point regarding the strategic value of implementing a Win-Loss function within your company, I would like to share one of my favorite business cartoons with you.
.jpg)
Think of the machine gun in the cartoon as being a well-designed, effective Win-Loss weapon to better prepare your Sales Teams when they compete on the competitive battlefield. If your company could win one or more major deals per quarter, then could your company afford the cost of implementing a Win-Loss Analysis program? And when you really think about it, can your company afford not to?
“We already have a Win-Loss Program.”
Response: In a vast majority of cases, companies are only doing product comparisons, statistical analysis or “one-off” evaluations as the result of a recent loss, ignoring any scrutiny of a competitor’s Sales Strategies and Tactics in the marketplace where deals are actually won and lost.
“We can’t afford to dedicate internal resources to a Win-Loss program”
Response: They don’t understand how Win-Loss Analysis can positively impact the entire enterprise, so their workforce is consumed with other tasks of far lesser value. Outsourcing the task to an experienced third party is the alternative.
“We’re interested in doing Win-Loss but it will have to wait until we complete a number of other projects. Call me back next year”
Response: This is referred to as Opportunity Lost Cost which is defined as “The cost of an alternative that must be forgone in order to pursue a certain action. Put another way, the benefits you could have received by taking an alternative action.” (Investopedia). Win-Loss programs can have a direct impact on the bottom line…how about the “other projects” your teams are presently working on? Again, outsourcing is an option.
“How much does it cost? Due to the weak economy, sales are down and budgets have been cut.”
Response: What is the cost to the company to continue losing business because they do not understand how to more effectively compete in the marketplace? Most companies know their cost of sales. Here is a hypothetical example:
Deal Size: $1M
Sales Cycle: 6-12 months
Cost of Sales (COS)
Account Manager (25 hours - $85/hr)
Overlay Sales Rep (15 hours - 85/hr)
System Engineer (25 hours - 75/hr)
Tech Services (for POC) (20 hours - 50/hr)
Services Group (10 hours - $50/hr)
RFP Response Team (15 hours - 35/hr)
Executives (5 hours - $120/hr)
Product Marketing/Mgmt (10 hours - $65/hr)
Travel Expense $10,000
Total Cost of Sales $19,050
This company lost $1M in sales revenues and it cost them nearly $20,000 in “out of pocket” expenses to pursue the opportunity. Of course, COS will vary by company, length of the pre-sales engagement, how technical the products are and what resources are required during the sales cycle. However, in my example, Win-Loss Analysis could have saved this deal by better educating the Sales and Management teams on how to more effectively compete against the competitor who won the business.
To summarize my point regarding the strategic value of implementing a Win-Loss function within your company, I would like to share one of my favorite business cartoons with you.
.jpg)
Think of the machine gun in the cartoon as being a well-designed, effective Win-Loss weapon to better prepare your Sales Teams when they compete on the competitive battlefield. If your company could win one or more major deals per quarter, then could your company afford the cost of implementing a Win-Loss Analysis program? And when you really think about it, can your company afford not to?
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Discovering the “Secrets” to Beat Your Toughest Competitors
In my previous post, I drew an analogy of how winning Major League Baseball teams are similar to successful companies in the business world and I referenced my beloved Chicago Cubs as an example. The old adage, “the players and not the coach win ballgames” is true but the coaching staff is critical in developing a winning game plan (strategy) and then using proven tactics on game day to beat the opposing team. For example, some players hit better against certain pitchers, so the manager usually inserts that player, whether he is a starter or backup, in the lineup when that pitcher is scheduled to pitch. On the flipside, some pitchers perform better or worse against certain teams, so again, the manager may alter his starting rotation to be more competitive. If the opposing catcher is weak throwing out base stealers, the manager will run more often. Smart managers platoon their players to give starters rest and provide the bench with more playing time. Defensive changes and the effective use of pinch hitters late in the game are commonplace…its all about strategy and tactics that differentiates winning managers from the also rans. After losing 10 of their first 16 games this season, the Cubs are doing better. It appears, after re-analyzing his team and the competition, Cubs’ skipper Lou Piniella may have discovered some “secrets” to get his team back on track.
Does your sales team continually lose to the same competitor(s) time and time again but you don’t know why? Are your sales teams “surprised” by competitive tactics they encounter in a sales situation? Why do some of your Account Executives have great success against a particular competitor whereas other Sales Reps can’t seem to win deals against them? Recently, I interviewed a successful software salesperson assigned to the Civilian Sector of the US Federal government. She runs into the same Fortune 100 competitor on every major deal. The competitor has a much greater presence in the Fed, a broader product line, they have strong C-Level relationships and signed an Enterprise License Agreement (ELA) with the client that is hard to beat on price. She did her homework to better understand what Sales Strategies and Tactics to expect from them based upon intelligence gathered by her company’s competitive team. She told me “I now know the secret and every time I compete against them I use it and never lose!” Her secret…based upon intelligence collected on a number of recent Win Reviews, it became obvious that this competitor performs poorly in Proofs-of Concept (POC) and they try to avoid them. As a result, she always suggests the prospect do a head-to-head POC (aka the “put up or shut up” tactic) to demonstrate her company’s products are better suited to meet the customer’s needs. Another Sales Rep, assigned to the UK Financial Services Vertical, used a bolder approach with one of his key accounts. Based upon his understanding of a different competitor’s Sales Strategies and Tactics, he shared this information directly with his prospect! He knew his company’s products were superior to the competition and the competitor relied heavily on high-priced services to make their products work, so he predicted exactly what the competitor would do every step of the way throughout the sales cycle. His prospect now viewed him as a trusted advisor. He educated the decision maker on the shortcomings of the competitor’s products, their reliance on costly professional services which extends time-to-value and what “sales tricks” to expect from them to cover-up their product deficiencies. His competitive “coaching” was dead on and it helped him close a multi-million dollar deal with more business to come in the future.
Understanding your competitors’ Sales Strategies and Tactics is critical in winning deals. In the two examples illustrated above, both Account Executives benefited from intelligence gathered by the competitive team in Win-Loss interviews. These interviews identify predictable trends in competitive behavior which provided both of them with a better understanding of what to expect from the competitor and how to proactively set their own “competitive landmines” to win the business. A structured and on-going Win-Loss program should be an essential component of your go-to-market strategy…does your company have it in their competitive toolkit to help your sales teams win more business?
Does your sales team continually lose to the same competitor(s) time and time again but you don’t know why? Are your sales teams “surprised” by competitive tactics they encounter in a sales situation? Why do some of your Account Executives have great success against a particular competitor whereas other Sales Reps can’t seem to win deals against them? Recently, I interviewed a successful software salesperson assigned to the Civilian Sector of the US Federal government. She runs into the same Fortune 100 competitor on every major deal. The competitor has a much greater presence in the Fed, a broader product line, they have strong C-Level relationships and signed an Enterprise License Agreement (ELA) with the client that is hard to beat on price. She did her homework to better understand what Sales Strategies and Tactics to expect from them based upon intelligence gathered by her company’s competitive team. She told me “I now know the secret and every time I compete against them I use it and never lose!” Her secret…based upon intelligence collected on a number of recent Win Reviews, it became obvious that this competitor performs poorly in Proofs-of Concept (POC) and they try to avoid them. As a result, she always suggests the prospect do a head-to-head POC (aka the “put up or shut up” tactic) to demonstrate her company’s products are better suited to meet the customer’s needs. Another Sales Rep, assigned to the UK Financial Services Vertical, used a bolder approach with one of his key accounts. Based upon his understanding of a different competitor’s Sales Strategies and Tactics, he shared this information directly with his prospect! He knew his company’s products were superior to the competition and the competitor relied heavily on high-priced services to make their products work, so he predicted exactly what the competitor would do every step of the way throughout the sales cycle. His prospect now viewed him as a trusted advisor. He educated the decision maker on the shortcomings of the competitor’s products, their reliance on costly professional services which extends time-to-value and what “sales tricks” to expect from them to cover-up their product deficiencies. His competitive “coaching” was dead on and it helped him close a multi-million dollar deal with more business to come in the future.
Understanding your competitors’ Sales Strategies and Tactics is critical in winning deals. In the two examples illustrated above, both Account Executives benefited from intelligence gathered by the competitive team in Win-Loss interviews. These interviews identify predictable trends in competitive behavior which provided both of them with a better understanding of what to expect from the competitor and how to proactively set their own “competitive landmines” to win the business. A structured and on-going Win-Loss program should be an essential component of your go-to-market strategy…does your company have it in their competitive toolkit to help your sales teams win more business?
Monday, April 26, 2010
Do You Know Why Your Company Wins or Loses Business?
I am a diehard Chicago Cubs fan. Like so many other Cubs fans, I have suffered through the good times and the bad (mostly bad) my entire life. The 2009 season was a bitter disappointment. Over the winter, management made numerous personnel changes to field a new and improved team with the Major League Baseball’s #3 payroll. They started the 2010 campaign with a 6-10 record and the team looked and played like the 2009 version…silent bats and a bullpen that lost more games than it saved. I felt sorry for Lou Piniella, the Cubs manager. He tried everything to shake up the team…batting order shuffles, lineup changes, and new strategies all of which produced a losing record. After assessing his team’s strengths and opposing teams, Lou made some drastic changes and lately they are back on the winning track having just swept the Milwaukee Brewers.
Businesses wrestle with the same problem…why are they winning or losing deals? They invest millions of dollars introducing cutting edge products, bring in new, highly paid management, acquire companies, shuffle their sales forces and partner programs to get the most talented “feet on the street” and revamp their marketing programs resulting, often times, in little or no improvement to the bottom line. This is a Company-Centric or inward focused approach to business. They still don’t know why they win or lose deals when a very affordable tool is available that will help them answer the question…Win-Loss Analysis. Evaluating wins and losses is a Market-Centric or outward-focused business strategy. A recent survey estimates only 1 out of 5 companies have a disciplined and regular Win–Loss program. Some companies think product comparisons are the answer. Others do statistical analysis of how many deals they win each quarter, often times ignoring losses altogether. Others have a “kneejerk reaction” to recent losses and do a limited number of loss interviews with their sales teams. However, very few companies have a long-term strategy to discover why they are winning or losing deals in the marketplace. Recently, a software company spokesperson told me his company had just lost 4 large deals in row to a new competitor and they don’t know why. Was the competitor’s product better? Did the competitor steeply discount their products to gain market share and references? Were their competitor’s Sales Reps selling higher in the prospect’s organization and did they better understand the prospect’s needs? Was a third party company (i.e. consulting firm) influencing the decision? Did the competitor’s value proposition resonate better with the decision maker? What is the competitor telling the prospect and what “competitive landmines” did they plant in the prospect’s mind? They don’t know but odds are they will continue to lose deal after deal until they better understand their competition’s sales strategies and tactics. As Einstein said, “insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results”.
Win-Loss Analysis is a relatively easy and very affordable program to institute but it does require planning for it to produce long-term benefits. Companies can do it using their own resources or contract the program to a 3rd party. They can focus their analysis on all deals, specific competitors, industries, products or by sales region. Also, competitive intelligence gathered in the interviews should be shared with other departments within the enterprise for future product enhancements, revised product bundling/pricing strategies, new product introductions, developing rejuvenated marketing programs and it should be incorporated in all sales enablement and training programs. Why leave money on the table when Win-Loss Analysis can help your company win more business?
Businesses wrestle with the same problem…why are they winning or losing deals? They invest millions of dollars introducing cutting edge products, bring in new, highly paid management, acquire companies, shuffle their sales forces and partner programs to get the most talented “feet on the street” and revamp their marketing programs resulting, often times, in little or no improvement to the bottom line. This is a Company-Centric or inward focused approach to business. They still don’t know why they win or lose deals when a very affordable tool is available that will help them answer the question…Win-Loss Analysis. Evaluating wins and losses is a Market-Centric or outward-focused business strategy. A recent survey estimates only 1 out of 5 companies have a disciplined and regular Win–Loss program. Some companies think product comparisons are the answer. Others do statistical analysis of how many deals they win each quarter, often times ignoring losses altogether. Others have a “kneejerk reaction” to recent losses and do a limited number of loss interviews with their sales teams. However, very few companies have a long-term strategy to discover why they are winning or losing deals in the marketplace. Recently, a software company spokesperson told me his company had just lost 4 large deals in row to a new competitor and they don’t know why. Was the competitor’s product better? Did the competitor steeply discount their products to gain market share and references? Were their competitor’s Sales Reps selling higher in the prospect’s organization and did they better understand the prospect’s needs? Was a third party company (i.e. consulting firm) influencing the decision? Did the competitor’s value proposition resonate better with the decision maker? What is the competitor telling the prospect and what “competitive landmines” did they plant in the prospect’s mind? They don’t know but odds are they will continue to lose deal after deal until they better understand their competition’s sales strategies and tactics. As Einstein said, “insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results”.
Win-Loss Analysis is a relatively easy and very affordable program to institute but it does require planning for it to produce long-term benefits. Companies can do it using their own resources or contract the program to a 3rd party. They can focus their analysis on all deals, specific competitors, industries, products or by sales region. Also, competitive intelligence gathered in the interviews should be shared with other departments within the enterprise for future product enhancements, revised product bundling/pricing strategies, new product introductions, developing rejuvenated marketing programs and it should be incorporated in all sales enablement and training programs. Why leave money on the table when Win-Loss Analysis can help your company win more business?
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