Model:
Summary:
The sales insights model, known as the "5Is," outlines five core principles (insights) aimed at enhancing the performance and effectiveness of sales teams. Each principle is designed to address different aspects of the sales process, from the initial approach to ongoing team dynamics. This model emphasizes strategic planning, the importance of referrals, effective communication, and maintaining a high-performing team culture.
1) Challenger Sale Insight
- Bring Unique Insight: Focus on offering new perspectives and insights that add value to the customer.
- Teach, Tailor, Take Control: Customize the sales approach to meet the specific needs of the client and maintain control over the sales process. The unique Challenger Sale Insight is the Teach component.
- 50% Company's Shoulders: Half of the responsibility in the sales process lies with the company's ability to determine a compelling Challenger Sales Insight and thus support and empower the sales team.
2) Sharpen The AXE Insight
- Flip The Triangle: Reorganize priorities, placing account and opportunity planning at the forefront. Do the hard work upfront in order to effectively approach and qualify the opportunity.
- Account & Opportunity Planning Upfront: Prioritize thorough planning before engaging with potential clients.
- Make Implicit Explicit: Clearly communicate all aspects of the Best Practice sales process and expectations.
- Fewer / Better: Focus on quality over quantity in client interactions and sales opportunities.
- 1st Dry Run: The AXE process acts as an initial practice run to refine the sales approach and strategy thus insuring better engagement later on with the customer.
3) Referrals Only Insight
- 7% Cold Calling Conversion: Recognize the low success rate of cold calling, which is around 7%.
- 80% Referral Conversion: Instead, highlight and focus on the high success rate of referrals, which stands at 80%.
- Stack Rank On Referral Strength: Prioritize and rank referrals based on their strength and potential. Strong referrals = better future prospect engagement.
- 2nd Dry Run: The process of presenting the Challenger Sale Insight and the AXE upfront preparation to the referral acts as a second round of practice in advance of the initial conversation with the customer.
4) Mutual Information Sharing Insight
- Should We Be Talking?: This is the question we need to keep asking in order to properly qualify the customer.
- Should We Keep Talking?: Continuously evaluate with the customer whether ongoing discussions are productive for both parties.
- Work Together For The Exact Solution: Collaborate closely with clients to develop precise solutions. If we don’t arrive at the “exact” solution together, the result will most likely be a lost sale, a failed solution, and / or a poor customer reference.
- Graceful Exit Is OK If Early: Allow for early exits from unproductive discussions to save time and resources. It’s OK for both parties to exit the sales process if early in the engagement.
- 3rd Dry Run: These mutual sharing conversations with the customer toward crafting the “exact” solution effectively act as the third “dry” run of of the sales process. We should be getting very good at communicating the value proposition at this point.
5) Team Not Family Insight
- High Performing Team: Family is important, but in reality what we are building is a high-performing sales team. The rigor and cadence provided by the AXE and the NUDGE create a consistency of sales performance across the entire team and during all customer engagements. By making the formally implicit sales approach more explicit, we insure peak performance from the entire team. The Team achieving it’s sales targets is the ultimate goal.
- Cadence & Coaching: The AXE and NUDGE provide the tools for ongoing coaching and establish a consistent cadence for team activities.
- Complex Sale = Explicit Communication: The AXE and NUDGE promote clear and explicit communication, especially for complex sales.
- Prospect = Game: Treat the prospecting process and our time communicating with the customer as a strategic game. We come to the “game” prepared with our skills, knowledge and experience, and that preparation allows us to innovate in the moment to uncover the “exact” solution and win the customer’s businsess.
- AXE = System / Plays: Use the AXE and the practice it provides us be more effective with the customer. The AXE is the equivalent of the plays we run.
- NUDGE = Pregame Practice & Post Game Review: Use the NUDGE as our “pregame’ practice and our “post-game’ review to continuously improve.
Summary
The "5Is" sales insights model offers a structured approach to transforming sales teams into high-performing units. By focusing on strategic planning, leveraging referrals, ensuring clear communication, and fostering a disciplined and consistent team environment, this model aims to enhance the overall effectiveness and efficiency of the sales process. Each insight provides actionable steps and best practices that sales teams can implement to achieve better results and drive success.
Sources:
Let’s Get Real or Let’s Not Play - Mahan Khalsa & Randy Illig
No Rules Rules - Reed Hastings
Scaling People - Claire Hughes Johnson