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I am in the B2B space. We have mostly large/F500 customers and all my suggestions below come directly from my experience from the field. The B2B sales journey
by HenryTheHorse 11y ago
I am in the B2B space. We have mostly large/F500 customers and all my suggestions below come directly from my experience from the field.
The B2B sales journey ain't for the faint of heart (6-9 month sales cycles are all too common) but it is a journey that has recognizable steps and milestones. You may not see the steps now, but they are distinct and you will learn to read them. Be patient and persist.
#1. No one may know you today, but you surely know someone who knows someone. In other words, hit your LinkedIn. Pitch to anyone who will listen and listen to objections, questions, comments and feedback. You have to cast the widest net at first.
#2. Talk to system integrators and IT consultants. They are easier to approach than, say, a CIO at a F500 company. Not only do consultants know the problems intimately, they can also recommend your product to a Director of IT.
#3. Attend industry trade shows, if you can afford it. It's a great way to meet customers and pitch your ideas over drinks or lunch.
#4. Ask former colleagues, friends (or even family) for referrals to corporate managers. When I started out, we pitched at every level (manager, director, even analyst - sometimes, you will be surprised at how much influence a humble analyst wields at a large company.)
#5. Obviously, a website, a LinkedIn and a Twitter account are standard tools of business.
#6. Learn to speak the language of TCO and ROI. If you are unfamiliar with those acronyms, you have some exciting reading for tonight!
#7. Who are your competitors' reference customers? Read up on them and their case studies. Now build a target list of your prospects. E.g.: Walmart bought a software from a competition. Therefore, you should have Target on your prospect list.
I could go on and on. But let me know if you need any specific advice. I'm happy to help.
- tsenkov 11y agoThanks so much. For all of this! You said 6-9 months is a standard time-frame for a corporate sale at F500 level. Shouldn't a new business therefore start with companies that are still smaller and faster at approving expenses? I am mostly interested in learning how to do #2. I found this which seems to be much on that topic: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/20141015215831-48424446-the-best-startup-cold-email-i-ve-ever-received-and-how-it-could-be-even-better https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/20141015215831-48424446-the-b... Whatever else you can think of adding on this, it would be very beneficial to the topic (and me personally). How do I get a conversation going? Do you start by giving a general idea about your service? Or maybe you study very thoroughly the company and make an educated guess on the amount of money you will save/make them? Maybe #7 is a common knowledge to many people, but I find it absolutely brilliant. Thanks again!
- HenryTheHorse 11y ago> Shouldn't a new business therefore start with companies that are still smaller and faster at approving expenses? Yes, that's a valid approach. But only you know what the right market for your product is, however (aka "Product-Market Fit".) Not everything can be sold to every company. Plus you will also realize that your product changes depending on the size of the company. > How do I get a conversation going? Do you start by giving a general idea about your service? That's a very broad topic. You may want to start following B2B sales and B2B Marketing blogs to get some best practices for these things. There is absolutely an art and science to these things and it can be learned.
- tsenkov 11y agoThank you.
- HenryTheHorse 11y agoWelcome, and good luck!