January 2012CU NVC

VALUE PROPOSITION & FIRST 10

CUSTOMERS

OVERVIEW

• Value Proposition• What is it?• Why is it important?• How do you create a great one?• Examples

• First 10 Customers• How to set the foundation

January 2012CU NVC

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WHO IS ERICK MUELLER?• 1 of 12 kids

• Founded 4 companies + other companies• Sold 1, 1 flaming failure, countless lessons and fun• Funovation video

• Live by key tenets: to be happy! • Passion, make a difference, challenge, always learn/grow,

have fun• Tour de Happiness, travel/adventure, help others/volunteer,

amazing relationships

January 2012

VALUE PROPOSITION

• Product/service features

• Target market

• Benefits

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Product / service features

•Description of attributes & environment

•What is unique?

•How produce & deliver?

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Target market

• Targeted entry point based on segmentation

• Demographics & psychographics• Must understand how make buying decisions

• Business sector, size, characteristics

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BENEFITS• Emotional: ambition, power, independence,

achievement, ambition, pride of ownership, comfort, love, friendship, security, style, self improvement, etc.

• Social: status, image, popularity with friends or family members, reputation of brand, personal relationships, style, fashionable, etc.

• Health: stress, fitness, mental capacity, strength, sex life, quality of life, muse, etc.

• Financial: revenue, costs, savings, productivity, pricing, profitability, market share, save time, productivity, etc.

January 2012CU NVC

Simple Value Proposition Pete’s Coffee

“Pete’s Coffee is a Denver based coffee house. Its gourmet coffee, convenient and fast service provide a welcoming environment for people who want to meet with their friends; and a stimulating morning coffee for the on-the-go business person.

CU NVC January 2012

Simple Value PropositionSST Corporation“SST is a stainless steel toothbrush company. By its one bristle brush made of high tensile stainless steel, it provides an exhilarating tooth cleaning experience to thrill-seeking X-gen consumers”

http://gizmodo.com/gadgets/gadgets/tifinity-titanium-toothbrush-like-a-metal-scouring-pad-for-your-teeth-235314.php

CU NVC January 2012

First 10 customers, foundation• Solid value proposition and 60-second

pitch (forthcoming)

• Sell your vision and passion!

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WHAT IS SELLING?

“Selling is a process, including a transaction that adds value to the buyer by meeting their needs and results in mutual benefit for the seller and buyer.”

Contemporary Marketing Wired (1998) by Boone and Kurtz. Dryden Press

January 2012

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SALES PROCESS

1. Uninterested

2. Interested

3. Involved

4. Convinced

5. Committed

1. Opening benefit

2. Investigate

3. Demonstrate

4. Obtain Commitment

5. Get Order

Customer Salesperson

January 2012

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SECRETS TO SELLING YOUR FIRST 10•Know and develop YOUR style

•Asking questions!

•Listen!

•Provide/offer solutions

•Two words : thank you

•Referrals, referrals, referrals

January 2012

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YOUR STYLE

•“Styles” (4 of many) (

http://www.beilby.com.au/Employers/Employer+Resource+Centre/Selling+Styles/default.aspx) (http://www.hrdq.com/content/promos/hrdq-online/WhatsMySellingStyle_SampleOutput.pdf)

• Ra-ra Thinker• Rapport builder Closer

•There are numerous ways to sell…

•DO NOT force yourself into a mold

•Most important = be yourself and genuine then “add” selling skills & techniques

January 2012

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ART OF THE QUESTION

•Close-ended (No-no’s)• Yes/no questions• Tend to shut-down conversation• Ex = “Do you like this product?”

•Open-ended (Now we’re talking!)• Tend to promote discussion• Probing – enable solutions to objections• Ex = “What do you like about this product?”

January 2012

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LISTEN!

•You know the cliché : “two ears, one mouth”

•A skill that can be learned

•Cited by leaders as #1 skill to successful selling

•Enables connecting and problem solving…which leads to higher sales

January 2012

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PROVIDE/OFFER SOLUTIONS•Simple : ID customer’s pain (probing questions) and demonstrate product/service as the solution

•DO• Inform/educate the customer• Offer a selection of solutions

•DO NOT• Force/push a sale• Manipulate data to deceive

January 2012

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THANK YOU!

•Two very powerful selling words

•Opportunities to say, “thanks”• Networking• Prospecting• Post-appointment• Post-purchase• Referrals• Whenever someone helps you and your

business!January 2012

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REFERRALS, REFERRALS, REFERRALS•Build a book of business

•Farm/mine customer base for additional sales• Ask for others who might be interested• Discount promotion

•Benefits• Very little money – bootstrap!• 5x better closing ratio• Less cold-calling• More fun!

January 2012

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6 WAYS TO BE LIKED

1. Become genuinely interested in other people.

2. Smile.

3. Remember that a person's name is to that person the sweetest and most important sound in any language.

4. Be a good listener. Encourage others to talk about themselves.

5. Talk in terms of the other person's interests.

6. Make the other person feel important - and do it sincerely.

Dale Carnegie, How to Win Friends and Influence People, 1936January 2012

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WIN PEOPLE TO YOUR THINKING•The only way to get the best of an argument is to avoid it.

•Show respect for the other person's opinions. Never say, "You're wrong."

•If you are wrong, admit it quickly and emphatically.

•Begin in a friendly way.

•Get the other person saying "yes, yes" immediately.

•Let the other person do a great deal of the talking.

•Let the other person feel that the idea is his or hers.

•Try honestly to see things from the other person's point of view.

•Be sympathetic with the other person's ideas and desires.

•Appeal to the nobler motives.

•Dramatize your ideas.

•Throw down a challenge.

Dale Carnegie, How to Win Friends and Influence People, 1936January 2012

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MY TAKE ON IT…

•Ask for the business!• #1 error by all salespeople = they don’t ask for the sale!?

•LOVE what you sell• If you’re not enthusiastic about what you’re offering, how will

anyone else be?

•Present enthusiastically

January 2012

MY TAKE ON IT…

•DO NOT separate Sales & Marketing

•You’re always selling…so study it and become amazing• Your idea• Your business• Your employees• Your product/service• Your vision

CU NVC January 2012

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MY TAKE ON IT…

•Be disciplined

•Focus on SOLVING PROBLEMS, not “selling”

•Uncover and use your style

•Study it!• Closing techniques Art of asking questions• Rapport building IDing buyer types

•If not your core competency, fill the gap

January 2012

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SALES ROLE-PLAYING

“NOTHING HAPPENS UNTIL SOMETHING IS SOLD….”

January 2012

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SALES ROLE-PLAYING1. Demo in class

2. Role-play 1. Pair-up2. 10 minutes

1. 5-7 minute pitch2. 3-5 minutes of feedback

3. Switch – salesperson becomes customer

3. Feedback on:1. Overall effectiveness2. Probing questions3. Listening4. Enthusiasm

January 2012

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“Choice, not chance, determines one’s destiny.”

--Unknown

January 2012

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RESOURCES

1.            Brodsky, "The truth about selling,” http://www.inc.com/magazine/19960201/1543.html INC Magazine, 1996.

2.            Carroll, The art of salesmanship is the absence of  salesmanship,” http://www.inc.com/articles/1998/06/15333.html INC Magazine, 1998

3.            Stansell, Hire a sales rep to peddle your wares http://www.inc.com/articles/2000/07/20157.html) INC Magazine, 2000

January 2012

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RESOURCES1.                  Susan Greco, "Marketing: 1+1+1 = The New Mass Market", Inc Magazine,

Jan, 2003 (about WhiteWave, Boulder) http://www.inc.com/magazine/20030101/25025.html

2.                  M. Dana Baldwin, Marketing: A key to long-term success, Inc Magazine, April 3,

2002http://www.inc.com/articles/2002/04/24065.html

3.                  Osborne, D.M., Bootstrap Marketing: Taking on Proctor & Gamble

Inc Magazine, Oct. 2000

http://www.inc.com/magazine/20001001/20439.html

January 2012

January 2012CU NVC

THE ART OF THE 60-SECOND PITCH

OVERVIEW

• Foundation

• Let’s create one!

January 2012CU NVC

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THE STEPS1. A hot minute. They pack up after this.

2. Hook ‘em with your story (20)1. Who are you and why should they care?

3. Reh-cug-nize the problem (15)1. Then wow them with stats/numbers. Jaw drop.

4. Treat ‘em to the solution (15)1. Better than anyone. Wallets open.

5. Bring home the Kool-Aid (10)1. Offer or request

6. Use it on all peeps, everywhere

7. Show ‘em yo’ grill1. Be passionate!

January 2012

SAMPLE

• Hook with Personal Story (20 seconds)

• “When I was 12 years old, I started a lawn mowing business. Beyond cutting grass, I had no idea what I was doing and the business piddled out. It just piddled out, Mikey! Then I went to business school and learned everything I should have done.”

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sample

•Problem with Stats (15 seconds)

•“Get this! 43% of teens perform a freelance job by the age of 14. 69% of high schoolers want to start a business. But 90% rate their entrepreneurial knowledge at poor or fair at most. Entrepreneurship is something they want, but they don’t know how.”

CU NVC January 2012

sample

• Solution with Credibility (15 seconds)

• “So I’m going to offer all the resources and tools that young entrepreneurs will need to start, run, and build their businesses. I started with a blog. Then we interviewed the world’s top young entrepreneurs and wrote a book. Now we’re getting out and speaking.”

January 2012CU NVC

sample

• Conclusion with Call-to-Action (10 seconds)

• “I have a few more things in the works, Mikey, but I can’t get into them here. Can we schedule a meeting so I can run them by you? I’ll pull together a few ideas on how we can help each other.”

January 2012CU NVC

sample

……WITH A SMILE AND PASSION!

January 2012CU NVC