Hello Steemit.... how are you today?
What's your reaction if I say there's a flying cat?
My guess is that there are three possibilities for your reaction:
First, you immediately laugh out loud, think I'm a liar, or even a little insane. Because according to your logic, and according to all past facts you have, no cat has ever been able to fly. And there's no way a cat can fly. This is natural. You are a logical person, who tends to use logic. You do not believe it before there is evidence. You will immediately skeptical and interrogate me with the question where I see, when, how many tails, what year? Etc.
Second, you will frown while clenching your lips tightly, because you are intrigued by curiosity. How is it possible to make a cat fly? Is a jet plane mounted on its back, or is there genetic engineering technology to grow wings on the back of a cat? You will immediately look at me with the question of how the cat I told you could fly.
Third, you will frown for a moment, see my eyes deeply, smile, then laugh out loud with me. Maybe because you remember the figure of a fat cat flying with a bamboo propeller on its head. What is clear, you immediately share the story with me about the figure of a flying cat. It doesn't matter whether the cat really can fly, or just throw it from the window, obviously you can see that it will be very interesting if the flying cat can be popularized. Maybe it could be made his cartoons, comic books, dolls, t-shirts, blankets, well much more. Then you laughed happily at the idea of a cat can fly.
Well, selling technology is very similar to selling the story that there are cats that can fly. Almost impossible?
This is where the need for foresight to see with whom we discuss the technology we sell. Moreover if the technology you offer is new. If by chance the people we meet are the executors in the field. They will tend to have the first reaction. Do not believe. They may work for years with the same tools and methods. So when they hear something new, they will be skeptical and demand you to be able to prove what you are saying. Their language is "please demo, right". Even though it was already tired in the demo, it was not necessarily purchased. Understandably this evidence claimant also happens to be not the final decision maker in the buying process. So it's almost useless to sell your story to them.
Another second group. They are very curious about how your technology can work. They usually ask you to provide any documentation of the technology you offer to see how the technology was made. Usually they are level manager. The language is "please provide the system documentation". Maybe they really want to know, or maybe they are curious, don't make your own and don't need your services. Although they are quite influential in the buying process, they are still not the real decision makers.
Well, the last group, who can imagine a cat can fly using a bamboo propeller on his head, this is what you have to look for. That means this. Companies, like individuals, also build their future tales. Will be what they will be, what market share they will master, etc. If you noticed that most everything is new "will", not the reality of today, so it's more like a "fairy tale" than a fact. Well, if the "flying cat" story you can enter in their fairy tales, then the real victory is already in hand. Moreover, they are generally the top decision makers. Who can see the potential of the technology you offer to realize their future tales. They will buy the technology you offer.
The three groups were inevitably faced in a sales cycle. Often we meet consecutively with executors, managers, new decision-makers. But not infrequently, we must convince the decision maker before meeting with the groups below.
From my experience, common mistakes made in selling technology are too focused on the sales process in the first and second stages. We as sellers are busy with a lot of effort to prove that cats can fly, and that we can make cats fly. While the most important process, namely to open the eyes of decision makers that the flying cat will play an important role for the company in the future, more often overlooked.
I've also made this mistake. In the past, when selling a system to do NAZAVA brand clean water filters, I was preoccupied with talking about how sophisticated the technology we offer. We usually go through the sales process with expensive and time-consuming proof of concept installations. I was stuck to prove that I did have a flying cat instead of trying to convince the decision maker that flying cats were important to their dreams. In fact, I honestly never tried to understand what my prospective customers dreamed of at that time.
Though talking with decision makers about their dreams can be easier.
In the first encounter you can immediately recognize what dreams and obsessions they are having for their company in the future. And when you can create interesting stories about how your technology offers to connect with the dreams of the bosses, I can make sure you will win their hearts.
So, after reading this article, hopefully you can sell flying elephants though.
Thank You.