Today Andy is joined by guests Amy Hrehovcik, sales enablement guru, podcaster and coach, Cian McLoughlin, CEO of Trinity Perspectives, and Leslie Venetz, Founder of Sales Team Builder. Together they delve into the world of bid management, communication, and sales. They start by discussing the power of creativity and innovation in documentation, emphasizing the impact that visual appeal can have on perceptions of competence and professionalism. They highlight the importance of personalization and communication as the guests share their experiences of customers' frustration with generic content and the value of incorporating win themes into demos, documents, and responses.
They stress the need to balance automation with human nuance, emphasizing the challenging but necessary task of creating an environment where customers feel comfortable providing candid feedback. The conversation then shifts to the return of face-to-face and explore the benefits of in-person interactions, such as improved communication, body language reading, and relationship building, which have led to quicker sales cycles.
They then turn to the most important topic - win-loss analyses. They reveal that product and price play almost no role in decision-making and the buyer's experience with the seller is the primary factor driving decisions, especially when products are perceived to be similar. Leslie and Amy share insights on the importance of retrospectives or after-action reviews, stressing the need to go back to buyers and gather accurate information on why a deal was won or lost. This information is crucial for improving future deals, as initial responses are often not the real reasons. They also stress the need for experimentation in the current business landscape and the potential negative impact of carelessness or lapses in professionalism, the invisible friction in the sales cycle, and maintaining high standards of professionalism to build and retain trust throughout the process.
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Host Andy Paul is the expert on modern B2B selling and author of three best-selling, award-winning sales books, including his latest Sell Without Selling Out. Visit
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