The Big Deal

The Big Deal: A 6-Step Formula to Kill Your Low Sales Stress and Help You Close the Biggest Deals Ever, Hisham Al Gurg, Amazon.com Services, 2019

This book shows a way to greatly increase the chances of a favorable outcome for any business salesperson.

As an example, let's assume your product is HR software. The first thing you should do is make that product as perfect as possible. Why should anyone even consider buying your software if it is full of bugs? Among the objects of selling is to fulfill a need that the customer foes not know that they have. If your software fulfills only a small need, again, why should the customer buy it? Make sure it fulfills a big need of the customer.

After you have chosen your target company, stay away from the CEO (for now). Going right to the CEO, with a PowerPoint presentation that basically says "Buy My Software," will guarantee an answer of No. Meet with senior people at the target company, and learn everything you can about it. What is their fiscal year? Are more approvals than the CEO's needed for purchasing decisions? What sort of person is the CEO? Does he have to see it, hear it or touch it before he understands it? Know the company, inside and out. Also, know your competition. When the CEO asks, "We have dealt with your competitor for many years. They charge less than you, and we are very satisfied with their customer service. Why should we switch to you?", make sure that you have an answer handy. Now, you talk to the CEO.

Don't ask the CEO to buy the software (yet). Instead, ask for authorization to set up a Proof of Concept (or POC). It's a chance for the target company to test-drive the software. How long will the POC last? What features of the software will not be available? In the target company, who will have access to it? In the selling company, who will be on-site for questions or problems? If the target company wants changes to the software, how far is the selling company willing to go? Assuming the POC was a success, and HR loves the software, go back to the CEO, with plenty of built-in fans of the software.

If the answer is Yes, the job is not done. How will the software get onto the target company's mainframe? Will everyone in HR have access to it, or just certain people? How much customer service will be available, days or months?

This is a very thorough, and very easy to understand, book. It is good for businesses of any size. It is very much worth reading.