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KB_FarmerType

Strategic Sales

Opinionated
Valued Contributor
Member
+3

Challenger Sellers - what’s wrong with my thinking?

I was starting out ( from different job type into sales) and the Challenger Sale (given by boss) became my bible for first few months then reality hit hard and I had questions that no one arround were able to help.

Challenger sales ‘s tailoring, teaching , reframing assumes you can learn the customer’s business faster then them to give them insight.  i have never been left with enough insights that fits every prospect/customer situation.   what am I doing wrong ?

what kind of people and in what settings have challenger sales helped you? 


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ThatNewAE
Big Shot
7
Account Executive - Mid enterprise
Challenger Sales is a good read, but I am still of the fact that this was pre-pandemic sales techniques.
It needs a little bit of tweaking and revamping to suit today's sales. But nonetheless, books like Spin selling, Gap selling and Challenger sales give you a lot of insights into the psyche of prospects, but it'll never fit each and every use case of prospect / customer situations. I have learnt this the hard way, customers can break through these sales frameworks.
SADNES5
Politicker
1
down voters are marketing spies
Exactly. It's gotta be a blend. Just like some sales folks are good at one. Be a T shaped sales person. Know when to switch, change cadence or tactics. Remember - we are chameleons and change in every situation and with every buyer.
SteveD
Member
1
Sales Director
Going through Challenger now - "What is the timeline to Value?" which then breaks it down and frames it up. Example Total cost of the Status Quo/days outstanding to close the deal = $$$ per day of delay conversation which does put the effort of cost of delay can hurt their business.
CuriousFox
WR Officer
6
🦊
Things change. You need to adapt to the new normal. There's no one correct process to follow. Do your own thang. 🦊
TennisandSales
Politicker
5
Head Of Sales
i really push back on ppl that tell me i have to "know your customers business better than they do" like thats normally not possible. but what you can do is understand the aspects that your product improves really well so they know you can help
Herb
Fire Starter
2
Account Executive
Try listening to podcast by Jen Allen, Sales challenger.
Keep in mind this is just one way to look at selling, depending of what, and who will depend on how successful this will be to you, but overall I believe it’s a good learning information.
jefe
Arsonist
2
🍁
You really can't take one book as a bible - you need to adapt several approaches into something that works for you, your situation, and your company.

A lot of what's espoused in Challenger needs a ton of internal support/resourcing to be truly effective.
KB_FarmerType
Opinionated
0
Strategic Sales
So you do like challenger sales, yeah? What aspects of it ?
jefe
Arsonist
1
🍁
Mostly the pushing back on assumptions and long held beliefs.
nomdeguerre
Executive
1
Account executive
My main complaint with challenger is that it was written by two people who have never sold a day in their life. They are a couple of analysts who worked for CEB and their findings was based on their own analysis the content of which they have never shared.

Now, the basic idea that you have to share something relevant that the customer didn’t know or haven’t thought of in that way, makes nothing but sense. Then again that is pretty obvious, so I don’t know a whole book was necessary to arrive at it.

Having to know the customers business better than the customer, however, is not only ridiculous it is also pretty arrogant and I doubt that kind of attitude will go over well.
SteveD
Member
1
Sales Director
Interesting as Im more a MEDDICC person which are superstar sellers who designed this methodology from key points sellers where experiencing and delaying their sales deals.
thedue
Valued Contributor
1
VP of Sales
All facets and selling. I’ve done copiers, med devices, pharma, med tech and SaaS. Launched or leveraged in those spots and they all have applicability.

I think it may depend on the amount of Teach, Tailor or Take Control you may be doing, by the role you are presently in.

Consider an SE/VE, spend more time teaching and tailoring.

As the AE, Go Hard in the Paint on taking control, but ensure someone on your integrated team is heaving up on Teaching and Tailoring.

The AE or Quota Carrying sales leader is the QB.

If you have to do all three, you are likely a know it all, control freak or, harfest worker you know.

PineappleYa
Opinionated
1
AE
I gotta say, it’s great to learn & apply bits from all sales trainings including challenger. But when you use it in & out as a template it’s no longer authentic or has deep resonance- that can only come from natural thought processes/ learning/ discovery & conversation that sparks light bulb moments for the customer… and all this imo has to happen while forming a relationship.
The best resource I’ve ever read is Never Split The Difference.
As a hostage negotiator he didn’t have time to study the person & know them inside & out- he had time to understand their motivation /want & to give them what they wanted while getting what he needed… wo them feeling like they gave something up/were tricked/outsmarted
The same goes for sales.
Kosta_Konfucius
Politicker
1
Sales Rep
You dont know more about there business then them, but you might know more about a part of their business more than them. If you are selling a product that solves x problem, you probably know more about x than them or they wouldnt take the meeting
saaskicker
Celebrated Contributor
1
Enterprise AE
what insights do you think you're missing out on?
ChumpChange
Politicker
0
Channel Manager
Like everyone else is posting. It's a combination of a bunch of techniques/tactics. Don't treat it as gospel but as a tool you can utilize if the situation presents itself.

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