barney2021

Account Executive

Tips for getting the CEO’s approval?

Hey everyone, sometimes I present to champions in the business and there is so much value in our product for the company and ROI. However the champion goes off to get approval and immediately gets shot down by their DM as they weren't in the initial meeting. The champion is licking their wounds and doesn't want introduce me to the ultimate DM.....

Any tips on how to counter this or how to get your champion to get the DM in a meeting instead of them trying to sell your product half baked?

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LordBusiness

Politicker

Chief Revenue Officer

Ahh, the double edged sword of sales. Influencers and champions can only influence and champion, but getting the attention and time of the DM is 100x more difficult. I've found that (while its still got limitations) some great content can help here. Things like "executive use case/ROI analysis decks" - something your champion can pull some meat from to simply/effectively get it in front of the DM and catch their attention. From time to time, I'll skip level my champion and send this type of content directly to the DM. The secret sauce here is ALWAYS open up your email with a compliment of the champion your skip leveling. Something like "I've been working with (Jon Smith) on your team on (initiative), he's been an amazing resource and awesome to collaborate with" -- then intro your value prop and hit them with the content. This way, when the DM forwards the email to your champion (and they will) the first thing the champion reads is a stellar compliment about them.

BillyHoyle

Tycoon

Senior Account Executive

I usually put a 4-5 slide deck together with the proposal to help the champion sell internally. Granted, I sell a fairly simple product.

Adored

Executive

Sales Director

You just need to deliver a relevant value prop to the CEO/DM as well.

Their motivations will differ from those of your contact i.e. the Champion might define ROI as improved operational efficiency, time saved etc. whereas a CEO/DM will likely be more interested in strategic benefits.

For opps where you're now chasing, reach out to the senior stakeholder directly with a pitch more relevant to them and their needs and try to build a relationship with them.

In future, try to anticipate these higher level needs earlier and advocate bringing that stakeholder into the conversation sooner.

Good luck.

barney2021

Tycoon

Account Executive

That’s a great idea, thank you

SlinginSoftware

Politicker

Account Executive

I don’t like selling with FUD, but sometimes it can work to talk about the cost of NOT doing business instead of the cost of doing business.

barney2021

Tycoon

Account Executive

Very true

alecabral

Arsonist

Director - Digital Sales Transformation

I think you just got great advice from @Adored and @LordBusiness really. I'll add a couple nbullets, hoping they make sense:

1. Damage control first. Why was your champion shot down? It might be a good moment to try and make him/her feel better. That will help with your relationship with this person, and get some insights on why the proposal was rejected. That's key information for you, and you'll need it before you go and talk to your DM.

2. Engage with the DM/CEO. You can be quite straightforward with your champ and let them know you'll do this, or just go over them and make them look good in return as LordBusiness suggested. What's worked for me is to lead with insights on their business plus your value prop, and try and get a meeting out of it. If you don't hear from them at first, don't worry, keep trying. Next action in my cadence is to follow-up and ask them if they would be interested in meeting X, the CEO (same role they have) of another company with whom you're already working with. That works better than business cases most of the times.

good luck!

FlintIronstag

Notorious Answer

Chief Marketing Officer

A little counter culture here but I never target a champion or if I find one, I don't focus on them. They're evangelists, they're gonna carry your flag no matter what. Even if you don't engage with them.

PROBLEM IS... most champions are champions for anything that seems like a solution to a problem. They're the first ones dismissed when they have a suggestion simply because they bring too much up to the C-Suite or the boss. The only reason they're still employed is because they do such a good job in their function that they aren't worth replacing. It's worth brushing them off every few months because in their role, they are rockstars for the company.

I think selling through the champion is the biggest mistake people make. Sell to the DM, or sell above the DM and have it sent down to the DM so they have to work to shut it down. I've always found if I can get the DM's boss to have them check it out, you're more likely to get a positive conversation than if you're getting the person running up to the DM.

Good luck!

CuriousFox

WR Officer

🦊

Don't get caught up on the champion only. Yes they are nice to have, but don't forget your focus is to the C-Level.

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barney2021

Tips for getting the CEO’s approval?

9 comments

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