This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that the pub- lisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional service. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent pro- fessional should be sought. Vice President and Publisher: Cynthia A. Zigmund Editorial Director: Donald J. Hull Acquisitions Editor: Mary B. Good Senior Project Editor: Trey Thoelcke Interior Design: Lucy Jenkins Cover Design: Design Solutions Typesetting: Elizabeth Pitts IMPAX is a registered trademark of the IMPAX Corporation. © 2002 by IMPAX Corporation Published by Dearborn Trade Publishing, a Kaplan Professional Company All rights reserved. The text of this publication, or any part thereof, may not be repro- duced in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the publisher. Printed in the United States of America 02 03 04 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Shonka, Mark. Beyond selling value : a proven process to avoid the vendor trap / Mark Shonka, Dan Kosch. p. cm. Includes index. ISBN 0-7931-5470-7 1. Selling. 2. Value. 3. Customer relations. I. Kosch, Dan. II. Title. HF5438.25 .S53 2002 658.8’1—dc21 2002006508 Dearborn Trade books are available at special quantity discounts to use for sales promotions, employee premiums, or educational purposes. Please call our special sales department, to order or for more information, at 800-621-9621, ext. 4307, or write to Dearborn Trade Publishing, 30 South Wacker Drive, Suite 2500, Chicago, IL 60606-7481. ADVANCE PRAISE FOR BEYOND SELLING VALUE “This book is destined to be a sales classic—the next must-read selling book! Shonka and Kosch really get it. The stakes are higher and selling value is more im- portant than ever before. This is a great read that won’t just tell you what to do; it will tell you how to do it!” —Larry Wilson, Founder of Wilson Learning and Pecos River Learning Center, and best- selling author “This book is essential reading for anyone in sales today. Beyond Selling Value has taken the things that the best value-oriented sales professionals do by instinct and put them into a system so they can be done by design.” —Joe Demharter, President and Chief Executive Officer, Pitman Company “In a day when providing value is the baseline, Shonka and Kosch redefine the competitive edge in selling by going Beyond Selling Value. Employ these tools and you will create real adversity for your competitors. This book is worth booking a slightly longer flight just to read it twice!” —Paul G. Stoltz, Ph.D., President of PEAK Learning, Inc. Author of the Wall Street Journal, Business Week bestseller, Adversity Quotient: Turning Obstacles into Opportunities “Most salespeople consider themselves professionals and would like to sell higher, faster . . . and beat the Vendor Trap. Unfortunately many have notbeen taught how. This book is as good a step-by-step guide as I’ve come across. It should be required reading.” —James J. Ryan, President and CEO, Carlson Marketing Group “A must read for anyone in sales and marketing. Mark and Dan have hit a grand slam home run with their approach on how to secure a new account and success- fully grow with them. A real eye opener on the art of selling and making customer presentations.” —Jim Miller, Former CEO, Miller Business Systems, and author of the best-selling books, Corporate Coach and Best Boss, Worst Boss “Today’s salespeople don’t need a book to tell us that it’s tougher to sell value than ever before. What we need is a roadmap with signs to help us take advan- tage of the opportunities that are out there. That’s what this book delivers. The process and approach in Beyond Selling Value is the best I’ve seen for helping sales professionals triumph again and again.” —Dan Servos, Vice President and General Manager, AOL Telecom Vertical Group, Amer- ica Online, Inc. “The strategies and tactics discussed in Beyond Selling Value work! I have seen a measurable effect on our close ratio as a result.” —Chris Matzke, Senior Vice President, American Express Retirement Services “Beyond Selling Value provides good insight into the sales channel in our dynamic economy. Shonka and Kosch clarify the sophistication that is needed in the con- temporary environment, and the steps that are needed to confront current chal- lenges. I particularly like the focus on value, which provides direction to avoid being treated like a commodity.” —Max H. Bazerman, Jesse Isador Straus Professor of Business Administration, Harvard Business School “This book presents a powerful paradigm shift in selling value.” —Jim Loehr, CEO and best-selling author “I have only been introduced to the sales approach in Beyond Selling Value for a short time and am already a big believer. The approach is logical, efficient, and the way I like people to sell to me. In a short period, I have watched our people make some very impressive sales utilizing the tools and skills taught by IMPAX. Organic growth is critical to the success of Hub International, and IMPAX will play a very im- portant role in helping us achieve our sales goals.” —Martin P. Hughes, Chairman and CEO, Hub International “This book is like a Swiss Army knife, giving people the tools required for selling success in the new work world. Beyond Selling Value should take its rightful place in every thinking salesperson’s briefcase!” —Richard J. Leider, Founder, The Inventure Group, and author, Repacking Your Bags and Whistle while You Work “I am a believer in the premises behind Beyond Selling Value and have seen the process work firsthand. While pressure on margins will never go away, the strat- egies and tactics presented in Beyond Selling Value provide a proven process to do just what the book says—go beyond selling value.” —John Rowe, Director of Retirement Sales, Merrill Lynch Retirement Group “Most companies are under incredible pressure to join the herd, and ‘your prod- uct is a commodity’ is a mantra on the lips of many of our customers. Beyond Sell- ing Value delivers the tools and processes that your company needs to set it apart from the crowd. Chock-full of stories that illustrate each key concept, this book lays out a step-by-step roadmap that will help you win customers for all the right reasons.” —Robert W. Bradford, Coauthor of Simplified Strategic Planning: A No-Nonsense Guide forBusy People Who Want Results Fast, and CEO of the Center for Simplified Strategic Planning “It’s a brave new sales world characterized by extremes—relentless Web-based commoditization on the one hand, and interdependent value-driven relation- ships on the other. There’s no question where you need to be focusing if you want to be successful. Beyond Selling Value provides you the process and tools for build- ing critical value-based relationships.” —Lisa Napolitano, CEO, Strategic Account Management Association (SAMA) “ADC has embraced this process as a critical part of our go-to-market strategy. It has been essential to shifting us to a more customer-driven approach to how we build and sustain customer relationships. If you are concerned with differentiat- ing yourself, this is a must read.” —Rick Roscitt, Chairman and CEO, ADC “To gain competitive advantage in today’s dog-eat-dog business environment, you must not only work to get better than you have ever been, you must also get different. Beyond Selling Value will help you do both. Ignore it at your own peril.” —Jim Ericson, Managing Partner and Program Director, The Masters Forum “Kosch and Shonka have stripped the topic of selling value down to the no-non- sense why’s and how’s, and transfused it with the juice it really deserves. In addi- tion to great reminders of the basics that work, they provide real techniques, in detail, to work them. They pull no punches about the realities of a lean-and-mean business environment while providing fresh and important perspectives about how to navigate it successfully. A must-read for creating and leveraging produc- tive client relationships!” —David Allen, President, the David Allen Company, and author of the best-selling: Get- ting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity DEDICATION This book is dedicated to David S. Matlow, the creator of the IMPAX® Process and the founder of the IMPAX Corporation A C K N O W L E D G M E N T S We gratefully acknowledge and express deep appreciation to the many people who have made this book possible. To Malcolm Fleschner, whose talents, humor, and insight have helped make this book what it is. The late nights and the laughs are what made the experience of writing this book enjoyable. We couldn’t have asked for a bet- ter, more talented writer to work with. And also to Malcolm’s wife, Kristin, for her patience and understanding. To the team who worked on this book, especially: (cid:127) Mary Good and the rest of the Dearborn Trade team: Cynthia Zig- mund, Don Hull, Paul Mallon, Leslie Banks, Elizabeth Bacher, Terri Joseph, Sandy Thomas, and Trey Thoelcke (cid:127) Jonathon Lazear and Christi Cardenas from the Lazear Agency (cid:127) John Roth and Jeff Ringhoffer (cid:127) Our virtual book title team To two key leaders in our business, Scott Anderson and Chip Kudrle, and to our outstanding teammates, who have built this business and delighted our clients, including: Christopher Smith, Pete O’Brien, Mike Webb, Tammy Ubl, Mike Brown, Jeff Vint, Jay Carthaus, Dave Lynn, Jim Ninivaggi, Mari- lynn Gregory, Carol Arce, Johnna Krantz, Karl Busch, Kathy Bolton, Ira Kasden, Paul Boucherle, Bill Larner, Barry LaValley, Deb Peters, Heidi Arm- strong, Gerry Spencer, Todd Hendries, Doug Lyons, Rick Bowlby, and Jeff Barovich. To our clients, who have trusted us with their most valuable asset, their sales force. In particular: Joe Demharter, John Rowe, John Bruder, Bill Klan- derman, Dave Fraser, Gary Jarosz, Martha Richardson, Ed Kilroy, Dan Ser- vos, Bruce Hanley, Greg McCamus, Tim Eichorst, John Cobb, Phil Styrlund, Kevin Hrusovsky, Bill Olin, George Harris IV, Frank Jerd, Dave Knorr, Errol Schoenfish, John Temple, Dick Johnson, Charlie Burnham, Jim Harvin, Jim Ryan, Regan Hutton, Rob Abele, Karen Kracher, Ken Lowden, Bob Briggs, vii viii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Cathy Barthel, Bill Siefkin, Greg Demming, Robert Vulpis, Dolores Wilverd- ing, Sarah Brown, Dave Oulighan, Tom Moberly, Gene Duncan, Dave Roy, Tom Mezera, Fred Spero, John Caron, Mike Higgins, Tony Giorgio, Paul Oberhaus, Tom Beddow, John McCarthy, Larry McBride, Jim Nelson, Craig Carson, Jimmy Watts, Terry White, and Rich Blakeman. To our friends, advisors, and mentors, who helped us prepare for this opportunity, including: David McKane, Narayan Ramachandran, Brian Dietmeyer, Lisa Napolitano, Libby Cannon and the team at SAMA, John Wagner, Jay Zack, Mike Hogan, Charlie Cooper, Tom Thomas, LoAnn Mock- ler, Jim Miller, Sally Casper, and former IBM colleagues, including Grant Farquhar, Pat Warner, Larry Wood, Woody Shakleton, Phil Soran, John Wright, and John Vanderheyden. From Mark: (cid:127) To Taylor, Brittany, and Derek—my inspiration, purpose, and joy (cid:127) To my heroes, Mom and Dad, for your encouragement and faith (cid:127) To my family: Chelle, Drew, J. Scott, Geri, John, Sister Marie Madeleine, Ted, Shelly, Mike, Gina, Earl, and Jan From Dan: (cid:127) To my wife and best friend, Therese, thank you for all of your love and support (cid:127) To my children, Kristina, Laura, and Jason, you each give me inspira- tion and perspective (cid:127) To my Dad, gone but not forgotten (cid:127) To my Mom, for always being there (cid:127) To my family, Debbie, Donna, Deann, Farrell, Paal, Scott, Jim, Maureen, Kathy, Trish, Dan, and Mark To all of our friends and family members, who have always been there to support us. To God, in thanks for our friendship, partnership, and this opportunity. C O N T E N T S Foreword xi Preface xiii 1. It’s a Jungle Out There TODAY’S SELLING CHALLENGES 1 2. Bare Bones and Brass Tacks THE IMPAX® PROCESS 7 The Power of Research 3. Digging for Clues HOW TO GATHER AND UTILIZE DATA 33 4. Keys to the Customer Kingdom THE FIVE RESEARCH ELEMENTS 47 5. The Advice Squad HOW TO BUILD AN EFFECTIVE COACH NETWORK 75 6. The Inside Stuff FUNDAMENTALS OF THE RESEARCH MEETING 91 The Power of Communication 7. Two Feet in the Door HOW TO GAIN ACCESS TO SENIOR-LEVEL DECISION MAKERS 121 8. The Write Stuff COMPOSING THE ACCESS LETTER 131 9. Beyond the Gatekeeper HOW TO BREAK THROUGH THE BLOCK 145 ix x CONTENTS The Power of Presentation 10. Your Moment in the Sun THE BUSINESS PRESENTATION 177 11. Seal the Deal THE CLOSING PRESENTATION 221 Implementing the Process 12. Every Shot a Bull’s-Eye TARGET OPPORTUNITY SELECTION 237 13. Sweating the Details OPPORTUNITY PLANNING 245 14. “I See You Have Your Hand Raised . . .” FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT THE IMPAX® PROCESS 253 Conclusion 259 Appendix A: Sample Research Meeting Questions 263 Appendix B: Access Letter Example 267 Appendix C: Business Presentation Example (Oriented Toward Closing) 269 Appendix D: Business Presentation Confirmation Letter Example 273 Appendix E: Business Presentation Follow-Up Letter Example 274 Appendix F: Closing Presentation Follow-Up Letter Example 275 Appendix G: IMPAX® Target Opportunity Selection Model 276 Appendix H: IMPAX® Opportunity Planner 277 Index 279