In the past couple of Tips, we focused on the theme of "ending the year strong", recognizing that many of us were wrapping up our selling year in conjunction with the calendar year.

As we were doing this, many of us were working on deals that had "gone dark" for one of several reasons. Sometimes there are organizational changes that affect buying roles - new decision makers being put in place or coaches departing are two common examples. Maybe there have been some economic or industry developments that are "game changers" for the company. Perhaps we didn't position our value strongly enough to gain priority above other initiatives the customer needs to undertake, and our proposal got lost in the shuffle.

When this happens, the key question is, "What do I do now?" Here are some ideas to consider:

- Reassess your coach relationships and coach network. Are your coaches being honest? Could they be acting as a gatekeeper? Has their win changed to the point where they are no longer coaching you?

- Refresh your research. How accurate, thorough and timely is your understanding of their business and needs, and how can you quickly update and improve it?

- Requalify the opportunity in your own mind. Is it still a good fit and worth pursuing? Is it winnable?

- Get back in front of the decision maker, or get in front of the decision maker for the first time. Many times, we can look in the rear view mirror and see that we never actually got to the real decision maker.

- Reposition your value. Compel the decision maker based on the critical outcomes a relationship with your company can help to create. Leverage an IMPAX Business or Closing presentation to drive your value message home.

Leverage any or all of these ideas to bring deals that have gone dark back to life!



Planning your 2017 sales meeting?

Make sure you book an exciting, compelling speaker to help get your year off to a strong start. IMPAX would love to help. For more info on booking, click here or contact us today.