Selling Higher: Your Essential ‘C Level’ Glossary
The reality is that today’s more business focused senior buyers talk quite a different language to the junior, often more technical buyer. That poses a challenge for sellers that have dealt almost exclusively with the technical buyer in the past. Adding some new words to the sales vocabulary is required.
Are You Speaking The Right Language?
‘You say ‘tomato’, I say ‘tomatoe’… let’s call the whole thing off!’ So go the words of the song. For salespeople determined to sell higher – that is at C Level – the experience can be something similar.
The salesperson who wants to sell higher must speak the same language as the C Level executive – that is the language of the CEO, CFO, COO and so on. Even if you are not quite selling to C-Level, that is still the language that you need to use.
Regardless of the level at which you are selling, this is the language that gets projects and purchases approved within large organizations.
The New C Level Vocabulary
Having eves-dropped on 100s of C Level conversations we put together a glossary of some of the language that salespeople who want to sell higher need to use. So to boost your success you need to pack your presentations, conversations and proposals with these terms:
Talking about direction…Success Strategy Objectives Vision Goals Business Drivers Strategic Priorities Strategic Agenda Strategic Direction Strategic Fit Strategic Alternatives Strategic Options
Talking about their industry…Growth Rates Market Share Market Trends Market Opportunities and Threats Must Win Battles Innovation Visibility (Measurability) & Control Cost Cutting Improved Efficiency Down-sizing /right-sizing Doing More With Less Out-sourcing and In-sourcing Specialisation and Core competence
Talking about what matters…Key Success Factors KPIs Risk Dependencies Milestones Gaps Benchmarking Competitive Advantage Compliance Regulations Standards |
Talking about results….Results Performance Business Case Financials Profit and Loss Balance Sheet Investment Payback Metrics / KPIs Cost-Benefit Analysis ROI Total Cost of Ownership Full Lifecycle Costs Total Project Costs
Talking about buying…Budget Justification Business Case Sign-off Approval Stakeholders Politics Sponsor Buying Team Cross-functional Synergy Implementation Making it happen… Change (change management) Compliance Implementation Project planning / management Accountability Value Management |
Having scanned the above table, how many of these terms did you use in your last sales pitch, presentation, or proposal? Are you having conversations with buyers on these subjects? If you are not then there are opportunities to improve your conversations with senior buyers.
New Conversations
Having read the list you will have figured out that it is not just a matter of doing a ‘FIND AND REPLACE’ in your Word documents and Power Point slides. That is because the words don’t mean a whole lot in and of themselves.
It is not just about a new words, but new topics of conversation between buyer and seller. Take for example, ‘strategic fit’ – that is how any new project, purchase or proposal – fits with the web of organisational decisions, strategies and goals. It sounds like just another buzz-word, but start a conversation on the subject of ‘strategy’ or ‘strategic fit’ and it is likely to bring many important issues to the fore:
- Why this project / purchase should receive funding over other projects?
- What projects are competing for the same resources?
- How the project supports the achievement of key business objectives?
- The key market and business drivers which underpin the project?
- How the project fits with past decisions?
- How the project /purchase fits with company culture, processes and systems? Etc.
Are You Ready To Sell Higher?
The air gets thinner the higher you climb in an organization, so too does the span of attention of the executives, the drive for results and, of course, the difficulty of climbing (by that we mean accessibility, including getting past the PA to talk to the executive in the first place).
To get attention at C Level you need to engage in a new type of conversation – about how your solution can help achieve higher levels of performance in some key area of concern to the organization.
Ready to Sell to The Top? – Take The Test:
- Will you be invited to sit at the board table?
- Can you talk strategy? Can you add value?
- Will you be treated as a peer?
- Can you speak the language of the CFO, the COO, etc.?
- Do you understand the company and the industry it operates in?
- Can you help to build the business case?
- Do you know the manager’s priorities, metrics and goals?
- Can you become a trusted adviser?
Peter Viljoen: 
StartupSandy: 
the Senator: 
Martin Lindeskog: 
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