ACTION 3: REVIEW NOTES FROM PREVIOUS MEETINGS OR RESEARCH

There’s a reason your manager or company leaders request that you document information about your customers—it’s invaluable. Use your internal systems and records to stay up-to-date with the buyer’s history with you or your company. Then take it further for greater probability of success. Dig deeper into your preparation by using Quick Research, the second page of the Quick Prep Tool, shown in Figure 5–2. The Research page provides thought-starters for identifying additional research points for you to access. Today’s technology allows us to easily learn more about buyers, companies, and industries. In addition to reading trade magazines, identify relevant websites to locate information on the buyer and their company. You can locate valuable information on the buying company’s website by looking into such details as the company’s mission or value statements, industry news or trends, key stakeholders, and recent company business news.

There is a plethora of information now available for business buyers and consumers. Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter are great starting places. Begin with a search for the buyer’s name and company in search engines to locate the social media sites and forums where they “hang out.” Making the time for this research is another layer of preparation.

The Quick Research page guides you through specific considerations to ensure your conversation is relevant to the buyer’s current situation. It will help you find further possibilities of new opportunities and new conversation points with the buyer.

With the additional information you collect, begin identifying how your solutions align for the buyer. Identify the value you can offer to this person, company, or situation so you can incorporate that proof into every part of your conversation.