SECTION 1: ACTIVITY – BUYER BEWARE!

Purpose

This briefing is for your End of Course (EoC) consolidation activity. You are strongly advised to read all of this document, and to re-read your course notes in preparation prior to the workshop.

This activity was designed principally, though not exclusively, for colleagues who hold territory or external sales roles. Those currently holding internal sales positions will also derive benefit from taking part.

The aim is to mimic a realistic workplace scenario, which requires demonstration of specific activities and tasks which fit into parts of the seven stages of the Sales Cycle.

Each person will be expected to demonstrate the commercial behaviours (skills), covered in the CDP programme, namely:

• Conducting research into prospect organisation using all available resources
• Planning for outcomes in customer contact situations
• Establishing Rapport Listening to customer’s responses
• Use of a range of question types
• Identifying needs and wants (including identifying any wider opportunities for Breedon)
• Observing buying signs
• Initial handling of objections
• Reaching agreements (to overcome any objection) and/or using trial closing techniques
• Demonstrating effective post-meeting follow-up behaviour

This development activity will provide plenty of opportunity for reflection and feedback. Parts may be recorded for you to access later, subject of course, to comply with current GDPR guidance and best practises.

Format

This activity is in 4-parts:

1. Preparation for approaching a given prospect or customer (needs to be completed prior to the workshop)
2. Making a phone call to arrange a (virtual) meeting with a new given client
3. Prepare for and conducting a live contact meeting with a given customer or prospect
4. Produce effective follow-up action plan and reflections

The activities will be a blend of real-world and fiction. Your prospective customer is a real business for which you can evidence research. However, the representatives with whom you interact are fictional.

In summary:

• You will be given a (fictitious) name, bio and role of a person who is a recently appointed commercial manager as your primary contact. This ‘buyer’ will be played by an actor, who may or may not be as knowledgeable as you.
• The information you receive about them is fictional, and is not intended to resemble anyone, living or dead, from that organisation or any other similar business.
• You are to be yourself and to act just as if you are at work. You should not assume any additional authority or level of decision-making ability.

Timings

• This activity briefing will be issued to participants prior to Workshop 3, giving sufficient time to prepare
• The exercise is to be completed during the final workshop session
• Delegates will be given time to prepare for each stage of the activity
• Each live meeting will be expected to last for between 20-30 minutes

Resources

• Briefing Document (this microsite)
• Suitable rooms for face-to-face, telephone or virtual meetings and calls
• Suitable IT connections and equipment for all
• Websites and company systems, CRM or similar
• Short Bio on main buyer prospect
• Course learning materials for delegates. In particular, you are advised to reference:
  • Personalised MyeverythingDisc™ Sales Report
  • Generic DiSC reference handout (below)
  • Programme Handbook: Section 4, pages 16-30 & 41-53
• Audio-video recording equipment/facility may be used (activated by the facilitator)

Your Role

• You will be required to work as a team on these tasks.
• You should prepare yourselves for customer contact tasks as an individual (even though you attend as a team for learning purposes).
• You must also be ready for each meeting or call, and be ready to conduct needs analyses, answer any questions, offer solutions, as well as to handle objections from the prospective buyer.
• The activity should have some tangible goals or purpose, rather than being a chance for ‘a nice chat’.  Any deliverable outcomes are likely to generate follow-ups which you will record in Part 4.
• Delegates will be required to take part in a short peer-review (10 minutes), immediately following the activity.

Buyer’s Role

• The buyer will role-play a typical buyer type as described in the course handbook.
• The buyer will respond to questions truthfully but will not pro-actively offer up key information, decisions or details unless specifically asked.

Wingman Facilitators

• Your Wingman facilitators will supervise the exercise throughout.
• They will monitor time and start & conclude each stage of the activity to ensure the objectives are achieved.
• They may pause or terminate or extend the activity at any stage to assist in the learning process.
• Upon completion of each stage, they will give delegates time to prepare for the next event.

PART 1: RESEARCH AND PREPARATION ACTIVITY (TO BE COMPLETED PRIOR TO WORKSHOP 3)

Tasks

1. Undertake planning and research into your prospective organisation and establish what current/future opportunities exist. You will get some time to work with your team during the workshop
2. At the workshop, All of the team members are to conduct a 5-minute briefing to the rest of the group. You should use the 6Ws as a framework, should clearly identify existing/potential opportunities, and have an initial plan for the next stage – how to approach the buyer to arrange a meeting.

PART 2: ORGANISING/ARRANGING A BUYER MEETINGS

Task

A nominated member of your team will make contact with a buyer via a telephone call. They will attempt to arrange a meeting of up to 30 minutes with the buyer at a time that suits both parties (any dates will do!).  The meeting may be virtual or face-to-face at the client’s offices.

The call should clarify an agenda and have a purpose.

PART 3: CONDUCTING A PURPOSEFUL SALES MEETING

Task

As a team, you will attend either a virtual or face-to-face meeting with the buyer. One of you will be nominated to take the lead but should ensure colleagues are brought into the conversation as required. The meeting should last between 20-30 minutes and produce deliverable outcomes.

Evidence of a good meeting, in practice, is in the use of correct questioning techniques, listening and summarising, rapport building, and handling objections, all of which lead to some actions.

PART 4: FOLLOW-UP ACTIONS & REFLECTIONS

Complete the Reflections Sheet as instructed by the Wingman Facilitiator.  The template for this can be found here.

Following completion of this, you should email evidence of which follow-up actions you would take in a real-life situation, along with your reflections.  This email should be sent to workshops@wingmanltd.com.

In the email you should:

1. Briefly describe, in a SMART format, both your own and any buyer follow up actions
2. Detail your personal reflections from the activity using the headings:

• What went well?
• What didn’t go so well?
• What would I do differently next time (learning points)

Upon receipt of this email and completion of the EKQ, you will have completed the programme!

SECTION 2: THOMAS-KILMAN NEGOTIATION QUESTIONNAIRE RESULTS