As the Corporate Executive Board conducted and released important research regarding sales professionals in the current corporate landscape, various behaviours and skills rose to the surface to paint a successful profile picture.  “The Challenger Role” is a position that showed incredible results when salespeople were pursuing complex accounts.  By creating tension, constructively of course, sellers were able to remove clients from their comfort zone and learn about their true needs.  This established a flourishing business relationship, opening doors to new opportunities.

Challenging in the Modern Business World

As the reliability of the global economy continues to stumble, sales professionals have seen a massive shift in the techniques and expectations of the position.  Huthwaite conducted research that centred on client feedback in the Asia-Pacific region, showing the changing landscape in terms of client-company dynamics, and leading to a shift in the role of value in the salesperson’s arsenal.  Budgets are not what they used to be, and there are shorter “leashes” on product or service results.  Creating need has replaced relationship building, and sales success now hinges on creating a need instead of meeting one.

Implementing the Challenge

Now that we’ve established a need for challenging clients, it’s time to understand how to properly implement it.  Each client will have different variables involving geography and market concerns, and when you begin considering the level of executive you are dealing with, things can get a bit complicated.  Senior executives are not fans of hearing about things that they have yet to consider, and understanding the pride involved with their personal accomplishments can help you.  Instead of explaining things that they “may have missed”, let them come to these conclusions.  Basically, you are no longer concerned with explain, but instead with planting the framework to lead them to you.  The “Challenger Role” involves getting these executives to see future issues and utilise the expertise of the salesperson to combat these contingencies.

Establishing the Right Approach

Simply incorporating a challenge into a sales strategy isn’t enough, despite the obvious benefits with complicated buyers.  Finding the right angles to challenge your clients involves understanding the marketing and product fields as well as your own.  Heading into a client meeting with a game plan is one thing, but when you stick to it without focusing on the client, you can quickly alienate or appear to be pushy.  The line you take in these meetings should be respectful and client focused.  When you lead them to the right answer, you establish a need without explaining one.

Coaching Your Sales Staff

Many sales professionals will see the “Challenger Role” as being new territory, so expect some poor execution early on.  To properly converse with your sales team, utilise Sales Managers as the models to showcase proper implementation.  Training should be extensive in the upper levels of your sales team, giving them the tools to properly teach the necessary skills to the sales associates.  Sales managers working with Huthwaite realise the importance of proper field training, giving the opportunity to work the skills extensively before turning attention to the higher-level executives.  Building confidence is the key, and Huthwaite is working with several organisations to bring the concept of the “Challenger Role” into a sales staff’s toolbox.  With consistency on the execution of such concepts, sales results will spike, and client relationships will flourish.

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