What’s In A N.A.M.E.
I like to think of sales as having 2 improvement dimensions: Effectiveness and Efficiency. Effectiveness is how good you are at winning deals. Efficiency relates to how you spend your time and how much you invest in an opportunity. For most companies their win ratio indicate they are quite effective, but when you look at funnel constipation (length of time opportunities don’t close etc) means they have an efficiency challenge. To become more efficient you need more robust, ruthless and objective qualification. When thinking about opportunity qualification think N.A.M.E.
Need: Does the account truly have a need for our solution?
Authority: Am I dealing with someone that can actually make the decision?
Money: Does the account have the money available for purchase now?
Emergency: There must be urgency to drive it. What bad thing will happen if
they delay the purchase. If nothing bad happens, it won’t happen?
Remember to qualify every opportunity and person. I use a simple trick to remind me. Every time I meet someone at an account, I say, “I’m sorry, I didn’t catch you NAME.” This prompts me to then ask the necessary qualifying questions.