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Name of author Rick Baker, P.Eng.

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Using R.A.D.A.R. to succeed at complex sales

by Rick Baker
On Oct 6, 2010
If you sometimes feel your major sales efforts are a little out of control then an injection of organized sales process will help.
 
If you have any of the following symptoms then your major sales process could use a tune-up:
  • You have this feeling of discomfort about your overall sales...you know budgets are not being met or you worry they won't be met
  • While enough major deals are being done you believe money is being left on the negotiation table when your team works with major Clients
  • Your sales team is doing lots of deals but the deals are too small; you wonder if your sales people are afraid or unable to take on larger challenges...when you talk about this with your sales team you get the sense results could be much better
  • You do not have enough major 'Marquee Clients'...or, borrowing from the Heath brothers, you are not passing 'The Sinatra Test'
There are several ways to solve this problem.
 
One way is to use R.A.D.A.R.
 
For military applications, R.A.D.A.R. was developed to provide early information - early warning - and that allowed smaller forces to do the right things, at the right time, in the right place.
 
In his book 'Hope Is Not A Strategy, The 6 Keys to Winning the Complex Sale', Rick Page outlines the R.A.D.A.R. process he developed to help sales teams manage a portfolio of sales opportunities. Page presents his R.A.D.A.R. Sales process as: R.eading A.ccounts and D.eploying A.ppropriate R.esources™.
 
Concentration of force is Page's first principle of strategy. 'You must pick the battles you can win, then win the battles you pick.' That means sales people can not waste time on lower-quality prospects.
 
Page outlines 6 keys to winning a complex sale:
Challenges     R.A.D.A.R. Process
Value.   1. Link solutions to Pain (or Gain)
Resource Allocation.   2. Qualify the Prospect
Competition.   3. Build Competitive Preference
Strategy.   4. Determine the Decision-Making Process
Politics.   5. Sell To Power
Teamwork.   6 Communicate the Strategic Plan
The first 5 steps are inputs and the last step is the plan. The steps are performed simultaneously.
 
The sales team receives the following benefits when (Step 6) Communicate the Strategic Plan is fully performed:
 
• Increases competitive advantage from consistent, effective execution • Crystallizes your thinking and forces a decision • Provides early detection of blind spots and visibility into the future • Leads and empowers your team with a clear direction • Prioritizes the urgent from the important • Increases your ability to control and manage multiple accounts • Develops respect with peers and management
 
R.A.D.A.R. can be used on its own if your sales team presently has no defined major-sales process. Or, R.A.D.A.R. can be used to complement your existing major-sales process. And, small sales teams or even individual sales people will benefit from the injection of some discipline like that provided by R.A.D.A.R.

Tags:

Sales | Seeking Simple!

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Sales Tweet #58

by Rick Baker
On Oct 6, 2010
Sales Tweet #58 A Client yelled at Ernest Seller yesterday and Ernest said "If I wanted this abuse I could stay home".
 
The Thinking Behind the Sales Tweet
Ernest's wife doesn't actually yell at him. His wife is a saint. [Some say she must be to tolerate him…but, that's more like a huge blog or a book than a Sales Tweet.] Anyhow, Ernest does get yelled at by Clients and other people during his work day. And, he likes to respond as he did here. Every once in a while this effort at humour causes the Client to laugh as the Client walks Ernest to the door...

Tags:

Thought Tweets | Ernest Seller

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Did you ever wonder… - #2

by Rick Baker
On Oct 5, 2010
…if Man created language so we could gossip about one another?
 
…why dogs continue to set the animal-kingdom standard for tail chasing?
 
…when we will stop using pennies?
 
…how our brains, without any help from us, manage to come up with those unusual dreams?
 
…if Man's first effort at writing was done to account for property owned or money owed?
 
…how can it possibly be 300 degrees Celsius only 50 kilometres from here?
 
…why our genes haven't evolved to cause us pain when we think up stupid ideas?
 
…who was the first Roman to decide 'important things' should be written in Greek rather than in Latin?
 
…how the first "farmer" came upon the idea people could guide the growth of plants?
 
…if negative thinking kills more people than cigarettes?
 
…when human beings began to criticize others for doing things wrong?
 
…if there are any 5-word English-language homonyms?
 
…if you were traveling in space at 50 miles per hour without a space suit then would your hair trail behind or just sit normal?

Tags:

Beyond Business

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Sales Tweet #57

by Rick Baker
On Oct 5, 2010
Sales Tweet #57 How are your FAQs? How impressive is your repertoire of Client-emotion touching questions?
 
The Thinking Behind the Sales Tweet
I am not talking about being manipulative. I am talking about appealing to emotions that are higher than the base emotions. I am talking about asking questions that are designed to discover the Client's true desires.

Tags:

Questions?: The Art of Asking Good Questions | Sales | Thought Tweets

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Sales Tweet #56

by Rick Baker
On Oct 4, 2010
Sales Tweet #56 Ernest Seller plans to play FBI today…he's going to try to profile his "Ideal Client".
 
The Thinking Behind the Sales Tweet
But, and this might not be a major surprise, Ernest won't actually create a profile of his "Ideal Client" today. One of his kids has a dentist appointment in the morning. Ernest and his dear wife will be visiting the nice fellow who teaches 'The Boy' later [what time was that teacher thing again?]. And, Ernest always gets his hair cut on the first Monday of the month [can't let the barber shop crowd down again]. And, wasn't he supposed to visit the bank? And didn't the wife want him to pick up some [what was that?] on the way home...

Tags:

Thought Tweets | Ernest Seller

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Sales Tweet #55

by Rick Baker
On Oct 1, 2010
Sales Tweet #55 How do you react to Clients' FAQs? How deal-getting is your repertoire of answers to your Clients' FAQs?
 
The Thinking Behind the Sales Tweet
This is similar to Sales Tweet #50. It is about working to understand Clients and working to anticipate what will likely happen when meeting with Clients. And, it is about tailoring communication to maximize the efficiency and effectiveness of sales calls. And, efficiency and effectiveness are important to both the Client and the sales person. Planning ahead - thorough-planning ahead - increases the likelihood of completing action steps in a smooth and comfortable way...the Client will appreciate the time you have taken even if he or she doesn't mention it.

Tags:

Questions?: The Art of Asking Good Questions | Sales | Thought Tweets

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