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Want get buy-in for
a program or an idea within your firm?
Consider conducting “internal sales”
calls on the people you’re trying to persuade.
An internal sales
call is where you go to the person you need to persuade, sit down in
her office and ask her about her needs and the needs of her
department. You listen for her and her team’s business objectives
without even bringing up what you’re trying to accomplish with your
program.
Once you understand
her goals, you then can come back at a future time with a plan for
showing how your project could help her and her team achieve their
objectives.
Here’s an example.
Let’s say that
you’re an internal auditor at an investment firm. You need the
cooperation of the trading department to ensure compliance with SEC
regulations. The problem is that the traders see your group as a
bunch of internal cops that just cause extra work and never add
value.
Rather than going
into the trading group and telling them all the reasons why the SEC
requires them to comply with regulations, try conducting
an internal sales call.
Sit down with the
top traders and say, “Tell me about the big issues you’re dealing
with now as a trader?”
“What are the key
plans you have?”
“What are the
biggest barriers that you have to achieving your goals?”
Then you listen.
You might find that
your team of auditors can help the group achieve their business
goals. For example, maybe the traders are finding that their trades
are moving too slowly through the system. Perhaps your group can
help with that issue. Or maybe the traders are concerned about
the legality of certain trades. Could your team suggest ways
to help? Or maybe the traders have concerns about money laundering
being conducted through their operations. Once again, your team
might be able to suggest a solution.
Who knows what they
will say? But once you’ve heard their needs, you can then
determine whether your resources as an internal auditor can be brought to
bear to help solve their problems. Then you can pitch your program
as a solution to one of that team’s core business problems.
Good sales people
understand that you make sales by understanding the perspective of
the buyer. If you’re trying to make an internal sale, take the time
to understand the perspective of your “buyer” by conducting an
internal sales call.
At Speechworks we
help our clients learn how to communicate in a way that connects and
persuades. If you’re interested in becoming a great communicator
give us a call at 404-266-0888 or check out our website at
www.speechworks.net. |
