Apples and Pineapples are the same, said the buyer.
They are all fruit!
Wait, what? I am bigger, and sweeter. I am different, said the seller.
The Illusion of Uniqueness
As a business owner, you know your product or service is special. You’ve poured your heart and soul into creating something truly innovative. It stands out in the marketplace. If only your sales team could clearly tell your unique value proposition. Then, prospects would line up to buy, right?
It’s a comforting thought, but it’s time for a hard truth: this perspective is holding you back.
We need a big change in view to succeed in sales today. We need to step out of our own shoes and into those of our buyers. After all, sales don’t happen in your boardroom or on your sales deck. They happen in the buyer’s mind, within the complex process they go through.
And from that vantage point, the view is very different.
The Harsh Reality of Commoditization
Here’s the truth that most business owners struggle to accept. Ready? No matter how innovative you think your offering is. The buyer’s view is you look just like your competitors.
Let that sink in for a moment.
You’re not alone in claiming to be different – everyone is shouting the same message. Day in and day out, similar pitches bombard your prospects. They don’t know who to trust. Many have been burned before. This makes them more skeptical and resistant to sales messages.
Don’t believe me? Let me share a story that might change your mind.
The Asphalt Innovator’s Struggle
One of our clients had what seemed like a fool-proof unique selling proposition. They were the only company in their multi-state region. They could truly extend the life of asphalt roads. Competitors just added a top coat to make roads look new. Our client’s service is different. It replaces the maltenes that the sun removes from asphalt. This extends road life by 50-70%. Millions of dollars saved!
On paper, it should have been an easy sale. They were offering a superior solution with tangible, long-term benefits. No one else in their market could match their offering.
Yet, they struggled. The vast majority of potential buyers lumped them in with their top coat competitors. Prospects were highly skeptical that the service worked as claimed. Customers used terms like “Snake Oil”. Buyers had been burned by competitors’ solutions. The solutions quickly broke down. So, buyers were reluctant to consider our client’s pitch.
If a company has a truly different product and faces such challenges, imagine the tough battle for less unique offerings.
Think about your own industry. Whether you’re selling security systems, or landscaping design, the uncomfortable truth is this: no matter how differentiated you believe you are, from the buyer’s perspective, you’re likely seen as a commodity – just another option in a sea of similar choices.
The sales development and sales training industry has not adapted to this issue. Sales training rarely works. Hiring sales retreads never works. Sales managers and sales leaders are ill equipped to solve the problems. This reality has profound implications for how we approach sales:
1. The Flaw in the Standard Sales Model: The traditional sales playbook is built on an assumption of differentiation. But in today’s markets, true differentiation is fleeting. That groundbreaking feature you’re so proud of? Your competitors will likely copy it within months.
2. The Hiring Mismatch: Our traditional hiring approaches optimize for Standard Sales Model skills – the ability to pitch a differentiated message. But what if that’s not what we need anymore? What if we should be focusing on hiring for the ability to connect with buyers on a deeper level?
3. The Process Problem: The Standard Sales Model uses processes built around a typical sales-driven closing approach. But in a world where buyers are in charge, deals that seem certain can fall apart at the last minute. The harsh truth? In those situations, the buyer was always in control. Your sales team could move them from one meeting to the next. They checked boxes on your process chart. But, this didn’t actually move them closer to buying.
These realizations can be uncomfortable. They challenge long-held beliefs about how sales should work. But accepting this new reality is the first step. It’s the first step to changing your sales approach. It will help you regain control of your company’s growth.
So, if the Standard Sales Model is failing us in this new landscape of commoditization, what’s the alternative? How can we break through the noise and truly connect with our buyers?
The answer lies in a new approach. It accepts the reality of commoditization and finds victory elsewhere.
Evolving the Standard Sales Model
It’s clear that the Standard Sales Model, in its traditional form, is struggling to deliver results in today’s commoditized markets. But this doesn’t mean we should abandon it entirely. The model became standard for a reason — it contains valuable insights and practices that have proven effective over time.
The key is not to discard the model, but to evolve it for the new realities of the marketplace.
You still need certain key sales skills to be successful, and hiring for temperament and skills still works. But we need to adjust the specific temperament and skills we’re looking for. Instead of generic sales abilities, we need to focus on the unique combination of traits and capabilities that drive success with your specific buyers.
A defined sales process with clear milestones remains crucial for managing your pipeline and forecasting accurately. But we need to adjust what those goals are. We must align them with the buyer’s journey, not the seller’s actions. This will give you a more accurate picture of deal progress and help you forecast with greater confidence.
And yes, you still need to separate yourself from your competitors. But the way you do that needs to be adjusted to work in today’s hypercompetitive and commoditized markets. Instead of shouting about your uniqueness, you need to demonstrate it through every interaction.
So, how do you do all of this? How do you evolve your sales approach to thrive in a commoditized world? The answer lies in a fundamental shift in view. It puts the buyer at the center of all you do.
If you are curious about how a change in perspective can help your sales team win, maybe we should talk. This isn’t any easy correction, but it works!
