So, you think you sell solutions, do you?

Almost every time that one of our SPI consultants speaks at an industry conference or a corporate event, we ask audiences this question: “How many of you sell solutions?”  Inevitably, almost every hand shoots up. 

But then we ask for a definition of a solution, and the response invariably is less enthusiastic. 

“Uh… an answer to a problem?”, someone usually proffers, tentatively.

That’s a good response, but not a very complete one.  What if your answer isn’t one that your customer is willing to hear?  What if your solution is hard for the customer to understand?  What if your answer doesn’t impress the customer?  What if they don’t even acknowledge that they have a problem in the first place?  Is your answer really a solution, then?

In his book, The New Solution Selling, Keith Eades defined a “solution” as follows:

Not only does the problem need to be acknowledged by the buyer, but both the buyer and salesperson must also agree on the answer. So, a solution is a mutually agreed-upon answer to a recognized problem. In addition, a solution must also provide some measurable improvement. By measurable improvement, I mean there is a before (a baseline) and an after (the baseline plus a delta). Now we have a more complete definition of a solution: It’s a mutually shared answer to a recognized problem, and the answer provides measurable improvement. (Emphasis added)

Unfortunately, not every sales professional understands this complete definition of a solution.  If they did, more people would respond to our original query, “How many of you sell solutions?”, with more thoughtfulness.  Selling a solution requires much more than a product that might be an answer to a potential customer problem.  To truly be a solution seller, the salesperson must, among other sales activities, be able to:

1. Understand the customer’s problem
2. Get the customer to acknowledge that they have that problem
3. Convey a clear vision of how certain capabilities could solve the customer’s problem
4. Get the customer to understand and accept the vision of the solution
5. Understand the potential value of the solution for that customer
6. Convey the value of the solution to the customer
7. Get the customer to acknowledge the value of the solution, and that it has enough value to warrant action
8. Guide the customer towards a buying decision that favors the seller’s capabilities

The Pseudo-Solution Illusion

In their book, The Solution-Centric Organization, Eades and Robert Kear explain why so many salespeople think they are “solution sellers”, when they are actually pushing product:

Companies are often organized extensively around products or product lines, which tends to place product at the forefront of the corporate mindset.  When efforts to transform the sales organization [to a solution-centric view] occur in this environment, it can be extremely challenging…

Eades and Kear observe that most organizations do not think about themselves in terms of the problems they solve for customers - instead, they define themselves in terms of what they make or deliver.  Rather than truly transform themselves to support a problem-solution focus throughout the company, too many organizations simply apply the “solution” label to their offerings.  Eades and Kear call these “pseudo-solution maneuvers”, and identify four common types:

• The messaging maneuver – In many cases, companies simply substitute the term “solution” for product or service. In other words, they simply adjust their high level messaging to use solution-oriented terms and phrases with little or no attention paid to the problems customers are experiencing.
• The bundling maneuver – When services are required to implement or support a product, they are offered as a “bundle,” and this combination of products and services is labeled a “total solution” for the customer. In technology-related industries, the bundling of products and services into a “package” is probably the most common use of the term “solution”. In other cases, several existing products are bundled to form a “solution” package.
• The specialization maneuver – In this case, a basic product is slightly altered to better meet the requirements or appear to meet requirements for a specific industry or constituency and termed a “tailored solution.” This is done to create the perception of specialization for a targeted buyer.
• The functional maneuver – A common practice for many organizations is to identify a functional area of a company and then label their offering a “solution” for that area. For example, “we provide a human resource solution” or “we provide a complete telecom management solution.”

All too often, when we ask audiences, “Do you sell solutions?”, and they respond in the affirmative, we discover upon further inquiry that they really mean one of these four kinds of pseudo-solution maneuvers - and they don’t understand that they aren’t really selling solutions at all.

Am I a Really a Solution Seller?

So, how do you know if you are really selling solutions?  When you understand the nuances of the definition of a “solution”, the kinds of solution selling behaviors you must master, and the ease with which one can be deluded by pseudo-solutions, it isn’t as easy a question to answer as you may first think.

It’s time for a reality check.  Take this quick self-assessment:

• When people ask what I do for a living, do I describe my job by the problems I help customers to solve, or by the products or services that I sell?
• Before a sales call, do I research the account to determine what kinds of problems they may have, or simply to get familiar with their business and key contacts - or not at all?
• In my initial contact with a prospect, do I focus on arousing their curiosity about how we have helped similar customers, or on the virtues of my product or company?
• During sales calls, do I use a structured approach to diagnose the prospect’s problem, or do I deliver a company or product overview?
• Do I proactively help the customer to discover the full value of what my capabilities could do for their organization, or do I provide a cost justification at the end of the sale cycle - or nothing at all?
• Do I actively help prospects to evaluate their risk in implementing my company’s capabilities, or do I passively respond to their requests for information?
• Do I push to close the sale of my product, or do I help my customer make a buying decision for my solution to their problem?

If you responded to any of these questions with answers that indicate an over-emphasis on your company’s products or services in your selling practices, then perhaps you might want to consider refreshing your Solution Selling skills, or becoming Solution Selling certified.  Then you can be confident that you truly are a “Solution Seller” and not a “product pusher”!

Good luck and good Solution Selling!