The biggest thing you need to make sure to do when looking to ask something of
the C-Suite (or anyone really) is to first ensure you know what that person
cares about. The path of least resistance in getting approval of something you
want is for the person you need to win over seeing how they also win if they
give you what you want. If you understand what the C-Suite cares about and can
clearly articulate how if they give you more resources, you will be able to
influence them getting what they want as well, it should be a very easy sell.
Everybody loves a win-win! Another important tip- make sure to use data in your
argument. Data/numbers need to be used to effectively back up any claim you are
making, especially to a C-Suite audience.
Sales Stakeholders
1 answer
Head of Corporate Sales, West Coast, HubSpot • January 22
1 answer
Head of Corporate Sales, West Coast, HubSpot • January 22
Be prepared: C-Suite folks are busy people- don't waste their time. Ensure you
are prepared for every meeting you have with them. Anticipate the questions you
would expect them to ask and have your answers ready to reply with in real time.
Be clear and concise: It goes a long way in terms of how you show up to the
C-Suite if you can articulate what you need to say in a clear and concise way.
If you are taking the time to prepare, this should be easy enough to
accomplish.
Properly prepare them: If you are running a meeting or call together or simply
need your C-Suite's involvement in a deal or project you're working on, it is
critical to properly prep them for it. Take the extra time to build out a
pre-read that outlines the background of the deal or project, who's involved,
the goal of their involvement, what you actually need from them, and in some
cases suggested ghost written content (i.e. ghost written email in a deal for
exec to exec alignment). Simply put, if you are asking something of them, make
it as easy as possible for them to get up to speed and execute on it.
Be confident: The C-Suite are people too! Of course, have respect, but also have
confidence in you and make sure that shines through.
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Head of Corporate Sales, West Coast, HubSpot • January 22
Sponsors are critical for career progression. When you think about the best
persons to lean on for sponsorship, you should be thinking about someone who is
already bought into you and would endorse you to others within the business. You
want to also ensure that this person is well connected and has a "voice at the
table" that you don't have a "seat" at yet. Then, you need to ask that person
for their support. Most importantly, you then need to create value and as
mentioned in another response, ensure the things you are working on and focused
on to create value align with what is important to the business and will create
impact at scale.
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Head of Corporate Sales, West Coast, HubSpot • January 22
First, seek to understand. What is each stakeholder's stance, but more
importantly, why do they have that stance? What are their priorities, what are
their concerns and what are they looking to accomplish with their vision of a
given strategy? Once you understand that, it will be clear to see where their
perspectives align and the conversation can flip from one of debate to one of
solutioning. The key is making the conversation centered around solving for the
priorities, concerns and goals of each party. Once there is alignment on those
elements,you can present all of the options that fit that critiera and the
parties are then sitting on the same side of the table selecting a path
together.
1 answer
Head of Corporate Sales, West Coast, HubSpot • January 22
The simple answer is that I didn't. However, it didn't take long for me to
realize that in order for me to accomplish what I was driving on personally
(both internally, as I thought about promo paths at the companies I've worked
for and externally, when selling into other companies), I needed to ensure that
I understood what the respective C-Suite cared about and find a way to tie my
goals to their goals. For example, when thinking about my career progression, I
make sure to align the projects and initiatives I am focused on to build out my
body of work aren't just things I'm passionate about, but also things that align
to the strategic focuses of the business set by our C-Suite. This leads to real
impact, natural exposure with executive leadership and great reason for promo,
which solves for my goals of career progression and their goals of business
impact. When selling externally, I work with my team to ensure, as early in our
discovery phase as possible, that we understand who the DMs are (typically
C-Suite) and what they care about, so that the use cases and story-telling we
lean on throughout our sales process align to the problems their C-Suite wants
to solve. This is what gets contracts signed. Also, if you are able to offer a
solution to a business problem vs. an IC's problem, you are far more likely to
get direct access to the C-Suite, which is critical given they are the ultimate
DM.