How to leverage a sales-assisted buying process
Companies often require you to talk to their sales team to buy their software. This has typically been a frustrating experience for buyers but here are some ways to take advantage of it and make it valuable to you.Â
Know what to expectÂ
Hereâs what a typical sales-assisted process might look like:Â
âď¸ Discovery call: introductions and basics. May include a quick peek at the product but is mainly used to set the groundwork for the rest of the evaluation. The sales rep may also be trying to assess your âqualificationâ for a sales-assisted plan, which includes whether there is clear/strong intent and alignment to make a buying decision (vs. just opportunistically exploring).Â
đť Customized demo: Typically youâd get a more detailed demo highlighting the most important requirements for you and your team. This is an excellent opportunity to ask questions youâve not been able to get answers to easily via your research.Â
âď¸ Trial/POC/product eval: If youâre continuing youâll likely want to take the product for a trial run, including installation, creation of experiences, go-live, etc. Itâs unrealistic to expect to be able to influence any key metrics in this phase, so focus on testing functionality and assessing how well youâd be able to use the tool.Â
đđź Procurement/closing: Youâll be presented with a proposal and can undertake reviews of legal terms, security, compliance, etc., before signing an agreement.Â
Be prepared to share key infoÂ
Some less experienced buying groups will attempt to guard their information for fear of being duped or outmaneuvered into a disadvantageous position or price. This is counterproductive and will prevent the vendor from providing you with the most useful and accurate information to make an assessment.Â
Here is a list of items that you'll be asked to share. Sharing this before calls or asynchronously (e.g., via a document) will even speed up the process.Â
- How did you find this vendor?
- Why did you decide to start this evaluation process? What is the biggest pain(s) / need(s) / use case(s) that youâre looking to solve?
- What does success look like? Are there any key metrics youâre looking to move?
- What is your timeline for completing the evaluation?
- Who on your team will be the stakeholders and decision-makers?
- How familiar are you with procuring software for your company? Will you require contracts to be redlined, custom security questionnaires, etc.?Â
- What framework is your application built on? Is it a âSingle-Page Appâ (SPA)?
- What are your most essential features, requirements, and use cases?Â
- What other tools do you use in your stack, especially for data, analytics, help/support, etc?Â
- How many end users (âmonthly tracked or active users,â MAUs / MTUs) does your application have today, and what are your expectations within the next year or so?
- What are your alternative options?
- Are you familiar with what it might cost and do you have internal alignment around spending this on the right vendor?
All of these questions are designed to enable sales reps to show you the most relevant parts of the product, highlight similar case studies, offer best practices, and more quickly help furnish you with the information you need to make a decision. There is no harm in providing this information.Â
You may not need to answer all the questions up front, and as you align with your vendor of choice, you can be prepared to go deeper and share more info to help your sales rep support you. Remember, they are as much your advocate internally amongst their team, as they are an advocate for their team towards you.Â
Leverage your AE as a quarterback đ
Throughout the sales process, you may meet different people from the vendorâs team, this is a good opportunity to assess the overall quality of that team. Are people knowledgeable, diligent, responsive, etc., and would you like to work with them?
Once you engage with your Account Executive, use them effectively to help speed up your process. By sharing your needs, concerns, learnings, etc. you will enable them to fill in gaps and offer advice to ensure you are sufficiently armed to make the right decision.Â
You can also leverage your AE to help you meet other key folks on the vendorâs team, such as your Customer Success reps, Product leaders, and any others from whom you need more information or want to speak. They're on your side!
These DAP Evaluation Templates are the MVP
Let this templates do the heavy lifting for you as you find your favorite new tool