World Class Selling

Praise for Jim Holden's World Class Selling

"World Class Selling is a must for any company executive and sales professional committed to achieving world class supremacy. Jim Holden has surpassed himself."
—George E. Harvey President, Business Group AT&T Canada

"The Holden Corporation and its value concept teachings are not new to the Microsoft OEM division. For the past three years we have worked with them, immersing ourselves in their value management methodology, applying it to a variety of scenarios in our business, with excellent results. For us, World Class Selling is another great extension of what we have been practicing for some time. I'm sure it will make us an even better organization to reckon with."
—Joachim Kempin Senior Vice President, OEM Division, Microsoft

"In World Class Selling, Jim Holden adds another dimension to his teaching effectiveness. The real-life highs, lows, threats to, and accomplishments of Mary Gagan establish the drama of what selling has become.an outstanding book which addresses a very complicated subject in a very interesting and comprehensive way."
—William Y. O'Connor Chairman, CEO, and President, GTECH Corporation

"The concepts put forth in World Class Selling, created by linking critical sales and sales-related areas of a business, will drive any company's ability to change as market circumstances change. Holden Corporation has been a strong, passionate, and value-focused partner to ALLTEL. Their proven processes are helping to link every employee, everywhere in the company, directly or indirectly to providing value to our customers."
—Jeff Fox President, ALLTEL Information Services

"Using the methods Jim Holden spells out in World Class Selling, we at Origin were able to use one common language and professionalize our sales process and sales force, resulting in an increased hit rate and lower sales cost."
—Peter Overakker Executive Vice President Origin International (The Netherlands)

Aus der Sicht des Verkäufers wendet sich dieses Buch höchst aktuellen Fragen zu, unter anderem: Wie entwickelt man eine Langzeitvision? Wie überzeugt man Kunden in unkonventioneller Weise? Wie macht man sich das Internet zunutze? Wie definiert und mißt man den (qualitativen und quantitativen) Wert einer Kundenbeziehung? Wie richtet man Marketing, Verkauf und Strategien der Mitarbeiter aus, um die Entwicklung des Geschäfts auf höchstem internationalen Standard zu halten?(03/99)

Introduction: Selling at the Forefront of Change 1

Value chain Management 2

Integrating Sales and Marketing 4

Integrating Sales and Human Resources 5

Your Personal Challenge 7

Chapter 1 The Competitive Landscape 10

The First Reality 12

Building Wisdom 14

Building and Evaluating Value 15

Performance Bonding 22

Building Value Propositions 26

Value-Based Relationships 30

Chapter 2 Customer Relationships 36

Value Expectations 39

FOX Hunting 52

Formulating Strategy 55

Political Competition 60

Chapter 3 The Competitive Salesperson 66

Sales Currency 69

Measuring Sales Currency 74

Political Acumen 78

Chapter 4 Competency Profiling 86

Building a Competency Map 86

Competency Profiling 92

Sales Attributes 95

Integrity and Performance 95

Chapter 5 Creating Value through Technology 99

The Technology Gap 103

A Failed Attempt 104

Formulating Value-Centric Technology Strategy 109

Automating Value-Centric Sales Methodology 112

Chapter 6 Segmenting the Market 122

Choosing the Approach 124

Defining Value Chain Levels 125

Chapter 7 The Value-Centric Transformation 135

Putting Strategy Back into Strategic Planning 136

A Missed Opportunity 137

Managing Value 139

The Entire Buying Process 140

The Customer Food Chain 146

Defining Customer Buying Patterns 152

Confronting Internal Politics 155

Chapter 8 Selling to Value 160

Accepting the Call to Action 161

Creating Value Chain Language 164

Selling to Blue Value 166

Establishing the GLOS Ratio 169

Selling to Green Value 171

Business Solutions Accounts 175

Qualifying Business Solutions Opportunities 178

Business Solutions Competencies 181

Strategic Accounts 183

Strategic Currency 190

Strategic Competencies 190

Chapter 9 Integrating Sales and Marketing 194

Approach to Market 195

Achieving Sales and Marketing Alignment 199

Marketing-to-Sales Cycle Alignment 203

Emerging Internal Opposition 210

Chapter 10 Integrating Sales and Human Resources 216

Recruiting and Selection 217

Performance Management 225

Value-Centric Compensation 229

A Blueprint for Value Chain Management 232

About the Author 243

Index 245

"World Class Selling is a must for any company executive and sales professional committed to achieving world class supremacy. Jim Holden has surpassed himself." -George E. Harvey, President, Business Group AT&T Canada

"The Holden Corporation and its value concept teachings are not new to the Microsoft OEM division. For the past three years we have worked with them, immersing ourselves in their value management methodology, applying it to a variety of scenarios in our business, with excellent results. For us, World Class Selling is another great extension of what we have been practicing for some time. I'm sure it will make us an even better organization to reckon with." -Joachim Kempin, Senior Vice President, OEM Division Microsoft

"In World Class Selling, Jim Holden adds another dimension to his teaching effectiveness. The real life highs, lows, threats and accomplishments of Mary Gagan establish the drama of what selling has become . . . an outstanding book which addresses a very complicated subject in a very interesting and comprehensive way." -William Y. O'Connor, Chairman, CEO, and President GTECH Corporation

"The concepts put forth in World Class Selling, created by linking critical sales and sales related area of a business, will drive any company's ability to change as market circumstances change. Holden Corporation has been a strong, passionate and value-focused partner to ALLTEL. Their proven processes are helping link every employee, everywhere in the company, directly or indirectly to providing value to our customers." -Jeff Fox, President ALLTEL Information Services

"Using the methods Jim Holden spells out in World Class Selling, we at Origin were able to use one common language and professionalize our sales process and sales force, resulting in an increased hit rate and lower sales cost." -Peter Overakker, Executive Vice President Origin International (The Netherlands)

JIM HOLDEN is the founder and CEO of Holden Corporation, an internationally recognized leader in sales and marketing effectiveness. The company has pioneered the first proven methodology to align sales and marketing in today's marketplace, working with major industries worldwide, including an impressive array of Fortune 1000 companies. Holden is the author of Power Base Selling: Secrets of an Ivy League Street Fighter, also published by Wiley.

World Class Selling The Crossroads of Customer, Sales, Marketing and Technology

In today's changing marketplace, the sales methods and practices of yesterday will no longer work. To stay ahead, sales and marketing professionals at every level must take on new roles. Companies must also be willing to reorganize and operate differently. But these transitions are not easily realized and, in today's challenging business environment, are too often vigorously resisted. World Class Selling provides the personal/professional tools and the methodology needed to quickly and effectively make these transitions. Building upon the Power Base(r) theory introduced in his earlier book, Power Base Selling, Jim Holden presents current and future marketplace requirements, offering a broader, more strategic view of industry trends and their impact on sales. Examining in depth the significant personal and organizational implications of selling today, Holden demonstrates the best ways to ensure both your own success and that of your company. World Class Selling is written in a unique format that the author calls "personal dimensioning." In a virtual business setting, fictional characters deal with the complex new marketplace in a real-world business situation. You'll follow a salesperson of fifteen years' experience as she is victimized by industry trends which launch her and her company on a quest to climb the value chain ahead of the competition. You will discover how an individual can play a significant role in driving change for a company's benefit. You will learn to navigate the minefield of infernal company politics in order to progress in today's marketplace. You will come in contact with corporate Foxes-powerful people of high integrity-and learn how to identify them, to your advantage. You will also experience working with individuals at the other end of the spectrum, those who would advance themselves at your expense or that of their company. World Class Selling also covers such timely subjects as:

• Creating a vision for a major account over the long term, including the use of Internet technology
• Defining and measuring value to the customer, and pursuing customers in nontraditional ways
• Introducing the role of technology in providing new, highly intuitive sales performance and coaching tools, along with just-in-time training using Web-based applications
• Aligning sales, marketing, and human resources practices to create a world class business development department

For many, today's new selling challenges will truly mean survival of only the fittest. World Class Selling will help you and your company take an active role at the forefront of change and sell successfully into the future.