BusinessNews Publishing - Summary: Rainmaking Conversations: Review and Analysis of Schultz and Doerrs Book

Book Abstract

Rainmaking conversations are sales conversations which fill the new customer pipeline, win new deals and create new opportunities for great things to happen in the future. Theyre based around the RAIN acronym:

To get more sales for your firm learn how to prepare for and then have more RAIN conversations. Getting to this stage requires that you prepare well, understand the RAIN roadmap, focus on the RASP keys of rainmaking success and apply the 10 Rainmaker Principles.

The RAIN acronym is also a nod to the fact this process is focused on rainmakers a common name for people who bring the most new clients and revenue into an organization. RAIN is your guide to leading successful sales conversations.

Mike Schultz and John Doerr

We developed the RAIN Selling method to provide a framework, road map, and learning process for those who want to become rainmakers. Follow the Rainmaker Conversations road map and it will help you to sell effectively. But if you really want to achieve and join the rank of the rainmaker elite, you should take the 10 Rainmaker Principles to heart. Heres to the beginning of your long and fruitful journey down that path. Rainmakers have it good. Now, go out and make it RAIN.

Mike Schultz and John Doerr

About the Author

MIKE SCHULTZ is co-president of RAIN Group, a sales training organization. He works as a consultant with organizations such as John Hancock and Ryder to improve sales performance and develop rainmakers. He also teaches seminars and delivers keynotes at industry conferences as well as being on the faculty of Babson College.

JOHN DOERR is also co-president of RAIN Group. After an extensive career in business leadership, he now teaches and coaches thousands of sales professionals in many countries. In addition to working with leading organizations like London Business School, DHL and Informatica, John Doerr has sold millions of products and services to some of the worlds most prestigious institutions.

The Web site for this book is at www.RainSalesTraining.com .

Important Note About This Ebook

This is a summary and not a critique or a review of the book. It does not offer judgment or opinion on the content of the book. This summary may not be organized chapter-wise but is an overview of the main ideas, viewpoints and arguments from the book as a whole. This means that the organization of this summary is not a representation of the book.

1. Preparing to have RAIN conversations

RAIN conversations dont arise by accident. To make them happen, youve got to prepare well. The basic steps involved are:

To start the quest to become a rainmaker, ask yourself six questions:

1. How strong is my desire to excel in a sales role?
2. How committed am I to the principle of doing whatever it will take to succeed?
3. How much energy will I personally commit to succeeding as a rainmaker?
4. Hows my attitude? Am I positive about succeeding or do negative thoughts derail my efforts to become a rainmaker even before I even begin?
5. Do I accept responsibility for the results I generate or am I willing to just make excuses?
6. Am I willing to face my own personal sales demons my hidden weaknesses and flaws?

Unless and until you want more success in your sales career and youre willing to do whatever it takes to get there, its unlikely youll become a rainmaker. Similarly, until youre ready to put in the time and effort involved to move forward, other things will always take precedence and youll strike obstacles you never overcome. To become a rainmaker, youve got to believe youre responsible for your own success and be willing to work at what youre weak at. Rainmakers have these conversations with themselves and ask the right questions before they even embark on the journey. Youll need to do the same.

In a recent survey of 400,000 salespeople, the top five percent of achievers were compared to the bottom five percent. It was shown:

• 100 percent of those in the top five percent bracket had written goals.
• 16 percent of those in the bottom five percent bracket had written goals.

You wont reach rainmaker status by accident. To get there, youve got to set a written goal to be a rainmaker, live by that goal and commit whatever it takes to achieve your goal.

A simple routine for acting on your intention to become a rainmaker is:

• Every day, review your goals first thing in the morning and identify what you can do to move forward.
• Take a few minutes at the end of each day to review how things went and set goals for tomorrow.
• Each Friday, review how the week went and set your goals and action plans for the coming week.
• Once a month, meet with a small group of people you trust and review how youre going.
• Once a quarter, carry out a personal review: What do I absolutely need to do in the next three months to achieve my annual goals? Set three priorities for the next quarter you will focus on.
• Once each year, set your targets for the coming year. What do I need to do this year to reach my big-picture goals? If you can, break that big yearly goal down into quarterly and monthly goals.

The whole key is if your system is simple, youre more likely to use it than if its not. Some people just write their goals down on a piece of paper and keep it in the top drawer of their desk and this works well for them. Others have a Word file they open each week to review and update progress. Dont put off setting goals and tracking your progress until you have the perfect system in place. Get started on setting goals, making plans and then acting on your plans today.

To have rainmaker conversations, you first need to understand clearly the value you can provide and the impact you can have. When a new prospect meets you for the first time, you need to be able to communicate that value proposition well.

In practical terms, a value proposition is the collection of reasons why someone should buy from you. Based on your value proposition, you can then develop a positioning statement which will be a compelling, tangible statement of how any company or individual will benefit from buying from you.

A value proposition must do three things

• Prospects have to want and need what youre selling because it resonates with them and addresses their key issues and concerns.