Title: The Fundamentals of Business-to-Business Sales and Marketing
Author: John M Coe
Published by: McGraw Hill
John Coe describes himself as a “salesperson” even though he has developed a successful consulting career and built a company or two. In this book he promotes one main thesis: “The days when sales ruled and delivered results are over.” To this end the book is divided into three areas:
1. Diagnosis
Coe begins by outlining the obstacles to successful selling in today’s environment – customers with less time and many more alternatives, increased competition and a more complicated buying process. But the single most important issue is the incompatibility of the “sales” cycle and the “buying” process – specifically, pressures on sales to speed up while the buying process is more time consuming than ever.
2. New sales coverage model
According to Coe the key to success is the “blend of face-to-face sales calls and highly targeted communications.” Coe then outlines his view of the four “customer life cycle phases” and the importance of targeted communications.
3. Re-designing the inquiry generation process
Coe sets the stage with an analysis of current advertising practices which emphasise “awareness” versus “response”, are ineffective and may (or may not) increase awareness with little impact on behaviour. He then proceeds to outline in great detail the mechanics of lead generation – from inquiry screening to lead qualification (from A to Z).
This book has a few strengths, namely that it focuses on the unique aspects of B2B sales and marketing – with relevant case histories and examples – and it addresses why things are changing and prescribes how to deal with these changes. It may be too simplistic for some but is a worthwhile analysis of the dynamics of B2B selling.
Reviewed by Ruth Lukaweski
Senior director, RML Research
