The State of Conversation Intelligence
Relationship Intelligence
C-Suite Behaviors in Sales Calls
You may notice that when a C-Suite Executive joins a sales call, the tone and direction pivots. While everyone's time is important, the CXOs time is infinitely moreso, and your meeting should respect that and make the most of it. Understand how to talk to C-Level Executives based on how they behave in other sales calls.
# C-Suite Executives Who Attend Identified on the Invite
Including an agenda with C-Suite Executives contributes to small but measurable improvement to stage conversion. Setting a clear agenda before the meeting helps set expectations and gives C-Suite Executives an opportunity to shape the agenda. When you know what’s top of mind in advance, you can better prepare to address their needs.
10%
About 10% of the time, a CXO attends a meeting while not being on the invite.
C-Suite Time Spent Talking During a Meeting
You may think that a C-Level Executive would prefer to be an executive sponsor of a deal rather than an active participant. But if they are joining your team's call, they are joining with a purpose that should be met with thoughtful preparation. Getting C-Level executives to share context around their business through engaging questions have higher win rates. Engage the executive across from you so that you can have a more productive conversation.
“We’re training people to ask the right questions to understand what is important to the CEO. Once they’re on the call, it’s important to get them talking. They don’t need to be told what is important to them. They need to be heard.”
— Joel Rackham, SVP and Global Head of Direct Sales at MarketStar
What the data says about Relationship Intelligence
When a C-Level Executive joins a call, the tone and conversation path may shift towards one that's more direct, focused, and concise. It's your job as a sales rep or as a sales leader to listen and respond accordingly. And, of course, to do your research ahead of time.
Understanding how you can best tailor the conversation to get the most engagement from the CXO will help you make a lasting impression and may win you the deal.
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