As you move closer to the end of a deal, you'll likely encounter more objections, and identifying key stakeholders is the secret to overcoming those challenges. As you move into deeper conversation with the prospect, you may not realize that there are other people involved in the process, even if you aren't directly interacting with them. Your job as seller is to find out who they are. Today we'll help you understand who those key stakeholders are, how you should work with them, and how you can prepare for the process. Initial interest Imagine you have an initial conversation with someone who is interested in your lawn care business. You generated some interest and they expressed a desire to know more. You'll naturally address how you've helped other people in the past and take other steps to build value. At this point, you'll want to find out who else will be involved in this conversation. Typically, though, sellers neglect to ask that question. Ideally, you should find out whether the prospect has made a decision like this before. If so, has it been a long time? You do this kind of work on a day-to-day basis, but the prospect doesn't. He needs guidance, and you can help him move forward. Identifying stakeholders Avoid making him feel as though he isn't competent to make the decision. Instead of asking him who should be involved in the next call, ask it this way: "At this point in the conversation, my clients typically invite other people into the conversation." Instead of asking whether he'd like to invite others in, I would simply ask him who he would like to invite into the conversation. He might identify the CFO or the decision maker. Next, I would point out that, in order to make sure the next meeting is as valuable as possible, I'd like to know whether I can connect with some of those stakeholders to find out what they'd like to hear. If he has an objection, reframe the request so that he's the one making the contact with his stakeholders on your behalf. Keep him involved in the process so he feels comfortable. Cast of characters The first stakeholder is your decision maker. He tends to be the person that sellers most often keep their eyes on because he's the one that will do the final sign-off. But he may not get involved until later in the process. The decision maker may expect the influencer and the champion to do all of the hard work. Second is your influencer or the person who has the ear of your decision maker. She may be the right-hand person of your decision maker, or she may just be someone who has a connection with him. In some companies, this may be an administrative assistant, and sales reps must be mindful not to overlook these people. These executive assistants often wield much influence with the leadership. My wife worked in a similar position once, and her recommendation often depended on how the sellers treated her when they called into the office. End users are the people who will use the product or service you're offering, and they're the ones you'll likely interact with the most. We must make sure that they understand us and that we understand them. The buyer will sign the check to close the deal. If he doesn't like the deal, he will likely have key influence in it. The champion is the person who likes you and who brought you into the fold. She invited your team to consider the possibility of hiring you. The champion We recently did an entire episode about the importance of the champion. The...

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