Beat the Odds by Perfecting Your Market Entry Strategy

Joining us for today’s show is Walt Megura, Vice President of Emerging Industry Segments and Channels for Ericcson. Walt is here to share his experience in creating new beachheads in verticals that provide future long-term growth to Ericsson.

Today we are going to demonstrate how to ensure you have the right sales strategy and talent to enter new markets.

Why is this an important topic? To grow revenue, companies are moving into adjacent spaces. Assumptions made during the planning process make or break the success of the entry into new markets. The selling motion that has worked so beautifully for you in other markets may or may not work in new markets.

In this first segment we discuss how to ensure you have the right sales strategy and talent to enter new markets. To begin, Walt shares an overview of the business challenges faced as Ericcson sought to enter new markets. For each new market, Walt describes how you determine the value of your solution to the market. In other words, how did you validate that the ambition to enter the new market is supported by the capabilities of your solution?

Walt then describes the strategies to enter new markets and outlines the different types of strategies. Did you have an effectiveness (focus on penetration of the market with land & expand), or an efficiency strategy (profitable business)?

In the second segment we discuss how to assess sales talent and what is required for success in each of the markets you want to enter. How were the sales hiring profiles different that the proven profile of the core business? How do you evaluate existing sales talent, who has been successful in other markets for the new markets?

We wrap up the show by describing the points of differentiation to look for in each new market and how these factors impact the sales strategy. The variance in sales cycles and buying dynamics will influence how you structure your sales force and the strategy you deploy.

In summary, Walt's interview provides a valuable context to help you avoid the trap of simply applying a proven approach from your core markets. Increase your probability of success by matching your sales strategy and talent to the new market.

To evaluate your sales strategy for the new market, consider leveraging an interactive calculator that will help you understand if you have a chance at success. Take the Revenue Growth Diagnostic test and rate your Sales Strategy against SBI’s emerging best practices.