What's Next! with Tiffani Bova

The Triple Fit Sales Strategy with Christoph Senn

Mar 13, 2025

Christoph Senn, an adjunct professor at INSEAD and co-director of their Marketing & Sales Excellence Initiative, discusses transformative sales strategies. He emphasizes the importance of aligning with customer strategies instead of just pitching products. Christoph introduces the 'Triple Fit Strategy,' advocating for long-term relationships and effective engagement. He also highlights how integrating short-term and long-term goals can drive sustainable success and the need for transparency in sales to build trust and enhance value.

25:00

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Episode guests

Christoph Senn

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Quick takeaways

The Triple Fit Strategy emphasizes the transformation from product-focused selling to aligning with customers' strategic needs for sustainable growth.

Effective customer engagement relies on moving past transactions to foster partnerships through shared goals and detailed understanding of their challenges.

Deep dives

The Essence of Customer-Centric Strategy

A major insight emphasizes the shift from traditional product-centric selling to a customer-centric approach known as the triple fit strategy. This strategy encourages suppliers to reframe their perspective and consider themselves as partners with their customers. By asking what it would be like if they operated as one entity, both parties can elevate discussions beyond transactional negotiations, focusing on shared strategic goals. This new mindset suggests that true growth comes from understanding and addressing the customer's real issues, rather than simply positioning a product for sale.

Intro

2min

Evolving Sales Strategies for Lasting Relationships

10min

Balancing Short-Term Fixes with Long-Term Business Success

4min

Empowering Sales Success Through Mindset and Relationship Building

4min

Building Trust Through Customer Engagement in Sales

4min

Welcome to the What's Next! Podcast with Tiffani Bova.

I have the honor and pleasure of welcoming Christoph Senn to the show today.

Christoph is an adjunct professor of marketing at INSEAD, one of the world's leading and largest graduate business schools. He's joining us today from Switzerland - it’s always great to have the international flavor to the show. He is Codirector of INSEAD Marketing & Sales Excellence Initiative, amongst many other things, and an advisor to some of the largest companies in the world. He has a book out that joined the great ones that I enjoyed reading at the end of 2024 called Triple Fit Strategy.

THIS EPISODE IS PERFECT FOR… anyone looking to build stronger customer relationships and drive growth through a more strategic approach to sales.

TODAY’S MAIN MESSAGE… traditional sales approaches focus on pitching products, but real growth comes from understanding and aligning with your customer’s strategy. Christoph introduces the "Triple Fit Strategy," a framework that moves beyond transactional selling to create long-term, mutually beneficial relationships.

KEY TAKEAWAYS:

Building strong customer relationships requires aligning with their strategy, not just selling a product.
Shifting from transactional selling to strategic collaboration drives long-term business growth.
Understanding what truly matters to your customer creates more meaningful and effective engagements.
A broader perspective on value can make negotiations less about price and more about partnership.
Sales teams that focus on customer success are more likely to drive sustainable results.

WHAT I LOVE MOST… Christoph’s perspective on treating customers as if you were part of the same company. When you align with their priorities and think beyond your own product, you open the door to real partnership and long-term success.

Running Time: 24:59

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Christoph’s Book: Triple Fit Strategy: How to Build Lasting Customer Relationships and Boost Growth