I recently found out that our win rates jump from 42% to 68% when we are multi-threaded across THREE or more people. 

Access from one to two people makes no difference. 3-4 is where we make our money:

This led us to codify five multi-threading "plays" we now use based on the situation. Here they are for you to steal or experiment with:

1. "Same Side of the Table"

This is our most foundational play. And it must be combined with one of the others. The idea is we INTENTIONALLY stay single-threaded for the first two calls with a potential champion. We want to get them 'bought in' before we open things up to a group presentation. 

Why?

Because if we DON'T, then they are evaluating our solution ALONGSIDE their colleagues. They're not "on our side" yet. They are in a critical, evaluation mindset. But if we get them bought in first before expanding our footprint? They then become a co-seller with us rather than someone we're still trying to win over.

That’s a powerful asset in group meetings. You'll notice this isn't really a 'multi-threading play.' It's a play we use to setup our multi-threading to be far more successful.

Slow down now, speed up later.

2. "The Roundabout"

This is our "champagne problem" play. We use it when our entry point into the deal is with the economic buyer (in our case, the CRO). This is common for us as we primarily sell to mid market accounts.

Great problem to have, but we're still single-threaded and have a single point of failure. Here's what we do:

Once we get the CRO 'bought in' after a couple calls: "My guess is you want your direct reports bought in on this. So let me do the heavy lifting. I'll do a round of conversations with each one. Then, in two weeks, you and I can debrief how those conversations went. Fair?"

We schedule that CRO call two weeks out IN ADVANCE. We then get immediate intros to VPs and Directors. Now our footprint is both high and wide. We no longer have a single point of failure (CROs are notorious for 'ghosting').

3. "Reciprocation" 

We use this when we're single-threaded with someone who can't get a deal done by themselves. For us, this is often, though not always, an enablement leader.

After a call or two with them, we say this: 

"If we end up working together, for this to be successful, we're going to need your senior sales leaders bought in. So let's plan a walkthrough between just you and I to start. If you agree this  would help, then we can talk about looping others into the conversation. Fair?"

If they pushback, we respond with this:

"It feels like you’re not yet comfortable looping in others, which is fair. You want to make sure you have conviction behind this before you open it up. So how about we do this. I am happy to make an investment in you first. I’m happy to spend time preparing a presentation, walking you through it, and tailoring it to you. 

“The only thing I ask is that you reciprocate that investment. If I crush the presentation and build the conviction you need, then we bring in your colleagues. If I fall short of anything but crushing it, you can tell me, and we can part ways as friends.”

“Fair?”

Most of the time they’ll agree. Then it’s on us to nail the presentation and hold them accountable to their end of the bargain.

If they refuse that ‘reciprocation deal’?

We disqualify. 

It’s rare that those deals turn into anything even after 2-3 months of frustrating work. 

So we move on.

4. "Over and Up"

This is our most common play because it addresses our most common situation:

We start the deal with access to a "lieutenant." Someone we’ll need to get “above” and also happens to have peer "lieutenants." In our case, that’s often a segment sales leader (Director of Sales or VP Sales) who has peers, and rolls up to a CRO.

“Over and up” is exactly what it sounds like.

Instead of “going for the jugular” and asking for access to power right off the bat, we instead multi-thread sideways first by gaining access to peers.

It’s a much easier ask to get compliance with, and it benefits us in a few ways:

First, we immediately expand our access and eliminate a single point of failure.

Second, after we’ve met with a handful of peers, we get a sense of who our REAL champion is going to be. It’s often not the first person we met with.

Once we’ve built buy-in with a small handful of people, we use that momentum (along with the most powerful among them) to then gain access to power.

Bonus points:

We enter the meeting with power with some pretty incredible homework:

“So, I want to get you up to speed on what I’ve done to prepare for this meeting. I’ve met with four of your direct reports twice each over a span of three weeks. Here’s what I’ve learned…”

Instant credibility. 

5. "Mouthpiece"

This is the play we use when our champion needs to sell on our behalf without us being in the room. I can already hear your arguments:

“Chris, are they really a champion if they are unwilling or unable to bring you to ultimate power?”

Fair question.

The answer is, “it depends.”

If I’m dealing with a VP of Sales who reports to a CRO, and they won’t bring me to the CRO? That's a red flag. They’re probably not a champion (or, it’s just a small deal and the CRO doesn’t feel a need to be involved).

On the other hand:

Many times a VP Sales, CRO, even COO needs to “sell” a proposal and business case to the CFO or CEO. CFOs and CEOs, as a general rule, are very hard to gain access to (at least for what we sell) and it’s also not necessary.

So instead of going for ‘access to the decision’ maker in an inappropriate way, we aim to turn our champion into our ‘mouth piece.’ 

This is a classic ‘champion coaching’ play. Here’s what I mean:

If you sell B2B, B2G, K-12, or whatever, one of the world’s most underrated skills is coaching your champions to have internal conversations when you’re not in the room. 

Most salespeople let these conversations happen without their influence.

The champion says:

“I’m talking to my boss on Friday to present this and ask for budget.”

The novice salesperson responds:

“Great! Let me know how it goes. Let’s talk Monday.”

Weak.

If I were running a forecast call, I'd predict you lose that deal.

Most champions do not have these conversations effectively without guidance. Even senior ones. After all, they’ve never bought your solution before. Why do you expect them to be an expert on selling it?

Here’s what great salespeople do instead…

The champion says:

“I’m talking to my boss on Friday to present this and ask for budget.”

The great sales pro responds with questions to get the champion thinking through the conversation (and arming them with talk tracks, hence the name “mouthpiece”):

“How are you thinking about structuring that conversation?”

“Is our problem statement framed in a way that will resonate with your boss?”

“I know you said he probably won’t have any resistance. But if he did, what do you think that would look like? How would you respond?”

TLDR:

Great salespeople ask their champion QUESTIONS that force them to think through the conversation.

That way, they have a plan that goes beyond this:

Champion: “Hey boss! Here’s this cool solution. It costs $50k and I think it will really help. Can we consider moving forward?”

Boss: “No budget sry.”

A few summarizing points...

That brings us to the end. You’ll notice I missed the most obvious “play” which is going straight for the jugular and asking for access to power. I didn’t feel a need to write about that one because, well, it’s pretty obvious.

There are probably more multi-threading plays that I've missed; I'll share as we continue to codify.

Another important point:

You’ll notice that these “plays” aren’t mutually exclusive from each other.

We often combine several in a single deal.

For example, we might use “same side of the table” when we start with a CRO. Then pull the “roundabout” play. Then, if the CRO cancels the debrief meeting or is otherwise elusive, we’ll revert to using “over and up” (which the “roundabout” move sets up to do).

If you can’t tell, we’re having a hell of a lot of fun over here.

Hope these help you have as much fun as we are.

Happy selling.

P.S. These 'plays' work best if you sell to a line-of-business rather than a back-office function. I'm sure many of them work in the latter case, but I have not tested it and therefore cannot claim whether they're effective. 

P.P.S. The shrewd among you will challenge me that our win rates are actually too high. If that's you, I commend you and you're correct. Time to push the envelope.