Plan B Whiteboard

salespodder -

The most talked about whiteboarding of the pandemic?

Revealed fifteen months on. By the top former “maverick” UK govt adviser. At a coronavirus Commons committee hearing.

The metropolitan liberal elite bogeyman Number One whose judgement must be constantly attacked. Yet now hypocritically no longer a disruptive pariah for MSM because of his ongoing public feud with the incumbent pro-Brexit, Centre-Right administration of which he was once the beating heart.

Still, idle journalistic tittle tattle and behind-the-curtain voyeurism apart, his chosen evidence centrepiece as tweeted above [65, not 64] is of selling interest.

For starters, it is labelled PLAN B.

How many a Sales strategy ever thinks beyond Plan A?

Whether for a specific deal plan, individual call outcomes or even new product launch, such preparedness is sadly seldom seen.

Maybe it’s time you introduced this viewpoint?

Also of note, is that this is supposedly the “first sketch” of PLAN B.

Often the hardest part is actually getting those initial thoughts down on paper.

They appear to be built around a half-dozen framing criteria.

The infamous squash-the-sombrero graphing of the eventual clarion call for all to “flatten the curve” is apparent.

Every plan needs an accompanying image of some sort. Whether chart as appears here or other diagram representation. Have you got yours?

Another neat point to riff on ourselves, is point five; ‘what’s the difference between Plan A & Plan B?‘

This alone could make the difference in your ‘prospect’ accepting or rejecting your proposal.

Then there’s the propelling mantra.

The one universally picked up on here is the sixth criteria; “who do we not save?”

A line to focus minds if ever you heard one.

Many a bid could do with something – whilst not necessarily as life-or-death – this dramatic.

What will make your audience stop in their tracks, sit up, and take note?

Finally, given the alleged super-smart make-up of individuals around this whiteboard, it is perhaps a little staggering that detritus from a previous session remains in situ. Surely they could have removed what looks like distracting sticky tape debris?

And why the use only of a single marker pen colour save for what might be a rogue linegraph bottom-right?

Luckily, this latter glitch was fixed for next morning’s subsequent pitch to the Main Decision Maker. See 67/ below;

Still, for first sketchings, maybe the real achievement is that it got done at all. We might well be advised to do the same in our selling.

postscript :: the internet conjured its array of memes following publication, many added their own scribbled words, others commented on the reality of a govt crisis room being a humble whiteboard as opposed the Hollywood portrayal of banks flashing computer screens and video feeds, as well as an old favourite contributed, that of the comparative case wall, in this instance, apparently of a character named Mac from sitcom It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia;