User:Waynegillikin/USAM

Unified Solutions Acquisition Model (USAM)

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This model is for Sales and Sales Management to evaluate Sales Strategy, Sales Tactics, and define market appropriate Sales Methodologies.

Overview

USAM was first introduced in 2006 and later through a paper published in 2008 by the Sales Management Association . The purpose of the model is to assist sales organizations to reduce sales rep turnover and increase close rates. At the heart of the model is the recognition that a commercial sales transaction is a “meeting of minds”. The most successful sales organizations will be completely in tune with their prospects' mindset. USAM shows sales organizations how to synchronize the way they sell with the way their prospects buy.

Unification of Perspectives

The defining characteristic of USAM is the unification of the buyer's perspective and the seller's perspective in a way that allows selling organizations to understand how to refine their process to bring it into alignment with their prospect's expectations. A foundational assumption of the model is that selling organizations will more effectively communicate their value proposition if their selling process is synchronized with the buyer's process. If the buyer’s and seller’s processes are out of sync then stress is created in the sales process (which the model calls the Purchase Event Interface) and this stress or dissonance impedes the communication of the seller’s value proposition. When the processes are in sync then the model is balanced and the “solution acquisition” occurs most efficiently.

Seller’s Perspective

The Seller’s sales tactics derive form their sales strategy which is a function of four factors:

1. Pricing Strategy
2. Seller’s Influence in the sale
3. Seller’s Insight into their product, their business, the prospect’s business
4. Entry point where the seller engages with the buyer

Buyers Perspective

The buyer’s tactics or how they expect to buy (Purchase Process Expectations) derive from how well the buyer understands the solution they seek to acquire (Buyer Preparedness). Buyer Preparedness is the function of two factors:

1. Does the buyer understand the problem?
2. Does the buyer understand the solution?

The Need for Balance

In order for the Purchase Event Interface to be efficient the seller’s Sales Methodology must be in sync with the seller’s Purchase Process Expectations. For that to happen the buyer’s and seller’s Critical Functions (Sales Strategy and Buyer Preparedness respectively) must be in sync. The only way this can happen is if the Function Arguments of the buyer’s and seller’s Critical Function are balanced.

Conclusions

Sales organizations with high turnover in the sales ranks and low close rates can often trace the difficulty to an imbalance in USAM. Highly successful sales organizations are always completely in harmony with their market’s Purchase Process Expectations.

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