Preparation is Critical in Formula 1 and in Presales
Presales is like F1 racing. How, you ask?
Last week I joined Red Bull Racing’s Formula 1 team and raced the storied Silverstone Circuit!
Well, sort of…
I did sit in a Red Bull F1 (replica) car.
I did race Silverstone (in a simulator).
I did feel the wind down the straight-aways when DRS was enabled (or maybe that was just the fan they had blowing on me from the front of the car?).
But this post isn’t really about my fun afternoon in an F1 simulator.
This is a post about PREPARATION,
Whether for an F1 race or a technical sales cycle.
My wife and I went gaga over F1 because of the Netflix show Drive to Survive.
We watch the Grand Prix live (and occasionally the Qualifying sessions).
We listen religiously to the ‘Missed Apex’ podcast hosted by Richard 'Spanners' Ready, Matt Ragsdale, and Chris Stevens.
We even watch YouTube videos about the aerodynamics of the cars.
So when I stumbled across an F1 simulator in Rome, I HAD TO DO IT.
It felt like a big deal, so I didn’t want to go in unprepared.
I researched the ‘best F1 circuits to race’ and decided on Silverstone Circuits Ltd's famous track.
I only had cursory knowledge of it, so I studied track images.
I watched videos of ‘slow laps’ with explanations of each turn and strategies for gear shifting, breaking, and acceleration.
I watched videos of ‘hot laps’ to visualize driving it in real-time.
Was my preparation overkill for an F1 simulator experience? Maybe.
Was it worth it? 100%, I had an AMAZING time!
When I was a sales engineer, I also did a lot of preparation.
Like my F1 simulator experience, each deal was important to me.
I simultaneously wanted to 1) help my customer solve real problems and 2) win the deal.
And so I prepared.
Like researching which F1 circuit to drive…
I researched the company to learn what they did.
I researched their industry to learn the latest trends.
I researched the people to learn their roles and backgrounds.
Like watching the ‘slow lap’ and ‘hot lap’ videos…
I engaged in technical discovery to get an in-depth understanding of their needs, pain points, and goals.
I created a tailored ‘demo script’ (an outline, not a verbatim script!).
I documented the ‘highlights’ (the key details that I wanted to remember and reinforce during the demo).
I made certain I knew my product inside and out.
Like driving in the F1 race itself…
My preparation gave me ‘pole position’.
Then it was ‘lights out’… time to demo!
I followed my demo script.
I adapted as conditions changed.
I tried to cross the finish line ahead of my competition… P1!
The ‘technical win’ was my ‘checkered flag’.
My preparation didn’t always pay off. You can’t win every race. You can’t win every deal.
But, it was always worth the effort.
I have never regretted the time I spent preparing.
Not for my F1 simulator experience.
And certainly not for any of my technical sales cycles!
Want to learn how the Homerun Presales platform helps you prepare for your technical sales cycles? Talk to one of our presales experts. Click here to get started!
