A Mutual Action Plan is a set of key decisions, tasks and outcomes with dates you align with your buyer. It’s a mutual agreement of what needs to be done to begin working together, collaboratively. You may have seen MAPs referred to as go-live plans, mutual success plans, joint execution plans or close plans. They are game changers for helping sales teams close deals and shorten the sales cycle.
Why are they important?
According to Gartner, 33% of buyers desire a seller-free experience. What does this mean for the B2B sales motion? How can you reduce friction in the buying process, especially for more complex solutions?
MAPs provide a way for the seller to access valuable insight into the deal, giving them clarity on the details of the buying process. They also remove friction, enhancing the buyer experience.
In the most basic terms: Mutual Action Plans align everyone on who needs to do what & when, to get the deal closed. Simple. It’s about making the buying process as seamless as possible.
What makes a great Mutual Action Plan?
Here are 11 tips to get the most out of Mutual Action Plans
#1: Get the buyer in as soon as possible
The faster you get the key sponsor(s) and preferably, decision-makers into the Mutual Action Plan, the quicker you can start collaborating in getting the deal organized. Agreeing on the best way to move forward, and deciding on tasks and task owners as soon as possible, strengthens the chances of the deal closing on time.
#2: Make sure it’s two-way
To get the most out of your MUTUAL action plan, it has to be mutual. Get the buyer and those that need to be included in the process to agree on what needs to be done. Enable the buying team to add their own key outcomes and tasks into the plan. This builds a collaborative two-way document and shows commitment from both parties.
#3: Remain outcome focused
Looking at lists of decisions and tasks can be laborious and quite frankly, boring. It’s crucial there’s an understanding of the meaning behind each step in the MAP, and what the end goal for both the buyer and selling team is. It’s all about ROI and value. How do we get there? A Mutual Action Plan; keep this notion fresh and constant throughout.
#4: Stakeholder influence
Selling teams should map out all those in the Mutual Action Plan and any other stakeholders that will have an influence on the decision. Aligning your team with the roles and individuals imperative to getting the deal closed on time, as expected, brings detail and focus to the process.
#5: Share as widely as possible
It’s vital for those critical to the deal, to be involved in the MAP. But you’ll have influencers that you simply can’t get access. Sharing the plan with this group keeps them aligned with what’s happening across the sales cycle in order to get this sale closed and provides greater clarity to the buyer. Clarity and transparency are key in building trust & rapport with your buyer, especially in a digital environment.
#6: Keep up to date
The plan should be a place for the buyer and your selling team to collaborate and refresh themselves on the details. Iterate and update the plan along the sales cycle, so changes and additions are documented and shared at every stage of the buying process.
#7: It doesn’t end after the deals signed
The plan should be a path to ROI, not signatures. Selling teams are the first point of contact for buyers and should be the spearhead showing the buyer what it’s like doing business with you. It’s about building long-term, trustworthy and mutual beneficial relationships for years to come.
#8: Track the data behind delays
Deals slip. And it sucks. Sometimes, no matter how much you mitigate slipping, they still happen. However, finding out why is essential to iterating and improving over time. Bring tools into your Mutual Action Plan that track delayed tasks and establish the reason. Doing this adds rigour to your process, betters the buyer experience and shortens the sales cycle. Win, win, win.
#9: It’s all about the why
Why are you both here? Why do you want the deal to close? What’s the motivation behind the deal? Remind yourself and the buyer of this constantly. Reflect and communicate this throughout. It’s easy to get lost in menial but critical tasks. Stay focused and driven on the outcomes.
#10: Supplement with quality communication
Mutual Action Plans are all about collaboration and bringing your buyer into the buying process. It’s an effective way in aligning interests and expectations. However, without good communication, detail is lost quickly. Remove as many barriers as possible, in communicating with your buyer's team. Keep them in the loop and make the process as easy as possible.
#11: Set a completion date
Ultimately, the purpose of a Mutual Action Plan is to meet a deadline. The major milestone with all Mutual Action Plans is the close date. Work back through all of the tasks required to get to the contract signature with your buyer and agree on a close date. Now, as the seller, it’s your job to ensure this date doesn’t slip.
And that's it. Follow these steps when using your Mutual Action Plans, to deliver the most effective buyer experience and to close your deals with certainty.
What is Dealpad?
Dealpad is software that enables organisations to create personalised, two-way buying experiences.
Key product highlights;
- A platform for SDRs and marketers to convert prospects into sales meetings
- A personalised Digital Sales Room to engage and collaborate with your entire buying team
- Integrate your CRM data into dealpad to build out deal plans for each of the deals in your pipeline. Align your buyer and selling teams on key dates, decisions, tasks and goals, adding cadence, rigour and accountability to the buying process.
- Map out stakeholders and their influence, to make sure you know who will influence the process and when to get the deal done on time.
- Build out Mutual Action Plans and the buying process WITH your buyer collaboratively, so you both know what’s happening at every stage and when. Use this cadence to bring valuable insight and data to your pipeline.
- Use the Closing Certainty Index, a proprietary scoring algorithm, to predict the likelihood of each deal closing + recommendations on how to increase the likelihood of closing the deal.
- Use dealpad to win more customers, close deals faster and forecast better.
