The Four Mindsets of Iceberg Selling

.At first glance, we only know about 10% of what’s going on in any given situation.

A toddler is crying because they don’t want to put on their pajamas, your spouse is annoyed that you didn’t load the dishwasher correctly, your boss is in a bad mood because there was traffic on the way to work. And while all those things may be technically true, they don’t give you the full picture.

Odds are, the toddler has put on their pajamas without argument 100s of times before, you’ve incorrectly loaded the dishwasher in the past with no reaction from your spouse, and your boss is probably no stranger to traffic, but usually shakes it off when they get out of the car. It’s when we dig beneath the surface that we start to see that there is more going on.

The toddler is getting molars, making them uncomfortable. Your spouse had an argument with a friend, which put them in a bad mood. Your boss is dealing with a family health emergency, and the traffic was the last straw.

The same is true of your customers. A good salesperson is aware that every customer is a bit different. They have different communication styles, different inter-office politics to navigate, different stressors that require them to need your services, and different goals. They may be at wildly different places in their careers, which comes with different experiences and connections. The list goes on and on. Why does this matter to you? Because each of these factors affect what they’re looking for from the salespeople they partner with.

That’s why it’s important to look beneath the surface - and the first step of doing that is using the four Iceberg Selling Mindsets.

Mindset 1: Lifetime Value.

It’s easy to get tunnel vision about closing a sale (or every sale). As we get closer to the end of the month, salespeople get more obsessive about hitting their sales targets and start seeing each customer as a deal that needs to be closed. But that doesn’t set you up for a long-term relationship with the customer.

Imagine you meet your ideal customer on paper. They’re the right demographic, have the right budget, can bring you referrals, may bring in new business, and are in the industry your organization is targeting. They’re in need of services right now, but there is potential to use a variety of your services or products on a long-term, regular basis.

You have, what you think, is a great conversation with them. You send them a proposal and then… crickets. Your emails go unanswered. Your follow up calls go to voicemail. You worry that you’re irritating the customer with the constant check-ins, but there isn’t much else you can do. Right?

Well, with a transactional mindset, that may be true. But when you reframe your mindset and start thinking less about the deal in front of you and more about creating an ongoing partnership, your approach may start to shift. Instead of thinking about one deal, start focusing on providing value.

Perhaps during your initial discovery call, the customer mentioned wanting to meet other people in the industry. Are there any introductions you can help facilitate? If so, send an email offering to connect them. Maybe the conversation dug even deeper beneath the surface and they mentioned being new to the area. Is there a favorite restaurant or activity you can recommend to them?

It may not boost your numbers for the month or increase your commission. It may be too late to earn the business you originally bid on. However, your professionalism, kindness, and willingness to go above and beyond to provide value will make a lasting impression. Next time they’re in need of a service your team provides, they’ll remember that.

In this way, your focus isn’t on closing one deal, but on creating the potential to gain a lifelong client with more business, revenue, and impact over time.


Mindset 2: Being of Service.

This mindset can be summed up with the phrase “go above and beyond.”

Really, it’s about being a true resource for your customer, outside of what will make you money or boost your sales.

Most sales professionals aren’t in the business just because they like to compete (well, that may be part of it, but not the whole reason). It’s because they like building relationships and genuinely enjoy making a difference for their customers. They’re wired to give.

If you want to create value in the relationships you build, it’s important to recognize that sometimes that value doesn’t strictly fall within the boundaries of your contract or your pay. This doesn’t mean that you should throw in free products or services, but rather to dig beneath the surface and figure out what they might need that they aren’t vocalizing.

Is there something they want to accomplish? Are they going through something personally and professionally? Is there something you can do to make a difference in their life right now?

Even if you’re simply offering to share industry knowledge with newcomers to their team, you’re making an effort to give them something that will benefit them, provide them value, and build more trust in the relationship.

Mindset 3: Ownership.

Oftentimes, we ask for permission that we don’t really need. Permission to attend a networking event, permission to take a client out to dinner, permission to reach out to stale leads… the list goes on. Most of the time, what we’re asking permission to do are things that a sales manager would easily approve of, but instead of trusting our instincts, we ask for permission to take action.

So many salespeople get into the profession because they want to be in control of their destiny. And, as a salesperson, it’s quite literally your job to take charge of situations. And yet, when push comes to shove, we hesitate to take ownership.

An ownership mindset simply means that you’re taking responsibility for your actions and whatever outcomes they lead to. You decide how you show up for your customers, whether they be new or existing. You choose how to manage your accounts. You design an experience and you bring it to life. Perhaps most importantly, once you’ve built a relationship with somebody, you trust your instincts on how to close the deal or grow their account.

This applies to more than making sales, but in how you approach your goals. Are you defining your goals, or following milestones set by somebody else. Are you taking ownership of your journey to get there?

Be proactive. Nobody can take you from a good salesperson to a great salesperson except for you.

Mindset 4: Drivership.

Are you a driver or a passenger? Do you let things happen to you… or do you make them happen?

When a new customer (let’s say that it’s that ideal customer on paper, in fact), comes into your sales pipeline at 5:05pm as you’re getting ready to sign off for the day, what do you do about it? Do you immediately reach out and start building a connection, or do you wait until the next morning?

Great salespeople are in constant motion. They move from one activity to the next, quickly adapt to the circumstances in front of them, and approach challenges calmly but boldly. Yes, they take time to think through their course of action and come up with a plan, but they don’t get paralyzed in day-to-day details. Their focus is moving forward.

When a new opportunity comes in, they grab it. When a customer reaches out, they respond right away, even if it’s just to say they’re working on finding an answer. They come up with ideas to generate more sales. They share those ideas. They put them into action.

They don’t forfeit responsibility for gaining a deeper understanding of their customers. They claim it. They take charge. They make things happen.

Learn More

Iceberg Selling is a technique grounded in the understanding that for every person, organization, and situation, you can only see 10% of what’s really going on. By adopting the right mindsets, prioritizing building relationships, and approaching customers with genuine curiosity, you can start to explore the other 90% and improve your sales performance. Get the book to learn more about Iceberg Selling.