The Ten Steps to VITO's Office
A complete sequential playbook from prospect identification to closed VITO sale
The Ten Steps is Parinello's master integration of every tactical element in the VITO system into a sequential playbook. Unlike a generic sales process, each step is tied to a specific VITO principle and includes a 'Getting-to-VITO secret' — an insider insight that distinguishes top performers from average ones. The steps run from prospect qualification through VITO contact, gatekeeper management, wave execution, calling strategy, shunt management, and follow-through.
The process is designed so that every step builds on the previous one: the Template of Ideal Prospects (Step 1) defines who enters the system; value and headline development (Steps 2-3) define what is communicated; VITO name acquisition (Step 4) populates the target list; wave creation and deployment (Steps 5-7) precondition the market; calling and gatekeeper management (Steps 8-9) execute the contact strategy; following VITO's lead (Step 10) closes and expands the relationship.
Parinello reports that salespeople who complete all ten steps consistently rank in the top 5% of their organizations.
- Never deploy VITO tactics on prospects that don't match the Template of Ideal Prospects — system failure is almost always a targeting failure.
- Value clarity must precede outreach; a salesperson who cannot articulate quantified value in VITO language should not be sending correspondence.
- The wave creates the expectation that the call is a follow-through, not a cold approach — skip the wave and lose the trust signal.
- Treating Tommie like VITO is not a courtesy tactic; it is an intelligence-gathering system that reveals VITO's priorities before you speak to VITO.
- Following up exactly as promised — at the exact day, date, and time — is the single most differentiating behavior that separates VITO-level salespeople from everyone else.
- Create your Template of Ideal Prospects (TIP)Survey your company's best customers and identify the common characteristics: industry, company size, number of salespeople, revenue range, titles of buyers, and specific problems your solution solves for each role. Create a separate TIP sheet for each niche you target. Only pursue prospects that match the TIP completely — partial matches are time wasters.Pro tipSpend at least one full day in a business library (not online — your competition is online too) researching the characteristics of your best customers against industry data.
- Establish your value and valuesComplete the value inventory exercise: survey best customers for hard-dollar results, soft-dollar benefits, and the titles of individuals who benefited most. Identify your own personal value acronym. Articulate what your organization's core values are. Only VITOs whose values align with yours will become long-term partners and referral sources.Pro tipDo the value exercise specifically for the most lucrative niche in your territory first — this enables a 'low-hanging fruit VITO Blitz' before expanding to other niches.
- Collect your HeadlinesUsing the value inventory from Step 2, build your elevator pitch Headlines using the boil-it-down process. Create industry-specific Headlines for each major niche you target. Ask your own VITO how they would pitch a major prospect on your behalf — their language is the language your target VITOs will recognize as peer-level.Pro tipCreate a folder of Wall Street Journal and Forbes headlines in your industry. The patterns and vocabulary will accelerate your own headline writing.
- Get VITO names and numbersSelect a target number (Parinello uses 57) and build a list of VITO names from business directories that match your TIP exactly. Purchase 30% more names than your target to account for outdated information and natural attrition. Verify that every name complies with your TIP parameters before including it in your wave campaign.WarningNever start calling without a complete list — shotgunning calls without TIP verification wastes the wave you are about to invest in building.
- Understand and build the waveCreate correspondence components for your wave: a VITO letter (Fab Five structure), a 30-word postcard, an email with attachments for each relevant line-of-business executive, and an e-presentation (3 slides, 20 words per slide, 10 seconds per slide). Select one of the five wave pattern combinations and build the full sequence before deploying any piece.Pro tipTest all correspondence on your own VITO before deploying. Ask: 'If you received this, what would you do with it?' Their response will reveal gaps in language or structure you cannot see yourself.
- Prepare for TommieBefore launching the wave, call the account to get Tommie's name. Research the VITO's priorities by calling Tommie and asking which of three strategic initiatives are currently most important. Build Tommie's name into every wave correspondence element. Prepare your Tommie dialogue so that an unexpected live conversation is never a surprise.Pro tipSend Tommie a thank-you card addressed in care of VITO. When VITO hand-delivers it to Tommie's desk, you have created an ally who will treat future calls with priority.
- Launch the waveDeploy the selected wave combination in the second week of the month, when VITOs are least likely to be in closing-cycle mode. Maintain an accurate drop list of anyone who requests no further contact. After deployment, prepare your elevator pitch and voice mail series before making the call — VITO may call you first.WarningNever shortcut the wave sequence by starting with email — email as a cold first touchpoint to an executive has near-zero response rates.
- Pick up the telephone and call at the exact promised timeCall at the exact day, date, and time stated in your correspondence P.S. Prepare for all four scenarios: VITO calls you first, Tommie calls with a shunt, Tommie calls to decline, or VITO answers at the scheduled time. For each scenario, use the specific dialogue from the elevator pitch and Tommie chapters to ensure you are never caught unprepared.WarningIf you committed to a call time and cannot make it for any reason, have your sales manager or VP make the call instead. Missing the committed time destroys the integrity signal the entire wave was designed to build.
- Talk to Tommie as you would talk to VITOWhen you reach Tommie live, use your hook with Tommie directly. Ask Tommie the same priority questions you would ask VITO. Tommie answers for VITO — their intelligence about VITO's current concerns is often more candid than what VITO would share directly. The rule is: 'Ask in Tommie, receive in VITO.'Pro tipBefore accepting a transfer from Tommie to a DM, ask: 'Tommie, before you transfer me, could you tell me a little about [the person's name]?' This intelligence prevents you from entering the DM conversation blind.
- Follow VITO's lead through the relationshipVITOs follow up on every commitment from the first interaction. Mirror this behavior. Pick your opportunities carefully — not every opportunity is profitable. Eliminate loose ends immediately after every conversation. Ask for what you need (referrals, access to other team members, introduction to board members). Follow through exactly as promised, on time, every time.Pro tipVITOs secretly test salespeople in early interactions by making small requests. Delivering on these early tests ('can you send that by end of day?') is the foundation for trust that unlocks referrals and repeat business.
Parinello advocates completing the entire TIP research process in a single library day, using business directories and industry databases to create a precise list of prospects that match the TIP across all parameters. A salesperson who has never had customers uses their company's best customers as the profile source and builds their first TIP from that data.
Parinello notes that while the average time to implement all ten steps is weeks to months, the fastest implementation he personally witnessed took one full business day. A well-prepared salesperson who had done preliminary research was able to build their TIP, develop their value and headlines, compile a list, create a wave, and begin outreach in a single day.
The Ten Steps was assembled after Parinello observed that salespeople who had been trained on individual VITO tactics often failed to integrate them into a coherent workflow. They would send great letters but call at the wrong time; or they would develop excellent value propositions but target the wrong accounts. The Ten Steps were designed to force sequencing — ensuring that preparation preceded outreach and that every element was in place before the next was attempted.
The secret insights embedded in each step came from observing the specific failure patterns of salespeople who skipped that step. For example, the Step 1 secret (VITOs only call on pre-disposed organizations) captures the pattern of salespeople who tried to use VITO tactics on mismatched prospects and blamed the system when it didn't work.