In a volatile business environment, sales has to adapt. It is not just reaction to change that we need, it is anticipation of change. That means that a variety of thinking skills are needed:
The ability to analyse what is happening to customers and what it means for their suppliers,
The ability to create new scenarios and solutions for them,
The ability to reflect and learn from failure and consolidate on success.
Whenever do we get time to think?
When times are hard, the pressure is on to do, do, do. But if you are doing the wrong things, that only upsets customers more. Sales management in the 21st century is a great deal about leading and coaching the professional development in salespeople that customers admire.
Productivity is always important, but efficiency comes after effective courses of action have been identified.
Drip marketing software will revolutionise your sales and marketing process if you take the time to implement it.
Do you sometimes struggle to remember to follow up with important prospects and existing customers and clients because you just get too over whelmed?
It’s natural. We all do it no matter how well planned out our time is.
The reality is we all let sales and marketing activities go through the cracks because we are too busy, get distracted or just plain forget. There was research done (artributed to many organisations) in the 90’s, that showed most people will buy after 7 ‘touches’. More recent research has indicated that with the proliferation of marketing messages and marketing channels available today, that could be more like 12-20 touches.
An effective way to keep ahead of the pack and on top of your game is to leverage technology to work smarter and not harder. One of the best ways of doing this is by using what is referred to as ‘drip marketing’ software.
My personal favourites are: 1) Do an information dump and 2) show up and throw up. For me these two tend to work hand in hand. If anyone ever came to me and opened up the laptop and uttered that phrase:
One of the greatest ways to differentiate yourself in the modern sales world is by developing your armory of stories. These stories should engage the audience, tell details about your past, your present and maybe even your future.
The stories should give insights into your culture, your values and what it is you stand for. The most effective stories will entertain, engage and draw your audience to you. In sales, they will make you stand head and shoulders above the rest of the pack. They will motivate your prospective customers and clients to desire to buy from you rather than you hard selling to them.
If you want to see the power of a brilliantly crafted story then pay full attention to this video. It is stunning in every way.
Oh, what it would be like to have the skills and craft to deliver a sales presentation with this sincerity and power:
When I run sales training courses I always provide my delegates with a whole set of documents and templates they can use in their business. One of the ones that many comment makes a huge difference in their lives is the following sales project plan.
This is a fantastic one page project plan to get you thinking about the key reason and actions needed to make any sales strategy work.
My Goal: The most important part of the process where you clearly articulate the reasons why you are undertaking the sales project. What will it do for you? What are your objectives?
Resources I need: A fantastic way to get you thinking about what and who you will need to call on to make this sales project a success.
I had a conversation this morning with a smallbusiness owner who is feeling the pinch at the moment. They are in the garden design business and are finding that their clients are stalling placing their orders for what many consider to be a non essential service. He did not hide the fact that he would be hapier with more business at the moment.
The interesting part of the conversation for me was when the business owner was telling me that he had spent days in the library recently learning the art of garden design, perfecting his skills and investing his time in becoming a better garden designer.
My rather pointed question to him was:
“With all that time in the library recently, how many sales or small business marketing books did you read?”
The answer was exactly what I had already guessed:
For years sales training has been training on the development of the features and benefits of your product and service as a core skill in sales. This is absolutely right because you have to know how your products add value to the other person and their company.
The culmination of the developement of the features and benefits list was the ultmimate ‘elevator pitch’, the Unique Selling Proposition (USP). The principal behind the USP is that it is the one biggest attribute of your company, product or service that above all else defines why a company should do business with you.
The classic example quoted everywhere is that of Dominos Pizza. This was something like:
“Hot, fresh, Pizza, delivered to your door in 30 minutes or less or its free”
Tom Monaghan, the founder of Dominos cites that one USP alone as a major part in projecting them from almost closure to the worldwide organisation they are today.
2009 and beyond will see fantastic companies flourish. Companies that have great relationships with their customers will continue to grow, take market share and even make market share that did not exist before.
Where are you in this process? If you are not at the top of your game yet then don’t panic. Some focused activity and attention will enable you provide your customers what they really want. But do you know what that is?
Verry often when undertaking a sales consulting project the company is not quite sure what their customers want. When we discuss this and the company sees the importance of this knowledge for their business they immediately think of a brainstorming session, a strategy review and a trends analysis. Whilst these are all excellent ideas there is something else you should be doing first.
As much as I do know about sales, sals techniques, sales approaches and emerging trends in the Industry, there is so much more that I have yet to become acquainted with.
One of the first things I tell delegates on my sales training is that if they are ever in a training and someone stands up and says their way is the only way to do it, then run a mile. Training should be about providing options, different approaches and giving the delegates the confidence to try out differenet ways to see what is right for them.
To help me stay current I spend a lot of my time reading other peoples blogs and news sites. I thought it only right, that I should share with you the top resources that I use. They are not ranked in any particulat order. Rather, just how they come.
Karl Goldfield —– An extremely likeable, tech savvy US blogger and Consultant.
It’s funny but as a sales trainer and consultant it’s very rare that I wear a tie anymore. And do you know what I don’t miss them one iota!
I was reading through a classic sales ‘text book’ from the early 1990’s recently and was caught by the Way that the advise has dated so much in just ten years. I won’t give the name of the book because it was once regarded as the best sales texts books available and it would not be right.
The suggestions when it came to dress were:
‘Mens suits should be solid blue or gray, pinstripe or chalk stripe or modest gray plaid. Wool or polyester that looks like wool, is preffered. The darker the suit, the more authority it carries, although black is funeral. Men’s shirts and ties are important. Generaly, shirts should be white or pale blue or have mdest stripes………The ages of the salesman and the customer he is facing will affect the choice of dress. For salesman, considerbly younger than his customer, particularly buyers over the age forty eight, it is advisable that the salesman adopt the high – authority pattern of a dark suit along with a white shirt.’
One of the worst experiences at the hands of a so called professional sales person happened recently in a Portsmouth car dealership. See if you think they need sales training
“Can I help you sir?” Dave asked (name changed to protect the not so innocent)
I explained that I was just looking at the new Audi as I may be changing in anything up to 6 months and was interested in the new range. I was stood admiring one of the new range at the time.
“Come over to the desk Sir” as he led me to the far corner of the dealership where he proceeded to look straight into his computer. He made no eye contact with me at all as he asked “name, postcode, telephone number, email address”. Dave was so concerned with getting my details so that he could put me on the database that he made no effort to build rapport, ask me any questions and the worst sin of all – he took me away from the product. A product that I liked the look of, the more time I was examining it.
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The following article was first published in my Sales Newsletter. You should subscribe here — Sales Newsletter
Last year I was in the process of selling my House and had invited a number of Estate Agents around to show me why they should be get my business.The process was an eye opener and one that left me totally unimpressed with some of the Agents I met. They were there to sell me on the benefits of why I should place my house on the market with them yet they could not even sell themselves. One Agent even delighted in telling me:
“Oh no, I’m not a salesman. I try to show them the house and stay out of the way”
My wife, was looking recently for a new gate for our house and had decided on the exact style that she wanted. Jo had seen a set of gates that she liked on a house and had taken some photos so that we could get quotes.
Jo went about scouring the local suppliers and the Internet and came across three blacksmiths/gate manufacturers who seemed to be capable of making the gates. We exchanged a few emails with our potential suppliers as well as pictures of how we wanted the gates to look.
Supplier 1: They came back with a price of around £1,200
Supplier 2: They came back with a price of £650
Supplier 3: Called us on the phone, arranged to come and visit the house to find out what exactly we needed and then quoted £300.
