Fortune Magazine released the 2009 Fortune 500 list yesterday and while there were winners in 2008 like Exxon Mobil Corp which retook the #1 position from Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the year was not as positive for most of the other companies on the list. According to the Associated Press, overall earnings sank 85%, the biggest one-year decline in the history of the Fortune 500 list.
Despite the state of our economy, disciplined distribution sales
organizations are finding ways through their customer focus and consultative selling to add value to positively impact theirs and their customer’s bottom line. In our just
published book Driving Distributor Sales Beyond: Best Practices for Outselling Your Competitors, chapter five outlines integrated strategies for developing proactive customer focus sales efforts.
Taking an account from $2,000 to $120,000Last year, while the Fortune 500 was sinking, one sales representative within the sinking boating industry was able to take his dealer account from about $2,000 in sales to over $120,000.
Here are six ways this sales rep added value to generate his success.- Initiated conversation that had meaning to the customer
This rep used one simple question to set the stage for productive talk with the dealer, “What can we do for you, that somebody else isn’t doing?” He didn’t dwell on the dealer’s work with current suppliers or even suggest that he wanted to displace them. He simply, yet skillfully, focused on the dealer's situation and asked where that dealer could use some help now . . . and they told him. “We sell boats,” they said, “but we don’t know how to sell accessories.”
- Understood the customer’s perspective
The dealer’s general manager invited the rep to meet with the whole staff. During that consultative selling discussion, he especially noted their “take” on unmet opportunities. He exited with a clear challenge -- to create an easy, user-friendly way for their sales staff to sell more boating accessories.
- Focused on identified need
Distractions can be killers in sales. The rep didn’t try to be all things to the dealer, or sell everything in his catalog. He stayed fixed on the named need.
- Tapped appropriate resources
The rep tapped his marketing department to develop a simple, captivating brochure that showed recommended “bundles” of accessories. It saved the dealer’s salespeople from having to pause and mentally create a fitting combination of items on the spot. Its one-page format suggested that it was both simple and easy to use.
- Added value in a meaningful way
Thouth this rep's company demonstrates many capabilities, he carefully chose which of its values he’d present to the dealer. You might say that through his consultative selling process he handpicked values that would mean something to the folks at this account, given the specific challenge they named.
- Stayed alert for new ways to add value
Inspired to personally add value in a variety of ways, the rep continues to seize opportunities that make his customers’ businesses better. For instance, he shows dealer salespeople how to step away from the “car dealer” approach, to sell a dream concept the customer might have (like fishing at a favorite spot, or enjoying a summer day at the lake, listening to music, and watching the kids have a blast).
Your Turn To Share Customer Focus ExamplesHave you seen customer focus deliver surprising results even in tough times? Please share your inspiration so that we all can benefit from it.
I was driving up to Madison with my wife and daughter yesterday to have an Easter lunch on the campus of University of Wisconsin with our son who is finishing up his sophomore year. As we passed Janesville, we heard on the radio about the magnificent work of the
U.S. Navy and the Navy SEALs who rescued Captain Richard Phillips who was held hostage for five days by Somali pirates.
The rescue sounds like it was right out of a 24 episode with Jack Bauer taking down the rogue gunmen and rescuing the good guy against all possible odds. But as we know, this was not fiction but real life professionalism and heroism on the high seas of the Indian Ocean. As I heard the news I pumped my fist as a wave of happiness washed over me. Damn, I was proud of Captain Phillips, proud of our military and proud of these Navy SEALs.
As we drove home, my mind was co-mingling the story of the day that unfolded on the high seas and this post. What can we learn from the Navy SEALs, I thought. How do their actions relate to the ability of sales organizations that drive sales beyond what the market is prepared to give? As an American who does not own a gun, I know there is more to their success then the headline of three simultaneous headshots in rolling seas. Here are two of many:
Standards
The Navy SEALs have standards. They have lines below which they will not go. Slip below the line relative to being a man of character, maintaining mental and physical fitness, or technical skills and your days as a Navy SEAL come to a swift conclusion.
What are your standards? As a sales manager, sales executive, or sales professional what are your standards for performance, productivity, and results? What are your standards for customer focus, prospecting, customer retention, and even sales management coaching? I guarantee you; the Navy SEALs have standards and do not allow those who wear the Trident to slip below the minimum requirements.
Here are a few of my thoughts on the need for standards in business I shared as a professional keynote speaker to a group of sales professionals. To view the video click the picture below.
The top producing sales organizations I have worked with are committed to sales management coaching that insures standards are not only set but are maintained to drive superior performance, like we witnessed yesterday off the coast of Africa.
Training
Prospective SEALs go through what is considered by many military experts to be the toughest training in the world. The training our Navy SEALs receive is legendary. The 25-week curriculum is divided into three phases that test the sailors’ spirit and stamina. And for those that get through this initial indoctrination, the training does not end. In fact the training SEALs receive is continuous, cumulative, and customized to the mission. In part the Seal Creed reads, “My training is never complete.”
Did you hear what they did to get into position to rescue Captain Phillips? In the dark of night these professionals parachuted into the Indian Ocean with all their gear and their Combat Rubber Raiding Craft (CRRC) - a 15-foot, heavily reinforced, inflatable rubber boat. Just Amazing! I can also guarantee you that this is not the first time they jumped at night, with their gear into rough seas. You can bet they trained for hours and days for this particular mission, never knowing when or if it would come.
But how about your sales organization? What type of sales trainers have you brought in? Have they provided training that is continuous? Cumulative? Customized to the mission? Is the training these sales trainers provided considered tough by those who go through it? I work with sales organizations every day of my life and I can guarantee you that most who will read this post will have to answer that the training they get and have received is at best sporadic (I call it injection type training) and it certainly isn’t tough.
In fact most training that sales teams receive has very little expectations of the “trainees” and most often no planned follow-up. Seriously, look at the mindset and body language next time you conduct a training program for the sales team. Most are thinking, “I can’t wait till this is over so that I can go back to how I have always done things.” Want to frighten the hell out of yourself…go back to your sales team and ask them “What did you do different as a result of the last training we provided.” Most will tell you “nothing” or at best “not much.”
Do you think the Navy SEALs who rescued Captain Phillips used the training they received? I guarantee you they did. You know why… because their organization- the Navy SEALS are committed to their training and development. Training is not a “If I have time for it” or “If the budget allows for it” kind of thing. Training and continued preparedness is built into the SEALs DNA. How about your sales organization’s DNA?
Share Your Thoughts
What good things have you seen in training? What has not worked so well? Are you as proud of our SEALs as I am?
PS: Remind me sometime to tell you about the week in April 2008 that I was indoctrinated into the U.S. Military as part of the DoD’s Joint Civilian Orientation Conference.
On Monday we posed some thoughts on Customer Retention. Here is an advertisement that I love – this one from American Airlines that I believe stimulates thinking on customer retention. Take a look …
Jenkins is not going to lose that customer! He has made himself invaluable.
Over the years we have helped thousands of companies evolve their sales representatives to what we call a Sustaining Resource. Sustaining means on going. Resource means somewhere from which to draw from. I think we become invaluable to our customers when they see us as Jenkins – that individual they can tap on an on-going basis to bring ideas and solutions to help their business succeed.
Can you think of individuals who are invaluable to their customers, teams, businesses, and or units? Here are some that quickly come to my mind:
- Jenkins was invaluable to his client in the American commercial
- Steve Jobs is invaluable to Apple
- Sidney Crosby is invaluable to the Pittsburgh Penguins
- Kay Wingate, our e-learning coach is invaluable to our clients
- Fred Smith is invaluable to FedEx
- General David Petraeus is invaluable to our success in Iraq and Afghanistan
Traits like innovation, performance, expertise, desire, work ethic, results, leadership, empathy, knowledge, creativity, high standards, values, and others help each of these individuals become Sustaining Resources and invaluable. For those of us in sales, these are the types of things that will lead to customer retention.
Your Turn – Please Share With UsWhat does becoming invaluable mean to you?
How does your definition of becoming invaluable lead to improved customer retention?
In a recent presentation, Major League Baseball Hall of Famer
Cal Ripken Jr. said the key to his hall for fame baseball career and record 2,632 consecutive games played with the Baltimore Orioles was that he made himself invaluable. As he addressed the audience
Ripken said: “Frank Robinson pulled me into his office and said ‘You know how many times I said this was the day I was going to take you down and pull you off the lineup? You couldn’t hit and I was tired of looking at it. But I looked at everything else you do, and I didn’t want to replace it.’”
How interesting is that! Even though Cal Ripken "couldn’t hit" (with a batting average of .276 over 21 seasons), he was invaluable none-the-less to his team, teammates, and manager.
From a business perspective, like Cal’s ability to hit, no company is perfect. Orders will be late. A customer service process will be flawed. Inventory levels will fall short. Yet it is our job to insure we stay in the line up – to insure customer retention.
In these times customers are having their doors knocked on by more sales people than ever before. Sales people are hungry and they have found a renewed interest in prospecting. You competitors are targeting your business, making a customer retention strategy imperative. Here are five keys that we have found important to maximizing customer retention:
- Focus on what you don’t know – Most sales people fail to bring anything new to the table because of their myopic thinking. They focus on what they already know about their customer rather than what they don’t know. Customer retention requires digging deeper for broader understanding of the customers business.
- Get deeper within the organization – It is human nature to stay within our comfort zones. If we have a relationship with the purchaser for example that is where we devote our focus. Customer retention requires multiple relationships within the account – up and down the chain of responsibility.
- Be visible – If the only time the customer sees you is when there is an order to be had, you are at risk. Visibility is important, multiple touches are important, but in all cases, with each touch you must bring value.
- Talk of tomorrow – The past is just that, history. Customer retention is all about the future and what you and the customer together can accomplish going forward. Of course we need to remind the customer of the value we have delivered over the course of the relationship, but don’t stop there. Look to tomorrow and how you can help their business take the next step towards improvement.
- Run towards problems – Most sales people run from problems. Order is late – they blame operations. Inventory levels are not adequate, they blame purchasing. Customer retention on the other hand requires that we run towards the problem and take the accountability to make it right.
Give Me Your Top ThreeThere are of course more keys to customer retention, and I hope you will share your thoughts. What are your top three tips for becoming invaluable to your customers?
On Monday in our post titled What Separates Top Producing Sales Reps From The Others? Part I, we listed the first five of eleven. The first five criteria were:
- Have clearly defined expectations
- Have a plan and strategy for maximizing territory potential
- Understand the customer’s needs and business
- They have a passion for the business
- They bring creativity & innovation to create solutions
Here are the final six that were generated by these sales managers.
Create new opportunitiesSome seize existing opportunities and call it a day, only to wake up the next morning in a cloud of dust left by trailblazers who have created their own fortunes from the most unlikely and overlooked places. Top-producers not only take advantage of existing opportunities, but find ways to create them as well. Our sales representatives must understand that:
- Selling requires more than sustaining current business.
- They must create new business not only within current accounts, but also through new accounts.
Know your companyOnly by fully understanding our resources and total capabilities can we know what it is we take to market; and, as those capabilities expand, what we take to market changes! Because of this, our sales team must understand:
- That selling is more than taking orders (i.e. some sales reps run to management saying they need certain products that we don’t represent).
- Our capabilities – what we do well and not so well.
- The suppliers we represent, our product offerings and the applications that they best address.
- Our value proposition and competitive advantage.
- Authors Note – This is a huge void in most distribution sales organizations. Geneally speaking our sales people do not understand our capabilities and how to present them as solutions to our customer’s business needs.
Know the market“The ability to learn faster than your competitors,” says business strategist, Arie de Geus, “may be your only sustainable competitive advantage.” Because markets and tastes change, our selling opportunities change. Our sales representatives must learn all they can about their selling environments, including:
- The markets and industries in which they compete.
- The strengths and weaknesses of their competitors.
Personal developmentTennis champion, Venus Williams’ candidly observed, “You either improve or retire. I try to keep evolving.” Likewise, survival in today’s business climate mandates a continued evolution. “All of the top achievers I know are life-long learners looking for new skills, insights, and ideas,” says author, Denis Waitley, “If they're not learning, they're not growing . . . not moving toward excellence.” Our sales representatives must:
- Desire continued growth and accept the support our company offers to achieve it.
- Commit to continued growth (When is the last time they did something for the first time?)
- Agree to after-hours development (Remember when sales meetings were held on Saturdays?)
CollaborationCollaboration allows us to “huddle” with co-workers to produce greater results than we could ever achieve on our own. It’s based on the belief that early involvement, teamwork, defined responsibilities and processes can turn good ideas into dynamic solutions. Our sales representatives should demonstrate the willingness to share knowledge and expertise.
IntegrityMore people are watching you than you think. The University of Notre Dame Athletics Department advises participants in its sporting events to be their “best” selves because “everything we say and do (and don't say or do) sends a message about our values.” Notre Dame describes integrity as doing what’s right even when it’s unpopular or personally costly. “By not making a wrong right, you are supporting the wrong. By inaction, you condone the behavior. If you know the truth, speak it loud and clear. In other words, don't hide behind the presence of officials - play as if you are refereeing the event.”
What Are Your Thoughts?So there are the final six criteria which separate top producing sales reps from all the others according to this group of talented sales managers. While probably not all-inclusive I think it is a great list. What did you think of this list? Do you agree? Disagree? Have others to add? Let me know – I look forward to your input.
We recently posed this question to the LinkedIn business community, “Which challenge in today’s market most overwhelms you / your sales people?”
- 44% of the respondents said that their customers’ loss of business weighed heaviest on their sales teams.
- 18% said that customer focus on price most overwhelmed their salespeople,
- While another 15% cited the customer’s lack of vision as the main culprit.
- Finally, 12% targeted the salesperson’s workload as overwhelming.
Business “Gold” (AKA Good Sales Strategy) Some experts say “gold” is the best investment you can make these days. From the comments of our poll respondents, it appears that a good sales strategy is “gold” as well. Sales strategy – clearly communicated to the sales team – can help them regain control in the sales effort, and navigate today’s murky economic waters with a purpose. Here’s a sampling of comments:
- Help The Sales Team Apply Effort Where It Matters - “Salespeople have to be reminded to focus on what they can control,” says Mike O’Reilly (GM, ITW Construction), “Sales leaders have to help their salespeople identify where they can win today.” O’Reilly points to businesses that will benefit from the Economic Stimulus Bill. To leverage this new reality, sales leaders can guide their people to identify accounts that will benefit from that bill and work with those customers now to help them plan how they’ll score wins once the stimulus dollars roll in.
- Help The Sales Team Guide Their Customers To Look Ahead - “We have had some limited success with discussions on how clients are preparing for when business turns around,” says Jay Wysocki (Regional Program Manager at CEI). Strategic selling may require that you teach your salespeople how to lead such discussions.
- Help The Sales Team Practice Extreme Resourcefulness – “A client of ours sells 25% of its production to the auto industry here,” said Flavio Veiga, a business acquaintance of mine from Brazil, “The auto industry simply stopped manufacturing cars in November, December, and half of January. Nothing the salesmen could do would make a sale. We [created], along with the salespersons, actions to be implemented with the procurement officials such that when they buy again, they will be more likely to buy from this company, instead of from their main competitors. Sure enough, the government reduced the tax on automobiles, sales increased, the factories started producing again, and our customer is happy again.”
- Help The Sales Team Recall Its Role – “It’s easy to act like a victim in this economy,” O’Reilly added, “however, we did not hire salespeople to be ‘victims.” We hired them to be ‘difference makers.’” O’Reilly’s advice reminds us that market leaders emerge in any economy – good or bad.
The Bottom Line
We pay our salespeople to work around obstacles to discover and pursue available profit opportunities that coexist with market challenges. “Of course the loss of business has to be a concern,” responded James Harsche (Sales Rep, Port Supply), “but this is what we train for, to help turn that around.”
Share Your Golden Insight
Today's market presents unique challenges for sure, but I've found that
unique challenges often translate into unique opportunities. What has
crossed your mind lately about competing in this market?
Recently I was with a group of sales managers and a spontaneous discussion began around the question, “What separates top producing sales people from the others?” These sales managers generated 11 criteria. Take a look at the list (I’ll break it up into two posts to be conscious of your time) and let me know if you agree, or if you would have added other items to the list.
Clearly Defined Expectations
Is everyone under your leadership on the "same page," or is someone marching to a different drummer? Improved productivity and performance require the clear communication of expectations. Our sales representatives should:
- Know their roles and responsibilities -- what they should and should not do. For example, they should let customer service representatives service while they themselves focus on consistently executing the sales function.
- Understand the desired end state – what they must accomplish.
- Work toward set goals and use those goals to measure their performance.
Planning
Planning and organization at the territory level are critical to sales success. Each sales representative must develop and execute a strategy that proactively addresses the dynamics and changes in his territory. Effective planning means establishing clear objectives and organizing specific sales activities into integrated yearly, quarterly, monthly, weekly and daily work plans. The sales representative should:
- Develop a plan for maximizing the territory’s potential.
- Follow a process that begins with an annual plan and filters down to shorter-term quarterly, monthly, weekly, and daily plans.
- Develop a plan for each call that includes specific objectives for that call.
- Practice organizational skills that make his work both efficient and effective.
Understand The Customer’s Needs & Business
To compete at the highest levels, sales representatives must develop professional interviewing skills that establish their credibility and expertise, as well as demonstrate empathy. Additionally, they’ll use these skills to reveal the customer’s important business needs, goals, priorities and points of view. Each sales representative should:
- Focus on the customer as a “market of one.”
- Cultivate skills that allow him to drive a discussion around the strategies, objectives, and initiatives of his customer’s business.
- Avoid dumping information, and instead, listen while the customer does most of the talking.
- Cultivate skills that help him communicate effectively at all levels in the customer’s business. This includes participating in quality business discussions with those higher up in the customer’s organization chart.
Passion For The Business
Passion creates the energy and drive required to succeed over the long haul. Sales representatives with a natural enthusiasm and passion for their business need no motivation. Members of the sales team must:
- View their work as more than “just a job,” love what they do and the market they’re in.
- Have the work ethic to do what it takes to succeed.
Creativity & Innovation
Developing new and better solutions to customer problems requires a big dose of creativity on the part of the sales representative. Innovation and creativity hearten perseverance and spark performance breakthroughs. Our sales team must understand that:
- Required solutions are not always easy to find.
- The sales cycle at times may become a drawn out process. The sales representative must find ways to stay engaged and lead that process.
So there are the first five criteria which separate top producing sales reps from all the others according to this group of talented sales managers. On Thursday I’ll outline the other six top producing criteria.
What did you think of this list? Do you agree? Disagree? Have others to add? Let me know – I look forward to your input.
As I watched President Obama share his vision on Tuesday night during his press
conference, I thought of his leadership, which then led me to think about leadership management within wholesale distributors and all sales organizations during these tough times.
Some observations I recently received from one of my
LinkedIn profile discussions, suggested that as leaders today we must:
- Lead by example and lead with action. Leadership is not about being perfect or doing everything right, it is about doing the right things that help empower others to do what they need to do.
- Understand the imperative nature of hiring good people (regardless of the economy) and, even more importantly to let them do what you hired them for. In tough times like these, it is very easy to "micro-manage".
- Keep the vision alive and make sure that people are still able to see it. Focusing on tasks, blurs that vision, and decreases morale for those on the front lines. In a highly transactional environment for example, some find the focus on tasks to be very depressing. We must bring long-term vision into the scenario, along with goals and then let our people go out and figure it out.
- Remember that people look to their manager for that vote of confidence, encouragement, enthusiasm, or just the gentle righting of the ship. Positive people possess that magnetism which can nudge individuals forward.
- Be direct in what you want out of your people and then let them figure out how to get it done. It doesn't work with everyone, and in every situation but if you have those go-getters on your team, then let them go. Set them on a path for success by simply getting out of their way.
Here are five great quotes on leadership management. Which do you think provides the best insight to sales leadership for these economic times? Tell us why you pick the one you do.
- "The best executive is the one who has sense enough to pick good men to do what he wants done, and self-restraint to keep from meddling with them while they do it." Theodore Roosevelt
- “A leader's job is to look into the future and see the
organization, not as it is, but as it should be." Jack Welch - "A leader is a dealer in hope." Napoleon Bonaparte
- "Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right things." Peter Drucker
- "Don't tell people how to do things, tell them what to do and let them surprise you with their results." George S. Patton
Please Share Your ThoughtsWhich of these quotes do you think provides the best insight to leadership management for wholesale distributors and all sales organizations for these economic times? Tell us why you pick the one you do.
While the news is full of stories abut the bailouts of GM and Chrysler, Consumer Reports has identified the most and least reliable cars in the magazine’s 2009 Annual Auto Issue. And as you would guess, Japanese manufacturers – Toyota, Honda, Mazda, Subaru, and Nissan, own the top spots. Detroit’s GM, Chrysler and to a lesser extent Ford are closer to the bottom of the list. As I heard this story listening to Bob Brinker's Money Talk, it dawned on me that many of these Japanese cars are manufactured right here in the United States, by employees who are earning lower wages than their Detroit brethren. Lower paid employees producing better quality cars. It shouldn’t work that way should it? After all, when I talk to many sales managers about employee motivation they tell me the only thing that matters in driving productivity is the compensation program. Here is part of a email I recently received on this topic of employee motivation - the sales manager writes:
“Like many companies, we are going through difficult times, but first - my observation after 25 years in sales/sales management is that there is only one thing that drives sales reps behavior. So, unless the management team ties compensation directly to corporate values/vision, there will be diametric opposition between sales behavior and corporate goals.”I beg to differ. There is more than “one thing that drives a sales reps behavior.” The Auto industry is documented proof that employees are motivated to produce by more things than compensation. Don’t get me wrong, I understand the role of compensation, but there is more!
Several years ago a
Gallup study indicated that “actively disengaged” employees cost the U.S. economy between $292 billion and $355 billion a year. The research consistently showed a tendency for actively disengaged workers to be:
- Significantly less productive
- Report being less loyal to their companies
- Less satisfied with their personal lives
- More stressed and insecure about their work
Why is it when sales organizations want to spark increased employee motivation and production, the first thing they turn to is the pay program? I think its because the compensation program is easy. Take out an excel spreadsheet, run some numbers, compare some alternatives and announce a new plan. That’s easy compared to looking at the root causes of employee motivation and assessing an environment where the team is “actively engaged” has been created.
What Do You Think?What have you found to be the key drivers of employee motivation? Does this differ for a sales team?
Have you ever noticed that every sales person has the best service, the best product, and the best price? At least, that's what they claim to their customers and prospects. But until you can prove what you have, you are just like every other potential supplier throwing out platitudes and stereotypical sales banter.
Jeff Fisher, CEO of Florida Lift Systems, Inc. is right when he says, “A sales person without evidence is what gives sales a bad reputation.” Evidence is required to stand out and to support your propositions.
If we take Jeff’s clue, we can use this to our advantage because as I remind our clients of the lack of professional selling skills - how the use of visual aids and evidence is becoming a dying art in the profession of sales. It’s a shame because the Strategic Account Management Association tells us that when visual aids are used as professional selling skills to communicate evidence:
- Their audience is 43% more likely to be persuaded
- Their audience will pay 26% more attention
- The presenter covers the same material in 24 - 40% less time
- Learning improves 200%
- Retention improves 38%
An example of evidence usageOver the years we have had the opportunity to help several
Toyota Material Handling USA dealers take more from the market than the market is prepared to give through a combination of employee development strategies. We have learned that Toyota forklifts have a differentiating feature that addresses a key need – workplace safety. Toyota’s SAS – System of Active Stability™ electronically monitors and controls lift truck operations helping to reduce the risk of accidents. It’s really pretty cool technology.
So, if we were to assume that a prospect names safety as a top-buying criteria, which of the three options below would be most effective in selling the SAS safety feature of the Toyota trucks?
Option A - Verbal Presentation
A verbal presentation, where you describe the capabilities of the SAS system: you tell about technology that permits electronic monitoring and control of lift truck operations that reduces the risk of accidents. You also tell about the Active Control Real Stabilizer System, and the Active Mast Function Controller System.
Option B - Verbal Presentations With Pictures
You present the same information as above, pausing to show these graphics as you are describe the capabilities:
Option C - Show Video Of SAS in ActionYou discuss the capabilities of the SAS and then show this
video that captures the SAS in action.Clearly, the more effectively you communicate evidence to help tell your story (the use of pictures in option B and the video in option C) the more believable your story becomes.
Let’s stop giving sales a bad reputation and begin incorporating evidence into our sales presentations.
What do you think?Do you agree in the power of evidence?
Do you have an example of how evidence has helped you close more business?
Do you agree that the use of evidence is a dying art as a professional selling skill?