In motorsport, you often hear the expression 'go slow to go fast'. The fastest car on the track often looks the smoothest, the neatest, the most composed - in fact, they look slower than some behind them. They are perfectly on line with no wasted motion.
Absolute speed is critical - but wheel spinning, over steer etc scrub this speed and means you need to go quicker to recover the lost time.
Selling isn't much different as an analogy. There is always pressure to sell quickly - targets, deadlines, management. Like motorsport, the ultimate speed of the sales process is dictated by many variables - client circumstances and pressures, you and your team, the complexity of the sales process and client need.
It is your skill as a 'driver' of this process, being able to see and react to the conditions, which determines how you and your finish. Too slow, and you won't win, too fast and you won't finish.
These many variables in sales often mean
mean you need to slow down and take the time to find the right 'line' through the sales process. Of course, this line differs for each client and, unfortunately, the client can change the conditions at any point through the process.
How good a 'driver' are you?
As a 'team manager', do you have the right skills in the right places to find this line?
Monday, 29 July 2013
Wednesday, 24 July 2013
Superior Service
Success doesn't come from doing your job.
You pay someone to build you a house to a certain budget and within a certain time frame - and they do this. Is this good or great service?
Some clients would think so. It is actually disappointing that some clients think someone doing what they agreed to do and you paid them to do is good or great service. This is just the definition of service.
You pay someone to build you a house to a certain budget and within a certain time frame - and they do this. Is this good or great service?
Some clients would think so. It is actually disappointing that some clients think someone doing what they agreed to do and you paid them to do is good or great service. This is just the definition of service.
Memorable service doesn't come from meeting an expectation it comes from exceeding it..
You need to redefine the expectation of the client and yours. This isn't about under-promising and over delivering - it is about proper client centric, solutions driven service aimed at helping your customer (not just you).
Sure, you need to do the piece of work the client engaged you for well - but memorable service comes from the extra service you deliver that the client didn't expect you to deliver but is meaningul to them.
Also refer Win, Win, What?
You need to redefine the expectation of the client and yours. This isn't about under-promising and over delivering - it is about proper client centric, solutions driven service aimed at helping your customer (not just you).
Sure, you need to do the piece of work the client engaged you for well - but memorable service comes from the extra service you deliver that the client didn't expect you to deliver but is meaningul to them.
Also refer Win, Win, What?
Wednesday, 17 July 2013
I'm Glad You're Happy With Your Current Supplier
'I am quite happy with my current supplier' or 'I'm not looking to change suppliers'
Is this an 'objection' or a statement of fact? In sales, we view this as an 'objection' - but is it?
For some who despise direct sales - this is the perfect excuse to thank them for their time and exit the conversation striking a number against their sales activity and reinforcing in their head why direct selling doesn't work and is a waste of time.
There are some scenarios to consider here amongst other possibilities
Should you expect that if you view them as a desirable client - their existing supplier does as well?
If you were their current supplier, would you want your clients to convey this level of loyalty and satisfaction?
The very reason you're calling is why they are happy with their current supplier - they are a good business. This isn't an objection - it is an indication that this is the very type of client you want to work with.
Should you then go in to every call expecting this response and be able to deal with it?
It isn't the reason to stop making direct calls - it is the indication you're making the right ones!
Is this an 'objection' or a statement of fact? In sales, we view this as an 'objection' - but is it?
For some who despise direct sales - this is the perfect excuse to thank them for their time and exit the conversation striking a number against their sales activity and reinforcing in their head why direct selling doesn't work and is a waste of time.
There are some scenarios to consider here amongst other possibilities
- The are genuinely happy with their supplier and their supplier with them. The relationship is more of a partnership.
- They think they are happy with their current supplier as nothing is going wrong. They may be oblivious to what they don't know and what they could be getting.
- It is merely the business equivilent of 'I am just looking' that the retail sector gets as they're busy etc
Should you expect that if you view them as a desirable client - their existing supplier does as well?
If you were their current supplier, would you want your clients to convey this level of loyalty and satisfaction?
The very reason you're calling is why they are happy with their current supplier - they are a good business. This isn't an objection - it is an indication that this is the very type of client you want to work with.
Should you then go in to every call expecting this response and be able to deal with it?
It isn't the reason to stop making direct calls - it is the indication you're making the right ones!
Monday, 15 July 2013
Where Is Your Pyrite?
Growing a portfolio is an important part of a sales person's job in most instances.
'Prospecting', as this behaviour is often referred, comes from mining as they explore for minerals, ores etc.
You don't see a seasoned miner digging holes everywhere in the vain attempt to hit the mother lode. Sure, not every hole they dig is a success, but they look for the 'markers' that are likely to mean what they are looking for is nearby to improve the odds. For example, iron pyrite is often found near gold deposits or kimberlite near diamonds. So miners look for these to help point them to what you're looking for.
Prospecting for clients isn't much different - you need to think about it before 'digging many holes'. Here are 5 key questions to ask yourself when developing a prospect focus:
Where is your pyrite?
'Prospecting', as this behaviour is often referred, comes from mining as they explore for minerals, ores etc.
You don't see a seasoned miner digging holes everywhere in the vain attempt to hit the mother lode. Sure, not every hole they dig is a success, but they look for the 'markers' that are likely to mean what they are looking for is nearby to improve the odds. For example, iron pyrite is often found near gold deposits or kimberlite near diamonds. So miners look for these to help point them to what you're looking for.
Prospecting for clients isn't much different - you need to think about it before 'digging many holes'. Here are 5 key questions to ask yourself when developing a prospect focus:
- What does my ideal client look like? What are their characteristics - eg size, staffing, activity etc. Of these, which are the most important/crucial to making them 'ideal'
- Where are you most likely to find them? What industries, areas, markets, associations, advisers/partners/intermediaries will you see them most often?
- Why would they do business with you? What is your message, your value add or USP? This should align to what makes them ideal (a value match)
- Who are they? Knowing the above - who are these prospects? Who should you be doing business with?
- How do you connect with them? What is the most appropriate way to engage with them and their business. Is it directly or being introduced? Do you know someone who knows them (from Where)? Do you need to participate in an industry group/association (again, from Where)?
Where is your pyrite?
Thursday, 11 July 2013
Who Fails?
Do you expect your surgeon to prepare for your surgery? Read your notes, understand your condition, review your procedure and importantly - do the job properly? Of course, preparing is entrenched in medicine because of the consequences of the outcomes.
'Failing to prepare is preparing to fail' - is the adage. It is squandering an opportunity as a minimum. At worst it can be professional negligence. In the surgeon's case - fatal.
Does your 'failure to prepare' affect just you?
Sales is a profession. Clients rely on your advice. You endorse their decisions. You shape them. You help deliver their results. They expect you to prepare. The outcomes of you not preparing may not be fatal like the surgeons', but may be important to your client.
If you don't prepare, who fails?
'Failing to prepare is preparing to fail' - is the adage. It is squandering an opportunity as a minimum. At worst it can be professional negligence. In the surgeon's case - fatal.
Does your 'failure to prepare' affect just you?
Sales is a profession. Clients rely on your advice. You endorse their decisions. You shape them. You help deliver their results. They expect you to prepare. The outcomes of you not preparing may not be fatal like the surgeons', but may be important to your client.
If you don't prepare, who fails?
Don't Hit More Balls!
Using a sports analogy; a sports coach doesn't just measure how many times a sports person hits the cricket ball (inputs) and how many times they score runs (outputs). They also invest heavily in ensuring that person knows how to hit the ball properly, how to remain calm under pressure, how to be goal focused etc. When the sports person isn't scoring runs, the coach doesn't just say 'hit more balls'.
It is easy for sales leaders to focus on the numbers. This can be the 'outputs' or sales results and the 'inputs' or sales activity.
If you solely focus on measuring outputs or results you are reactionary. You have to wait until you have an output (or don't) to react. This doesn't tell what is being done to generate these outputs - and this assumes your sales team knows what to do to generate these outputs. You can also get outputs which aren't aligned to how the business would like this to occur. You risk a sales 'at all expense' type behaviour.
In focusing on inputs, there is a risk here of getting what you measure. If you ask a sales person to make 10 sales calls a week - it is highly likely you will get 10 sales calls a week.
Doing the activity is easy - but does this always lead to the outputs? No, in fact in many situations the activity focus can just create noise in the network. Wasted effort. People doing things to meet numbers, not to achieve results. As a leader, you need to be mindful that asking for more activity isn't always correlated to results.
Outputs matter. Sales exist to produce or retain revenue. This is the single most important sales metric in most situations - it must be measured.
Input measures get activity. Output measures show the outputs (they don't necessarily produce them). As a sales leader - you are accountable for shaping the quality of these activities and outputs.
What your sales team do and achieve is important - but these are just factor of how and why they do them. Yes, that sales call is important as an activity - but how the call is actioned is more important (the content, the cadence, the engagement with the client) and WHY the call was made in the first place is even more important.
Sales success comes from doing the right things properly and for the right reason, not just doing things.
It is easy for sales leaders to focus on the numbers. This can be the 'outputs' or sales results and the 'inputs' or sales activity.
If you solely focus on measuring outputs or results you are reactionary. You have to wait until you have an output (or don't) to react. This doesn't tell what is being done to generate these outputs - and this assumes your sales team knows what to do to generate these outputs. You can also get outputs which aren't aligned to how the business would like this to occur. You risk a sales 'at all expense' type behaviour.
In focusing on inputs, there is a risk here of getting what you measure. If you ask a sales person to make 10 sales calls a week - it is highly likely you will get 10 sales calls a week.
Doing the activity is easy - but does this always lead to the outputs? No, in fact in many situations the activity focus can just create noise in the network. Wasted effort. People doing things to meet numbers, not to achieve results. As a leader, you need to be mindful that asking for more activity isn't always correlated to results.
Outputs matter. Sales exist to produce or retain revenue. This is the single most important sales metric in most situations - it must be measured.
Input measures get activity. Output measures show the outputs (they don't necessarily produce them). As a sales leader - you are accountable for shaping the quality of these activities and outputs.
What your sales team do and achieve is important - but these are just factor of how and why they do them. Yes, that sales call is important as an activity - but how the call is actioned is more important (the content, the cadence, the engagement with the client) and WHY the call was made in the first place is even more important.
Sales success comes from doing the right things properly and for the right reason, not just doing things.
Tuesday, 9 July 2013
Square Peg, Square Hole
Customers don't need to alter to fit your business, you need to alter to fit the clients need!
Ever been a client and had a conversation along the lines of 'In order to improve our service to you, we've changed what we do, you now need to do X'? Did the improved service actually eventuate? In most cases it doesn't.
A paraphrase of this statement in many instances is 'In order to make your interaction with us more efficient and therefore reduce the cost of doing business with you so we make more money off each interaction, you now need to change what you were doing and do it this way'.
The tail wags the dog. You should, within the realms of sensibility, do business with clients the way they want.
Clients don't have to do business with you and, when they are, why give them the excuses to reconsider this decision. Unless your client wants to alter the way the do business with you or, geniunely, the change does improve their experience - resist pushing your internal issues out to the client to resolve.
If your client is a square peg, you become a square hole.
Ever been a client and had a conversation along the lines of 'In order to improve our service to you, we've changed what we do, you now need to do X'? Did the improved service actually eventuate? In most cases it doesn't.
A paraphrase of this statement in many instances is 'In order to make your interaction with us more efficient and therefore reduce the cost of doing business with you so we make more money off each interaction, you now need to change what you were doing and do it this way'.
The tail wags the dog. You should, within the realms of sensibility, do business with clients the way they want.
Clients don't have to do business with you and, when they are, why give them the excuses to reconsider this decision. Unless your client wants to alter the way the do business with you or, geniunely, the change does improve their experience - resist pushing your internal issues out to the client to resolve.
If your client is a square peg, you become a square hole.
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