Blogs, Books and Baffle
FIRST IMPRESSIONS
Posted on : 11/09/2010
Posted on : 11/09/2010
How do your customers perceive you?
Do you look like a 1970s sales person? Do you sound like a 1970s sales person? Check out this funny YouTube clip from some car ads in the USA.
BUT don't laugh too loud - you may have said - or even behaved - like some of thess crazy examples!
AND REMEMBER, you only get ONE first impression......so don't be a Badger!!!!!
Hawaii Five-O: Personal branding will keep your customers
Posted on : 09/07/2010
Posted on : 09/07/2010
One of my favourite shows as a kid was Hawaii Five-0. Just loved it. So much so, that I wanted to go there. Been twice - love it.
Got me thinking about the impressions we leave people. Do we leave good impressions - or bad ones? When people think of us - what do they want to do? Do they want to spend time with us (i.e. like me wanting to go to Hawaii) or are they indifferent? Spend time thinking about your brand - who you are and what impression people have of you. When you are not around, your customers are talking about you. This is based on your behaviour, your attitude, your execution of the promises you make. They are weighing up the pros and cons of what you offer and deliver - v - the promises of the competitors knocking on their door. Hmmm, how well do you stack up?
Meanwhile, check out this clip of the Hawaii Five-O intro. Gives me goose pimples!!
"Book 'em Danno!!!!"
Change is coming
Posted on : 01/07/2010
Posted on : 01/07/2010
Great clip about the way the world we know is rapidly changing. Geographic, cultural, economic, educational - it's all happening!!! Can you see it? Do you know it? What are you doing about it?? Contact us about ways we can support your people handle the changes that are happening all around us.
Planning and Assessing an Opportunity
Posted on : 18/06/2010
Posted on : 18/06/2010
This has to be one of the most frustrating subjects I encounter in the world of sales. Why do so many sales people simply ‘wing’ their way through deals? And, surprisingly, when they lose them – they blame ‘price’ or the ‘customer was a mongrel’ – or some other lame excuse. Come on young Padawans, to be successful over the long term, you must have some type of methodology that allows you to guide your thinking and strategy, and helps you plan and assess your progress on every opportunity. It’s a sign of sales leadership.
Let me give you an analogy…..
In every car I have ever been in, there is this really cool thing called a dashboard. You may have seen them too? As you know, the dashboard has indicators telling us about vital things like engine temperature, speed and oil and fuel levels.
When we take our eyes off the dashboard, we can sometimes make mistakes – just like my speeding fine the other day!! I thought I was doing the right thing, the environment around me didn’t seem to indicate I was speeding – and my wife was merrily talking away like everything was OK. However, if I had paid more attention to the dashboard (and less attention to my wife), then maybe, just maybe, that $350 might still be in my pocket – and not taken by a government body who is going to waste it anyway!!
Now, this is not a parable about marital relationships and whether I should be listening to my wife, but the same thing applies to managing an opportunity. We must have a dashboard that informs us of where we are at. Although many companies seem to have some type way of assessing opportunities, I find very few who use it regularly – or effectively. The strategy seems to be ‘close eyes, aim, fire’ and wish for luck. It just staggers me how many opportunities – how much revenue – slips right through their hands.
Have a look at some of the reasons why salespeople think they don’t have to plan and test their opportunities. I love these. When I hear these, I just want to reach out and hit them over the head with my iPhone – except that I love my iPhone too much and Apple doesn’t cover idiot insurance – even when it is warranted.
‘Don’t have the time’
A little bit of planning before you begin the opportunity will save a lot of time and heartache. Have you ever tried to put something together from Ikea? Only when it goes terribly wrong, do we consider reading the instructions. Using the street directory is another example. How much time would be saved by a quick review before you take off? Checking which roads get there fastest, looking at back streets, short cuts etc etc. Saying you don’t have time means you will end up wasting more time.
‘My boss doesn’t worry about them’
Hmmm, I love this one. As my Dad use to say, ‘if so-and-so told you to stick your head in the oven would you do it?’ I mean come on, there are plenty of poor performing bosses out there, so please don’t measure yourself against them. As the sales person, you have a responsibility to do everything you can to win that business and that starts with planning and testing your strategy. Stop looking out the window at others, and start looking in the mirror. Scary for some of us I know!!
‘Too complicated’
Imagine if you had a reality TV crew with you for 3 months. You may see how ‘lucky’ a lot of your ‘wins’ are. Just go and do some ‘post-win’ meetings and ask your customer to be open and honest. I can guarantee that using the same methodology to process your opportunities will make things simpler – not more complex. After a while, you will begin to apply the principles of the methodology you use. You will find yourself asking questions of customers that directly relate to the answers / gaps you need to know. It saves a lot of embarrassing calls back to the customer to check information and fill in gaps. Or worse still – explaining to your boss why you lost the deal – and not really knowing why!!! That is a horrible feeling!! Been there, done that. Don’t want to do it again.
‘I am winning deals anyway’
High performing sales people don’t just measure what they win, but what they are missing out on. This is where the real fruit is. How will you know if you don’t take a critical look? Furthermore, how do you know there wasn’t more revenue in the deal you won?? You will start to see you win more deals, with more revenue than ever before.
‘Needless administration’
Since when has planning and testing become needless administration? What if Captain Cook didn’t plan his voyages from England? ‘Lets just head off from Plymouth, and see where the wind takes us.’ He would probably end up at the North Pole. Imagine the Sydney Opera House with snow around it? Just wouldn’t work!! Needless administration? Or just plain laziness? You be the judge!!
OK, I have let rip. What do we do next? Ask yourself some questions?
Are you serious in the way you plan and test your opportunities?
What does your current sales team do in this space? Can you improve it? Can you be the one who makes a difference? You will look like a real leader.
Does your manager coach you through these – if they don’t, give them a verbal slap, or at least a yellow card, and get yourself into it. Don’t settle for mediocrity. That’s what Michael Jackson did when he settled for a chimp called ‘Bubbles’ as his best friend.
To finish off, a simple planning and testing methodology does work!! I don’t like processes, but my experience over many, many years in sales roles, tells me that there is not a better alternative to winning deals - and winning them consistently.
Next time, I am going to look at the key elements of an effective opportunity planning tool.
Sales Career? Its a nightmare!!
Posted on : 18/06/2010
Posted on : 18/06/2010
Have you wondered to yourself, ‘what the heck am I doing in sales?’ It has to be one of the toughest jobs around.
You have customers that bark and bark at you. You get out of a customer meeting, only to be greeted by a spate of messages from other customers about billing issues, lost business, complaints and deadlines.
When you get back to the ‘safe’ abode of the office, you have people on your back about other deadlines – whether it’s your boss, marketing or the service department. Or perhaps you are the one chasing up deadlines. Don’t you just love it when people let you down?!?! It can become very lonely.
What about making budget? The targets go up all the time – faster than the government’s broken promises. And when you make target, you often have to argue about the actual commission rate paid.
It can really feel like the whole world is against you with feelings of ‘does anybody love me?’ Despite the upside they often experience, many sales people have shared their angst and loneliness to me. How can this be? The very people who bring in the revenue are often the most frustrated and misunderstood in the company.
These depressing descriptions have lead many sales people to slip into survival mode and play the game on their terms. Have you ever found yourself asking these questions?
1) What is the minimum I need to do to keep my job?
2) How much money do I want to earn this year (regardless of where the target is)?
3) Is there a better job out there?
At this point, I don’t sound like the world’s best recruiting officer for a sales career. However, let me throw a few things out there about the benefits of a sales career. Opportunities that will see you grow in your career – and personal life.
1. You are empowered to represent an organisation, and in your very hands is all the power and capability of that company. Your boss has no power over what you say and do with the customer. They are not there. This makes you highly autonomous. Use this power for good, not evil!!
2. You will make friends for life – both personal and business relationships. I know people who have met their marriage partners.
3. You learn the power of influence and relationship building. How good is it meeting new people, turning around ‘psycho’ customers and winning business? It’s the same feeling that Luke Skywalker had when he turned around Darth ‘Daddy’ Vader.
4. You will learn about other organisations and industries. This only builds your value stack for your next job / career.
5. There is freedom and flexibility that you will never get in other roles.
6. There is no better feeling than when a customer signs over a deal that effectively says, ‘I trust you, I believe in you and I want you to help my business.’
7. Nothing is made until it is sold. No matter what finance, the marketeers or the operation dudes say, YOU are the person who brings in the revenue. You hunt the hairy mammoth and feed the tribe. Puff up that chest. You are vitally important to the company!!
8. You will have a lot of fun doing it. There are some lows, but there are some great highs. And unlike Marion Jones euphoria in winning Olympic Gold, you don’t need steroids to do it.
9. Your career can go anywhere! If you keep learning the craft of professional, ethical selling - you will have highly effective people skills, leadership and influencing qualities, a can-do attitude plus experience and know-how across a range of industries.
I hope that convinces you of the benefits of a sales career. I have been doing it for 20 years and love every bit of it. I get excited just writing about it. Then again, I like country music too!!
Take responsibility for your career. Plan it. Execute the plan. Use your super powers. Work out what development you are receiving in your current role that will help with your next. If your current role isn’t cutting it for you - get out while you still can!! Run, Forrest, run!! Be proactive – otherwise, you will let other people determine your wellbeing, your growth and your career.
Free e-Booklet
Ways to Magically Improve Your Service
Recent Posts
