The global economic problem is putting the strain on marketing and sales. Experienced as well as new salesmen are battling with reduced productivity and potential sacks. But the forward looking one are already seeking and acquiring newer and superior information to stay ahead. Knowing how will help cross the gulf between failure, despondency and success. Larry's Sales&Marketing Tips offers simply and quick solutions to the problem of today.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
How to become a sales hero
Actor-salesmen are discernible by the following attributes:
· they are focused.
· They plan, make out time to gather relevant information without concentrating on the odds against success.
· they are the cynosure of all eyes and envy in the department. The competitors gossip about him and his superiors praise him.
· they are news makers in the department and in the company. Their lifestyle and what they do top the list of favourite topics in the company.
· They are not afraid of failure or mistakes
· because they are usual forward-going, sometimes they make little mistakes. But, interestingly, it is their traducers who worry, the actor-salesman continues with his mission. They are determined, persistent, and resilient
· They have a big mental picture against which their entire activities are measured. They dream big
· When they are faced with failure, they victory; with failure, they see delay. So they are internal focused and primed for high accomplishments.
· Learning for them is not for knowledge as it is to the passive salesman but for information on actions that can lead to his achieving his goals. Learning propels them forward: it does not enlighten them. Rather they see education in the experience acquired in the field. Their best teacher is experience.
· They know the difference between day-dream and vision. The former leads to slumber: the later a sure fire in the soul.
· They are risk takers.
· Sales heroes do not see themselves as stars but as coaches. For these rare breed, success is having successors who have continued in their vision and strategy.
· So, get up and go. Become a sales hero.
·
HOW TO GET A SALES MENTOR
An aspiring sales man has the absence of professional role-models as the greatest issue to contend with. The problem is compounded by the bourgeoning of sales and distribution as a result of globalization and consumerism making all sorts of goods available for sale. Mentoring bridges gaps; reduces learning curves and increasing output in a short time. Mentoring could turn the most hopeless into the best if it is handled with care and if harnessed with love. The problem of getting a sponsor has never been seen as a business challenge until the emergence of The Global-Mentors.
Now we know that it is possible to get Ben Carson or Mary Kay as a mentor. Indeed all over the world, the Mary Kay model is being replicated. So how can a rural suburban folk in the nether parts of Nigeria, Kenya or Lesotho become a protégé of Odumegwu or even Bill Gates? Take the case of Jose Vergara cited below as an exmple, he studied, copied and became great..
VERGARA, JOSE
Vergara, Jose
A Spanish painter, was born at Valencia in 1726. He displayed fine artistic powers at an early age. He adopted the style of the prints of Spagnoletto, and studied the works of Coypel and Paolo de Matteis. He painted many portraits and numerous pictures for the churches of Valencia and neighboring cities, in oil, fresco, and distemper. The most noted of his paintings are the Conception of the Virgin, in the Convent of San Francisco, at Valencia; and Telemachus and Mentor, in the Academy of San Ferdinando. (from McClintock and Strong Encyclopedia, Electronic Database. )
1. Study.
2. Research
3. Technology
4. Books
5. Direct Encounter/ mentoring
6. Workshops/ Seminars
Study: an aspiring protégé should be studious. To benefit most from the mentor, he needs to be versed with the popular view of the mentor and seek ways to appropriate those good sides to his professional selling. Being studious requires making out the time to think, analyse and synthesize the current of new information that he is able to obtain concerning his subject matter
Research: the he should research to find out if there are other people with similar views and where they differ. This helps him to clarify and clear mental clogs that could hamper harmonious relationships. The areas of research include: the strengths and weaknesses of the mentor, the accomplishments and failures of the mentor and what people say about him. The result of this research will help to reduce expectations, provide a realistic model of mentoring encounter and give the protégé the benefit of knowing whether there are issues he must avoid in his relationship with the mentor such as: religious views, sexual preferences, philosophical opinions that may not be helpful etc.
Technology: in the area of technology there are a few that need to be mentioned. Compact discs, PM3 & 4s, videos and DVDs and tapes are some of the popular media that have helped to provide access to prominent men and women of great accomplishment. The internet has also provided a forum for people to get so much information in matter of minutes and so should be utilized to the full. Get information about any body or anything is as easy as googling the name or the question.
Books: Since the invention of the book, no other invention has affected the way we communicate, educate and train. Books contain information on virtually any subject on earth. Like the internet, books can contain nearly every information that man needs. The problem with books is volume and accessibility. Fortunately, the great salesmen of our time have found that they can further their views and knowledge through writing well thought books. The result is that any one can become a distant protégé of any one merely by reading their books.
Workshops / Seminars: the greatest salesmen are delighted to walk the seminar circuits teaching and mentoring. So every available opportunity should be utilized to further your knowledge and performance. They provide an opportunity to ask questions directly from the mentor and even give access to follow-up encounters if the needs arise.
Direct Encounter/ Mentoring: This is the most gratifying mentoring process but it is also the most cumbersome. To get any one to be your mentor approach him. There are issues with contact-mentors but it is worth the while once the initial hiccups are taken care of.
In all determination to scale the hurdles will bring fulfillment.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
How to Eliminate Passivity from your Selling
In the article entitled: How to be a sales Hero on eHow.com, I argued that passivity is a sine qua non for failure in salesmanship. Today, I want to contrast the heroism of the actor-salesmen with his opposite twin: the spectator-salesman, a docile bystander, who wants the world to stand still and wait for it to discover his brilliance. Perhaps in this mirror contrast, we would be able to show the habits and character traits that must be avoided like the plague.
A word of caution from the start: professional sales docility has nothing to do with introversion. As the expression is used her, it only refers a tendency towards dithering and postponing of action as a result of fear. It comes with the realisation that fear is the bedrock of the professional's actions and responses to situations. Fear of failure, fear of mockery, fear of error. It is the emotional baggage that delays actions until too late or too little. The best way to see this is to say that it is ruled by the operative principle: CAUTION. The result that though the actions may be right in the long run, they come too late to make any impact on the bottom line.
The followings are the key elements of the passive-salesman that should be avoided:
• Fear of rejection. Experienced salesmen know that there are no sales without objection, resistance or rejection. In fact, experience shows that sales objection is an integral part of any successful sale. Learn to discover the source of your fear and deal with it. Left unattended to, fear is a crippler of initiative and the tomb of good ideas.
• The second thing that leads to passivity in professional sales life is lack of planning. Nothing inspires and gives confidence like knowing that you have made enough preparation for a sales encounter. The passive sales person either relies on his gift of the garb or eloquence but the actor-sales man sees every sales effort as a battle that has to be won. He works hard to ensure that he wins by seeking information rather than knowledge.
• That brings us to the third step. the passive sales representative seeks knowledge. He wants to be seen as the guy who predicted right (often negative prediction of doom).So, when he reads, he does so with an eye on the thousands of reasons why the sale effort would not work. A sport writer once said that in Nigeria, there are 140million coaches. He meant that it is easier for the spectators to speculate about who and what should have been done to win matches than to go into the field to play. The passive sales man belongs rightly to the spectator side of the game.
• The result of being a spectator is that this kind often loses the opportunity to make it big. He abhors risk-taking and ends up being a mediocre. The dictum: NO VENTURE NO SUCCESS aptly captures the lot of this type of sales person. They see chance, luck or mere coincidence in any achievement recorded by the actor-sales man.
• Another feature of this type is that they are always cynical. Being cynics, they shun news and innovation rather they seek solace in history (again of failures). Hence, they often behind the times in terms of changes in government policies, trends and business directions. A writer said of them that they prefer to be on the side of antiquity.
•
• WHAT TO DO
• If the above characterization fits you, you need to change urgently. The three best cures for fear is: [1] take action, [2]take action and [3] take action
• On the problem of pessimistic view of things, the sales man needs to address his self hatred. Usually, the view arises from a condition of not liking one's self enough to trust one's self to make the right decision. He may have lived all his life being told how the world is a hopeless place. To change the view, he needs to begin by seeking information about himself and about his area of business. Information gives confidence. He needs to start asking questions and reading literature that help build up his sense of self worth. That way he would not be guided by jealousy but would applaud when someone else gets it right.
• Consistently done, he himself would become a sales hero admired by the boss and feared by the laggard sales colleagues who refuse to change.
CUSTOMER RESISTANCE INDEX II
Does the need exist? Is the salesman shooting in the dark? Are customers just plain difficult people? Should customers not make this work easier? Unfortunately, customers have a business they are running and are constantly looking for ways to perform better. That should be your guide when you are trying to deal with customer objection. They are duty bound to verify that the solutions you are offering provide the best answer to their expectations. The salesman therefore is the one to make the job easier for the customer. Does not make the Mr. Atlas, but just makes it easier in the long run for the salesman to make more repeat sales, once confidence has been established.
SALES OBJECTION RESOLUTION
So, the resolution of sales objection is tied closely to the apron-springs of a well organized problem identification process. We can liken this process to a clinical examination of a patient. Assume that the sales objection being experienced is a headache. A doctor knows that there are several possible causes of headache. He would therefore embark on a clinical examination which involves oral interviews. In the process, he is able to locate cause-suspects. In the same manner, the experienced salesman knows that a customers’ objection may have multiple causes. The resolution process is designed to locate the TRUE cause of objection. Remember the reason for objection varies from one client to the other.
HANDLING SALES RESISTANCE
• I have a grievance: A customer may have a legitimate grievance that needs to e sorted out first. So, sort it out. Such grievance may be related to after sales disappointments, failure to fulfill previous promises or any other legitimate complaint. Sales situation is life situation and customers buy from people they can rely on. The more the customer sees your disposition as friendly not exploitative, the better for future business.
How to Identify this Problem?
1. customer is personalizing his attack
2. he feels acts violently and in a threatening manner
3. may not want to talk to you
4. may be crossed with the secretary for allowing you in
(EXERCISE: See if you can identify which behaviour in Part I of this article fits here)
• Price: Price objections are often centered on comparison to other products. But as we noted in Part I, the TRUE CONCERN may be different. A good salesman is not intimidated by price because pricing is related to quality. Another company may have a cheaper variant but the salesman needs to be certain about the products differentiation in order to convince on the claim of superiority.
• No need: Clearly, where the company does not run or operate with the product offered, it is a waste of time to continue to press. Close the the encounter in a friendly and easily recall-able manner as an entree for future sales effort. But do not repeat such mistake; otherwise, you may go down as a fool who does not deserve the attention of a busy executive. Do your home work well before the pitch.
• Fear of commitment: Apart from pricing, this is one of the least understood problems with selling. Every manager has responsibility to his employer. His duty is therefore to buy products or services that help to reduce costs. Clearly, buying products that are not required is a waste of scarce resources. But apart from wastage, the customer has a reputation to maintain. When he buys under pressure, he may discover that he has made any of the following mistakes:
• high price or
• salesman has taken advantage of his lack of adequate information to sell what he does not need
• he can not eventually explain the features and usability of the product to subordinates and colleagues
These and many others may explain why they often prefer to delay action as long as possible rather than make costly mistakes.
Thursday, September 17, 2009
CUSTOMER RESISTANCE INDEX I
By Larry Happiday
Whenever the sales presentation is encumbered by sales resistance or sales objection as it is sometimes called, it is expressed in a couple of expressions that can be categorized as follows:
CATEGORIES OF SALES RESISTANCE BEHAVIOUR
- I have a grievance
- Price
- No need
- Fear of commitment
COMMON EXPRESSIONS OF RESISTANCE
- We are fully stocked
- We do not use this type of product
- This price is ridiculous
- No salesman has ever said to me
- You are the cause of problems in this company
- You are a nuisance
- We can a better price for this product
- ABC….XYZ PRODUCT is far better than yours
- Your company is unknown
- ABC Company is better known so you are better selling their product
- We use quality products here so we are not interested
- I’m not interested
- The company policy prevents us from buying from you
- There is no money
- Drop your letter or proposal or brouchure and we’ll get back to you
- We’re already engaged to another supplier
SALES OBJECTION IS NOT SALES REFUSAL
One general principle to understanding resistance is to note that it is not final. Inexperienced salesman find that it customers who “promised” to study your letter turn around days later or weeks later to act dumb and surprised. If you have ever found yourself having to start explain all over how you had come and met with the customer and was told to go and come back some other time, you would understand how unsettling this can be. It will also reveal what such neophyte salesmen consider customer fickleness.
The good news is that such customers have just exhibited customer resistance which is not final and should actually be a cue to ascertain the source of the dissention. Put differently, super sales men know that some of the above resistance behaviours is a signal that the client wants more information.
Only by providing that information would a purchase take place. And the client is not about to let you know how ignorant he may be. So, experienced salesmen have to find it out.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
WATCH THE NIGERIAN TELECOMMUNICATIONS RIP OFFS
BACKGROUND
Since last year, the national Telecommunications regulator Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) had placed a ban on advertisement for sale of new mobile lines due to net work congestion, poor customer service, unusually high dropped call rates and other telecommunication put offs that were threatening the survival of the business. The smart telecommution devices a method of circumventing the directive by embarking promotions that pretended to encourage more calls rather than selling new lines. But they beat the regulator to the game by always ending their adverts by promising OLD & NEW SUBSCRIBERS equal access to the great rewards.
The news is that while the ETISALAT campaign is still on, the GLOBACOM WIN AND RULE PROMO promise of giving out five hundred (500) new cars to subscribers has virtually ended without as much as a thud. What would five hundred cars mean to their campaign?
Come with me to a few state governments and you would understand this company has so much to prove that their campaign was not a huge fraud. Almost every state government has transport company. There hundreds of transport companies in Nigeria and because cars or vehicles are mobile, they can always be seen on the roads. I know of some organisatiions with as little as tree branded cars whose vehicles are ubiquitous. No week passes without seeing one on the road. Now, if five hundred advertised cars are to be given out, GLOBACOM branded cars would be seen every day everywhere in Nigeria. I am a regular traveller and quite often prefer travelling by road. Since the so called campaign to give out five hundred cars, there is not even one that I have seen prompting me to ask where are the GLOBACOM cars on Nigerian roads?
Lagos State is home to more 15% of the country's population but home to more 40% of all the industries in the country.
A little arithmetic of consumer facts would help in making our analysis; more than 80% of all banking transaction nationwide take place in or through Lagos, almost 60% of inhabitants of Lagos own a handset majority have up to three (3) their representing their perceived providers of first choice. Therefore, my argument: there is no way the company could have run a promo for nearly six months and Lagos subscribers would not have won up to 75 cars if the Lagos population of nearly 15million is considered. Given the larger number of subscribers per kilometer, Lagos should be able to win up to two times that figure. Finally, if we consider the purchasing power, Lagos residents are about twice as others citizens to afford telephone services. So, no matter what index what applied, I am still curious that I am yet to see or hear from anyone I know of any one who has won the GLOBACOM WIN & RULE car. Compare these with the fact that when Lagos State Government under Governor Fashola and Tinubu brught in 180 buses, they were every where. So, GLOBACOM, where are the cars?
Incidentally, during the entire period of this dubious promo, I was busy travelling from state to state but NEVER saw one such vehicle. It leads to one conclusion:FRAUD
This conclusion is reinforced by the fact that there is weak if not non existent Consumer protection agency. Forget that there is one in name but it is only an apparatus for addressing angry customers. I am not aware that these promos are scrutinised by any ombudsman. There is no known agency that warehouses these promos or there claims.
SUGGESTIONS
- The Financial crimes agency need to scrutinise Globacom's record to establish that the five hundred cars were given out. I have my doubts that they were.
- Consumers need to come together under an umbrella to start protecting themselves from unscrupulous businesses who are capitalising on Nigeria's very weak institutions to exploit the people.
- There is a need for the Ministry of Commerce to come up with guidelines for promos. The Central Bank and NAFDAC have a semblance of this check which makes it possible for claims made by advertisers to be checked before they go public. So, NCC should co-operate with consumers to ensure that telecommunications companies meet their public promise in accordance with their afore-disclosed rules.
- GLOBACOM and other companies need to make full dislocures of their winners including addresses so as to prove that they were honest in that five hundred cars promo. Otherwise, consumers may begin to bycott and possibly picket their premises.
- The press should come clean on this. This magnitude of fraud can not be going on and the media pretend not to know. Let there be thorough investigations, please.
Monday, September 7, 2009
Why Do Customers Resist My Sales Effort?
No matter which of the above questions is troubling you right now, the real issue put in a question format that should really bothered you as a sales man is which class of salesmen you wish to belong: the upper 7% or lower 93% of average and failed salesmen.
The question has become even more urgent in view of the global economic meltdown. Make no mistakes, there will still be job losses in the next year. What relief there appears to be is only a slow down in the rise of unemployment. Every salesman should try and figure out who or what department is usually the first to get the knife. put differently, which departmental budget gets the deepest slash in a economic downturn? The answer is obvious to any one who has sat on any management board like I have in the last 17years.
So every sales man needs to make himself the indispensable part of the organisation. Never mind the butts about being queer. What matters is that you are the soul of the organisation. The secret to making yourself the protected specie in the organisation irrespective of the economic tides and turns id simple: learn to handle sales resistance in the most professional manner. But what is sales resistance?
SALES RESISTANCE
This refers to the sum of customer behaviour which results in delayed purchase (in the hands of the adroit sales man) or failed sales effort (in the hands of an inept or inexperienced salesman).
WHY CUSTOMERS RESIST
1. They need more clarification
2. They have no need for the product
3. They have had previous unhappy sales experiences
4. They want to avoid paying exhorbitant prices
5. They want to explore or use alternative products
6. The salesman is insensitive or has not done his home work well
7. Salesman uses pressure tactics or inappropriate behaviour
UNDERSTAND SALES RESISTANCE
To overcome sales resistance, you need to understand its nature. This is where a lot of sales men get it wrong and remain rooted at the bottom of the sales performance ladder. You must seek to understand the source of the resisiting behaviour in order to solve it profitably.
The first step to take is to understand yourself, your strenghts and weaknesses. In a book to be published in December, I have gone into great details to show the shibboleths which we nurse to our chagrin. If you are able to identify your own shibboleths, then you can deal with them and move ahead of the pack.
Then you will need to understand the decision maker in the organisation in which you are about to sell. Prior sales reconnaissance or surveillance will reveal some things that are hidden the beneath the official veneer of officialese. Try to get behind those and you have your target speak to you as a a partner. (More on this process in a subsequent blog post).
You also need to understand the decision making process. In most b2b situations, committees are involved taking decisions. So the Production manager or any other so called functionary may indeed not be the biggest influence on the purchase decision. Or he may not be the only one. So, you will need to perform the above role a little more by also cross checking what you can find about the other decision makers.
The above steps help to reduce the amount of wasted effort that successful salesmen put into get the sale.
However inspite of the great efforts, customers may still resist your sales advances. I always recommend to my participants to see the resolution process as similar to wooing girl.
Consider, is she in the right mood for your advances? If not what do you do? Can you change her mood? Do you have the lightening touch to turn a pensive and angry lady into a laughing and happy one? Humour is one tool that does it real good. How much fun can you poke at yourself and the situation without inflaming the customer the more? If it seems foolhardy to create fun can you sympathise and offer a relief? This is crucial. It does not matter whether this promotes your immediate sales objective. What is important is that the customer is helped to solved his immediate problem. The salesman earns a social credit that can come in handy in due course.
COMMON SOURCES OF CUSTOMER RESISTANCE
- Price
- Inadequate information to make appropriate decision
- Customer is already using a substitute
- Customer already is "betrothed" to another supplier
- Target is not the appropriate person or not even qualified to take decision
- Company does not have need for the kind of product on sale