11 March 2010 | Sam

It seems like every company’s new strategy for 2010 is to improve the effectiveness of its sales force and to build better relationships with its customers.  Connected to this new direction is a focus on top line organic growth.  In other words, companies want to grow by just getting better vs. investing in new products; expanding marketing or  increasing the size of their distribution channel.  On the surface this sounds great. Just be more effective with clients and the business can grow.  The problem is that strategic direction is not enough.  This is where CEOs and sales leaders are struggling.  How exactly are they going to get their sales force to be more effective and what are they specifically going to do to improve their relationships with their clients?  Phrases like “becoming more customer focused,” or “selling solutions instead of product,” sound glamorous to bankers and investors but in the real world of selling they don’t mean anything by themselves.

To be more effective means that things need to be done differently and consistently.  This means that the sales force needs to have some common execution frameworks and best practices when it comes to finding new business, winning new accounts and taking care of their most important clients.  It does not seem like a prudent plan to simply tell salespeople to go do a better job and then hope for results.  At the same time, it is just as ineffective to try to power them up with a few new questioning and negotiating skills and then expect to move the needle.  So many companies simply succumb to a “check the box” training mentality to at least give the appearance that they are embracing change.  But behind the scenes they are secretly hoping that the macro-economy can turn around and they can ride the wave of prosperity without having to really face the consequences of doing something differently.  Imagine how frustrating this must be for front line salespeople as they have to try and deliver on a new company vision without getting any real clarity on exactly how to do it.

Just like an athlete that is trying to get to the next level, improving the effectiveness of the sales force takes hard work.  It requires leaders to build a clear vision of how the change will help the company and the individual reach their collective goals.  It requires some bold new directives that everyone will not embrace immediately.  It requires a commitment to the end goal and the ability to manage through roadblocks.  But, for some reason today’s economic environment has leaders afraid to take bold action.  They hope that the sales force will somehow magically decide to support their ideas and they know that this may take a long time to happen.  The problem is twofold:

1. Like everyone else, salespeople do not like change.
2. In most cases, we don’t have the luxury of time.

But, I found that salespeople will be open to change as long as there is a clear vision to support it.  It is an easy cop out for a leader to blame languishing sales on a rigid sales force but the problem is most likely with the leader himself.

When I talk to C-Level executives who somehow found themselves ushered out of their organizations, it is almost always related to the same issues they took too long to take action on!  While taking action can certainly be a risk, it is proven day in and day out that it is even more risky to not do anything.  As it relates to the specifics of improving the effectiveness of the selling organization and improving relationships with clients, this has got to be a well thought out corporate strategy.  This is not something for salespeople to figure out on their own and implement with their own interpretation.  How a company accesses clients and prospects may be the most strategic issue a company faces, yet many firms are content leaving it to chance.  The companies that will keep winning are the ones that trust their sales force and understand that they are the company’s most strategic weapon.   Any change needs to be executed on the front lines with customers, and the sales force is the best conduit to make it happen.  Yes, it may take some hard work to get them all on board but one thing is for sure: they want to win and if you can show them a path to victory then they will support you all the way.

photo credit: pedrosimoes7

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28 January 2010 | Sam

When the calendar turns to a new year, many salespeople suddenly feel like their troubles are behind them and “this year” is going to be a lot better. While I think it is great to be optimistic, I also think that there are no real solid macroeconomic trends that clearly indicate that 2010 is going to be a much more prosperous year.  To believe that your sales plan rests on a new economic high tide is a recipe for failure. Top salespeople know that the best way to get back on track is to develop a plan of attack that creates more precision around the strategies and tactics needed to reach their performance targets. Most of them develop a plan that focuses on the three key revenue generating buckets: winning new business from new clients; further penetrating high potential existing accounts; and retaining as many billing clients as possible.

Each of these three elements has different challenges and requires different approaches.  Even the very simple task of segmenting your overall target so that you know how much revenue you need to do in each of these buckets is something most salespeople never get around to doing.  This first step will give you better insight into where your biggest challenge will be and where you need to spend most of your time. But doing this is not enough. Now you need to clearly think through the 3-5 most important things you need to do in each category. For example, one of the most important things you may need to do to generate new business from brand new clients is to develop a plan to target companies  in companies in the industries in which you and your company have a successful track record. To grow revenue in high potential accounts may take some creativity to gain access to more buying influences in the company. And in order to retain your existing clients you may need to design a solid quarterly business review program that gives you the venue to review all of the great things you have done for them.

The key point is that each of these key revenue components requires precise thinking and specific actions. This kind of granularity leads to more effective management of your business and improved discussions with management around resources and overall sales performance.

The next time you hear your fellow salespeople talk about the difficulties of reaching their target, challenge them by making them speak more specifically about the revenue buckets and the strategies and tactics that support each of them.

photo credit: delgaudm

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19 November 2009 | Sam

Recently there was an episode of the hilarious television show, The Office, where Michael Scott decides he is going to write a book on sales.  But less than one minute into the project he realizes that he has already run out of material.  Although this makes for great comedy it is sometimes way too close to reality.

I often hear sales leaders lament over how their salespeople just don’t “get it,” but when pressed for specifics many of them can sound a lot like Michael Scott.  It is impossible to be an effective leader or coach if you are not able to clearly articulate issues and connect them to desired actions.  What many sales leaders are missing is a strategic framework to organize their thoughts and initiatives so that they can then be translated to the sales force.  This doesn’t have to be overly complicated but it does have to facilitate action and clarify direction.  The leaders that do this well keep it really simple – it’s amazing how many times simple is better.  Top leaders add their own touch to creating a strategic framework that everyone clearly understands but there is certainly a ton of commonality in their approaches.  The number one thing they always do is start by understanding what is going on with customers.  Salespeople are quick studies and they are not interested in doing anything different unless they understand how it will impact clients.

In my previous life as the VP of sales for two different  Fortune 500 Companies, it always amazed me how the annual sales meetings seemed like a big waste of time…that is, until real customers got on stage and presented their stories.  While product updates, strategy presentations, marketing programs, and even new commission plans were interesting to salespeople, nothing caused them to sit back and listen more than a customer presentation.  Effective leaders know this and they know they can leverage customer behaviors as a catalyst for improved sales effectiveness.

Truly, it really does not matter what new sales initiative is coming down the pipe unless it is clear how that initiative will be interesting to the client.  If you want your sales team to really improve then start  by better understanding what your clients want and then build an action plan to address this.

Salespeople almost always “get it,” when you help them understand how to better take care of their clients.  They almost always tune out when they know the plans being rolled out by their leadership have little connection to what clients actually want.

photo credit: shuttermonkey

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15 October 2009 | Sam

I understand the importance of gaining access to key executives in the selling process.  And, I think most companies now pretty much agree that this is something that will improve their chances of success.  But, this does not mean that connecting with executives will suddenly short circuit the selling process and deals will quickly close. You still have to do a lot of selling throughout the organization in most cases.

Recently, like most CEOs, I have been bombarded with early morning calls and late night prospectors (I guess it really does work to call early and late) trying to pursue my company as a potential new client.  But almost all of their approaches are just not right.  They fall under a few typical scenarios:

• Trying to gain agreement by asking closed-ended questions that seem rhetorical.

“Sam, is it important in your company to grow the top line and manage profits?” Of course it is!  This is foolish and sounds very generic.  This approach is an immediate turn off for CEOs.  A much more effective idea would be to present some provocative ideas that are tailored to the company’s issues.  A dialing for dollars volume mentality does not work if you want to call CEOs.

• Attempt to gain serious commitments on the first call.

Asking for a meeting or another phone call with one of their executives would seem reasonable but many companies are in such a rush that they want the commitment first and then they will invest the resources to start working on your account.  Wow! If only this process really worked!  I asked one events management company if this approach had ever really worked for them.  The woman said she was brand new but this is what her training emphasized.  I am confident she will be looking for a new position soon.

• Trying to quickly create a relationship with the CEO that is at a more trusted level than the CEO’s executive team.

This is a strange approach that some self-help or new-age business guru must be endorsing.  Why would the CEO believe that he or she should listen to you first and then work together to get his uninformed executive team in line?  The safe assumption is that the CEO has confidence in his executive team and trusts them to know the details of their responsibilities better than him.  With this being the case, then it is also safe to assume that the CEO will be redirecting you back to these individuals if you are fortunate enough to catch his interest.  Maybe after the salesperson has put some work into the account and demonstrated some valued credibility then they would be in a position to advise the CEO.  But making this happen on the first call is a non-starter.

• Expecting the CEO to know all of the details.

A software salesman recently caught me in the office late one evening and immediately launched into a cookie-cutter value proposition that did not really apply to my business.  He kept going downhill by quickly switching gears and asking if we could talk in more detail about our current information technology infrastructure.  How does this make any sense?  Why would he want to talk to me first only to drill into the details of our computer systems?  This is another misguided effort to “sell to the top” and bypass all of those pesky technical people.   The problem is that those technical people are the ones I trust to make good decisions.  A much better approach would have been to create a compelling value proposition that applied to me and then ask if I would open the door for him to talk to my head of information technology.

Most CEOs are not that complicated.  If you grab their interest then they want to know how you provide value to your clients; how your firm is different from the competition;  what do you know about their business and what it costs to do business with your company. Armed with that comfort then they may trust you enough to go work with some of their key lieutenants and begin to craft a proposal.  If you back a CEO into a corner and try to force him (or her) to make a decision or commitment before he  is ready, then he will always use one of his most powerful tools…the word “NO.”

photo credit: david drexler

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30 September 2009 | Sam

I heard a great conversation between two software salesmen over lunch at the Sheraton Denver Downtown last week.  Both of them were lamenting how far behind  they were on their targets and how the rest of the year does not look very good.

“How do they expect me to get back on plan when I am not getting many leads?” said the one sales executive.

“Ridiculous,” echoed the other salesman.  “The only leads I am getting are ones where the prospect is looking at a bunch of other vendors.”

Then both of them said something about how frustrated they were with their marketing team.

Wow! Is this what selling has become lately? We not only need leads to start the sales process but these leads need to be ready to buy right when we call them?  If this is the case then maybe salespeople should wear aprons and really focus on professional order taking.  By the way, this type of job is an hourly one vs. the six-figure opportunities that real salespeople are pursuing.

Getting leads should always feel like a luxury rather than an entitlement.  Marketing’s job is to accelerate the sales cycle. Developing highly qualified leads is absolutely the best way to deliver on this commitment.  But business development success ultimately rests on the salesperson and delivering real results should be the number one focus instead of figuring out who to blame.  Professional salespeople need to take control of their own destiny and be proactive.

The first place to start is with your existing customer base.  Are they satisfied?  Have they been meeting their objectives?  What else can you do to help them be successful?  Truly understanding their business issues and getting clarity around what they are trying to fix, accomplish or avoid are great mechanisms for account growth.

Next, what is the profile of the clients you have been able to successfully serve? What industry are they in? What challenges are they facing? What was the catalyst for seeking a solution? How do they treat their suppliers? What is going on with their customers, etc.?  If you take time to construct this profile then you now need to target companies that align with this description.  This may be a little bit of heavy lifting but it is definitely well worth the time.  I think most salespeople understand this exercise and can quickly see value in doing it.  The problem lies in the next thing that needs to get done—you have to get dialogue going with the prospect.

Sure it is a lot easier when you simply respond to a lead and try to build upon the momentum that marketing has already created.  But oftentimes, the client has done some of their own diagnosis and you may find yourself pigeonholed into answering product-specific questions rather than having a discussion about their business issues. Beginning this dialogue is not a situation where you just wing it.  Take the time to develop a valid business reason that will resonate with the client.  And no, saying something like, “Mr. Customer, would you like to talk to us about how you can increase productivity and reduce expenses?” will not work.  It needs to be specific to the client and it needs to feel a little risky for you to bring up.  After all, you are taking a chance that your ideas may not be compelling to the client.  If you are not able to get them interested in a discussion then maybe you really don’t have a fit at this time.  Getting a dialogue going with the client is not something that happens with a catchy phrase or a smooth answer.  It happens when you can quickly demonstrate that you are an expert who understands some of their key issues and you have some ideas to help.  This is the risky part.  You may not bat a thousand but the conversations that do get traction will certainly be ones where there is some clear common ground.

As salespeople, we are ultimately responsible for our own success.  Pointing fingers and worrying about things outside of our control are not strategies that will enable us to hit the objectives we agreed to.  So let’s get back to real selling.

photo credit: nutmeg

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17 September 2009 | Sam

Sometimes we all just need to be quiet and listen – especially when our customers are talking.  It hit me a couple of times these last few weeks when I was sitting on the other side of the table as a customer evaluating some technology solutions for our business.

In one case, the sales executive kept telling me that I did not want a certain feature and he kept giving me his opinion on what he thought would work best for me.  This would have been fine except I had not yet fully explained what I was trying to accomplish.  It is not the product itself that I want after all, it is the utility that the product or service will bring to me and how it will help me satisfy my objectives.  But this executive could not wait for me to get my thoughts out (I must be getting slower because I used to think that I talked really fast) before he interrupted with another thought or consideration.  It was becoming so clumsy that I finally asked if he would mind just being quiet for a few minutes and allow me to explain my concept.  Once I did, he actually commented that it was really helpful because now he knew what I was trying to do.  No kidding!

I wonder how many times that happens where the salesperson derails the client’s thought process and takes him or her off tangent in an effort to somehow show the client that they have all sorts of knowledge and great ideas.  Instead, think how much more effective it is to let clients explain their strategy and then spend the time seeking to understand it rather than trying to position your products and your expertise.  There will be plenty of time for that after your client believes that you truly understand their situation.  Until this happens, every recommendation the salesperson makes is clouded by the issue that the client is not sure the rep knows enough to be making these suggestions. This is true even in cases where the situation may be so familiar to the sales rep that he pretty much know exactly where the client is headed. Still, let the clients do the talking. Help them articulate their concept and then let them know you understand their situation before you start prescribing solutions.  Listening to the client… now that seems to be a good idea.

photo credit: wrestlingentropy

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08 September 2009 | Sam

It amazes me how often salespeople tell me that it is too difficult to sell in their company environment because of their company’s focus on quarter to quarter performance.  The thinking is that if they could only get their firms to think longer term then they would surely be able to perform better.  When I hear this, two things immediately come to mind:

1. Get used to it, this is the way the business world works.
2. Selling is tough work and there is no way to avoid the pressure that goes with it.

Can you imagine the risk a business would incur if it just kept investing resources and hoped for results to happen just in the nick of time, right as the fourth quarter is coming to an end?  There may be a few firms that have this dynamic just by the nature of their offering, but the majority of companies need to deliver consistently and this is how they finance the business moving forward.  If no revenue is being generated for long periods of time, then this would require the company to take on much more debt and much more risk.  It is ironic that a consistent revenue stream is a key requirement to continue to take on more leverage from banks and investors, while long gaps with limited revenue equal more risk.  It is much safer for a bank or an investor to lend more money if it sees the company is consistently generating revenue. In an early stage company that is backed by Venture Capital, it may be more of the norm to invest way ahead of the curve and get results much later… but this is what they planned for.  Typically, revenue consistency is a business requirement and it is not going to change anytime soon, so quit thinking about it and focus on what you can do in the real world.

The real world rewards sales experts for having the ability to deliver results today while simultaneously being able to develop a pipeline for the future.  This is what great salespeople are able to do and why great salespeople are very successful financially.  It takes a ton of skill to manage these competing forces and a keen understanding of where one needs to spend his or her time to insure year in and year out performance.  The best sales and business development people know that they have to understand how much business will come from new customers; how much growth will come from existing customers; and how much attrition they will have in their revenue base.  If you understand all three of these dynamics, then it doesn’t matter if your company values day to day production or decade to decade performance — you will be successful in any environment.

From my perspective, great salespeople and great athletes have a lot in common when it comes to pressure.  If we just accept the pressure and deal with it then we are much more likely to succeed as opposed to hoping the pressure will somehow go away.  If you are prepared, if you have a plan, and if you take responsibility for the outcome then you can embrace the pressure – and even thrive on it. The fact is that the only way the pressure really leaves is when you aren’t playing the game.

photo credits: comedy_nose, wonker

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20 August 2009 | Sam

Technology can be a beautiful thing. Almost all of us that have been in sales owe at least some part of our success to advances in technology. It really is amazing how much more we can get done and how much quicker we can respond to issues compared to just a few years ago.  But sometimes technology can go too far.

I agreed to meet some of these technology innovators over the last couple of weeks just so I could understand their platforms. A CRM software developer was kind enough to unveil  to me his organization’s view for the future of selling. They believe that through sophisticated technology (in other words, even more complicated CRM packages) that selling can be completely automated.  Salespeople only need to pull down the drop down menus in response to the client question or issue and then give the noted response.  No longer will salespeople need the situational fluency to manage complex scenarios— they just need to mindlessly find answers on their computer screen.

Another web-based learning company briefed me on the future of sales training. They believe that the new web-based vehicles are superior to instructor-led programs because of all of the technology that allow people to get an experience that is “almost like being there,” and it takes the inconsistency out of training and consulting so everyone should be able to learn the same way.

These kind of innovators make my head hurt. They focus on all of the things that make it easier for people to “check the box”  but forget to ask the only thing that is really important…. “Will this improve the effectiveness of the sales organization?”

I have seen a lot of really well-thought out CRM systems but I have yet to see one of these make a sale without the aid of a real person. Like most companies, we at Miller Heiman have a fairly robust CRM system but we are not trying to figure out a way to have a standard answer for every client variable.  Web-based training can help with implementation and reinforcement  but it won’t make the actual program more effective and it can’t change behaviors by itself.  We actually do quite a bit of web-based training and consulting but it is always connected to a project run by one of our sales consultants.  Again, it needs the help of a real salesperson to actually implement.

As the economy continues to sputter, I understand that companies are looking for easy and quick fixes to just make all of their fears go away.  Technology will certainly be a key contributor to get the global economy back on track but technology will never be able to replace the dynamics of human interaction, especially when it comes to selling. Salespeople will continue to be the key conduit that connects a company’s capabilities to its customer requirements. Sorry techies, but drop down menus won’t work…. You will have to talk to one of us.

photo credits: jblyberg, Marcin Wichary

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12 August 2009 | Sam

Understanding what does not work is just as important as understanding what does work.  And sometimes, it is a blinding shot of the obvious.

I had a breakfast meeting with a few other local CEOs and everyone began to discuss the things that they are doing to try and fuel growth.  There was not much that was very earth shattering at first: improving account management and getting closer to customers; bundling products for more comprehensive solutions; entering new markets; giving clients information with real value, etc. These were the usual topics you would expect to hear discussed. But then everyone got on the topic of new product innovation and I was surprised by the amount of time and energy many of them were spending on trying to develop the next amazing product that people will clamor for just as they have for the iPod or the iPhone (one CEO actually used these as examples).  This is a dangerous strategy.

When the future hinges on a revolutionary innovation then the chances of success are slim.  There are not too many Steve Jobs-type innovators in the world.  Besides, this takes your eye off of the day-to-day customer management skills and activities that can continually be improved and refined.  To that point, I asked each of the product innovation-focused CEOs what other innovations they had developed in their past that completely changed their business. The room became silent.  The big aha! was that none of them had ever had success here!

It sounds sexy and exciting to be the leader that develops the new wiz bang idea but this does not really happen that much.  It was great when the discussion turned to things we knew we could all execute upon today and we knew if done correctly, results would follow.  We got back to the boring items like account management and started to dig really deep on how to improve on these kind of initiatives. Rather than hoping for a miracle, everyone left with a laser focus on some areas that could be impacted immediately. Companies that focus on incremental improvements and stay focused on taking care of clients will be the ones that succeed over the long term.

photo credit: HikingArtist.com

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27 July 2009 | Sam

I am traveling internationally this week (UK, Germany, Italy) and it is really strange to see everyone’s view of the global economy.  Each country believes that it is experiencing a more difficult recession than any other place in the world.

In the states I continue to hear business leaders tell me that they see the USA as being hit the hardest in their particular business.  I hear the exact same thing about their respective countries from people in Australia, Japan, Spain,UK, Germany and even Italy.  Maybe what is really going on is everyone is using the economy as a way to justify sub-standard performance and make it feel like their situation is the hardest.

This may help our egos heal but it certainly does not help each of us win.

Many years ago as a young track athlete, the middle distance coach for the US Olympic Team told me that anyone who begins a race with even the hint of an excuse has no chance to win.  His point was that at some point in any given competition there comes a time where you need to break through the mental and physical pain barrier in order to have a shot at victory.  If there was even the slightest excuse on one’s mind then they always went to the excuse before they fought through the pain barriers.

I think this is really similar to what is going on in businesses around the world.  To that point, the top sales consultant in my company has already set the all-time performance record in a year and she has nearly 6 months left to add to it.  She does not see a tough environment; she sees one where she needs to be smart about where she spends her time and an environment where it is easy to separate herself from competitors that are looking for quick wins.

This is probably true for many other companies as well – while the majority is complaining, the true champions are winning even more.  Great athletes and great business people know that every situation may be different but regardless of the circumstances, they still plan on winning.

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