A Push in the Right Direction

There's one type of customer that many salespeople lack on their target lists. Salespeople can work so hard at selling that they forget about creating this unique sales relationship. It's a proven method for accelerating career success. The impact to the bottom line is huge. Statistics show the investment in this relationship returns the company's investment at a ratio of 6:1. If you guessed the mentoring relationship does this, you're right. Here's how you can incorporate mentoring into your selling success.

What is mentoring today? Menttium Corp. is a nationwide mentoring company that matches mentors with mentees. The need for formalized mentoring came when the company founder, Ms. Gayle Holmes, identified the characteristics of successful people. She found they had access to continuing education, had a support system and had a mentor or mentors. Ms. Homes recognized that many companies lacked a formal process for mentoring. That's when she established her company with its mission to facilitate mentoring. Mentoring is a sustained relationship between more experienced and less experienced people. The mentoring relationship is based on reciprocal knowledge sharing. It's a mental investment rather than a financial one. Ms. Brenda Bonin, a director with Menttium, points out that with mentoring today the mentee drives the relationship.

Where are mentors? To find a mentor, the mentee first needs to do a critical self-analysis and identify specifically what skills are needed for career development. Saying you want to learn more about business is too vague. Identifying a need for more negotiation skills is more specific and on target. Other skills could be to learn how to 'manage up' and do a better job of promoting oneself while maintaining humility. Ms. Bonin points out that it is better to look for mentors who are one step away from people you know. She says, "Look for mentors in different industries and functions so you can ensure they have a different perspective from yours."

The job description. The job description for a mentor is to be a good listener, be honest, and be committed to the process. This means making time for regular meetings. Ms. Bonin adds, "Mentors need not have all the answers, they should be able to ask a lot of questions which guide the mentee." While the mentee sets the agenda and follows up, the relationship can develop into different ways of working together. Some mentors and mentees read books together and discuss points to implement. Other mentors have their mentee 'shadow' them so they show their mentee what to do rather than tell them.

It may appear that the mentee is the one who receives all the value of the relationship. Ms. Bonin reports that it truly is a benefit to both parties. Many mentors are at such a high level they lack the day-to-day contact that keeps them in touch with their true customers. Their mentees have this access and provide the information. Seeing the joy of helping someone develop new skills is especially satisfying to many mentors.

Both skills and strategies are key to drive salespeople's success. You can work on them by yourselves, but working alone makes it hard to have all the answers in the areas you need. You need customers for your sales success. If you have a mentor for a customer, you can almost guarantee your career success.

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Maura Schreier-Fleming is president of Best@Selling (http://www.bestatselling.com/). She works with business and sales professionals at company and trade association meetings to make selling easier and more productive. She is the author of the book Real-World Selling for Out-of-this-World Results. She can be reached at 972 380 0200 or info@BestatSelling.com.

Chili, Steak and Ale

Chili, Steak and Ale

What do chili, steak and ale have in common? When Norman Brinker takes an interest they all get much, much better. Norman Brinker, currently the Chairman of the Board of Brinker International, once was one of the highest paid food industry executives when he was President of the Pillsbury Restaurant Group. He risked it all to see if his successful management principles for large businesses applied to a small business. In 1983 he bought the small Chili's restaurant chain (28 restaurants) and turned it into a $2.3 billion international business. This included eight additional chains employing 99,000 people. His management principles were an overwhelming success at a small business. They're also great principles to apply to selling.

Surround yourself with people who know more than you do. Brinker attributed his success to knowing what he didn't know. He then chose to work with people who were knowledgeable in areas where he lacked expertise. He surrounded himself with those types of people. His comment about the staff he chose supports this principle. He says, "Sinners can repent, stupidity is forever."

In selling we've got to keep learning about business, our products and our customers. We can choose to surround ourselves with people who can add to our education or diminish our progress. We can look to salespeople and others who know more than we do and ask for their input on our selling strategies. Listen to the customers you admire who describe what worked for them and also what procedures were less successful. By looking to someone smarter, we can increase our probability of success in selling. Selling is challenging enough. Let's make it easier by surrounding ourselves with smarter people and learning from them. We can learn from their successes and failures. Groucho Marx was right when he said, "We can learn from the mistakes of others. We don't have time to make them all ourselves."

Take risks. Brinker recommends taking risks, but not wild ones. He described his business career which started at Jack in the Box. He left to start Steak and Ale in 1965 and also developed the Bennigan's restaurant concept. He then renamed his company S&A Restaurant Corp. and merged it with Pillsbury. He became an executive with Pillsbury and was one of the industry's highest paid executive. His decision to leave Pillsbury was risky. He wanted to see if his management principles would work in a smaller business. In order to buy Chili's he would have to sign a $12 million note. He did. Of course he would be able to tap into his years of experience, contacts and skills he had acquired.

In sales we can take risks by creating new ideas for our customers' businesses, trying new sales techniques or doing something different than we've always done. Some of our ideas will succeed and some will fail. With our experience and skill behind us more of our ideas will succeed than fail. Our customers will appreciate the input and we will become more valuable to them. It might even make selling better for us. When Brinker took the risk of leaving and discussed his resignation with Pillsbury's CEO after deciding to go to Chili's he heard, "Norman, how come you always get to have the fun?"

Find out what your customers think. How do you know what your customers think about your products and services? Brinker would stand outside his restaurants and talk with his customers. He might say, "What kind of joint is this?" Or he'd ask a customer, "How's the value of this restaurant? I don't have a big budget." He never had a clipboard. He talked with his customers, listened and got honest feedback. He was more successful in the smaller towns of Texas. When he was in Dallas some of his customers would say, "Well Norman, why do you want to know?"

You may think Norman Brinker has done it all. He was asked what he'd do differently in his life if he could. He responded, "I'd do more." That's another principle for selling. He made a wonderful difference in so many people's lives and knew he had so much more to do. What a great salesman.

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Maura Schreier-Fleming is president of Best@Selling (http://www.bestatselling.com/). She works with business and sales professionals at company and trade association meetings to make selling easier and more productive. She is the author of the book Real-World Selling for Out-of-this-World Results. She can be reached at 972 380 0200 or info@BestatSelling.com.

Choosing Customers or Money

When an entrepreneur makes a sales call to a potential investor, what results can be either the beginning of a company or sometimes the end of one. The goal for the meeting is to persuade the investor that an investment in the entrepreneur's company is worth the risk. With the amount of money at stake and the meeting's intended purpose, a successful entrepreneur has to sell with a focus and vision that gets results. Salespeople can learn to apply the entrepreneur's methods to their sales strategies.

What's your point? I've heard investors say that entrepreneurs should be able to write their concept on the back of a business card. That's how clear they have to make the idea and how concisely they have to be able to communicate it. When asked about their business, successful entrepreneurs can say in 30 seconds, 2 minutes, or 5 minutes the essence of their business idea. Depending on how much time they have, they're ready to pitch their idea. They have thoroughly thought through their product, process and business in advance. They are prepared for any presentation format. They can present their idea simply and clearly in various time frames and adapt to all of them.

When you present a new product, a complex idea or a technical product to a customer, have you clearly thought through how you are going to explain your concept to your customer? Would your customer quickly and clearly understand what you are presenting? You may talk to prospects on the telephone. You are doing well if your customers ask specific questions that relate to your product or idea after you have presented the concept. If they are asking for you to explain before they become engaged in the conversation, your message is unclear. You have more preparation to do.

Have you prepared a presentation that could be delivered in 1 minute, 5 minutes or 15 minutes? With busy and unexpected schedules your planned hour meeting can get cut short. If your selling message is part of the last 30 minutes, you've just lost your selling opportunity.

Are you using your customers? Entrepreneurs will tell you that customers are the best thing to happen for your business and money is the worst. This is because money doesn’t add value to your business. When customers use your products, they provide feedback on whether your product is as good as you think it is. As daily users of your products and services, they see things that you haven't. They will also see your product or service from a perspective that is different than yours. They can recognize the need for new and different applications. Those applications could lead you to new and different customers.

Too often when salespeople find new customers, they are quickly off to look for the next new customer. Your customers are a source of value to you when they provide feedback about how they have used your product or service; how and whether it meets their needs; and what new products they are looking for. If you are moving on to the next new customer before you learn from your existing customer, you are missing the opportunity to extract value from your existing customers.

Entrepreneurs and other sales professionals face many of the same selling challenges. Entrepreneurs' strategies help them achieve their business objectives. Selling like an entrepreneur could be the beginning of many new sources of business for you.

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Maura Schreier-Fleming is president of Best@Selling (http://www.bestatselling.com/). She works with business and sales professionals at company and trade association meetings to make selling easier and more productive. She is the author of the book Real-World Selling for Out-of-this-World Results. She can be reached at 972 380 0200 or info@BestatSelling.com.

Sell Like a Harley

Everyone knows Harley-Davidson. You need to wait in line if you want one of their motorcycles. And you’ll pay a premium for your hog because they’re so popular. Maybe you forgot when no one wanted to buy them. In 1981 when AMF tried to sell them, not one company offered to buy them. That’s quite a turn around from no one wanting you, to everyone who wants you standing in line. Their strategy for turning their business around has some powerful seeds of wisdom that can help us grow our businesses.

Know your business. Before they could focus on the customer they had to first focus on themselves. They had a product whose reputation for performance was less than stellar. They later got to poke fun at themselves in an ad. The ad had Malcolm Forbes’ hot air balloon hovering over a massive crowd of people. Forbes’ balloon was in the shape of a Harley bike. The caption said, “Thank G-d they don’t leak oil anymore.” They knew they had manufacturing and product problems. They focused on identifying the problems before they did anything else. They fixed their problems before they focused on their customers.

Know your customers. Harley-Davidson leadership identified who their customer was. Sure there’s the beefy, leather-clad tattooed rider who buys their product. Now their customer is most likely to be over 40. There are more women buyers than ever. When they examined who their true customer was, they decided it was their dealers. Their dealers were the focal point for the decision to buy a Harley. Harley-Davidson management decided that their job was to help their customers, the dealers, get customers. Their dealers became the customers that all programs were focused on.

Pay attention to details. Harley-Davidson now licenses a wide range of products. They range from helmets to clothing and accessories. You may have eaten at one of the Harley-Davidson Cafes. They even sell Harley-Davidson toys! Harley-Davidson is absolutely vigilant in protecting its logo in its placement and how it is used. They see every Harley-Davidson product with its logo as part of the Harley-Davidson experience. By paying very close attention to managing all the details in their licensing process, management can promote a positive Harley experience for their customers.

What Harley-Davidson does applies to everyone in sales. How they do it may be different than what each of us does in our businesses. The overall strategy works. Harley-Davidson went from losing $15.5 million in 1982 to earning $333.6 million in 1998. And they see themselves as a renewable company not a surviving one. Surviving companies don’t last. They are so focused on surviving that when the crisis passes, employees have nothing to hold on to. Renewable companies have continuity. They have employees who operate with a sense of personal responsibility. They don’t need a rulebook 2 inches thick. Their employees take the initiative to make the tough business decisions.

Harley-Davidson once had an ad showing the Harley-Davidson logo tattooed on a rider’s biceps. The caption said, “When’s the last time you felt so strongly about anything?” They don’t expect all their loyal customers to tattoo the Harley-Davidson logo on their arms. They do hope they’ll tattoo their Harley-Davidson experience on their hearts. Is the experience of buying from you tattooed on your customers’ hearts?

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Maura Schreier-Fleming is president of Best@Selling (http://www.bestatselling.com/). She works with business and sales professionals at company and trade association meetings to make selling easier and more productive. She is the author of the book Real-World Selling for Out-of-this-World Results. She can be reached at 972 380 0200 or info@BestatSelling.com.

Tools of the Trade

During every sales call the challenge is to send a message that will grab a customer’s attention, create awareness, and satisfy a need. You’ve got your work cut out for you. Now you need tools to do the job. Just as every craftsman works with tools, the salesperson works with words. Here are some words to consider that will build your sale.

No buts. When a customer voices a concern some salespeople hear ‘objection’. A concern can quickly become an objection and stall the sale when you make a poor word choice. Some salespeople first acknowledge the concern and follow with the word ‘but.’ The word ‘but’ effectively negates everything said before it. What your customer hears is the disagreement that precedes an argument. Instead, first acknowledge the concern and follow with ‘and.’ For example, your customer might comment that the process you recommend sounds complicated. You would respond “Yes, it is complicated and with our technical assistance…”

No problem. We are always delighted when our customers show their appreciation for special results and express their gratitude. Some salespeople reply with “No problem.” They’ve just lost an opportunity to generate some customer satisfaction points. Instead they left their customer associating their hard work with the word ‘problem.’ Every time your customer says “Thank you” the only response should be “My pleasure. I am always happy to help you.” Let your customer know that you look forward to helping. They will seek you out to serve them when they have problems instead of looking to your competition.

We write, too. The written word should also help us sell. Wordy language can put off your customers. You should avoid legal sounding words and phrases like:

· Enclosed please find · Contained herein

· Thank you in advance for your cooperation · Herewith

· Pursuant to your request · Under separate cover

Creating images. Understanding is everything. Selling involves listening as well as speaking. The salesperson listens while the customer speaks. Your customer has to listen while you are speaking so the sale can take place. You can choose words that make it easier for your customer to hear your selling message. Metaphors and similes are easy to listen to because they are word pictures that increase understanding. A metaphor is when we lend qualities to something that it normally doesn’t have. An example is “Lubrication is the lifeline of your operation” to describe how critical your product is to a plant’s productivity. A simile is a comparison of dissimilar things using like or as. An example is “Predictive maintenance is essential to production. It’s like heat is to coffee.” Look for ways to describe your products and services using metaphors and similes that create images. You will make it easier for your customers to listen and to hear your selling message.

As Mark Twain said, ”The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and the lightning bug.” By carefully selecting the best words for selling, you will enlighten your customers and avoid giving them some unexpected jolts.

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Maura Schreier-Fleming is president of Best@Selling (http://www.bestatselling.com/). She works with business and sales professionals at company and trade association meetings to make selling easier and more productive. She is the author of the book Real-World Selling for Out-of-this-World Results. She can be reached at 972 380 0200 or info@BestatSelling.com.

The Biggest Myth in Sales

Did you hear the one about great salespeople being great talkers? They have the gift of gab and they dazzle their customers into buying anything. Some salespeople even believe it. It's the biggest myth in sales. Here's how it got started and why it is a myth.

News travels fast. The poor salesman seems to leave a more lasting impression on the customer than the great salesperson, who makes selling look easy. Poor salespeople get remembered for their excessive talking and the word gets around. The myth is born.

These poor salespeople start talking about all they know the moment the sales call begins. They want to impress the customer with all their knowledge, thinking that selling is one-sided. Selling starts when you learn what your customer knows. Only when you hear what your customer needs should you start talking about your product or service. To really give yourself enough to work with, you should hear 3 needs before you begin your presentation. The way to do this is to question and listen.

Looks like I'm not doing anything. Some salespeople think they are selling and doing something only if they are talking. You are doing something when you actively listen. There are actual physiological changes in the body. Body temperature, heart rate and blood flow slightly increase with active listening.

A good listener focuses on the speaker and tries to determine what the speaker means. A good listener wants to gather clues about the speaker's message without judging. Try to gather clues about the speaker's feelings behind his message. Paying attention to nonverbal communication will give you more clues that you can use.

Enter with an open mind, ready to hear what your customer has to say about his business and job. Even though we know what we want to say in our selling message, we have to be flexible and respond to what our customers tell us. Selling is not a random event. Have several alternatives ready to provide solutions that meet your customer's needs.

Your job as a listener continues with providing feedback to the customer to check your understanding of his message. The feedback shows the customer what you've heard. This gives you an opportunity to correct any misunderstandings. It's also an opportunity to build a stronger communication bond when the salesperson taps into the customer's correct emotions.

The salesman's job as a listener is to translate what we hear from our customers into how our products and services can help them. Selling starts with our customers, not with us. If we're talking and not listening, we'll miss the clues. The myth of the salesman being a great talker got started by poor salespeople. Unfortunately, the great salespeople have to deal with this myth. Maybe they can address this myth while they're off golfing. That's another great myth.

Maura Schreier-Fleming works with business and sales professionals on skills and strategies so they can sell more and be more productive at work. She is the author of Real-World Selling for Out-of-this-World Results which is available at www.BestatSelling.com. She founded her company Best@Selling in 1997. You can reach her at 972.380.0200 or info@Bestatsellling.com.

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Maura Schreier-Fleming is president of Best@Selling (http://www.bestatselling.com/). She works with business and sales professionals at company and trade association meetings to make selling easier and more productive. She is the author of the book Real-World Selling for Out-of-this-World Results. She can be reached at 972 380 0200 or info@BestatSelling.com.

7 Habits of Less Successful Salespeople

Appeared October 2002 in Sales Pro News

What can you learn from others? Sometimes it's what to avoid doing. These examples are mistakes that will cost you business.

1. Thinking you can do it all yourself. Selling used to be a numbers game. In the past you could spend your time smiling and dialing and that might have worked. Today too many people are too busy to listen to a pitch. Cold calls are a low probability and only worth your time if your time isn't worth very much. The assistance sales people need from others is good solid leads and referrals to meet new customers.

2. Talking too much. Some salespeople think that the best salespeople are the best talkers. That's not true. The best sellers are great listeners and they use silence well. Silence is really golden in selling. Use it when you want your customers to talk more. Silence is appropriate when you are listening so you don't interrupt your customer. It's appropriate to use when you think about what your customer is saying. This will enable you to give him a thoughtful response.

3. Doing the same things in all situations. One of the predictors of success is flexibility or the ability to do different things in different situations. Some salespeople start their sales calls the same way and act the same way with every type of customer. Customers are different and the salesperson needs to respond to the type of customer he is talking to. It is appropriate to get right down to business in a sales call with an assertive, more emotionally controlled customer. It is inappropriate to do the same with a customer who is less assertive and more responsive.

4. Expecting things to happen now. Patience is a virtue that salespeople especially need. Some things do take time. If you want a piece of business badly enough you may have to be persistent and try to make contact over a period of months. Be patient and don't give up if the account is worth it. Negotiating may take time and impatience to close a deal can cost you money. Salespeople have to be able to deal with ambiguity and the unknown. Your patience is your power when it's combined with persistence.

5. Not telling the truth. Salespeople need to be honest not only with customers, but with themselves as well. Some salespeople fool themselves that a sale is going to happen when the odds are it's not. They tell their manager the sale will close soon because they hope it will. If a customer is still thinking when they could have said yes, it's time to move on to the next account. Be honest with yourself. Let go and get going to the next prospect.

6. Not taking good care of customers. Selling isn’t asking a question to find objections and then beating your customer into submission for each objection. If it's not a reasonable fit, forget the sale. Find the prospects that do need your benefits and value.

7. Thinking it's easy. People think selling is easy only because the great salespeople make it look easy. I recently spoke with a sales master who sold upwards of $50 million worth of construction contract surety bonds over the years. He said he never prepares for a sales call. When I asked him what he meant he said that when he makes a sales call he knows a few things about the prospect's business and general requirements. Then he asks questions about the areas he thinks might apply. I replied, "You may think you don't prepare, but you're using 30 years of preparation to sell." Selling is only easy when you don't know what you're doing.

You can learn from your mistakes. It's even better to learn from other people's mistakes. Avoid these mistakes and you will make your selling more successful.

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Maura Schreier-Fleming works with business and sales professionals on skills and strategies so they can sell more and be more productive at work. She is the author of Real-World Selling for Out-of-this-World Results which is available at www.BestatSelling.com. She founded her company Best@Selling in 1997. You can reach her at 972.380.0200 or info@Bestatsellling.com.

(c) Copyright 2004 Maura Schreier-Fleming. All rights reserved.