24 July 2009 | Uncategorized | Miller Heiman

A lot of consideration, planning, and preparation goes into the decision to invest in sales training – or at least, a lot should. In terms of adding to an individual’s skill set or improving a sales force’s performance, choosing a process that will improve results is not a decision that should be made lightly…

…much like marriage. Both are a big decision, and both are often focused on the event. But the reality is, it’s not about one single day – it’s about a new ongoing commitment.

Many of you will have the opportunity to attend a ceremony or two (or ten), which can sound far more appealing than attending a program for sales skill development. As you partake in either, keep in mind the implications of the commitment:

• It’s about the start of a journey, not an event. Wedding-goers often only see the end of the actual planning stage when they arrive on the big day – but (as the official performing the ceremony will likely remind everyone) this is just one day that marks the beginning of a long and prosperous life together. Sales training should be the same way. Registering, making travel arrangements, and the other various prep work that is involved can make the actual program feel as though it’s the culmination of a big effort. But it’s really the first day of a new beginning. From here on out, you are ‘married’ to your process – it needs to be a life-long commitment instead of a one-time event.
• There will be ups and downs. Case in point: the current market. It’s costly to lose in today’s economy (ironically, it’s also costly to divorce in today’s economy). But a good marriage is anchored by the knowledge that the two parties are there for each other – for better or worse.
• Without commitment, it will fail. Last but not least, a big change in your life such as a new sales process or a marriage requires an attitude of adoption and the acknowledgment that, from here on out, things will be different. The more devoted you are to showing a process (or spouse) that you are committed, the more rewards you will reap – whether that be increased close ratios or control of the remote. The good news is the longer you stick with it, the easier it becomes. Cheating is not advised.

P.S. Professional development etiquette dictates that it is not acceptable to sign up for a gift registry when prepping for a sales performance training program.

photo credit: greenmelinda

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17 July 2009 | Uncategorized | Miller Heiman

“I want to get excited about selling again.”

We had a great turnout of sales executives during a recent meeting with the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce on the subject of cross-selling and up-selling. When Rich Blakeman, sales vice president, asked the audience what they hoped to accomplish by attending, one of the participants said that he was looking to improve his attitude about selling.

How many of us are feeling this way in the current economy? How many times can you be told ‘no’ before you start to take it personally?

Several sales challenges were mentioned by the group that will sound familiar:

• Loyalty doesn’t mean as much anymore, customers are looking for value.
• Expectations have changed – customers believe they can get away with more because we are all trying harder to win business.
• There is a need to find budget in different places and with different decision makers than in the past.
• Customers are very risk-averse.
• Value proposition is not cutting through; you need to be able to prove what you are saying.
• With the rise of social media , there are non-traditional competitors on the scene.

As a result, the sales funnel is getting tall and skinny as salespeople focus on opportunities near the bottom of the funnel that are more likely to close. (It’s fun to hear ‘yes’ once in awhile.)

Cross-selling and up-selling should be included in your sales process to expand the value of every opportunity.

Rich challenged the audience to consider how to best approach cross-selling. It’s not, “What else can I sell this customer?” but, “What other challenges does this customer have?” As for up-selling, it is not an activity to save for the end of the sales cycle. Do it when the customer is defining the issues that your solution may solve.

With this in mind, Rich offered four ways to enhance cross-selling and up-selling activities:

1. Do business with more companies that are an ideal fit with what you offer.
2. Understand what your prospect’s buying process looks like and where they currently are in the process.
3. Learn why your customers buy from you, from their perspective, not yours.
4. Be able to articulate your value and be able to prove it.

This was a very interactive group, so there was some great dialog that added value to the presentation that would not have been possible in a virtual event.

Get out of the office to interact face-to-face with your peers. It’s easy… take someone you admire to lunch or participate in a session offered by your local chamber or an association. Or attend a Miller Heiman workshop.

By the way, the number one reason why salespeople do not cross-sell and up-sell more frequently? Fear.

Conquering fear – what could be more exciting?

photo credit: SMN, rochelle,et.al

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16 July 2009 | Uncategorized | Rich Blakeman

Not a question I often pose to people — it’s often quite clear why someone is where they are.

But Tuesday morning at the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce, those were the first words out of my mouth in front of the group assembled to hear me “speak” (more about that in a minute).  In downtown San Francisco on a gorgeous Bay Area summer morning, these sales professionals had given up over two hours of their time (plus commute) and cash out of pocket.

It’s a relevant question.

The answers were equally relevant, and equally interesting.  Some of them will be captured in another post — but the striking thing to me was the similarity and the symmetry:  everyone wanted to get better at what they do, and was willing to invest in order to achieve that goal.

Now “listening” to me isn’t any guarantee.  But just as I asked them to jump in and get working right from the start, everyone was equally engaged in sharing their own successes and challenges with the group.  They were willing to “give” in order to get.  Some of the best ideas came from their examples, as they always do. If we want to get better, emulating the best practices of the most successful of others in our field is always a great start.

Why are you here?

Why take the time to read a blog entry? What drove you here, and what do you hope to take away?

For my part I’ll assume the same motive. We all want to get better at what we do.  Sales has evolved to being a team sport, and we want to improve our position on the team as well as improve the performance of the team overall.  The message of the day in San Francisco kept ringing over and over:  the judge of performance, and the judge of results, is the customer.

That’s why I’m here.

It may sound altruistic, but I’m here for the customer. I’m here for the customer’s success:  for them making their numbers, and beating their competition. If I do that successfully, I’ll make my numbers every year — and I won’t have any competition.

Why are you here?

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08 July 2009 | Best Sales Practices | Miller Heiman

Never in the history of sales has the expression “the early bird gets the worm” been more true than when selling to the government. Undoubtedly, many organizations are hovering above these opportunities, waiting for that first glimpse of project funds.

But one of the big unknowns many sales organizations struggle with is the “when” part of the equation. When do you know when the process will begin? It’s not as though there is a flashing, neon sign to tip an organization off: “Get in NOW! Get in NOW.” And there most certainly isn’t an iPhone app that alerts you when agencies begin discussing the possibilities of putting out a bid (or is there?).

But because the potential to secure new business is so alluring in a tightened economy, many organizations are wondering how to get involved in this sector. Old fashioned homework will be the biggest friend to the prospecting sales organization in this case. Researching the rules and regulations of the agency you would like to do business with to find more about their past actions can help highlight critical information. The more robust your understanding of the political and funding situations, the better sense you will have of when a government Request for Proposal (RFP) may be coming down the pipeline.

After this discovery phase, the second step is determining whether your company’s needs relate to and are a good fit for the agency. RFPs can be costly, especially if there is no true chance for winning it. Many organizations will have spent resources like time and money pursuing an RFP without having assessed whether there is a true fit between the company and the possible solutions. With today’s high stakes, failing to determine whether the potential for return on investment exists can be costly.

As Miller Heiman consultant Chuck Moeller notes in the article “Cracking the Code to Winning Government Contracts,” organizations need to learn how to lose fast. “ [It] conserves valuable resources and improves the probability of winning business by focusing on the contracts.”

Just like any opportunity, sales organizations must pursue government business with a strategic plan and a healthy respect for the realities of the situation. Yes, the sale is likely to be more complex (more people in the process, more decision makers to access, more stipulations to follow, and a longer sales cycle), but it isn’t unattainable. It is still a process comprised of tangible people, not an abstract concept of an entity.

As former Miller Heiman sales consultant Rick Beauregard notes in “Pursuing Government Business: Separating Fact from Fiction,” decisions eventually are made by individual human beings. “You can’t limit yourself to addressing the ‘task issues’ or technical issues alone,” he says. “You have to deal with the ‘non task’ issues as well – politics, relationships, internal buying roles and process. Part of getting in early is understanding who has the high degree of influence.”

As in any sale, success will be determined by how well you differentiate your sales organization’s solution from the competitors’. Remember that because of the added complexities, a sales strategy for government selling must start well in advance. With a wealth of knowledge about the agency, you will be better positioned to differentiate your solution within the RFP, illustrating how you are the best partner for the project.

Read more insights on selling to the government in Miller Heiman’s most recent Sales Performance Journal.

Photo credits: accent on eclectic, mark i. geo

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02 July 2009 | Uncategorized | Miller Heiman

Ah…the Internet. The onset of this seemingly limitless tool may just be the best thing since sliced bread – and you’d be hard pressed to find someone who hasn’t heard of it, used it, or incorporated it into their daily lives.

It’s changed many a business model: altering the way the music industry operates, singlehandedly threatening the livelihood of print news, and opening brand new markets for advertisers and marketers. Most enticing for the sales community, it has offered numerous ways to get in front of prospects and customers. But while the deluge of new and exciting technology and software constantly affords new ways to communicate, there are still plenty of selling blunders sales professionals can accidentally perform on the front lines.

Keep these DON’Ts in mind when logging online to advance your sales objectives.

DON’T ping every Joe and Jane. The road to profit is not necessarily paved with a volume of touch points.  Targeting those individuals that will be a good fit for your company’s solution is more likely to foster conversations that will result in business.

DON’T invest in every medium. It’s a bit like eating. A glazed donut from the corner shop might not hurt, but a donut from every shop in your town is likely to have some very nasty side effects. Keep the list of communication methods refined – those that are credible and those that your potential prospects are using.

DON’T say just anything. Being a part of the conversation is all well and good… IF you have something credible to say. Use those opportunities to position yourself as the expert with your contacts.

DON’T stalk, research instead. Having visibility into what actions prospects and customers take can provide a multitude of insights. Stalking them simply because the Internet makes it easy is just poor professionalism (and creepy). Research the nuances and trends cropping up in customer and prospect industries rather than finding out what your contacts did last Saturday night.

DON’T talk about products or services. Comments touting the bells and whistles of your company’s product or service won’t cut it (nor will comments on last night’s reality TV episode). If you’re going to engage customers online, the conversation needs to provide value to them. Illustrate how you have solved problems similar to the ones their organization might be facing.

DON’T believe everything you read online. Unless your source is CNN or the New York Times (or other credible source), there are chances that information you digest might be altered, skewed, or bent  just a bit to portray a certain aspect of reality rather than the whole, encompassing truth. There is a lot of room for opinion online – stick with what can be factually backed or legitimately hypothesized.

DON’T comment on Facebook or Myspace pictures you’ve come across. (Talk about derailing the establishment of a trusting relationship…) Leave the personal vehicles where they belong – far, far away from the selling arena.

DON’T neglect to follow up on your promises. It can be very easy to get swept up in numerous conversations. But if you’ve set an expectation to provide additional information, time, or resources, make sure you don’t let it fall through the cracks.

DON’T neglect profile information. Establishing credibility isn’t always the easiest thing to do. A healthy and current depiction of how you have been performing on the job (i.e. helped a client increase their close rates by 5 percent; helped client organization reduce production costs by 10 percent) clearly illustrates to potential contacts and customers how your professional experience will be an asset to them.

And lastly…

DON’T spend all your time there. Effective selling requires a systematic approach and solid relationships. A phone call or face-to-face meeting (if possible, and within the budget) can be the most reassuring evidence that you are a real person, who, in fact, does care about your customer’s business challenges

Consider yourself a partner in your customer’s path to greater results. If your online activity adds value to your prospects and customers, then have at it.

Photo credits: Jeronimo Palacios, CarbonNYC

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