You Call it Sales I Call it Service Lets Call the Whole Thing Off
You Call it Sales I Call it Service Lets Call the Whole Thing Off
SS: “Sir, I was just reviewing your accounts at Hometown Trust, and I think I can help you both save money and generate additional interest income at the same time.”
You: “Uhhh….OK.”
SS: “I’ve noticed you seem to carry excess cash in your checking account – if you moved some to a short-term certificate of deposit you could stay fairly liquid and earn returns. Plus, you qualify for a home equity line of credit, so you could consolidate some of your credit card debt at a lower interest rate and remodel your kitchen. Finally, if you refinance your mortgage, you could lower your rates and shorten your loan term. What do you say?”
You: “Duh, thanks.”
Once you get off the phone, your immediate thought is, “what GREAT service.” It felt like someone out there in the cold, cruel world truly had your back, not like those smarmy salespeople who are constantly calling.
Whoa. Wait a second. In a 45-second phone call, Ms. Salesandservice engaged in cross-selling, up-selling and just plain old regular selling. She sold you a CD, a HELOC and god knows what other acronyms.
But it felt good...and it was helpful. And this is the point where the rubber meets
the road in all high-performing organizations, where sales and service cease to be separate functions and instead morph into the catch-all activities of building relationships and anticipating needs.
Regardless of your industry, by building a relationship with a client or customer you have seamlessly melded sales and service in a way that is impossible for the competition to duplicate. As Ken Blanchard writes in his famous management missive, The One Minute Manager, “...anyone can beat you on price. Many people can imitate your products or services. But one thing people can’t do is take away the relationships you build with your...customers.”
Whereas a straightforward “sales” interaction comes with at least a minimal dose of wariness, and a clear cut “service” scenario implies a hint of submission, the notion of “relationship” implies a high degree of mutual interest and trust. That one parties’ interest is ultimately incremental sales and the others is to be tended to hand and foot is almost immaterial – by recognizing that the two go hand in hand, the traditionally divergent interests become inseparable.
Any company or organization with designs on providing a world class customer experience needs to recognize that whatever generic title (i.e., customer service representative/account executive/ sales associate) that they have “touching” the customer needs to evolve into Sally Salesandservice, quickly. The traditional roles of “sales” being glorified order takers and “service” reacting to customer problems are firmly rooted in the past. Where there has always been a disconnect between those selling a product or service and those fulfilling it, there now must be agreement and cooperation. The new model – an integrated sales and service function that serves both roles. Just like Sally Salesandservice.
No less an august authority than McKinsey & Company describes a scenario where late adapters to this new model are “stuck in the middle.” Unable to compete with low-cost service providers on price and ill-equipped to build a sustainable “relationship” via an elevated level of sales and service, those who fail to adapt are vulnerable to attack from both sides. (McKinsey Quarterly, 2005 Number 5) The McKinsey article continues, advising an approach where companies analytically identify and focus on the “high-touch” interactions that will provide the most perceived value to customers in order to further facilitate this bond. Just like Sally Salesandservice.
This shift can best be described as the move from the “order taking” and “problem solving” roles described above, to one where “anticipating needs” takes precedence. Think about it – anticipating needs is the truest marriage of sales and service, where both the company and the customer have their needs met in a manner that elevates the customer experience and drives incremental revenue growth.
A hotel concierge directs a guest towards a rejuvenating spa treatment for his aching back? That’s anticipating a need, joining sales and service to enhance the guest experience and hotel revenues.
The pro shop attendant at a golf course clues in the foursome heading out to the first tee that periodic rain showers are in the forecast; the foursome buys umbrellas and hits the 19th hole at the end of their round dry and content. Once again, anticipating needs blurred the line between sales and service to create a positive guest experience for the golfers and drive the pro shop bottom line.
The model applies across industry, in either a B2B or B2C environment, assuming that what you are selling has some value to begin with. By building the relationship and anticipating the customer needs, you are intrinsically ensuring that your are providing value to that customer, and in most instances that value will be in the form of an additional outlay of cash on the customer’s part. And – if the proper foundational relationship is in place – the customer won’t mind, because you will be helping the customer help themselves. Again, think of Sally Salesandservice.
Best of all, this approach best serves the customer and generates a measurable ROI, as incremental sales from a traditional “service” scenario fall to the bottom line. Organizations with aspirations to work more efficiently, more profitably and with a keener focus on the customer/guest/patient/client experience are thinking about how to tackle this concept. Our organization recently worked with a professional basketball team where by all traditional measures the business side is working as smoothly as the team on the court. The team is winning, business is booming and the fans are having a great time. Just pop open the gym doors and roll the balls out on the court, right? Not quite.
These forward thinkers realized that there is no better time to build the relationship and provide the greatest level of service (and sales) to your fans then when the good times are rolling. Provide them with every opportunity to bask in the team’s success (and spend more), bond with the team and their fellow fans (and spend more) and love every minute of it…despite the fact that they might be spending more. If one can tighten the overall emotional bond via that elevated level of service (and sales) when things are going well, the relationship will remain strong when things are less rosy on the court. The team in question spent several months laying the groundwork for this transformation and then selected 30 members of its sales and service staff to learn the skills to better build fan relationships and anticipate fan needs, all in the hopes of minimizing fan defections when the “fast breaks” turn into “future prospects.”
The next time you find yourself thinking, “wow, that was great service – that was just what I needed,” stop and think – was I just sold something too? You might very well have encountered a wolf (salesperson) in sheep’s (serviceperson) clothing…and loved and appreciated every minute of it!
Reprinted with permission from Hotel Business Review.
You Call it Sales I Call it Service Lets Call the Whole Thing Off - To learn more about this author, visit Rob Rush's Website.
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Let’s imagine that you are a customer at a bank, which, assuming you don’t keep all of your money in a mattress, shouldn’t be too much of a stretch. One day, you’re minding your own business at home, when you get a call from your personal banking representative, Ms. Sally Salesandservice. The conversation goes as follows.
SS: “Sir, I was just reviewing your accounts at Hometown Trust, and I think I can help you both save money and generate additional interest income at the same time.”
You: “Uhhh….OK.”
SS: “I’ve noticed you seem to carry excess cash in your checking account – if you moved some to a short-term certificate of deposit you could stay fairly liquid and earn returns. Plus, you qualify for a home equity line of credit, so you could consolidate some of your credit card debt at a lower interest rate and remodel your kitchen. Finally, if you refinance your mortgage, you could lower your rates and shorten your loan term. What do you say?”
You: “Duh, thanks.”
Once you get off the phone, your immediate thought is, “what GREAT service.” It felt like someone out there in the cold, cruel world truly had your back, not like those smarmy salespeople who are constantly calling.
Whoa. Wait a second. In a 45-second phone call, Ms. Salesandservice engaged in cross-selling, up-selling and just plain old regular selling. She sold you a CD, a HELOC and god knows what other acronyms.
But it felt good...and it was helpful. And this is the point where the rubber meets
the road in all high-performing organizations, where sales and service cease to be separate functions and instead morph into the catch-all activities of building relationships and anticipating needs.
Regardless of your industry, by building a relationship with a client or customer you have seamlessly melded sales and service in a way that is impossible for the competition to duplicate. As Ken Blanchard writes in his famous management missive, The One Minute Manager, “...anyone can beat you on price. Many people can imitate your products or services. But one thing people can’t do is take away the relationships you build with your...customers.”
Whereas a straightforward “sales” interaction comes with at least a minimal dose of wariness, and a clear cut “service” scenario implies a hint of submission, the notion of “relationship” implies a high degree of mutual interest and trust. That one parties’ interest is ultimately incremental sales and the others is to be tended to hand and foot is almost immaterial – by recognizing that the two go hand in hand, the traditionally divergent interests become inseparable.
Any company or organization with designs on providing a world class customer experience needs to recognize that whatever generic title (i.e., customer service representative/account executive/ sales associate) that they have “touching” the customer needs to evolve into Sally Salesandservice, quickly. The traditional roles of “sales” being glorified order takers and “service” reacting to customer problems are firmly rooted in the past. Where there has always been a disconnect between those selling a product or service and those fulfilling it, there now must be agreement and cooperation. The new model – an integrated sales and service function that serves both roles. Just like Sally Salesandservice.
No less an august authority than McKinsey & Company describes a scenario where late adapters to this new model are “stuck in the middle.” Unable to compete with low-cost service providers on price and ill-equipped to build a sustainable “relationship” via an elevated level of sales and service, those who fail to adapt are vulnerable to attack from both sides. (McKinsey Quarterly, 2005 Number 5) The McKinsey article continues, advising an approach where companies analytically identify and focus on the “high-touch” interactions that will provide the most perceived value to customers in order to further facilitate this bond. Just like Sally Salesandservice.
This shift can best be described as the move from the “order taking” and “problem solving” roles described above, to one where “anticipating needs” takes precedence. Think about it – anticipating needs is the truest marriage of sales and service, where both the company and the customer have their needs met in a manner that elevates the customer experience and drives incremental revenue growth.
A hotel concierge directs a guest towards a rejuvenating spa treatment for his aching back? That’s anticipating a need, joining sales and service to enhance the guest experience and hotel revenues.
The pro shop attendant at a golf course clues in the foursome heading out to the first tee that periodic rain showers are in the forecast; the foursome buys umbrellas and hits the 19th hole at the end of their round dry and content. Once again, anticipating needs blurred the line between sales and service to create a positive guest experience for the golfers and drive the pro shop bottom line.
The model applies across industry, in either a B2B or B2C environment, assuming that what you are selling has some value to begin with. By building the relationship and anticipating the customer needs, you are intrinsically ensuring that your are providing value to that customer, and in most instances that value will be in the form of an additional outlay of cash on the customer’s part. And – if the proper foundational relationship is in place – the customer won’t mind, because you will be helping the customer help themselves. Again, think of Sally Salesandservice.
Best of all, this approach best serves the customer and generates a measurable ROI, as incremental sales from a traditional “service” scenario fall to the bottom line. Organizations with aspirations to work more efficiently, more profitably and with a keener focus on the customer/guest/patient/client experience are thinking about how to tackle this concept. Our organization recently worked with a professional basketball team where by all traditional measures the business side is working as smoothly as the team on the court. The team is winning, business is booming and the fans are having a great time. Just pop open the gym doors and roll the balls out on the court, right? Not quite.
These forward thinkers realized that there is no better time to build the relationship and provide the greatest level of service (and sales) to your fans then when the good times are rolling. Provide them with every opportunity to bask in the team’s success (and spend more), bond with the team and their fellow fans (and spend more) and love every minute of it…despite the fact that they might be spending more. If one can tighten the overall emotional bond via that elevated level of service (and sales) when things are going well, the relationship will remain strong when things are less rosy on the court. The team in question spent several months laying the groundwork for this transformation and then selected 30 members of its sales and service staff to learn the skills to better build fan relationships and anticipate fan needs, all in the hopes of minimizing fan defections when the “fast breaks” turn into “future prospects.”
The next time you find yourself thinking, “wow, that was great service – that was just what I needed,” stop and think – was I just sold something too? You might very well have encountered a wolf (salesperson) in sheep’s (serviceperson) clothing…and loved and appreciated every minute of it!
Reprinted with permission from Hotel Business Review.
You Call it Sales I Call it Service Lets Call the Whole Thing Off - To learn more about this author, visit Rob Rush's Website.
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Leanne Hoagland-SmithAre your sales where you want them to be? Will you be one of the few who achieves sales or business success or one of the many who have failed to change? Are you tired of being told you are like everyone else? Then you may find my first book on sales of interest. Be the Red Jacket in the Sea of Gray Suits, The Keys to Unlocking Sales available at Amazon or at http://www.processspecialist.com/red-jacket.htm. This book is a reflection of my no-nonsense approach to improving sales to overall business results. If you are truly committed to making sustainable changes, then I can help you secure a positive return on your investment because I focus on executable solutions not telling you the problems you already know you have. From training to corporate (group) coaching to executive one on one coaching, my approach is to assess, create awareness, build a goal driven action plan and then execute. The bottom line question is "Not do you or your employees know it, but do you or they want to do it?" Please call for a free strategy session at 219.759.5601. - Visit Leanne Hoagland-Smith's Website |
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David AchesonDavid Acheson is the founder of DCJA Consultancy. DCJA Consultancy is a management consultancy business specialising in B2B sales consultancy. They offer bespoke and packaged sales consultancy including Sales Optimisation Review, Interim Sales Management, Sales & Marketing Review, 1:1 Sales & Management Staff Analysis, Management Training, Solution Sales Training, Creation of New Pay Plan, KPI's, run Customer Feedback Campaigns, assist with Recruitment, Coaching, Appraisals and set up Strategic Marketing Campaigns. David spent his early career in accountancy and then moved into sales in 1982, working in Office Equipment, IT, Advertising, Training, Outsourcing and Consultancy. He has held many Senior Positions in SMBs and Global Organisations including Head of Sales Operations & Head of Business Development. His knowledge, skills and great experience of the Sales Industry has led to David making keynote speeches and running educational sessions to key businesses through organisations including The Chamber of Commerce and Business Link. - Visit David Acheson's Website |
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Dave KurlanDave Kurlan is the founder and CEO of Objective Management Group, Inc., the industry leader in sales assessments and sales force evaluations, and the CEO of David Kurlan & Associates, Inc., a consulting firm specializing in sales force development. Dave has been a top rated speaker at Inc. Magazine's Conference on Growing the Company, the Sales & Marketing Management Conference and the Gazelles Sales & Marketing Summit. He has been featured on radio and TV, including World Business Review with General Norman Schwarzkopf, in Inc. Magazine, Selling Power Magazine, Sales & Marketing Management Magazine and Incentive Magazine. He is the author of Mindless Selling and Baseline Selling – How to Become a Sales Superstar by Using What You Already Know about the Game of Baseball. He created and wrote STAR, a proprietary recruiting process for hiring great salespeople, and he writes Understanding the Sales Force, a popular business Blog and is a contributing author to The Death of 20th Century Selling and 101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life, Volume 2. - Visit Dave Kurlan's Website |
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Linda RichardsonLinda Richardson is the Founder and Executive Chairwoman of Richardson, a global sales training and performance improvement company. As a recognized leader in the industry, she has won the coveted Stevie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sales Excellence and she was identified by Training Industry, Inc. as one of the “Top 20 Most Influential Training Professionals.” Ms. Richardson is credited with the movement to Consultative Selling and is the author of ten books on selling and sales management, including Sales Coaching — Making the Great Leap from Sales Manager to Sales Coach, and Stop Telling, Start Selling. She teaches sales and management at the Wharton Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton Executive Development Center. Linda is a frequent speaker at industry and client conferences, has been published extensively in industry and training journals, and has been featured in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Nation’s Business, Selling Power, Success, and The Conference Board Magazine. Learn more about Richardson's sales training and performance improvement solutions at http://www.richardson.com web - Visit Linda Richardson's Website |
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John BrennanJohn Brennan Ed.D. Dr. Brennan is President of Interpersonal Development, LLC, a training and development firm. Interpersonal Development has provided sales training and coaching to more than 3,000 sales reps from over 100 companies. A native of Australia, Dr. Brennan received his doctorate from the University of Rochester. His dissertation researched the effectiveness of Behavioral Modeling Technology in training people in interpersonal skills. While he has spent most of his career designing or delivering training, he was also a Vice-President of Sales of a training and development franchise with operations in 25 markets. Dr. Brennan has designed and delivered sales training in North America, Asia, Europe, Australia and the Middle East. He has been a guest speaker at numerous national and regional professional conferences. When Microsoft wanted Best Practices articles on sales for their web site, they called Dr. Brennan. The results are at http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/FX011387391033.aspx His firm’s clients have included Volvo, The Prudential, Merrill Lynch, Eastman Kodak, Gannett, Equifax Europe, the Economist Group and countless small businesses. - Visit John Brennan's Website |
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George LudwigGeorge Ludwig is a recognized authority on sales strategy and peak performance psychology. An international speaker, trainer, and corporate consultant, he helps clients like Johnson & Johnson, Abbott Laboratories, Northwestern Mutual, CIGNA, and numerous others improve sales force effectiveness and performance. Though it's George's strategies and processes that help corporations increase productivity and performance, it's his tremendous energy and dynamism that spark the transformation. Again and again, clients remark on his amazing ability to unleash human capacity and inspire men and women to break out of their comfort zones. The result is a whole new type of salesperson. His customized presentations teach achievers to make stunning advances in their lives. From helping salespeople realize cherished dreams to helping corporations exponentially accelerate revenue streams, George Ludwig leaves audiences and individuals empowered, emboldened, and clamoring for more. George is the best-selling author of Power Selling: Seven Strategies for Cracking the Sales Code and Wise Moves: 60 Quick Tips to Improve Your Position in Life & Business. - Visit George Ludwig's Website |
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Anne BarrAnne Barr has over 26 years experience in sales and marketing, six years as a franchisee. She has assisted over 367 business owners and purchasers to achieve their goals in career change, transition and exit strategy. She holds the designation of Certified Franchise Executive from the International Franchise Association, Certified Business Intermediary from the International Business Brokers Association and Board Certified Broker from the Texas Association of Business Brokers. Anne is active in professional organizations, networking groups and volunteers for non-profit entities. As owner/operator of four successful businesses, Anne has proven people skills and enjoys helping clients find the right "fit" in business ownership. Visit www.FranchiseOpportunitySpecialist.com for more information about me and my company. - Visit Anne Barr's Website |
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