If Your Canary Dies, Then Your Sales People May Need Help
If Your Canary Dies, Then Your Sales People May Need Help
The practice I am referring to is throwing sales people into a particular situation and waiting to see if they survive (metaphorically speaking, of course). Not familiar with the practice? Well then, allow me to explain. When I work with various types of companies of various sizes and industries, the one constant that I frequently witness is that there tends to be a survival-of-the-fittest syndrome that prevails. Hiring sales people with the expectation that they will either succeed or fail in the first six-months with minimum management intervention is a common mistake that businesses make and it gives me the willies.
As the new sales rep walks in the door, he/she is faced with a new culture, new products, new customers, new markets (perhaps), and more. Heck, it’s hard enough to find the bathroom the first day. Yet I see management often times expecting these newbie sales reps to fend for themselves right from the start. Oh sure, they get the obligatory orientation and product training (disguised as “sales training”). But then they are set loose to close business for the company. And, like a poor little canary bird in a lethal coal mine, they are sure to meet their demise.
What is lacking in many of these situations includes processes, standards, proper sales training, and technology. Let’s tackle processes first. It pains me to see the following scenario when I am asked to work with a company to improve their customer acquisition and retention. The sales person is given a quota (in which he had no input and which was concocted by upper management based on where they believe the business should be instead of a realistic growth rate, but that’s another issue). He is also given, perhaps, a territory and some product training. However, there is no process as to how he moves a prospect through the system, from suspect to prospect to customer. There are no pre-defined steps the sales rep can follow to help identify the client’s needs based on what the sales rep’s company has to offer. Instead, the sales rep ends up presenting features, the same features he was taught in the so-called “sales training” he received during his orientation. The customer can’t see the benefits because the sales rep didn’t present the benefits because the sales rep doesn’t really know or understand the benefits himself. And it all goes downhill from there.
With a sales process, the sales rep would know what steps to take during the sales cycle. In the beginning steps, he would have the appropriate marketing material that had messaging targeted to the type of prospect the sales rep was meeting with. He would have the right resources for demonstrations when he reached that pre-defined step in the process. He would know what leverage he had when it came time to negotiate the final deal so he could close the sale in a win-win scenario. Yet many companies do not have such a sales process and their sales people are left to figure all this out themselves.
The standards I included in this list have to do with replicable procedures that a sales person can count on each time he tries to make a sale. This is actually something that should be part of your sales process. Are the contracts consistent? Is the order processing the same in each case? Can he count on the same actions and events to occur when he is conducting a transaction with his client? If not, then every sale will be like re-inventing the wheel and, a) your sales people will lose valuable selling time by being less productive, and b) the actual sale will be in jeopardy since a non-standardized approach to selling is fraught with errors, delays and frustrations.
Next up is training. When asked what sort of sales training a company provides its sales people, the answer I frequently receive has something to do with products, markets, competition, and the like. Sales training has to do with skills development, including how to cold call, listen, ask the right questions, negotiate, handle objections, close, and more. Many managers believe that the sales people they hire should bring these skills with them when hired. A large part of this thinking is absolutely valid. However, times have changed and so has selling. Hence, most sales people need to learn how to apply some of these skills in our new world, and sales training is of value to both the experienced and the novice sales people.
Additionally, even though they may bring these skills to the job, that doesn’t mean they are excellent at each one. You will be hard pressed to find any sales person who can do all the selling skills, from cold calling to closing, perfectly. Sales training can enhance the weaker areas even for the seasoned pro. Finally, there are studies that show that the longer a person sells, then the less effective he becomes. An example is this – after successfully selling a product or service for a long time, sales people become experts. Unfortunately, this causes a tendency for them to stop asking questions about what their prospect needs or wants. As a result, they jump right into a recommended solution that they believe is the right fit for their customer. Although they are frequently correct in their assumptions, this causes unnecessary pressure on the prospect and causes him to look elsewhere. Therefore, even seasoned sales experts need to refresh some of the selling skills that they forgot or took for granted over the years.
The final item I mentioned was technology. By this I specifically mean CRM technology. Purchasing a bunch of licenses for a CRM product and throwing it out to your sales organization to start using is a complete waste of time. Most won’t use it, and those that do will all use it differently. And management won’t get a single useful report or forecast as a result. If you have a sales process developed, then the CRM product should model that process in order to assist the sales people with their selling activities. CRM technology can be a tremendous benefit to sales people by informing them of their next steps in the sales process, tracking customer information, logging activities so they won’t have to write status reports, keeping track of forecasted sales, more easily following up with customers and prospects, generating personalized letters and emails, and lots more.
All this doesn’t come easily. Management must be committed to providing the resources and dedication needed to develop sales processes, provide sales training and customize CRM technology to produce a world-class sales organization. The returns on this investment, however, will be well worth the effort. So don’t treat your sales people like a canary by throwing them into a toxic environment. Build a healthy sales environment which will guarantee their, and your, success.
Good luck and good selling!
Russ Lombardo
(702) 655-5652
If Your Canary Dies Then Your Sales People May Need Help - To learn more about this author, visit Russ Lombardo's Website.
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Most people are familiar with the age-old practice of bringing a canary bird into a coal mine to see if the oxygen is acceptable for human consumption. If the poor little bird dies, then the miners would know that either the air is toxic or there isn’t enough oxygen to sustain human life. I certainly hope that in these current times there are more humane methods for checking the atmosphere. No – I don’t mean throwing your boss in the mines instead of a bird! I mean technological equipment that measures air quality for humans. I DO know, however, that a similar inhumane practice exists in many sales environments.
The practice I am referring to is throwing sales people into a particular situation and waiting to see if they survive (metaphorically speaking, of course). Not familiar with the practice? Well then, allow me to explain. When I work with various types of companies of various sizes and industries, the one constant that I frequently witness is that there tends to be a survival-of-the-fittest syndrome that prevails. Hiring sales people with the expectation that they will either succeed or fail in the first six-months with minimum management intervention is a common mistake that businesses make and it gives me the willies.
As the new sales rep walks in the door, he/she is faced with a new culture, new products, new customers, new markets (perhaps), and more. Heck, it’s hard enough to find the bathroom the first day. Yet I see management often times expecting these newbie sales reps to fend for themselves right from the start. Oh sure, they get the obligatory orientation and product training (disguised as “sales training”). But then they are set loose to close business for the company. And, like a poor little canary bird in a lethal coal mine, they are sure to meet their demise.
What is lacking in many of these situations includes processes, standards, proper sales training, and technology. Let’s tackle processes first. It pains me to see the following scenario when I am asked to work with a company to improve their customer acquisition and retention. The sales person is given a quota (in which he had no input and which was concocted by upper management based on where they believe the business should be instead of a realistic growth rate, but that’s another issue). He is also given, perhaps, a territory and some product training. However, there is no process as to how he moves a prospect through the system, from suspect to prospect to customer. There are no pre-defined steps the sales rep can follow to help identify the client’s needs based on what the sales rep’s company has to offer. Instead, the sales rep ends up presenting features, the same features he was taught in the so-called “sales training” he received during his orientation. The customer can’t see the benefits because the sales rep didn’t present the benefits because the sales rep doesn’t really know or understand the benefits himself. And it all goes downhill from there.
With a sales process, the sales rep would know what steps to take during the sales cycle. In the beginning steps, he would have the appropriate marketing material that had messaging targeted to the type of prospect the sales rep was meeting with. He would have the right resources for demonstrations when he reached that pre-defined step in the process. He would know what leverage he had when it came time to negotiate the final deal so he could close the sale in a win-win scenario. Yet many companies do not have such a sales process and their sales people are left to figure all this out themselves.
The standards I included in this list have to do with replicable procedures that a sales person can count on each time he tries to make a sale. This is actually something that should be part of your sales process. Are the contracts consistent? Is the order processing the same in each case? Can he count on the same actions and events to occur when he is conducting a transaction with his client? If not, then every sale will be like re-inventing the wheel and, a) your sales people will lose valuable selling time by being less productive, and b) the actual sale will be in jeopardy since a non-standardized approach to selling is fraught with errors, delays and frustrations.
Next up is training. When asked what sort of sales training a company provides its sales people, the answer I frequently receive has something to do with products, markets, competition, and the like. Sales training has to do with skills development, including how to cold call, listen, ask the right questions, negotiate, handle objections, close, and more. Many managers believe that the sales people they hire should bring these skills with them when hired. A large part of this thinking is absolutely valid. However, times have changed and so has selling. Hence, most sales people need to learn how to apply some of these skills in our new world, and sales training is of value to both the experienced and the novice sales people.
Additionally, even though they may bring these skills to the job, that doesn’t mean they are excellent at each one. You will be hard pressed to find any sales person who can do all the selling skills, from cold calling to closing, perfectly. Sales training can enhance the weaker areas even for the seasoned pro. Finally, there are studies that show that the longer a person sells, then the less effective he becomes. An example is this – after successfully selling a product or service for a long time, sales people become experts. Unfortunately, this causes a tendency for them to stop asking questions about what their prospect needs or wants. As a result, they jump right into a recommended solution that they believe is the right fit for their customer. Although they are frequently correct in their assumptions, this causes unnecessary pressure on the prospect and causes him to look elsewhere. Therefore, even seasoned sales experts need to refresh some of the selling skills that they forgot or took for granted over the years.
The final item I mentioned was technology. By this I specifically mean CRM technology. Purchasing a bunch of licenses for a CRM product and throwing it out to your sales organization to start using is a complete waste of time. Most won’t use it, and those that do will all use it differently. And management won’t get a single useful report or forecast as a result. If you have a sales process developed, then the CRM product should model that process in order to assist the sales people with their selling activities. CRM technology can be a tremendous benefit to sales people by informing them of their next steps in the sales process, tracking customer information, logging activities so they won’t have to write status reports, keeping track of forecasted sales, more easily following up with customers and prospects, generating personalized letters and emails, and lots more.
All this doesn’t come easily. Management must be committed to providing the resources and dedication needed to develop sales processes, provide sales training and customize CRM technology to produce a world-class sales organization. The returns on this investment, however, will be well worth the effort. So don’t treat your sales people like a canary by throwing them into a toxic environment. Build a healthy sales environment which will guarantee their, and your, success.
Good luck and good selling!
Russ Lombardo
(702) 655-5652
If Your Canary Dies Then Your Sales People May Need Help - To learn more about this author, visit Russ Lombardo'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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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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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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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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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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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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Jeff FosterWebBizIdeas.com is a Minneapolis website design company founded to help people start an internet business by providing them with website, business, and internet resources that help foster the growth of successful online businesses and develop innovative Internet business ideas. We specialize in internet consulting & internet marketing. - Visit Jeff Foster's Website |
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