The A to Z of Small Business Sales - A for Awareness
The A to Z of Small Business Sales - A for Awareness
You may note that all the italicized expression reflect an attempt to ‘dehumanize’, ‘downplay’ and ‘dispose’ a problem without dealing with it. That’s why the problem doesn’t go away. That’s one reason why for example, we still consider war justifiable. Would you agree?
Take a minute to consider how you reacted to my first two paragraphs. It will tell you something about yourself.
If you did not stop to think about what I wrote before agreeing or disagreeing with me chances are you responded from the position of what you knew and believed BEFORE you read what I wrote. You reacted from your preconceived notions and you did not hear what I said.
We do that with customers. We do not hear what they say. We are so busy making a sales pitch - selling our own brand of propaganda. We often don’t stop to ask, think or listen to the customer. How often do we really pay attention to the customer before pursuing our own need - the need to sell.
One point I’m making here is Be Aware of what you are doing and where, why, when, to whom and how. Asking yourself and your customer (or anyone) questions using the ‘5 W’s and H’ is a great way to start creating awareness.
Do you think it’s possible to solve customer problems and or meet customer needs - or your own for that matter, without awareness? I don’t think so.
Speaking of planning there’s a joke that says a “good way to get God to laugh is to tell him your plans”. Being aware that plans do not always work is really to be aware of and open to the opportunities that arise when plans go awry.
Keep your plans though. They’re not Gospel but they are useful because they put down your vision and help you keep focus.
Plans are like the fixed openings in a game of chess. They’re all set out with names such as The Roy Lopez, The Queen’s Gambit and The English Opening. They form a basis for the early going. However as the games moves along variation, diversity and improvisation become the key factors - and they are the human factors - in winning or losing.
The openings can be memorized and accomplished by anyone. But it takes real talent, flexibility, creativity and awareness to gain advantage once the game opens up.
Have you ever thought why we don’t ask a lot of questions, especially men? Targeting men may be a generalization but how many men would ask for directions if they were lost? I never used to. I always do now. I used to say I enjoyed being lost. I suspect I held the questions because of how my parents brought me up, how school taught me, and generally how my seniors-authority figures would expect me to behave.
“Little boys should be seen and not heard.” was a favorite expression of my Dad. In this world, we are expected to comply and do as we are told. Some democracy eh? In this world we are taught but do we really know how to learn? A most important way to learn is to ask and to listen. Then to understand and to do. Then repeat the cycle.
Being aware is when you put yourself in the “moccasins of someone else” and you try to understand their feelings, needs and desires. Being aware is an important element of communication, of sales and of personal development. As your level of awareness increases - and the possibilities are infinite and abundant - so will your success - personal and financial.
I’ve just finished reading “The Simplicity Survival Handbook” by Bill Jensen in which he says we are only capable of handling a small number of priorities at once. It makes sense. Is it a priority if you have 20 of them?
May I suggest that one priority you might consider by just paying attention to it for a couple of weeks for everything you to or think or say ask yourself - What is my awareness about this? Why do I feel this way” What are my assumptions here?
No need to resolve or measure or improve your awareness - just be aware of what it is - the change will follow if you allow it.
The scouts motto ‘Be Prepared’, also valid to any endeavour, reflects basic individual and group need to survive and thrive. It also reflects the slower paced expectations of the late nineteenth century and early twentieth in which events could be anticipated.
Today’s pace and instant communications leads us to ask “be prepared for what?” Do we really know what might happen next? Today, we need also to 'Be Aware' of what’s going on around us.
So far in today’s article we have mentioned key A words such as aware, ask, assumptions, allow, abundant. I feel there’ another dozen articles just on A words, perhaps a book. I’m also aware that I have not talked about the topic I promised on Sales Process.
Sidetracked again - but perhaps usefully.
Next time you can expect an article with two more A words -“Adopting a formal Sales Process and adapting it to your business”. Without a formal Sales Process, your sales opportunity loss is between 15% to 45%.
The A to Z of Small Business Sales A for Awareness - To learn more about this author, visit Norm Tucker's Website.
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You’ve heard the expression ‘the fog of war’. It’s an expression used by military and political people to excuse, rationalize or justify an event that in the ‘heat of action’ did not go according to plan and resulted in casualties or deaths which are often called ‘collateral damage’.
You may note that all the italicized expression reflect an attempt to ‘dehumanize’, ‘downplay’ and ‘dispose’ a problem without dealing with it. That’s why the problem doesn’t go away. That’s one reason why for example, we still consider war justifiable. Would you agree?
Take a minute to consider how you reacted to my first two paragraphs. It will tell you something about yourself.
If you did not stop to think about what I wrote before agreeing or disagreeing with me chances are you responded from the position of what you knew and believed BEFORE you read what I wrote. You reacted from your preconceived notions and you did not hear what I said.
We do that with customers. We do not hear what they say. We are so busy making a sales pitch - selling our own brand of propaganda. We often don’t stop to ask, think or listen to the customer. How often do we really pay attention to the customer before pursuing our own need - the need to sell.
One point I’m making here is Be Aware of what you are doing and where, why, when, to whom and how. Asking yourself and your customer (or anyone) questions using the ‘5 W’s and H’ is a great way to start creating awareness.
Do you think it’s possible to solve customer problems and or meet customer needs - or your own for that matter, without awareness? I don’t think so.
Speaking of planning there’s a joke that says a “good way to get God to laugh is to tell him your plans”. Being aware that plans do not always work is really to be aware of and open to the opportunities that arise when plans go awry.
Keep your plans though. They’re not Gospel but they are useful because they put down your vision and help you keep focus.
Plans are like the fixed openings in a game of chess. They’re all set out with names such as The Roy Lopez, The Queen’s Gambit and The English Opening. They form a basis for the early going. However as the games moves along variation, diversity and improvisation become the key factors - and they are the human factors - in winning or losing.
The openings can be memorized and accomplished by anyone. But it takes real talent, flexibility, creativity and awareness to gain advantage once the game opens up.
Have you ever thought why we don’t ask a lot of questions, especially men? Targeting men may be a generalization but how many men would ask for directions if they were lost? I never used to. I always do now. I used to say I enjoyed being lost. I suspect I held the questions because of how my parents brought me up, how school taught me, and generally how my seniors-authority figures would expect me to behave.
“Little boys should be seen and not heard.” was a favorite expression of my Dad. In this world, we are expected to comply and do as we are told. Some democracy eh? In this world we are taught but do we really know how to learn? A most important way to learn is to ask and to listen. Then to understand and to do. Then repeat the cycle.
Being aware is when you put yourself in the “moccasins of someone else” and you try to understand their feelings, needs and desires. Being aware is an important element of communication, of sales and of personal development. As your level of awareness increases - and the possibilities are infinite and abundant - so will your success - personal and financial.
I’ve just finished reading “The Simplicity Survival Handbook” by Bill Jensen in which he says we are only capable of handling a small number of priorities at once. It makes sense. Is it a priority if you have 20 of them?
May I suggest that one priority you might consider by just paying attention to it for a couple of weeks for everything you to or think or say ask yourself - What is my awareness about this? Why do I feel this way” What are my assumptions here?
No need to resolve or measure or improve your awareness - just be aware of what it is - the change will follow if you allow it.
The scouts motto ‘Be Prepared’, also valid to any endeavour, reflects basic individual and group need to survive and thrive. It also reflects the slower paced expectations of the late nineteenth century and early twentieth in which events could be anticipated.
Today’s pace and instant communications leads us to ask “be prepared for what?” Do we really know what might happen next? Today, we need also to 'Be Aware' of what’s going on around us.
So far in today’s article we have mentioned key A words such as aware, ask, assumptions, allow, abundant. I feel there’ another dozen articles just on A words, perhaps a book. I’m also aware that I have not talked about the topic I promised on Sales Process.
Sidetracked again - but perhaps usefully.
Next time you can expect an article with two more A words -“Adopting a formal Sales Process and adapting it to your business”. Without a formal Sales Process, your sales opportunity loss is between 15% to 45%.
The A to Z of Small Business Sales A for Awareness - To learn more about this author, visit Norm Tucker'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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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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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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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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Cheryl MatthynssensCheryl is a life skills coach, licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor and a 20 year entrepreneur. Cheryl's dedication to achieving a life of balance led to her expanding her teaching from the simple managing of life's daily challenges to adding financial well being as well. A direct marketer with DrinkACT, she is gaining ground in the online community with her concepts of making sure business owners, entreprenuers and employees have well rounded life styles. She opened up a small affiliate site - The Balance Guide- to help others find resources for mental and emotional well being. Visit Cheryl's blog to see more of the diversity beyond business she has began offering online at www.thebalanceguide.blogspot.com - Visit Cheryl Matthynssens's Website |
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