John Hirth's commentary on sales...

Stop saying "no problem"!

Oh... here's one you're  going to struggle with! For many of the businesses we work with, particularly our customers in the distribution business, service is the differentiator. Unfortunately, in our zeal to provide the service that we believe will be our "differentiator"" we often create a situation where our customer thinks what we have delivered really has no "extra" value. Ironically, they believe this because of how we have responded to their request. They asked for something special and we said it was "no problem...", so they believe it and we create the impression by our words that the deed we have accomplished is "no problem".

Often, this couldn't be farther from the truth. Many times when we tell the customer "no problem" we go way above and beyond the call of duty and get no credit for it. We work past quitting time, we manipulate and cajole the operations staff to go the extra mile, we promise Mike in shipping an extra case of beer if he'll get the order out on time and we tell the customer it was "no problem"??... are you kidding me, what, do you have a "kick me" sign on your back????

So, how do we change our behavior and start getting recognized for the extra effort we provide. We'll need to start by creating a change in your belief system and recognize that we often go way beyond the call of duty for our customers. Then, we need to push aside our "need for approval" and start being willing to tell customers "like it is". Not in a rude way, but the actual truth of the situation and what we had to do to get the results they asked for. Then, when we recognize what we really do for people and change our belief patterns, it will suddenly make sense to stop saying "no problem". Instead, we might say, "let me look into that and get back to you."

An example: a client was asked by a customer if he could change the delivery of an order to delay shipping for an extra week? Instead of saying "no problem" our client said "let me look into it and see if I can make the change". The issue was challenging, took some extra effort, but they were able to make the change in the delivery schedule as asked.

Now, the sales person went back to the client and said " I called our shipper and I was able to re-route your order to another customer. Then, I found another LTL (less than truckload) shipper that will be able to deliver your order when requested. We'll be able to eat the extra shipping charges this time but in the future we'll have to pass the cost of the changes on to you. Now the customer, rather than thinking "no problem", thanked the sales person for all the hard work, offered to pay the expediting charges and promised some extra business for the effort they went through. Now, we end up getting the credit and potentially some additional business for all of our effort... all by refusing to say "no problem".

So think, next time you get asked to do something special , to not be so quick to say "no problem". You might actually end up getting "paid" for what you do and create the extra value your customer expects and has gotten in the past without knowing!

Check out new Medline photos in the photo album...

"...can I take a message?"

In the day to day of any selling career, we all make phone calls, many of which do not end up reaching the intended party. We're often confronted with the option of "can I take a message?". This often comes from either a a live voice (administrative assistant, secretary), or an electronic "gate keeper", some form of voice messaging system. The dilemma, "should I leave a message or not...?", is a question I frequently get from our clients. It's a question that deserves some thought, one that requires a strategy that will help us to be both efficient and effective, upping our odds to succeed while helping us to effectively manage time.

First, with people that you don't have an existing relationship with, you have two choices; leave a message, or leave no message. Sometimes it is appropriate and expeditious to just hang up, particularly when put into voice mail. Also, if you are working hard to contact them it may require multiple calls in a short period of time and we don't want to be arrested for "stalking"!

Your other option, leave a message, presents some other problems. When leaving a message in voice mail, most of us give out to much information, pre-warning the prospect of who we are and what we are trying to sell them. If you decide to leave a message it needs to be customer centric and compelling. It needs to focus on how talking with you will make their life easier or business better. You need to develop a short, concise and compelling message that is more likely to create the right impression ( Our "Dealing with voice mail" clinic will help you with this.).

When I say "create the right impression", it doesn't necessarily mean that I would expect them to call you back (although more likely than a typical message like "we have great quality"). Rather, with a compelling message, they might be more inclined to accept your call the next time you try to connect with them. Leaving several compelling and concise customer focused voice messages can actually work like advertising and helps to "soften the beach-head". This is part of building your voice mail "campaign".

I would strongly suggest, in the event that you are confronted with a live person that you not leave a message. First, they rarely write it down completely or correctly and second you lose the advantage of communicating with pace and tone in a written message. Always ask to go to voice mail where you can leave a message that is well thought out and delivered in a tone and pace that makes you sound like someone they would enjoy talking to (tough for you "mogul's of mono-tone!").

On the other hand, when leaving a message with someone you know, be specific (again, always ask for voice mail, much preferred over a hand written note), tell them exactly what you want and help them respond to you in a way that answers a question, rather than just asking them to call you back. I can't tell you how frustrating it is when people call me and just ask for me to call them back, without some explicit instructions as to what they want me to call them back for! My time is more valuable than that and so is the time of your customers/prospects.

Oh, and by the way, stop asking people to "please call me back.". First, it sounds like begging, and second, I think it is a little presumptuous for you to think they should call you back!  Instead, I would suggest you say "if this has interest to you I can be reached at 800-123-4567". It keeps you from sounding like everyone else and gives the impression that you are already successful and busy!

Following these simple strategies will save you time and make you more productive. They will also leave a much better impression on whoever you might be calling!

"Words of Wisdon from Bill Gates..."

Love him or hate him, he sure hits the nail on the head with this! Bill Gates recently gave a speech at a High School about 11 things they did not and will not learn in school. He talks about how feel-good, politically correct teachings created a generation of kids with no concept of reality and how this concept set them up for failure in the real world.

Here are his thoughts... they will help new sales people acclimate to the work environment as well as help sales managers understand why some of their people think this way!

Rule 1: Life is not fair - get used to it!

Rule 2 : The world won't care about your self-esteem. The world will expect you to accomplish something BEFORE you feel good about yourself.

Rule 3 : You will NOT make $60,000 a year right out of high school. You won't be a vice-president with a car phone until you earn both.

Rule 4 : If you think your teacher is tough, wait till you get a boss.

Rule 5 : Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your Grandparents had a different word for burger flipping: they called it opportunity.

Rule 6: If you mess up, it's not your parent's fault, so don't whine about your mistakes, learn from them.

Rule 7: Before you were born, your parents weren't as boring as they are now. They got that way from paying your bills, cleaning your clothes and listening to you talk about how cool you thought you were. So before you save the rain forest from the parasites of your parent's generation, try delousing the closet in your own room.

Rule 8: Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but life HAS NOT. In some schools, they have abolished failing grades and they'll give you as MANY TIMES as you want to get the right answer. This doesn't bear the slightest resemblance to ANYTHING in real life.

Rule 9: Life is not divided into semesters. You don't get summers off and very few employers are interested in helping you FIND YOURSELF. Do that on your own time..

Rule 10: Television is NOT real life. In real life people actually have to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs.

Rule 11: Be nice to nerds. Chances are you'll end up working for one.

If you can read this - Thank a teacher

"I guess I just got lucky..."

How many times have you heard a sales person say this, or even said it yourself about a nice piece of business that they just landed. Or how many times have you heard a competing sales person describe someone else's success as "luck". I know you've heard it, said it, or experienced it and I wanted to try to set the record straight. 

The problem is when good things happen, if you believe it was "luck", it makes duplicating what happened impossible. I think good things happen on purpose and unfortunately get blamed on "luck". Luck is also a convenient way to not take responsibility for the good things that happen to us (God forbid if it was anything other than luck someone might "expect" you to do it again).

Blaming success on luck is what we call a "non-supportive" belief. If you believe that luck drove your success there would be no reason to try to understand why you were successful and what activities led to your success. If success was truly driven by luck it would be a totally random event with circumstances outside of your control with a low likelihood of duplication. In sales, and many other elements of your life, this is simply not true. Your good "luck" is driven by actions and sequences of events that you have more control over than you think!

You need to change the way you think about success and realize that luck is not really part of your success formula. You create your own luck by managing activities that drive successful results. So your new belief might include the following:

     My success is driven by applying the right activities to the right targets.

Being able to identify the right activities and the right targets is really not that hard. Selling is a numbers game and the first activity that you have to manage is making the calls (telephone and in person). Not just calls for "calls" sake, but calls on qualified targets. Identifying good targets can be as simple as looking at the types of companies that you (or your company) have succeeded with in the past. Another way is to identify "big users" of your products or services.

Knowing that "luck" is not really part of your success formula, you can now look at the situations that you have managed to a successful result and try to find similarities in them. Once you've identified similarities in situations where you win, you now have a "target" and can "search" for other targets with those similarities. If your greatest successes have come from a certain industry, or going up against a certain competitor focus on those opportunities. Until you spend some time analyzing your wins (win loss review) you won't know what you look for.

So stop blaming success on luck and add to your "supportive" belief system. If, on the other hand, you really believe that "luck" is what drives your success stop reading this blog and buy a rabbits foot!

Action Step: Stop saying you were "lucky" when good things happen. Start thinking about what drove your success and duplicate both the activity and target selection process that has helped you succeed in the past. Do a "win" review and learn from your successes!

Selling Against the"Loyalty"... objection.

Rarely do I meet with a group where I don't get the question "How do I sell against an entrenched relationship", or "how do I sell when the prospect says Old Jim really takes care of us!" In every sales position and territory you will always have "loyal customers" and customers that are "loyal to the competition". Typically, the strategies most sales people use to sell against "loyalty" are either:

                   1. Give up and go away...

                         or

                   2. Resort to "trying to sell them anyway"!

This can be a frustrating situation for both parties and one that requires a great deal of good judgment, communication and people skills to handle successfully. The reality is the loyal customer is the one we would all like to have. Let's explore the strategies most sales people employ and see if we can create a strategy that will get better results.

Think about option one for a minute... if you are trying to sell a prospect who buys on loyalty, what loyalty does "giving up" show?... None! Now, I am not suggesting here that you make excessive calls on a low value accounts (I can hear the wining already!) but for those that are worthy let's make a better effort. Your willingness to continue to work to earn the business may be a big part of them giving you a chance.

Think about option two for a minute... as soon as you get the comment "I'm loyal to Jim and get what I need from him...", if you start selling anyway, aren't you are ignoring the comment and feelings of the prospect altogether? It would seem like another bad choice clearly demonstrating our inability to listen!

With respect to both of these situations maybe the best strategy is to take a "non-selling posture" and be willing to "give up". A better response to the "loyalty objection" might be:

            "Should I take you off my list and stop calling on you?"

This disarming statement takes all the pressure off and tells the prospect "you're listening" and  willing to cooperate. It removes their natural defensiveness... the fight is gone!

Then, you are likely to get one of the following answers:

                "Yes, take me off your list"

                                 or

                 "No, I wouldn't go that far"

If they say "yes, take me off your list"... you have a couple of options. First agree and say O.K. but then you might ask:

        "Have you made a decision to never look at other options?"

        "If we had a product or service that could benefit you that "Jim" doesn't offer

                 would you like to hear about that?"

        "Do you believe that their are no vendors out there that might offer something Jim

                doesn't... if you don't look, how would you know?

These questions cause the prospect to think, but not until you remove their defensiveness.

If they answer "I wouldn't go that far (don't take me off your list), try responding with;

                "Is there a reason you want me to keep you on my list?"

                "If I keep you on my list can we agree to only talk about products that Jim doesn't sell?"

                "If I were to keep calling on you, how could I do that in a way that would make you

                      comfortable and not hurt Jim?"

In both cases being willing to "give up" will be more productive and more likely to get you the results you are looking for. These responses also are logical, hard to say "yes" to and demonstrate that you are listening and validating their concerns. All good people skills that should get you a lot farther then what you are probably doing now.

Action Step: Practice roll playing these responses and try them the next time you are dealing with the "loyalty objection!" Pick three "stalled" accounts and ask the next time you call on them "should I stop calling on you?

"When was the last time you changed your game...?"

I found an interesting article in the sports section today about all the work Phil Mickelson has recently done on his golf game. It reminded me of some thoughts about the business of selling and the need to be constantly upgrading your selling "game".  True professionals never rest and are always working to improve their results...amateurs are content to stay the same, be comfortable, just "play" and accept what they get. What did Phil do that the rest of us can learn from?

First, he had to make the decision that he was willing to go through the difficulties involved in changing his game. He was committed (mentally) to be a top player and his commitment provided the resolve necessary to endure the hardships of change. I would also guess that there was a strong desire to succeed backed up by the relentless pursuit of perfection, fed by his desire to win as well as the financial rewards that would follow. To succeed in sales, you must be driven to win (personal fulfillment) and have a desire for "more money" (public and personal scorecard) driven by goals that require money to achieve. To those who say "money is not the most important measure of success" get a new job!

Second, Phil realized he needed help, looked for a new coach and hired the best (Butch Harmon, Tiger Woods coach). Like most professionals in any business, top players realize in order to improve they will need help. They realize if they knew how to get better they already would have and know that improvement is unlikely without some outside influence (training). Most top performers are coach-able and look for help. Do you have a coach, are you coach-able and do you accept help? Without help you will be stuck and unlikely to reach your full potential.

Third, by making the changes suggested (shortening his back swing to limit errant shots) he was able to get more control of his shot and improve results. Now the improved results are making him "believe" he is a winner and he can't wait to play the next round. Are you in control of your game (sales call) and ready for the next call? Or are you desperately waiting for the day to end? Most sales people lack control of what happens to them and feel frustration as a result. If you feel frustration in sales know it is a direct result of not controlling what happens in your business.

And through all of these changes the most important is not so much the technique but the new confidence and belief in his ability to succeed (training and development builds confidence). Now maybe the next time he wins the Masters and dons his next "green jacket", he won't look at his daughter and say "can you believe Daddy won", instead he'll say "see, Daddy is a winner!"

Action Step: Look for a coach (this weblog can be a good first step) and be willing to change your game. Make a decision on what part of your game needs to change and take action. If you can't decide how to get better, congratulations, you're closer to the top than you may think! Get more help and continue your rise... be a professional and not just an amateur!

"Should I respond to that RFQ, RFP, RFI... yes, with an RFM!"

You know the drill... you get an RFQ(request for quotation), RFP(request for proposal) or RFI(request for information) and you're wondering whether or not you should respond? As you ponder, you decide that if you don't comply you'll lose the opportunity to have a shot at the business! You know a lot of these are really nothing more than "price checks" but you're "afraid" that if you don't respond you may seem "dis-interested" and they'll take you off their list. So, you do the work and "hope" that the outcome will be in your favor. Once again you've become the "hunted" rather then the 'hunter".

Through our work with hundreds of companies in a wide variety of businesses, we have learned and identified that much of this "quoting or proposing" ends up being a waste of time and does nothing more than provide leverage for prospects to beat up their current vendor. Or worse, we provide unique ideas or solutions that become a "shopping list" which allows the prospect to take our ideas and share them with the competition. An unfortunate and expensive process we call "cloning" or "free consulting". Expensive because it not only wastes your time but allows them to "commoditize" your offer and drive your margins into the toilet!

We regularly ask our client companies what their experience with these "undeveloped opportunities" has been and the answer is always the same, "low closing percentages"! On average we're told that closing ratios average between 10-20% (often lower), but because they "close some" they feel like they need to respond to all. They have a tough time distinguishing between the ones that are "likely to close" vs. the ones that are "unlikely to close" and because of this see no alternative other than to respond. Most of our clients tell us it is "part of the sales game" and a necessary cost of doing business.

So, the strategy would be to win a higher percentage of our quote, propose requests and stop wasting time and resources on "low percentage" opportunities. The tactic that we have created to implement the strategy is called a "filter". Filters are used to take a large quantity of substance and separate good from bad or high quality from low quality. It all starts with making a decision to "not respond" to RFP's or RFQ's in the way you have been asked (remember, you always have a choice). Responding with information does nothing more than make you look and sound like everyone else and has you losing control of your information asset! Your zeal to respond quickly and demonstrate your capabilities ends up costing you a lot of money!

Let's start by responding to these requests with one of our own... a "filter" if you will. Let's start by responding with an "RFM", or "request for meeting". Rather than just sending what you've been asked for "call to request a meeting". Anyone truly interested in doing business with you should also be willing to spend some time with you. Anyone who will not take the time to meet with you clearly identifies themselves as someone who feels you are not worth their time, which I would suggest means they are not really a good opportunity for you. This simple tool (followed up by other tactics and filters that we will discuss in future posts) will quickly help you "filter" real interest and opportunity from "smoke screen, time waster, column fodder and price check".

Action Step: Stop responding to those RFP's, RFQ's and RFI's with what you have been asked for but instead respond with an "RFM". You'll quickly know where you stand and will save your valuable time and information!

"New Thermo Fisher Scientific Photos..."

Check out the new pictures of John Hirth and the Thermo Fisher Scientific VAR conference in the city of "Lost Wages"!

John worked closely with the VAR team to assist them in penetrating high level decision makes and to create strategies to move past "purchasing".

Products offered by Thermo Fisher maintain the integrity of high purity liquid flows depends on pumping systems that provide sterility and precision at all times. Masterflex® peristaltic pumps employ clean pump technology to provide a totally closed system for contamination-free aseptic/sterile flow.

"Revenue, profit margins, expenses..."

If you own a business, manage a business or work in a business you are driven to achieve one central goal... that goal is to make money! Forget about providing jobs or creating social value or any other intrinsic purpose... it all revolves around money. Your ability to help your customers make more money will ultimately determine your value to them and the companies they work for.

So, think about companies and how you could help them make money. Focus on three key areas... help them to increase their top line revenues, improve bottom line profitability and lower expenses. We'll be focusing on these three critical business functions and how you can affect them in upcoming posts... stay tuned! It's the leverage you'll need to help your prospects forget about price!