Sales and Sales Management Blog

November 22, 2008

The Four Pillars of a Successful Referral

Filed under: Client Relationships, Personal Marketing, Referral Selling, marketing, sales, selling, small business — Paul McCord @ 6:27 am
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At first glance, a referral is a pretty simple thing.  For most salespeople, managers, and trainers, a referral is just a name and phone number that a client has given the salesperson once the salesperson has completed the sale and has done a good job for the client.

Once a salesperson has received a referral, contacting the referred party is just as simple.  The salesperson either will call the referred party mentioning to him or her that the client, which they know, referred the salesperson to them, or will ask the client to write a referral letter to the prospect and then the salesperson will call the prospect after they have received the letter.  A very simple, straightforward process.

Unfortunately, this process is totally and completely wrong, and has been proven by millions of salespeople to not work worth a darn. Nevertheless, this is what is taught in almost every sales course in the world.  And not only is it a waste of time and effort, it deceives the salespeople who don’t succeed with it into believing that the fault lies with them, not with a “system” that doesn’t work.

Generating a large number of high quality referrals requires far more than “doing a good job and asking for referrals.”  It requires a systematic process of planting referral seeds, watering them at every chance, weeding out problems and issues, and then reaping the rewards.  That is what my PWWR (pronounced Power) Referral Generation System does.

If you want to generate a large number of high quality referrals from your clients, you must understand what a referral is based on.

A Referral is Based on a Foundation with Four Pillars-and you can control 3 of them:

The relationship between you and your client:  you can control this pillar of the foundation.  By instituting the full client relationship building process in detailed in Creating a Million Dollar a Year Sales Income: Sales Success through Client Referrals (John Wiley and Sons, 2007), you can create a strong relationship with your client built on mutual trust.  Clients don’t give referrals because they like you or even because you did a good job.  Clients hate to give referrals and unless they have a deep trust that you will not embarrass them and that you’ll deal honestly with the prospect they refer, they won’t be willing to give quality referrals.

Your client’s purchasing experience: you can control this pillar of the foundation.  You must discover exactly what your client’s expectations and priorities are, then meet-, and hopefully exceed them.  You cannot afford to guess or “think” you know what these are-you must know exactly and you can only do that by discussing them with your client and then making sure you meet them or exceed them-nothing less will do.

The relationship between your client and the prospect: you have no control over this pillar.  Clients will refer you to people they have very strong, positive relationships with and people they have very negative relationships with.  If the prospect trusts and respects our client, some that trust and respect will be automatically imbued to you.  On the other hand, if the prospect distrusts or doesn’t respect your client, some of that distrust or disrespect will also be imbued to you.  Your job is to find out exactly what the relationship between client and prospect is and then plan you approach accordingly.

Your initial contact with the prospect: you control this pillar also.  If you have built your relationship with the client properly, your client will be happy to contact the prospect in whatever method you desire.  As outlined in Creating a Million Dollar a Year Sales Income, there are a number of methods of contacting clients, each with their own pros and cons, depending on the strength or weakness of the client/prospect relationship.

As seen above, you have control of the majority of the pillars upon which a referral is based.  If any of the above is weak, your likelihood of generating quality referrals will decline and the weakness must be made up elsewhere.  In actuality, if one of the first two segments is weak, you will not be getting quality referrals-period.  However, you can mitigate the affects of the last two.

If the relationship between client and prospect is weak, use a stronger contact method.  Moreover, if the contact method is weak, convert the method into a stronger one.  For example, if your contact method is a phone call to a prospect who has a weak relationship with your client, try to bring in one or two other clients the prospect may know by reputation to build additional credibility.  Better yet, try to arrange a conference call between the prospect and your client.

Generating a large number of quality sales isn’t done by chance or luck, and neither is generating a large number of high quality referrals. Just as you need a well thought out process to consistently sell, you need a well thought out process to generate quality referrals.   You can significantly increase the volume and the success of your referrals if you understand the dynamics that generate quality referrals and then control those dynamics.

November 5, 2008

Guest Article: “Maximizing Your Price–The Value/Benefit Equation,” by Mark Hunter

Filed under: business, marketing, sales, selling, small business — Paul McCord @ 9:02 am
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Maximizing Your Price - The Value / Benefit Equation
By Mark Hunter 

Price increases are currently occurring at a faster rate than we’ve seen in the US economy for nearly 25 years.  The driving forces behind these increases seem to be the rising costs of labor, raw materials, etc.  Although these are certainly valid, the real reason for these price increases should stem from the value of the product or service you’re selling, not the cost associated with them.   Unfortunately, for the past two decades, there have been many companies leaving billions of dollars of profit on the table because they’ve been basing their pricing on cost rather than the value / benefit equation. 

Why should anyone pay more for something than the amount incurred to produce it?  For many companies, this seems like a logical question.  They determine the cost of their goods and services from a cost-plus model which says that the price you charge should not be out of line with what it costs you to produce it.  However, if this was true for all items in today’s marketplace, then we’d all be paying a lot less for tickets to concerts and sporting events, as well as items like computer software, DVDs, etc.  When companies understand that the real profit is made by pricing their items according to the value / benefit of what the customer is going receive from their product or service, their bottom line will reflect it.  Over the years, I’ve found that the larger the company, the more confident they are with their role in the marketplace, and thus the more confident they are in pricing themselves based on the value / benefit equation.  Small companies, on the other hand, are less confident and are more likely to set prices using the cost-plus model.  Although there are many successful companies that use the cost-plus model including Costco and Wal-Mart, I believe it’s imperative for every salesperson, no matter who they work for, to push themselves to the value / benefit equation.

The value / benefit equation is very simple.  It is built entirely on understanding the benefits that the customer is going to realize from using your product or service.  To discover these needs, a salesperson is required to not only ask them questions during the sales process, but also to really ascertain how their product or service will be used for the long-term.  Do not equate value to low-price.  On the contrary, the best value is many times the highest price (or at least what appears to be the highest price initially). Take, for example, the price to fly from New York to Los Angeles.  I’m sure a person could take a bus across the country for a lot less money, but the value / benefit equation would be low for the bus trip because of the time it would take.  Conversely, flying would cost more initially, but provide you with far more time once you reached your destination.

As a salesperson, you should never allow yourself to get steamrolled into a price increase discussion with a customer that is centered solely on raw costs.  Whenever you present a price increase, always begin by asking them questions about the benefits they receive from what you’re providing them.  This allows the customer to better understand the importance of you and your company to them.  Encourage them to explain how you fit into their supply-chain model or how you impact their overall business process.  The key is to get the customer to share with you something specific and unique about how you help them.   Then, to further drive this point home, ask them follow-up questions based on what they tell you.  Their specific responses will reiterate the fact that you and your company are an important asset to them.  Once you have achieved this level of dialogue, you can then share your price increase.  Because they realize how crucial you are to their success, they will be less likely to raise any objections.  At this point, you will have achieved the value / benefit equation you’re looking for and the higher price you deserve.

Despite the grim economy that seems to be driving many price increases, the outlook doesn’t have to be hopeless for salespeople.  By focusing your customer’s attention on the value / benefits your products or services offer, you can help them see that it is imperative that they continue in business with you because of how you and your company contribute to their overall success.  

Mark Hunter, “The Sales Hunter”, is a sales expert who speaks to thousands each year on how to increase their sales profitability.  For more information, to receive a free weekly email sales tip, or to read his Sales Motivation Blog, visit www.TheSalesHunter.com.

November 4, 2008

Sell a Service? Now’s the Time to Shine

Filed under: Economy, marketing, sales, selling — Paul McCord @ 9:32 am
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Home sales-down.  Auto sales-down.  Travel for pleasure-down.  With the economy in its current mess, people aren’t spending on big-ticket items, at least not in the numbers of the past several years.  And it isn’t just consumers who are holding onto their dollars, businesses are also.   That means fewer copiers, high dollar software programs, plant and equipment expansions and acquisitions, and other significant outlays are being put on the back burner.

For Realtors, auto dealers, travel agents, and manufacturers, that’s bad news.  But bad news for one group is always good news for another.

If you’re in a service related business, your time has come. 

Car and truck sales down?  That means more business for repair and body shops. 

Fewer homes being sold?  More business for remodelers, painters, and fix-it companies.

Companies not investing in copiers?  More need for fast copy companies and copier repair companies. 

Even companies whose sales of new products are down can take advantage of the current economy.

Car dealerships can increase the promotion of their service, parts, and body shop divisions.

Software resellers can increase their training and support billing as more and more companies retain and upgrade their current systems instead of installing new systems.

HVAC companies can promote their repair services to help homeowners get another year out of their heating systems. 

The temptation in today’s economy is to pull back on marketing and promotion.  Cutting costs is paramount-but not at the expense of gaining new business. 

Instead of cutting your marketing expenditures, redirect your marketing to take advantage of the new market reality-people and companies will make due with what they have instead of purchasing new.  But when they decide to make due, they spend money on repairs and upgrades they wouldn’t have thought of investing in previously.  They don’t stop spending money on their car, home, or business, they just spend differently.

October 31, 2008

What Does Your Client Touch Program Say About You?

Filed under: Client Relationships, Communication, business, marketing, sales, selling, small business, trust — Paul McCord @ 8:26 am
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What are you doing with those prospects that are in your database that aren’t ready to purchase yet?  Are you in the process of establishing trust and good will-or are you demonstrating that you aren’t trustworthy or that you really don’t have anything of value to offer?

Whether you’ve considered it or not, everything you send to a prospect communicates your value-or non-value, and your trustworthiness.  Everything you send.  No matter how small.

Most salespeople, professionals, and companies will put their long-term prospects into a database and keep in touch with them on a semi-regular basis.  They’ll send a monthly or quarterly newsletter, a “how ya doin, ya ready to buy yet?” email or letter on occasion, and make a phone call once in a blue moon.  Some will inundate the prospect with so much junk mail and junk email that the prospect wonders how to get rid of them.

Either way, the prospect is learning about the salesperson or company.  The question is what are they learning?

Let’s look at the three most common negative messages prospects get from salesperson and company communications:

You Aren’t Reliable:

Reliability is a major trust factor and what you send and when you send materials to your prospects will communicate to some extent whether or not you are reliable.  If you promise to send information, do you send exactly what you promised, when you promised?  If not, why should a prospect trust you?

Do you send a monthly or quarterly newsletter?  Is it on time, every time?  If the date on your newsletter is May and it arrives in June because you were too busy to get it out, what message does that send?  Think people won’t notice?  I received the Jan/Feb newsletter from an interior decorator-in April.  Is that how she handles all of her commitments?

You Don’t Value My Time

Are the items you send of real value to the prospect?  If it isn’t of value, why do you send it?

What people will send is amazing.  I get newsletters with recipes, gardening tips, and other information that might be appropriate for some salespeople, but not from the people who are sending it.  Recipes, gardening tips, household tips, etc. might be appropriate in a REALTOR’S newsletter, but not an accountant’s, or financial planner’s, or insurance agent’s, or from an auto repair shop.  If I get something from an accountant, I expect it to have some relevance to my financial needs.  If I get something from an auto repair shop, I expect it have something to do with automobiles.  I don’t expect an attorney to send me an article on how to give a massage (yep, got one). 

What can you send of value?  There is a ton of stuff.  Articles relating to the area you address; special offers; new services and/or products; major company news; and other pertinent information.  All of these items are likely to be of interest to a majority of your prospects.

The key is not to waste your prospect’s time.  Of course, not everything you send is going to be of interest to every one of your prospects.  But if your information is good, all of your prospects will find value in your communications-just not every prospect for every communication.  I get a number of emails after each edition of my newsletter.  Many praise a particular issue; others are indifferent.  But some of those who were indifferent to one issue may email me an issue or two later raving about the latest issue, while the one who was enthused about the first issue emails me to let me know I missed the mark with them on the last issue.  I, like you, have to aim to bring lots of great material to the table, knowing that each reader is at a different place in their careers.  What appeals to one, may not appeal to another.  However, if I bring enough diversity to the newsletter, I can hit everyone’s needs, just not in every issue.  You must aim for the same goal-bring substance to the table, and overtime, you’ll feed the lot.

Every time you communicate with a prospect or client, even with your mass communications, you are teaching them to pay attention to you because you value their time and give them value-or you are teaching them to ignore you because you are nothing but a time waster.

You Don’t Know Your Business

Sending out-dated or erroneous information also will be noticed by many prospects.  If you fail to review and carefully examine your information to make sure that it is up-to-date and accurate, you run a serious risk of convincing your prospect that you simply don’t know what you’re talking about.

The articles and other materials you send, whether written by you or others, must contain current, accurate and trustworthy information.  Never assume that yours is the only information the prospect is receiving about your subject.  Your object is to inform, not confuse.  Your goal is to impress, not show your ignorance or laziness.  Errors are especially easy to miss when dealing with statistics and factual matters of record.

This isn’t to say that you can’t send items that may challenge conventional wisdom.  You certainly can-and if you can back your information up, these may be your most potent communications.  For instance, I work obviously in the areas of sales and sales management.  Most salespeople and managers know there are a great variety of training methods and theories.  Controversy and going against convention isn’t an issue in this industry.  As a matter of fact, many are well aware that many conventional ways of doing things simply don’t work that well.  Consequently, going against convention and finding better ways is welcomed. 

But in other industries, for example, many sectors of the financial services industry, bucking convention many not only raise many eyebrows, but your very competence may be questioned if your ideas are not well documented by independent sources.  Does this mean that you can’t present non-traditional ideas in these industries?  No.  It simply means that you must go out of your way to document their validity because you know upfront that you’re dealing with a subject where innovation is going to be questioned-not just by peers, but by many prospects also.

In addition to sloppy work, overstatements and exaggerations are another red flag for prospects.  It is perfectly permissible to make strong statements about your products and services as long as you are not the author of those statements and you can identify for your prospects exactly who made the claims about your product or service. 

If you use superlatives about yourself, your product/service, or your company, they cannot be from you and you must fully identify the person who made them-meaning they can be checked out.  If you make the claim yourself, you lose credibility.  If you attribute the superlative to someone who is not fully identified, you lose credibility.  If you use an authority in your particular field and give full identification, you gain credibility.  If you use an everyday customer with full disclosure, you gain credibility.

Examine your prospect communications in light of these three most common mistakes.  Don’t allow yourself to lose credibility while trying to build credibility.  Every communication you have with a prospect or client is just as important as your initial communication with them.  You’ve worked hard to gain their trust and respect.  Don’t blow it by teaching them that you’re nothing but a time waster.

October 24, 2008

Why Clients Resist Giving Quality Referrals

Filed under: Referral Selling, marketing, prospecting, sales, selling, small business — Paul McCord @ 8:43 am
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Virtually every advisor has been taught that generating referrals from clients and prospects are the way to success, but less than 15% of all advisors generate enough referrals to significantly impact their business.  Most of the time, the problems advisors have generating referrals is due to the training-or lack thereof–they have received, rather than with the their performance.  The traditional referral selling training has been to “do a good job and ask for referrals.”  Yet, it has been obvious for decades that it really does not work very well.  Using the traditional approach, the typical advisor will get an occasional name and phone number or two from their clients, but seldom do these names and phone numbers result in a sale.  Certainly, on occasion, these referrals become clients, but the close ratio tends to be quite poor.

The failure to generate a large number of high quality referrals actually lies in the traditional method’s approach to the client.  The traditional “do a good job and ask for referrals” approach creates several roadblocks to getting referrals.

First, by waiting until the sale is complete and then asking for referrals, your client has not had the opportunity to prepare for your request.  To the client, the request comes from out of the blue.  When you approach your client with your request without giving them an opportunity to think about it, you have put them on the spot.  You are only giving them a few seconds to go through their mental file cabinet.  More than likely in this situation, they will not be able to immediately produce the number or the quality of referrals you want.

Second, even if your client takes a few seconds to think about it, they really do not know what you want.  It may seem obvious to you, but your client really has not a clue what a good referral for you is.  This may seem a little difficult to accept, but it is true.  You assume that because you sell a whole array of financial products and services, your customer is immediately going to think, “Who do I know who needs or uses any type of financial advice, guidance or products?”  Wrong assumption.  What they actually think is “what does this person want from me?”  Or, more likely, “how can I get out of answering this?”  Without having defined for your client exactly what a quality referral for you is, you stand a very little chance of getting quality referrals.

Third, the traditional method of “do a good job and ask for referrals” does not give your client a reason to give you referrals.  We make the assumption that if we have done a good job, the client will like and respect us and be willing to give us referrals.  Again, this is far from the case.  Most clients will not give good, quality referrals just because they like you or because you have done a good job for them.  You must give them a reason to give you referrals.  They need to understand why it is in their best interest to give you referrals-and after the sale is complete, it is too late to try to explain how giving you referrals benefits them.  Clients assume that whomever they refer you to will be more demanding and critical they have been.  When a client gives a referral, they are putting their reputation and image on the line with the person to whom they are referring you.  They are concerned about what their friend or acquaintance is going to think of them, particularly if you mess up.  Consequently, you must give them a good reason why they should go out on the limb for you.

Fourth, the traditional referral generation method does not give the client an objective standard by which to measure the quality of your performance.  You and your client may “feel” you have done a good job, but when you ask for referrals, they begin to think back over the sales process more critically and question whether you have really performed up to standard.  If the two of you agree up-front on exactly what you need to do in order to “do a good job,” they will have an objective basis to decide if they trust you enough and if you have earned the right to be sent to the people they really know and respect.

And finally, although not a direct result of the traditional referral generation method, an equally serious issue is studies show that the majority of the times advisors do not really ask for referrals-rather they suggest referrals.  Instead of asking a direct question seeking referrals such as “John, which of your friends, family members or acquaintances do you know that I may be able help solve some crucial issues?” the typical advisor will make a weak request such as “John, if you happen to know someone I can help would you mind letting me know?”  Or, “John, if you run across someone who could use my services would mind giving them my card?”  Rather than a request for referrals, these are throwaway sentences, quickly forgotten by most clients.

Traditional referral training is inherently unfair to you, the advisor, and your client.  It does not give the you the tools needed to successfully work with your client to generate quality referrals, and it does not give your client a reason give referrals, nor a chance to become comfortable giving you referrals.

Yet, it is possible to generate a very large number of high quality referrals from your clients.  You need to make sure that your interaction with your client eliminates these shortcomings.  Preparing your client during the sales process to give referrals by informing them up-front that you are a referral-based advisor and expect referrals after the sale; defining for your client exactly what a quality referral for you is; educating your client on why it is in their best interest to give you referrals; and then coming to an agreement with your client on exactly what you must do during the course of the sale to earn their referrals will quickly give you a large pipeline of quality referrals. 

By recognizing and resolving the problems of the traditional referral generation method, you can turn these issues into your strengths, generating a large number of high quality referrals from almost every one of your clients and prospects.

October 17, 2008

Turn Your Client Database into Gold

Filed under: Personal Marketing, Referral Selling, business, lead generation, marketing, prospecting, sales, selling, small business — Paul McCord @ 4:14 am
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Right this minute, you are probably sitting on tens of thousands, maybe hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of commissions. Most registered reps have a database of current and past clients whose potential referrals are worth several thousand additional commission dollars per month.  Yet, this resource goes virtually untapped for most advisors.

Why?  Simply because most reps have not learned how to successfully convert their client relationships into referral relationships. Acquiring referrals from clients is not as simple as “doing a good job” and then asking for referrals. Generating a large number of highly qualified referrals from a client is a process that starts from the moment the prospect is first met, not a one-time act after the sale has been completed.  It requires an understanding of what a successful referral is based on, and how to exploit the referral to insure a successful contact with the referee.

Every referral involves the interaction of three people and four relationships among those three individuals.  The strength or weakness of each of these interactions will influence the success or failure of the referral for the advisor:

  1. The Advisor/Client relationship:  In order for the client to be willing to give a quality referral, there must have been built a strong bond of trust between the rep and the client.  A client may give a “referral” to someone they do not trust, but they will not give a referral to someone they know well and respect if they do not trust the salesperson.  If there is only a weak bond of trust between the advisor and client, the “referral” the client is likely to give will be to someone the client either believes will not meet with the advisor or someone the client does not know well or respect.
  2. The client’s purchasing experience: Clients will not give high quality referrals if their purchasing experience did not meet or exceed both their expectations and their priorities.  All clients enter purchasing relationships with certain expectations and priorities.  Expectations and priorities are not the same.  A client may expect to be kept fully informed during the course of the sale and may have certain product or service functionality requirements as his top priority.  In order to receive a large number of high quality referrals, the rep must make sure that they meet or exceed both the client’s expectations and priorities.  Despite the current parroting of the buzz phrase, “exceeding the customer’s expectations,” meeting and exceeding client expectations is seldom accomplished.  Few people take the time and effort to discuss with their client what the client’s expectations and priorities are-rather most reps, and companies, assume they know.  At best, all they can knowingly accomplish is meeting or exceeding their expectations of what they think their client should expect.
  3. The Client/Prospect relationship: The trust and respect relationship between client and referee are of great importance.  The stronger the bond of trust and respect between the client and the prospect, the easier it will be for the advisor to set an appointment with and then sell the prospect.  In referral selling, a great deal of the rep’s credibility, or lack thereof, is built on the trust and respect the prospect has for the client who made the referral.  If the client/prospect bond is strong enough, the rep is virtually guaranteed a sale.  On the other hand, if the bond is particularly weak, the referral is little better than a cold call.  Consequently, it is of utmost importance for the advisor to know as much as possible about the client’s relationship, and likely bond of trust, with the prospect.
  4. The advisor’s initial contact with the referee: based on the client/prospect bond, the advisor must determine how best to contact the prospect to produce the greatest opportunity to acquire a meeting.   The weaker the relationship between the client and the prospect, the stronger the contact method the rep should seek to employ.  If the client/prospect relationship is extremely strong, virtually any contact method, including a phone call from the salesperson mentioning the client’s name will suffice, but for a weak relationship, the rep must strive to use the strongest contact method possible.  In descending order, from weakest to strongest, possible methods of contact include a phone call to the prospect from the advisor, an email from the client, a client letter, a client phone call, a client/prospect/advisor lunch meeting.

Fortunately, the advisor can control most of the above interactions.  Only the client/prospect relationship is completely out of the rep’s hands.  Even then, the rep can compensate for a less than ideal client/prospect relationship through using a stronger initial contact method.

If you understand the foundation of a referral, you can quickly increase your referral-based business and begin to mine that gold mine in your client database.

October 11, 2008

Speak Your Way to Sales Success

Filed under: branding, business, career development, marketing, prospecting, sales, selling, small business — Paul McCord @ 5:10 am
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Salespeople and business owners often overlook one of the most effective and quick ways to both establish themselves as experts in their field and generate a pipeline of quality prospects.

Most salespeople and small business owners are all too familiar with cold-calling; purchasing leads; sending out mass direct mail and email pieces; and using print, radio and TV advertising and other common methods of lead generation.  However, becoming a niche expert and taking that expertise on the road in the form of speaking to groups and organizations is seldom considered.

The natural fear of public speaking is a deterrent for many, but most salespeople simply have not considered the possibility.  When we think of a speaker, most of us envision someone with grand ideas speaking to the most crucial events of the day-or maybe someone who has lead an extraordinary life, regaling the audience with tales of high adventure.  If we do think of business experts as speakers, we tend to think of names such as Jack Welch, Tom Hopkins, Zig Ziglar or some other high-profile guru who commands tens of thousands of dollars per appearance.

Those sorts of people may be the most visible, but they are, in fact, the tiny minority of speakers.  Literally tens of thousands of organizations in the US need speakers on a regular weekly or monthly basis.  A large percentage of these organizations are actively looking for businesspeople that have a message that will appeal to the majority of their members-and you could be that speaker.

You need not be expounding on the evils of the Democratic takeover of Congress, or the how badly the Republicans have governed, or the great coming economic downfall of civilization as we know it.  You do not have to be a stand-up comedian or a storyteller on the level of Garrison Keillor.

Speaking for local groups and originations only requires you to have information that is relevant and interesting.  A realtor client of mine became an expert in the minutiae of every neighborhood in her city and began speaking to groups about the transitions taking place in the city-which neighborhoods are on the verge of taking off, and which in decline.  Her presentation is laced with statistics but also stories and history, with fact and prediction. Within a matter of several months, she became the “go to” person when members of audiences she had spoken to began to think about buying or selling their home, because she is recognized as the expert on where to move, where to build and where to avoid.

Another client of mine, a business insurance broker, began speaking about the issues that businesses in his city face in terms of risk.  His presentation centers on crime, employee theft, and upcoming city ordinances that may affect business, and other, unexciting aspects of risk management.  Although he is a likable and entertaining man, his presentation is hardly worthy of an appearance on The Late Show with David Letterman.  Nevertheless, he has information that is of interest to other businesspeople.  Moreover, he, like the realtor, has become known as expert in his field.  Businesspeople come to him first because of their perception of his extraordinary knowledge of both business risk and how to manage it and the local issues facing businesses.

Neither of these people is exceptional in the sense that they have led extraordinary lives or have mythical business prowess.  In fact, the business agent has only been in the insurance business for a couple of years.  However, both recognized the power of getting in front of groups and presenting themselves as experts.  Their average audience is fewer than 40 people.  Their average talk is less than 20 minutes, and each speaks less than four times a month.  Nevertheless, if they speak three times per month to an average audience of 35 people, they are in front of about 1,200 per year as “the” expert in their field.  Moreover, many of these people are potential prospects.

How do you become the expert?  First, find something about your business that will be of interest to a broad range of potential customers.  Concentrate on areas that could give your audience information on potential risks or opportunities that could expand or enhance their life, open new doors, or increase or protect their wealth.  Once you have found an interesting niche, connect it to your local market.  The realtor deals only with local issues and demographics, but the insurance broker mixes general risk statistics with local business-related issues.  He takes mundane national statistics and brings them home, to a more personal level.

Do your homework on both your subject and your public-speaking skills.  Hone your presentation so that you are confident and do not have to speak with notes.  Work in front of a mirror until you have managed to eliminate all of your nervous movements.  Go over your presentation-both verbally in front of a mirror and in your mind as you drive-until it becomes second nature.  Check and recheck facts and figures. 

Join the Toastmasters.  Most of us probably think of the Toastmasters as simply an organization that will improve our public speaking skills.  It certainly will.  However, it will improve your leadership skills also, not to mention your interpersonal skills in general.  Most every community has at least one Toastmasters club within reasonable distance.  In addition, in a city of any reasonable size, you’ll probably have several options of meeting days and times as there will probably be several clubs from which to choose.

Then, once you have mastery over your subject and yourself, get the word out to groups, organizations and associations that cater to your prospects.  Send a self-promotion package and follow up with a phone call.  As you begin to set speaking engagements, more will follow.

Keep your material fresh and up-to-date.  Look and act like a professional.  Within months, you’ll have gained the reputation of an expert, the image of the guru, and the self-confidence to match.

There are few opportunities to influence potential prospects as powerfully as you can through speaking to them in a forum where you’re “endorsed” by an organization or association they belong to.  Becoming the objective educator and expert has far more power and lasting impact than any marketing or advertising you can possibly do.

October 1, 2008

Guest Article: “Un-spin Your Competitor’s Propaganda,” by Dave Stein

Filed under: Communication, branding, business, marketing, sales — Paul McCord @ 7:38 am
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Un-spin Your Competitor’s Propaganda
By Dave Stein

Did you ever feel that you are living in a world of spin and hype? With damage control consultants, corporate spin doctors and whole companies out there whose job it is to reconstruct a corporate image, it’s hard to tell “where the truth lies.”

Here are some considerations for getting to the bottom of a competitor’s press release or interview:

1.Why are they announcing now? Press releases and conferences don’t happen by chance. In order to start to get at the truth, you’ll need to question the timing and ask, why now? Perhaps the company is attempting to preempt their opponent. Or are they were caught off guard and are trying to make up for lost ground.

2.Do you hear (or read) new words, concepts or phrases? That’s generally a sign that someone is jockeying for a leadership, first-out-of-the-gate position. The use of generally accepted terms signifies a me-too position, often by someone who is behind the curve and attempting to justify why.

3.If there is a problem, whom are they blaming for it? If it’s your company, you have just been declared the enemy. What is the real reason for the problemﾗthe one they aren’t discussing? There may lay a source of competitive advantage for you.

4.Who might be offended or threatened by any statements made? You always want to imagine who might be threatened or offended by a statement, whether it is written or verbal. Is the person or company taking “a shot” at someone? If so, that is at least part of their agenda. The person or company who is the target of the statement may not be clear at first. Listen and read between the lines.

5.Does the person name names? If so, they may be the enemy. A proven way to spin an attack is to praise your opponent, then diminish what they are doing in the eyes of the audience. “I think ABC Corporation really has done a terrific job building market share. We believe that the quality of our products will have an impact of the success of our customers, which will enable us to achieve our growth objectives during the coming year.” Translation: Take a serious look at the quality of their products.

6.In an interview, do they answer questions directly or avoid the answer? Here’s an example: A chemical company executive is asked, “Have there been any other toxic chemical spills that have not been reported to the authorities?” The answer, “Our company has the best record in the industry regarding compliance with government regulations and has been recognized by the Green Fund fifteen times.” What they say is often their message. What they don’t say often indicates where their exposure lies.

7.What does the person say when they are interrupted? Will they allow themselves to be driven off course? Or do they persist and continue to drive forward, even overpowering the interrupter. If that’s the case, what they are saying at that moment is likely the real message.

8.Is their body language incongruent with what they are saying? Learn how to read body language. As experienced and coached as President Clinton was, he still managed to touch his nose an inordinate number of times during his televised testimony about Monica Lewinsky.

9.Are questions planted or is the interviewer free to ask what they please? Whether you like him or not, part of the success of Bill O’Reilly’s TV show is his assertion that he will accept no guests who require adherence to pre-determined interviewing questions or subjects that the interviewer must stay away from. That is opposite from prime-time news and interview shows on network television.

Before founding his sales consultancy, The Stein Advantage, Inc., in 1997, Dave Stein served for more than 20 years in various corporate executive sales and marketing roles. Now, through his coaching, speaking, and training, Dave provides companies with substantial diagnostic and remedial expertise enabling them, among other capabilities, to readily overcome tough competitors, refocus their selling efforts resulting in new levels of credibility and differentiation with high-level executive buyers, and to hire the right sales professionals, all leading to greater and more consistent revenues. Dave is the author of the Amazon best-selling business book: How Winners Sell: 21 Proven Strategies to Outsell Your Competition and Win the Big Sale, (Dearborn Trade Press, May 2004). For more information go to his website, www.HowWinnersSell.com

September 26, 2008

Bailout, It’s Just a 7 Letter Word–Or Is It?

Filed under: Communication, Economy, business, marketing, sales, selling — Paul McCord @ 7:25 am
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Your daughter has grossly overextended herself.  Her credit cards, mortgage and car payments alone are three times her monthly take home pay.  Up until now she’s been able to rob from one to cover the other, but it’s now caught up with her.  She comes to you to confess her excesses and ask for help.

As a parent, you have options.  You can, of course, send her on her way to suffer the consequences of her behavior and out of control spending, knowing it will take years of work and self-denial for her to right herself.

You could just take out your checkbook and start writing checks-her bailout, if you will, knowing the likelihood of ever getting repaid is virtually zero.

Another alternative would be to work with her and her creditors to see if you could negotiate either reduced payments which you will make or a greatly reduced payoff-which you will immediately write a check to the creditor for, again expecting little or no repayment from your daughter, but at least giving her the opportunity to start over.

But you also have another alternative.  You could go to her creditors and let them know that you’re going to stand behind your daughter, but you’re not going to pay off her debts.  Instead, she’ll take her monthly income and make every payment she can and you’ll step in and make those payments she can’t.  You’ll only take up the slack in her cash flow and for only as long as necessary.  She’ll still be on a beans and cornbread diet for years, but her creditors will be paid, her credit history will be intact.

As her parent, which would you choose?

Now, turn it around.  You are no longer her parent; you’re one of the credit card companies who extended her credit.  Which option do you prefer?  I’d assume you’d like to see her parent take option number two-just pay the debt off.  You know you have a debtor who is going to default if something isn’t done.  You don’t want to negotiate a payoff unless you absolutely must because that is going to cost you money.  Even though her parent has promised to underwrite her payments, they have no legal obligation-they could change their mind.  Besides, since you have a great many other credit card holders in the same situation, you really want your money now, not later.

Although simplistic, these are the basic options congress is debating to ‘resolve’ the financial markets mess.  Do we simply take the bad debt, do we try to negotiate it down to the bare bones, or do we underwrite it?  I certainly recognize there’s more to it than this, and not being an economist, I’m not trying to argue for one or the other, or to explain the intricacies of the options.  But the language used to present the plans holds an important lesson for us in sales.

Certainly, Wall Street has made their preference known-take the bad debt.  Buy their paper at as close to face value as possible, saving their balance sheet, allowing them to go back, in essence, to business as usual.

That, of course, isn’t going to happen.  The Paulson/Bernanke proposal is akin to the third choice, negotiating a greatly reduced payoff-with a twist.  As a parent, you would want to negotiate the lowest possible payoff of your daughter’s debt.  You’d want to get out as cheaply as possible.  The twist in the Treasury plan is to hold a ‘discovery auction’ to determine the current fair market value of those debts.  That is the price at which they would be bought-maybe higher, maybe lower than the lowest possible negotiated payoff.  And unlike you when you payoff your daughter’s debt, the Treasury has an asset they would hope to be able to sell at some point in the future and get at least some of the money back.

The Paulson/Bernanke proposal isn’t a straight bailout, although unfortunately for them, it has been presented in the news that way and the major spokesperson for the plan, Paulson, has even used that term on occasion in the past.  Furthermore, the plan’s goal isn’t to save Wall Street companies but to free up the credit markets-to make it possible and attractive for companies to lend money to both business and consumer.  Without access to credit, the rest of the economy will collapse.

Because of how the plan has been reported in the news media, many people view the plan as simply paying off the daughter’s debt, making the creditor whole while draining the parent’s (taxpayers) bank account.  That’s a misperception based on the language used-and used by some of those involved in constructing and presenting the plan.

Bailout.  It’s just a small 7 letter word, one that everyone knows the meaning of.  Synonyms are ‘help,’ ‘escape,’ and ‘rescue.’   Many people are thinking in terms of ‘escape,’ as in Wall Street companies escaping the consequences of their bad investments and those coming to the ‘rescue’ having to payoff that bad debt in return for—-nothing.

Words are more than simply a collection of letters.  They have both positive and negative meanings-and positive and negative connotations.  Bailout, at least in this context, has the most negative meaning and connotation possible for many taxpayers.  Paulson and others have allowed the term to become attached to the plan, even on occasion using the term themselves, thus positioning the plan in the worst possible light.

As salespeople and marketers, we should take careful note of how just one little 7 letter word can completely change the perception of our presentation.

September 22, 2008

Why Decision Makers Hate Cold Calls

Filed under: Personal Marketing, cold calling, marketing, prospecting, sales, selling, small business — Paul McCord @ 7:24 am
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The simple answer to why decision makers hate cold calls is cold calls are one of the biggest time wasters for them.

Decision makers hate cold calls and have no interest in taking your call because all you do is waste their time.  Period.

Now, you don’t see it the same way.  You believe you have something of value to offer the decision maker–actually, you want to see if you have something of value for them.  You have to qualify them and that’s one of the things you’re hoping to begin to do while speaking with them.  All you want is a couple of minutes of their time to set an appointment and learn a little something about whether or not they’re a qualified prospect.

To you, all you’re asking is just three, four, maybe five minutes of their time and a short little 10 or 15 minute appointment.  No big deal–just a moment of their time.

But look at what you’re asking from their point of view:

1.   You’re not the only call they’ll get that day. They’ll get 5, 10, 15, maybe more cold calls on any given workday.  You only want 5 minutes of their time?  Well, that 5 minutes can add up to a half an hour, an hour, two hours or more if they spoke to everyone who called.  Everyday.

2.   You only want a short 10 or 15 minute meeting.  Sure.  They understand that you’re asking for 10 and intend to stay 45.  They learned the BS about the 10 minute meeting their first week on the job.

3.   You just want to ask a few questions to gather information to grab their interest to set an appointment.  You sound like every other salesperson who calls.  That’s what they all want.  They want the decision to educate them about why they called, that is, to give them a reason to try to set a meeting with the decision maker.

4.   When they politely say ‘no,’ you won’t accept it. Instead you try to probe, to flush out the objection, to give more reasons to meet with you.  Finally, they get mad enough to slam the phone down or tell you in no uncertain terms ‘NO.’

5.   When you call, you have nothing of interest to them. They’re not thinking about your great new copier because they still have 2 years on the lease of their current copier.  They’re not thinking about replacing their phone system, they’re thinking about the server that just crashed.  They’re not thinking about a new accounting system because they’re thinking about the big deal they just lost that morning.

How would you like to go through that 5, 10, 15 times a day?  Everyday?  Without fail? What would be your resolution to the problem?  Would you take those calls?  You would do the same thing they do-not take any calls.

And decision makers have made it as obvious as possible that they don’t want your call. They’ve put gatekeepers in place to keep you out.  They’ve got voice mail to filter who they want to talk to and who they don’t.  They put signs on the door that say ‘no soliciting.’  As soon as they discover you’re a salesperson they say ‘no,’ and hang up.

Yet, you think-you hope-that you’re the exception.  That they’ll take your call.  That they’ll want to speak with you despite the signals they’ve given.  That you’re different from other 5, 10, or 15 salespeople who will call that day.

Cold calling is viewed by many salespeople, managers, and companies as the quickest, easiest, and cheapest way to find prospects.  It isn’t.  It is in many ways the most difficult and expensive because when you cold call you’re trying to connect with someone who has already indicated as plainly as they possibly can that they don’t want to speak with you.  In order to overcome that, you have to make massive numbers of calls in order to find someone, anyone you can corner.

If you choose to cold call, you’ve a hard road ahead of you.  Few top producers waste their time cold calling because it is so ineffective and costly.  However, if you do choose to cold call, invest in getting the best cold call training you can.  Your investment will pay off with greatly increased results-you’ll still waste a lot of time; you’ll still face a tremendous amount of rejection;  you’ll still have to eventually find better ways to connect with prospects; but at least make your efforts as profitable as possible.

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