THE SALES FORCE PLAYBOOK

HOW TO WIN A PITCH

I had the pleasure of receiving an advanced copy of Joey Asher's new book, How To Win a Pitch.  This book is a must read for all salespeople who are making presentations, especially to a group of decision makers.

His Five Fundamentals are too often ignored by the majority of salespeople.  Get this book so you avoid those mistakes.

SALES TALENT

Didn't it seem like only yesterday that salespeople you were recruiting wanted guarantees and signing bonuses?  The job market was so hot that it seemed you could not get top talent.

Wow, have things ever changed.  With downsizing, rightsizing and companies ceasing to exist, there is some great sales talent looking for a home.  Whether you need to add to your sales force, or whether you have to replace underachievers, now is the time to strike. 

Get the word out that you are looking for top sales talent.  Tell your customers, your suppliers, your friends, your competitors and your Centers of Influence.  Don't just tell them once, continue to remind them.  This is the perfect time to take advantage of the Law of Attraction.

Take action now!  Don't wait until for the "perfect time" because "perfect" never comes.

SALES COACHING

Yesterday I had the opportunity to attend a webinar hosted by a leading CRM provider.  The focus of the webinar was for one of this provider's Regional Sales Managers to show how he uses the product.

As I was watching and listening, I couldn't help but think how important it is to have all this data to be able to coach salespeople.  Too many Sales Managers and Sales Leaders only coach to the bottom line.  If goals are being met, typical coaching is, "keep up the good work."  If goals are not being met, typical coaching is, "working harder and make more calls."

With the data the companies can get from CRM tools, Sales Managers and Sales Leaders can analyze the data to find out the real issues of why a salesperson is, or is not, successful.  Some of the things you can determine using the data available to you are:

• If your salespeople are making enough calls to get appointments
• If your salespeople are getting enough appointments
• If your salespeople are working on deals that are the right size
• Where in the sales cycle your salespeople are getting stuck
• If your salespeople are doing a good job of qualifying
• If your sales team's  future results will suffer because of a weak pipeline
• If your salespeople are calling on the right people within an organization

With this type of information you are able to be a much more effective coach.  The key lessons I learned from the webinar were (1) you need the data to be a better coach and (2) data without coaching is a tremendous waste.

REFERRALS - ACCOUNTABILITY

I had the opportunity to give a talk to a sales organization this week regarding introductions and referrals.  I did what I thought was a very good job of engaging the group, asking them questions, challenging them and giving them homework.

Afterwards, the District President thanked me for my time.  More importantly, she told me that her Sales Leaders were going to start tracking the number of times per week each salesperson asked and received referrals.  In other words, hold them accountable.

Almost every salesperson I know tells me they want to get out of the cold calling business and focus their prospecting efforts on referrals. Unfortunately, very few actually do it.  The only way that it will get done is if they set goals and hold themselves accountable (or have their Sales Leader hold them accountable) for accomplishing those goals.

Do your salespeople have goals for the number of referrals they get each week?  Do you track their results?  Do you hold them accountable?

Accountability is the first step in your salespeople developing a referral based practice.  Help them take it.

PROSPECTING ACTIVITY

Here we are in the middle of March.  When it comes to prospecting activity, the majority of companies tend to fall into one of two categories.

The first category is those companies who were excited about the new year and had their salespeople "blitz" the market with activity.  Unfortunately, too many of these same companies have fallen back into their old habits of uneven activity and are frustrated with the status of their pipeline.

The second category is those companies that are working hard to close out the quarter with good sales results.  Unfortunately, too many of these companies have not been filling the pipeline to insure a great Q2.

Uneven prospecting activity leads to uneven sales results.  This inconsistency drives people (at all levels) crazy.  What does your company do to insure your salespeople have consistent prospecting activity?  If you are having challenges, here are some suggestions:

• Have daily or weekly huddles to inspect activity
• Salespeople ask for 3 introductions per week
• Everyone has two COI meetings per week (perfect time to ask for introductions)
• Invite prospects to monthly (or weekly) Lunch-n-Learns.  These smaller group meetings should be designed to add value to your prospect's business, not just sell your product or service
• Call former clients to see how they are doing
• Call prospects whose business you did not get to see if anything has changed
• Attend 1 networking event per week
• Seek speaking opportunities to groups that contain your ideal prospects
• Set goals for all prospecting activities 

The nature of your business will determine which of the above items make sense for your company. But you must be committed to consistent prospecting activity if you want to have consistent and predictable sales results.

ON BOARDING

I was talking to a salesperson yesterday that has been with an organization for 6 months. He has had no sales and precious few appointments (his industry has a 60-90 sales cycle).  He thinks he is doing a good job since he is making the phone calls and doing the drop-ins.  It is not his fault.  This is his first sales job and he really does not know what it will take to be successful.

A common mistake made by sales organizations is little (or no) on boarding of new salespeople.  The company spends a considerable amount of time, effort and money finding, interviewing and hiring the salesperson, but drops the ball once the person is hired.

As challenging as it might be to find good salespeople, it is just as challenging to make sure they succeed in the new role.  A comprehensive on boarding process is a must to make certain you get returns on your investment.  What you do in the first 90 days will set the stage for future success (or lack thereof).  At a minimum, your on-boarding process must include:

• Metrics for sales activities
• Clearly identified target market
• Strategies for reaching decision makers in target market
• Reasons why prospects will see you
• Understanding of you stack up against your main competitors
• Great questions to ask prospects
• Understanding of how your product or service works
• Understanding of how to complete a transaction and the necessary steps to deliver the product/service
• Your sales process (system or methodology)
• Pre-call strategies and post-call debriefs
• Scheduled "ride-a-longs" with successful salespeople in your organization 
• Regular meetings with mentor to provide guidance and feedback

Certainly some sales positions require extensive technical training, so the on boarding process may include additional time.  However, most companies expect their salespeople to be "on the streets" in short order, so the above steps must be addressed starting on Day 1.

PASSION

A couple I know recently left the insurance industry to start a new business venture. They had achieved a certain level of success in the insurance industry, but were not passionate about doing it the rest of their lives.  Regardless of their financial success, waking up in the morning and going to work had become a grind.

Entrepreneurship is part of their DNA, so they begin thinking about ideas that excited them.  When they settled on the idea, they pursued it with passion.  I have watched and listened over the past several months as they have done their research, put together their business plan, found space for their business, contacted potential employees and begun the marketing process.  Every time we got together for coffee so I could receive an update, the excitement and passion were evident.

I stopped by their business last night.  The space was amazing, even more impressive than they had described to me.  As I received the tour, I felt how proud they were of what they had accomplished. They were proud to introduce me to their employees. They couldn't stop smiling as we talked about their first three weeks in business.  Their enthusiasm was contagious.  I bought 4 gift certificates that I could give to my clients.  I also cannot wait to refer business to them.

Are your salespeople passionate about what they are doing?  If so, the results are probably obvious.  If the passion is not there, you must find out if it is temporary or is it gone forever?  Life is too short to be stuck in a situation in which you are not happy and not passionate.

As somebody once told me, "find something that you love to do and you will never work another day in your life."  Help your salespeople find what they love to do.

"10" SERVICE LEVEL

Business Week recently listed it's Customer Service Champs.  Many of the names on the list are notorious for their extraordinary service.

I was recently involved in a discussion with a client about this very subject.  The discussion centered on whether or not they should ask the client/prospect if they experienced "10 Service," or when surveyed would they respond that they received "10 Service."

Now I don't know that there is a right or wrong answer for this, but what I do know is that some companies are more fixated on getting a "10" on the survey than they are on actually giving "10 Service."

I am a customer of many of the companies listed on the Business Week list.  They are a "10" to me, not because they pimp me for a "10" on the survey, but because they continually demonstrate a "10 Service Level" when I have dealings with them.  As a result, I continue to do business with them and I never look at a competitor's offerings.

A wise man once said, "watch what they do, not what they say."  Make sure your team continually demonstrates great service with their actions.

INTRODUCTIONS

I was reviewing a Sales Force Assessment with a CEO last week.  As we talked about his salespeople, he told me that there was one salesperson who always hits her revenue goals and is continuing that trend in this challenging economy.

As we reviewed the results, the Assessment identified her as the only salesperson who receives introductions (from COIs and clients) to potential prospects.  Coincidence, I don't think so.

The single best prospecting method your salespeople can do is to receive introductions from COIs and clients, yet far too many sales organizations spend considerable time, effort and money on less effective prospecting methods.

I am not advocating that we eliminate all other prospecting efforts.  What I am advocating is that you make sure your sales organization has mastered the art of asking and receiving introductions.  If this is a weaknesses of your company, spend the necessary time, effort and money to fix it.