What Do You Think?

A good salesperson asks questions and listens to the customer. Most people would agree, but does that mean that you will succeed with all customers if all you do is ask questions and listen?

A good salesperson knows how to “ask for the order” and is good at closing. Most people would agree, but does that mean that you will succeed with all customers if all you do is close?

A good salesperson knows his or her products and services, and can describe the features and benefits to customers in a persuasive manner. Most people would agree, but does that mean that you will succeed with all customers if all you do is increase your product knowledge?

What’s The Common Denominator?

Should salespeople use the same approach with all customers? No! In our experience the best salespeople vary their “selling style” depending on the other person and the situation. Yes, questioning and listening, asking for the order, and product knowledge are all important. But, what is MORE IMPORTANT is knowing when to use each of these skills and techniques. That is what we mean by selling style flexibility.

Selling Styles
There are four distinct selling styles. Each style is characterized by certain behaviors and tendencies. Keep in mind that successful salespeople can and do use all four styles, but they primarily use a combination of the first three styles.

Collaborative Sellers tend to ask questions, listen actively, brainstorm with the customer, strive for partnerships, and value long-term relationships. They genuinely solicit input and suggestions from the customer. In a phrase, “We are in this together.”

Technical Sellers view themselves as the expert, like to talk about features and benefits, make recommendations, problem solve and are perceived as rational and objective. In a phrase, “Let me tell you about my product or service.”

Closers are good at closing and generating results. They tend to make aggressive offers, like to wheel-and-deal, sometimes try to close too soon, and are satisfied to make an immediate sale even at the expense of a long-term relationship. In a phrase, “What do I have to do to get your business today?”

Reluctant Sellers are sensitive to signs of rejection or failure and will err on the side of ending a sales call too soon rather than create hostility or risk rejection by the customer. If Closers are at one extreme on the fight-or-flight continuum, Reluctant Sellers are at the other extreme. In a phrase, “Look this over and we’ll talk again next time.”

About the Author:

Bill McCormick is the founder and president of Sales Training And Results, Inc. (STAR), a firm specializing in customized sales training and consulting. Bill has over sixteen year’s experience in consulting with senior managers and coaching sales executives and professionals

Bill has written numerous sales articles and been published in magazines such as Sales and Marketing Management. This article provides an overview of “selling styles,” a topic that is described in more detail in the Sales Training And Results, Inc. (STAR) Selling Skills Workshop. If you have a question or want to read more on the subject of selling style flexibility, visit our webpage at www.salestrainingandresults.com and contact us by email at info@salestrainingandresults.com.

There is a little test that professional buyers give to every sales person. It is a test to see if they are confident in the price they presented. They call it the flinch test. Will you pass the test?

After a lengthy buying process, the time has come to submit pricing. Countless hours are spent formulating a glorious proposal that details your comprehensive solution. Proud of your accomplishment, you present the proposal to the buyer. Skipping the sections about your company and your solution, she flips right to the pricing page. “Oh my gosh, I didn’t think it would be this expensive!”

What happens next determines whether or not you will get the business. When I say “get” the business, there are two sides to consider. The obvious is whether or not the prospect will award the business to you. The less obvious is whether your company will agree to their desired price level. The negotiation may get to a point where the prospect says they want to award you the business, but at a price unacceptable to your company. If you’ve ever been there, it is painful to say the least. As a sales person, you have a responsibility to facilitate the process in a way that leads to a mutually acceptable conclusion.

There is a trade secret in the purchasing world. They call it the “flinch test.” This is the test Procurement Agents and other professional buyers give to sales people when they provide pricing. “Wow! You are 25% higher than your competition.” These pros are trained to react with surprise so that they can see if the sales person is confident in the price they have put forward. It is nothing more than a straightforward negotiation tactic. Often times, they overstate the price difference such that you can do some quick math and see that the differential is bogus. I can recall a time where I was told that we were 50% higher than the competition. When I reviewed the numbers, this meant that the competitor was losing 18% based on fixed costs that we both had. It was highly unlikely that the competitor was signing up for this kind of an account. When I asked the Procurement Agent about that figure again, he flinched and we ultimately won the business.

The key to passing the flinch test is to respond with confidence in your price. If you don’t believe you are providing a fair, competitive price for the solution, my question is why are you presenting it anyway? One would hope that you have integrity so why present something you don’t believe in?

Some responses that cause you to fail the flinch test.

• What price were you looking for?
• I’ll ask my manager if we can do better.
• How about if I take 10% off?

The reason these are failed responses is that they create trust issues with the prospect. Were you trying to rip them off with the price you presented? One of two things is true. Either you were trying to rip them off or you believe you provided a fair price. What other option is there? Some will say that they were preparing for a negotiation. That’s a fair point; however, it is a terrible negotiation strategy to give the appearance that you will drop your price first moment someone balks. That approach gives the impression that you sought to gouge them.

Most negotiations end at the middle ground. They wanted 5; you wanted 10 and settled at 7.5. That seems logical. However, if you lower your price early, the middle ground is lower. In the same scenario, if you dropped to 8 right off the bat, the middle becomes 6.5. As I mentioned, you have to manage the negotiation such that the middle is not lower than an acceptable price for your company.

Successful sales people have a planned, or dare I say “canned,” response for the flinch test. They don’t expect a prospect to respond with excitement about a price. They anticipate shock and have a process to handle it. Here are their secrets…

1. They set expectations upfront. Early in the buying process, they set the expectation that they are not the low price provider. “To be clear, our company is rarely the low bid, does that mean that we won’t be working together on this project?” If they say no, you are set for the later phases of the process. If they say yes, at least you haven’t invested a ton of time in an account that you won’t win. If you are going to lose, lose early.
2. They don’t flinch! “I’m not surprised by your reaction. I get that a lot. As I mentioned at the outset, we are rarely the low bidder.”
3. They seek to understand. “When you say that you are shocked by the price, which part is surprising? This is the subject of another article of tine which addresses the importance of understanding the prospect’s perspective of price.
4. They reinforce their position. “Since we are rarely the low price provider, what do you think our 1000 clients see that leads them to pay a little more to have us?

Many years ago, I had the opportunity to participate in Procurement Training. Think of it as sales training for buyers. After the session, I had an interesting conversation with the trainer. Here’s what he told me…

“For 25 years, sales people asked me for coaching on the price of their proposal as I was the head of Procurement for my company. I told each one of them the same thing. Provide us with the best price that you feel good about giving and either way, you win. I always got a puzzled expression from that. Let me explain. If we award the business to you at that price, you’re happy. If we award the business to someone else at a lower price, you are happy as well because you wouldn’t have been happy to support the account at that price point.”

To share a little secret, I use the flinch test all the time when I buy. It’s amazing how quickly sales people drop their drawers on price. I bet I’ve saved my family 20% across the board for all of our spending just with that test. It’s no wonder that professional buyers use this. I often wonder how many commission dollars were lost just because they flinched. How may commission dollars have you lost because you flinched?

Articles contributed by the following Affiliates of TechAnimals.com

Lee B. Salz is President of Sales Dodo, LLC and author of “Soar Despite Your Dodo Sales Manager.” He specializes in helping companies and their sales organizations adapt and thrive in the ever-changing world of business. Lee is available for keynote speaking, business consulting, and sales training. He can be reached via email at lsalz@salesdodo.com, his website at www.salesdodo.com or by phone at 763.416.4321

The keys to outselling your competition is to compare your product to theirs. When you find the differences between products, use your findings to improve your product. Below are 12 things you can compare and improve upon to outsell your competition.

1. Price- Can you offer a lower price? Can you offer a higher price and increase the perceived value of your product? Do you offer easier payment options than your competition?
2. Packaging- Can you package your product more attractively? Do the colors of your package relate to your product? Can you package your product into a smaller or larger package?
3. Delivery- Can you offering cheaper shipping? Do you have a high enough profit margin to offer free shipping? Can you ship your products faster?
4. Benefits- Can you offer more benefits than your competition? Are your benefits stronger? Do you have believable proof that supports your claims?
5. Quality- Is your product built and tested to last longer than your competition? Can you improve the overall quality of your product?
6. Performance- Can you make your product faster at solving your customers problem? Is your product easier to use than your competitions?
7. Features- Can you offer more product features than your competition? Do your features support the benefits you offer?
8. Availability- Is your product always available or do your have to backorder it? Can your product suppliers drop ship to your customers?
9. Extras- Do you provided free bonuses when your customers buy your product? Are your bonuses more valuable than your competitions?
10. Service- Do you offer your customers free 24 hour customer service? Can you provide free product repair? Does your competition make their customers talk to a machine?
11. Proof- Can you provide more proof than your competition that your product is reliable? Can you provide stronger testimonials or endorsements?
12. Guarantees- Do you have a stronger guarantee than your competition? Do you offer warranties with your product? Do you provide an easier return policy?

© 2004 Larry Dotson

Larry Dotson is owner of L.D. Publishing. Discover over 40,000 Free eBooks & Web Books when you visit his Web site. As a bonus, Bob Osgoodby publishes the free weekly “Your Business” Newsletter – visit his Web site to subscribe and place a FREE Ad! http://adv-marketing.com/business.

Sales is a complex business. We all know from our years of experience, training, and knowledge, that there are many different ways of closing a sale. What is the best strategy to employ when attempting to close a sale? There are many closing techniques that all sales professionals learn over the years. The question is, which one works best? Well, a long time ago I heard a top producer say “the secret to closing sales is doing things right during the whole sales process. If you do that, closing the sale is easy.”

When I heard that, I thought it was brilliant. It all makes complete sense. It doesn’t matter how crafty your close is, if the customer doesn’t like you, you won’t get the sale. If you present your product well and get the customer to like you, you will get the sale. I am sure we all know how to effectively demonstrate our product, but getting the prospect to like us is a different game . All people are different, and it isn’t always easy to get prospects to genuinely like us and want to buy from us. When I think back over the years , I realize that every time I have had the prospect laughing with me, I have gotten the sale. It works every time.

Well placed humorous remarks that get the customer to relax and let their guard down, is the best way to get a prospect to like you. I’m not talking about being a clown or overdoing it, I’m talking about being yourself and showing the prospect that you are a real person with personality and you are on their side.

I have had some moments over the years when the customer and I were both laughing our heads off, and I cherish those sales above all the rest. Recently a customer asked me what kind of warranty the product I was pitching had and I jokingly replied ‘what do you want to hear?’. The customer really thought that was funny and then he said many humorous things himself that had me laughing and we formed a great bond. I knew I would get the sale , and I did. Another example is once a customer asked me if I get paid commission and I replied “No, no the truth is, I don’t get paid a dime here, I am here on strictly a voluntary basis….I’m here to help, you are the real winner.” They liked that a lot and they ended up buying too.

These are just a few examples, but I think you understand where I’m coming from. As much as we hate to admit it, people in our society, don’t have a very high opinion of salespeople. This is hard to realize because we are all such a fabulous bunch, but it’s true. When a prospect first engages us, they don’t like us or trust us. It’s our job to break down the walls they put up and show them we are decent people too. Using humor will break down those walls more than anything else. So, the next time you talk to a customer, joke around with them and get them to have a good time with you. If you do, you will get the sale every time, and then you will be laughing too…..all the way to the bank!!

Articles contributed by the following Affiliates of TechAnimals.com

Justin Demetsky has been in sales for over seven years in many industries including real estate, auto and mortgages. He has been a top producer everywhere he has worked. He is currently an Account Executive for Manufacturers Resource Network where he sells construction equipment. Justin grew up in Virginia and attended Robert Morris University where he was an offensive lineman on the football team. In 2002 Justin moved to Salt Lake City, Utah where he currently resides.

Being a salesman isn’t easy. I’m sure all of you would agree with that. We don’t have the normal sanity that comes with most nine to five jobs. How many times has someone said something to the effect of “You’re in sales? I could never do that. How can you stand that?”. Yet we go on and ride the roller coaster that is the life of a salesman each and everyday. We are a rare breed indeed. Lets face it; we’re different.

I often jokingly tell people that being a salesman is a lot like being an offensive lineman in football because we are both in the trenches all day, getting beat up and nobody respects what we do. That’s a fair comparison right? What I have found though , is that once someone gets past the initial novice phase and starts to taste sales success, the taste of sales achievement is the sweetest taste there is. Once you’ve had times where you are the top producer at your company and you’ve gotten to where you start making the kind of money you always wanted to make, its hard if not impossible to do anything else but sell for a living. There are a lot of good things about selling that make it a wonderful and fulfilling occupation. There are the adrenaline rushes you get when you are closing sales, the sense of accomplishment you get from hitting goals, the substantial paycheck that is much higher than most of us would earn doing anything else, and the service you get when you sell products that customers benefit from for a great value.

So even though we all know that selling is a great career, we have to face the truth and acknowledge that it is also a rough ride full of challenges, and if you don’t have the right attitude it’s easy to crumble. Believe me, I have seen it happen . I’m sure you have too. The turnover is always extremely high in any sales job. Much higher than other professions. Attitude is everything in life and if someone is going to be a successful sales pro, they must have a powerfully positive attitude. Lets face it, sales is mentally exhausting. It’s not for people who are negative and mentally weak. We’ve all had those times where we can’t seem to get on a roll and it’s frustrating. Those times are going to come, and they will come at unpredictable times. Sometimes they come at crucial times when you need some sales to hit your monthly goal. It’s up to you if you snap out of it and make it a rough hour or couple of hours instead of a rough day or week. It’s easy to get down. The best thing to do is to sit back and think about some positive experiences you had recently where you were selling everyone you talked to. When you control your emotions like that and get back on a roll, you feel great and then you have those times in your memory bank for the next time you start thinking negatively. If you are going to be successful at selling there are going to be lots of ups and downs. You must stay positive and confident. When you feel good, you project that positive energy to your customers and they return with a positive attitude which then leads to a sale.

The life of a salesman really isn’t easy. We have a lot of stress, uncertainty , challenges and rejection to put up with. It’s a life we know though, and a life we choose. I can’t speak for you, but it’s the only life I want to live. When I think of this I think of a quote from Zig Ziglar when he says that people buy “when the benefits outweigh the costs.” To me, the benefits far outweigh the costs, and I enjoy being a salesman. Being a salesman isn’t an easy life, but nothing worthwhile is easy, and when you look around you will see that overall, being a salesman is a great life. Zig Ziglar also challenges people to “walk away from selling……if you can.” He means that those who have it in their blood and stick with it through all the rough times are true salesman who can handle the rollercoaster and lead a good life. So , I hope after reading this you realize more than ever that you’re cut out for sales. I am confident that you are. After all , if you’re taking your time to read my article on this site, you’re the type that couldn’t walk away from sales. If you could have you would have done it by now……..

Articles contributed by the following Affiliates of TechAnimals.com

Justin Demetsky has been in sales for over seven years in many industries including real estate, auto and mortgages. He has been a top producer everywhere he has worked. He is currently an Account Executive for Manufacturers Resource Network where he sells construction equipment. Justin grew up in Virginia and attended Robert Morris University where he was an offensive lineman on the football team. In 2002 Justin moved to Salt Lake City, Utah where he currently resides.

Every sales person needs to improve their approach in tough economic conditions. A little R & R is in order and it’s no vacation!
So you read this title and you are probably thinking that I’ve lost my mind, that I’m suggesting that you relax and just let sales happen. Take the pressure off and ignore all of the sales training you have received in your career. Forget what that sales manager is telling you to do.

Not the case! If you are in the sales profession, there is no time for R & R when it means rest and relaxation. Have you seen the news? Gas prices are skyrocketing. The stock market is in a state of flux. Foreclosures are at record levels. Flying on a plane costs about the same as a trip on the space shuttle. How can you possibly think that this is a time for taking a break?

This is the time when you need to sharpen your skills and improve your game. People are still buying, but they are more circumspect when making a decision. Thus, the game of sales is more competitive than ever before. When I say R & R, I don’t mean taking your foot off the accelerator. I mean building a reference and referral program to drive your sales.

Why group references and referrals together? In addition to having the first letter of the word in common, they share something else in common. That commonality is that the time in the process when you can ask for either a reference or referral is the same. And, there is only one time in the buying process when you can ask someone to provide you with a referral or serve as a reference. But, when is that time? One of my favorite questions to ask of sales people is when is the only appropriate time in the process to ask for those? Some say, at closing. Others say, when you implement or upon delivery. Still others say that any time is the right time to ask.

None of these are correct! The only time when you can ask someone to serve as a reference or provide you with referrals is when you have earned the right to ask them to do so. This is the absolute only time. That said, you may earn this right with a prospect without them ever buying anything from you. Maybe, you introduced them to a strategic partner that can help them in their business. Perhaps you helped them to identify areas of concern that need to be addressed in their business. In those instances, you have earned the right to ask for referrals. (There is also a unique strategy for using references which is presented in my article titled, “The Most Underutilized Strategic Advantage.”)

But, how do you ask for a referral? (This is another fun one for me.) Many years ago, I participated in a train-the-trainer program for facilitators. The biggest takeaway for me was learning how asking a question different ways yields different results. Think back to elementary school with the curmudgeon school teacher who finished the lesson, looked over the top of her glasses and asked the class, “Any questions?” How many people raised their hand? None! Why? The inference here is that no one should have any questions,thus, no one asked.

Across the hall, another teacher finishes the same lesson and asks the group, “What questions do you have?” How many people raised their hand? Three? Five? Ten? Both teachers finished the same lesson and both checked the class for understanding of the knowledge. What was different was the inference. Asking what questions do you have, infers that you should have questions. It invites a response.

So, what does this have to do with referrals? Sales people often ask for referrals by saying, “Do you know of anyone who might be interested in our services?” Rarely does that generate even a single name. The knee-jerk response is, “No, not off the top of my head, but I’ll keep it in mind.”

Try asking the question like the second teacher in the story above. “Who do you know that would be interested in our services?” The inference in this question is that they should know someone who would be interested in your services. That slight tweak in your approach will yield far more referrals than you ever have received before.

Another reason why I group references and referrals together is that I find that sales people are often not disciplined in asking for them. While some commit a faux pas and ask at the wrong time, most don’t ask at all. They are so focused on the next sale that they forget to squeeze all of the juice from the opportunity in front of them. What is the easiest sale to make? Other than a repeat sale to an existing client, there is no easier sale than one that comes through a referral with the support of a reference. It boggles the mind that sales people don’t uncover these sales nuggets.

In most selling situations, one of the biggest hurdles to overcome is trust. Think of all of the horror stories out there on selling. The list is endless. For buyers, sales has the stink of bad fish on it. The standard buyer move is to shake the sales person’s hand and then cover their back pocket where their wallet is stored.

As a sales person, when you work with a referral, you start with a high-degree of trust since this person was referred to you by someone who has had a positive experience with you. These sales come together more often and with a shorter cycle. Need a reference for this prospect, already done! Since the prospect was a referral, the “referee” can also serve as a reference.

If you are a sales manager, put a program in place to drive R&R behavior. Have weekly goals for your sales team to develop references and referrals. Monitor the progress and reward those who exhibit the behavior.

If you are a sales person, don’t wait for your sales manager to put this in place for you. Control your destiny and hold yourself accountable for developing a specified quantity of references and referrals each week. This strategy will lead you to generate exponential sales under any economic conditions.

Articles contributed by the following Affiliates of TechAnimals.com

Lee B. Salz is the CEO of Business Expert Webinars, President of Sales Dodo, and author of “Soar Despite Your Dodo Sales Manager.” He is a print columnist for SalesforceXP Magazine and an online columnist for Sales and Marketing Management Magazine. Lee specializes in helping companies and their sales organizations adapt and thrive in the ever-changing world of business. He is a passionate, dynamic speaker and a business consultant. Lee can be reached via email at lsalz@salesdodo.com, or by phone at 763.416.4321.

If you are in sales, pursuing a new job is much like pursuing a sales prospect. Your marketing tools have to present you in the most relevant light. This article tells you how to effectively use them.

The compensation plan changed again. The revolving door of company executives spins out of control. You look at the corporate direction and you’d like to give the CEO a compass so he can find his way. Concerned, you’ve decided that today is the day that you will peek your head over the cubicle wall and see what other opportunities are out there. After all, you’ve been successful. No need to go down with the ship.
The morning you wake up with the inspiration to begin a job search is a little scary. There is the factor of the unknown. Yet, you pushed yourself outside of your comfort zone to open the doors to new opportunity. It’s been a while since you last looked for a new sales home. How do you go from where you are today to a new, fresh opportunity?

Know what you want. In sales, you often work with the profile of your ideal client. The same applies when looking for a job. You need to know what the ideal fit is for your sales pedigree. If you don’t know what you are looking for, how will you know when you find it? This introspective exercise is the subject of another article of mine titled, “Finding the Right Home For Your Sales Skills.” That article walks you through the exercise of defining your ideal sales role. Don’t go another step in the process until you have read that article.

Develop your marketing tools. Marketing tools? Yes, that is what a cover letter and resume are all about. When you think of marketing, you also think of messaging. Many forget this when they develop their cover letter and resume. However, these marketing tools communicate a message, a story. The key is to make sure they convey the story you intend.

While the easy thing to do is to create one cover letter and one resume, it is not the most effective way to pursue a new job. As someone who has screened thousands of these documents from sales candidates, I can share with you a little nugget of insight. Hiring managers ask themselves a simple question when they first peruse your cover letter and resume. “Do they want my job or just a job?” We know when you are mass emailing your marketing tools just like prospects know when you mass email them.

In sales, you are taught to make sure your message matches your audience. Sales is not taught as a one-size-fits-all, but rather a template
that is adjusted to match the need and circumstance. When prospects feel that they are the sales call of the day, they don’t respond. The same applies to hiring managers. Hiring managers are looking to hire people that want to work in their organization. They can feel when someone just wants a job, not necessarily theirs. Thus, when they get that feeling, your candidacy for the job goes into the trash.

The cover letter is one of the first ways it becomes obvious that you are treating this as a mass event. The sales person applies for a specific job, but the cover letter communicates a message that says they want a different job. It is not intentional on the part of the sales person. After all, they paid a copywriter a thousand dollars to create this masterpiece. Copywriters are very helpful to those in need of assistance in creating the story of their background. However, the effective cover letter recipe has three ingredients to it, making it somewhat difficult for the copywriter to unilaterally assist you.

1. Share what you know about the company. Hiring managers want to see that you have at least done a little research about them. This is easily done by visiting their website, performing an online search, and studying them on Hoover’s.
2. Present your relevant qualifications/accomplishments. The keyword here is “relevant.” We’ve all done a lot of things in our lives. Pick the ones that you feel are most relevant to the reader based on what you read when you researched the company. You can also ascertain this from the job posting.
3. Show the synergy between the opportunity and your background. Connect the dots for the reader. If the company is looking for a sales person that has developed a new territory and you are an expert at doing that, make sure the message comes out in the cover letter. Don’t expect the reader to see the synergy. You need to map it out just like you do for sales prospects. When presenting the synergies, use their language. If they call the position “a hunter,” refer to yourself as one. If they call bringing in new accounts as “territory development,” you are in expert in territory development, not hunting.

When the objective, isn’t the objective. The same holds true for the resume. Many sales people write an objective at the top of their resume. Yet, they fail to adjust the title based on the position for which they are applying. My favorite is when someone writes as an objective, “To get a sales or sales management position.” I can assure you that approach is a guaranteed way to get yourself removed from consideration in an instant. Those are two completely different jobs. “I want to be a pitcher or the manager of the team. It doesn’t matter to me.” Again, I just heard you want a job, not necessarily my job.

What you’ve done. The resume is an extension of the cover letter. The message should be the same. Highlight the results and areas of expertise that are most relevant to this opportunity. I’m not suggesting that you leave certain jobs or employment off your resume. However, package each one as best as you can to convey the synergy between you and the company.

From the job posting, you can usually infer what is most important to the sales manager. Those usually can be found in the section of the job description that highlights the candidate requirements for the job. Include bulleted descriptions and statistics that map back to those elements.

While the work to customize these marketing tools may seem huge and painful, it really isn’t. Earlier, I mentioned that you should start the search process by identifying the right home for your sales skills. The reason for that recommendation was to give focus to your search. It allows you to laser-in on those opportunities that best match you. Thus, isn’t it worth the time investment to customize your marketing tools for those job prospects that are best suited for you? Wouldn’t you do the same thing in pursuit of a major prospect? I certainly hope so.

Articles contributed by the following Affiliates of TechAnimals.com

Lee B. Salz is the CEO of Business Expert Webinars, President of Sales Dodo, and author of “Soar Despite Your Dodo Sales Manager.” He is a print columnist for SalesforceXP Magazine and an online columnist for Sales and Marketing Management Magazine. Lee specializes in helping companies and their sales organizations adapt and thrive in the ever-changing world of business. He is a passionate, dynamic speaker and a business consultant. Lee can be reached via email at lsalz@salesdodo.com, or by phone at 763.416.4321.

The offer phase of a sales talent screening program takes preparation and finesse. The good news is that there are many parallels to sales that can be applied to this phase.

After a lengthy screening process, the hiring committee feels they have found the right sales candidate for the company. Now comes the tricky part, how do you design an offer and go through the offer stage of the process without damaging the relationship with the candidate? Damaging? Many companies are not prepared to go through the offer step of the process and, due to that, damage the relationship with the candidate. This leads to one of two unfortunate conclusions. Either they lose the candidate or the candidate comes on-board, but with scar tissue. Applying some of the best practices from the sales world into a sales talent screening program helps to avoid that scenario.

The offer stage of the hiring process parallels the proposal phase of sales. Best practices in sales say that you don’t present a proposal until a thorough needs analysis has been completed. If a sales person is presenting a proposal to a prospect, he has acquired the information needed to design a solution, has discussed budget, has a full understanding of their solution requirements, and has set an expectation on pricing. This is certainly the case if the sales person is going to be successful in winning the account.

Looking at this process in contrast to the offer stage of the sales talent screening program, many of the same best practices from sales hold true. During the screening program, information needs to be gathered from the candidate to determine their financial requirements. Unfortunately, many sales talent screening programs focus exclusively on screening the candidate for fit, but do not consider the needs for the offer phase of the process. This leads to a last minute scurry to mine the information from the candidate or they design the offer blindly. Neither of those are best practices for the offer stage.

In sales, it is said that if you are going to lose, lose early. This prevents you from making a huge investment in a relationship that will not generate revenue. The parallel to screening sales talent is understanding the financial requirements of the candidate early enough to stop the process before over-investing in the relationship. There is no point in continuing a process with a candidate that requires a compensation level 25% above what you can offer. This probably seems logical, but hiring executives rarely focus on this as a de-selection element early in the process.

Just like discussing pricing with a prospect, the financial needs discussion requires finesse. The candidate knows that you are asking questions about their financials, just like a prospect knows a sales person is fishing for budget information. The better-skilled sales people tell their prospects, “I don’t want to waste your time by getting you excited about a solution that will not fit in your budget constraints…” In much the same way, this discussion can be had with the candidate, “I don’t want to excite you about an opportunity that might not be a match for your financial needs. As you look at making a change in position, what thoughts have you given to your compensation requirements?” With continued finesse, you can dig further into the mix of salary versus commission. Some candidates may rebuff this discussion as they feel the information will be used against them. In some instances, they are justified for having that concern. Hopefully, that is not the case in your company. We’ll come back to this point later. The bottom line is that the two goals of this phase are to gather information that allow you to
formulate an offer and to de-select those candidates whose requirements exceed your financial package.

In sales, the proposal phase should not be like a magic show. The prospect should not be shocked by what is included in the proposal. In essence, the proposal is the documentation of what has already been discussed. No surprises. The same holds true for candidates. The time to review the compensation plan details is not after they are hired, or even at the offer stage. The compensation plan should be reviewed at the point where you have a genuine interest in pursuing the candidate and they have a complete enough understanding of the company that they will be able to comprehend the compensation plan.

One of the core requirements associated with any process is that it is measurable. The offer phase of the sales talent screening program should be measured statistically to determine effectiveness. The key statistic is number of offers made versus ones that are accepted. If the acceptance level is less than 80%, the process should be reviewed by asking the following questions.

1. At what point of the process are the candidate’s financial requirements reviewed?
2. When it is known that the candidate’s financial requirements exceed the package, is the candidate removed from the process?
3. At what step is the compensation plan reviewed with the candidate
4. In what level of detail is the compensation plan reviewed with the candidate?
5. How often is the initial offer to the candidate rejected, and subsequently, negotiated successfully?

The last bullet in the list above ties back to my opening position about damaging the relationship. Again, this ties back to lessons that can be learned from sales. Many years ago, a procurement training specialist shared a pearl about the counsel he gives to sales people who ask about pricing strategy. He said, “Provide us with the best pricing that you feel comfortable providing and either way you are happy.” This always puzzled sales people so he explained further. “If you provide your best pricing and are selected, you are happy because you won the account. If you are not selected because we found lower pricing elsewhere, you are happy because you would not have been happy at that price point. Again, either way you are happy.”

Consider this when making an offer to the sales candidate. Develop an offer based on what was learned from the candidate that represents the best offer you are willing to make. Early in the process, tell the candidate that you don’t negotiate offers, but rather put your best offer on the table upfront. It demonstrates a professional message to the candidate and reduces their fear of attempts to lowball them. When companies negotiate offers, while they may “win” the candidate, they damage the relationship. This person is on-boarded with the worst scar tissue of all, a lack of trust. The sales person will always be on the look out for the company to try to cheat them.

As with any component of the sales talent screening process, preparation is the key to success. Organize your team and design a process that achieves your desired results. This will allow you to create longlasting, fruitful sales marriages.

Lee B. Salz is a sales management guru who helps companies hire the right sales people, on-board them, and focus their sales activity using his sales architecture® methodology. He is the President of Sales Architects, the C.E.O. of Business Expert Webinars and author of “Soar Despite Your Dodo Sales Manager.” Lee is an online columnist for Sales and Marketing Management Magazine, a print columnist for SalesforceXP Magazine, and the host of the Internet radio show, “Secrets of Business Gurus.” Look for Lee’s new book in February 2009 titled, “The Sales Marriage” where he shares the secrets to hiring the right sales people. He is a passionate, dynamic speaker and a business consultant. Lee can be reached at lsalz@SalesArchitecture.com or 763.416.4321.

For those of you out there who have read my articles, you know that I make no bones about the fact that I’m a career salesman, and I am a straight shooter. .I am clear on where I stand on my opinions, issues feedback, and experiences in the sales world. In my last article “The life of a salesman”, I discussed how 99% of the population would rather spend every day of their lives watching the Miami Dolphins games from last year, than sell for a living. Anyway, I discussed in that article that I have worked in many industries and most of the skills, practices, fundamentals, closing techniques, etc. all spill over and work for almost all other sales industries.

Throughout nearly a decade of selling, I have been on both sides of the fence in terms of being a high pressure salesman versus being a low pressure salesman. In both areas, I saw the concept my managers embraced had value to them, but that there were many flaws as well. One of my first sales jobs was selling cars for a big Chevrolet dealership in Pittsburgh. They were totally high pressure and I was trained to just hammer the customer to no end, and then if I couldn’t hammer the prospect into a sale, I had to get a manager to come hit them with a stronger hammer. It very rarely worked, and when it did, it was just because they offered a lower deal that I didn’t have the authority to offer. Ninety percent of the time the customers left angry and it was obvious they had a miserable experience, and would never be back.

If the customer sees the salesman as applying high pressure techniques, you instantly lose any credibility or rapport you have developed. They can smell that you are only after your commission, and that if what you are selling was so great, you wouldn’t have to pressure them so much. When a salesman applies high pressure tactics, it omits a lack of confidence in their product. If someone says no to a salesman who sells a great product at a great price, he will let the person walk because he is sure there is a strong possibility the customer won’t find a better deal and will be back. When a salesperson is high pressure, they offend the customers, give all salespeople a bad reputation, and do an injustice to their prospect. They didn’t know when to take no for an answer.

However, there are also many salespeople who are too low pressure and take no for an answer too easily. They too, are doing their customer an injustice and do an injustice to their prospect as well, in a different manner. I’ll never forget when I started working as a loan officer and for training I went out on appointments with the manager and other senior salesmen to people’s houses to shadow and learn from him on how to get people to refinance their mortgage with our company. I went on two or three visits and once the prospect objected and said they weren’t interested , the guys training me merely gave them their card, thanked them for their time and left. They never asked what they were concerned about, what it would take to make the offer intriguing enough to be interested, or schedule a time to come back with a different proposal. Just like the car salesmen, they didn’t know when to take no for an answer either, but with them it was because they took no for an answer to easily.

After a few more of these “training sessions”, I told the owner I wanted to go out on my own, because I was ready to jump in and thought my style would work well . So I went out on my own and thought a lot about how I read in one of Zig Ziglar’s books that most people buy after saying no three to four times to the salesman. So I decided I wasn’t going to be a high pressure monster like I was selling cars, but that I also was going to ask the right questions, uncover the reason they didn’t want to do business, and then come up with a solution to overcome the objections to make the deal. That week, I was the newest loan officer at the branch and in my first week of going on appointments I had more loans started in the process, appointments, applications, and return appointments than any of the other fifteen or so loan officers had in months. My boss couldn’t believe how I did it and asked me what I was doing to get so many deals. I told him it was all because of one thing, when to take no for an answer and when not to take no for answer. When people told me no, I found out why, then explained things clearer to them or used a different angle that they understood better and asked for the sale again. If they still said no, I would dig deeper , and finally if that didn’t work I would use a soft takeaway and say maybe it’s not best for them, but then ask if there was a number or point that would appeal to them enough to consider it. Usually, they threw something out and no matter how unlikely the figure was I scheduled a return visit with them and thanked them for their time, and I would return with something that was along the lines of what they said would work.

I learned a lot from those, because even though I was considered high pressure by my colleagues, I really wasn’t in my opinion. I was much softer than I was trained and ordered to be when in car sales and other sales jobs. There were times on appointments in mortgages where I could tell right away the person had no interest, didn’t want me there, and was wasting my time. So, after going through a shorter presentation, I ended it and politely thanked them for their time and asked if they knew anyone who may be interested in saving money on their mortgage.

So the answer to this issue is one I have figured out and believe is the only correct answer to when a salesman should take no for an answer. The answer is ……..there is no answer, it all depends on you, what your selling and the circumstances. Sometimes by pressuring people and refusing to take anything less than an agreement to buy from the person, it works when it wouldn’t if you had been soft. Most of the time it works the other way.. In general I feel a happy medium is the best medium. By this I mean where you attempt to overcome the objections and once you get to a certain point , there is nothing left to do, so you part ways. Alot of if depends on interest too. When I sold cars it drove me nuts when I would take a couple on a test drive in a car that fit what their needs, but didn’t appeal to them at all. I say this because after the test drive, I would have to try to negotiate a deal and get a payment commitment on a care they didn’t want, my manager would come over and try to close them on something they obviously didn’t want and there was no chance of a sale, and all he did was aggravate them and tarnish our reputation.

To summarize ……..this issue that is complex, disagreed upon , and hard to answer…….the best thing to do is trust your judgment, do your job, and don’t be too soft or too high pressure.. If you smell blood and know you’re close to the sale, keep going but in a tactful and friendly manner. If you overcome their objections and do all you can to show them what you are offering is of great benefit to them and they just don’t get it , walk away and go get another sale. Spend your time on prospects that are interested , and don’t waste your time on prospects that won’t buy. Deep down you know when to take no for an answer, and when not to. Trust your gut instinct and even though you’ll get lots of no’s….. they will lead to lots more yes’s.

Articles contributed by the following Affiliates of TechAnimals.com

Justin Demetsky has been in sales for over seven years in many industries including real estate, auto and mortgages. He has been a top producer everywhere he has worked. He is currently an Account Executive for Manufacturers Resource Network where he sells construction equipment. Justin grew up in Virginia and attended Robert Morris University where he was an offensive lineman on the football team. In 2002 Justin moved to Salt Lake City, Utah where he currently resides.

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Progressive companies understand the power of cross-selling and recognize it as a critical component for promoting both customer retention and revenue growth. What is cross-selling? Cross-selling is nothing more than team-selling with other specialists within your company, all working in partnership on behalf of the customer’s best interest. It is a proactive, ongoing sales process designed to provide your existing customers with a full range of your company’s products and services. The good news is, cross-selling is one of the most profitable and least risky endeavors a company can undertake. The bad news is, if your cross-selling program is not properly administered and monitored you run the risk of losing customers and creating conflict within your sales team.

Not surprisingly, two of the key elements that make cross-selling work are trust and convenience. Your customers already possess a degree of trust in your company, and this can be converted into additional sales that are not directly related to their existing products. Some might suggest that customers are irritated by cross-selling and perceive it as an aggressive sales approach. Interestingly enough, consumer research indicates that the reverse is actually true. Most customers prefer a full spectrum of products and services and appreciate the convenience that is provided through a comprehensive cross-selling approach.

Would You Like Fries With That?

While you may not have recognized it was happening, the last time you ordered from a fast food restaurant there is a good chance you experienced cross-selling. Cross-selling is a well-established and highly effective marketing practice utilized by a wide variety of industries, ranging from financial institutions to fast-food restaurants. When you cross-sell related products and services to your existing customers, you are making a smart decision. Developing a systematic approach to cross-selling brings in additional revenue with relatively low expense and effort. Marketers wrack their brains and develop expensive advertising campaigns solely designed to get prospects to focus on their offers. When you cross-sell to existing customers, you don’t have to compete for their attention. In addition to generating new sales, cross-selling promotes customer loyalty and as a result, keeps competitors at arms length and your business on the books.

What Makes Cross-Selling Work?

Cross-selling begins with uncovering your customer’s needs and laying the groundwork for other specialists to assist you in the selling process. The best place to introduce your customer to the concept of cross-selling is during your initial needs analysis meeting. It is important that you inform your customer early in the needs analysis process that you do not work alone, but represent one aspect of a team of specialists all working to help them achieve their goals. When you cross-sell you don’t claim to be the expert, you are more of a partner in the process, guiding your customer toward another qualified specialist within your company. You are responsible for setting the tone and preparing your customer for a smooth transfer to an additional specialist.

Unfortunately, many salespeople fail to do a thorough needs analysis and as a result, frequently do not identify potential products and services that fall outside of their area of expertise. Ask questions and take good notes. Ask about their goals and what concerns them. When you discover an area of potential need, be certain to ask your customer what steps they have taken, if any, to address the concern. This collaborative approach also helps you view yourself as a planning partner. Effective cross-selling is all about guided self-discovery. Through a series of thought provoking, open-ended questions, successful salespeople assist their customers to uncover potential needs.

During the needs analysis interview, I highly recommend the use of a checklist that incorporates all of your company’s products and services. Relying on your memory alone is a poor business decision, so take the time to jot down key information. The integration of customer information and behind the scenes paperwork is essential to facilitate a seamless handoff.

Keys to Achieving Cross-Selling Success

When developing a cross-selling program, it is critically important that everyone in the organization buys into the philosophy and fully participates in the program. The foundation of every successful cross-selling program is rooted in a strong incentive system based on personal recognition and financial reward. Because of the complexity, there also needs to be a standardized software tracking system in place to monitor compliance and coordinate cross-selling activities between specialists. The true value of any sales program can only be measured through the customer’s eyes. Steps should be taken to actively survey customer satisfaction throughout the process. Once a company links specialists, business processes, and data they make it easy for their salespeople to act on behalf of their customers.

Companies that fail to implement an effective cross-selling program actually do a disservice to their customers and in effect, leave the backdoor open to their competitors.

John Boe presents a wide variety of motivational and sales-oriented keynotes and seminar programs for sales meetings and conventions. John is a nationally recognized sales trainer and business motivational speaker with an impeccable track record in the meeting industry. To have John speak at your next event, visit www.johnboe.com or call 877 725-3750. Free Newsletter available on website.