Make the P-O-I-N-T: Sales Skills Development that Works

Ed Albertson
Vice President, National Accounts
Carew International, Inc.

Implementing skills training has many challenges: selecting the correct skills to improve; selecting the manner in which the training is conducted; introducing the need for the training so it has a chance to succeed; and ensuring the training works and lasts. Implementing sales skills and other skills training has those same challenges, in addition to which one might add the risk of failure that impacts so many parts of an organization in so many ways.

Much is written about the topic, but often, when all is said and done, more is said and less is done to establish a sustaining process for implementing sales skills training. Evidence of this situation can be seen in the constant churn of sales training initiatives in almost any given company. The typical life-span of an ineffectively implemented sales skills training initiative is about 3-4 years, after which time the need to find the “next new thing” overwhelms the desirability of remaining with the incumbent approach. A well-thought-out and executed implementation can endure for two decades, as we have experienced with several of our long-term clients.

When implementing a sales skills training process, here are some “points” to consider which move beyond planning for the event and offer a more durable change that will produce longer-lasting results, thereby increasing the return on the original training effort and investment.

Make the P-O-I-N-T with a successful and sustaining sales skills training effort by ensuring it is seen as:

P Purposeful - Any training linked to an organization’s business objectives and sales challenges stands a better chance of surviving the inevitable and individual question, “Why are we doing this?” Establishing a direct line of sight between where the organization is headed and how sales skills are aligned with that goal provides people a context in which they can see their role.

O Ongoing - Understanding that what goes on before and after a training effort and communicating that flow is important for recognizing that skills training cannot and should not be viewed as a one-time occurrence. The process must allow for a continuous improvement (before, during and after) and not just the event itself. Communicating the purpose for the skills development (see Purposeful, above) before the event and following up with vigorous coaching and reinforcement can be convincing for even the skeptical among the organization, while supporting the permanence of the process as well.

I Interactive - Adults are far more responsive to active “doing” instead of passive “hearing.” Training that is structured in a way that maximizes LOTS of practice opportunities, gains huge momentum along the learning curve. The optimal design includes ample time for generous amounts of feedback exchange in a safe environment that identifies strengths as well as areas for further development. Likewise, coaching (peer and otherwise) should be an exchange of possible conclusions that allows for a diversity of evaluation and is based on observable data and not subjectivity.

N Newsworthy - Long-lasting initiatives tend to capture successes, early and often, to sustain the momentum achieved during the initial event. Noting successful outcomes that link to business objectives reinforce the notion that the effort has purpose. Publicizing early “wins” also has the effect of encouraging competition for positive attention among the culture leaders and leads to more stories of success, which travel much more quickly throughout an organization than statistical facts. Finally, if the business objectives that inspired this effort are important enough to pursue, the published linkage of incremental steps toward their achievement is important enough to report… to everyone … everywhere.

T Timely - A slow implementation with optional participation implies a lack of urgency and diminishes the perceived importance of doing anything in the first place. Urgency is associated with importance. It is best to achieve critical mass as quickly as possible so it feels like everybody is involved at the same time, with the same energy and for the same reasons -- NO EXCEPTIONS. In essence, everybody is either “in” or they are not. When Cortes burned his ships after landing in Mexico, the urgency of success was apparent to everyone. There should be no salesperson left behind.

Whether intended or not, sales skills development efforts can take on a life of their own. That “life” can be lengthened and of a higher quality if we make sure the right P-O-I-N-T is made when the process is undertaken.

The Power of Positive Energy

Chuck Terry
Executive Vice President & Chief Sales Officer
Carew International, Inc.

Everyone with a pulse has heard the analogy about the glass being half empty or half full. The point of the analogy is a good one, because it is about positive focus versus negative focus. Technically, of course, both are true; the glass is simultaneously half full and half empty. People seem naturally inclined to see it one way or the other. In today’s business climate, many of us may struggle to see the opportunity that resides in the half full glass on a consistent basis.

There is another axiom that coincides with the glass analogy -- the concept of the self-fulfilling prophecy, which states that you get what you think about and focus on in terms of positive or negative results. In short, positive thoughts yield positive results and negative thoughts will eventually manifest negative results. I have found that both concepts hold true more often than not. If you have doubts, one way to prove it to yourself is to get behind the wheel of a race car. One of the absolute rules of racing is to focus on where you want the car to go and not the wall. Take it from me, if you focus on the wall, you WILL hit the wall!

As a friend of mine often says, “So what? Now what?” I believe the “so what” is that the current economic downturn in our country has presented us with the classic case of determining if the glass is half empty or half full. If you are among the 10% of America that is unemployed, it may look half empty. If you’re among the 90% that is still employed, it is easier to see it half full. If you are considering investing in the stock market, you could make the case (and many are!) that this is the worst time you could possibly have your money in the market. You could just as easily see the half full perspective and determine that this is EXACTLY the time to move money into the market because every dollar buys more than it did just twelve months ago. Is this the worst time to invest in your business or the best time? Is this the best time to start a new company or the worst time? I could go on and on, but I think you get the point.

The “now what” is to focus on and work toward the future we desire for ourselves, our families, our business and even our country. The economy will actually BECOME what we collectively choose to focus on. If enough of us see opportunity in the stock market, guess what will happen to our investment? The self fulfilling prophecy will be that the large number of people in “buy” mode will send the market skyward and we will all look pretty smart. The same momentum is possible within individual businesses and industries.

Of course, good things in life are the result of more than just positive thinking. Bringing to fruition the glass being half full requires a leap of faith, a little luck, wise investment, and a lot of hard work. All things being equal, better to have the power of positive energy propelling you forward -- it’s much more productive than the alternative!

Differentiation Creates Sweet Melody in a Tough Marketplace

by Chuck Terry
Executive Vice President and CSO
Carew International, Inc.

I am a huge fan of music. I’m an avid listener, concert attendee, and also play the guitar myself. It was with great interest that I read the WSJ article about venerable high end guitar maker C.F. Martin beginning production of a lower priced, no frills, guitar in response to the economic pressures created by the latest downturn in consumer spending. Is nothing sacred? Apparently, in the real world business of music, decreased discretionary spending is also having an impact on high end instrument purchases. Recording artists and their labels have been feeling the pinch for a while now, as the proliferation of music downloading sites has created downward pressure on the price point of purchased music as well as nightmares associated with royalty collection. When there are fewer discretionary dollars to spread around, no industry is immune from the effect.

The point is simple, really… the fewer discretionary dollars consumers or businesses have to spend, the tougher it gets when you are, or can be viewed as, a discretionary expenditure. So the challenge becomes how to cut through the competition to earn what little discretionary money remains. How can you position your product or service as an INVESTMENT versus a COST? Here are a few ideas:

1) Know Your Clientele: I am not talking about their buying preferences or habits, but about understanding how they create value for THEIR customers. If you can understand their “value chain” or the points within your client’s company where they create the value for THEIR customers, you can align your products and services in a way that aids in their value creation process. When you are helping them add incremental value, you become an investment rather than a cost.

2) Identify the Perfect Prospects: When times are tough, there are also fewer dollars to spread around for advertising and marketing. Laser alignment and a dogged focus on prospecting to a narrow band width can be invaluable. Don’t waste time and effort targeting prospects that don’t meet rigid criteria of the parameters of a “perfect” potential customer. If someone wants to buy something, by all means, sell it to them; but don’t divert time and energy chasing prospects outside your ideal customer definition.

3) Good, Better, Best: An additional approach used by many companies is to adopt the C.F. Martin strategy. The strategy involves developing products at a lower price point to compete in an additional (lower) price range, while keeping your premium priced lines positioned where they have always competed successfully. As with any strategy, there is risk, such as diminishing the marquee value of the overall brand. BMW, Mercedes, and Porsche are good examples of companies who have adopted this strategy successfully without diluting the perceived “high end reputation” of their brands.

These are just a few ideas of how you can cut through the “noise” of intense competition to create some “beautiful music” for your company in a tough, competitive marketplace.

SMART Selling

By Ed Albertson
Vice President, National Accounts
Carew International, Inc.

Working with a variety of businesses and industries, we often get asked a common question, “How do I know if an opportunity is a ‘good one’ and worth committing limited resources toward acquiring?” This question should be asked by all sales professionals relative to each and every opportunity in their pipeline. With increasing pressure to make optimal use of our efforts, it is critical to identify those aspects of an opportunity that can give us cumulative insight regarding its worth to our company and us.

Now, more than ever, we need to engage in SMART selling! Here are some indicators that can guide us toward more effective and efficient use of resources to produce the maximum results:

Assess each opportunity by determining if there is:

S - Significant potential - The potential value of our solution to the customer is as important as the potential yield that could be realized by our organization. Jointly determining the scope (breadth and depth) of the opportunity permits a comparative evaluation of its value with regard to others that may compete for resources within our own company and within our customer’s organization.

M - Measurable outcome – The more effectively something can be measured, the more tangible its value. Leaving the determination of progress/success to a vague definition is a recipe for disappointment, both for customers and us.

A - Access to decision-influencers – Decision-making can range from a single person to a committee; but for an opportunity to be a valid one; we should seek and have access to all who will be involved in the decision-making process. Denied access, we run the risk of having an incomplete picture of the needs, constraints, advantages, and discourse that drive the comprehensive definition of success.

R - Recognized criteria – Beyond the specified needs, certain criteria will exist that could and should guide the customer’s decision-making. Lacking specific decision-making criteria can be an indicator that the need is not well established, not all decision-influencers have been included or a decision has already been made and we are not part of the solution, but merely a gauge for justifying a competitor’s advantage.

T - Time-sensitive urgency – We live and work in a fast-paced world fueled by information availability, technologically-enhanced speed and global connections. In a word, anything worth doing should have been done already. If there is a less-than-urgent sense of timing, we need to consider the cost of delay and even wonder aloud if we are an unwilling participant in a fishing expedition: a very long and drawn-out one, at that.

With limited resources, limited time and boundless pressure to produce, SMART selling can be our answer to producing more for our company, ourselves and our customers.