TFP Column: Selling Stupid

When you've been around sales as long as I have, you begin to recognize who's got a good pitch and who's got a lousy one.  You also wonder how some can manage to make a great pitch with a lousy product and some make an embarrassingly horrible one with a good, or even a great product.

So it was this week, that I began to look at the upcoming November election in terms of both the product that each of the two major parties were pitching, and at the way that they had prepared and packaged their ideas for the voters that they were trying to sell. The result is this week's effort in the TFP, "Selling Stupid", a title which you will understand soon after you begin reading.

Since this effort looks to go up on the website pretty early this week, you'll understand that you have a lot to look forward to.  Not only is the mid-wee 'Star' edition covering the incredible line up of super hero movies coming out this summer, but there's little doubt that this weekend's TFP will, as always, have a few super pieces of its own.

But what else could you expect from Toledo's largest Sunday circulation and Ohio's best weekly newspaper for the third straight year, the Toledo Free Press.  

Teaching An Old Dog

I have always enjoyed the good quotation or catchphrase, especially when I can find a way to relate them to my own rather quixotic existence. This week brought one to mind as I found myself in the midst of an very talented, highly intelligent, and extremely motivated group of individuals to have a bit of sales training administered. 


Now I have been in sales since 1979, have offered a number of product lines, and have been relatively successful in providing customer solutions in forty-seven States, five Canadian provinces, and a number of foreign countries. This wealth of experience however, only managed to underscore the idea that there is always a great deal to learn; and that you can never receive enough training in your chosen profession, no matter how extensive you believe your skill set is. 


The fact that the scope and scale of the information furnished was done with the force of a fire hose did nothing to make it easier to absorb. For someone not recently immersed (literally or figuratively) in such an intensive academic setting, the experience was almost overwhelming. I found myself more than willing to seek the restorative properties of 'checking for cracks in my eyelids' by each days end. The experience also seemed to draw me into a bit of introspection over my own capability to learn new things. The knowledge perhaps that if a slice of me were examined like that of a tree, that counting the rings might prove a time consuming task, that there are perhaps fewer days ahead of me in my career than behind me, and that many of those I shared this experience with were far younger may have contributed to the trepidation I felt. The realization that so many of my companions were at the top of their game might also have had something to do with the lingering uneasiness that I felt. And then there was that old adage clamoring for attention:

"You can't teach an old dog new tricks."

Of course the fact that I can only be considered youthful when counting in reverse dog years might be at the root of such anxiety. Nevertheless, I find that I am far from prepared to be put out to pasture. Indeed, this might be especially difficult for someone like myself, who has far too often measured success as a function of business rather than personal life. I am likewise arrogant enough to believe that I still have something to contribute. 


I am therefore loathe to think that I am capable of letting down those who have placed their trust in me with this new opportunity. I will not embarrass them by offering gratitude for it, nor subject them to humiliation or 'guilt by association' by mentioning them by name here. I would be less than honest however, if I did not admit to a degree of apprehension at potentially failing to learn not only the technical aspects of this new position required, but the different sales responsibilities that this new position entails. 


I am informed that the next session of training, which begins in about ten days, will prove to be a potentially even more detailed and intensive experience. Let us hope for the sake of all involved, that this bit of 'fortune cookie' wisdom therefore proves itself specious; and that I will be neither a disappointment to those counting on me to disprove the accuracy of this proverb or to myself.

Salesmen

I am posting a bit later than usual, but my schedule is also a bit more confusing of late and doesn't promise to get better soon. In fact, I will be leaving the country next week (no, not at the request of the government, nor just ahead of their hot pursuit). I will endeavor to keep up my efforts and if you are lucky, I may include some pictures from warmer parts of the world. Meanwhile, please accept my apologies for the delay, as well as for the effort. I have been disconnected from the target-rich environment that is Toledo, and have had little time for editing (something that my writing requires a great deal of). These days, it seems that I am often confronted by representatives of organizations that seem to think that my life would be much more fulfilled if I purchased something from them. (I suspect that it is their own lives that they are more concerned about, but never mind that.) Now having been in sales and marketing for most of what has laughingly been called my career, I can't help but be amused and disappointed by most of this. Amused, because their efforts and and motives are so transparent. Disappointed because these same efforts do not serve what I consider to be a noble purpose.Yes, you heard that right. Selling can be a noble calling and the effort can be fulfilling when it is done properly. In order to determine what that purpose is, let's define the two types of salespeople.

1. Peddlers: Everything that's bad about selling falls under this category. Every bad story that you've ever heard about selling about used cars, home siding, or vacuum cleaners can be laid at the feet of this group individuals. These are the fast-talking, fast-moving types that have a prepared script that that they need to get out before you close the door or hang up the phone on them. They don't care if you really need the product, want to buy it, or can even afford it. Their goal is to scare and confuse you into the purchase of a product before you can take the time to properly think things through. It is their job to "ask for a close" (get the order) at every opportunity and not to let go of you until they make the sale. The fear is that if you get out of their sight or the sound of their voice, reason and logic might take hold and you would delay or even refuse purchase of their goods or services. They are gnats and mosquitoes whose persistent buzzing drives most to a form of madness that unfortunately often ends with your name on a contract. Once the sale has been made and money is exchanged, you will never see them again (which may be the reason that many of us sign). They collect their commission and are off to buzz around their next potential victim.
2. Salespeople: These are the people who understand that true selling involves no selling at all. It consists entirely of learning all that you can about a potential customer and the way that they do what they do, explaining the potentials of your own organization along the way. If the fit is a good one, your job then becomes removing anything that would get in the way of that customer buying something from you. The task is not to convince anyone to do anything, but instead to allow them to make an informed decision which is good for their organization. When a sale comes (if it does), the relationship doesn't end; but in fact truly begins, and a partnership is born. Now partnerships like the one formed in this way are bound to present challenges as the process goes along. Those challenges can be faced and dealt with early in the game, more painfully as time goes on, or with anger, frustration, and misery if left to fester until the end of a project. The salesperson 's job is therefore to see that they are identified and resolved as quickly as possible, and to everyone's satisfaction. Additionally, the true salesperson realizes that they have become their customer's advocate with their own company, fighting as hard to make the deal right for their customer after the order as they fought to get the order in the first place. Is there money to be made in this process, of course. Anyone in sales that tells you that they are not a "greedy bastard" is either lying or a fool. This is not the primary motivation for the sales person in the process though. The real reason for the true salesperson is to compete (and hopefully to win), but always to see the job done right. The money is the simply only way that anyone can keep score. (The fact that scoring well can significantly affect the lifestyle of the seller means nothing ... yeah right.)

So take this as fair warning, both those of you are companies building a sales and marketing department and those of you out there with your order books in hand. Many of us out here are forewarned as to your methods and tricks. Attempt to work your wiles on us and we will treat you like the illegitimate, red-haired, stepchild that you deserve to be (no offense to any of those groups intended). Treat us with respect and you might have a chance. If you want to do business with us, learn who we are, learn about what we do, and learn what serves the interest of the people who pay our salaries. Don't try to impress us with a free lunch or a shirt, impress us with being there when we need you. Your livelihood will ultimately depend on it.