Tuesday, October 27, 2009

I'll Take the Wheat...And Hold the Chaff Please

You always knew why you were asking someone "out," or why you accepted an invitation, when you were a kid. The reasons changed over the years but without fail, it always had something to do with wanting to spend at least an hour or two with the other person, for one reason or another. Not so in business.

Business lunches are a real gamble. The inviter has a reason to ask for the date. That reason involves an opportunity for him, in a "captive" environment, to push his agenda. In the best scenario for the invitee, the agenda involves helping the guest to more than a good meal and a few hours "away from the office." In that case the "host" (let's call him a "Seller") believes the social setting will allow him the time to make the "guest" (let's call him a "Buyer") comfortable with the notion that he is genuinely interested in helping him further his interests with the product or service that the Seller represents.

An hour or more at a restaurant provides all the time in the world for the Buyer to determine if he's ordered the "Wheat" by accepting the invitation, or gotten the Chaff. It's only Tuesday and I'm one for two.

The differences between the two engagements were somewhat predictable. The tasty lunch was with a professional acquaintance I've known for quite some time, done some business with over the years, and never had the occasion to look back after a transaction and question his intelligence, veracity, motives or ethics. I trust him; if not with my children, certainly with my parakeet. We spent the time at lunch with him posing questions and me responding; about my needs, about my business, about my conclusions about my business, in answer to his "yes, but what about?" challenges to my conclusions. In short, the meeting was about me. The conversation was provocative and helpful.

It was a delicious meal. I'm looking forward to the next. No---my host never got around to his agenda unless it was to use this date to mine for information to form one for a later meeting. I'll hear from him again, if that's the case, but chances are that I will call him before he gets back to me. He can be helpful.

The other host was also very smart and gregarious. I learned alot about his life and career path, he learned little about me and I didn't need the service he offered, nonetheless.

Wanna have lunch?

Great Selling!
Serve Don't Sell
Love Your Work and Work Tirelessly
Communicate Honestly and Fearlessly
Collapse Time
Teamwork

Friday, October 23, 2009

No, It's Not Your Client, It's Ours!

Most sales guys, not you of course, experience a good deal of anxiety every time their manager says, "Take it to the Client, you'll never get anywhere with the Buyer." That's because one of the unspoken learnings of advertising sales is that a "good relationship" with ad agency buyers, all but assures one of a more than decent living and a nice work environment that includes lunches and golf outings, all "on the company." Not that there's anything wrong with that. And that is, by and large, the career life of the average sales executive; Good relationships borne of a memory for wedding anniversary dates and childrens' birth dates, twice a season golf days and quarterly if not monthly lunches. So when the manager says, "forget the Buyer" (substitute your own familiar directive), the average sales guy says "Great idea Boss" and immediately heads for his desk drawer with the Maalox.

The more subtle cause of the angst is that the visit to a client will be like taking a knife to a gunfight, in the fantasy world of the average seller. ("I know all about CPP's, Ratings and can hold my own with respect to the strengths and weaknesses of competition within and without my media sector, but that client guy is going to want to talk about marketing and stuff, Jeez").

But again, the top of consciousness concern of the Seller is , "this will really piss my Buyer off, and destroy all the hard work I've done to develop a good relationship which mostly gets me my fair share of all his/her buys."

Hey, relax, remember, we're not talking about you. We're talking about the common, average seller.

Now the concern regarding the Buyer's feelings are well placed. After all, this is the Agency's Client, isn't it? Uh, Not Really. Not in my world anyway. Both you and your Buyer are in the business of helping the Client further his business interests. In fact, if the truth be known, the Client has no shot at building his business without you and your other media channel "friends," but if he had to, he could "stumble" along without an agency. However, because the transaction world's practice is for you to bill and and collect from the agency, you understandably mistake it, the Agency, for your client. In truth the Clients' best interests are met if you and the Agency partner are treating them as your mutual beneficiaries, your shared Clients, whose interests you work together toward meeting.


So, if you effectively and honestly communicate to the Buyer, that your only interest is to serve both him and your mutual Client and to help each of them be more successful, and that you would love to have him join you in a brainstorming session with the Client, or in the alternative, if he's unavailable, will make sure to keep him in the loop on all Client interactions--he'd have to be a real (insert your pejorative here) to object.

No?

Great Selling!


Love Your Work and Work Tirelessly
Communicate Honestly and Fearlessly
Collapse Time
Teamwork

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Great Buyers Go Too!

Great Sellers go to heaven because they spend their careers focused on, and therefore helping, everyone with whom they come in contact. They are other-directed and understand that by expending their energy and activity in the service of others, good things will come their way as incidental, but inevitable results of that behavior.

Yesterday, I spent several hours with a top advertising agency executive..a very influential digital media expert. I visited with him because I wanted him to meet some people who represented outstanding advertising supported media vehicles, and knew from prior experience, that this exec would appreciate learning in the one case about a new product, and learning more about the other with which he already had substantial familiarity.

In the ninety minutes consumed by the two meetings, between Seller(s) and Buyer, dozens of questions, answers and goals flew back and forth. Many of the questions came from Sean (the executive/Buyer). When he found something particulary interesting he made a note of which of his clients, or subordinates would benefit from hearing about it. And he collaborated with the two Sellers about how they could be of service to his agency colleagues and clients. The meetings ended when Sean was sure he learned everything new to him about each product, and he orchestrated the next steps, which in this case included making sure that his co-workers and these sellers benefitted, as he did, from learning more about each other. Oh yes, nary a mention of CPPs, or CPAs. It was all about servicing Sean's accounts by learning more, and looking for partnership opportunities. So what did we have here? We had Sellers and a "Buyer" each intensely interested in the other guy and his products and goals. Good things will get done. Everyone will benefit, most especially Sean's clients.

And who would you rather bring a great idea to than this "Buyer?"...who coincidentally is off to you know where. (The only difference "there" is that the Buyers pick up the lunch checks for eternity). Hey, everything always balances out over time.

Great Selling!

Love Your Work and Work Tirelessly
Communicate Honestly and Fearlessly
Collapse Time
Teamwork

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

"When Can We Start?"... Who said that?

If it was me, then the client and I hadn't come up with a solution to his problem that involved me and my product or service. In other words, I hadn't sold anything yet. I had failed, so far anyway, to establish my worth.

RatherI was using a shopworn sales technique (trial close) just like any average sales guy, because I hadn't yet successfully sold. So I asked the question and waited for the inevitable "objection" so I could return to objection-answering. This sounds kind of familiar, yes?

Over the years, thankfully, "when can we start?" has much more often been ask of, rather than by me.

An Uncommon Seller skillfully lowers the inherent barrier between himself and the Buyer, so that the Buyer permits him to attempt to help. That's why the Seller made the appointment, prepared for it and showed up. To Help! To Serve! He lowers the barrier by communicating honestly and motivating the Buyer to struggle with him, as true partners, all four sleeves rolled up, empty coffee cups everywhere (25 years ago, filled ashtrays as well) to identify the hurdles to the client's growth, and to innovate solutions. (Get the picture?). That's where the art of selling comes in..to lower the barrier..to get him to let you help. Once that barrier is lowered, "selling" takes a rest and helping and serving take over. That's the remarkable salesman's only goal, to help the client be richer for the experience of the two of them working together. And then the moment comes when this uncommon Seller and his Buyer look up from their legal pads and the Buyer asks..."When can we start?"

Great Selling!

Love Your Work and Work Tirelessly
Communicate Honestly and Fearlessly
Collapse Time
Teamwork

Saturday, October 17, 2009

Great Negotiators Give the Other Guy What He Needs...and NOTHING MORE

The conventional wisdom of Win-Win as the desired result of a negotiation, doesn't mean both parties "share and share alike." Each party to a negotiation has a threshold that needs to be met for there to be any point in doing the deal. If that threshold gets met (that bare minimum) it's a "win." More than that, is a "wow."

Well then, you want to be the party who provides the "win" and gets the "wow."

The uncommonly successful negotiator spends little to no time trying to make a case for the value of his contribution to the deal. He assumes with confidence that the guy across the table appreciates his value, or there would have been no meeting to begin with. Our guy expends his energy probing for his counterpart's threshold.

"What are you trying to accomplish, Mr. Jones and why do you think Sherman Enterprises can help you?"

"What will you need from me, if any thing, after we shake hands, to make this work for you?"

"How and when will you be able to assess the results of our transaction?"

"Where does this deal sit on the priority ladder of your company's issues at this time."

The effort here is to get your potential "partner" to talk, and think, about himself rather than the "price" of the deal. The very process of focusing him on his "need" will reinforce for him why he is in this conversation in the first place and direct his thinking toward a successful conclusion--filling his basic need basket! The overflow becomes yours. He gets what he needed, you get what you needed, AND, the overflow---wow!

Many years ago the executive vice president of a media division of a major communication company called me to "talk about" a high profile management position he needed to fill. "Would I like to talk about it?" "Sure." We met. During the "interview" I spent a lot of time listening to his recitation of his career path and accomplishments. He may not have asked me one question. I was intrigued by his need to impress me. After all, he held the keys to the front door of a pretty high profile position. Mt first thought was, "this guy is letting me know that if we get together on this, he's going to be the boss. Why?"


At some point I asked what he thought the major challenge would be for his new hire. He told me, and off-handedly remarked that Fred (his boss) suggested he reach out to me as a potential "fixer." Translation: Fred "suggested" he check me out. If I wasn't at the command post tent when Fred next visited, this EVP would have failed. His "win" was to have me at the desk. My win was to get the job--but trust me--by learning what his"need" or "win" was, I got the "wow."
It was a nice package.

Great Selling!

Love Your Work and Work Tirelessly
Communicate Honestly and Fearlessly
Collapse Time
Teamwork

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Open Wide! Here Comes the Choo Choo!...or the Art Of Selling and Moms

You don't know a better seller than your mom. First, her major concern has always been for your welfare. She always wanted what's best for you. She's always wanted to help you and until you were a teenager, she was always right as well. Then overnight, she became always wrong. Unfortunately many of the things mom needed to do to help you, met with resistance. You erected a "buyer/seller" wall between you and mom. No baby, or toddler for that matter, likes the taste of mashed green peas. But moms know they are good for you--protein, I think. So she wanted to help you eat healthfully by feeding you green peas and she said--"Open wide, here comes the choo choo." When you did, she shoved the awful stuff down your throat.

Mom skillfully employed the art of selling to help you get the food you need to be healthy. Nurse Ratchit, using the same words would have met with your clenched teeth. Why?
Mom genuinely wanted to help you; you saw that in her smile, you felt it in her warmth. She helped you set aside your distaste for the peas by distracting you with a choo choo game long enough to feed you. You trusted her to care for you because she focused on you and your needs and not on herself. Yes, she used a mild form of trickery. She had to; She had to get you to let her help you. "Help me...help you. H-E-L-P M-E... H-E-L-P YOU!" (Tom Cruise to Cuba Gooding--Jerry McGuire). OPEN WIDE!

Last night I had a Diet Coke with my friend Tom. He just took on a marketing assignment for a new break-through product to identify a heretofore difficult to diagnose disease--Sepsis. Tom was really excited. The job doesn't pay very well (a non-profit foundation is his sponsor) and it will be very challenging to get the word out, he says. But Tom is very excited to have the opportunity to help a lot of people get early treatment which in the case of this medical problem is essential. I know, even if Tom doesn't, that if he is really good at getting the word out (and I'm sure that he will be), everything will take care of itself--economically as well. Someday ask Imus how quickly I tore up his contract after his first "through the roof " rating book.

The more you learn about the art of selling, to help you, help them, the more effective you will be, the more you will lower the buyer/seller barrier, the more people you will help, the better your chances of going...you know where.

Great Selling

Love Your Work and Work Tirelessly
Communicate Honestly and Fearlessy
Collapse Time
Team Work
Service to Others

Monday, October 12, 2009

Provocateur or bust! Be one or be one.

Well you may not be a bust but you might raise your family in Ozone Park, Queens. Hey, I love Queens. I grew up there. I'm just making a point, OK? Management has been sending salesmen out to sell with a Customer Needs Analysis sheet since I was "parking" a Spaldeen with my fist in the P.S. 205 playground. In other words, it's out of date. On a food shelf it might read "expired."

Here's how the CNA goes:

The appointment: "Mr. Jones, I'm Strom Lamone and I'd like to visit with you for a half hour to learn about your business. I AM NOT COMING TO SELL YOU ANYTHING."

The visit: After 100 such approaches, some one says 'yes' and there you are; Across the counter, doing your CNA with somewhere between 3 and 17 interruptions for your prospect's customers.

The Questions (right off the CNA sheet):
1. Is there a predictable selling cycle in your business?
2. What is the demographic of your primary target?
3. How about your secondary target?
4. What is your marketing area?
5. Who are your top competitors?
6. Do you advertise?
7. What media do you use?
8. What is your annual budget for advertising?
9.What do you try to accomplish with your advertising?
10. Gulp..How is it working?

11. If you could name your biggest success hurdle, what would it be?

The 1st Visit Close: Not to "sell" anything as promised, but rather to get a second visit (at which time you will sell your buns off).

"Well Mr. Jones, if I understand you correctly, your biggest probem is blah, blah, blah. I'd like to go back to the office and share your information with our in-house marketing genius, my sales manager, my general manager and Dr. Phil. If we come up with something that could fix your problem, you'd want to hear about it, right? OK then, let's pencil in next Tuesday or Wednesday, morning or afternoon, which is better for you (nice "choice close").

So--Does any of this ring a bell?

Can anyone explain to me the rationale for calling this a consultative sales process? This is an idiotic sales process, immediately setting up the only question this line of questioning evokes from a customer, if he asks one at all--"Very interesting Mr. Lamone. What's the deal of the day?"

Let me suggest a more productive line of questioning;

1. When did you open for business?
2. Has the competitive landscape changed over that period of time?
3. Which of those that compete with you has the strongest brand image?
4. How does the business look side by side with your original business plan?
5. Has the consumer need or want for the type of product or service you offered grown or decreased?
6. How do you know?
7. Is your sales volume growing at an acceptable pace?
8. Why? Why not?
9. What's your brand perception?
10. How do you know?
11. What's the public view of your customer service?
12. How do you know?
13. What is your strongest calling card for your target consumer?
14. How do you know?

I could go on and on with this list...and so can you. And so you should, and do I. The only thing I care about when visiting with prospects is making it clear that I can help them. And I do that by showing a sincere and intense interest in them; their successes and failures. And I don't run out of questions until they start developing their own list. That's because until they start questioning everything about their challenges, they will never meet them. And my job is to provoke them to think, and worry and wonder. And I make it clear that I will be right at their side as they go through that uncomfortable, painful but ultimately rewarding process.

And they will insist that I share the fruits of our labor.

Provocateur: A person who provokes problems; causes dissention and...exceeds their revenue goals month after month and year after year.