MONEY 75 - SALES REVISITED

THIS IS MY 75^TH BLOG ON UNDERSTANDING MONEY TOOLS

To me, sales are such an important part of marketing that I thought I would write another blog on the topic. Marketing is the broad category that encompasses sales. To give an illustration of the spectrum of marketing it also includes advertising, technology, sales environment, displays, forecasting, product demand, and research.  Some people refer to marketing as the 4 P’s; product, price, place and promotion. Most of these elements still deal with people to some degree.  I say “still” as more and more companies are finding ways around the human being and using technology as a replacement.

Every day you and I are exposed to people representing companies that are selling products or services. In most cases I witness such poor salesmanship and shake my head in wonder as to “why”.  Most companies emphasize product, product knowledge and pricing, however they get an “F” when it comes to training of direct sales.

Many companies have gone to call-centers, these people are representatives selling a service for a particular company.  Some do a pretty good job, especially with politeness, if you can understand their use of English! I guess you can request an American-speaking representative. The corporate attitude seems to be “just don’t offend the customer”.  This is not sales.

Let’s backtrack. I think salesmanship has hit the skids along with reading, writing and arithmetic in schools. Technology has erased the perceived importance of direct selling in the business world. With on-line retail sales hitting an excess of 30% of all sales and increasing I don’t believe companies are going to increase expenditures to improve sales training in the future. The attitude is if the product is superior and the price is competitive, who needs a salesman. No salespeople, no training. The latest that came past me this week was banks starting to replace human beings in human resources with robots doing the interview process for employment. There goes the “human” from “human resources”!

Human beings make life fun and interesting for me both in my personal and corporate world.  With that said, I will address human sales tools in this blog.  There are many studies that show that when people shop there is an order to what they want. Surprisingly “fun” comes in first, many department stores like Target know this and it is part of their training. Then, comes product quality, pricing and salesperson’s knowledge of product and professionalism.  In the sales process/environment, but not directly related, is safety. You can’t forget the lawyers and possible liability lawsuits!

In our last blog we directed our attention to right and left brain thinking. This analysis for the sales presentation is all-important. You need to amend your sales delivery to each particular person, and adjust the tempo of your delivery.

I see many companies that try to sell products using the same style they did 40 years ago, and they wonder why they can’t do better.  For the most part we are now aiming sales at the millenials, ages 22-38, the movers and shakers with money and credit cards.  The salespeople need to be trained. What is expected of salespeople through the eyes of customers?,  You are selling to people, they are the buyers, they are the ones that make or break your bottom line, so companies better get this.

We have mentioned several times in past blogs relationship building between buyer and seller. This can be with an expensive item or a Starbuck’s coffee. Why do I go back to my Starbucks?  I have a relationship for about 20 seconds, at most, with the person behind the counter.  I either relate or not, I can buy an equal or better cup of coffee elsewhere, but I buy from the same 3 people most mornings because I like them. We communicate and connect quickly, and then the day moves on. Starbucks knows from their surveys why people buy from them. The good, friendly, fun service in a clean environment is foremost.

Let’s move on to more expensive sales. I do a lot of work with the national, large home-builders. They have been building the same basic home since WWII. Some have become a bit smarter researching and learning what  younger people want in home design and from sales agents, others don’t get it.  Most require their salespeople to know corporate policy, but never put their people in “really great” sales training, and yet this is where the sale of the new home comes from. Most of these companies have dress codes that are obsolete and the younger generation accepts it, but doesn’t relate. I recently went to one new home subdivision and there was a very attractive young lady who should have some spark but did not. She wore a matronly frumpy dress, no smile, no great welcome, etc. etc. You get the point. The first impression in the first 5-10 seconds is all-important. Sales managers today are young, poorly trained in people skills and not “people persons”. They mainly care about performance, bottom line numbers and don’t teach sales techniques. They do know technology. Get with it. You are selling to younger people with money. They dress in designer jeans, loafers, “T” shirts, and sandals. Get used to the tattoos!

Bottom line, if you want to do well in sales, be different from the norm today, learn people skills and have the customer remember you, and request you above others when doing business. You will make more money and the company will make more money, possibly helping you keep your job.