Our SalesCoachCentral members’ “My Sales Story” competition is generating some great stories with lessons for us all to learn from to help us win more new, repeat and referral sales.

Congratulations to our winners for this month who were Ross Clennett and Peter Donald.

Here’s the My Sales Story from Ross:

When I was a rookie temp accounting recruiter I took my Director on a prospect visit. It was to a well known freight company, near the Sydney airport, who I had found out were using a lot of accounting clerical temps.

The visit was with the GM of Finance. I prepared my sales structure and answers to predictable objections, hoping to impress my director. However once we were in his office the prospect proceeded to talk (complain, actually) non-stop for an hour about the office politics and his boss.

I barely got a chance to talk and as we had another meeting scheduled we had to leave promptly after an hour.

As we drove off I was rather flat about the meeting expecting my Director be criticise me for allowing the client to run the agenda. Suprisingly he thought the visit went very well. ‘Why?’ I asked. My Director replied “clearly he isn’t being heard inside his own company and needed an outlet to express all his frustration and resentment. We were that outlet today. I bet he feels we understand him and what he has to deal with each day.”

I have to say I was very dubious – I mean we hadn’t even talked about temps! However the next day I received a call from one of the GM’s direct reports saying she had been told to call me about two temp jobs she needed filling! I filled both those jobs and that was the start of a $100k plus net revenue per annum client.

That experience was a big lesson in understanding that until the prospect feels heard and understood all I was doing was ‘pitching to deaf ears’.

My Comment: The old adage of ‘no-one cares how much you know until they know how much you care’ is probably a bit overdone these days, but the reality is too many salespeople still go in with a ‘pitch’ to a potential client and ‘capability sell’, rather than focusing first on what the client might like to achieve from the meeting, and/or what the client might like to talk about.

At the same time, there is an equally large number of salespeople who do not really focus on the client and choose to ‘fluff’ around with small talk, when what the client actually wants to do is find out more about the products and services that the salesperson can provide.

If we’re truly client focused, we can work out fairly quickly how much talking and listening we need to do to create an environment where the client is comfortable and confident to make a wise buying decision.

Here’s the My Sales Story from Peter:

I was referred to a young couple by a principal of the firm. They were in a difficult financial position. Following the loss of his Dad his mother found it diffucult to meet the home loan left behind ( no insurance ). She offered her son a 25% share in her home if he would take over the debt, which he did. He then married and together they bought an investment unit in 3 names using the equity in Mums house.

They also had some personal debt for cars etc. All this caused stress on the relationships to meet payments and rent. I was able to reorganise their strucure after 3 home visits one of which I arranged they get Mum to attend on a weekend.

The end result was they reduced the no taxable debt quickly and allowed cash flow to relieve the stress. After another year of regular follow up they purchased a home using her mothers assistance. Late last year they had their first child. I also referred them to our Insuracne advisor who arrange appropriate covers for both of them to protect their child.

So referral, follow up and further follow up resulted in a succes story for all. We also now do their tax returns.

My Comment:  I love the way Peter points out that the result was a ’success story for all’.  Selling should never just be about the success of the sale.  The most successful salespeople I encounter are those who’s intention is to create value for their clients.  Their focus is to look for opportunities where their products and services can help people solve problems, meet needs and satisfy wants.

When clients pick up on our intention as being that of genuinely wanting to create value for them, trust is built and deeper emotional and intellectual connections are made.

More stories from members of SalesCoachCentral next month.

My affirmation for this week focuses on one of the key skills of selling and communicating…..being a great listener.

One of my mentors for many years has been Ron Willingham who wrote the program ‘Integrity Selling’.  Ron says that we can actually “listen people into buying”….that’s pretty neat I reckon.

But what does it take to be a really good listener?

It starts with our attitude and a simple affirmation like the one for this week – “I am a great listener.  This week I will listen to what people have to say.”

I often hear people saying to me that they have difficulty remembering names.  Have you ever been at a networking event and being introduced to someone and within seconds you have already forgotten their name?

Much of that has to do with an attitude.  Here’s a good tip – next time you’re going to a party, or a networking event, or whatever, and there’s a good chance you’re going to meet new people…..start with the attitude and affirmation “I’m going to really listen when I meet people and I will remember their names.”

Let me know how you go!

When Ron Willingham says we can listen people into buying, we need to complete the rest of the story to ensure it can result in a sale.

Our affirmation for this week is I am a great listener.  This week I will listen to what people have to say.  However, for people to be saying something for us to be able to practice our listening skills, we therefore need to remember that it is in the power of our questions that mirrors our value.

So the plan for this week – be a better listener than you were last week.  Ask better questions than you did last week….or at least, really focus in on your questions, the reasons you’re asking them (what value are your questions to your clients) and then where appropriate take written or at very least mental notes of what your clients say.

One final tip is to listen for the insignificant things that clients say in response to your answers.  It’s the things that clients say that might not seem significant to you at the time, but that if we make note of them….really hear what they’re saying, we might just learn some important things going on in their lives that we can appropriately use to demonstrate even more value and validate our true purpose of building trust relationships with our clients.

For example, a client might mention their teenage son is about to graduate…make a note of that and perhaps you could send their son a congratulations card.

This week become a leader of listening.

From Hazel who is a Sales Representative for a Dental Supply Company:

One last call!! One hot sunny day on the road in one of the most beautiful locations in New Zealand, I was struggling with getting through my day, the car is like a sauna and all I wanted was to go back to my lovely air conditioned Hotel and put my feet up.

I have always had this motto “one more call” which means for me to do 1 more call a day that I will not normally do.

This particular day I was almost ready to drive straight past this dental practice and leave it until next month. But…. I pushed myself to do “one more call”.

I walked out with a $1500 dollar sales in approximately 5 minutes.

I suppose the motto of my story or the relevance behind it, is that if you push yourself that extra mile (which isn’t hard ) the benefits are wonderful and the fulfilment you feel as a sales representative is sensational.

My comment:

I love the motto “one more call” as it can be applied to so many aspects of our sales career and life in general.  Just to go that little bit extra, give a little more value, spend a little while longer, ask that bigger question, try that new idea, dare to be different.

From Debra who is a Recruitment Consultant:

A client called complaining of the lack of experienced staff available in Bendigo (regional city in country Victoria).

He wanted an experienced property manager with specific computer skills and expertise to fill a 4 week gap before a new person who had been hired full time started.

He had tried local papers and agencies without success. After explaining that we don’t have temps in that area – 2 hours from Melbourne – I’d put on my thinking cap for him. I later called and asked whether he would consider providing accommodation as I thought we had a temp who would travel to Bendigo if he had somewhere to stay.

Yes the client liked the idea and our temp started the following day spending 3 nights per week in Bendigo for the next month.

This experience reinforced that sometimes to get the sale it’s thinking outside the square to solve the clients need.

My comment:

When we ask the question… “What else might I do to create value for this client?” it takes us to the edge of mediocrity and allows us to see what others may not see.  Maybe we find a neat new solution to a problem for the client like Debra did.  Maybe we discover something that we had not thought of at first.  Maybe we help the client discover a bigger reason to want to do business with us, rather than someone else who is still thinking inside their square.

Are you a member of SalesCoachCentral yet?  Learn more here!

This is a fascinating discussion on a blog I recently visited. I highly recommend you check it out here…

For my part, most, not all, but most of the time, I believe 100% commission based sales is for entrepreneurs who are looking to build and or run their own business. All the risk and ‘skin in the game’ is with the entrepreneur/business owner…..who is also the salesperson.

That’s what my own business model is….and it’s pretty motivating!

But when you’re an employee salesperson……I’m wondering where the ‘shared risk’ is if a business owner, sales manager, or HR manager decides that they only want to remunerate the salesperson with 100% commission based sales.

Now, I’m not saying that you shouldn’t pay by 100% commission. What I am saying is you need to understand the potential consequence of that.

For many salespeople if the biggest issue they’re thinking about all of the time is how can they pay their basic bills (food, mortgage/rent, utilities and getting from a to b) then they’re probably not focusing on how they can create value for prospects and existing clients when they sell what they sell.

Sure……you might increase their ‘hunger’ for the sale…..but at what cost?

On the other hand, if you pay a ‘wage’ that is easily covering the ‘basics’ for the salesperson, and there is no consequence for under-performance, then this too just breads apathetic salespeople.

I found the comments by the many contributors to the blog great reading……I hope you do too……you can check it out here if you haven’t already and would value your thoughts here on this blog as well.

Ambitious:  The article talked about a balance between ambition and arrogance.  In the majority of highly effective sales leaders and the most successful sales professionals I have met, interviewed or coached, I have seen an air of “humble arrogance”.  Their enthusiasm or ambition to work with their prospects and clients is balanced by this incredible belief that they have in the value they can create for their clients when they sell what they sell.

Decisive: The article talks about the confidence to take action on an operational, tactical and strategic level.  In sales, these three levels also require confidence and decisive action.  At a strategic selling level it’s about charting the types of long term outcomes, relationships, and value propositions.  At the tactical level it’s about clearly defining the sales and marketing activities required for success.  And at the operational level, it’s about completing the sales and marketing activities.  The decision for sales leaders and sales professionals on whether their operational level sales and marketing activities are aligned with the intended tactical strategies that will achieve the longer term success that has been defined.

Brave: The article talks about being able to stand up and be counted.  For sales leaders and sales professionals, today more than ever, the ability to be able to step up and into their value and never having to defend it not only takes bravery, but also a clear understanding and belief in what their value propositions (plural) are.

Empowering: In the article it highlights the importance of being able to empower others.  In sales, sales leaders need to empower their sales people – trust them – support them.  Sales professionals also need to be able to empower their customers – help their customers feel empowered, comfortable and confident to make a wise buying decision.

Entrepreneurial: In the article, the young leaders look outside to see what’s going on in the marketplace.  In sales, probably more than any other discipline, knowing what’s happening in your own marketplace, and also watching and learning from what’s happening outside of your own marketplace builds creative opportunities and ideas to compete in ways and differentiate in ways other than from your products and services.

Visionary: Young leaders step outside the box.  O.K., this is probably an overused cliché, but the reality is, constantly looking at their market place, their clients, their prospects, and how they can create value above and beyond what their products and services do, is what separates the great sales leaders and sales professionals who are still living in the eighties and nineties and selling products and services.  People don’t buy products and services – they buy what the products and services will do for them…..and most importantly, customers today (business to business and business to consumer) are buying the ‘buying experience’ as well.  Visionary sales leaders and sales professionals are constantly working on creating better and more valuable buying experiences and have long left the more traditional product and service sale.

So there you have it……as a sales leader or sales professional, how do you stack up against the DNA of young leaders?