Mack Powers

One of the key aspects of success in sales is for the sales professional to build a professional and credible rapport with his prospect quickly when he meets with him.  This not only applies to a first meeting with a client but also for subsequent follow up meetings after the first call.  Anyone can build rapport quickly and establish a framework for success in selling.  However doing so requires some hard work and effort.  Have you thought much about how you will compete more effectively as a salesperson?  Have you considered the role of doing some hard work before meeting with your prospect?  When I was 19 years of age I had a job as a door to door salesperson and we called this pre-approach.  Pre-approach was learning as much about the customer before you knocked on their door so that you could anticipate their needs and position the product most effectively based upon what you already knew about them.  It seems so obvious that everyone would take this approach in selling, but you would be surprised how many sales “professionals” do not do their homework before their first meeting with their client.  See what Jeff Thull says about this subject in his book Mastering the Complex Sale:

“Successful salespeople take the time to prepare for the initial conversation with potential customers.  They construct external and internal profiles of the customer’s organization and ensure that those profiles match the profile of the ideal customer.  They identify the driving forces and perspectives at work in the customer’s organization and become familiar with the customer’s goals.  By completing this work, sales professionals lay the groundwork for a successful initial conversation.  They create a basis for engagement that enables them to speak with customers using the customer’s language, frame the initial conversation around issues of importance to their customers, and build a perception of professionalism in the customer’s mind that clearly differentiates them from their competition”.

Consider the following before your first meeting with a prospect:

• 1. What is the purchasing environment regarding the company that I am selling to?
• 2. What are the drivers for the decision maker/s that I will be talking with: quality, price, delivery, technical support during the sales process, all of the above?
• 3. How many decision makers will be involved in the purchasing process?
• 4. Who make the final decision about the solution being presented?
• 5. What language does my client use to describe their needs?
• 6. Will I need to bring in other members of my sales team to construct a solution for my client?

These are but a few of the many questions that you can ask yourself regarding how to build credible and professional rapport quickly with your prospect.  Doing this is a must in today’s competitive selling environment. Answer these questions before you meet with your next 10 prospects.  Measure your results during the sales cycle.  Let me know how your sales increase!  mack@mackpowers.com

Happy Selling!

I think that it would be fair to say that many sales people, and business people for that matter, are stressed out due to the tough economic conditions that we face.  I have a simple question… would you rather purchase from a stressed out and nervous salesperson or a relaxed and confident salesperson?  If you are the sales person, where do you place yourself on the spectrum?  Are you relaxed or are you stressed out. 

Last week I presented five breakout sessions to a group of Texas state employees on the subject of stress management.  Here are two of the five practical ideas that I presented to them on stress management.  I borrowed several of the ideas from Dale Carnegie’s book How to Stop worrying and Start Living:

1. Identify what you are worrying about
   1. Figure out the worst case scenario
   2. Accept the worst case scenario
   3. Work diligently and calmly to improve upon the worst case scenario that you have already accepted
2. Solve and Decide
   1. Write down what I am worrying about.
   2. Write down what I can do about it.
   3. Decide what to do.
   4. Start immediately to carry out the decision.

Try these out.  A relaxed salesperson will sell more any day, guaranteed!  Here’s to a happy and relaxed selling environment.

Banks have TARP (Troubled Asset Relief Program).  Insurance Companies are now going to receive TARP funds. The Automotive Industry has received $ 17.4 Billion in government loans to survive the economic downturn, and they are asking for another $ 22 Billion.  As a sales person, do you have a troubled asset (pipeline)?  If so, who is going to bail you out?  The answer is, and should always be, nobody but you!

Are you sitting down? There will be no redeployed tax dollars coming your way!  Every sales person has to see himself as his own Department of the Treasury. Somehow you will have to bail yourself out!  TARP for you isn’t the Troubled Assets Relief Program.  For you, TARP means… Taking Additional Responsibility (for your) Pipeline.  It will take additional blood, sweat, and tears to get your greatest sales “asset”, your pipeline, back in shape.  For you, your income statement and your balance sheet is based upon the quality of your pipeline,and when it suffers, your sales revenues suffer. 

 There are three attitudes that you should have, knowing that you are going to have to TARP - Take Additional Responsibility (for your) Pipeline.  Here they are:

1. Today you might be looking at a (TARP) Trashed And Reduced Pipeline.  Don’t dwell on this problem.  Acknowledge the problem and then get over it.  You might consider sitting down with a notebook and writing down every reason that you are upset about your current situation.  After having done that, then TARP - Turn And Retire (the) Page.  Then, don’t look back.
2. Build a plan, using TARP. Think about the new competitive landscape; Analyze what your new value proposition will look like, Redefine what your new ideal customer will look like,  and Position your solutions competitively.
3. Execute a TARP.  Test your plan, Adjust when necessary, Refocus on new objectives based upon what you learn as you roll out your new strategies, and Propagate (get the message out).

 Taking responsibility and following these rules will allow you to achieve the goals and success that you can.

The week before last a friend called me and asked me to meet him for a free breakfast at Denny’s. Denny’s was offering a free breakfast for anyone who would show up between 6:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. that day. We arranged a time to meet but he got there before I did. He called my cell phone and notified me that there was a long line at Denny’s; the promotion was a smashing success. Time is money and therefore we decided not to wait. We both agreed to forgo the “free” breakfast and we headed over to the International House of Pancakes (IHOP) which was about one mile away.

You won’t believe what was going on at IHOP… The place was packed. You might be thinking so what Powers, get to the point. If you are, here’s the point. Your company might also benefit from the marketing efforts that your competition is generating during this economic recession! All hope is not lost after all. In fact, there might be some great upside for you while others are getting desperate (no offense Denny’s). My friend and I probably wouldn’t have had breakfast together except for the offer that Denny’s was advertising. It got me out of bed and on the road vs. out of bed and eating a banana and a bowl of captain crunch at my house. Who benefited from Denny’s breakfast campaign….. Denny’s did, I did…. and so did IHOP.

So keep your spirits up and consider these few items to generate more sales:

• Stand close to the Hype. Okay, start thinking about what your competition is doing that might get people moving. How can you position yourself so that you catch the people that start moving towards your competition but might end up with you because you have a similar solution? Stand close and be ready to make an offer.
• Leverage the Hype. Keep an eye on what others are doing and be ready to respond. IHOP didn’t spend a dollar getting me on the street looking for food, but they were ready when I walked in the door. With what looked like a supersized crowd at IHOP they weren’t overwhelmed. Our food came out fresh, hot, on time and the service was also great. They hit a grand slam (pun intended) by leveraging the Hype of Denny’s marketing.
• Link up with the Hype. Consider a joint marketing campaign with your competition. No Way. Yes way. Why not? Haven’t you heard the old idiom that you don’t want to be the only restaurant on the street corner? If there are several restaurants on the corner, generally the traffic to your restaurant will be higher. You might not get all of the business, but you might get more of a larger volume of potential customers. Look for and propose a complementary sales and marketing strategy that might work for both you and your completion. You both might win. By the way, IHOP owes Denny’s one for their “Grand Slam Breakfast offer”.

It is a difficult economy that you can still profit from. Stand close, leverage or link up with your competition. Doing so will keep you profitable during this difficult economic environment.