Making Lists II

 

A recent article in the New Yorker magazine by Atul Gawande, a surgeon/philosopher (who recently wrote "Being Mortal", a book I highly recommend), discussed the necessity of check lists in certain, if not all professions.  The most obvious profession that uses check lists is airline pilots.  There are so many details for a pilot to be aware of that a check list is the only way to be certain that you've done everything.  The consequences of missing something are quite severe.
The other profession in need of check lists, but who has not yet adopted it universally, is the medical profession.  (Did I leave the sponge in, or take it out?)   Those hospitals that have adopted check lists have had infections reduced more than 80%!
So why not use check lists in sales?  Or in the service business?
A check list could be a list of your 10 most important customers--a list you look at every day, asking yourself if you've done everything you can to get and keep their business.
A check list could be of list of the most important features of your product--did you discuss each of these features with the customer?
Do not depend on memory.  Do not depend on habit.  Depending on your memory can kill airline passengers; kill patients;  and kill sales.  Make a check list and check off the box as you complete the item.  Whatever your profession.

Making a List and Checking it Twice -- even three or four times!

There is one tried and true way to reduce stress: lists.  At the end of the work day, make a list of what you want to accomplish tomorrow.  Review the list throughout the day.  Psychologists have proven that lists reduce stress.  The danger with lists of things to do is that they become too long.  The list should be what absolutely has to get done that day.  Five items is great; ten items is the maximum.

When a salesperson is making a call on a customer, the effective salesperson makes a list of the customer's needs.  The salesperson listens before talking.  Asks questions, and makes a list.  What does he need to do to get this customer's business?  Always listening; always asking questions; always making notes to turn into a todo list.

What is a salesperson NEVER doing in the presence of a customer?  Looking at his cellphone.  If there is a mortal sin of sales, it is that.  Pay absolute attention to the customer and his needs; make a list of what you need to do to capture this customer's business; and then DO IT.  Just do it.

Urgency: Without Sales, Everything Stops

Customers don't want to wait.  When they need one of your products or services, they typically need it right away.  The salesperson's job is to understand that urgency.  The longer the customer waits for you to get back to them, or provide them with the information they need, the more likely that the order will be lost to the salesperson who recognizes the urgency.
Understanding a customer means understanding the customer's needs.  The need may be a quotation so that the product can be budgeted.  The need may be a drawing or specification so that the engineer can spec your product into the project.
Everyone reports to someone up the chain of command.  It's important for the sales rep to understand that when someone asks you for something, it's because someone up the ladder wants the information--urgently.  Without the quote, without the specifications, without the lead time information, the order gets lost to someone who recognizes the urgency.
In this time of supply chain delays, it's up to the sales rep to stay in touch with the customer--to keep the customer informed about the timing for whatever their current needs are.
The corollary to Urgency is Communication.  Remember, again, everyone answers to someone up the corporate ladder.  The more you communicate with your customer, the better the your contact looks to the bosses.
The underlying principle that will allow you to stay in communication with your customer, is to make follow-up lists.  I have written a couple of blogs about making lists.  The links are here.  
Also, I highly recommend sales guru Brian G. Burns' YouTube channel "The Brutal Truth".  The link to his videos is here.  Brian can also be found on LinkedIn.
Remember, if you don't understand the urgency of the sales environment, someone else will. Losing an order or a customer to someone who recognizes the customer's needs is an unnecessary way to lose--a customer or an order.

 

The One Essential Trait of a Great Salesperson

 

I have written at length about the things a good salesperson must do to remain at the top of their game: making lists, constantly improving product knowledge, being excited about what you're selling, and on and on.  But perfecting all of these traits will not make anyone a great salesperson.  
Before getting into sales, I was a teacher.  And, as a teacher, I believed one thing absolutely: if a student didn't understand what I was explaining, it was NOT the student's fault.  It was mine.  I always marveled at the teacher who blamed the students for not understanding the subject matter they were teaching.  
All while I was teaching, I was watching the students' eyes.  If I saw blankness, I knew I was on the wrong track and needed to change direction.
A great salesperson gets into the shoes of their customers--literally.  A great salesperson is not "pushing their product".  A great salesperson is ultimately a teacher trying to understand the needs of the student (the "customer") and only then working with the customer to make sure the product solves the problem. 
The route to greatness is to really understand your customer.  You are the teacher, they are the student.  And if your "pitch" elicits blank stares, you are going down the wrong road and need to evaluate yourself.  You have a product and you need to be able to explain how it benefits them.  And if they don't believe it benefits them (if the stares remain blank), then blame yourself and fix the pitch or move on.
A few years ago, I was tutoring a young man for his High School Equivalency test.  He was struggling with math, but loved go-cart racing.  So I started from that position: "you have a one mile track, your go-cart goes 10 miles per hour.  How long will it take to go 1 mile."  He answered in seconds.  And, as we changed the track length and the speed of the go-cart, each time he computed the answer instantly.  I got into his shoes and he succeeded.
So, you're dealing with a Facility Manager of a manufacturing plant. What are his issues?  How can you help solve these issues?  
You've heard this before: "don't sell products, sell solutions".  But you can't sell solutions if you don't know what the problems that your customer is facing.  
So, now change the scope of your list: who is my customer; what does he do in the company; what are his issues; what are the company's problems; how can my product help them.  Get to deeply understand your customer, like understanding the young man who didn't think he understood math, but did, in fact, when it was related to go-cart racing.  
This need to know your customer is required no matter what you're selling.  Homeowner says "I need a new refrigerator."  How you respond is critical.  "What is it you like about your current fridge?" "What things would you like in a new one?"  And the response tells you everything: "Oh, I want the freezer drawer on the bottom and I want double doors and I want it counter deep".  Now you're getting somewhere and your customer appreciates your concern.
You're selling oil water separators and the plant manager has a problem with equipment leaking oil.  You need to get into the plant and understand the problem, and only then can you recommend a solution. Does the separator need to manage the whole facility, or can it be placed close to the leaking equipment?  Can one large separator solve the problem, or a few smaller ones which are easier to install and may be less expensive?
I'm familiar with a company that manufactures a product that measures the permeability of packaging materials.  This is a very sophisticated, technical sale. There is absolutely no way to sell this product without understand how important packaging is to particular customers.  Potential customers may be more or less interested in the permeability of their packaging. And who in the company is responsible for testing packaging permeability?  So many questions that the salesperson must answer before even talking to the customer for the first time.
Get into your customer's shoes.  Be empathetic to their problems. Make sure you're talking to the right person.
And only then can you propose a solution.
The salesperson who sits in an office and never visits the customer will never understand (read "empathize") their needs or the urgency of their requests.
Real sales is "eyeball to eyeball": looking into your customer's eyes, recognizing their needs and then, and only then, proposing a solution.  The questions are: how can you save the customer money and how can you solve the particular problem the customer has?

A self-absorbed salesperson is an oxymoron.  A self-absorbed salesperson cannot succeed.  A great salesperson must put the customer first, not the sale.  
The importance of empathy for the online salesperson will be the subject of my next post.

BURIED!!! Using To Do Lists to manage tasks

It seems absolutely impossible to keep up with it all.  Family demands, company demands, customer demands--how to keep it all under control is a huge issue today.  And, despite having dozens of things to remember, if you forget ONE thing, that's what everyone gets mad at you for.  But there's no excuse for forgetting anything these days.
So I'm going to tell you what I do.  First thing is that I always have a notebook.  And all my notebooks have integrated pen loops with pens inserted.  (Notebooks aren't much good without a pen.) 
I also have a Samsung Note 8 cell phone which allows me to make quick notes when I don't have my notebook.   Siri and Google Assistant are also very good at setting reminders if you're traveling or driving.  (You have to get over being self conscious talking to your phone.)
But notes and reminders aren't much good if you don't use them. 
There are excellent ToDo apps for cell phones and tablets.  My favorites are "ToDoIst" (todoist.com) and "Wunderlist" (wunderlist.com). 
The problem is that you may have a todo list, but it's not constantly visible. ("Oh, Ed, I'm sorry, I forgot--it's on my todo list, but I didn't look at it today.")  I've solved this problem by setting up my cell phone todo app as a "Widget".  Setting up your todo list as a widget on your cell phone home screen means that when you unlock your phone, your todo list is the first thing you see.  Android phones and iPhones have different ways to set up a widget.  So you need to Google "how to set up a widget on an _____ phone" and follow the instructions.  (A "widget" is a little piece of software code on your phone that allows the phone to display an app on your home screen.  The display can be made to take up your whole screen or a part of it.  My todo list takes up my whole home screen.)
I can't tell you how many times I have heard--"sorry, I forgot".  There's no excuse for forgetting in this age of memory apps.  I hate it when I'm the one who has to remind the supplier--"hey, where's my quote".  There's no excuse. 

Write it down on paper; ask Siri or Google Assistant to remind you; type it into Todoist, or Wunderlist, make your todo list a widget on your phone.
And stop making excuses--darn it.