Sell yourself, sell your company and then sell your product – in that order. 30 years ago, this was the mantra for many sales trainers and managers. We were taught that we had to get the customer first to trust and rely on us as individuals before we could tout the benefits of doing business with our company. Only after gaining personal and organizational credibility, would we have the foundation from which to make a credible and viable product pitch.
In today’s digital marketplace, it has become incredibly simple to access comprehensive information about companies and products. So simple that the likes of Amazon, Newegg.com and Buy.com are able to sell billions of dollars in consumer goods without having anyone personally engage a customer.
The same is not true for commercial or enterprise selling. When selling big-ticket products and services, decision-makers still want to connect with human beings to confirm they have reliable stakeholders who hold themselves accountable for the desired results.
Decision-makers who spend thousands or millions of dollars, on behalf of their company, need to connect with a human being, who will ensure delivery on the seller’s commitments. They want to know who to call when the unexpected happens and that should be the sales person. With that the modern adage now becomes, sell yourself. So how do we do that?
Customer to Seller Link – Great sales people are the expert on the customer. They are the best people to determine the best next steps with the customer. Rarely is the sales person the product or service expert. Instead, great sales people act as navigator and director for both the customer and the company they sell for. They help the customer connect with subject matter experts (SMEs) both in the company they sell for and at third party companies, as well.
Customer to Customer Link – Great sales people are able to navigate political boundaries inside the customer’s own organization often times better than the customer themselves. They can often find opportunities for synergy or uncover need for better communication. While selling to Boeing, I learned that a change scheduled for a manufacturing application was going to break an application used by the sales force. The two organizations were unaware until I mentioned it to each project manager. I was not a SME but I knew enough to know that these two SMEs needed to talk.
Customer to Community Link – Incredibly successful sales people are always interacting with the community that surrounds the customer. These can be fellow suppliers, customers of customers or organizations who have related needs. I used to sell to the Credit Union industry. 25 years ago credit unions did not compete with one another because they served a membership that was unique to them. They had association conventions but did not always cover day-to-day best practices. I typically met with six to eight credit union managers every week, which allowed me to observe differences in operational practices. As a result, I became a broker for credit union best practices within the states I covered.
With company and product information literally at the customer’s fingertips, the concept of selling yourself, then your company, then your product, is no longer the mantra. Great sales people of today sell themselves and their ability to help people and companies. Sell yourself. This is the path to opening doors and closing business in 2014.
©2014 Rick Wong – The Five Abilities® LLC
