the 7 deadly sins of sales … and how to avoid them ... … · web viewall the old dysfunctional...

1 The 7 Deadly Sins of Sales … and How to Avoid them ( copyright Guy Arnold )

… and how to avoid them

No matter how hard we work or how hard we try, there never seems to be enough hours in the day. There’s always unfinished business, customers are ever more demanding and price sensitive and our staff always have a reason as to why things don’t get done.

As a result, our sales targets and sales budgets don't get met, and this causes an obvious problem.

The challenges for the salesperson in the 21st century are ever changing and have to be acknowledged in order to keep up with a constantly developing stream of business competitors. The Internet is empowering the customer like never before, so that they can not only compare your products, services and, most importantly, prices against worldwide competition, but also immediately complain about you (and make your life miserable), or praise you (and make your life happy and profitable), through social media and feedback websites.

Advertising no longer holds the value it used to. Two way global communication is now the norm, so new brands such as 'Zappos' become an overnight success if they deliver fantastic results for customers , while long established brands such as 'Kodak' are constantly under threat and being undermined by this new economy.

In a nutshell, the Internet has turned the world of sales and marketing upside down. All the old dysfunctional selling habits and techniques that had been so profitably punted over the last 200 years are now becoming obsolete and even destructive to company sales and profits.

Often declared as the world's second oldest profession disguised as the first, 'selling' has never had the strongest reputation. Can you afford for your business to languish within that same harmful impression of the industry?

Isn’t it time for a radically altered approach, based on traditional principles of sound commonsense? Isn’t it time to stop trying to manipulate and sell to people?

You need to restructure your business and teams towards the goal of delivering a consistent and continually improving customer experience. You want and need for your customers to love buying from you and to happily recommend your services time and time again.

So, let's say goodbye to archaic sales methods, as we run through our guide to acknowledging and avoiding...

1 Send this to all your friends … they’ll thank you for it!


The Seven Deadly Sins of Sales:

Sin Number 1: Not realising the world has irretrievably changed, and that old fashioned sales techniques no longer work:

Here’s an alternative history lesson:

1. We started off as hunter gatherers: This was a question of survival of the fittest.

2. We then started living in groups and farming the land: Reputation was the key to success!

3. Then the printing press was invented and the industrial revolution happened: Worldwide communication became available for the first time, and was dominated by big business and big money. We, in effect, had 400 years of industrial “survival of the fittest” (which incidentally, has resulted in environmental and economic disaster around the world).

4. We have now gone full circle: back to groups. The only difference is that the world is now one huge local community, driven through two way communication for the first time. So, once again, reputation has become the key to success.

There is no quick fix when it comes to the reputation of your business! You cannot build long term success by trying to manipulate your online reputation through clever IT trickery, or by spending millions trying to persuade the world that your brand is 'cool'.

Such an approach to your business is akin to King Canute building a sandcastle to hold back the tide!

In order to avoid committing Sales Sin Number One, every organisation needs to realise that this change has happened, accept it, and work out new rules for success in a world driven by reputation.

As such, you begin to work on a formula for long-term success, rather than the quick fix of pulling the wool over your customer's eyes in pursuit of easy sales.

Customers are becoming savvier and demanding more of their brands. Your responsibility and business need is to respond in kind.

Sin Number 2: Driving faster when you’re lost:


A word of caution: There are many snake oil salesman out there trying to sell you quick fixes. There is no quick fix for sales and reputation! It takes a lifetime to build and a few seconds to destroy, (just ask Gerald Ratner).

http://www.salesthroughservice.com/


If, like me, you have a tendency to think of yourself as the world’s best navigator, you will do anything to avoid stopping and asking for directions when lost. This is, of course, madness and a sure-fire route to remaining utterly lost.

When you’re lost, you need to stop, take your bearings, work out where you are, work out where you need to be going, find the directions, make sure you have a map and navigation tools to keep you on course, and start again.

Because of the huge changes happening in consumer behaviour today, (as outlined above), many businesses are finding themselves lost and struggling to find their way. They go blindly on, thrashing around trying to find solutions. They reorganise, have sales drives, introduce new structures and take over other businesses, all in a manic search for the right direction.

Old methods with tired results:

All of this manic searching for the right direction leads to business in all sectors becoming more lost. This is made worse because most of today’s leaders and managers were brought up, educated, and even took MBAs in the old rules of how to run a successful business.

This results in a Business Nightmare …

But also a fantastic opportunity for those who are quick to identify a problem and even quicker to move in the right direction!

The answer is to stop, accept that the world has changed, question everything about your future direction (as it will be substantially different from your past direction), and begin to ask yourself what a perfect business in your line of work would look like from a customer’s point of view. From this vantage point, you can then express that perfect business in simple terms and use this as a compass for all future activity to get you and your company moving in the right direction.

We call this a “Customer Focused Mission”.

A great example of a Customer Focused Mission can be located in the world's leading supermarket chains (they are after all operating in one of the most competitive global markets). They make their mission simple by having a key methodology by which to approach every single customer:

Tesco: To earn a customer’s lifetime loyalty Wal-Mart: Saving people money so they can live better

This can be applied to any industry in which sales and customers matter: The Customer Focused Mission of a successful pub restaurant in the UK reads, “Every customer should leave with a smile on their face, keen to return and bring their friends”

So, regardless of industry or the size of your business, it is clear and simple to ascertain that happy customers lead to greater sales figures. Sales volume, however, won't guarantee happy customers. So, in order to get more sales, stop trying to sell and focus more on how you can serve, so that the sales will follow.



Sin Number 3: Putting systems and processes in place to improve efficiency:

Systems and processes are fantastic! Without systems and processes, you have to rely on luck and goodwill (which is not a great management strategy!).

But, if your systems and processes are aligned around the wrong mission, you will never achieve positive results. It’s like trying to drive more efficiently whilst following an upside-down map: doing the wrong thing more efficiently may feel good, but it will still send you in the wrong direction.

You need to focus your systems and processes on becoming more Effective.

… And then, after that, more efficient.

Effectiveness is about doing the right things. Efficiency is about doing them in the right way.

Effectiveness comes first.

So, if the only way you will get more sales is by following your customer focused mission (‘creating more value and better customer experience so that the sales will follow’), then all of your systems and processes should be aligned with this, and designed to serve your customers' real needs.

What are your customers’ real needs?

As customers, we know what our real needs are: they are emotional rather than physical.

Customers do not want your physical product or service. Instead, they are seeking the emotional result that physical product or service can give them. Like every other animal, we are driven to reduce pain in our lives and move towards pleasure. Purchasing products and useful services is the humans means of obtaining exactly that. There are three key things that systematically direct customers away from pain and towards pleasure…

1. Trust: Customers want to trust you unreservedly.2. Easier Life: Customers want you to make their life easier.3. Attention: The commonly unmet human need for being important and genuinely valued.

So, the solution to Sales Sin Number Three is to make sure that you use the above three customer needs as a filter for all of your systems and processes. This will ensure that they are effective in delivering your Customer Focused Mission (rather than your need for sales).

I know this is a leap of faith, but without focusing on your customer’s needs, the only tool you have to play with is price: and there’s only one business that can be the cheapest in any sector (remember the story of the Poundland shop that was put out of business by the 99p store next door).

Be the best for your customers' emotions and needs, not simply for their wallet.

Sin Number 4: Focusing on getting a sale:



What on earth is he on about now? Is this, or is this not, a paper about selling? Surely, the whole purpose of selling is to get a sale?

Well, yes and no.

What I am suggesting is that you don’t want to just get a sale today; you want to be able to get a sale today, tomorrow, the next day and so on. You want that customer to think you’re so fantastic that they want and need to bring all of their friends to come and see you.

They won't only be your customer, they will be the best walking advert your business could wish for, and better yet, they will charge you nothing for marketing your company to everyone they know. The purpose of your sales effort is not to get a sale… It is to get a result.

If you do what you do brilliantly, the sales will naturally follow, and so will the repeat sales, cross sales and referrals. If, on the other-hand, you only focus all your efforts on getting a sale, then you might well just get a sale… Today… But what about tomorrow, next month and for the entire future of your business? What about your reputation that will spread virally around the world at the speed of light, whether you like it or not, influencing hundreds, thousands, even millions of people without your control?

The purpose of your sales effort is to get a result:

You need your customer to see you as a trusted, caring, attentive expert, whether they buy from you or not.

If you do this, when they buy from you, they will not only buy now, but return again and again, while also recommending you to all their friends. But when they don’t buy from you, they will return as and when they require your services in the future, and in the meantime, still recommend you to all their friends.

This is so important! So, one more time...The purpose of your sales effort is to get a result… Not a sale!

Sorry, sales managers around the world, but there it is: The truth will out.

So, the solution to Sales Sin Number Four is to have a structured, systematic, customer focused sales process, filtered through the customers’ real needs, that gets this result… no matter what.

With this in place, the sales will naturally follow.

Sin Number 5: Using sales techniques and quick fixes:



Have you ever heard of the snake oil salesman? They are very active on the Internet these days. Perhaps this sounds familiar:

This technique saved me thousands of pounds with just 5 minutes a week! This process of Internet and Social Media Marketing will have sales falling through your

letterbox like a waterfall! This closing tip will double your results! This website tool will treble your hits! This simple tool is the universal panacea and will make your life fantastic!

Pull the other one!

There is no quick fix, and, as we have discussed, the old sales and selling techniques no longer work.

If you manipulate your customer, they will see through you. They will mark you down as a conman, deter everyone they know from using your services and, most importantly, never buy from you again.

If you try to build your business through techniques, manipulation and clever IT work, all you generate is a lot of extra work and big bills. A quick fix is just a temporary patch. It will peel off very quickly.

The much hyped ‘sales techniques’ no longer apply. You need standards that customers can attach themselves to.

In today’s world, the original rules are the ones that work. Ones that form the basis of every religion and have been around since day one, that

we all know are common sense, but we all struggle to actually apply every day. Here are just a few:

1. You reap what you sow.2. Treat your neighbour like you would want to be treated. 3. A person persuaded against their will is of the same mind still.

Stop trying to solve today’s problems with yesterday’s tools: use the tools from time immemorial and treat your customer like you would want to be treated if you were them.

You will build trust, develop a loyal consumer base and, as a direct result, the sales will follow.

So the solution for Sales Sin Number 5 is to make sure that everything you do complies with the simple rules of common sense that sales managers and finance directors have argued against for 400 years … (and where has that got us all?)



Sin Number 6: Measuring the wrong things:

What gets measured gets done … right?

Of course.

So, how are sales usually measured?

Usually, by ‘sales produced’ or ‘money’?

Of course.

And, sometimes, by ‘activity generated’ (which is very often the wrong activity, as discovered above).

So, what is it that produces those sales?

As we have found out, it is doing the right things in the right way. So we need some measures of doing the right things in the right way: we call these “Lead Measures”.

When you want to know what the weather is going to do in the future, you need a barometer that measures the right activities, that will provide you with the right answers in order to take appropriate actions. If it is going to rain, you can choose to stay inside or take an umbrella out with you. If your barometer indicates that it will be sunny, you can take the action of carrying sunglasses and sun cream with you.

In the same way, businesses need a barometer to measure business activities and provide you with the results and answers needed to take appropriate action. This business barometer will provide measures that cannot be manipulated. It simply tells you the plain simple facts of what will happen in the future… Whether you like it or not.

You need to formulate measures within your business in order to take effective and meaningful actions to make sure that you deliver your Customer Focused Mission and delight the customer with their real needs, continually and consistently… No matter what.

So the solution to Sales Sin Number Six is: You need to discover the key barometric measures in your business. Measure them continually and obsessively. Have a clear and prominent


How do you know what you’re doing is right or not? Straightforward really: diagnosis before prescription. Get feedback from your internal and external customers using the ‘great or poor score’ ©, continually, systematically and obsessively; if your clients and customers are happy, you will see the results.

Remember: it takes a lifetime to build a reputation and minutes to destroy it. This is not a business feature which is “nice to have”; in today’s market this feature is a “must have" for survival.


scoreboard, and make sure these measures are applied at every level of your business so that your employees always know the right steps to take… And then the sales will follow like magic.

Sin Number 7: Trying to improve and develop in leaps and bounds:

In the same amount of time that Toyota went from bankruptcy to being the most profitable manufacturing business in the world, General Motors went from being the most profitable business in the world to bankruptcy.

Same market, same product … Different mindset and processes.

What was it that made the difference?

Kaizen.

What on earth is that, I hear you say?

Simply put, it’s a process of continual ongoing improvement, increasing quality while at the same time reducing costs, in small, consistent, continual steps… Week in, week out.

We call this “Go the extra inch®”

Organisations that are struggling to cope, think that they will solve their problems through huge changes of strategy, reorganisations and great sales drives. You see this on the news every day.

Sadly, reality shows us a different result: They won't!

Instead, they will waste great deals of money on consultants and marketing and advertising teams, whilst winding their sales team up in order to deliver increased frustration and aggravation all round. At the same time, they will annoy the customers by going back upon their well-defined Customer Focussed Mission, all because they are trying to change everything far too quickly, in steps that are far too big.

The key to the big is in the small.

So, the solution to Sales Sin Number Seven: Put a simple “Go the extra inch®” process into your business at all levels, to drive continual improvement in your marketing efforts, sales processes, customer experience, service delivery, means of generating recommendations and referrals, and in your cost reduction.

Big steps can lead to big disasters. Make your business about constant improvement and develop a long-lasting approach to creating the perfect customer experience, one gradual step at a time.




PRICE

Just a word here about price:

1. If you win a deal on price alone, you’ll lose it on price alone2. People who buy on price alone are often difficult and demanding. They often steal your

ideas, and pay late if at all.3. Customers buy VALUE … not price : focus on adding VALUE to the experience4. Great service has a price attached to it … and, if a customer understands and trusts you,

it’s often a price they’re pleased to pay5. With Global competition, if your main selling point is price, you’re VERY vulnerable6. Poundland stores get closed by 99p stores!


Has this raised some issues? Do you need to speak to others in your organisation?

Yes?

… Good, you’re normal. This indicates that you are focussed upon developing better business strategies for the good of your staff, your sales and, above all else, your customers.

List here any actions, within your influence, that you need to take in order to clarify or change anything raised by the above exercise


Sin Number 7 ½: Sorry, there is another one, but whoever heard of the eight deadly sins? The last, and most important deadly sin is thinking that sales are produced solely by the sales department.

They aren't! Sales are produced by every single person in your chain… And a chain is only as good as the weakest link. Every link matters.

Consider this: Your delivery person may have more influence on your sales then your salesperson.

Your customer service will have more influence on your customer perception than your marketing.

Your bar person will have more influence on your sales than your bar manager.

And so on, and so on...

The antidote is: Train your entire staff with the principles of your Customer Focused Mission. Make sure everyone sees themselves as ambassadors for your brand, in everything they do. Ensure that everyone’s measures and incentives link together to produce fantastic teamwork aligned around the customer focused mission and the customers' real needs. Have a clear and compelling scoreboard so that everyone knows what they need to do to move the business in the right direction. Put a simple “Go the extra inch®” process into your business at all levels. Incentivise great customer focused activity

… And NEVER incentivise short-term sales!.


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Make a list of business factors you have no control over, but still require clarifying or changing.

Business Factors Who I need to speak to

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NOW make an appointment in your diary / planner to action this at work today (or at least tomorrow … we’ll give you tonight to think it over!).

Of course, we’re always available to help: please Contact Us for a no obligation chat if you think you might need some assistance in addressing any of these issues.

Remember:

‘No farmer ever ploughed his field by turning it over in his mind’.

Take some action within the next 24 hours, or you never will.

A little about us:

‘Sales Through Service’ is a proven, powerful and guaranteed system to sustainably increase sales through the systematic improvement of your customer experiences and staff engagement.

Despite the far reaching results of this powerful system, it builds month-on-month in a way that is easy and accessible for all staff to understand and implement

Would you like more sales with less marketing spend?


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Traditionally the way to get more customers is by massive awareness spend through advertising and PR. This route is becoming increasingly less effective as members of the public are more cynical, resorting to online review sites to discover the true story of your business approach to customers.

By turning the cycle round, we help you to engage your teams and customers to become your most avid and loyal fans, creating far more sales at a greater margin and lower cost in a long term sustainable manner.

Our results speak for themselves

A wholesaling Company: changed a 25% sales decline into over 30% sales growth in under a year

An Accountants: built their customer base by over 12% in under a year

A Medium sized Hotel: increased sales by 22% and net profit by over £200k in one year

A Solicitor: saved a client worth over £100k per year for a cost of under £500


Feedback & Engagement

Engaged & Loyal

Customers & Staff

Cheaper & More

Focused Marketing

Easier Sales Processes

More Sales


A Pub Restaurant: increased turnover by 831% in 9 months and went from a bankrupt business to a national award winner within 2 years!

A Recruitment Company: increased repeat sales by 34% in 6 months

An Insurance Company: increased turnover by over 100% in under 12 months

Contact details

Email: [email protected] Phone: 01647 253461

I sincerely thank you for taking the time end effort to request and read this report. I hope it has been of some benefit to you.

We’ll be keeping in contact via email, (remember your system may see it as ‘spam’, (which we strive to make sure it isn’t!), so you’ll need to check), and we hope to do business with you at some time in the future.

You know where to find us. www.greatorpoor.com www.salesthroughservice.com

As an added bonus, we’ve added a short questionnaire below to help you see how you and your organisation match up, and whether you’re committing any of these ‘deadly sins’: we hope it adds some value to you and your team.

Best wishes: Guy Arnold

Author, Adviser, Virtual Customer Experience Director & Myth-Buster

Click on the picture for a 20 minute video called ‘How to Sell in the 21st Century’

Next steps:

This system is available from us as an in-depth and confidential service, at a very competitive price, to measure your whole team, or your whole organisation.

We can also run powerful customer feedback systems for you for as little as £95 / month, or licence you to use our system (and be accredited by Investors in Feedback ) for just over £2 / week

From the feedback we will provide from this, you can identify key areas of development needed, the trends caused by internal issues, and the actions needed to address them.

When we’ve worked with clients on this, we repeat this test on a regular systematic basis and see where improvement has occurred, or what other support and help is needed.

We guarantee everything we do.



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Contact us at: [email protected]

FREE Resources:

1. The 7 Deadly Sins of Service2. The 7 Deadly Sins of Sales3. The 7 Deadly Sins of Feedback4. The 7 Deadly Sins of Management5. The 7 Deadly Sins of Leadership6. Social Media: stop wasting time and start making sales7. Weekly Videos and Top Tips: sign up at www.greatorpoor.com

Paid Resources:

Customer Feedback by Phone: £4.50 per result or from £99/month The Ultimate Sales & Marketing System : £4.50 per result Accreditation, training and support in ‘Investors in Feedback’: £790 Coaching & Mentoring from £149 / month Training courses from £59 / person

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the 7 deadly sins of sales … and how to avoid them ... … · web viewall the old dysfunctional...

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