Innovative Selling

A Guide to Successful Corporate Professional Selling

Eden White

• Publisher: Business Expert Press
• Year: 2020
• Print ISBN: 9781951527648
• eBook ISBN: 9781951527655
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Sales
• Index: Business

Innovative Selling is a unique book for corporate sales professionals and their sales leaders about how to prepare, manage, cope, and succeed at corporate global sales.

Recent research has discovered concerning underlying discontent with professional sales people who represent global sales organizations. This book assists the sales professionals with navigating the dilemmas and pitfalls that confront today's corporate sellers so they emerge at the other end mentally healthy, skilled, and sane.

The book also tackles and simplifies the basic steps of the overall sales process, territory planning, and product training, so as to ultimately improve your sales results.

Many sales people today are looking for a simple and concise book to guide them through the corporate sales process–this is the book for you.

CHAPTER 1

Snapshot of Professional Sales Today

Do commercial training courses measure up? You will become more aware of the abundance of sales training courses out there and how to tailor them to meet your needs along with the need for field sales coaching.

Looking at the literature out there provided by the better sales training courses, (RTO, Registered Training Organizations), for example, short in-house sales training courses and the on-line courses; these are well organized. However, all fall short of realistic selling guides and do not include an in-the-field follow-up critique system to guide the seller.

My own coaching–training always included in-the-field coaching, concentrating on planning, customer needs, and customer relationships, and on offering the appropriate product, summarizing, and closing. Many of the in-house courses covered a part of the seven steps of the sale but sadly omitted very important components that salespeople need.

I have not seen any salesperson attend sales training and say, “That was fantastic, and I can’t wait to get into the field to use it.” The problem is that various registered training organizations do not stick with a proven sales process; they all pitch a different system of selling and offer too many variations on the theme. Often, after spending a day in a sales course run by a registered training organization, salespeople slip back into old habits because very few sales managers assist with follow-up field coaching.

There are two flaws in the sales training system today. The first is the lack of field sales coaching follow-up on a regular basis. The second is that sales managers seem too busy to follow through with post course field coaching. Some salespeople hate the notion of their manager coming to spend the day with them. Some delight in the assistance, but this should be conducted following product or sales training.

Why pay high costs for in-hours training and then fail to carry out field training follow-up? Companies continue to do this seems to defy common sense.

The selling section in the later part of this book includes several self-critique systems you can include yourself in your normal sales day to double-check on the effectiveness of your last sales call. If we did this well in coaching, sales would increase significantly. Statistics in the United States and locally show that post-selling training and field coaching increase sales by 19 to 21 percent on average.

What Is in It for You as a Salesperson?

Embrace the good sales manager if he or she wishes to introduce a field sales coaching program. Ask yourself, “Is your coach trained to be a coach?” and are they willing to lead the way in selling techniques to show you how it is done—“see one, show one, do one.” Many sales managers travel with you but do nothing, offer nothing, and contribute to nothing, partly because they are not formally trained themselves. The good coach will watch your performance and techniques in the field, suggest small constructive improvements to practice, and take it easy with the criticisms. The coach should also teach how you should measure your own sales call performance and critique systems for each sales call. Why? Because they are not with you all the time, and you operate about 95 percent of the time on your own.

Don’t be afraid to give feedback to the coach on how the process is working for you. Fully engage yourself in this process for maximum results. If it works, keep it up and enjoy the fruits of your coaching experience. A good coach is great to work with as long as he or she gives you the encouragement and support you really need.

For sales coaches, be prepared to show or demonstrate best practice in the field. Many coaches sit back and judge performance. However, young sales staff want a leader to show them the way.

CHAPTER 2

What the Qualitive Research Confirms

Looking at the Research from an International Perspective

Are we giving all to the job but getting little in return? Chapter 2 deals with the local research compared with research from overseas and the importance of research findings. You will learn to view your role and your corporate workplace from a different corporate perspective.

A recent study published in New Scientist 2018, studying workplace stress in Denmark, suggests that throwing yourself into your work you love but not receiving appropriate rewards is a toxic cocktail for biological stress.

What do they mean by the term “biological stress”? The study had two control groups; in one, half the workers did nine to five jobs, and in the other, participants worked longer hours as well as studied a course such as Master of Business Administration (MBA).

The team analyzed cortisol levels in the hair of 100 and 72 salesperson volunteers. Study of the sample cortisol levels shows that this hormone is released in times of stress, helping the body prepare for “fight or flight” by increasing blood sugar levels and slowing down digestion. The study reports chronic stress was found to lead to major health problems. This also leads to other medical problems such as infections and diabetes.

Of all the research that has been done on this very important subject, this particular study serves as the cornerstone of future sales employment staff health and well-being policy.

The research results showed that effort versus reward is a determinant of workplace stress levels. It also showed that levels of cortisol increase if any reward is not forthcoming. Shorter working hours in sales around Scandinavia, such as Sweden, are addressing this very problem.

Research from the Australian Perspective—Is Working in Australia Any Different Than in the United States or Europe?

Getting back to where we started, presenting all this information without supporting my thoughts would be seen as self-indulgent and unrealistic, leaving me open to criticism; besides I would have to defend myself for my Australian research. I set about interviewing people from 40 medical, pharmaceutical, device and critical care companies based in Australia.

Research Method

The interview and data entry process took approximately 18 months. The questionnaire had about 87 questions, encompassing 10 key elements and a 10-point rating scale. Bias was my concern, but I do believe it was only 2 percent.

Results of Australian Research

Research Category

The following 10 categories were used for each research interview.

Element 1—Personal: do you believe your company provides care and a safe working place?

Element 2—Relationships: how valued and respected are salespeople in our company?

Element 3—Sales Force: describe your overall work happiness score for your current sales position?

Element 4—Management: do you think your company could do more to keep good sales staff?

Element 5—Recruiting: do you think your company has been fully honest when recruiting you?

Element 6—Training: could your company do better in product, customer, and sales training?

Element 7—Incentives and salary: has your company been honest when paying commission payments?

Element 8—Performance: does your company make reasonable efforts to keep high performers?

Element 9—OHS: does your company take every opportunity to secure your health and safety?

Element 10—General: does your company provide all the tools you need for effective selling?

I am not sure why, but every time I approached each global pharmaceutical company, I was hurriedly referred to the Legal Department. Yes, they did send me, within a few days, a “no thank you” and “have a great day” response.

For obvious reasons, I have omitted company and individual names; however, being with only a small number of global companies in this industry, an astute individual could short-list and figure out which company I am referring to.

Out of the 10 Category Elements Set Up, No Company Met All the Minimum Criteria That Were Defined

Perhaps only one company in the research field was close, but I was restricted to the national marketing manager for the response. I did back up their responses with relationships within this organization, and, to all intents and purposes, I believe they were close to accurate.

Overall Research Results

Areas of concern found in the research:

• Lying and deception regarding commissions/bonus payments
• Lack of clear understanding and transparency for commission payments
• Lack of personal safety for working after 5 pm and after hours work safety
• Lack of concern for driving long distances and late into the night
• Disconnect between salesperson and management on many levels
• Lack of care and concern for health and welfare
• Distinct lack of strategic sales training and field coaching
• Lack of appropriate product training backed up with product sales training
• Being pulled off own territory to service another territory without recognition
• Management’s lack of understanding that sales and field training is paramount
• Recruiters show disregard for openness and transparency of the full job description
• Poor crisis management
• Poor conflict management through human resources
• Working from home and the out of pocket costs
• Salespeople being late for appointments
• Being able to fully trust your representative
• High turnover of representatives
• Lack of respect
• Lack of product knowledge and being too pushy

Research from the Recruitment Point of View

Many companies utilize their own methods of recruitment in-house now. Warranty return of payment for recruiter’s services at 3 months is considered too short. Feedback that recruiters do not know enough about the area of expertise is a regular criticism, and the need to place a head as soon as possible is primarily driven by economic reasons.

Pulling Apart the More Concerning Areas of Research, the Following Topics Seem to Show Up More Frequently

Lying and deception from sales managers, lack of care for general safety, significant pressure to meet targets, and the psychological stress ramifications cause salesperson burnout, trust issues, and a high turnover of sales jobs. Other concerning issues that perpetuate continual problems are long working hours, lack of appropriate product and sales training, limited opportunity for advancement above sales level, and conflict resolution within the sales team.

A close review of the short list of job issues shows a more personal undercurrent of trust and how the salesperson is treated. Some companies appear to disconnect at this point, assuming that the salesperson is expendable and can be easily replaced—the “nice knowing you attitude” is what I call it. If you rock the boat, you are tagged and carefully watched, including your communication with other sales colleagues. Please note: your phone call records are scrutinized on a regular basis.

Dismissal Process

Let me escort you out of the building.

One of the most upsetting events that came up in the study is this: You are dismissed, “sacked” from your sales position, and marched out of the premises immediately without being given the opportunity to say goodbye to your colleagues. This behavior has permeated corporate life primarily for “paranoid security” reasons.

Are we becoming insensitive and crass in the way we deal with people? Have we crossed the line of being reasonable to each other? The question should be asked: Have global corporations lost the art of being human?

Global companies have a dismissal policy to follow. The protocol follows the proviso of getting rid of the offending person as quickly and as quietly as possible. I find this policy insensitive and abhorrent. As other employees watch this sacking scenario, trust issues are created and uneasy feelings generated among the remaining staff.

There is a definit...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Halftitle Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Media Statements
• Abstract
• Contents
• Preface
• Acknowledgments
• How to Use This Book
• Chapter 1 Snapshot of Professional Sales Today
• Chapter 2 What the Qualitive Research Confirms
• Chapter 3 Yesterday’s versus Today’s Sales Environment
• Chapter 4 Bullying in Sales & What Motivates the Lying Boss
• Chapter 5 Personal Problems We Encounter in Sales
• Chapter 6 Are We Expendable in Selling Today and What Value You Bring to the Company?
• Chapter 7 The Big Divide Between Marketing and Sales: And How It Will Affect You in Sales?
• Chapter 8 Ethics in Sales
• Chapter 9 Training or the Lack of It
• Chapter 10 What Is Your Me Brand and Selling Style?
• Chapter 11 Getting Down to Sales Technique and Planning
• Chapter 12 Overview of Learning the Great Skill to Sell—the Fun Part
• Chapter 13 How to Ultimately Tell the Buying Signs of Your Customer
• Glossary
• About the Author
• Index
• Back Cover