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You are here: Home / Newsletters / The Selling Newsletter February 2005

The Selling Newsletter February 2005

February 1, 2005 By maurasf

February  2005

The Selling Newsletter
from Best@Selling

A free monthly newsletter of ideas to help make your selling easier.
Selling is the easiest job in the world…Just ask anyone who is NOT in sales!                                Best wishes for YOUR successful selling—Maura

 

This issue contains:
»The Selling Quote for the Month
»The Selling Ideas for the Month
»Action Items
»Something to Report/What would you recommend?
»To Subscribe to the Selling Newsletter
»Need an article for your newsletter?
»About Maura Schreier-Fleming
»Contact Information

 

1. The Selling Quote for the Month

“For the things we have to learn before we can do them, we learn by doing them.” – Aristotle
Think about the things you would like to be better at in selling. Is it better persuasion skills? Or maybe better questioning? Perhaps you attended a seminar to learn new skills. Are you using the new skill you learned? We sometimes forget that the best way to learn something is to do it. It’s ok if the result is not immediate success. Sometimes it will take a bit of practice or even courage to try something new and different. In sales, we must try new things and we must try to continue to improve our skills. How can we increase our value to our customers if we remain the same? Good luck applying your skills and trying new tasks. ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
2. The Selling Ideas for this Month

Selling Strategy

Are you selling products and services? Or are you selling how your products and services help your customers make better business decisions? If you sell the former you’re very vulnerable to your competition. If you want to sell the latter and keep your customers, you have to think and sell strategically. Here’s how.

Who’s on first? Jim Webb is currently a Partner with The Galt Group (https://cl.exct.net/?ffcd16-fe56157473650d747012-fe2610707066037a721174). Webb’s past consulting experience included leadership roles with the strategy consulting practices of PriceWaterhouseCoopers, Deloitte & Touche and EDS AT Kearney. Webb says to help your customers make better business decisions you have to first understand their long term objectives and their strategies for getting there. He adds, “Understand that the term “strategy” means different things to different people. It’s important to determine if a department’s strategy is aligned with the company strategy. What you’re looking for is congruence or conflict between departments. Ask questions like ‘How does your department contribute to the achievement of the objectives of the company?’ or ‘How effective are you in your current programs?’ or ‘Do you conflict with other departments?'”

Webb has found that in some companies the marketing department has one strategy while the engineering department has another. Functional strategies (such as marketing, production, or even technology) can sometimes work at cross purposes. For example, marketing departments want to maximize sales by keeping the price down while the engineering department wants to add costly features. Webb advises when you hear this dichotomy on the department level to address it there. If you wait until you present your idea on improvement at the executive level, your idea may get shot down amongst all of the infighting.

What’s on the horizon? Adding value is the next step to sell strategically. You’ll need to know the company’s strategic horizon. The strategic horizon is the answer to the question ‘How far in the future are you making plans?’ Strategic horizons vary by industry. The high-tech industry could have a 6 month to 18 month strategic horizon. The automobile industry has a 5 year strategic horizon; consumer products less than a year to 2 to 3 years; electronic consumer goods 2-3 years. Your job is to see how your products and services improve your customer’s business in the strategic horizon.

One way to determine the strategic business issues, trends and problems that will impact your customer’s business is to read industry trade journals and The Wall Street Journal. You can also go to local trade association meetings where you can meet industry members. Business professionals will talk more openly when they’re in a comfortable setting. Webb recommends also calling your customers’ suppliers and customers to get their perspective of your customer. That information is invaluable as you may be able to feed your prospect valuable information he can use to both look good as an individual and also improve business.

Once you determine the strategic issues, you can also ask your customer, “How is this (trend) going to impact your business? How can I help you?” Your research might show that competition is going in one direction and your customer is going in a different direction. By pointing this out to your customer you are now a business advisor, not a salesman. With the information you gather, your job is to show your customer how your product or service will help get them where they want to be. You have shifted from selling products and services to being viewed as a person who improves their business.

Tell the whole story. Webb advises to gather both facts and emotions when you present your solution,. Depending on your audience, they might be more comfortable with facts or feelings when you present your proposal. A fact is that your product will save $X. An emotion is that Joe in scheduling is so stressed out and your product will help make his job easier.

To sell on a strategic level you must understand your customer’s business, know where it’s going and advise how to help get there. It’s hard work. It will pay off when you and your products are no longer perceived as a commodity. You’ve accomplished this when purchasing can only substitute you and your products with a supplier who is a trusted advisor. How many of your competitors could respond to that request for proposal?
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3. Action Items
1. Determine the strategy of one of your customers at a sales call this week. Ask questions that uncover what they are planning to do .
2. Identify strategic issues for a key prospect or client.
3. Attend an industry trade association meeting for an industry that is relevant to your selling.
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4. Something to Report /What would you recommend?

What do you do that makes you successful? What advice would you give another salesperson? Send me your tip and I’ll share it with everyone who responds.

I’m always looking for success stories and other tips from sales professionals. Please feel free to email me atinfo@bestatselling.com with ideas that have worked for you. To thank you, you’ll receive a free subscription to The Selling E-Letter™, a bi-monthly selling newsletter. ($50 value)
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5. To Subscribe to the Selling Newsletter

Help us spread the word. Please forward this free newsletter to co-workers, friends and associates.
Subscriptions are free.

Click here to subscribe to the Selling Newsletter

To unsubscribe, scroll down to the bottom of the newsletter and you can click on the “Go here to leave this list– (and why would you want to do that!!! 🙂 )
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6. Need an Article for Your Newsletter? 

Articles from this newsletter may be used in your free publications or posted on your web when given the following credit:
*Written by Maura Schreier-Fleming, president of [email protected]. ( https://cl.exct.net/?ffcd16-fe54157473650d74701c-fe2610707066037a721174 ). Maura works with business and sales professionals so they can sell more and be more productive at work. She is the author of Real-World Selling for Out-of-this-World Results.
For free articles, selling ideas and morale boosters
visit https://cl.exct.net/?ffcd16-fe53157473650d74701d-fe2610707066037a721174
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7. About Maura Schreier-Fleming 

Invite Maura to speak at your next conference or sales meeting! Contact: info@bestatselling.com

Maura Schreier-Fleming works with business and sales professionals to make it easier to sell more and be more productive at work. Her [email protected] clients want to create long-term client relationships. They include Fujitsu, Fannie Mae and Dr Pepper/7UP. She has an M.S. in Textile Engineering from Georgia Tech and was Mobil Oil’s first female lubrication engineer in the U.S. With over 20 years of sales experience, she teaches the art and science of selling with a unique hands-on perspective and a great deal of real-life insight. She is the author of Real-World Selling for Out-of-this-World Results (a book filled with ideas to make selling easier and more productive. Her business column ‘Selling Strategies’ appears in theInsurance Record magazine and her column ‘Street Talk’ appears in Jobbers World. You can contact her for seminars at company or trade association meetings at 972 380 0200 orinfo@BestatSelling.com

Privacy: At [email protected] we take privacy issues very seriously. Your information remains with us and will never be sold, shared, or distributed in any manner, for any reason.
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8. Contact Information

1. Our Web site: https://cl.exct.net/?ffcd16-fe5b157473650d747314-fe2610707066037a721174
2. E-mail: info@bestatselling.com
3. Call: In Dallas 972 380 0200
4. Write us:
6757 Arapaho Rd., Suite 711-183
Dallas, TX 752448
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(c) Copyright 2005 Maura Schreier-Fleming. All rights reserved

 

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About the principal

Would you take auto mechanics classes when you buy a car? Maura did because she wanted to be able to work on her car. She takes that same approach to selling. She can show you how to get below the surface of selling to learn why and how different strategies work. She will show you which skills to implement that will shorten your sales cycle and increase your sales. She was Mobil Oil's first female Lubrication Engineer in the United States and one of Chevron's top 5 salespeople in the country. She knows what works for sales.

"I would recommend your work to other sales organizations who want to get better results from improved selling strategies."
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President
Houston Texans

Sales Expert at Allbusiness.com

Selling is the easiest job in the world. Just ask anyone who is not in sales. Read Maura’s ideas on “more brain…less mouth” selling to make your selling easier and more successful.

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