Onto the issue of selling. Planning is key for any successful salesperson. Planning, along with effective time management is a sure fire way to make more money than ever before. I sell products that are often specified. Time management over the years has changed for me. In year's past, better than 40 percent of the cabling projects in my region had a preferred or required brand of cable/connectivity/metal for the installation. Today, I see less than one in five projects that are specified for only one brand of structured cabling products. Why is that? Do users not care? Is there a fear on the part of the user that they will not have a competitive environment if only one brand is allowed?
In today's economy, there are fewer projects to pursue. Our industry is down, on average, about 30%. If there are fewer projects in the market to pursue for specification, how does one reach his/her quota? You know, the quota that your boss tells you about that only requires 40 percent growth in the worst economy in the past 80 years? Hey, lets not let facts get in the way of a high growth quota right?
Its my belief that discretionary purchases are now nearly seventy five percent of our total sales. This figure may vary from market to market but is largely accurate. How do we get our chunk of the market to reach our quota and make some dough?
If users are specifying less, than the few projects that warrant specification are critical. As salespeople we need to cover these projects thoroughly. Some of us sell more than one brand. In those instances, get creative. Find a product that hits the mark for the users needs and drive that through to a hard spec. Pull your other products through while you are solving a problem for the user.
My first call after I leave an appointment with a large use is to the incumbent contractor. This organization is often influential or in some cases, the decision making body for what brands are installed. I let this company know that I met with one of their clients and tell them exactly what we discussed. Some of you are saying "Why the hell would you do that? What if they go run and tell the incumbent brand rep?" I say, let them! I want my competition to know that I am in their accounts and when that contractor calls my competitor to tell them about my visit, I force them to go into a defensive position. That is a great place to put a competitor. Remember the law of seven, it takes six no's to get a yes!
Other people that influence large users are design firms and distributor reps. How are you getting these influencers involved to get whatever projects you can. Everyone in our industry needs something....leads, design assistance, training, entertainment, samples, etc. Do you know what the most important influencers in your market need from you?
Inventory levels were reduced by a third in the early part of 2009 at most of our major distributors. As those levels slowly rise, how are your brand(s) represented. How is your "shelf space" for A items?
If you are like me, you don't have the right answer to all of these questions. The good news is only some of your competitors will work hard to answer the questions and gain from that knowledge. Remember, its about staying RELEVANT!
