54 sales roundtable ... continued from previous page


sales person – but I still want to see it, touch it and drive it and be guided through the process.”


Perriman said that technology has absolutely helped to educate buyers and made them more aware of alternatives. But as with any car or service the key is to align the budget with the need.


Rolfe accepted that most people now do pre- purchase online research: “If people are coming into the showroom today it‘s very likely for one reason – to buy – and that’s when the sales personnel need to do their job properly.”


Is ‘sales’ held in high esteem?


Perriman said: “In many ways, more now than ever, as increasingly customers are realising that their supply chain is business critical and the value to unlock the full potential and create a differentiation can only be achieved through partnership, experience and knowledge on a global basis.“


Sikorski: “Sales people are often seen as not asking questions, listening and understanding. They are not actually perceived as people who can help the customer’s business.”


David Murray: “Too much talking, not enough listening?”


Sikorski: “Exactly so.”


Bloxham countered that external perception. Within the sales industry, and his field of recruitment, good salesmanship was much sought after. “In recruitment, we have to sell ‘the product’ and ‘to the product’ as a two-way process. We have to operate as a middleman, taking on board a range of views and needs, and the art of such selling is highly thought of in our business.”


Mike Wilson


you can’t design and deliver a project without a customer”, he also noted that there were no university degrees in salesmanship.


Sikorski admitted: “Very few business schools teach selling today, but we (Henley Business School) are changing that offering a sales workshop and a four-day ‘Winning and Developing Customers’ open programme.”


“Lawyers, accountants and similar professionals find the concept of selling difficult because it has never traditionally been required as a part of their roles Mike Wilson accepted. “It’s very challenging to promote the sales mentality of ‘minders, grinders, finders’ within professional service firms. Our sector has lots of minders and grinders happy to do the technical work, but not enough people who are at ease with networking and selling services.”


Speaking from personal experience, Perriman mentioned that sales skills training was generally lacking in many industries, with learning ‘from the job’ quite normal. “Yet, the ‘trusted adviser’ aspect only comes from a thorough understanding of the sales process,“ he explained, “and through a thorough recruitment process and continual training our approach is to ensure our team have the right skill set.“


Richards said Wilson’s words resonated in the academic sector which had been “quite lazy” about selling its own services. “We have a very strong brand at Henley Business School and that has carried us through some difficult times, but during the recession there was a complete regrouping in executive education with a move to get much smarter.”


‘Smart’ selling is the way forward


David Bloxham


Tatham pointed out that sales teams consisted of people with normal human sensitivities, and poor public perception was not something they dismissed lightly.


Anyone got a sales degree?


While Stamatis explained: “In our industry sales people are key; they bring in the work and


www.businessmag.co.uk


Sikorski suggested the art of selling in today’s ‘smart’ sophisticated markets was in “... helping the customer to buy.


“That means starting out by understanding the customer, knowing what they really need and then delivering the solution that is right for them – which might be something completely different from what the customer originally imagined they needed or what you thought you would sell them.”


Rolfe explained that Ridgeway now employed local business development managers (LBDMs) throughout its operations, to support


the marketing stance and strategies of the manufacturers within its prestige automotive brands portfolio. Additionally, Ridgeway’s LBDMs utilised website and social media contact along with e-comms and cold-calling to generate and progress sales.


“The brand-owners have an investment in our individuals as much as us. Targets are set to get past gatekeepers and make appointments so that we can sit face-to-face and build relationships.


Richards: “Today it is not about selling product off the shelf and relying on brand, but understanding the touchpoints across a business and becoming trusted advisers and consultants.”


Lane said that, there was no "silver bullet" and that professional services firms used ‘”a range of online channels such as social media, the external website and thought leadership pieces” as well as more traditional methods including cold-calling, database research and collaboration with other intermediaries such as banks and lawyers in holding business events.


“The thing is we are operating now in a market where there is almost perfect information for buyers, and the buying decision is a lot more sophisticated.”


“A lot of our key perfomance indicators (KPI) are around getting meetings, getting to know businesses and understanding their challenges rather than targeting specific sales. We don’t go out with a preconception of what service the business will want from us. Our aim is to become their long-term trusted adviser by listening to their challenges and then working with them to scope out a bespoke and tailored solution.”


Wilson said Blake Morgan currently concentrated on a more traditional approach to sales and marketing – networking, business events, training and profile raising. Good reputation, referrals and strong customer relationships also continued to sustain organic growth. However, no doubt influenced by young talent within the firm, work was increasingly being gained through social media activities.


Bloxham noted that sustaining corporate reputation, business networking and community involvement assisted sales growth by setting a company apart as “People who care about the people that we work with.”


Sales growth could be achieved by selling more or new products and services to existing clients, or by selling to new clients, commented Hicks. “Surely it should be both, over the years we’ve seen the dangers of reliance on one or two clients.”


He noted how delivery models had entered some sectors. “With today’s omni-channel approach to delivering products and services you can’t afford to do one thing well, you have to do everything brilliantly.


Sector-specific work tendering was now a legal market feature Wilson added, and pitching was not only against competitor law firms.


THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE – THAMES VALLEY – NOVEMBER 2015


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