person pollinates their peers with their unique talents, the best skills scale and the team grows stronger.
• Demonstrate selflessness and generosity. Do you spend your time serving others? Do you sacrifice your own glory so the team can stand in the spotlight? Do you take all the credit, or proactively credit others? As a coach, demonstrate the team values you want others to emulate.
QUESTIONS FOR SALES MANAGERS: Do I create concrete opportunities for generosity? Whether it’s creating mini-teams or orchestrating a blitz day, find ways to bring team values to life. Don’t just spout philosophies or hang posters. Turn attitude into action by reimagining how your people work, directing them toward new behaviors. If my dad had not asked me to stop scor- ing and guard Chase, I wouldn’t have done it. It’s a leader’s job to instill a team-over-self mentality and spark action. Do I nurture as well as share top talent? Every sales team has star players. A good team leader nurtures those rare talents and allows them to flourish. A great team leader also knows there are times when players’ energies need to be redirected from team star to teammate by giving discretionary effort to help others. When individuals sacrifice for the good of the group, you become a team. Do I use persuasion, or do I use understanding to lead my team to success? Every player has special talents wait- ing to be discovered, nurtured and perfected. If you try to persuade salespeople, they will at best aspire to the level of your expectations. If you understand each player on a human level and help them connect with their special talents, they will release more energy than you thought possible and win far more sales.
VIDEO: TURN GROUPS INTO TEAMS
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The person who says it cannot be done should not interrupt the person who is doing it. COMMON PROVERB
SELLING TIP Winning Edge
“The closer you come to touching base with the buyer, the better chance you have of opening the account.”So says one sales manager who does not want attribution. Another way of stating this: The more you have in common with the buying authority, the more likely you are to spark their interest in your product or service. The manager recalls a situation where the rep’s 10-year-old kid was in the same class as the pros- pect’s 10-year-old. The rep found this out after being brushed off by the prospect. That’s not to say he would have gotten the order had he communicated the tidbit early on. But his chance of getting his message across would have substantially increased. “The lesson speaks for itself,” says the manager. It pays to find common ground with the buyer in advance, before the actual proposal meeting takes place. Questions to ponder: • Can you become friendly enough with the buyer’s assistant, secretary, or receptionist to encourage that person to confide personal information?
• What about service people in the area? Gas station attendants, waitresses, etc.? Sometimes these folks accumulate an amazing amount of personal data.
• Do you know any noncompetitive reps who deal with the buyer? Working with these people on a mutual exchange basis can yield interesting results.
• What about technical people who service the account? At times, what they hear and discover can be valuable. It’s often worthwhile to pay in one way or another for such tips.
The better armed you are, the more apt you will be to win the support of the prospect.
– RAY DREYFACK SELLING POWER OCTOBER 2015 | 15 © 2015 SELLING POWER. CALL 1-800-752-7355 FOR REPRINT PERMISSION.
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