A Classic Sales Call

By: Sid Chadwick, Chadwick Consulting, Inc.

“What do I need to do…. to keep you coming in here…?”…………………………… ……………………………………….Cleo Denny, Dir. of Purchasing, Volvo/GMC

INTRODUCTION:

I’d just delivered my third quotation in person, and we were high….. by at least 15%.... for the third time…..

Discussion rolled….. to two educational items I’d brought to review with Mr. Denny. (Why two?......Because if I only brought one educational item, he might already know the information I presented. Two “useful information items”… all but guaranteed that I had brought my buyer…. new information…. of value.)

Then Mr. Denny dropped the bombshell: “What do I need to do to keep you coming in here…?”

(Mr. Denny’s statement allowed me to move the discussion to products and services I knew we would be competitive supplying…..within 60 days, we were supplying monthly sales to his organization….of 4 and 5 figures…..)

Always presenting “Useful Information to our Buyers”…. were…. “the standards”…. in my organization….and partly why we were growing well over 35% per year.” (We also had an equally neurotic, performance-driven, great Production Team.)

What I’d also observed, was that if I always brought two educational pieces of information to my Buyer….that Buyer would almost always give me an appointment.

And if my Buyer always gives me an appointment, we’re going to do business…..!

Turning to more recent events, we have two clients at this very moment……………. developing “Customer Education Sessions” --- focused on “The Profound Values of Print”…..and… “Technical Issues”…..Both clients are including a series of Samples…. …..to illustrate every story, every principle, every issue of importance --- for their Customers to take back with them.

Additionally, on every Client Sponsored Survey, over the last decade, Buyers have consistently given testimony to several supplier performance issues:

1. “We don’t see your Sales Rep often enough”.
2. “Your Sales Rep needs to bring more useful information, to elevate the value of time we provide them with us”.

SUMMARY:

Your Weekly... or… Biweekly Business Development Education Sessions --- need to prepare your company’s Reps (that’s both Inside Sales Reps….and Outside Sales Reps….and CSR’s)…to make sure they make it…..worth your Buyer’s time….to see your Reps (or in the case of an Inside Sales Rep, to give them time on the phone or…. sharing “face-time”…. between two Smart-Phones…..).

Top-performing Inside Sales Reps we know --- are skilled, and disciplined --- in consistently providing target Prospects --- and Current Customers --- with Useful Information.

Smart Buyers --- want useful information….. as part of the buying relationship. (One Major Buyer’s Evaluation Questions --- for Rating Suppliers: “Does this Supplier bring value…. in addition to product quality and pricing…?)

As Ann Landers would occasionally write….”Is anyone smelling the coffee…..?”

“Education of the Customer…….drives demand to the sponsor….”…..…………………………….Dick Gorelick, Prolific Writer, Marketing Consultant