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Your prime prospect is not showing interest – now what?
Posted on February 14, 2017 at 9:11 AM |
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My prime prospect is showing me their child pose. That’s code speak for “I’m not paying
attention now, so don’t bother me.” The
silence is deafening. What are my
options? 1. Get busy with some loud broadcasting activity? You
know, blast them with all the channels including the phone, email, texting and social
media. Sure, I can wake them up and
force them to engage with me! 2. Hoover
over them and watch to see if their current position shifts in the slightest. At that point I could quickly swoop in and
hijack their attention before they nod off again. 3. Monitor and listen; wait for them to wake and
regain their focus. Use the downtime to reevaluate
the environment and determine what type of content would be more relevant. That
last option is really hard for a sales and marketing person like me to consider. It’s hard to wait, listen and reflect when
you are action-oriented. And what’s with
the short attention span? Prospects seem
to enter the child pose so quickly! Of
course the idea of creating more content to build interest and keep the
prospect engaged always feels childish and is exhausting. So, under the banner of satisfying unmet needs, education and
thought-leadership let the “do not call,” “unsubscribe” and “unfollow” risks be
dammed. After all, I need to pitch my
solution by getting the word out because I have a sales funnel to fill. And so the unsolicited pitches start to crank
up the noise. Except I’m not the only one pitching out there. Everyone seems to think they are unique, but all the approaches follow the same old templates. What is your Unique Selling Proposition? Contact Alan See CMO Temps, LLC at [email protected] When Ted Turner was asked for the secret to success, he said; “Early to
bed, early to rise, work like hell and advertise.” That’s not something that marketing people
can bet their careers on anymore. We
live in a relationship-based economy.
Your prospect is looking for transparency, trust, relevance and
engagement. It’s time to step-back and
listen. |
Why Your Sales “Follow Up” is Not Working
Posted on November 25, 2016 at 2:22 PM |
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It happens all the time by email, telephone, and through social media, the
fake “I
just wanted to follow up” sales prospecting approach. Large company or small, no decision-maker wants to have their time
wasted. So, they’re probably not going
to visit your website to first “learn more about” your product. In addition, executives generally don’t open
their calendars for total strangers to talk to them about something they are
ill-informed about, or couldn’t care less about. In short, you are pushing a button that turns
them off, so it’s no wonder they are not returning your call or replying to
your digital contact. What have you done
wrong? You wanted to project yourself as
a “thought-leader,” someone the executive could trust. But at this point they are not thinking of you
as a thought-leader nor as a trusted advisor.
You are merely another account development person trying to fake a “follow
up” to an initial conversation that hasn’t happened. So, what thoughts are really going through
your prospects mind? 1. Who are you?
Were you referred to me by someone I trust? Did we meet at a conference? Did you comment on one of my blogs or have we
been engaging in conversation on Twitter?
In short, how can I trust you if I don’t know you? 2. What exactly are you claiming your solution will
do for my organization? Increase revenue? Decrease cost? Mitigate risk? How will you prove that claim? 3. What’s in it for me? Yes, we make decisions intellectually, but we
buy emotionally. That means you also need
to appeal to the emotional side of my brain. 4. What part of my budget would your solution impact? a. What application are we already using in that
space? Would a change be worth the
effort? b. Does my team have the mental bandwidth to take
on another application? c. Where does this application fit in relation to other
processes? You need to reboot your initial approach. Take some time to gain rapport and build your
credibility. Help the executive
understand how a relationship with you could reduce their risk. Your main goal is to develop a deep level of trust. If they trust you they are more likely to
open up and let you ask the questions that would extract their pain points and
determine if they can create funding for your project. If you understand their pain points you will then
be in a better position to customize your sales process to address their exact needs. And that’s what “following-up” is really
about. You Are the Messenger and Message Contact Alan See CMO Temps, LLC at [email protected] |
8 Ways to Create Emotional Bonds with Your Customers
Posted on November 3, 2016 at 2:25 PM |
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People simply are not subject to the rigorous
laws of logic or measurable with the precision that data-driven marketers would
like. In fact, most purchase decisions
are made emotionally, and then justified, rather than the other way
around. That means it’s critical for
organizations to create customer relationships through emotional bonds. Here are eight ways your organization can help
create emotional bonds that build deep customer relationships: 1. Brand: You
need to start with a strong brand identity that your customers can identify
with. Your brand must not only
communicate a message, but also inform, motivate and deliver as promised. The better your brand is at keeping its
promises, the better your brand is at being trusted. 2. Learning Relationships: Organizations that implement learning
relationships are better able to understand and anticipate a customer’s unique
needs. Learning organizations understand
that great customer experiences start with listening to the customer to learn
instead of talking to the customer to sell.
Customers in a learning relationship experience a heightened sense of
vendor awareness and are more likely to be loyal because their vendor
understands their needs. 3. Use technology to connect in positive and
collaborative ways: Customer connections
that engender loyalty deliver a seamless experience across channels and touch points
while demonstrating integrity and interest. 4. Empower: Ensure
high quality customer interactions that demonstrate a caring attitude by
empowering your employees to resolve problems.
If you want your people to act like it’s their business, make it their
business. Empowerment leads to never
losing a customer over a stupid rule. 5. Great Service:
Almost every customer has a service support need at some point. Use support incidents as an opportunity to
solidify relationships. Providing
excellent service and quick resolution can build customer trust. 6. One view of the company: Despite the desires of corporate managers,
the customer ultimately controls the relationship. If the customer is in control, don’t they
need a 360 degree view of the company?
Great customer experiences start when you make it easy for the customer
to do business across your entire organization. 7. Layers:
Customers have layers, and relationship layers are built on trust and
dialog over time. Customer loyalty
requires the care and commitment to take the time, invest the money, and have
the patience to grow the relationship. 8. Dynamic real-time processes: Building relationships takes time; however,
instant gratification has been a feature of our everyday lives for a long
time. Give your customers their rewards
now, and keep your promises on time. |
Can Your Company Compete with Radical Trust?
Posted on October 28, 2016 at 7:37 AM |
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Several years ago I heard a story about a shoe repair
shop from one of their long-time customers.
It’s a small business tale about trust with a twist that might surprise
you. Like many businesses, this shoe
repair shop was built on a self-service model.
That model was necessary because the sole proprietor did his cobbling at
night; during the day he held down a full-time job as an employee of another
company. His customers left their shoes
for repair in a converted newspaper vending machine located on his front
porch. Shoes that were ready for pick-up
as well as the money folder were also in the machine. Yes, I said the money folder. Customers dropped off and picked up their
shoes and also left their payment. He
never came up short, of money or shoes. In the last few years there has been plenty of material
written about earning customer trust. However;
you don’t see much written about trusting the customer. Can you earn
trust without giving it? For the
cobbler’s customers in that rural community it appears a key to giving trust
was getting it first. Today we would describe that type of business climate as
“radical trust.” It’s a state of trust
where parties on both sides of a transaction fully recognize the greater
benefits of reciprocal good faith. The
cobbler let his customers into his inner circle by trusting that he would get
paid for his work. He believed that
people were inherently good and let the self-policing reputation-based honor system
work. I suspect for many businesses it would be a scary thought
to implicitly trust their customers. And
yet, without trust most relationships will not move forward. I often think of trust through the following
formula: Trust = (Rapport x Credibility) / Risk Actions that
help develop rapport and credibility, while at the same time reducing risk,
will build long-lasting, trust-based relationships. In marketing,
Collin Douma describes the notion of radical trust as a key mindset required for marketers and advertisers to enter the
social media marketing space. In his
opinion, the tide has turned and now marketers must radically trust the
consumer in order to build the brand. Trust is the
real currency in the social economy.
Does your company trust the customer?
Small businesses typically produce nearly half
of the U.S. private nonfarm GDP. You can’t help but feel that radical trust is an important part
of what holds our economy together. |
Through the Eyes of the Customer
Posted on September 26, 2016 at 4:34 PM |
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Beloit College released
their Mindset List for the class of 2020. This
year’s list contains 60 items that provide a look at the cultural touchstones
that have shaped the lives of this fall’s entering class. Most of this year’s freshmen were born in
1998, just for fun; take a look at the world through their eyes:
In general, the Mindset List is a statement of
experiences and events that shape the views of this year’s freshmen. It’s how they see and understand what occurs
around them. And since most people
believe their views are accurate it must also represent their understanding of
the truth. Their perception is their
reality. Marketing is involved in the process of dealing with
perceptions. What makes the process even
more challenging is that consumers frequently make purchasing decisions based
on second-hand perceptions (friends, family and other social connections). In short, they make purchasing decisions
based on another person’s perception of reality. If your organization views the world through
a product-centric position you may be inclined to dismiss the perception
challenge.
Market research facts and figures
convince you that the real truth is on your side and that the best product -
your product, will win. Do you believe that all you need is to have the truth on
your side? Perceptions
can be a source of strengths or of weakness.
It takes skill and discipline to overcome bad perceptions, to separate
reliable signals from deceptive ones, to filter out prejudice, expectation, and
fear in order to get down to the truth.
Most of us struggle to get past our perceptions, that’s why marketer’s
need to embrace the phrase “through
the eyes of the customer.” |
Does Your Favorite Brand Follow You Back?
Posted on September 26, 2016 at 12:53 PM |
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At the beginning of the 2014 NFL season
I posted a short article related to NFL teams Follow-to-Follower ratios on Twitter. That score
card showed that most NFL teams, like most major brands, don’t follow-back
their fans or customers: As you can see on the 2014 score card,
the average NFL team was following back just 0.46% of their fans. That ratio now stands at 0.27% which means
the odds of your favorite team following you back are actually decreasing. “This Copyrighted Broadcast is the Property of the
National Football League” Most
major brands, including NFL teams broadcast on Twitter; they don’t follow-back
for purposes of personal engagement.
That strategy doesn’t seem to hurt them either. For example, the Dallas Cowboys follower base
grew from 900K to 1.9M over the past two years and they went 4-12 last year! Does the brand manager for “America’s Team” even
need to show up for work? “Winners never quit, and quitters never win.” ~ Vince Lombardi Winners
never follow, and followers never get followed; unless it’s the Broncos. When it comes to sports we like to
follow winners. The Panthers follower
base grew over 550%, although they still lost the Super Bowl last year. The Super Bowl winning Broncos grew over
320%. Surprisingly, they follow back
over 6K of their fans ranking them third in the league. Deflatgate or not, the Patriots at 12-4 last
year grew 275%. “There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies and statistics.” ~ Mark Twain We
don’t follow losers, they follow you; go Chargers! The Chargers finished 4-12 last year. They also continue to lead the league by
following back 5% of their fans which comes to over 29K profiles. That’s less than half the capacity of Qualcomm Stadium but it’s far
better than any other team. |
The executive you’re targeting isn’t going to tell you their “biggest challenge.” Learn why.
Posted on August 23, 2016 at 11:34 AM |
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Don’t sell alone. Build your network early.
Posted on August 15, 2016 at 2:56 PM |
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To: Sales Manager Ref: No Network Connection I am writing in response to your request for additional information. In my sales pipeline report, I put “no
network connection,” as the cause for my sales pipeline miss. In your email to me, you said that I should
explain more fully. I was prospecting alone on a new account. During my visit, I discovered I had
competition, and lacked access to the decision maker. Rather than research potential networking
connections that might provide an introduction to the decision maker, I decided
to dazzle my contact with the feature functionality of our solution. I presented our company and product
information talking slowly to make sure my contact was clear concerning our value
proposition. Due to my surprise of their lack of interest, I lost my presence
of mind and recommended we move forward with a demonstration. Needless to say, the meeting came to a rapid
end and I was escorted out. On the way
out, I met our competition coming in. Not
taking this lightly, I broke into a rapid dialogue reiterating our product
functionality, not stopping until our competitor had passed. Fortunately, at this point I regained my presence of mind and was
able to suggest a special deal hoping to skip right to a proposal. At approximately the same time, however, we
reached the lobby. Without access to the
decision maker I was on my own and time was running out. As you might imagine, I began a rather rapid
dialogue concerning after-sales support fearing my opportunity was slipping
away. In the vicinity of the front door, I met a well-connected consultant
walking side-by-side with the decision maker.
This encounter with the consultant and decision maker slowed me enough
to realize I needed help. I’m happy to
report, as I walked across the parking lot, unable to continue my sales call,
watching the consultant walk off with the decision maker; I had the presence of
mind to make a networking request with the consultant. Once I develop a joint value proposition with
the consultant I should be back on track. I hope I have furnished the information you required as to how my
sales cycle stalled because, “I’ve been trying to sell alone.” |
Are High Pressure Closing Methods Ever Justified?
Posted on March 15, 2016 at 3:56 PM |
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“Alan, you’ve
been a real professional during this process; I’ve grown to trust you, and I honestly
like you. You’re going to get this order. That is, if you don’t mess it up at
the end.” It was early in my sales career and I was
sitting across the desk from my client, a bank president. It was a complex solution situation that had
been playing out for months. He was finally
holding my sales contract, valued at over one million. This deal would make my numbers for the year,
secure a promotion, and I was replacing a competitive system, making the win as
sweet as they come. As you might guess,
my mind set was in “closer” mode. I was now
trying to force my will on him. I wanted
him to sign the contract right then and there in order to make it official. NCR Corporation account executives had
always been known for their sales ability.
The training received was second to none, and I was now leveraging that
education for all that it was worth. I
wanted the deal to close, but my client was pushing back. Actually, he was trying to coach me. He was letting me know that an aggressive
closing strategy was not going to overcome his objection and make him sign that
day, and that I needed to turn the pressure down. Thank goodness I got the message and made the
right adjustment. When you’ve been working a deal for
months and are moving towards the close it can be difficult to resist the urge
to apply some pressure. In fact, lots of
pressure; because by the end of a long competitive sales cycle your brain (and
sales manager!) is screaming enough already!
After all, you want to close the sale before something happens to cause
the deal to fall through. Big deals
derail all the time and no one fights you harder than a major solution provider
who is about to be thrown out. So, what was the hang up? As it turned out, the president had decided
to bring in a new VP to oversee operations.
That meant he still did not have everything quite lined up the way he
wanted. But I still had fears with that type
of objection. What if the new executive
wanted to start the operations review all over again, and in the process change
the decision? In the age of social networking this is
where I would normally explain how my online skills saved the day by
immediately reaching out to establish a relationship with the incoming
executive. But this situation occurred
long before LinkedIn, Twitter or Facebook.
In fact, Google wasn’t even around.
Then this story is ancient history!
What could we possibly learn from it?
Well, first of all, that this isn’t a story about overcoming objections,
high pressure sales tactics or reacting to the introduction of new players
during the sales process. However; it
does present a lesson on why it can be useful to establish a solid relationship
at the highest point possible within an organization. Are you building rapport, developing credibility
and establishing trust at the highest-levels within your targeted accounts? If not, you should probably consider it. So, did I finally get the order
signed? The president didn’t sign it. He had his new operations executive sign it. |
Why your teleprospecting efforts are failing
Posted on February 25, 2016 at 8:25 AM |
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A mulligan, reload or redo; who wouldn’t
like to have a second chance? Sorry,
when it comes to getting the ear of your targeted executive prospect you’re
often lucky if you get a single shot.
That’s why I’m often amazed by the number of phone calls I receive in
which the caller’s goal is to “set up a time to chat.” If your targeted prospect actually answers
your call are you prepared to initiate a conversation that will capture their
attention and generate immediate interest?
Are you sure? Here is how many of
my conversations sound: Targeted prospect (phone is ringing): “Good morning, this is
Alan.”
Sales person: “Oh… Alan, hey thanks
for picking up. My name is John Smith
and I’m with ABC Company. We are a one-stop blah, blah, blah solution company
and I wanted to know if I could set up a time to chat about your needs.” Targeted prospect: “Well, you’ve got the decision
maker on the line now, so hit me with your best shot. What’s in it for me? What can you say in the
next 20 – 30 seconds that will keep my attention?” (Yes, I say those lines. I’m actually coaching them on how to
efficiently and effectively talk to me. I
never act like a jerk, or sound sarcastic.
I’m totally sincere.)
Sales person: (I can’t see them
because it’s a phone call. But I imagine they now look like a deer in the head
lights.) “OK… sure…. Like I was saying
we are a full service organization and I was hoping to schedule some time so
that my support team and I could explore your current and future projects and
see how we might help you. We’ve done
work for companies like Blah Company and More Blah Company. Look, I know you’re busy, so if you have
someone else on your team you want me to work with I’d be happy to do that.”
Targeted prospect:
“Well John, thank you
for respecting my time, but I also like to be respectful of my direct reports
time. By that I mean if I can’t
immediately see the strategic value then I certainly don’t want anyone on my
team spending time trying to force something to fit.” I’ll tell you what, I appreciate your call,
and I’ve made a note of your company.
I’ll let you know if we run into something you might help us with.”
Did I really “make a note?” Have I ever called back the sales person
after a conversation like that? Well, no, because there are no mulligans when
it comes to first impressions. Besides, I’m
still not completely sure what they can do for me, and I’m not going to spend
my time trying to tease out the value. Let’s
face it, their prospecting call fell short and I chose to end the conversation,
I just wanted to be polite during the exit.
What’s that? You don’t agree that I was being polite? Well, what if I agreed to a day and time for
another call, and then just cancelled the appointment later? I think we both agree that would be worse. Do all prospecting calls flow this
way? Of course not, there are going to
be occasions when additional time needs to be set up and other team members
(for both buyer and seller) brought into the loop. The main point here is that you need to be
prepared, just like you were going on a job interview, when it comes to initial
prospecting conversations with executive level decision makers. Here are some of my internal thoughts to consider: 1. Yes, I do answer
my phone quite often. That’s why having
an “appointment setter” call me is never going to work. Look, if that business model helps your
organization get productive business meetings then keep using it. If you are in the business of selling that service
and business is good, then continue selling it!
For me personally, it’s a waste of time.
The appointment setter might think they can “qualify” me as a prospect,
but I won’t be able to qualify you. The
call is over if I can’t probe for your personal credibility or feel some level
of trust developing. 2. Yes, I really do ask
“what’s in it for me” type questions. I
don’t care what companies you are already doing business with or that your organization
environment is a “Best Place to Work.” I
may care about those facts later on, but to initially get my attention you need
to hook me with a story and touch an emotion. 3. Stop trying to
close me on the initial call. Yes, I
understand, you have a monthly quota that needs to be retired. I know that your boss has made a commitment
to the executive office concerning your organizations quarterly results. And that your marketing department would love
to mount my brand logo on your “Our Customers” sales presentation slide. But what keeps you up at night isn’t what
keeps me up at night. So start out by
building a relationship that will open doors for me, not close deals for you. |
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