NZ Sales Manager Issue 3

Issue 3 / 11 th JUNE 2008

GRANT HALL SUSTAINABLE

SUCCESS

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SIMPLE TIPS For Recognising a Great Salesperson

The Good Water founder talks to us about selling his water with an eye on social and environmental responsibility

NZ’s fortnightly e-mag for sales leaders www.nzsalesmanager.co.nz

CONTENTS Issue 3

/ 11th JUNE 2008

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INTERVIEW Grant Hall

Good Water founder Grant Hall tells NZSM the secrets to his success, how to engage with your customers, and how to mix social and environmental responsibility with ‘good’ business.

7 THIS WEEKS

MUST READ

5 Simple Tips For

Recognising A Great Salesperson

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How recognise the right qualities in the people that can do the job.

9 TWO MINUTE TOP UP Selling A Payment

Not A Price

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13

The Changing Face of Retail Sales in Murky Economic Times

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NZSM CALENDER

13

THE CLOSE

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NEXT ISSUE

NZSM / JUNE 11th 2008 / 3

From the editor I

t seems to me that we have two courses of action to choose from in financially tough times.

One, we can spend all our time, effort and focus on getting creative about all the different ways we can cut spending, save money, and reduce our lifestyle to bare subsistence level.

Or two, we can spend our time, effort and focus on getting creative about all the different ways we can increase our income, create value and improve our lifestyle.

NZ Sales Manager is a Rev Sales Network publication.

About / Short, sharp and to the point, New Zealand Sales Manager is a free fortnightly e-magazine delivering thought provoking and enlightening articles, and industry news and information to forwardthinking sales managers, business owners and sales professionals.

EDITOR / Richard Liew DESIGNER / Jodi Olsson

Both of the above choices require an investment, yet each has a substantially different effect. One empowers you, the other controls you. One forces you to become bigger as a person, the other forces you to get smaller. One is what a good accountant would do, the other is what a good sales person would do.

Neither exercise is easy, but imagine what would happen to us as individuals (and as a nation!) if we all asked ourselves, “What can I do today to increase the value I’m creating?” rather than “What can I do today to reduce the amount I’m consuming?”

ADVERTISING ENQUIRIES / +64-93073519 or email richardl@nzsalesmanager.co.nz CONTENT ENQUIRIES / +64-93073519 or email richardl@nzsalesmanager.co.nz ADDRESS / NZ Sales Manager Magazine,127a Ponsonby Road, Ponsonby,Auckland, NZ. +64-9-307 3519 WEBSITE / www.nzsalesmanager.

Richard Liew

co.nz

NZSM / JUNE 11th 2008 / 4

INTERVIEW

GRANT HALL

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Fresh back from speaking at the World Earth Day Summit in Tokyo, Grant Hall talks to New Zealand Sales Manager about sales, marketing and sustainability.

NZSM: Grant can you please tell us a bit about The Good Water Company and what makes it different from all the other bottled water out there?

Grant Hall: The good water project has achieved its first major goal of producing a bottle from renewable and sustainable resources – plants vs. oil.

Our second goal is to have the Good Water bottle fully recycled here in NZ. We need people to support this project so that we can create the volumes of material required to make this goal achievable.

NZSM: And how long ago was Good Water started?

GH: We started working on this project almost 3 years ago but only launched the bottle last September.

NZSM: How did you come up with the idea?

GH: When we discovered to our horror that no plastic bottles are recycled in NZ! This was the catalyst that motivated us to look at both the material and how it was dealt with once used.

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good life’ as a positioning statement.

This quote came from a speech that he did live to the UN while in Antarctica.

We like to think that this product is both ‘good for you and good for the planet’.

Our positioning statement is simply: “Life is about choices, make a good choice.”

NZSM: And how did you determine the name and brand for the company?

NZSM: You were one of just five organizations from around the world who were asked to speak at a global Earth Month conference in Tokyo this month – can you tell us a bit more about that and how it came about?

GH: The name was conceived and suggested by the Sir Peter Blake Trust who used the famous quote: ‘good water,

GH: The business model we have set up has been recognized internationally as a best practice concept with regards NZSM / JUNE 11th 2008 / 5

to both social and environmental responsibility. We are fortunate that we have received lots of positive media exposure in many industry publications globally such as ‘bio-plastics’ magazine in Germany. This means that we are on the radar internationally.

NZSM: Having an idea is one thing but turning it into a business is another – what gave you the confidence that Good Water could make it commercially?

GH: Ten years experience in the beverage industry gives me the courage to back myself but we are also acutely aware that the NZ market is dominated by two huge multinationals which basically have a duopoly which they fiercely protect. The only way we can survive is to be far better in every respect which forces you to go above and beyond.

NZSM: What sales channels have you pursued and how would you describe your experience getting a new product into retail stores?

GH: Most bottled water is sold in service stations in NZ. These channels are well catered and certainly they are also well protected by current suppliers. The only way we have any chance of being recognized here is if our value proposition is exceptional. Shell NZ have recognized this and given us a chance to prove ourselves. Hopefully the others will follow soon...

NZSM: Do you have any advice for others looking to get their products stocked by retailers?

GH: Persistency, honesty and determination are critical. And don’t bother retailers until you are ready and confident you have a genuine point of difference!

strategy so you have to back yourself with an exceptional product and then follow up well.

When you own the company you are fully committed to sales . . . no one gets paid otherwise. But great sales people are hard to find. The best ones are good listeners and that is what I have learnt over the years. Great sales people listen more than they talk . . . it took me a while to learn that, but once I did, I started to succeed.

NZSM: You’ve invested quite a lot of time in promotional marketing ie attending festivals and events – where have you been and how has that worked out for you?

environmentally friendly innovations and more importantly pay for them?

GH: Most people in NZ are not prepared to pay more to do the right thing . . . but most Kiwis actually do care and many more are wanting more choices. Ultimately, we believe that with oil getting more expensive these types of products [made from bio-polymers] will offer better value.

We are actually working with Scion Research here in NZ to produce a bottle from Kiwi fruit skin which looks very promising.

NZSM: What separates successful people from unsuccessful people?

GH: Attitude.

GH: Our promotional strategy is based on a three word maxim: Engage; Interact; Delight.

We like to let the bottle do the telling . . . that means we need to engage where bottled water is being used.

Most people struggle to appreciate that it is possible to make a bottle from plants, but once you see it . . . then you appreciate it.

NZSM: What is the most important piece of advice you’d give to readers who would one day like to start a business of their own?

GH: Find what you love and then work out how you can add value to it.

Last summer was a huge one for us and we were incredibly busy, but we also loved the chance to meet and share our own passion for this project. We were also fortunate to have the support of some awesome patriots, as diverse as Tiki Taane to John Key. NZSM: What type of businesses would you recommend this type of marketing to and how do they get the most out of it?

NZSM: Can you tell us a bit about your sales experience and background prior to starting Good Water?

GH: Anyone involved in hospitality type products or services should consider this level of engagement. Our advice is to do as much of it as you can yourself.

No one else can share the vision as well as your own team.

GH: I have been involved in sales and marketing in some format for almost 20 years now . . . and I love it. Nothing happens in business until a sale is made!

But a one off sale is not a long term

NZSM: The Good Water Company is a classic example of turning a problem into an opportunity – do you think New Zealand’s buying public is “green” enough to embrace more

• G rant’s Top 5 Tips for

being a good guy or gal!

1. Remember today is the first day of the rest of your life – the future starts now; 2. Take responsibility for everything in your life – this will empower you; 3. Don’t give up on what you believe in; 4. Try to help others to achieve their goals;

5. Respect the earth – it’s the only one we have.

NZSM / JUNE 11th 2008 / 6

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T H I S WE E K ’ S M U S T R E A D

Simple Clues for How to Recognize a Great Salesperson

T

o understand what makes a great salesperson it is important to put yourself in the shoes of your customers. Only then will you truly understand how to distinguish between a great sales person who can have a significant impact on the customer’s bottom line and the conventional ‘Commission Seekers’.

Begin by asking yourself, as a businessto-business customer, what do you expect from the sales professionals who are asking for your time? This is a question you may not have considered. If Jeff Thull, CEO of Prime Resource pressed you’d likely say, “Well, I expect Group, lets us in on five tips on how them to answer my questions, sell me to hire great salesperson. the product or service I need, charge a fair price, deliver on time and follow through on promises.” This sounds reasonable for the most part, but as you know, in today’s complex business world, the rules of selling have through all the available alternatives. The right salesperson should be able to help the customer do so, and to create changed. The salesperson whose role once centered on a solution that the customer would not have been able to polished presentations and glossy brochures (often selfcome up with on their own. serving propaganda) must now function as a valued and

[

trusted advisor and be a source of competitive advantage.

If they’re not, you will likely see your margins eroding as even your most complex products and services are treated as simple commodities.

There are many, many companies that claim to offer the products and services your customers need. Yet, all too often the strategy of the sales force is to battle the competition on capabilities and pricing in order to capture the customer’s business. Reality is, that succeeding in today’s marketplace is not about price. It’s not even about products.

Instead, success means being able to understand the very real, very complex problems that customers face and sort

[

It is this characteristic, the ability to collaborate with the customer, stimulate their thinking and create revenue-building solutions that they don’t have the time or the wherewithal to create for themselves, that the customer should look for in sales professionals who they want to work with. This kind of salesperson is able to provide a competitive advantage for the customer’s company. They don’t sit across the desk from the customer, spewing information and hoping for a commission. They actually become an integral part of the customer’s business, making their life easier and contributing to their measurable success. It is the savvy salesperson who knows that the sales process is not ‘done to the customer’, but ‘with the customer.’

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So how do you distinguish top professionals from the traditional sellers? Your ability to spot the top professional is more and more critical to your, your company’s, and your customers’ success.

Look for these clues on how to spot great sales professionals:

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They diagnose the customer’s problem. When a sales professional launches into a description of his “solution” without first establishing a clear understanding of the customer’s situation, be wary. A great salesperson never assumes that he or the customer understands the very real, very complex problems the customer faces. Instead, like a good psychologist, he methodically questions and diagnoses until he uncovers the problems and expands the customer’s awareness. Once they both clearly understand the problem, and the customer perceives all the ramifications of that problem, then the salesperson is justified in making recommendations. After all, if the customer is not feeling any pain, why would they want to change? Diagnosis takes time and hard work. A credible salesperson proves that he is willing to provide both.

They ask questions, rather than tell stories. Conventional salespeople tell stories about their solutions, not to mention proclaiming the superiority of their company’s brand, history and reputation. Prospective customers expect to hear these stories and rarely take them seriously. (Think about it: do you?) Chances are your customers will take salespeople seriously when they display concern for the problems they may have and the expertise to solve them. This is demonstrated by asking questions, questions that the customer would not have thought to ask themselves. The true professional’s activity is additive to the customer’s knowledge as well as his or her own. How else could a sales professional acquire the raw information needed to make an accurate diagnosis and design an efficient solution?

3

They let the customer set the pace. If a salesperson is truly there to serve the customer, he will not rush them, pressure them or manipulate them. The last thing he will want to do is create mistrust or a confrontational atmosphere.

Therefore he will let the customer discover, understand the impact of and take ownership of problems before he discusses solution options. This will take a while. Your customer will know they have a great salesperson if they find themselves feeling emotionally comfortable and communicating openly. This state of being is the only way to do mutually beneficial business.

They help the customer calculate the cost of their problem. It’s not enough for a salesperson to say, “You have a problem and it’s costing you money.” She must say, “We need to determine how much this is costing you and see if it make sense to pursue a solution.” Vagueness is a red flag.

If a salesperson shies away from establishing an accurate cost, it’s either because a) she doesn’t know the cost (or is too lazy to do the work to find out), or b) she’s afraid the cost will be too low to justify the solution she’s offering.

Generally, the second reason is the most likely one.And maybe the customer’s problem isn’t significant enough to justify the expense. A great salesperson will suggest that and respect that outcome. As a manager, isn’t that what you want - salespeople who are focused on accounts where real need exists.

They don’t let the customer fall into the “creeping elegance” trap. Let’s say the customer becomes enthusiastic about the potential value of the solution that a salesperson is offering and they drop into the “as long as we’re going to do this we might as well also do that” mode of thinking. A conventional salesperson might let the customer run up your wish list, all the time counting up the extra commissions in his head. A great salesperson will ensure that the customer doesn’t expand beyond reasonable financial parameters. He knows that because complex sales by their very nature involve more than one decision-maker, if the customer unnecessarily expands the scope of a solution, one of his or her colleagues could shoot the whole project down. The result could be losing all of the business and the customer loses the benefit of the solution.

A truly good sales professional is worth his or her weight in gold. He will function as a consultant for the customer, a strategic partner, and even an advocate.

He will give the customer the competitive advantage.

Having salespeople of this caliber will shift your company’s relationship with its customers. Instead of their reluctantly dealing with a high-pressure adversary, they will find themselves forming a partnership based on mutual trust and respect - a partnership that is long lasting and beneficial to both businesses.

As your sales force begins to apply this approach, the difference will become apparent. Your salespeople will focus efforts where true need exists. They will form trusting, yet impenetrable customer relationships; and their close ratios will increase. To your advantage, managing their efforts will be more effective; forecasts will be more predictable; and fewer midstream challenges will occur.

TW O M I N UT E T O P - U P

Selling A Payment Not A Price: The Changing Face of Retail Sales in Murky Economic Times

By Alastair Noble

Everyone knows that when the economy gets a little murky, consumer spending slows dramatically as the consuming public nervously guards its pennies. So how does a retailer with aggressive budgets keep momentum rolling and a sales force earning? How does a typical business sales unit keep invoicing when decision makers are watching every penny spent?

the business as a whole was, but his branch wasn’t, in fact his sales team was making more commission than they ever had, and the store was breaking previous margin records. Buying him another pint I dug in to hear about his brilliant sales management and training that must be allowing him to defy economic gravity. What he revealed though was much simpler.

As any Sales Manager or Business owner will attest keeping your sales team happy and earning is vital to the business rolling on through an economic down swing.

Finance, even better interest free or deferred finance.

Just after a mediocre Christmas one large retailer looked at the market and anticipated a downturn, their strategy ever since Boxing Day has been to concentrate on big bold finance terms in their advertising rather than product or discounting. This strategy has meant this “big box” retailer has managed to keep sales firing on all cylinders. While their competitors are sacrificing margin and struggling to entice punters into their shops based upon price differentiation.

You might have started to notice the large retailers approach to this issue, I hadn’t until a conversation with a friend of mine who runs one of New Zealands largest electrical big box retail outlets. I mistakenly though his business must be hurting, somewhat ironically he revealed to me that

Although these sorts of finance terms cost a retailer and in turn the sales team in turns of margin erosion (due to finance claw backs) if you are a dynamic salesman and can role with the change in strategy it is actually a brilliant opportunity to make a lot more money than what you would normally. Provided you make the mind set change to selling a payment not a price.

Nothings harder as a retail salesman than trying to “add on” margin rich products to a core product purchase. This is always tough as most consumers have a mental spending limit when they enter a destination store, often after the battle to close them on the core product it’s hard to stimulate the customer back into buying mode as mentally they have finished their shopping. Every retail salesman can speak to the tough ask it is to keep selling and add to a sale when a customer’s mind is closed.

This is where my friend had gotten smart with his sales team. He concentrated solely on selling packages with his team, he drilled into them to sell a payment not a price for margin rich packages. When you’re selling a client onto finance terms which are interest free or deferred you can keep adding from the beginning, and sell the cusNZSM / JUNE 11th 2008 / 9

tomer very easily into a large margin rich package. If you take away all discussion of price, you avoid the discount conversation as well so you retain margin in your sale, you can also add on margin hero products until the cows come home as long as you keep the focus on the repayment amount as opposed to the goods value. Obviously when they repayments are based over 40,36 or 24 months the perceived cost of the goods drops to the customer.

Suddenly a $5000 package loaded with margin becomes a $35 per fortnight repayment.

When I went away and thought about this I realised the smart sales people are doing a variation of this in every industry. A friend of mine works for a communications company selling capital intensive systems, he works the least but bills the most every month of a handful of government accounts. Right from the beginning he figured out how to make local government bureaucracy work for him, he realised most local councils have limited capex budgets, but pretty fat opex budgets. If he submitted a large ticket proposal to council he would be waiting months as it was reviewed, budgeted, discussed, trimmed and he would have to align himself with budgeting cycles. His sales cycle for local government would be ridiculously long. Rather than doing this he partnered with a business leasing company, all his capital proposals are now submitted on financed leases, all he does is sell a solution payment now. Local councils all over Auckland are buying more from him than ever before as the cost is simply disappearing into

the bottomless pit that is council operating expenses. To add insult to injury he’s making more commission as the partnership is generating lease commission as well!

It seems to me that it doesn’t matter whether your selling in the shop or in the corporate environment, whether your selling computers or pabx’s, if you want to make hay while the sun isn’t shining maybe it’s time to think about how your selling? Are there opportunities for you to partner with someone and sell a payment not a price, this could be as easy as a termed payment scheme, extended

It seems to me that it doesn’t matter whether your selling in the shop or in the corporate environment...if you want to make hay while the sun isn’t shining maybe it’s time to think about how your selling? credit, or partnering with a business lease company.

In discussion around the office the obvious question popped up “is this ethical”?

I don’t really have a opinion either way except to say as a salesman I have never been able to sell somebody something they didn’t want or need! Maybe that makes me less of a salesman and more of a business person, after all they say “the art of good business is becoming a good middle man”!

Are you prepared for selling in the tough economic times ahead?

A clear vision and powerful reasons why we absolutely must succeed are essential for selling and business survival in tough economic times.

The Rev Sales Network and New Zealand Institute of Management invite you to join us as top sales man and performance expert Paul Kernot leads us through a goal setting session you won’t forget!

Whether you’re a sales person, manager, or business owner Paul delivers a timely and essential message for all of us.

If you have an upcoming sales conference or training day to organise, this also a great chance to preview what Paul can do for your sales team.

The Rev Sales Network and NZIM present: Paul Kernot—Preparing For Tough Times 12pm—2pm, Tues 24 June 2008 DLA Phillips Fox Tower 209 Queen Street, Auckland $49+gst (RSN & NZIM Members free) Includes light lunch

Call the RSN on 09 307 3519 or email andyr@rsn.co.nz to register you or your team now!

NZSM / JUNE 11th 2008 / 10

NZSM

CALENDAR SAT 14 JUNE

MON 16 JUNE Sales Development David Forman Wellington/Lower Hutt (June 16th - June 19th)

SUN 15 JUNE FRI 20 JUNE

SAT 21 JUNE

Customer Service Skills NZIM Auckland

SUN 22 JUNE THU 26 JUNE

FRI 27 JUNE

WED 11 JUNE Advanced Sales Development David Forman Auckland Time Management Richard Gee Auckland

TUE 17 JUNE Real Estate Marketing Sales & Marketing Ins. Prospecting for New Business EMA Northern Developing & Managing Business Relationships NZIM All Auckland

MON 23 JUNE Negotiation Skills University of Auckland Auckland Sales Planning David Forman Wellington Sales Development David Forman Auckland

SAT 28 JUNE

THU 12 JUNE

Advanced Sales Development

David Forman Auckland Constructing Your Sales System Chamber of Commerce Auckland Sales Management Richard Gee Auckland

WED 18 JUNE Developing & Managing Business Relationships NZIM Auckland Managing People University of Auckland Auckland

TUE 24 JUNE Sales Development David Forman Auckland

MON 30 JUNE

THU 3 JULY

FRI 4 JULY

THU 19 JUNE

Sales Basics Richard Gee Auckland Customer Service Skills NZIM Auckland Managing People University of Auckland Auckland

WED 25 JUNE Sales Development David Forman Auckland

TUE 1 JULY Customer Service David Forman Auckland Prospecting and New Business Development David Forman Auckland

SUN 29 JUNE WED 2 JULY

FRI 13 JUNE Advanced Sales Development David Forman Auckland

SAT 5 JULY

Customer Service David Forman Auckland

MON 7 JULY Business Acument University of Auckland Auckland

SUN 6 JULY TUE 8 JULY Business Acument University of Auckland Auckland

WED 9 JULY Time Management Richard Gee Christchurch

THU 10 JULY Key Account Management NZIM Auckland

FRI 11 JULY

SAT 12 JULY

Key Account Management NZIM Auckland

SUN 13 JULY

NZSM / JUNE 11th 2008 / 11

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    

 

   

               

THE CLOSE

“Success follows doing what you want to do. There is no other way to be successful.”

Malcolm S. Forbes, Founder Forbes Magazine

I N T H E N E XT I S S U E

*GRAHAM SOUTHWELL

The man who introduced referral organisation BNI to New Zealand talks to us about networking and its place in New Zealand business.

*Why motivation doesn’t work

*The importance of customer profiling when prospecting

NZSM / JUNE 11th 2008 / 13