Winning Edge: July 2015 - When Doors Open by Institute of Sales Management (ISM)

WINNINGEDGE FOR SALES AND MARKETING PROFESSIONALS

JULY/AUGUST 2015 | www.ismm.co.uk | Â£4.95

WHEN DOORS OPEN...

Managing opportunities to win more of your pipeline

BETTER BEHAVIOUR Boosting performance with adaptive selling

IN DECENT PROPOSALS What must go in to make your offering stand out

LEADING EDGE

Tips on effective sales leadership Cover V4.indd 2

TIME TO LISTEN

Customers can tell you the hard truth

JUST A JOLLY?

How to get more from sales kick-offs 16/07/2015 14:27

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8th October Ricoh Arena Coventry

NATIONAL SALES CONFERENCE 2015

Educate, Motivate & Innovate Breakout Sessions... Rob Brown Networking Mastery for Sales Professionals

Tack International Buyers’ Views of Sales People: Research Report 2015 and Q&A

ALSO PRESENTING...

“A must for all sales professionals” - BARCLAYS

Fiona Challis Sales Conversion Expert

Sean McPheat Best Selling Author of ‘eselling®’

John McCarthy CBE British Journalist Hostage in Lebanon

David Joel - IoD Leadership and Motivation

NATIONAL SALES EXHIBITION 2015

Showcasing the latest products, technologies and services to develop your sales force!

Midge Ure OBE Richard Newman Co-Producer Sales & Leadership Communication Expert of Band Aid

Geoff Burch International Business Expert

Fru Hazlitt Former Yahoo Sales Director & MD of Commercial ITV

BOOK NOW: www.sales-expo.co.uk NSC@lincolnwest.co.uk

Hosted by... Seán Brickell International Speaker, Coach & Author

Ticket Price: £270+VAT* *ISMM Member Discounted Rate

01732 525 950 Supported by

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Sponsored by

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CONTENTS

24 COVER STORY

CONTENTS

WINNINGEDGE

JULY/AUGUST 2015 www.ismm.co.uk

Harrier Court, Woodside Road, Lower Woodside, LU1 4DQ Tel: 01582 840001 Fax: 01582 849142 Email: sales@ismm.co.uk Website: www.ismm.co.uk Chairman: S R Watson-Challis President: W Eric Peacock CMG DL ISMM Honorary Fellows: HRH Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh KG KT, HRH The Princess Royal Vice Presidents: Lord Apsley, Angela Browning MP, Patrick Joiner FInstSMM, Lord Moynihan, Michael Pambos PhD FInstSMM, Dr William Pedley, Norman Waite FInstSMM Director of Business Development: Julian Reid Editorial: Marc Beishon, Tom Nash Design: Del Gentleman Editorial email: magazine@ismm.co.uk Advertising: James Driver Tel: 01582 840001 Email: magazine@ismm.co.uk Printing: Ridgeway Press © ISMM 2015. Opinions expressed are not necessarily shared by the ISMM. The publishers endeavour to check all facts and figures prior to publication, but are not responsible for errors in material supplied to them for publication. Any article published will automatically be deemed to carry the sole copyright and be the property of the ISMM. International Standard Serial No. UK ISSN 1746-6849

5 EDITORIAL

18 LEAD FROM THE FRONT

Looking forward to our grand sales tool round-up

Graham Scrivener’s ten top tips for effective sales leadership

6 SALES TALK

20 ARE YOU LISTENING?

A round-up of news and research from the world of sales

Few companies hear what their customers are telling them. Cindy Barnes tells us why they should

8 WIN FRIENDS AND SALES Mark Chung and Malcolm Evans say email is a missed opportunity

24 COVER STORY

9 BUSY GOING NOWHERE?

Garry Mansfield discusses how to manage sales opportunities to win more of your pipeline

A misplaced work ethic can be damaging, argues Kieran Hearty

28 PROPOSAL MAGIC

11 TOOLS FOR THE JOB

Sarah Hinchliffe presents the keys to effective proposal resourcing

Innovative equipment to help switched-on sales professionals

32 BRAINY THINKING

12 SMARTER SELLING Beating bribery, expenses management, teleselling, prospecting, negotiating and ‘Coat Hanger’ – our look at the lighter side of sales life

Advances in psychometric and behavioural profiling offer major sales benefits, says Mark Erskine

36 CONVENTION CLANGERS Watch out for sales conference pitfalls, warns Mark Blackmore

16 PITCH PERFECT

40 BOOKS

Robin Kermode advises on getting your message across to buyers

Marc Beishon reviews a pictorialdriven book on value propositions WINNING EDGE 3

3 Contents V3.indd 3

15/07/2015 15:58

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OPINION

EDITORIAL COMMENT

GOING DIGITAL THE WORLD IS GOING DIGITAL AND MOBILE – SALES ORGANISATIONS SHOULD TOO

f there was a view that tools for increasing the effectiveness of frontline salespeople and of sales management have peaked, that’s been dispelled in the past year or so as a plethora of new and enhanced offerings have hit the market. The choice of new software in areas such as deal making, gamification and presentation is now great and there are providers specialising in enterprise and/or small businesses. At the same time, the big underpinning CRM platforms are now “in the cloud” and available on a subscription basis to any firm. The impact of CRM and mobile systems, in turn underpinned by the rise of the smartphone and tablet, is turning out to be profound, with millions more workers projected to be mobile, especially in verticals such as manufacturing, construction, retail and Workers will soon “The digital economy healthcare. also be kitted out with “wearable” technologies that will be a vital driver aid communications and of growth in Europe” will workflows, and where the introduction of “machine to machine” systems and the “Internet of things” will take us is impossible to say yet, but there will be major innovations to come. In London just a few weeks ago, the mighty Salesforce, the pioneer of cloud-based CRM and driver of a huge business applications community, cited research from IDC, the analyst, that “the Salesforce economy” will make more than £5.6bn of impact to the UK’s GDP and create 50,000 new jobs by 2018. Overall, the so-called “digital economy” is expected to be a vital driver, although there are regulatory hurdles to be surmounted in the European Union’s single digital market strategy that will release its full potential. We make these points for two reasons. One is market opportunity, not only for technology WHEN providers but also for other firms that need to DOORS understand where the digital economy is taking OPEN... their customers, as that is likely to affect market and product positioning. (And if you’re a salesperson looking for strong companies to join, many technology providers will be ones to watch.) The other reason is what we do with technology in our own organisations, and in particular in sales.

WINNINGEDGE FOR SALES AND MARKETING PROFESSIONALS

JULY/AUGUST 2015 | www.ismm.co.uk | £4.95

Managing opportunities to win more of your pipeline

BETTER BEHAVIOUR Boosting performance with adaptive selling

IN DECENT PROPOSALS What must go in to make your offering stand out

LEADING EDGE

Tips on effective sales leadership

Cover V4.indd 2

ISMM.CO.UK

5 Editorial V2.indd 9

TIME TO LISTEN

Customers can tell you the hard truth

JUST A JOLLY?

How to get more from sales kick-offs

16/07/2015 14:27

The cautionary view of technology, especially IT-related, is that a lot of it goes to waste through poor implementation and low buy-in. There are still many examples of big IT projects that fail or deliver woefully on their initial promise, often because of a lack of attention to exactly how business processes can be changed and developed. There has recently been a lot written about sales enablement or effectiveness in management terms but not so much about how technology can be integrated properly, although the correlation with sales performance is pretty much now established for companies that successfully roll out CRM and sales tool add-ons to the majority of their salesforce. As CSO Insights has reported, the gap between the haves and have nots is widening. But CSO also emphasises that “thinking technology alone will solve your problems is one of the key reasons sales transformation initiatives fail”. Maybe companies that are trying to develop their sales effectiveness are making things too complex, and one way to increase success is to take one part of the picture and use one piece of technology. The good news is that no matter what part of sales enablement is focused on, there is bound to be a choice of tool to help. First you need a sales effectiveness model, and consultant ZS Associates has managed to reduce it to just four headings – ensure the right customer coverage plan, increase the impact of each customer interaction, create a performance-focused sales team, and enable efficient and effective sales operations. There are of course subsections in these, such as territory and pipeline management in the coverage plan, and sales process and account planning in customer interaction. But these serve to suggest areas to focus on and to introduce technology, say a content system or a web meeting service for customer interactions. In the next issue of Winning Edge, we’ll have our annual sales tool round up, which looks certain to be a bumper article. WINNING EDGE 5

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SALES TALK INDUSTRY NEWS

EMPLOYMENT

PRODUCTIVITY

STRESS WILL STOP SALES Workplace stress reduces mental ability Salespeople who believe they perform better under pressure are labouring under a false pretence, suggests new research, which shows that acute stress negatively affects people’s ability to think critically, use reasoning and make practical day-to-day decisions. Benenden Health, which conducted the research, says it “demonstrates just how important it is that businesses ensure that staff feel comfortable and are not put under even minor stress while at work.”

BUZZWORD

‘CRM’

UK SALES HIRING SHOCK

Sales recruitment procedures fall far short of best practice, says study Most UK organisations end up disappointed with some of the sales executives they recruit. But the vast majority of these companies stick doggedly to outdated, ineffective and inflexible recruitment processes. Only a minority of firms turn to third party methodologies and out-of-house expert advice to alleviate their sales recruiting problems. These are the alarming findings of a national survey into sales executive recruitment, run jointly by the British Institute of Learning and Development (BILD) and the Universal Sales Skills Audit (USSA). The majority of employers (58%) report that some sales executives “aren’t as good as we would like”. The findings suggest a worrying reliance on old-fashioned attitudes to sales recruitment and training, with the same proportion of employers believing that “salespeople should know what they are doing”. Meanwhile, 87% of employers allow mere

assessments of a candidate’s CV to influence their decision, while 63% admit to adhering rigidly to in-house formally structured interviews – approaches that can miss unusual talent and play to candidates who are well briefed in traditional interview techniques. These approaches persist despite fewer than half believing their own methods provide a detailed picture of candidates’ sales skills, while just a third say their processes are effective in reducing hiring failure rates. Many sales organisations also adopt a seatof-the-pants approach to training with 42% using just the interviews to identify areas for development while only a third use a formalised training methodology and fewer still employ a third party assessment of skills gaps. Having identified problems with recruited sales staff, only 17% of companies admit to shedding under-performers, leaving many in post.

EDUCATION

DIPLOMAS DRIVE SALES SUCCESS

Customer relationship management (CRM) is a business strategy with outcomes that optimise profitability, A leading recruitment firm has invested in ISMM qualifications revenue and customer satisfaction by identifying customer segments, Fifteen recruitment consultants at ConSol which will help to change the way that the fostering customer-satisfying Partners, a specialist technology recruitment recruitment industry is viewed.” behaviours and implementing agency, have achieved ISMM Level 3 Diplomas The training initiative represents an investment customer-centric processes. CRM in Sales and Marketing Management. The firm of almost £100,000 and Beswick believes it will technologies should enable greater worked with training provider saleslearn.com. cement ConSol Partners position as a learning customer insight, increased customer Russell Beswick, head of learning and and development leader in the recruitment access, more-effective development at ConSol Partners, says, industry. “It will help us provide a superior level interactions, and “We’re proud to have such strong of service to clients and candidates, and help our integration Watch out for home-grown talent. This consultants to be tomorrow’s leaders,” he says. throughout all our annual qualification will enhance the sales Daniel Cox, one of the 15 consultants who customer channels skills and business ethics of our have achieved their ISMM Diploma, says it has round-up of the latest and back-office employees, in turn instilling added real value to his service offering: “The CRM and sales enterprise confidence in our clients. It also qualification has helped me leverage more automation tools in the functions. demonstrates our commitment to relationships and bring on new business, while September-October Source: Gartner

edition of Winning Edge

6 WINNING EDGE

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investing in high-level training,

knowing that I’m following best practice.”

ISMM.CO.UK

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SALES TALK | INDUSTRY NEWS

Talking Point

SHORT SELLING N EW S RO UND- UP

MY ONE P IECE OF ADVICE

WIN-LOSS ADVANTAGE

Companies that carry out win-loss analysis have higher company performance metrics, including increased revenues and greater product competitiveness, than those lacking such programmes, a report by US firm Primary Intelligence has found. See primary-intel.com

What is the one piece of advice you would give a seller to help them exceed their sales targets this year? “Focus on uncovering objectives, not overcoming objections” Kyle Porter, CEO, SalesLoft “Transform your sales engine with inbound selling” Mark Roberge, CRO sales products, HubSpot “Your biggest nemesis is the status quo” Jill Konrath, author, Agile Selling “Sell with hustle, passion, and intensity” Mike Schultz, president, RAIN Group “You have to go back to the basics” David Blume, VP of strategic alliances, Qvidian Source: raintoday.com, published by RAIN Group

TECHNOLOGY

CUSTOMERS COME FIRST Digital strategies are making customer experience top priority The top drivers for embarking on digital transformation initiatives among UK businesses include: providing best customer experience (37%), new services or experiences for customers (37%) and identifying new revenue streams for the business (32%). The study, by software specialist Apigee, finds that the proliferation of mobile devices and apps has given many UK businesses opportunities to connect with customers, wherever they are, through digital information and services. More than one in three UK companies surveyed say digital improvement is their top priority. But most are focusing on simply building mobile apps and not incorporating the API and analytics programs necessary for enabling digital business, it says. The report finds that companies that are investing in these core digital technologies are eight times more likely to report increased revenue from digital activities than those that delivered apps alone.

ISMM.CO.UK

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SALES IN CYBER SCARE ONLINE REVIEWS

FIRMS STUNG BY ONLINE CRITICS

New research shows UK firms fighting negative content Malicious online reviews and comments are now a major commercial concern for British firms – costing one in five at least£30,000 a year, according to research from reputation specialist, Igniyte. The report reveals that half have been directly affected by negative content and “trolling” in the last year alone. A further 17% think unfair negative posts could destroy their enterprise completely. Three-quarters of business owners are concerned about the influence of malicious postings on new generation, third party review sites – where consumers are prompted to report “bad” service. As a result, the report finds firms are making online review and reputation strategies a priority. Last year 30% admitted spending at least £20,000 tackling negative content and building a more robust online reputation, while another 18% invested £30,000 or more trying to put things right. A further 14% are keen to get help, but don’t know what to do. “Used properly, review sites and forums are a force for good, giving consumers a much needed voice,” says Caroline Skipsey, Igniyte’s managing partner. “But a growing number of companies are falling victim to unjustified negative content online and the effect can be devastating.”

Sales staff and call centre teams are among the most likely to be hit by cyber attacks, but most customer-facing personnel do not get security training, a survey by Intel Security shows. The firm says the risk of untrained employees clicking on dangerous links is rising, but more than half of organisations do not provide training for sales staff.

MAZDA MASTER

Andy Taylor, a sales executive from Mazda specialist Furrows of Shrewsbury, has become one of only four salespeople in the UK to become a Mazda Guru – the car manufacturer’s top training excellence award

JOINING FORCES

Sales intelligence software provider sales-i has integrated with Salesforce and SugarCRM, enabling businesses using these systems to access all the functions of the sales-i solution.

IN THE MOMENT

Coaching firm Whitten & Roy Partnership has launched a drive to help businesses transform sales performance. Founders Roy Whitten and Scott Roy believe that the power of attitude is as important as sales effort and skills, and teach the value of “present-moment-awareness”.

PAYPHONES

Oxygen8, a provider of communication and customer engagement technology, predicts that over 31 million UK mobile users (92%) will make payments with their mobile device in 2015.

ALSO IN AMERICA

Pareto Law, the UK’s largest sales development company, has opened an office in New York, as it seeks to build its presence in the US market.

WINNING EDGE 7

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OPINION EMAIL

WIN FRIE ND S – A ND SA LE S

By Mark Chung and Malcolm Evans

EMAIL IS CURRENTLY A MISSED OPPORTUNITY FOR SALES, BUT IT DOESN’T HAVE TO BE

hen sales and marketing come together, their rivalry can get in the way. Marketing believes it can sell better than sales and the sales organisation believes the marketing department creates confusion. Today, the central point where both functions connect, marketing communications, has evolved, adding another layer of infrastructure. It works, but at further cost and, all too often, confusion. How could the same customer messaging be achieved more efficiently, without additional complexity and costs? The challenge is to bring sales, marketing and business development together in a more collaborative way. EMAIL IS HERE TO STAY Email is a growing method of marketing communication, whether from a desktop PC in the office or via a smartphone/tablet when mobile. Companies are all thinking the same way – send lots of emails because they are quick and cheap. But, although marketing has done a great job in adapting to communication trends and increasing the use of email, it is seldom on target when communicating directly with the customer. Often information is presented that is not relevant. In addition, emails generated from impersonal 8 WINNING EDGE

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MARK CHUNG (left) is a Fellow of the ISMM and owner of consultancy Lancashire Marketing Solutions. Email mark.chung@ lancashiremarketingsolutions.com or visit the firm’s website at lancashiremarketingsolutions.com MALCOLM EVANS runs SalesAccent in Atlanta, Georgia, delivering sales training, hosting a popular radio show for sales and small business people, and writing the sales blog ‘Axentuate’. Visit www.axentuate.com and www.salesaccent.com

sources, such as “the company” or “the marketing department” have been found to be less likely to be opened. Even if a friendly-sounding personal sender is used, it is still an unknown individual invading each recipient’s inbox. As a result, when the two topics – email and marketing – come together, the numbers don’t add up. Companies typically see an open rate of 6% or less. Email use may be on the rise, but a 94% not-opened rate proves it’s far from effective. So what approach would increase the open rate and gain more attention? What if we put the email marketing into the hands of salespeople and empowered them to help channel appropriate messaging to their customers? Looking more deeply at how salespeople communicate with their customers, it is apparent that even though emails are fast and get the message delivered, little care and effort is taken in crafting them. They are often confusing or long-winded, sometimes difficult to understand, don’t reflect what the customer needs or, worse, they are product feature statements with no added value content. In short, they do not stand out from the many other emails their customers receive. SURGICAL MARKETING What could be done to grab customers’ attention, make them engage and click on the link or give you a call? The answer is to combine all three elements together – marketing, sales and email – resulting in higher engagement with customers. Marketing creates suitable content and messaging, adds topic-related images and puts it all into a library, where salespeople can easily access it. Sales, which understands what the customer needs, then chooses the appropriate message for their customer’s interests, delivers it directly to them, tracks if it has been opened, and then goes on to develop the relationship. We call this “surgical marketing”. By using it, email open rates go through the roof – 70-80% is not uncommon. I’ve heard it said many times by salespeople that “We don’t need more customers, we need more friends.” Why? Because we all prefer to buy from those we identify as friends and trust. Surgical marketing focuses on making more friends. The relationship it engenders is less about the immediate sale and more about taking time to establish common ground and develop friendship and trust, after which sales will surely follow. Surgical marketing is a simple model, combining technology and humanity. It enables small changes in sales approach, adaptive behaviour and subtle use of imagery and messaging. Ultimately, it will take us closer to that promised land where our customers are happy and loyal, and profits for them and us are higher. ISMM.CO.UK

15/07/2015 16:05

A MISPLACED WORK ETHIC COULD BE DAMAGING YOUR RESULTS, YOUR TEAM, YOUR BUSINESS – AND YOURSELF

OPINION WO RK ET H IC GOING NOWHERE FAST?

ave you ever had a great idea, but not followed it through? Most of us have – and our most common excuse is “I was too busy”, or “I didn’t have enough time.” The decision by many leaders, including sales leaders, to prioritise “work” that is more important to them personally than it is for the business lies at the heart of many workplace and sales organisation problems.

By Kieran Hearty

TRYING TOO HARD As you follow your upward career trajectory, are you too willing to make personal sacrifices and out-work your competitors? It’s a common, but misplaced “virtue”, resulting in many leaders being too task-focused and not sufficiently strategic. A recent Gallup survey concluded that 82% of managers are wrongly appointed – and their excessive work ethic could be one reason why. It often comes with an acute inability to see the wood for the trees and articulate clear goals. If effort and hard graft are the only tools in your management toolbox, then feeling stressed and overwhelmed become ingrained in the culture you create. It’s unhealthy for you and your people, and it’s damaging your results. If this is you, consider these recommendations.

“Many people describe their organisations as toxic, with destructive levels of stress being the norm” Required decisions: Fill your calendar with regular coaching and development conversations with each team member. Develop your capability as a coach and results will follow.

1. FOCUS ON RESULTS, BUT DELEGATE TASKS Research shows that the value to the business of managers who do not assume proper responsibility for their new role falls dramatically. The manager who fails to step up to the plate is, in reality, being lazy – because they prefer to remain in their comfort zone, rather than take on the challenge of their new responsibility. Required decisions: Make the transition to manager and take full responsibility for the role. Get help in becoming skilful at writing great goals and how to express results in team performance plans. Make the decision to let go of day-to-day work tasks, and ask your team to help you with this. 2. CONCENTRATE ON CAPABILITY. COACH AND DEVELOP TEAM MEMBERS Recognise that the capability and motivation of team members may differ. Your success as a manager is a result of the quality and quantity of their output. Investing time in helping each team member to become brilliant is common sense. ISMM.CO.UK

9 Comment Hearty V2.indd 9

KIERAN HEARTY is a leadership coach. He has many years experience as a manager and leader at major global technology companies, including 18 years with Intel. He is author of How to Eat the Elephant in the Room. Visit www.igiveu.co.uk

3. IMPROVE PRODUCTIVITY OVERNIGHT. REDUCE MEETINGS AND EMAIL BY 50% Research has shown that most of us waste 20% of our time in unnecessary, poorly-managed meetings, and another 20% dealing with worthless emails. Required decisions: Learn about email etiquette, and then rigorously apply it. Commit as a team to reducing the emails you send by 50%, and only read emails two or three times a day. Learn how to run effective, well-structured meetings. Get up and walk to a colleague’s desk for a quick chat rather than send an email or arrange a meeting. Prioritise meetings with team members. LESS IS MORE Many people describe their organisations as toxic, with destructive levels of stress being the norm. We’re not machines. We can’t cope with the sheer volume of stuff we bombard each other with. Most of us already have strong commitment, but let’s not get carried away by continuously striving to prove it. In the pursuit of sustainable excellence, great results, and healthier workplaces, less “work” translates into more thoughtful decisions, more effective management and more profitable outcomes. It’s simple common sense that’s good for business, your team and yourself. WINNING EDGE 9

15/07/2015 16:06

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ON THE MOVE

G A D G E T S F O R D I S C E R N I N G P RO F E S S I O N A L S

ROUND-UP

TOOLS FOR THE JOB | GADGETS

PROJECTOR

LIGHT BEAM

LG has brought out several new models in its Minibeam projector, including the Minibeam Nano (model PV150G), its smallest and lightest to date, tipping the scales at 270 g. It also has a wireless mirroring function that allows it to connect to a smartphone or tablet, and can also run from USB sticks. There is also the Minibeam Pro (PF1500), an HD model, and the smaller Minibeam TV (PW800), which has a TV tuner. TABLET

MOTORING

BACK TO THE FUTURE

APPS

This isn’t strictly a new car marque but DS Automobiles, previously run by Citroen, now markets the DS range in the UK, and this latest DS 5 model continues a tradition in up-market French cars that goes way back to the first DS that was unveiled at the 1955 Paris motor show. It certainly has a striking design – dubbed “avantgarde” – and has a choice of two trim levels – Elegance and Prestige – along with a new 165 bph petrol engine, three BlueHDi diesels and a Euro 6 compliant hybrid 4x4 drivetrain. And there’s a DS 5 1955 limited edition in an ink bluey colour with 1955 badging. There was some criticism of the handling of the previous DS 5 but this one has shock absorbers with PLV (pre-loaded linear valve) technology and the car is claimed to “soak up bumps and dips in the road more effectively”. It’s out now.

Office Remote is a free Android app that allows you to control Microsoft Office applications running on a PC – PowerPoint, Excel and Word – from your mobile phone. The app works with an add-in installed on your PC, and actions are transmitted via Bluetooth. You need to have a desktop version of Office 2013 and the corresponding add-in for Office Remote. So, you can control PowerPoint slides with your Android phone. There’s also a version for Windows phone users, and an iOS version is probably on the cards.

SLIDE PHONE

NOTEBOOK

SCREEN ORBIT There’s life in larger notebooks, as Toshiba shows with this Satellite Radius 15 – it’s a 15.6 inch model with an HD screen that’s “built for Windows 10” and is also a convertible, with a 360 degree hinge that allows you to choose between five positions so you can display content during presentations at various angles. It’s powered by an i5 processor but battery life isn’t that great at 7 hours. You get a backlit keyboard and dual mics to get the best out of Cortana, Microsoft’s personal digital assistant. You can also link wirelessly to larger displays.

BRIGHT XPARK

Sony says the Xperia Z4 is the world’s lightest and slimmest 10 inch tablet, and also has the world’s brightest 10.1 inch 2K display of the leading tablets and a long battery life (up to 17 hours of video playback). You can use it with the BKB50 Bluetooth keyboard, which has a slot for the Z4, and there are also printer and projector outputs, making it good for business as well as pleasure. COMPUTER

PC ON A STICK

Intel’s Compute Stick is a pocket-sized computer based on a quad-core Atom processor running Windows 8.1 that “can transform any HDMI display into an entry computer capable of working with productivity apps, playing local or streamed content, driving basic digital signage or enabling thin clients”. So you can just travel with this and it could be useful for demos and at shows.

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15/07/2015 16:07

SMARTER SELLING

INTERNATIONAL SALES

BEATING BRIBERY John Lynch says understanding bribery and corruption is vital to success in export sales CYNICAL PLOYS Let’s start with the case mentioned – the one where you take the amount you need to see in your bank account when the transaction is over, and add to it a margin that will be divided between others. To stay within the law, you’ll need to appoint an agent. The end customer says your product has to be tested by a nominated third party. That third party says, “Pay me 10% of the sale value or your product will fail.” The message may not be quite so blunt, but you’ll be in no doubt about what it means. If you don’t have a local agent, my advice is to walk away. You’re probably not the only person being blackmailed, you can’t all win, and if you pay up and don’t get the order, there’s very little you can do. Don’t, though, go to the end customer and complain, because the end customer already knows. They’ll be getting a share of that 10%. In richer countries, especially in the Middle East, many buyers are not local. They’ve been hired from other, poorer, countries. They aren’t paid much, but they plan to go home with a nice pot of savings and, by and large, they achieve that. Where

n the old days, it was easy. You padded your invoice with the going rate for bribes in the country you were selling to, and when you were paid you handed the extra money to whoever was deputed to distribute it. But that was before the UK had the Bribery Act or the US the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and it was before the OECD introduced the Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions. Don’t imagine that these laws have eliminated corruption in the world. They haven’t. Nowhere is completely immune to bribery, and there are very few countries where it’s rare enough to be ignored. But there is now increased international pressure to stamp bribery out. So the answer is simple, isn’t it? You’d be breaking the law so you don’t get involved. That’s fine – as long as you accept that the result will be that you don’t have any sales. The subject is huge and controversial. My book, The International Sales Handbook, goes into detail on the many forms corruption can take. For now, I’ll draw your attention to some of the more common practices and risks, including diverting money, buying business and dealing with procurement staff.

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“Nowhere is completely immune from bribery; there is a very small number of countries where it’s rare.” does the money come from? It comes from you, and many others like you, in fact. Once again, you need a local agent.

JOHN LYNCH has more than 40 years experience in international sales, working on every continent except Antarctica. He is the author of The International Sales Handbook and runs consultancy profitableexporting.com, which aims to help companies build their export sales business through coaching, seminars and hands-on consultancy. Email him at jl@profitableexporting.com or visit www.profitableexporting.com

JUST SAY “NO” Corruption runs in both directions. If a salesperson has the power to influence a decision – for example, on who becomes a distributor or which contractor gets a valuable contract, or to overlook failure to achieve a contractual term – someone, somewhere is going to offer the salesperson money. One day, it will happen to you. If you’re tempted, just be aware that people will know. Once you’ve accepted a bribe – because that’s what you’d be doing – your behaviour changes, and so does the behaviour of whoever paid you. Your colleagues will know, your boss will know, your competitors will know. Perhaps worst of all, you will know. Just remember to say how grateful you are for the offer, but, “I can’t accept payment from anyone but the company that employs me.” ISMM.CO.UK

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SMARTER SELLING

Ask Anne T ELES ELLI N G MA DE S IM PLE Many of my clients require inbound customer service staff to up-sell or cross-sell to customers who call in to place orders. This means either increasing the value of an order while they have them on the line, or selling customers additional products. Here are some of the questions I’ve been asked – and the advice I’ve been giving.

EXPENSES

GETTING YOUR MONEY BACK

l Some customers don’t know the

range of your services or products until you tell them, so you are helping them to save time by buying in the same place l You may be able to offer a price discount or free postage/delivery for a larger order l It is easier to maintain customer loyalty if they purchase more goods or services from you l Up-selling and cross-selling is a quick way to grow a business.

My inbound customer service staff are reluctant to ask clients about other products that they may need. How can I help them to remember How can I strengthen staff skills in to ask the questions and secure up-selling and cross-selling? more orders? Some staff will always feel This is a very common uncomfortable trying to taying on top of your expenses frees you up to “Most issue. Most customer up-sell and cross-sell. The do the job you’re paid for, and protects you customer service personnel see recruitment process for from costly or embarrassing mistakes. So: service personnel themselves as orderfuture staff should l Get to know your policy. If your proposed outlay is see themselves as order-takers takers rather than sales therefore include justifiable but not covered, raise an emergency rather than staff, and this is the candidates who have exception to get it approved before you incur it. sales staff” perception that needs to done some outbound l Don’t rely on scrappy paper receipts. As soon as your be overcome. The easiest telesales calls as well as expense is incurred, log it somewhere permanent. way to start is by educating customer service work, to Taking a photo of the receipt is one easy way – and to your staff about what kinds of achieve an even balance of skills and protect yourself further, email the photo to yourself. products make “product partners” help the team embrace up-selling Capture all the supporting information you need at the with the goods or services they are and cross-selling naturally. time. Does the receipt relate to a project number? taking orders for. For example, a Write that on before you photograph it. Ditto client of mine who sells grease What can I try straightaway? the currency, if not clearly stated, and the always encourages his You could try discounting some names of the people you were with. customer service staff to ask product partners or services for a l Submit your expenses regularly. The customers if they need a limited period. This may give your more they pile up the more difficult of staff fail to claim grease gun to go with it. customer service staff motivation to they are for you and your finance By having these product start asking the up-sell and cross-sell department to process, and the more back all their business partners in mind, it’s much questions, while also feeling good likely you are to make a mistake that expenses. Lost receipts easier to initiate a about giving a discount. could get you into trouble or cost you is the main reason conversation about what may money by having your claim rejected. be needed to go with the order. l Make best use of your expense ANNE BAGNALL is management system (if your organisation Founder and managing How can I help my staff understand uses one). For example, by downloading your director of Phonetic, a the importance of up-selling and credit card statement into the system, you can call centre specialising in cross-selling to customers, without reconcile card charges directly to expenses, which will B2B telemarketing. She also them feeling pressured? help you avoid late payment fees and ensure that has a consultancy and It’s really important to highlight the foreign expenses are repaid in full. Expense training company called Phonetic Elite, positives of up-selling and crossmanagement tools, especially those with a mobile app, which specialises in telesales coaching selling. For example: take much of the donkey-work out of the process, for and training. She is happy to answer instance by analysing your receipt photos to fill in your reader questions privately. Contact her l It costs seven times more to claim automatically. at anne@phoneticgroup.co.uk or visit generate a new customer, than to sell www.phoneticgroup.co.uk to an existing one DEAN FORBES is CEO at KDS, a travel and expenses management

Dean Forbes offers tips to ease your expenses claim

45%

solutions provider. Visit www.KDS.com

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SMARTER SELLING

PROSPECTING

IT PAYS TO BE PICKY Claire Edmunds suggests how to fill your sales pipeline with high quality prospects use of it and including new contacts in marketing activities to help build up the demand for next year and beyond. Stay focused – keep the size of the “fishing net” appropriate to the volume of deals you really need to see materialise. Make your underperforming salespeople more productive by isolating the reasons for poor performance – usually a combination of gaps in knowledge or skills and either low activity levels or activity directed in the wrong places. Then define a performance improvement process with the individual, where they feel motivated to improve. Make your best salespeople even more productive. This means you shouldn’t support non-performance by giving good leads to poor salespeople. Work with sales management to increase the productivity of your very best salespeople and help them to engage confidently in demand generation activities. Don’t expect all salespeople to welcome the support they get from marketing. Many will have had poor experiences of demand generation in the past and if they are successful, will probably have had to achieve this on their own. Often you have to educate the best salespeople and “sell” the benefits of demand generation activities with strong evidence that they are going to get a return on their time. Not every pound of pipeline is worth the same – some cost more to generate, such as new opportunities in new name accounts, larger strategic deals or taking new propositions to market. Be aware of the cost of the pipeline you generate and its long-term value to the business, especially if it’s in a new name account or an account you are trying to upgrade to strategic. People often (and salespeople very often) take the path of least resistance, especially when they are under pressure to deliver numbers quickly. You can make sure that the value of your pipeline deals are not undermined early on in the sales process by securing sales management visibility early. It’s important to recommend executive sponsorship programmes for new logo acquisition.

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ere are my ten suggestions on how best to target the right prospects – and say no to the wrong ones. It’s about quality of prospect, as well as quantity, so turning away some potential customers can sometimes be the best strategy for your business.

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Make sure that you have joined-up plans between sales and marketing for key accounts and that a coordinated approach has been agreed. Select your accounts for the right reasons. Always ask yourself: are they the best fit for your proposition and your business? Will they get the best value by working with you? Don’t select accounts for political reasons, for example because a board member has a particular agenda, there’s political pressure from a partner, or funding is available. Remember, doing what is right for your pipeline is doing what is right for your business, even if it means saying no. Track conversion ratios, both in terms of the percentage conversion and the amount of time opportunities sit at different sales stages. Feed this back into your pipeline activities so that you can identify exceptions, reactivate prospects stalled in the pipeline and target the right marketing assets at the right stage of the sales process. This will ensure that you get the best possible return on business development investment. Ensure that all demand generation activities are undertaken within your own systems, so that you build and enhance your own data. As you develop your data, make sure that you are making

“Be aware of the cost of the pipeline you generate and its long-term value to the business”

3 4

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CLAIRE EDMUNDS is CEO of Clarify, a consultancy specialising in strategic business development. Visit www.clarify-uk.com

These suggestions are designed to help build a pipeline of opportunities that will energise and excite your business, as well as giving you confidence that you’re not missing the best opportunities in your market. ISMM.CO.UK

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SMARTER SELLING

Coat Hanger T H E LI GH T ER S IDE O F S A LES

TRYING TIMES This is a true story ...

NEGOTIATING

EMOTIONAL CONTROL Sue Preston offers advice on using emotion in commercial negotiations

SE EMOTION, BUT DON’T BEHAVE EMOTIONALLY – Emotion should be used in a controlled manner to move the negotiating position of the other party. For example, a buyer may say, “I feel let down that you have presented this price increase when we are under extreme cost pressures.” This is powerful, as it is based on how they feel. Use emotion advisedly, and be aware when it is being used on you Behaving emotionally, on the other hand, is not controlled and is driven by instinctive behaviours such as aggression or non-assertion. For example, a buyer may say, “Asking for an increase at this time is crazy. It’s never going to happen.” This is a reaction rather than a rational response to gain movement. Avoid behaving emotionally and take care not to react, but to respond rationally. ACT FROM SINCERELY-HELD BELIEFS When using emotion, always act from sincerelyheld beliefs. The impact of our communication is made up of: the words, the “music” or tonality, and the “dance” or body language. If we truly believe what we say, such as, “I feel misled and disappointed” then the words, music and dance will be congruent and the other party will receive a sincere message Conversely, if our body language does not support our words it will show we’re not committed to our message, eroding our power in the negotiation. But remember, body language is involuntary. USE EMOTION EARLY As emotion is very powerful it can set the tone of the entire sales negotiation, provided you bring it into play early.

SUE PRESTON is director of Negotiation Resource International (NRI), a specialist in negotiation and behavioural skills learning and development. Visit www.nri-group.com

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A consultant was asked to give a talk at a sales conference. The CEO asked him to focus on the importance of cooperation between the sales and marketing teams, since neither group had a particularly high regard for the other, and the lack of cohesion and goodwill was hampering effectiveness and morale. The marketing staff constantly moaned about the salespeople “doing their own thing and failing to follow agreed strategy”; and the salespeople accused the marketing people of being “idle theorists who waste their time at exhibitions and agency lunches and have never done a decent day’s work in their lives”. Being a rugby fan, the consultant decided to use the analogy of a rugby team’s forwards and backs working together to achieve the best performance from the team: “So, just as in the game of rugby, the forwards, like the marketing

department, do the initial work to create the platform and to make the opportunities, and then pass the ball out to the backs, the sales department, who then use their skills and energy to score the tries. The forwards and the backs, just like marketing and sales, are each good at what they do – and they work together so the team wins,” explained the consultant. The conference broke for lunch, where the consultant asked one of the top salespeople what he’d thought of the analogy. “Yes, I see what you mean,” said the salesman. “It does make sense. The salespeople are the backs, right? The backs need the marketing department – the forwards, yes? They make the opportunities for us, so that we, the backs, can go and score the tries to win the business. We cooperate, each playing our own part, working together as a team.” The consultant beamed and nodded enthusiastically – until the salesman added as an afterthought, “I still think our forwards are a waste of space.” Source: businessballs.com

Deal with the Devil

The Devil tells a salesman, “Look, I can make you the greatest salesman that ever lived.” “Great!”exclaims the salesman, “But what do I have to do in return?”The Devil smiles, “Well, of course, you must give me your soul, the souls of your children, and the souls of all your descendants for eternity.” “Wait a minute,” the salesman replies cautiously, “What’s the catch?” Email your sales jokes and anecdotes to us at magazine@ismm.co.uk

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FEATURE | PITCHING SKILLS

STRIKING THE RIGHT NOTE When it comes to turning prospects into customers, you need to be ‘pitch perfect’. ROBIN KERMODE shows how

nce you’re up to speed and fully prepped it’s easy to think that you will be “pitch perfect” every time, but what is the key ingredient that moves you from a good sales executive to a great one? Do you match the energy of a professional comedian? Or have the calm gravitas of a world leader? Ultimately, all you need to do is connect with the audience so that they want to listen to you. With this in mind, here are ten simple steps to win over your audience, every time.

UNDERSTAND THE EMOTIONAL JOURNEY OF A SALE Imagine a customer buying a new car. It’s a major purchase, so when they finally sign on the dotted line they are likely to be both excited and worried. They might wonder whether they have bought the right car, and they might also feel a little under pressure, having perhaps bought the car before they were ready. It’s at this moment in time that the customer feels most anxious. Yet conversely, at the same moment, the salesperson is at their happiest – because they’ve got the sale. Now fast forward a few days when the customer arrives to collect their car – they’re over the moon with excitement at the prospect of picking it up. But this is the moment the salesperson is least interested in them. They’ve already achieved this sale and are probably more interested in new prospects in the showroom. No matter the industry, sales executives must be aware of the differences in the emotional cycle during the sales process. This means you must try to understand how the customer might be feeling at any stage in the process. If you do this, they will like and trust you. And, as we know, people buy from people they like and trust.

“It’s a wellknown fact that no one wants to be sold to – we all want to feel that a purchase is our idea”

ASK CUSTOMERS QUESTIONS Before you launch into any sales pitch, start by asking the customer open-ended questions about their needs. While it is tempting to jump straight in with 16 WINNING EDGE

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PITCHING SKILLS | FEATURE

your well-rehearsed pitch immediately, in doing so you might come across too strong, too early. The customer wants to feel this process is all about them, and you helping to meet their need or solve their problem, not about you trying to get the sale. It’s important to ask these questions because you shouldn’t recommend a product or service unless you know what the customer’s needs or issues are.

LISTEN CAREFULLY TO THE ANSWERS Have you ever been to a party where someone asks you if you are going on holiday this year? Often, they aren’t really interested in your reply; they’re merely asking you so they can brag about their wonderful holiday. Questions are very important for building up your sales rapport, but listening to the answers is equally crucial. So, always remember to ask questions and listen to the answers – rather than simply using an opening question as a launchpad for your pitch.

REPEAT WORDS BACK TO THEM You can build empathy with customers by using familiar language. For instance, if they’ve identified a situation or an issue that they find “worrying” or “irritating”, then repeat that exact phrase back to them later on in the conversation. For example, “I can understand how worrying that might be for you,” or “That must be very irritating.” Repeating the exact words back shows that you’ve been listening and quickly builds empathy.

EVERY TIME IS THE FIRST TIME Rehearsing is good, but on the big day your pitch must sound fresh. If you sound like you’ve over-rehearsed it, the customer will spot it a mile off. A pitch should feel like it grows out of a conversation. It should feel spontaneous. Ideally, of course, a pitch shouldn’t sound or feel like a pitch at all – you are merely solving the customer’s problem and addressing their needs.

HANDLE YOUR PRODUCT WITH CARE If you are selling an actual product, handle it with great reverence and care. Take it out of the box gently. Don’t plonk it on the table with a bang. Handle it as if it’s the most special thing on the planet, as this shows respect for what you are selling, strengthening its credibility.

SPEAK WITH AUTHORITY AND GRAVITAS To have or to speak with gravitas is something that is often easier said than done. But it’s ISMM.CO.UK

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actually pretty easy. You want your customers to trust you, but they will only do that if they are convinced that you believe what you’re saying. To do this, you have to avoid speaking “on” your throat and instead must speak from lower down in your body. There is a simple way to achieve this. Try sitting in a chair and place a hand on your lower stomach, below your belly button. Now, as you breathe in, try to breathe into your hand, low and slow. Try breathing in for a count of three and out for a count of three. Do this three times, breathing low all the time. Now, when you speak out loud, your voice will sound much more relaxed. You will naturally speak from your centre, giving you instant authority.

OPEN YOUR THROAT Continuing the idea of speaking with relaxed authority – here is another great voice exercise. This will open your throat and bring your voice forward in a relaxed, confident way. You must do this exercise before your meeting as it involves sticking your tongue out. Stick your tongue out as far as it will go and try and recite the whole of the children’s nursery rhyme Humpty Dumpty. It’s hard to speak with your tongue in your mouth, but try to articulate and keep pushing your tongue out as far as it will go. Trust me on this – you’ll be amazed how much more “open” your voice sounds after this exercise.

MAKE IT SEEM LIKE THEIR IDEA It’s a well-known fact that no one wants to be sold to – we all want to feel that a purchase is our idea. Never push the sale – suggest ways in which your product or service might solve the customer’s needs, but always allow them to feel it’s their decision to sign on the dotted line.

DON’T ALWAYS GO FOR THE BIG SALE It can often work well if you suggest that a customer doesn’t need all your products. Try going for the long sell – they will trust you even more because you aren’t selling them something they don’t require. And next time they might even come back and buy the entire catalogue. We all tend to buy from people we like and trust. So always start out by trying to solve your customer’s needs. Make the customer feel valued and they will trust you – and buy from you. ROBIN KERMODE is founder of Zone2, a consultancy specialising in communications training and coaching. He is author of SPEAK so your audience will listen – 7 steps to confident and successful public speaking (Amazon/Kindle and Audio book). Visit: www.zone2.co.uk

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FEATURE | LEADERSHIP

LEADING FROM THE FRONT GRAHAM SCRIVENER offers ten tips for effective sales leadership

t goes without saying that a high performing sales team is critical to business survival, but success or failure boils down to leadership performance. Are sales leaders strategic? Do they coach? Do they build accountability and trust, and can they lead their teams successfully through change? These are a few of the essential behaviours prevalent in leaders with high performing teams, yet research1 has found that as many as 58% of workers move into management roles without relevant experience. Faced with overwhelming demands and competing priorities, some revert to their strong suit of selling, at the expense of developing their salespeople. To do a job well, sales managers should follow the ten tips below.

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Those who coach well embed it into the team culture. They build it into their sales and management strategy.â&#x20AC;?

BE A MODEL SALESPERSON Nothing is more persuasive to a team than seeing the behaviours expected of them in action so, to land the big deals, you need to model the sales skills that you want your salesforce to use. These desired behaviours then gradually become recognised internally as the way the organisation sells and, externally, for how it conducts business.

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LEADERSHIP | FEATURE

BUILD ACCOUNTABILITY AND TRUST Our global research2 has found that the best leaders with the highest performing teams are reliable, honour their word, and take responsibility – even when things go wrong. This builds a climate of accountability, which increases trust. Trust improves engagement and motivation, which enhances performance. Second, they know how to drive accountability through others. They make individuals responsible for their actions, they communicate goals and expectations clearly, and they provide their team with the resources to succeed while letting them know that they won’t be ostracised for mistakes or failure.

COACH PROACTIVELY According to Forum’s global poll3 last year, coaching was rated as the single most important tool for driving overall sales performance. The same findings revealed that high performance organisations provide 20% more coaching and training than underperforming companies. Coaching, when carried out properly, significantly develops skills and rapidly increases motivation, which together gives a strong boost to a salesperson’s productivity.

DELEGATE TO DEVELOP Making that transition from salesperson to manager means learning to let go. But delegating is more than just handing over work. It’s an opportunity to develop. Some either throw it over the wall or micro-manage. It’s important to avoid both. Use the work to encourage and enhance people’s abilities. Show trust by handing over tasks while applying support and contact when needed. Lend encouragement, praise and reward success, while increasing levels of responsibility to build confidence and capability. This combination of trust and support will make your team feel accountable for their work, which drives motivation and performance.

BE STRATEGIC Sales leaders can excel at being a model salesperson, coach and motivator, but if they fail to craft a solid strategy and cannot enlist their sales staff in its execution, all of their other gains are undermined. That’s because the ability to translate the business plan into a salesforce strategy, and then to translate this strategy into clear, actionable directions for each member of the team, is fundamental to achieving a highperforming sales department. Involving salespeople in the creation of the strategy pays dividends, as people support plans and ideas that they’ve helped to develop. ISMM.CO.UK

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PIPELINE MEETINGS Regular pipeline or funnel meetings ensure that the salesforce is implementing the sales strategy. But poorly conducted meetings will become the bane of a salesperson’s life. They need to be structured, so salespeople come together to share ideas and success stories, discuss changes in the marketplace, and apprise each other of sales activities. This way, issues and concerns can surface at an early stage, so the manager can provide quick coaching, assess skills and identify areas for improvement.

BUILD INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL SALES PARTNERSHIPS Great sales managers spend time with customers to leverage important relationships and build their salespeople’s credibility. They also identify key stakeholders and processes within the business and work to influence these to the benefit of their sales department.

FOCUS UPSTREAM Being able to balance upstream sales management activities (actions that generate long-term results) against downstream activities (those geared towards getting immediate results) is all part of being a strategically successful sales manager. Strategic leaders recognise that, while upstream activities such as business enterprise planning and identifying initiatives, may not always make an immediate impact on revenue and profitability, they are critical activities that offer a direct line of sight to financial results.

LEAD THROUGH CHANGE AND UNCERTAINTY Change can cause uncertainty, anxiety, distraction and isolation, which affects performance. People experiencing such emotions are less likely to take the necessary risks that lead to innovation. The key is to reframe change. Assess the situation positively, yet realistically, to seek out opportunities and in a way that moves the team on from the situation.

REFINE YOUR REMOTE MANAGEMENT SKILLS It’s likely that part of your team will operate remotely all or some of the time. Be as available to remote staff as much as to local ones. Having an always-open chat room can help. Members can leave messages for one another, share experiences and re-enact those ‘water cooler’ moments. Use tools such as web video but be mindful of time zones, perhaps rotating team call times – and it’s important to bring teams together face-to-face, as often as possible.

GRAHAM SCRIVENER is managing director of Forum EMEA. You can download Forum’s Global Leadership Pulse survey via www.forum.com References 1 CareerBuilder Survey of 2,480 US employers. In: High impact leadership development: Best practices for building 21st century leaders, Laci Loew and Stacia Sheman Garr, Bersin & Associates Industry Study, 2011. 2 Forum climate survey validation project, 2008. 3 Sales management coaching global survey, 2014. Forum and The Sales Management Association.

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FEATURE | CUSTOMER FOCUS

CAN YOU HEAR YOUR CUSTOMERS? Few companies really listen to, and understand, their customersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; needs. CINDY BARNES describes seven barriers that get in the way

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CUSTOMER FOCUS | FEATURE

ost companies talk of placing customers at the heart of their business, yet very few actually do. I was with a client last week working on their global customer account process. We were discussing the ethnographic customer experience research that we had completed for them. My client was delighted with what we had uncovered, but was lamenting their own incompetence at conducting any type of deep customer listening or understanding themselves. I reassured him that his company was not alone: most find this difficult to do. And then I started wondering, why is this so difficult for businesses? This client of ours is one the largest companies in the world. I mention this purely to illustrate that even the most successful companies find deep customer listening and customer exploration hard to do. But although it is hard, they have now realised that it is vital to understand their customers to maintain their position in a changing world. Sales falter as customers’ needs change – they become more demanding, and increasingly look for the exact product to fit their needs, rather than buy a product that has been pushed on them by a company that has no empathy and an inflexible approach. THE BIG ISSUE There is an overriding issue why companies find it so difficult to listen to and understand their customers. It stems from the way business is viewed as a largely rational endeavour, and is also linked to the way businesses have been run for the past 100 years. Let me explain. Every business has an internal part and an external part. The internal part, the operations and the staffing, is under the control of the business, and operational planning is done by finance staff using detailed planning and forecasting spreadsheets and tools. The internal part is mainly about managing people and managing costs. Contrast this with the external, revenuegenerating side of the business. This is about customers, and customers can’t be controlled in the way that internal resources can. Yet so many companies still base their revenue forecasts and

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their sales and marketing strategies on the same type of financial planning and forecasting as they do on the internal cost side, through detailed spreadsheets and tools that forecast revenue for the next one, two, three, or even five years. This is very comforting to finance people and gives an alluring sense of safety, but it’s unreal. In an attempt to de-risk the demand side even CINDY BARNES is chief further, companies that want to play safe opt to innovation officer at Futurecurve, focus on broad markets. In this world, their a consultancy specialising in marketers use the classic “push” approach to building customer-centric businesses through innovation marketing, using segmentation, targeting and research, value propositions and positioning. They divide the appropriate market customer experience. For details for their products into sectors, then into of its research approach and workshops on value proposition segments, and then into target groups, and then design, visit www.futurecurve.com they position their marketing campaigns to those target groups. They assume many things, including that the sectors and segments are correct based on their market research, and that the target groups are homogeneous and will all receive their message and act upon it in a similar way. This idea of broad homogeneity fits neatly with finance departments’ “Many companies haven’t kept comfortable worldview up with the changing world of that the demand side can be neatly forecasted in their customers. They are still the same way that the internal cost side can. doing business the same way When the market is they were 20 years ago” broad and companies think customers are homogeneous, complacency creeps in. The belief here is that it’s a huge market and anyone in their broad target group is a potential customer, so they can just go and sell stuff. This is why sales are faltering in many longestablished companies. They haven’t kept up with the changing world of their customers. Customers are not homogeneous. They are becoming more and more demanding as the ease of sharing information makes even the most technical B2B markets almost transparent. We meet many companies that are like this – they are still doing business the same way they were 20 years ago. They always tell us their issue is solely about price, and that customers are just looking for a better deal. My answer is always that price is only an issue when they haven’t demonstrated their value. And a huge part of WINNING EDGE 21

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FEATURE | CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE

value comes from truly and deeply understanding what their customers’ needs are and how they are going to satisfy those needs. This can’t be done with standard quantitative market research or by analysing big data. It can only be done through deep listening and observation of how customers use their products and services in action. Deep listening and observation will uncover why customers behave and think as they do, and it is critical to know this to really understand them. THE TOP SEVEN BARRIERS We’ve looked at the macro issue, so now let’s explore in more detail some of the barriers that you are likely to see at your workplace. Here to the right are my top seven reasons why so many companies find deep listening and understanding their customers so hard to do.

THE TOP S EVEN BA RRI ERS

THEY’RE GOOD AT WHAT THEY DO AND WHAT THEY KNOW

Technical, scientific or engineering companies have grown because they are brilliant in their technical area. They are often the experts in their field and have built businesses based on this area of expertise. They then make the assumption that customers are “just like them” and will naturally seek out and want what they are selling. l The thinking with these companies is both, “Why do I need to listen to my customers when they are just like me?” and, “If I build my superior products, customers will just come to me.”

“The one common factor that stops companies from truly understanding their customers is fear” FEAR IS THE KEY While these seven reasons all look very different, there is one common factor that pulls them all together. The one thing that stops companies from truly understanding their customers is fear. With the arrogant companies it’s often fear of being or looking vulnerable, and with others the biggest barrier to action and change is the fear of uncertainty. The most important things that leaders in organisations can do are to: l Recognise their fear for what it is l Take time to let ideas settle and mature l Learn to live with ambiguity and uncertainty for a while. Ultimately, in the words of the title of Susan Jeffers’ bestselling book, it is most important to “feel the fear and do it anyway”. To truly understand today’s customers, companies must strategically move away from working with broad, homogeneous segments of target customers towards working with smaller clusters of customers based on similar behaviours. In a changing world, only by understanding customers will companies’ sales remain good. To achieve this, companies must involve themselves in deep listening and observation. They can’t do this with checklists and questionnaires, but need to take time and considerable amounts of empathy to experience the world as their customers experience it. 22 WINNING EDGE

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THEY KNOW MORE THAN THEIR CUSTOMERS

Similar to the example above, experts have designed a product or service and spent time explaining and telling customers and prospects how it works. l The thinking here is, “I’m the expert, I know more about this product or service than anyone else, so why do I need to/ why should I listen to and try to understand what customers want? I know what they want and I’ve built it for them.”

THEY ASSUME CUSTOMERS ALREADY KNOW

Groupthink can be the main factor that causes companies to fail. Wikipedia describes groupthink as “a psychological phenomenon that occurs within a group of people, in which the desire for harmony or conformity in the group results in an incorrect or deviant decisionmaking outcome. Group members try to minimise conflict and reach a consensus decision without critical evaluation of alternative ideas or viewpoints, and by isolating themselves from outside influences.” l The thinking here is, “We are the experts and by trying a different approach to the one we always use, or by bringing in outside views, we might be vulnerable and lose the cohesiveness of our group.”

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THEY DON’T KNOW HOW TO DO IT

The type of company that doesn’t know how to understand its customers will often give an internal, usually junior and inexperienced, person the role of either gathering some information by themselves or buying in some research. While this, at least, is making a start on understanding its markets and customers, the danger is that it will turn into a company in category 6. l The thinking here is, “We don’t know where to start as we don’t know what we don’t know.” And also, “If we don’t know then it can’t be that important.”

THEY’VE GOT TONS OF MARKET RESEARCH AND DON’T NEED ANY MORE

We worked with a company a few years ago that had a global market research department of 1,000 people, yet it had no real insights into the particular issue it called us in to address. After we had waded through much of the recent research material it became clear that it was all quantitative, rational research, so there was an insight deficit. There was no information about the nuances of human behaviour, about the emotional impact of its products on customers’ feelings, nor even about the practicalities of the customers’ journey. No one had a view of customers’ total emotional experience. l The thinking here is, “We’re already doing lots of research, so why do any more?” It’s not more of the same that’s needed: it’s a different research approach.

THEY’VE BEEN SUCCESSFUL, DOMINATING THEIR MARKET FOR THE PAST 30 YEARS

THEY DON’T WANT TO HEAR COMPLAINTS

When we start work on deeply understanding their customers, one of the most common concerns that companies express is that their customers will unleash all their worst comments and emotions. In the 11 years we’ve been doing this ethnographic work, this has never happened. You might get some negative comments, but mostly customers want you to succeed, not least because they need to justify how smart they were in choosing you as a supplier. So, mainly, customers will offer constructive comments on how you can improve l The thinking here is, “We’ll open up a can of worms by actually asking customers what they think, so best not go there.”

These companies haven’t recognised change. They think their customers just want to squeeze them for lower costs, but they’re often missing the point that due to the Internet and new ways of communicating and being globally transparent, their customers have fundamentally changed the way they do business and what they want from a supplier. l The thinking here is, “Our formula has always worked, so why fix it if it ain’t broke?”

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FEATURE | OPPORTUNITY MANAGEMENT

WHEN OPPORTUNITY KNOCKS… OPPORTUNITY MANAGEMENT: PART 1

In this first feature in a two-part series, GARRY MANSFIELD explains some practical steps to winning more of your pipeline

This first article will provide a structured approach to opportunity management, to help you choose where to focus your efforts. In the next edition, I will explain how to select the right strategy for each opportunity. Together, the two pieces will provide a simple approach that will maximise your success and help you emulate the best sales performers. WHY CARE ABOUT OPPORTUNITY MANAGEMENT? Effective opportunity management is hugely important for all salespeople, regardless of their situation. After all, winning business is the main purpose of a sales team. This is especially true for business-to-business (B2B) companies, where sales cycles are typically longer and decision making less transactional. At my consultancy firm, we recently researched opportunity management across both small business and large corporations. The research reinforced what I had become aware of in my work with companies to improve their sales performance: the best-performing companies do things differently from the rest. The research revealed the startling fact that for the average company, 59% of all opportunities are lost, in one way or another. This is hugely wasteful – working on lost deals is the single greatest waste of a salesperson’s time. As a result of these low win rates, a mere 60% of salespeople in average companies achieved target in 2014, while the best-performing companies only perform slightly better. Without doubt, something needs to change. 24 WINNING EDGE

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WINNERS ACHIEVE FOCUS In the 25 years of working in B2B sales, sales management and sales consultancy, I instinctively knew that the best performers ruthlessly focus their efforts. With detailed insight on each deal, you can choose accurately where to invest your effort. You can be more confident in making no-bid decisions more often, something that the best-performing companies do nearly three times more than average. A structured opportunity management approach helps engage buyers more effectively, aligning company resources to each opportunity. Those companies that do this best are over 80% more likely to use a consistent way of selling. Focus requires courage. You need courage to make choices, especially when under executive pressure to increase the size of your pipeline. It is worth the effort, as large, unqualified pipelines do not often deliver the best results. You must push back, and do so armed with the information needed to explain why certain deals are not worth pursuing. Let’s look at a simple, step-by-step approach to assessing each of your opportunities. If used consistently it can help you to win a greater percentage of your pipeline. STEP 1: GIVE SLIPPAGE THE SLIP Do you want to spend your time working on deals that the prospect is never going to buy? Of course OF ALL not. You want to pursue deals that OPPORTUNITIES will help you to deliver your quota. ARE LOST

59%

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OPPORTUNITY MANAGEMENT | FEATURE

Some deals never happen at all as they are lost to a “no decision”. The prospect is not ready to buy and these opportunities typically contribute most to pipeline slippage. By slippage I refer to the “bow wave” of opportunities that never reach a decision and move out month to month. This is a major headache for many of my clients, especially as many of these slippage deals are eventually lost to a no decision. The bestperforming companies are able to control slippage nearly all of the time, through the use of a structured assessment. Know the buying team I see an increasingly risk-averse approach to decision making in organisations and our research shows that, on average, 5.8 people are involved in a typical B2B opportunity. With so many contacts, it is important to know the people involved in the customer’s buying team and how they influence the decision. Some customers will not buy anything at all. Some meet with you because they are too polite to say no. Others lack “A mere 60% of salespeople in the ability to make a buying decision or average companies achieved influence colleagues that target in 2014, while the bestdo. Are you dealing with the right people? performing companies only Understand the perform slightly better” customer’s approach to project approvals, because without this understanding you risk losing out on deals. Help them build a business case Consider how we make a major buying decision in our personal life. We don’t often do this without first understanding why we are spending the time on a particular purchase. A significant purchase will often require change and, without good reason, we often stick with the status quo. Your prospect is no different. You should understand their business goals and the things that encourage and discourage their attitude to change. Knowing how they build a business case for change can help you to accelerate their decision process. A strong business case requires a clear set of benefits (improvements, productivity gains, growth etc.) that are quantified specifically for their situation and outweigh the cost of change. To progress, it must be more compelling than other options under consideration, otherwise it risks being relegated down the priority list as a “nice to have” and will slip in your forecast. Create urgency Why should they act now? This is an important question that is often overlooked. It is not enough to have a good business case – your prospect must understand the consequence of ISMM.CO.UK

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FEATURE | OPPORTUNITY MANAGEMENT

a ‘do nothing’ decision in terms of cost or lost opportunity to their performance. Without this, it will be harder to overcome resistance and inertia in their business. Create urgency by quantifying the “cost of do nothing” (CODN) for your prospect. Help them to see the issues, challenges, problems and risks of delay. Where the CODN is low, opportunities are at higher risk of slippage. Customer readiness I have seen client projects fail because, despite a strong desire to do something, they lack the ability to buy, implement and sustain change. They require a clear funding route, either through capital or their operational budget, because without the money to pay for a purchase the opportunity is unlikely to close. To implement change successfully demands enough people with the right skills available and focused on the project. Do you know where these 26 WINNING EDGE

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PURSUIT COSTS CAN BE ANYTHING UP TO 5-7% OF THE VALUE OF AN OPPORTUNITY

skills will come from? This may offer a chance for you to mitigate any perceived risk inside the prospect by providing them with more expertise. Consider again your prospect’s situation – do they have the ability to execute? If you systematically assess each opportunity against these areas you can identify those that have potential for slippage. If they fail to hit the mark, consider qualifying out and invest time in opportunities with a better chance of closing. STEP 2: WORK ON ‘WINNABLES’ We have all lost deals and we know there is a fine line between winning and losing. While each buying situation is subtly different, I have found common areas for many B2B situations. Knowing what determines your competitive strength will help you to focus on “winnables”, that is, deals that you have a chance of winning. Some deals you will never win. Perhaps a competitor is a friend of the decision-maker or they simply have a much stronger proposition. In this situation you should walk away early in the process. I have found pursuit costs can be up to 5-7% of the value of an opportunity and a prompt exit can help to control them. Assess your competitive position early, and throughout the sales process, to see whether it is strong or weak and then act accordingly. Consider some of the following areas: Know the target you are aiming at Where a prospect’s requirements are vague, it is hard for you to position the value of your proposal. It is equally difficult for them to know how they will evaluate proposals. Their requirements would typically capture relative importance to them (criteria) and the approach they will use to reach a decision (process). With a clear set of requirements and understanding of how they will buy, you stand more chance of influencing to your strengths. You must stand out Just because you can bid doesn’t mean you can win. Does your offer satisfy their needs and can they see why it is different or better? Where solutions are increasingly commoditised through new ways of buying, it is vital to understand how you are offering something distinctive. Be certain that your commercial offer/pricing is in range when compared to other options or you run the risk of losing on price. Play your A-team Do you know the team you need to win? I don’t just mean to get a bid document submitted, but actually to win for your company. This often requires coordination of subject matter experts, executives, technical, project delivery, support and other resources. If you can’t field the right team, you may fail to engage sufficiently well ISMM.CO.UK

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OPPORTUNITY MANAGEMENT | FEATURE

with the prospect. The best-performing companies engage clients nearly three times as often through a sales process – your competitor may be taking your customer’s time. Relationships matter Some customers are happy with their incumbent provider, others fear significant cost or risk associated with changing provider. They need a very strong reason to change, otherwise this can be a long road to being a price comparison. Develop relationships with those who influence the buying decision, learn what is important to them and influence their views to gain support for your cause. Building trust is a key factor in sales success. A prospect who questions your company or personal ability to deliver the promised value, or feels your company is a risky supplier, will find it hard to support you. STEP 3: REVIEW EVERY DEAL When it comes to managing your pipeline, less really is more. If you spread yourself too thinly across many opportunities, you risk poor execution, losing those you could have won. Where will you invest your effort? To assess each opportunity, develop a core set of questions that position you on each arrow of the diagram below. Create a grid using prospect readiness as x-axis and competitive strength as y-axis. Place each opportunity into one of four quadrants: Quadrant 1 is the ideal place to be, representing opportunities where you have the best potential return on effort. A focus on Quadrant 1 deals means you can invest the time needed to win, engaging prospects more often through the buying process and using each interaction to help them buy your solution. But not all opportunities are in Quadrant 1, especially early in the sales process where intelligence about the opportunity is less defined. The other three quadrants have potential if you

COMPETITIVE STRENGTH

SLIP

QUADRANT 2

QUADRANT 1

QUADRANT 4

QUADRANT 3

SLIP AND RISK

RISK PROSPECT READINESS

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C A S E S T U DY: F R ES H PER SPECT IVE

n 2013, Simon was working on an opportunity for a managed communications service with one of his customers. The opportunity was a large one that, if successful, would meet over 75% of his annual quota, deliver a significant step up in revenues for his division, and attract the attention of the board. Simon had invested a lot of personal effort, and that of colleagues, pursuing this opportunity over a sales cycle that had already stretched to over five months. Simon was pushing hard with the customer, regularly communicating new information on the services offered, service levels, product updates and company news. He had hoped they would have bought it by now and he was becoming more anxious about the situation. So was his boss, Nick, who had already moved his forecast back

twice and there was not a lot of wiggle room left before year-end. Simon was coached to look at the situation from the customer’s perspective and he realised that he had been focusing on the wrong things. This was not about his company or his offer – after all, the client liked the solution. The problem was that the customer did not believe that they needed it, or that they needed it now. Simon invested his effort over the following weeks in understanding the business case for change in his customer’s organisation, helping them to see the impact that the absence of his solution was having on their business performance and reworking the financial offer to help them accommodate the payments into their budgets. After five more weeks of focused effort, he successfully closed out the opportunity without any further slippage.

are early in the sales cycle, though your goal should be to move into Quadrant 1 by the time your client reaches a decision. Quadrant 2 deals are most prone to slippage, so be cautious with your forecast. It’s best not to rely on closing these deals to hit your target. Moving these to Quadrant 1 requires you to help the client address issues identified in Step 1 rather than provide more product brochures. Quadrant 3 deals are where you risk of losing the decision and you should, if possible, mitigate your areas of weakness identified in Step 2. Quadrant 4 shows both of these risks to be prevalent and caution is advised in considering whether to invest in these deals – they are unlikely to offer the best return on effort. YOU CAN’T WIN ‘EM ALL Selling is not about backing certainties. A consistent approach to evaluating opportunities will help you make better decisions and take calculated risks. Choosing the right opportunities to pursue is a significant step towards improved results. The next stage is to deploy a successful deal strategy for the winnables and execute it flawlessly. We’ll look at this next time.

GARRY MANSFIELD is the founder of Outside In Sales & Marketing, a specialist B2B consultancy that blends sales performance consulting with easy-to-use technology applications like DealSheet for better opportunity management. Email garry@oism.co.uk, Twitter @outsideinsales or visit www.oism.co.uk

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FEATURE | PROPOSALS

AS IF BY MAGIC...

SARAH HINCHLIFFE presents the key to effective proposal resourcing to help you produce a compelling document by good management – not by good luck with a sprinkle of pixie dust

am always amazed at how little resource some businesses allocate to proposals. It’s as if they believe in the proposal pixie – that lesser-known species that lives under the stairs and magically produces proposals overnight. Proposal pixies are well known to exist on a diet of cold pizza and precious little respect. Conversely, I know of a small business that has been remarkably successful at winning government business without having to rely on the last minute appearance of the proposal pixie. Every time a key public sector invitation to tender (ITT)1 arrives, the board members block their diaries out to ensure they give the response their undivided attention. That’s how important it is to them. SETTING THE CONTEXT Everyone would love to win business without having to compete or write a proposal. This is unrealistic, especially in the world of complex solution sales. Proposals have to be developed, but not by magic. Compelling proposals are the result of solid business practice. Cobbling together bits and pieces of people’s time as and when required is not the PRO PO S AL RES O URCING: answer. If you are now saying to yourself, “That’s T EN TO P T IPS OK, we have a proposal team,” ask yourself if the team is fully integrated in your sales process. If not, 1 Acknowledge proposal development as an as illustrated in Figure 1 on page 30, you may have essential business-winning activity a virtual ‘brick wall’ syndrome. This model is not healthy for winning business because there is no 2 Build a proposal development step into your sales process continuity or cohesion. Companies that integrate the proposal 3 Appoint a board-level champion for the development step into the sales process – as shown process and for each proposal in Figure 2 – stand to gain these advantages: 4 Choose only the opportunities with a high l Your customer sees you are a unified team win probability l Your proposal reflects the win strategies and 5 Identify the right resources, not just any visions your salespeople have created resources l You will be less inclined to respond to a “blind” 6 Set up a core team representing each ITT – one that you were not expecting – as you will contributing function accept that a relationship with the customer is a 7 Identify all contributors – writers, reviewers, prerequisite of developing a winning proposal. approvers and supporting cast

SENIOR SPONSORSHIP Every process needs board sponsorship, a champion to hail the benefits, encourage adoption and secure funding for people and facilities.

8 Have a detailed, published plan so everyone knows what and when 9 Set a budget and measure performance 10 Provide appropriate facilities on time and throughout

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PROPOSALS | FEATURE

Research shows that proposal development can cost up to 7% of the value of the contract.2 Companies that accept proposal development as a valuable activity fund the time required. They allow their staff dedicated time to work on their proposal tasks and do not expect them to turn into proposal pixies in the evening and at weekends. As well as sponsoring the process, senior staff need to sponsor the actual proposals to: l Help qualify the opportunity – should we go ahead or not? l Gain top-level buy-in to the win strategy – if there is debate over the solution or the price to win, the sponsor needs to help arbitrate l Gain access to the best resources l Help determine priorities if there is contention over people’s time. With senior support, the time and effort required to produce a winning proposal becomes visible and important. Without it, the proposal manager must beg, steal and borrow. THE PROPOSAL TEAM Proposal teams vary in size based on the profile of the task, but there are always specific roles even if the same person wears more than one pixie hat.

“Companies that accept proposal development as a valuable activity fund the time required. They allow their staff dedicated time to work on their proposal tasks” First, you need a ‘core team’ for continuity: The manager The person who plans and manages the production of a winning proposal – one that complies with the customer’s instructions, is easy to read and evaluate, shows understanding of the customer’s requirements, reflects the win strategy and looks professional. The manager will ideally be a proposal professional but must, at a minimum, have the necessary skills in project management. Solution specialists These are people to lead the solution design, the delivery approach and the commercial deal. Their task is to pick up the vision created by the sales team (unless they have been part of that team) and develop it fully either personally or in conjunction with colleagues. They report to the manager for the duration of the proposal development. In addition, you will need: Contributors People to write and create diagrams. They may be dedicated professionals or subject matter experts giving a few hours of their time. WINNING EDGE 29

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FEATURE | PROPOSALS

J OI N E D -U P THI NK I N G Territory planning

Opportunity identification

Opportunity capture

Proposal development

Present, negotiate, close

FIGURE 1: A TYPICAL BROKEN SALES PROCESS Even if the sales process has a structured methodology, it is rarely integrated with the proposal development function, which is seen as remote and disconnected Territory planning

Opportunity identification

Opportunity capture

Proposal development

Present, negotiate, close

FIGURE 2: A FULLY INTEGRATED SALES PROCESS The proposal development process is joined up with the sales process, so the proposal reinforces and builds on the sales messages, optimising win probabilities

Reviewers The manager will schedule several reviews to check the proposal is developing according to strategy and plan. A range of reviewers is needed, and the manager will determine who, why, what, when, where and how. Approvers Senior staff who will sign off the different aspects of the proposal. It is also helpful to have administrative and technical support for proposals. People who understand processes and systems, help order stationery and couriers, format documents, and test and fix equipment and software, can make the proposal development job immeasurably more efficient. I know from bitter experience how things can turn out without them. HAVE A PLAN The great thing about a plan – the schedule the manager produces at the start of the proposal development process – is that it shows you who is required to do what and when. It reveals that you will not need everyone for the whole exercise. With a plan you can move away from vague requests such as: “I’ll need someone over the next four weeks to write some stuff about project management for a proposal.” Instead, you will be able to say with authority: “Starting week commencing 2 June, I’ll need a project management expert to join a proposal core team for four weeks. I need the person to develop and document our approach to delivering an ABC solution for company XYZ. I will need about 50% of their time per week.” This precision allows the whole business to plan more effectively and support the proposal activity – without a pixie in sight. SET A BUDGET It makes good business sense to record the time spent creating proposals. Just as you have a budget 30 WINNING EDGE

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and headcount for marketing, sales and every other function, why not for proposal development? Whether you have dedicated staff or you use a percentage of people’s time, it is important to know that the time you spend winning business is proportionate to the profit you will make. With good planning, you can start to understand budget and resource requirements. It is also worth measuring success rates. With good metrics, you can make better decisions and adjust behaviour and resources to make ongoing improvements in performance. FACILITIES Finally, don’t forget that resources extend beyond people. One of the manager’s tasks will be to decide whether to physically co-locate the team in a dedicated proposal room or whether a virtual team model will work. Sometimes it will be a mixture of both. Technology supports almost every stage of the proposal development process. Whether officebased or virtual, the team needs software to plan,

“Just as you have a budget and headcount for marketing, sales and every other function, why not for proposal development?” write and draw, communications for telephone calls and to transfer and share documents, and production equipment to print and bind. Timely and reliable provision of this technology is an essential ingredient of success. We must not forget the traditional tools of the trade – flipcharts and pens, folders and dividers, and packing materials. Even with technology to do almost anything, we still rely on these basic tools from time to time.

SARAH HINCHLIFFE is a director of i4 Sales Performance, which focuses on helping small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) achieve bid excellence. i4 is a Shipley Business Partner. See www.i4salesperformance.co. uk or email sarah@ i4salesperformance.co.uk References: 1 Invitation to tender or ITT is the term used in the article to describe any formal request from a customer for a proposal. 2 Research by APMP Center for Business Development Excellence.

LESSONS TO LEARN Proposal development is not a necessary evil, but a key step to winning business. To increase your win rates, it’s worth remembering the following six important guidelines: 1) One, hook the pixies up with the rest of the team 2) Choose the best opportunities and allocate your best pixies to the job in daylight hours with your support and blessing 3) Sort out your pixie hats and remember they can wear more than one 4) Forget magic and have a plan 5) Allocate a pixie budget and measure their success – and don’t forget to recognise their good work 6) Create a great working environment – real or virtual, but not under the stairs. And remember, pixie dust doesn’t exist. ISMM.CO.UK

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FEATURE | SALES BEHAVIOURS

UNLOCKING BRAIN POWER MARK ERSKINE says advances in psychometric and behavioural profiling offer huge potential benefits in sales

he study of neuroscience has told us that nine out of ten decisions are made by the subconscious mind. Yet sales organisations continue to focus too highly on product features and benefits, rather than how their salespeople engage with the customer. The marketing profession has embraced neuroscience in its design of marketing campaigns, so why leave it to the intuitive skills of salespeople to make key emotional connections directly with their customers? BECOMING SALES CHAMELEONS For some 35 years, marketing scholars have been writing about optimal sales encounters being adaptive and personally dynamic. Salespeople can and should be taught to be more consciously adaptive and select a sales strategy based on the behavioural profile of their customer. In his article, “Harnessing the science of persuasion” for Harvard Business Review, Robert Cialdini, professor of psychology of Arizona State Business School, wrote: “Do you have it – that magical power to capture your audience, sway undecided customers and convert opponents? Is persuasion really magic? Must we ordinary types struggling with leadership’s greatest challenge – getting things done through others – despair of ever mastering this art? Good news from behavioural science: persuasion works by appealing predictably to deeply rooted human needs.” There are four core behavioural styles or orientations – the way in which we all live and work. We are all a blend of these orientations, but typically have a preferred outlook on the world. The golden rule, “Do unto others as you would have others do unto you”, is an important moral concept, but not an effective sales strategy – because not everyone wants to be treated the same way. Bridget Biggar and Allan Katcher of profiling tool Life Orientations recommend a new golden

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rule: “Do unto others as they want to be done unto.” Adaptive selling techniques essentially teach people to become sales chameleons who adapt to the orientation of their prospects. There are rules of engagement to observe at each stage of the sale, and the first rule is self-awareness – knowing your own orientation. As American billionaire W. Clement Stone once said: “Sales are contingent upon the attitude of the salesman, not the attitude of the prospect.” Before even meeting a potential customer, social media can indicate the likely orientation of your prospect by the language they use and what they are recommended or endorsed for. Even their photograph can give visual clues – how they present themselves in terms of facial expression and dress style. This will guide the best prospecting media and approach and what language and reasoning to use to resonate with their orientation. It is often quoted that people make their minds up about someone within three seconds. This is our reptilian brain’s instinctive reaction as to whether this person represents friend or foe. Anticipating their orientation minimises the risk of the wrong reaction as we adapt. Ongoing use of this technique with a prospect means the salesperson feels on their wavelength, understands their perspective and anticipates their needs. Throughout the sale there are further do’s and don’ts in negotiating style and closing techniques that increase the chance of success. A comprehensive study by Louisiana State University has revealed a scarcity of adaptive sales training in initial sales training programmes. But adaptive selling was shown to have a positive influence on a salesperson’s performance. The study concluded: “In the midst of increased competition and rising training costs, management should consider incorporating adaptive sales training into their training structure. Salespeople in this study buy into adaptive selling as an effective method. It has been shown to increase sales performance, and salespeople have indicated ISMM.CO.UK

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SALES BEHAVIOURS | FEATURE

in this study that more adaptive sales training is necessary, in relation to other training topics.” As a result of the dramatic growth in interest in adaptive selling, a three-year research project has now been set up at Oxford University to examine its potential role in sales and marketing – in particular, focusing on the neural processes underlying an individual’s buying choice. Salespeople with high emotional intelligence (EI) may intuitively sell adaptively, but not all are blessed with high EI. Teaching salespeople simple

“Salespeople can and should be taught to be more consciously adaptive and to select a sales strategy based on the behavioural profile of their customer” adaptive selling techniques is just taking advantage of our knowledge of the brain. Consciously, rather than subconsciously, adapting increases the likelihood of success. PSYCHOMETRICS IN RECRUITMENT Exploiting the power of psychometrics and behavioural profiling to develop your established salespeople is one thing, but to attract the best staff and fast track those new recruits to optimum performance is quite another. We all know that sales leaders can’t afford to get recruitment wrong. The price of making a wrong selection in frontline sales roles is just too high. Taking into account advertising costs, agency fees, management time, induction and product training, funnel ramp-up period, missed CAS E S T UDY: opportunities while being PS YCH O MET RIC ineffective and, in many cases, PRO FILING compensation payments, the costs far exceed the annual Client: Leading UK provider of life insurance. salary of the individual. Need: To understand the ideal profile for The Chartered Institute of success in the role. Personnel Development’s Solution: 100 incumbent salespeople were (CIPD) latest guidance on individually profiled in terms of their volume recruitment best practices and value of sales; their performance band; recommends a combination of identified key behaviours, including driving competency-based interview, success and providing leadership; and KPIs psychometric profiling and in structuring tasks, processing details, assessment centres. Yet a recent evaluating problems and investigating issues, to create an “overall fit” score. research study by the British Institute of Learning and Results: Individuals with a high overall fit Development (BILD) and the score had a greater sales pipeline by approximately £40,000, and generated Universal Sales Skills Audit £30,000 more in sales, than salespeople with (USSA) shows that 87% of a low overall fit score. companies allow simple CV Source: Saville Consulting Wave Professional Styles expert report ISMM.CO.UK

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TARGET

FEATURE | SALES BEHAVIOURS

assessment to influence their decision, while a further 63% admit to adhering rigidly to in house formally structured interviews (see Sales Talk on page 6 of this edition). In contrast, psychometric profiling provides hard facts and data. The first step in its deployment is to create an ideal role profile. Using the behavioural competencies of the profiling tool of your choice, rank them using feedback from a representative cross-section of people from your business, including sales management, sales team members, marketing and HR. Having defined which competencies fit your unique sales process, products and services, check that this profile correlates with your top performers. Now you have a benchmark for recruitment and development. There is a wide choice of profiling tools on the marketplace today, so it is wise to select those that

PROFILING SALES

are governed by the British Psychological Society, indicating that they offer the reliability and validity to be effective. But look for those that have been designed specifically to give you sales outputs, as they will be more comprehensible and usable by sales leaders. Consider licensing your sales leaders, not just the HR function, to use these tools to make your processes sustainable.

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❶ Select the right salespeople in the first place through effective profiling techniques. ❷ Use the output competencies from profiling tools to create tailored development plans and coaching frameworks to ramp-up sales performance. ❸ Equip salespeople with adaptive selling skills, so they can create stronger relationships more quickly with customers, and sell to those customers how they would wish to be sold to.

successfully. The impact of effective coaching is now well understood, but coaches need a framework to coach to and the profile competency map provides a consistent platform for them. Another advantage of profiling lies in the individual recognising the need for development. After all, their input created their profile – it’s who and what they said they were, warts and all. This self-awareness and ownership of the development is key in motivating them to learn. Individual sales performance against target is highly visible within any organisation and, when poor results occur, decisions are too often made to move people on. Sales and business leaders need to recognise that sales results, important though they are, are lagging indicators of performance. The leading indicators of sales competencies – which most profiling tools now generate as additional reports – are the critical measures they need to consider.

“All too often, having used psychometrics to recruit people, the profile results are consigned to a filing cabinet”

PROFILING FOR DEVELOPMENT All too often, having used psychometrics to recruit people, the profile results are consigned to a filing cabinet. Instead, they should become the platform for individual development plans. The BILD and USSA research shows 42% of employers using just the interview to identify areas for training development. But psychometric profiling and effective assessment processes provide a far more robust training needs analysis which, when addressed, can turn on the tap at the bottom of the sales funnel far more quickly. The profile provides the framework for one-toone performance reviews, appraisal and coaching. It provides instant visibility – without it, it may take six to nine months for a sales manager to get to know where a new team member’s strengths and development areas lie. During the economic downturn, frontline sales and account managers ended up managing far greater numbers of people. Inevitably, the time they spent on field-based coaching diminished and, alongside it, so did their ability to coach

THREE WAYS TO IMPROVE SALES

MARK ERSKINE is a Fellow of the ISMM and director and owner of Seller Performance, which specialises in sales improvement based on psychometric and behavioural profiling. Visit www.sellerperformance.co.uk

UNLOCKING PROFILING POWER An organisation’s ultimate challenge of increasing customer satisfaction and revenue growth depends on the skills, abilities and traits employees bring to the table more than in other business areas. It is therefore critical to ensure that new hires and current staff members in sales have the right mix of skills and abilities to be successful. Differentiation is also critical in the fight for sales supremacy, and yet with access to competitor products and services instantly visible through the Internet and social media channels, any differentiation seems to disappear in the blink of an eye, as those new ideas are copied and brought rapidly to market with their own differentiation – even if it is only price. Against that background, sales leaders often overlook the one guaranteed unique selling point (USP) that every sales organisation possesses – its people. It’s high time for us to unlock and exploit the real power of psychometric and behavioural profiling in selling. ISMM.CO.UK

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FEATURE | SALES TEAM CONFERENCES

CONVENTION CLANGERS MARK BLACKMORE considers seven sales conference catastrophes – and how to avoid them

suspect that the main thought in the mind of most sales professionals when they attend their company’s annual sales conference is, “I hope it’s better than last year, but at least I’m not working.” It doesn’t have to be this way. Typically, there are seven “clangers” that cause flawed sales conferences of the type that I, and I’m sure you, have experienced or endured. CLANGER 1: ‘LET’S GET EACH OF OUR SALES LEADERS TO PRESENT’ On paper, it looks like the perfect plan. You divide the day into 20-minute segments and the head of each sales department in your business gets an opportunity to tell the world what they’ve achieved in the last 12 months, and their plans for the next 12 months. What’s wrong with that? Well, firstly, heads of department are often good at heading up a department, but might be lousy at public speaking. They tend to stand in the dark, motionless behind a lectern, and all we can see is a relentless stream of dull, wordy PowerPoint slides. And because they are from a different department to our own, most of the content is “for information only”. OK, so you like to take a holistic view and are interested in how other departments operate. But as each sales manager vacates the stage, another replaces them. By the time the morning coffee break arrives, you’re working out ways you can set off the fire alarms just to break the monotony. REMEDY: TELL A STORY Your conference should flow like a story. Who are the main characters? What’s the plot? Are 36 WINNING EDGE

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CLANGER 2: ‘LET’S HIRE A GOLF AND COUNTRY CLUB AND RELAX’ You love your salespeople. What better way to reward them than have a day at a golf and country club? The guys can play golf. The girls can have a spa treatment. Or maybe vice versa. Everyone is happy. Except this isn’t a conference, it’s a day out. If that is your agenda, then great, go ahead and enjoy, but little value will accrue.

REMEDY: STICK TO YOUR OBJECTIVE Get back to having a conference – and make it an opportunity to develop and educate your people, communicate your vision, and innovate your sales offerings, bringing lasting benefits. ISMM.CO.UK

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SALES TEAM CONFERENCES | FEATURE

there some issues to be sorted out along the journey? Does it finish with a happy ending? Create a sales theme for the day that explains what it is you’re trying to achieve and captures the key objectives in an inspiring way. Kick-start interest in the conference by sending out email teasers. You could even create a specific app for the conference, generating excitement (and raising credibility) before it starts. A one-day conference can realistically cover a maximum of three or four key sessions. Decide in advance what the key sales takeaways from each session should be, and then plan how you intend to deliver them on the day.

“By the time the morning coffee break arrives, you’re working out ways you can set off the fire alarms just to break the monotony” My PICI model ensures that each session has a mixture of learning activities to suit everyone: P = Purpose – Explain the objective/outcome of the session. What are the key sales messages you want the team to learn and implement? I = Interaction – Use a fun/interactive session, relevant to the topic, that will engage the salespeople C = Content – Deliver your theory on what will achieve the key objective. Keep it to no more than 20 minutes I = Implementation – Facilitate a discussion/ role-play around how the theory can be implemented in the real world of sales. Get your audience’s feedback using interactive social media (such as a dedicated conference Twitter account). Break into syndicates if appropriate. CLANGER 3: ‘LET’S MAKE IT FUN’ Realising that your previous sales conferences have been as dull as dishwater, you decide to hire a “fun activity company”. Great idea? No... You have effectively abdicated responsibility for the conference to an organisation that probably doesn’t have a clue about your business. For at least half a day your sales team will have a hilarious time playing percussion instruments, juggling, learning a ISMM.CO.UK

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FEATURE | SALES TEAM CONFERENCES

CLANGER 5: ‘LET’S GET A CELEBRITY SPEAKER’ To add a bit of razzmatazz to proceedings you book a celebrity speaker from the sporting world. They won gold at the Olympics, so it stands to reason they’re going to be an awesome speaker. Right? Well, no, actually. Like some of your department heads, their ability to engage an audience may be limited. Your people may be excited about meeting a big name, and the star’s achievements will mean at least they are credible. But a good speaker needs more – appropriate humour, the ability to connect with the audience and, above all, a message that is in tune with your key sales objective(s) for the day. You could probably save yourself a few bob by simply buying their autobiography and reading it out at the conference, because that’s pretty much what they will do. Some celebrities try hard to be relevant, but often fail. I cringe when a speaker says something like “Selling IT software is a lot like running the 100 metres…” No, it isn’t.

CLANGER 4: ‘LET’S WORK HARD AND PLAY HARD’

dance routine, or building a fighter plane out of matchsticks. At best, there will be a tenuous link to teamwork; at worst, no link to anything at all. If you simply want a fun event for your people, take them to see a comedian – you’ll probably get better value for money and a load more laughs. REMEDY: DON’T BE FOOLED BY ‘FUN’ The fun needs to have a strong link to the purpose of the session. Your salespeople should never be thinking: “What does this have to do with selling widgets?” The same goes for experiential learning and outward-bound courses, by the way. Ensure the link to the learning objective is always made very clear. Yes, make it fun, but also make it relevant. 38 WINNING EDGE

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The company has had a good year and you’ve achieved your best ever sales results. What better way to celebrate than to put everyone up in a hotel so they can let their hair down? After all, they deserve to have a good time – they’ve earned it. It’s a free bar, and the bar won’t close until the last person goes to bed. And that normally means some people won’t quite make it to bed – or not their own bed anyway. So what’s the problem here? Well, you are. You scheduled your two-day sales conference with the overnight stay in the middle. This made sense. But now, as your first speaker takes to the stage on day two, they are greeted with a sea of green faces and thumping heads. Are they really in the zone to get the best out of the session? And 10% of your staff haven’t made it to the start time. You are furious. The conference has cost a fortune, and it is totally unprofessional for salespeople to still be in bed. You’ve turned what was supposed to be a celebration into a difficult situation to handle. You are even thinking about taking disciplinary action against the worst offenders. And for the amount of learning that will take place, you may as well send them all home.

REMEDY: KNOW WHEN TO PARTY There’s nothing wrong with having a party. Just do it on a Friday night, or give everyone the following day off.

REMEDY: ENSURE SPEAKERS KNOW YOUR BUSINESS Only hire really good guest speakers who understand the nature of the people they are presenting to. They should do their homework: attending the sales conference planning meetings prior to the event; meeting the sales teams in the morning over coffee to get some valuable insight and information that they can refer to later in their session; learning jargon only people in the trade would understand; or referring to popular salespeople in the company by name. If there is a harmless in-joke about one of the directors, they will refer to it. This often gets the biggest laugh of the day, and demonstrates that the speaker is “one of us”. Make sure that all of the speakers attend the whole day. Often, they fly in, and fly out. Have you ever attended a conference where the afternoon speaker told the same joke as someone in the morning? Awkward. On delivering the joke, the speaker instantly loses credibility. They also feel bewildered as to why their sure-fire gag has just shot a blank. ISMM.CO.UK

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SALES TEAM CONFERENCES | FEATURE

CLANGER 6: ‘LET’S TACK ON SOME SALES AWARDS AT THE END OF THE DAY’ There is no better place than a conference to recognise your high achievers. The bright lights, the rapturous applause, the admiration from the whole salesforce. And when delivered well, such as at the ISMM’s British Excellence in Sales and Marketing Awards (BESMA), sales awards are an awesome spectacle. But what often happens is that awards are tagged on to team conferences as an afterthought. One or two individuals get to walk onto the stage, receive a bottle of cheap champagne, and the PA takes a picture on their phone. That’s it – a year’s hard sales graft over in five minutes. Not only is this an anticlimax for the sales star receiving the award, but the rest of the sales team are hardly motivated to bust a gut to get an award next year.

REMEDY: THINK ‘OSCARS’ Give your sales awards the time they deserve. Think like the Oscars. Give each category a build up. Read out at least four nominations for each category – so four times as many salespeople are being recognised. Encourage teams to cheer for their nominated colleague – so everyone feels part of the award. Get the music pumping as they go up on stage. Hire a photographer. Create an area that represents your brand/award theme where the photographs are taken – then post the photos onto your company’s social media channels and in your company magazine or newsletter. Salespeople are motivated by recognition. The more you publicise their achievements, the more they will be motivated. You could also raise the status of the awards by making it a black tie, evening event. Conducting a judging process prior to the big night can also build the tension. Publish the names of the nominees in advance, as they do at the BRITs, the BAFTAs and BESMA.

CLANGER 7: ‘LET’S GET THE SALES TEAM INVOLVED’ The conference is all about the people, right? So you want to get the salespeople involved by breaking into a series of syndicates and getting them to brainstorm ideas and present back to the room. As ever, this seems a perfectly wellintentioned plan – but the road to hell is paved with good intentions… and a lot can go wrong. ISMM.CO.UK

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Let’s say there are ten tables, so you break into ten groups. The task is to brainstorm “how to improve sales margins”. All starts well. There is a good buzz in the room and a representative from each table puts the group’s findings onto a flipchart. But then it’s time to report the findings back to the room. The first group presents, and is well received. Then the second group presents, and, despite listing many of the first group’s thoughts, they do come up with a couple of additional ideas. Then the third group presents, and it is already starting to feel like déjà-vu. There are seven more groups to go… REMEDY: KEEP DELEGATE PARTICIPATION DYNAMIC The golden rule is never to have more than three groups presenting back. And, better still, give them different subjects to brainstorm.

MARK BLACKMORE is managing director of Lammore Consulting, which runs sales and management training programmes and ‘kickass conferences’. He is author of The Single Sales Principle and the 8 Myths of Selling. Call 01423 520814 or visit www.lammore.com

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BOOK REVIEW | VALUE PROPOSITION DESIGN

VALUE JUDGEMENT MARC BEISHON looks at an unusual book on designing value propositions

hese days a book has to work a lot harder to catch the attention of busy professionals. It needs to provide value pretty quickly, and this unusual book – about value proposition design (also the title) – does this job very well. It’s not a conventional book in that there are few pages full of words – instead it’s packed full of visuals with short lesson-type texts and tips that work towards the goal of producing things that customers actually want to buy – as the authors say: “The heart of Value Proposition Design is about applying tools to the messy search for value propositions that customers want and then keeping them aligned with what customers want.” As such, it is not a book on selling what someone else has built for you, but about being part of the company as a whole in its unceasing need to evolve its value propositions, and where it is often painfully obvious that those at the sharp end – the customer-facing staff – are left out of crucial decisions. While there are start-ups and engineering gurus who will come out of the lab with new things, most companies should be engaging all talent, including the absolutely critical sales organisation, to improve and develop new propositions, and this book looks to have a model that can engage the wider multi-departmental team to this end. That’s because of the tutorial format, which the authors have made rather entertaining, with plenty of cartoon style drawings as well as the inevitable charts and tables, which are also simple in approach and often use sticky notes as labels. It is worthwhile noting though that the book is produced by a company, Strategyzer, which wants to sell you a web-based business model toolbox, and there is also another book, Business Model Generation, a similar handbook-type volume published in 2009, which includes material on value propositions, and which clearly the company has decided to expand on as a critical issue. But there’s no hard sell in Value Proposition Design for the tool, and indeed the book also links to free online resources such as exercises, posters and templates. It seems that Strategyzer is content to spread the word through its website and publications, and there is no doubt this latest book is a high-quality production – it’s weighty, full colour and nearly 300 pages in length – and is published by an established business publisher in Wiley. 40 WINNING EDGE

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The graphic designer who worked on the book put a lot of effort into creating these cartoon style images, which do help in getting the message across

In keeping with the simple approach, the book has just four sections – canvas, design, test and evolve, which succinctly sum up the value proposition development process. There’s an intro section, which says the book is for you if you’ve been overwhelmed by the task of true value creation, frustrated by unproductive meetings and misaligned teams, and involved in “bold shiny projects” that blew up... What you’ll be doing instead, hopefully, is understanding patterns of value creation, “leveraging” your team’s experience, and avoiding time wasting. The key tool brought to bear is what the authors term the value proposition canvas, which in turn integrates with two tools in their previous book, namely an environment map, to understand the context in which you operate, and the business model canvas, which helps you create value for your company, as opposed to the value proposition canvas, which is about creating value for your customers. You get a refresher on the business model canvas, which has value propositions at the centre and also includes obvious areas such as key activities, resources and partners, cost structure, customer relations and customer segments. You also get some objection handling if your colleagues aren’t sold on value propositions – eg. “I am ISMM.CO.UK

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VALUE PROPOSITION DESIGN | BOOK REVIEW

astonished at how poorly aligned product development, sales and marketing are when it comes to developing new value propositions.” So the first section is the value proposition canvas, which has two sides – a customer profile, where you clarify your understanding of a type of customer, and a value map, where you say how you will create value for the customer. You’ll then want to fit these two together in terms of the pain relievers and gain creators your products and services can deliver. This is all set out in a big two-page graphic, and discussion on pains and gains follows, plus also on customer “jobs”, ie. the functional, social and personal/emotional things that customers are trying to achieve. Amusingly, the authors give a profile of a business book reader to make their points. A good profile should be full of sticky notes and pains, gains and jobs should be ranked in priority. This is about stepping into the customer’s shoes and the key value in the book is in the tips and best practices, such as needing to be an “anthropologist” and to forget your own offerings when creating a customer “map”, as there are often different things someone can do (watch a video instead of buying a book...). Then, the value map is a three-way map of your products/services, pain relievers and gain creators – and the key is fitting to the factors that really matter to customers, and not trying to do it all. Along with best practices, you also get common mistakes, such as adding a product to the pain and gain fields (you’d be intruding on customer focus).

“You are focusing on the ‘canvas’ of jobs, pains and gains, and it’s about rapid testing and learning” There are three kinds of fit – on paper (not proven); in the market (where you gain evidence that the ideas work or not); and “in the bank” – which means it also fits with your business model. There are parts on B2B customer profiles and on the fact that you may need multiple fits as “some business models work only with a combination of several value propositions and customer segments”, so it can get complicated. Also, the same customer may have different contexts (such as using a mobile at work or at home) and could also have different solutions. The design section develops the canvas by exploring prototyping and “trigger areas” to get started with new or improved propositions. They suggest using real constraints, such as declining margins and a need to transform from a product to a service sell, to spark ideas. You can start from a “push” such as technology you possess, or a market ISMM.CO.UK

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TEN PROPOSITION QUESTIONS 1 Is it embedded in a great business model?

6 Does it align with how customers measure success?

2 Does it focus on the most important jobs, most extreme pains and most essential gains?

7 Does it focus on jobs, pains or gains that a large number of customers have or for which a small number are willing to pay a lot of money?

3 Does it focus on unsatisfied jobs, unresolved pains and unrealised gains? 4 Does it concentrate on only a few pain relievers and gain creators, but does those extremely well? 5 Does it address functional, emotional and social jobs all together?

8 Does it differentiate from the competition in a meaningful way? 9 Does it outperform the competition substantially on at least one dimension? 10 Is it difficult to copy?

“pull”, which could be a customer pain or gain. There’s a lot more probing in this section on identifying such “pushes” and “pulls” and how to understand your customers better. Apart from being an anthropologist, you can also apply a journalist’s skills to interview customers, or you can role-play the voice of customers, or you can find early adopters. You also need to assess a value proposition – and there’s a checklist to help – and learn how to present it and get feedback. And you need to support it with the right business model, which the authors can’t stress enough. The design section is the longest and there’s a lot to take in, and it does seem to overlap somewhat with the test section. Here you are invited to use an approach called the customer development process, invented by Steve Blank, to test proposition and business model assumptions – and it does get a bit heavy, as they also weave in “lean” start-up principles as applied in product development. But you’re still focusing on the canvas of jobs, pains and gains, and it’s about rapid testing and learning – indeed, experimenting – and they throw a lot of techniques at you, including the idea of a “mock sale” where there isn’t actually a real product. The final section, evolve, is short and about improvement. And on the back cover there’s a neat joke – a cover that says “Bad Value Proposition Design” that then invites you to flip the book over... In summary, this could be a great book to add to your armoury to dip into for fresh thinking and new techniques in the value battle. It’s unlike anything else we’ve seen – and you’ll either love it or it may, as one other reviewer said on Amazon, make your head hurt. Value Proposition Design by Alex Osterwalder and colleagues, is on Amazon UK. WINNING EDGE 41

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EVENTS

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY AUTUMN 2015 BUSINESS SUCCESS SEMINARS ISMM seminars provide free sales training plus the opportunity to network with fellow sales professionals and make new business contacts. Featuring thought-provoking and entertaining presentations, the seminars are full of new ideas and practical advice for maximising sales and winning new business. Seminars run from 6pm to 8pm and are free to members. Guests may attend one seminar free of charge and then there is a £95 charge thereafter.

WEBINAR

Thursday 3rd September EMPOWERING SALES SUCCESS WITH GOAL MAPPING HOST: BRIAN MAYNE

Over 20 years Goal Mapping has helped tens of thousands of salespeople gain a winning edge and achieve their targets. This amazing system for success uses a unique combination of words and images to powerfully connect the goal with your subconscious autopilot, developing positive attitudes and empowering actions. “I was a Sales Manager at Cable and Wireless when I did my first Goal Map. Then I got promoted to Regional Sales Director (as per my visualisation at the top of my Map!!)... Excellent.” In this Webinar you will be guided through the 7 steps of creating your own Goal Map, empowering you to turn your dreams into realities.

BIRMINGHAM

Thursday 10th September PRICING, PURCHASING DECISIONS AND MAKING AN IMPACT HOSTS: ROBERT CRAVEN & NIGEL RISNER

If we only understood how our customers thought about us and our products then we could do so much better. Well, maybe you can! We get so preoccupied with selling that sometimes we forget about how and why and when people buy. Spend a little time in your customer’s shoes then your job can become so much easier. Robert Craven and Nigel Risner will share a little of the science, the theory, and the reality of above-average salespeople and will show you: l How customers actually think about purchases l How to anticipate customer needs l How to improve sales effectiveness l How to communicate more effectively and improve teamwork l How to make an impact on customers. De Vere Colmore Gate, Colmore Row, Birmingham, West Midlands

LEEDS

Thursday 1st October MASTERING NETWORKING: HOW TO UNLOCK THE TRUTH AND GAIN MORE! BOYD MAYOVER & MARK WILLIAMS

92% of B2B buyers start their search online (Salesforce) l B2B buyers complete 57% of their decision before speaking to a vendor (CEB) l 75% of buyers use social media in the buying process (IBM). It has become critical that today’s sales professional is a competent user of social media. You will learn what social selling is and will gain invaluable tips on using social media. Village Urban Resort Leeds South, Capitol Boulevard, Tingley, Leeds LS27 0TS l

NATIONAL SALES CONFERENCE 2015 Thursday 8th October

Designed specifically for the development of the sales profession! If you are looking to enhance your sales team’s performance and results this is a must attend conference. www.sales-expo.co.uk

WEBINAR

Thursday 15th October WORLD CLASS SALES PRESENTATIONS HOST: NICHOLAS OULTON

Works class sales presentations don’t happen overnight. In his 30-minute webinar, sales presentations guru Nick Oulton shows you how to transform your dull, bullet point-based PowerPoint into something engaging, memorable and ultimately effective. Superb sales presentations may not happen overnight – but they do happen. Presentations have evolved... have yours?

LONDON

Thursday 22nd October HOW THE COMMUNICATION REVOLUTION HAS TRANSFORMED THE CUSTOMER, AND HOW THIS IMPACTS ON SELLING GRANT LEBOFF & ADAM GREY

Salespeople must be in the same place as their customers. Today, this is on the social web. But many salespeople are struggling to use the digital environment effectively. This seminar will explain how the communication revolution has changed customer behaviour and how this affects sellers. It will provide you with the information you need to start using the social web effectively. You will learn: l Why embracing the social web is vital in business-to-business selling today l The lead generation model that works online and how it differs from conventional sales l Some of the key principles to ensure social media works within your sales role. De Vere Holborn Bars, 138-142 Holborn, London EC1N 2NQ

MANCHESTER

Thursday 22nd October SHARPENING YOUR SALES SKILLS ANDY PRESTON AND GAVIN INGHAM

Packed full of proven techniques and strategies, this laugh out loud talk will give you the skills you need to win more profitable clients and make more sales in any economy. You will learn: l Why you’re failing and what you should do about it l How to leverage your skills even under the most intense of pressure and make more profitable sales l How to assess your skills and improve them with only the smallest amount of effort. Village Urban Resorts Manchester, Captain Clarke Road, Hyde, Cheshire SK14 4QG

BESMA JUDGING DAYS

Judging Days for this year’s British Excellence in Sales and Marketing Awards (BESMA) will be held on the 9th and 10th November at Latimer Place, Buckinghamshire. For details of how to enter BESMA, see the inside front cover.

THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS

TO BOOK, CALL NATASHA BRIGO ON 01582 840001, EMAIL NBRIGO@ISMM.CO.UK OR VISIT WWW.ISMM.CO.UK 42 WINNING EDGE

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APPOINTMENTS

CAREER LINES Paul Charmatz | AV E N TI ON Avention, the business information provider, has hired Paul Charmatz as senior VP international, based in the firm’s London office. He will support the company’s growth objectives through a vertical market strategy in the enterprise sector, an acquisition plan in the SME market and expansion in Asia-Pacific. The number of sales staff in international offices has increased by 20% in the last year, Avention says. Charmatz was MD Benelux at Dun & Bradstreet and CEO at RM Information, and has also been on the buy-side of business information.

William Rabie | I L A N D William Rabie has joined iland, an award-winning enterprise cloud hosting provider, to lead the company’s business in EMEA and Asia-Pacific. Rabie is said to be a veteran in the cloud space and brings more than 20 years of IT services experience to the company including “significant roles” in sales leadership and building go-to-market strategies for some of the largest names in global IT and cloud organisations, including CenturyLink, NetSuite and Oracle. iland has data centres in the US, UK and Singapore.

Simon Deary | NA N OLU M E N S NanoLumens, a maker of “visualisation solutions” (or displays) has appointed Simon Deary as EMEA regional sales director. Previously, he founded Son Et Lumiere, an LED design firm specialising in high-end events, such as the Expendables 3 premier in Cannes and London, W Hotel Verbier, and the Cosmopolitan Awards, and he’s also been a director of LED Poison, which worked on shows such as the X-Factor, Britain’s Got Talent and Deal or No Deal. He’s been an area sales manager at Philips Color Kinetics, and, not least, he has a degree in LED electronic design and engineering from Boston University. He will be working out of the company’s Bath office.

Paul Midgley | YA R A

ISMM fellow, Paul Midgley, has joined Yara UK as sales manager for the Air1 team – Air1 is Yara’s brand of AdBlue systems that reduce NOx (nitrogen oxides) in the exhaust gases of heavy duty vehicles. He was previously with Air Liquide UK, and has more than 25 years industrial sales experience across a wide range of sectors nationally and internationally. At Yara, Midgley is now responsible for key account management for Air1 in the road transport market in the UK and Ireland. Since 2005, legislation on diesel vehicles in the UK and in the rest of Europe demands a drastic reduction of NOx emissions, so this is a big market.

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Karl Naylor

Imran Ali

KUMHO T YR E

1ST TOU CH

A year ago, Kumho Tyre set up a direct sales operation and has now appointed the “highly-experienced” Karl Naylor to the new role of national sales manager to oversee this business. Naylor has held a variety of sales and marketing positions during nine years with Michelin before a similar period at national wholesaler Grouptyre, during which he was also managing director. Kumho’s direct team complements a network of ECSTA performance centres it operates with Micheldever Tyre Services.

1st Touch, a developer of mobile systems for the social housing sector, has appointed Imran Ali as senior account manager, where he’s responsible for sales of mobile systems used by housing officers, repairs operatives, incomes managers and “voids” teams. Previously, Ali held senior sales positions with Experian, Frog Education and Serco. An interesting point about the firm’s 1st Touch Mobile offering is that it has an smart airtime feature where airtime is minimised and the system is always available even without being “on air”.

A PPO I N T M ENT S EX T RA l NICK BROOKS is now sales director, UK and Ireland, at data centre player ICTroom, which has opened a London office. l JULIE PROUDLOCK has moved to be national sales manager at mobile vehicle repair provider, Revive. She was at Polyformes. l PETE MERSH has taken the position of national sales manager for the specification team at VADO, a taps and shower maker. l MICHAEL MURPHY has joined IGEL Technology, a “thin and zero client” specialist, to develop its operations in Scotland. l PAUL FRANKLIN-SLATTERY has gone to Nissan as national corporate sales manager, moving from Seat, where he had various roles.

N EW JO B? Have you moved job or taken up a new professional role in sales and marketing say at a chamber of commerce or charity? Send us the details, including where you moved from, what your key achievements have been and anything else you do that’s fantastic. Email: magazine@ismm.co.uk

WINNING EDGE 43

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Member get member ad_Sep 06 ISMM corporates p44 copy 20/05/2015 09:42 Page 1

Introduce a new member and receive £25!

“A whopping 98% of members join the ISMM because we focus on your recognition as a sales professional.”

Dear Member

Your Professional Institute Needs You… Beneﬁts at a Glance… l l l l l l l

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Professional recognition Lobbying for sales professionals Winning Edge magazine E-newsletters Research Templates Information and advice Business Success Seminars Breakfast Meetings Executive Forums Sales qualiﬁcations CPD (Continuing Professional Development) Free nominations to BESMA Discounted National Sales Conference tickets Networking opportunities Social media networking Member-get-member campaigns Legal helpline Sales advice line

As a valued member of the ISMM, we would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your continued loyalty and commitment. Your membership is vital to help us achieve our goal of making the UK voice of sales louder. As a membership organisation, we work hard behind the scenes to ensure that you get the recognition that you deserve as an ethical professional working in sales. A recent industry report found that the TOP reason that members join association and industry groups was through recommendation of other members and professional colleagues. Membership is the life blood of the ISMM and for that reason; today we are asking for your support to help us grow our membership through your professional contacts.

Why Encourage Your Colleagues to Join the ISMM? l

Recognition for them in the UK’s leading sales professional network

Give the industry a LOUDER voice from a political standpoint

Help them do business through our extensive range of events, seminars and conferences

Take part in the UK’s Sales & Marketing national awards

What’s in it For You? If we grow, so do our services and the value that we can offer through membership – so by you helping your colleagues join the best sales network in the country, you are also helping enhance the benefits that you get from us! What’s more, for every new member recruited, we will send you £25!

What Next? To Refer a Member… Email the details of the individual you wish to refer to membership@ismm.co.uk OR Login to the Members Only area of www.ismm.co.uk and complete the online form in 'spread the word'

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NEW ISMM MEMBERS

WELCOME TO THE ISMM We would like to extend a warm welcome to all our new members. Here are just some of them OLUWATOSIN ADEBISI SENIOR INTERNATIONAL OFFICER University of Sussex

SIMON HALL CUSTOMER ACCOUNT MANAGER Liquidlogic

GREG AINSWORTH PHIL BLUER RICHARD COWARD DAVE FRICKER NIGEL JAMES STEVE MERRY DAN ST CLAIR SENIOR MANAGEMENT AND SALES-RELATED ROLES Daviker

CLAIRE HAZLEHURST SALES AND MARKETING EXECUTIVE Midlands Professional Development

CHIJIOKE ANYACHO SALES AND MARKETING EXECUTIVE Sproxil Nigeria THOMAS BARKER HEAD OF SALES Nexus Telecommunications PHILIP BASS SALES AND MARKETING DIRECTOR Evolve Audio JAMES BENJAMIN DIRECTOR Nebular Solutions TIMOTHY BILLINGHAM FINANCE DIRECTOR Breedon Aggregates England JAMES BROMLEY DIRECTOR Quality of Sales; Industrial Yield AYMAN CARMICHAEL MANAGER Camel Shop TIM CHORLTON DIRECTOR The Factory ROBERT CLOSEY SARAH CROPPER DAVID MACKENZIE CARL SCHUMACHER REGIONAL SALES MANAGERS AND REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT MANAGERS Mentor

ISMM.CO.UK

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SHANAKE DASSANAIKE GROUP COMMERCIAL DIRECTOR Leith Planning SEAN CLARK OWNER Actilia VALERIA CURZIO ADVERTISING SALES MANAGER Wardour CHRISTOPHER DAWSON NATIONAL SALES MANAGER Drive Medical DAFYDD EVANS BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER 101 Data Solutions MICHAEL FULTHORPE MAJOR ACCOUNTS SALES MANAGER Autodesk

KRIS KEAN COMMERCIAL BUSINESS MANAGER Esri UK EAMONN KEENAN HEAD OF CPD AND SHORT COURSES University of Bedfordshire

TERRITORY MANAGER MTN Nigeria Communications SCOTT PATRICK BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER Norbert Dentressangle RICHARD PITCHFORK MANAGING DIRECTOR Maxons

ROSS KILBURN DUNCAN MCCOOL HARRY POXON LUKE THOMAS INTERNAL SALES AND SENIOR SALES MANAGEMENT ROLES Aggregate Industries

ALAN POLLARD MANAGING DIRECTOR/ SALES DIRECTOR Kennametal Stellram GA

ANDREW MCLOUGHLIN SALES DIRECTOR ABL Components

CATHERINE RUMNEY MANAGING DIRECTOR The Creative Branch

AMANDA MUMBY ACCOUNT MANAGER De Lage Landen

CARL SOUTHWARD SALES DIRECTOR Clever Energy Boilers

DANIEL OGAN COUNTRY MANAGER NIGERIA Ridgo Services

DANIEL STEPIN MARKETING CONSULTANT Freelance

MASSIMO GIORGIONE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Morgan Stanley

LAURIE POTTAGE SALES DIRECTOR Onesys

GARY TAYLOR HEAD OF COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT NHS North West SALLY WAKE OWNER Bright Red Sales

RICK GOLIGHTLY SALES DIRECTOR Thomson Reuters

GARRY WALTON SALES EXECUTIVE Land Rover

SONIA GOODRIDGE ACCOUNT MANAGER DHL MILES GRIFFITHS SALES AND OPERATIONS MANAGER Office Equipment Centre

GODGIVE ITEM

SIMON RICKETTS CEO ODCAO

CHRISTIAN WENCZKA DIRECTOR Succinct Solutions MICHAEL YON FOUNDER My Healthcare Agency

WINNING EDGE 45

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DIRECTORY | SALES TRAINING AND CONSULTANTS

THE DIRECTORY

IN ASSOCIATION WITH

FIT2SELL CONSULTING

LESLEY EVERETT

Sales skills training and development workshops tailored to YOUR specific needs. T: 07896 250289 E: rodgerarmstrong@fit2sell.co.uk W: www.fit2sell.co.uk

An international authority and coach on personal branding. Keynote speaker, columnist, media personality and author of ‘Walking TALL: Key steps to total image impact’. T: 01344 427977 E: lesley@walking tall.org W: www.lesleyeverett.com

GROWTH ENGINEERING

The Winning Edge Directory is a ‘one-stop-shop’ for finding top sales trainers and consultants – so if you offer sales training or consultancy, it’s the ideal place to be seen. Call 01582 840001 today to secure your entry in print and online ANDY PRESTON

BID BETTER

A cold calling expert, sales trainer and motivational speaker who is engaging and funny. A regular at ISMM seminars, Andy is guaranteed to light up your conference, meeting or event! T: 0845 130 6779 E: via the website: W: www.outstanding-results.co.uk

Working with both SMEs and multinationals in different sectors and achieving a three out of four bid-win success rate for clients. T: Philip Norman on 01202 237506 E: info@bid-better.co.uk W: www.bid-better.co.uk

BRUCE KING An inspiring and unique combination of sales and motivational strategies, presented worldwide. T: 01923 859977 E: bruceking@bruceking.co.uk W: www.bruceking.co.uk

ANDY HANSELMAN A business expert, Winning Edge contributor and ISMM speaker who helps businesses and their people to ‘Think in 3D’! Dramatically and demonstrably different. T: 01142 434666 E: andy@andyhanselman.com W: www.andyhanselman.com

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A leading motivational speaker and provider of employee counselling, stress management training, workplace bullying awareness training and employee wellbeing services. T: 020 8954 1593 E: info@carolespiersgroup.co.uk W: www.carolespiersgroup.co.uk

CLARIFY Specialist business development for enterprise technology and services organisations with high value business propositions. T: 01189 126800 E: info@clarify-uk.com W: www.clarify-uk.com

DESTINATION INNOVATION

Our learning technologies are changing the way companies approach their L&D and bringing awesome online learning, including gamification, to all sectors. T: 01753 840331 E: hello@growthengineering.co.uk W: www.growthengineering.co.uk

HUTHWAITE INTERNATIONAL

LINKS DEVELOPMENT We specialise in helping clients to grow the capability of their sales teams in complex B2B environments. T: 020 7193 6371 E: info@linksdev.net W: www.linksdev.net

META-LUCID

Helping businesses across the world transform their sales performance, delivering long-term, tangible results through our behavioural change programmes. T: 01709 710081 E: webinfo@huthwaite.co.uk W: www.huthwaite.co.uk

Talent management strategy for sales management, using the world class Topgrading™ methodology to improve hiring and retention. T: Mark McCarthy on 01727 884713 E: markmccarthy@meta-lucid.com W: www.meta-lucid.com

IAN SEGAIL

MIDLANDS SALES ACADEMY

One of Australia’s and New Zealand’s leading strategists and coaches on sales performance management and author of Bullet Proof Your Sales Team. E: ians@bulletproofyoursalesteam.com W: www.salesmanagerprofits.com

Improve your sales and management skills, working with other forward thinking sales professionals who want to be better. T: 01782 617132 E: colin@midlandsleadership.co.uk W: www.midlandsleadership.co.uk

I4 SALES PERFORMANCE

MILLER HEIMAN

Focused on helping small and medium enterprises (SMEs) achieve bid excellence. i4 is a Shipley Business Partner. T: Sarah Hinchliffe on 07854 051979 E: sarah@i4salesperformance.co.uk W: www.i4salesperformance.co.uk

The leader and innovator in sales execution, we help businesses grow profitable sales through our easily repeatable methodologies. T: 01908 211212 E: ukinfo@millerheiman.com W: www.millerheiman.com

LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT LTD (LDL)

MTD SALES TRAINING

Sales and leadership consulting. Emphasis on ‘skill+will’. Full-time consultants. 500,000 people trained. High energy learning that delivers. T: 020 7381 6233 E: learning@ldl.co.uk W: www.ldl.co.uk

We specialise in B2B and B2C telephone and retail sales training, working with a wide variety of clients, both large and small, in the UK and internationally. T: 0800 849 6732 E: enquiries@mtdsalestraining.com W: www.mtdsalestraining.com

WINNING EDGE ADVERTISING RATES

Book Paul Sloane to speak at your conference or to give high-level training on sales, innovation and leadership. T: 07831 112321 E: info@destination-innovation.com W: www.destination-innovation.com

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Sustainable results, passion, motivation, positivity, belief, measurement, leadership, sales process, aftersales, customer service, new media sales, attitudes, coaching, international sales. T: 01234 381199 E: info@finessesalestraining.co.uk W: www.finessesalestraining.co.uk

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16/07/2015 16:00

SALES TRAINING AND CONSULTANTS | DIRECTORY

DIRECTORY RATES

Delivering outstanding client productivity through comprehensive web-based sales training courses, assessments and qualifications. SPECIAL DISCOUNTS FOR ISMM MEMBERS!

YOU HAVE THREE LISTING OPTIONS. TO BOOK, CALL 01582 840001 OR EMAIL magazine@ISMM.co.uk

THE DIRECTORY 1

OUR SALES SKILL QUESTIONNAIRE (SSQ)

8020 PARETO

Interactive presentations that allow people in their organisations to grow, communicate more effectively, improve their teamwork, boosting business performance. T: 020 8447 1732 E: nigel@nigelrisner.com W: www.nigelrisner.com

Graham Roberts-Phelps is among the UK’s most experienced and expert sales and customer service trainers, working regularly with the ISMM for over 15 years. T: 020 8133 2629 / 07515 851691 E: contact@grahamphelps.com W: www.grahamphelps.com www.in-house-training.com www.brilliantcustomerservice.com

PARETO LAW We are sales recruitment, training and development experts. We are a recognised ISMM centre and through our newly launched ‘Accolade’ service provide professional sales qualifications benchmarked to recognised standards of excellence. T: 0843 636 7037 E: enquiries@pareto.co.uk W: www.pareto.co.uk

PROFESSIONAL ACADEMY The World’s leading provider of marketing courses, digital marketing courses, sales courses and management and leadership courses. We have 6 UK study centres and are accredited to deliver all levels of ISMM qualifications. T: 0844 800 5256 E: enquiries@professionalacademy.com W: www.professionalacademy.com

ISMM.CO.UK

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20 words of descriptive text, plus contact information (including your phone number, email address and website). The cost: £295 plus VAT. 12 months online and in print.

SINGLE COLUMN BOX, PLUS CLASSIFIED LISTING

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A quarter-page full colour advert in the display section of Winning Edge (One insertion only). The quarter page dimensions are: 91mm (W) x 116mm (H) The cost: £595 plus VAT. The classified listing and single column box are also included as part of this package, for 12 months online and in print.

NIGEL RISNER

Author, speaker, coach and media commentator. Author of ‘Be Your Own Guru – personal and business enlightenment in just 3 days’. T: 0845 456 7095 / 07768 625294 E: olivia@oliviastefanino.com W: www.oliviastefanino.com

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is a must when recruiting or developing sales teams. It complements any behavioural assessment to provide an accurate view of people’s understanding of sales. Call us now for a free trial on 01494 774440 or visit:

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REAL SELLING SALES TRAINING Paul Routley takes the everyday challenges of selling and applies fresh ideas and innovative approaches, bringing a new philosophy of selling to your sales team. T: 01634 612340 E: paul.routley@realselling.co.uk W: www.realselling.co.uk

REED LEARNING A leading provider of professional sales and marketing courses and qualifications, both for companies training their staff and individuals developing their own skills. T: 0800 170 7777 E: more.info@reedlearning.co.uk W: www.reedlearning.co.uk

REPUTATION SELLING Attract more customers with video testimonials, practice using them in sales role plays. Call today for more information. T: Nick Belcher on 07976 684009 E: nick@reputation-selling.co.uk W: www.reputation-selling.co.uk

SALESTRAININGONLINE. COM Delivering outstanding client productivity through comprehensive web-based sales training courses and qualifications. Our Sales Skill Questionnaire (SSQ) is a must when recruiting or developing high quality sales teams. T: 01494 774440 E: info@soca.co.uk W: www.salestrainingonline.com

SBR CONSULTING A regular Winning Edge contributor, we specialise in sales transformation, customer experience and go-to-market strategies, working with all customer-facing teams. T: 0845 873 3939 E: info@sbrconsulting.com W: www.sbrconsulting.com

STERLING CHASE Enabling you to drive growth in today’s marketplace. Award-winning face-to-face and online sales training, coaching and consulting. T: 0845 371 3099 E: info@sterlingchase.com W: www.sterlingchase.com

STEVE HEAD A high performance specialist, helping you ‘deliver more with less’. A keynote speaker at National Sales Conference 2014 and a regular at ISMM events. One of the most dynamic, engaging and impactful presenters in the UK. T: 01635 523540 / 07774 110937 E: steve@headstart-uk.com W: www.stevehead.co.uk

TACK INTERNATIONAL

A global, communication skills, staff training and coaching company with a reputation for being innovative, flexible and reliable. T: 020 7253 2117 E: enquiries@speak-first.com W: www.speak-first.com

An International business training specialist with 54 offices around the world, providing open, in-company and bespoke sales, marketing, finance and management courses at a choice of locations around the UK. T: 01923 897900 E: info@tack.co.uk W: www.tack.co.uk

SPEARHEAD TRAINING GROUP

WILSON LEARNING WORLDWIDE

We provide quality open and in-company sales, management and business skills training courses that develop skills and improve business performance. T: 01608 644144 E: info@spearhead-training.co.uk W: www.spearhead-training.co.uk

Sales performance experts of choice for leading organisations across the globe, for almost 50 years. Offering a proven portfolio of sales excellence solutions. T: 01494 678121 E: info@wilsonlearning.co.uk W: www.wilsonlearning.com

SPEAK FIRST

WINNING EDGE 47

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ISMM MEMBER PROFILE

BUSINESS WHISPERER

Winning Edge talks to sales entrepreneur and author, Peter Wilcock What is your background in sales? I’ve been in sales for over 25 years, starting out with Unilever as a young sales trainee without a clue what I was doing... Thankfully things improved and I eventually found myself as sales and marketing director of Comcast, just as we set up a brand new cable franchise in Teesside. This was in 1995, when cable TV was full of repeats and no-one knew what the Internet was – nor wanted it. I helped build that business to over six million customers as it became NTL and then Virgin Media. I then left to work for myself and have some fun. I bought into a contact centre called Carpeo (www.carpeo.com), where we now have over 250 staff. I’m proud to call myself an entrepreneur. I did an MBA at Durham University Business School, but most of the things I’ve learnt have been in the office, not the classroom. How did you get started in sales? I was working as a trainee in the sales department of Elida Gibbs, part of Unilever. I kept telling the sales director that I could sell the socks off the other reps if he gave me the chance. One Friday night he called me in to tell me the good news – I was going on the road selling. The bad news was I would be starting the following Monday and I’d have to move to the west coast of Scotland. I was horrified. The only thing that attracted me to sales was having a company car. In truth, I’ve never actually been that good at selling, but I’m not bad at getting teams and companies to sell. What have been the highlights of your career so far? The cable period was amazing. Not many people get the chance to a) be in a company from the very start and b) introduce a new product to the customer that eventually becomes part of everyday life. We started with zero customers and it was a tough sell, as we were taking on BT and, in some cases, Sky. In my franchise, we had over 50% customer penetration on our network, which was unheard of at the time. I knew nothing about cable and recruited the same type of people, so none of us knew any better. The same happened when we launched broadband – even we didn’t know what it was. I can remember telling my CEO we would sell 50,000 units in a quarter, when we were selling 2,000 a month at the time. He thought I was mad, and so did my team. But we did it with plenty to spare, which goes to prove that if you set out to 48 WINNING EDGE

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achieve something, it tends to get done. It’s funny to think of all those people who used to shut the door on us saying they’d never use the Internet, when a majority of people now have broadband. What have been the toughest challenges? I’ve found the only tough thing is to get enough people to believe things can be done. Once they believe, it tends to happen.

“Selling doesn’t get the respect it deserves. I love the fact that the ISMM is raising the profile of sales as a profession”

What’s been your most memorable or amusing moment in sales? When I was first out on the road, I was touring chemists in Scotland selling a new acne lotion. I had been told always to be nice to the shop assistant, as they were often involved in buying. On one of my calls I noticed the lady I was talking to behind the counter had the same surname as the name above the shop. I was chatting away nicely to this lady, trying to get her on my side, and she told me lots of the local kids had spots. Feeling like this could be a good day, I launched in to my sales pitch. A few minutes later the chemist arrived, so I explained to him that his mother had already told me there was a demand for my acne solution. His face turned red. “That’s my wife!” he retorted. I was duly despatched back down the M74 to England, with the image of the furious chemist and his disgruntled wife indelibly etched in my mind. What are your future ambitions? I’d like to build the best sales business in the UK, when I get time... What advice would you give to others who aspire to a career in sales? I would say go for it – it beats working for a living... What do you like about the ISMM? I’ve always thought sales is badly under-rated as a profession. Numerous skills are required to be a good salesperson, yet for some reason selling doesn’t get the respect it deserves in business. Where would any finance director be without sales to add up? So I love the fact that the ISMM is raising the profile of sales as a profession. As an ISMM Fellow, I hope to do more to help in its mission. I have written my first book, The Business Whisperer, which has been fuelled by my business experiences as I searched for the key ingredients to build a personal and business philosophy. My goal now is to share those stories. ISMM.CO.UK

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ISMM Corporate Partnership Partner with the ISMM for sales success Corporate Partnership provides employers with a great opportunity to align their companies with the aims and objectives of the Institute of Sales and Marketing Management. It enables them to acknowledge the key role their salespeople play in their company’s overall success and show them they appreciate their work. Established for over 100 years, the ISMM is the UK’s only Professional Sales Membership and Awarding Body accredited by Ofqual, the government’s regulatory authority, delivering qualifications exclusively focused on selling and sales and marketing management.

The ISMM has formed partnerships with many of these companies to provide products and services to ISMM Members, allowing both parties to benefit from working together. These organisations all have to demonstrate that they share the vision and values of the ISMM. Please visit www.ismm.co.uk for details of their services.

To learn about the advantages of ISMM Corporate Membership and why so many companies, of all sizes, have joined its ranks, call 01582 840001, email sales@ismm.co.uk or visit www.ismm.co.uk

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Winning Edge: July 2015 - When Doors Open

Articles inside

Designing Value Propositions

Sales Convention Clangers to Avoid

Psychometric and Behavioural Profiling

Proposals: As if by magic

When opportunity knocks

Can you hear your Customers?

Leading from the Front

Striking the Right Note