The Power of Solving Problems

Researching Your Prospect: Going Deeper

Spring break is just around the corner. You and your friends want to go away somewhere great. You decide on Cancún, Mexico, as a destination. Since you want to get the best plane fare and hotel rate, you must book early. That means planning, coordinating, and even researching the area. You want everything to be perfect – after all, this is spring break.

Just as preparation made your spring break trip come together perfectly, preparation also makes a sales call successful. By now, you have identified and qualified your prospects, you have come up with an action plan, and you are probably eager to get down to business. However, you cannot just call your prospect or show up at his door without doing your homework first. How big is his business? What are his business goals? What is his company culture? Is he already doing business with any of your competitors? In what ways do your products or services present a solution he could use? The preapproach, or finding answers to these questions, is critical. Researching and coming prepared gets your prospect's attention and shows him you care. It gives you the power to sell adaptively and puts you ahead of your competitors.

Keep in mind that when someone ultimately decides to do business with you, he is trusting you with one of the things that's most important to him – his money. Furthermore, he trusts you above all other people and companies to help him with his challenges. Consider that your company is using personal selling because customers want additional information or customization of the product or service to make a decision. People only buy from people they trust. You have to earn that trust every day. The first step starts here: how well are you prepared to earn his respect and trust?

Gather Information

By the time you're ready for the preapproach, you've already done some initial research as part of the qualifying process. With the preapproach, you take your research to the next level; you find out as much as possible about the company or individual with whom you want to do business. As marketing and strategy expert Noel Capon says, a thorough understanding of your prospect's business processes and challenges gives you the crucial insights you will need to offer specific, workable solutions your customers can use. Gathering this information demonstrates personal commitment and boosts your credibility with your prospects.

Your research will pay off whether you are preparing to contact a new prospect – a target account – or whether you are working with an existing customer. Some of your best prospects are the customers you already have. It is particularly important to identify your key accounts, your current customers who are - or have the potential to be – your most significant sources of sales. Maybe you sell insurance, and you've contracted with a large restaurant chain to provide their employee health and dental plan.

This key account is one of the largest companies with whom you do business, so you make an extra effort to stay informed about developments that affect this company. You've recently received a news alert that due to an unstable economy the restaurant chain has decided to cut employee hours. As a result, many staff members now work part-time and no longer qualify for full health benefits. Based on this information, you call your contact at the company and offer to provide a more flexible and less expensive partial employee benefits package for which their part-time workers could still qualify. You tell her that this solution will serve her company's need to cut costs and allow them to retain employees who might otherwise become dissatisfied and leave.

Whether you are contacting new or existing customers, it is important to have your specific call objectives in mind and to map out the information you've already gathered about the company so that you can refer to it during the call. You can keep this information organized using a precall planning worksheet that lists the key company statistics you've identified as part of your research and includes a checklist detailing the purpose of the call: the information you would like to learn about the company, the solutions or key facts you plan to communicate, and any other goals you hope to achieve. 

The worksheet does not have to be complex; it can be as straightforward as the sample in Figure 8.1, "Precall Planning Worksheet." Your customer relationship management (CRM) or contact management system (CMS) may also provide a place for you to do your precall planning work. A sample precall planning worksheet is shown in Figure 8.1 "Precall Planning Worksheet."

Figure 8.1 Precall Planning Worksheet

Listing your goals in writing before you make a sales call gives you the power to measure the success of your call. Did you get the information you needed? Did you communicate the information you listed in your checklist? If not, how can you adapt your approach and set goals for your next sales call?

Going Deeper with the Fundamentals: What You'll Want to Know

The first sales call (or calls) is often an extension of the qualifying process. Even if the company passes initial qualification, as you learn more you might find out that they aren't your ideal customers. You might discover that your contact at the company is about to leave or change positions. Or you might realize that the company's current situation isn't one in which they're willing or able to buy. The following are some things you'll want to know as you research the company during your preapproach.

About the Company

• Demographics. Understanding the basics will help you ensure the company fits your ideal prospect profile and allow you to tailor your solution to fit the company's particular situation. What kind of business is it? How large is the business? How many locations do they have? How many people work for them? Where is the home office located? How many years have they been in business?
  
  
• Company news. Tracking company news is another way to discover opportunities for sales. Has the company put out any recent press releases? (You can generally find these on the company Web site in the investor relations, press release, or press room section). Has the company recently appeared in the news? (Setting up Google News Alerts at http://www.google.com/alerts for your current and potential customers will keep you up-to-date on this).
  
  Do not just read the news; creatively think about what the news is telling you about selling opportunities with a prospect. For example, if you were selling paper goods (cups, lids, straws, bags, cup jackets, napkins, etc). to coffee shops, you would have read a press release about the test marketing of McCafés several months before the national launch. Then you would have read about the announcement of the national launch a few months before it was planned to occur. These press releases are selling opportunities. You might think it would only be a selling opportunity if you were selling to McDonald's, but that's not true. The fact is McDonald's announced that it was about to expand the market for premium coffee. That's an opportunity to help your customers and prospects.
  
  For example, what if you suggested that your customers and prospects print an advertisement on their bags, napkins, cups, and cup jackets to announce a promotion called "Morning Joe Wake-up Call"? "Buy a coffee every day for ten days and get a free cup of Joe!" This helps increase their sales, which ultimately increases your sales. You could bring this idea to your customer or prospect before the McCafé launch and discuss how your idea can help him build his brand before the competitive effort. Now that's using company news to drive sales.
  
  
• Financial performance. Keeping up-to-date on the company's financial performance will help you determine whether your prospect can buy, which might lead you to discover sales opportunities. All publicly held companies must post their quarterly earnings on their websites. Generally, there will be a link for "investors" or "investor relations" on the company home page that will take you to financial data, including a recording of the company's quarterly earnings conference call. It's a good idea to listen to these conference calls to learn important information about the company's strategy and financial performance.

About the Company's Customers

• Customer demographics. Are the company's products used by businesses or individual consumers? If consumers, what age, education, and income level? If businesses, what size and kind of businesses? Knowing the organization's customer demographics will help you tailor your solution to the company. For instance, if you're selling clothing designs to Old Navy, knowing that the company appeals to families and draws in value-conscious customers, you might send them samples from your more basic and reasonably priced clothing line, rather than your top-of-the-line products or your trendiest designs.
  
  
• Size of customer base. In B2B sales, it is important to know whether your prospect serves many customers or primarily works with a few large accounts. Microsoft, for example, sells its products to large corporations, but they also deal with individual consumers. Some companies, on the other hand, work with a few large accounts, so their success is very dependent on the success of their key customers. If your prospect is a sporting goods manufacturer that only sells its products to Dick's Sporting Goods, Dick's Sporting Goods' financial performance will affect the performance of your prospect's business.
  
  
• What customers are saying about your prospect. You can learn a lot about a company by paying attention to its reputation with customers. If the business has a lousy customer service record, it might not treat its vendors well. This is why it's worthwhile to read customer reviews as part of your qualifying process. For instance, if you do business with airline companies, you might prefer to fly with Southwest (whose customer reviews say things like "This is an airline I'll use again and again!") than United Airlines (where one reviewer writes, "United Airlines hands down has the worst customer service of any company I have ever dealt with").
  
  For large companies, doing a Google search will often bring up customer reviews on the organization, or you can try a Web site like Epinions. For local companies, try searching your regional Better Business Bureau (BBB) to see if any customer complaints have been filed against the company.

About the Current Buying Situation

• Type of purchase. You learned the different types of buys - straight rebuy, modified rebuy, or strategic alliance. Knowing that information is extremely valuable during your preapproach research. Is the customer making a first-time purchase of the product? (For instance, maybe you're selling disaster recovery services to a company that has previously lived with the risk of not having their data backed up). Or will this purchase be a rebuy? Maybe the customer is an interior design firm. The firm already buys paint from a certain supplier but is thinking of making a modified rebuy: purchasing a more environmentally friendly line of paints, either from the same supplier or from someone else (hopefully you!).
  
  On the other hand, maybe the design firm is already buying from you and is perfectly happy with the paints and with you as a supplier, so it decides to make a straight rebuy of the same product. It's also possible that your prospect is considering a strategic alliance with your company in which your organizations would make an agreement to share resources. For example, Pepsi has a strategic alliance with Frontier Airlines in which Frontier agrees that all the soft drinks it serves on board the airline will be Pepsi brand." Knowing the type of purchase will help you position your solution to best fit the situation.
  
  
• Competitor/current provider. If your prospect is already buying from another company, you'll want to know who your competitor is. What do you know about this company and their products? Most important, what are your competitor's strengths and weaknesses? Consider the interior design firm that is about to make a rebuy. If you've done your research, you might be able to tell the firm, "I know your current supplier offers a high-quality paint product in a wide range of color choices.
  
  Our company offers a wide range of color choices, too, and our product consistently gets high reviews. However, unlike your current provider, we also have a line of soy-based paints, which are better for the environment and for your customers' and employees' health than the regular latex variety. Using soy-based paints will increase your reputation as a progressive, socially responsible business". Knowing your prospect's current supplier gives you the power to favorably position your product by highlighting the things that set you apart from the competition.
  
  
• Current pricing. If the information is available, find out what your prospect's current supplier charges for their product or service. This information will give you the edge to competitively position your solution. If you charge less than your competitors, you can highlight your product as a cost-saving alternative. If your products cost more, you might consider offering a discount or other benefit to provide a better solution. On the other hand, if your products are more expensive because they're of a higher quality, you should emphasize that fact. For example, soy-based paint is generally more expensive than latex paint, but depending on your customer's needs, the extra cost might be worth the benefits of a healthier, "greener" product.

About the Contact Person

• Title and role in the company. This is basic and essential information to know. It will help you to personalize your communications and will give you a better sense of your business situation. What role does this person have in the buying decision? Are you dealing with an influencer in the organization? Does this contact person have the authority to make a buying decision, or is this person a gatekeeper, someone with whom you must talk to get to the decision maker?
  
  
• Professional background. How long has this person been at the company, and what positions has he held? What roles has he had at other companies? This information will help you to adapt your communications and solutions to the individual. You can find valuable information on professional social networks such as LinkedIn and Plaxo.com and use it as you prepare your approach and presentation. For instance, you might find out that someone in your network knows the person you are planning to approach and she can provide an entry for you. You might also learn that the person you plan on calling on was previously a buyer at two other companies and usually likes to bring in his previous vendors. If that's the case, you might adapt your approach to include benefits that you have brought to other buyers who switched to your company.
  
  
• Personal information. Everyone likes to do business with people they like. Learning what you can about your contact's family, hobbies, and interests demonstrates that you care about him as an individual and helps you build a relationship with your customer. This is useful information to keep on hand for the opening of the sales call when you want to put your prospect at ease and convince him of your goodwill. And it's good information to use as a follow-up or keep in touch. ("I know you are a huge University of Florida fan, so I thought you would enjoy this video of the team's summer training camp").
• Essential problem(s) your contact needs to solve. Knowing this information takes you right to the heart of the issue. Maybe your prospect is the marketing manager at the company and has recently been tasked with finding a new breakthrough idea for a promotional product to give away at a major upcoming industry trade show. Or maybe your prospect owns a grocery chain and needs to increase her sales in the frozen food area with organic products. Learning the specific problems your contact faces in his role at the company is the only way you can adapt your solution to meet his needs. The best way to identify your prospect's problem (or opportunity) is to do extensive research on the company.
  
  
• Motivation for buying. If your contact is already buying from another supplier, what reasons might he have to start buying from you instead? For instance, is he dissatisfied with the quality of his current provider's service or the price of the product? If he is satisfied, what value can you bring that provides a reason for him to consider changing suppliers? On the other hand, if this is a first time purchase, what will drive his initial decision to buy?

About Your Existing Customers

Your current customers are your best prospects. While you might be excited about a new account, make sure you don't spend so much time and energy on new prospects that you neglect the ones with whom you've already established a relationship.

• Opportunities to expand the relationship. There's no better place to increase your sales than with your existing customers. They know you and your product or service; you know them and their needs and challenges. So start by leveraging the information you already know about your customer's business. This is the best way to expand your relationship. For instance, if you have sold fitness equipment to a regional chain of health clubs and know that it is important for them to minimize maintenance costs and downtime, you could target the buyer as a prospect for the new line of weight machines with hydraulics. You could also expand your research and determine how much money the club could save in a year based on the number of machines and include that as part of your presentation. This is establishing your value proposition, what you have to offer that your prospect or customer is willing to pay for.
  
  If your customer is using some of your services in combination with your competitor's services, this is also a sales opportunity: find out how satisfied your customer is with the competitor's services and see if you can come up with a better solution. ("You're currently using our hydraulic weight machines, but I see that you're buying your exercise machines from this other company. Did you know that we offer treadmills, exercise bikes, and elliptical machines that come with free maintenance and product replacement guarantees?") If your customer has a contract with this competitor, finding out when the contract expires will help you time your sales call effectively.
  
  And what about your contracts with the customer? If you have a service-level agreement (SLA) with the customer, you can leverage this opportunity to strengthen the customer relationship. SLAs define the terms of the service you will provide, and they generally expire after a certain length of time (think about the contract you have with your cell phone provider). Establish open lines of communication to make sure your customer is consistently satisfied with your service. You might discuss expanded service options he can purchase, or you could offer a discount for renewing the contract early. Consider giving a short survey to gauge your customer's satisfaction level and find out whether there are additional services you might be able to offer her.
  
  You can also consider moving into other departments of the organization: use your CRM system to track the organizational structure of the company and find the influencers in other departments. Of course, you can ask your current contacts at the company for referrals of other prospective buyers within the company. Maybe you're formatting documents for the research branch of the company, but you know the company also has a communications department that puts out brochures, reports, and newsletters. You can scan your CRM database (or look on the company's Web site) for the names of managers in the communications department and ask your contact in the research department if he could give you a good referral.
  
  
• Opportunities for synergy. How can you partner with your customer in new ways that will benefit both companies? For instance, maybe there's an opportunity for a strategic alliance like the one between Pepsi and Frontier Airlines: Frontier buys exclusively from Pepsi, while Pepsi helps promote Frontier. Or are there additional services or products you offer that, used in combination with your customer's current purchases, would create an even stronger solution? For example, Linksys has its Linksys One program, which offers B2B customers high-speed wireless networks combined with an Internet telephone service and several software services. By combining one company's software and hardware products and services, customers are able to streamline their work, creating a simpler, more efficient system. If you can demonstrate potential synergy with an existing customer - that is, collaboration that produces greater results than individual products, services, or parties could produce alone - you have an opportunity to expand your business with that customer.

Sources of Information

When you want to dig deeper with your research, you can often return to the same sources you used during the qualifying process and simply get more specific with the information you gather.

• Online searches. Search online databases and directories such as Hoovers and current news stories on Yahoo! Finance, Bloomberg, and other business Web sites to find out about company demographics and key people in the organization. If you want to learn more detailed information about your contacts in the company, try online professional social networks like LinkedIn.
  
  
• Business directories. Remember the value of your local library where you can search business directories in print and access some online directories free of charge.
  
  
• Publicly available contracts. Real estate closings, government contracts, and other vital information that is part of public records can help provide pricing, terms, and other important data that can help you benchmark against the competition and better understand your prospect's current situation.
  
  
• Trade journals. Trade journals are a good source for learning more about people and companies in your target industry. Making a habit of reading these publications (or subscribing to RSS [Really Simple Syndication] feeds) helps keep you up-to-date on developments in these companies and in the industry.
  
  
• Blogs, social networks, and online forums. These online resources can provide insight about the prospect, the competition, and the environment. Many company employees and executives post regularly about their perceptions and feelings on many topics. These comments can provide valuable insight about the prospect.
  
  
• Professional organizations. Joining professional organizations (in person and online) can help you build relationships with contacts at your target companies. These organizations also serve as a source for competitive knowledge and for your connection to industry buzz.

In addition to these sources you have already used, consider another powerful resource: people. If you've already formed a relationship with key people in your target company, you can ask them for referrals to influencers in other departments of the organization. Your contacts at an organization have inside knowledge and will usually be able to tell you whom to talk to if you want to make something happen. If they're satisfied with the service you've been providing, these contacts are often happy to give you the names of others who might be able to use your solutions.

Complementary salespeople can also be an excellent source of information about a prospect. For example, if you are selling computer hardware you might find nuggets of information from the person who sells office furniture. You can help each other by sharing insights and information.

It might surprise you to know that competitive salespeople can also be a resource. If you're a member of a professional organization, if you attend conferences or tradeshows, or if you're simply connected in your community, you'll probably know competitive salespeople. While your competitor isn't going to give you the inside scoop on a prospect he's currently pursuing, he might share some useful insights about companies or people he has worked with in the past. Maybe he used to do business with one of your current contacts and can tell you things to avoid or things that will impress her. ("She will eat you alive if you don't have all your information"). Maybe one of your target companies is an organization he has sold to in the past, and he has some useful advice about the way they work. Never underestimate the power of relationships and networking.

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 This text was adapted by Saylor Academy under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 License without attribution as requested by the work's original creator or licensor.

Solving, Not Selling

Imagine you wanted to sell a new digital camera to your teenage sister. How would you convince her to buy? You might start by thinking of the things that matter to teenagers – specifically your sister. Maybe you would say, "It is small and lightweight, so you can fit it in your purse and take it with you when you go out with your friends. It has a new sleek design, and you can customize it by ordering it in one of six different colors." You have considered things your sister might need (a camera she can take on a night out), and you have identified an opportunity that might appeal to a teenage girl (a combination of appearance, style, and functionality).

Now, what if you were selling the same product to your grandmother? She might be more concerned with reliability than appearance, and she might also be intimidated about using a digital camera if it is a technology she has not tried before. "This camera does not have a lot of bells and whistles," you could say. "It is straightforward and easy to use and makes an excellent choice for a first digital camera purchase. It is perfect for taking pictures of the grandkids. It has also been highly rated as a reliable and high-quality product." You have addressed her problem (intimidation about using a new technology), and you have helped her discover opportunities (taking photos of the grandkids).

Even though you are selling the same product to both people, you are using a very different approach. Ultimately, what you are selling is not a product but a solution based on your customer's specific needs. This is the heart of the preapproach. There are three simple steps you can follow to turn your products and services into customer-specific solutions.

Step 1: Complete a Needs and Opportunity Analysis

Great salespeople do not sell; they solve. As you research your prospect, you should be able to identify problems specific to that person or organization: Do they need to reduce costs? Do they need to increase sales? Do they need to drive traffic to a Web site or generate leads for their new service? Or maybe they need something that will set their brand apart from their competitors. In the case of individual consumers, the problem might be very different: Does she want to have the latest in fashion without couture prices? Does she want the latest technology "toys" as soon as they are available? Does she want a car that is a dependable form of transportation and friendly to the environment?

Sometimes people are forthcoming about their problems, but many times it is up to you to ask the right questions; the ones that will uncover what your prospect needs or where opportunities exist. For instance, if your prospect buys from a competitor, you might ask questions like "What were your expectations when you signed up for this service? What has your actual experience of the service been? What would you like to see happen differently?" The prospect might not fully realize what his problems are. Often, especially in B2B sales, the goal of your first sales call will simply be to identify your prospect's specific areas of need. You will not make a pitch; you will just ask questions and listen.

Asking questions often opens up opportunities you might not otherwise discover. There will be occasions when your prospect does not have an immediate problem she can identify, but if you have done your research and know something about her goals and priorities and if you ask the right questions, you have the chance to uncover useful opportunities. What can help him achieve his goals even more efficiently? What kinds of results would he like to see? What would he like to have if he only knew it was possible?

Think about the advent of the cell phone. Consumers had a problem: their lives were getting busier, and they wanted to be able to communicate on the go. They needed a phone when they were not at home or in the office. What do you do on a car trip if you get lost, or your car breaks down? How do you find someone in a crowded place? How can people contact you if you are rarely home? Cell phone providers figured out consumers' problems, and they solved them. Then along came the iPhone. Most cell phone users would not have said they needed a device that could capture videos and photographs, play MP3s, store a day planner, surf the web, run hundreds of different applications – oh, and make phone calls too – using a single slick interface. But Apple saw an opportunity, and they helped consumers to see it too: over a million iPhones sold the first weekend the product came out in stores.

Step 2: Brainstorm Solutions and Generate Ideas

Once you have identified your customer's problems, take the time – either with a team or alone – to brainstorm solutions and opportunities that address your prospect's needs. Sometimes solving your prospect's problem is a straightforward task, but often with larger sales, particularly B2B sales, coming up with a solution tailored to your customer's needs requires time and thought. No two prospects are the same, so no two solutions will be exactly the same. When Joel Ronning, CEO of e-commerce company Digital River, wants to solve customer problems and generate ideas, he sits down with the senior employees of his company for a brainstorming session. The technique has boosted sales, earned the company hundreds of thousands of dollars, and led to a small business award for "best idea." As a salesperson, your job is to solve customer problems, not push a product. In other words, you're offering solutions that include unique and different ideas, not selling products. For this reason, brainstorming – generating ideas – is a crucial part of the selling process.

When you go into a brainstorming session, several techniques will help you generate effective results.

• Know your problem or opportunity. If you have already completed your needs analysis, you are off to a good start. According to James Feldman, a Chicago-based idea-generation consultant, "Most people do not identify their problem correctly" during the brainstorming session. Once you have a clear idea of the problem or opportunity, set it out in specific terms to guide your brainstorming. Just make sure you do not define the problem so narrowly that you will limit your results. Start the session by stating the objective. What problem do you want to solve? It also helps to frame the question in positive terms. For example, rather than asking, "How will this company's new computer system change the way they do business?" you could ask, "How can this company get the most out of their new computer system?"
  
  
• Generate; do not evaluate. Brainstorming is not about creating the best, most carefully polished solutions. As Gary Kopervas, chief creative strategist at Backe Digital Brand Marketing, says, "When you are brainstorming, do not be perfect; be prolific." Get your ideas out there, on paper, without disrupting the flow. Once you have exhausted your resources, you can worry about separating the stronger ideas from the weaker ones. If you are too critical of your ideas, you will never access that part of your brain where creative ideas are generated. Kopervas has devised the Five Fs of Brainstorming to guide a more effective process. They are outlined in Figure 8.4, "Five Fs of Brainstorming."

Figure 8.4 Five Fs of Brainstorming

• Push beyond the wall. At some point during every brainstorming session, whether group brainstorming or individual, people tend to hit a wall. Ideas flow quickly, and then they seem to stop altogether. Cognitive psychologist Paul Paulus says this point in the session may seem like a wall, but in reality, it is just "a space in [the] brain." Pushing past this space often leads to the best ideas.
  
  
• Seek strategic stimuli. Sometimes you have to disrupt your normal routine to get the ideas flowing. Putting yourself in a new environment or doing something with your hands – molding clay, for instance – can often be a surprising way to unlock ideas in your subconscious that your rational mind might otherwise block.

Brainstorming, as an idea-generation tool, is a proven and powerful part of creative development. However, remember that some of the ideas you come up with in the brainstorming process will be stronger than others. A great idea has two important elements: it solves your customer's problems, and, in B2B sales, it reinforces your customer's brand.

Consider consultant Mike Rubin's solution to a problem faced by one of his customers, a Harley-Davidson dealer, who wanted to boost sales and appeal to a broader customer base. Mike's Famous Harley-Davidson Dealership was already drawing in the "hard-core" bikers, but the store's owner wanted to reach the more conservative, baby boomer demographic too. By turning the dealership into a destination, complete with a Harley museum and restaurant, Rubin hit on a solution that addressed the customer's problem and remained true to the Harley brand image.

The restaurant, designed to resemble a factory cafeteria, appealed to tough bikers and families alike. The museum – also a family-friendly draw – was laid out in a warehouse style that reflected the company's brand image of independence, toughness, and the open road. The result? In three years, bike sales increased from 800 to over 1,700 annually.

If you are working out of your home and do not have a group of people with which to brainstorm, it is not a problem. Get your colleagues in other areas involved by having a brainstorming conference call. Or have a virtual brainstorming session through your professional social network by using the discussion feature on LinkedIn, getting ideas from your followers on Twitter, or creating a wiki where people can share ideas at any time and see the ideas others have created.

The bottom line is that selling is all about selling your brand (remember that a brand is unique, consistent, and relevant and has an emotional connection with its customers). When you understand your customer and their needs and motivations, you can be extremely creative about the way you position and tell the story of your brand.

Step 3: Identify General and Specific Benefit Statements

Once you have brainstormed a customer-specific solution, you want to find a way to showcase your solution in the best light. How will you present this idea to your prospect so he can immediately see its relevance to his situation? How will you establish the value proposition you have to offer? How will you position your idea as a benefit to your prospect, not a self-serving sales pitch? As part of your preapproach, you should identify both a general and a specific statement to highlight the benefits of your solution or opportunity. When you deliver value to your prospect, you earn the opportunity to be a business partner, not just someone trying to sell something.

Imagine you work for a dairy products distributor that sells wholesale to restaurants. You have researched one of your prospects, a downtown deli, and have identified one of its major problems: the company is losing business to the sandwich place across the street. Your prospect may not yet realize the source of trouble, but you have an idea. It seems that the prospect's competitor has cheaper sandwiches, and you know that part of the problem lies in the cost of the ingredients.

Your prospect pays 10 percent more for the cheese it gets from its current vendor than you would charge for the same product. If the deli started buying cheese from you, it could lower the cost of its sandwiches to a more competitive price and draw some of the sales going to its competitor. You have also brainstormed how the deli can create a "signature sandwich": a unique combination of meat and cheeses that only it offers. The sandwich provides a point of difference for the deli and a reason for previous deli customers to return. In other words, you are helping to build your prospect's brand and business with a great idea.

This is a good solution, but you cannot walk into the deli and tell your prospect, "I want to sell you some cheese." Your prospect does not need cheese; he needs to increase his sales, and he will probably tell you to go away because he already has a dairy products vendor. It is your job to frame the solution so your customer can easily see its relevance to his problem; you want to answer the "What is in it for me?" question early in the sales call. Begin by drafting a general benefit statement, a statement that gives the big picture of how your solution will meet your prospect's need. For instance, you might say, "I have an idea for a way to increase your sandwich sales by 15 percent." Your statement showcases a solution rather than a product.

General benefit statements, instead of specific benefit statements, are broad enough to be important to most people. They might address things like improving company visibility, expanding the business, increasing profits, or cutting costs. The specific benefit statement, on the other hand, comes once you have grabbed your prospect's attention. It identifies the particular way your solution applies to your prospect, and it demonstrates that you have done your research and understand the needs that are unique to his company or situation. For instance, you might say, "Your food cost is too high, and it is keeping you from competing with other businesses. I can help you cut your food costs so that you can afford to sell your breakfast burrito for under $2.99. Would that be something you would be interested in?" If you have done your research and brainstormed an effective solution, your benefits statements are the tools that will give you the power to convey that information clearly and effectively.

General Benefit Statement	Specific Benefit Statement
I have an idea that can help you lower your labor costs. Is that something you might be interested in?	If I can prove that I can help you reduce your labor costs by 10 percent, would you be willing to commit?
I have some ideas about how to increase traffic to your Web site. Is that something that is of interest to you?	If I can show you how our social networking tool can drive 15 percent more traffic to your Web site during key seasonal periods, would you be willing to consider it?
I have some ideas about how to decrease your transaction time and take care of more customers every hour. Is that something you are interested in?	If I can show you how our product can decrease your transaction time for each customer by at least one minute, would you be interested in looking at the proposal?

Table 8.1 Benefit Statement Examples

Identify Precall Objectives: Getting Smart about Your Sales Call

Identifying your prospect's need is only part of your preapproach research. There's still more research and planning for you to do before you meet with or speak to the customer.

Determine Your Objectives

If you haven't determined what you hope to achieve before going into your sales call, it will be difficult to figure out what to say once you arrive or have your prospect on the phone. Setting precall objectives is a strategically important step. If you have clear goals, you will be more confident and appear more organized, and it is more likely that you will see results. Your customers are busy, and you don't want to waste their time. They will appreciate your organization and be more likely to trust your judgment if you come prepared. You also don't want to waste your or your company's time. According to Hoovers, the average sales call costs a company nearly $400!

As you plan your meeting, ask yourself: "What will success look like for this call?" That may seem like a question with a straightforward answer, but success doesn't always mean closing the sale. In some situations, you will experience a one-call close. Still, with larger sales, particularly in B2B sales, the sales cycle, or the length of time it takes to go from the first contact with the customer to closing the sale, is generally longer – sometimes even taking up to a year or longer. Consider Telegraph Hill Robes, a San Francisco-based company that sells bathrobes to upscale hotels with spas. Buying enough bathrobes to stock a hotel spa is a large investment, one that most customers have to carefully consider. The sale has to clear with two contacts at every company: the general manager and the head of housekeeping. As a result, when Telegraph Hill started selling its product in 1996, its average sales cycle was two years!

If you know that you are facing a longer sales cycle, the goal of your initial call might be gathering and conveying specific information to move forward in the sales process or further qualify your prospect. According to Gary Duncan, principal of the sales training organization Leadership Connections, "In more complex sales, it is realistic to set a precall objective of establishing rapport and trust, making new contacts in the organization, qualifying your prospect's budget, or discovering what your prospect's decision-making process is. For instance, you might decide to find out who your prospect's current vendors are, any issues your prospect has with the services she is receiving, and what her goals are for future purchases". You should also consider your prospect's objectives: what outcome is she hoping for from this call?

Sometimes, setting strategic, information-gathering objectives may help you shorten your overall sales cycle. Take Acumen, a company that sells high-capability accounting software to corporations. Originally, the company's sales cycle lasted around nine months. However, once the company became more strategic in its precall planning, designing a system of rigorous qualifying questions that its salespeople had to resolve before making a sales pitch, Acumen decreased its average sales cycle to somewhere between three and six months. Asking detailed questions during early sales calls allowed the company to cut back on time it wasted brainstorming solutions and making sales pitches for underqualified leads.

Make Your Objectives SMART

So it is early in the process of a complex sale, and you are setting your goals for your next meeting with your customer. You know it will primarily be an information-gathering session because you need to know more before proposing a workable, specific solution. However, if you go into the meeting with a vague plan like "I want to find out more about my prospect's business," you won't accomplish much. Instead, you might come up with a goal similar to the one mentioned earlier: "By the end of this meeting, I want to know who my prospect's current vendors are, what issues or challenges he faces with this vendor's services, and what three priorities he has for future purchases." This objective, like all effective precall objectives, is SMART. The goal is Specific, Measurable, Actionable, Realistic, and Time-bound.

• Specific. The goal should clearly define which actions you want your customer to take, what information you hope to convey, and/or what information you hope to learn from your sales call. In the example cited by Gary Duncan, the salesperson sets out to gather three specific pieces of information.
  
  
• Measurable. You want to be able to measure the results of your efforts so that you will know at the end of your sales call how close you came to achieving what you set out to do. This will help you strategize about which actions to take next. The first two parts of the example are measurable with a simple yes or no (Did I find out the names of the current vendors? Did I identify issues and challenges my customer has encountered?). The last part of the goal is quantifiable (How many of my customer's priorities was I able to help him articulate?).
  
  
• Actionable. If a goal is actionable or attainable, it is something you can do. It might involve asking questions, explaining something, or suggesting something. Whatever the case, it should be something on which you can act. Sometimes, the actionable goal might be as simple as closing the sale: "By the end of the meeting, I plan to convince my prospect to sign a contract."

• Realistic. If you set your goal too high or try to move your sales process along too quickly, you will only be setting yourself up for disappointment and failure. Ask yourself, "What can I reasonably hope to accomplish given the current situation with my prospect?" If you decide to get appointments with ten top people in the organization during your first contact with the company, or if you intend to close a major account by your first call, you will probably not be able to achieve what you set out to do.
  
  
• Time-bound. Not only should you know what you hope to achieve, but you should also know when you hope to accomplish it. In the example objective, your time frame is "by the end of the sales call." Other times, you might set a specific date – for example, "Get the prospect to agree to schedule a face-to-face meeting by the 15th."

Figure 8.5 SMART Objectives

SMART objectives give you the power to sell strategically by setting achievable goals. Another powerful tool is the simple act of putting your goals down in writing. Not only are you likely to make a stronger commitment to your goals when you have them on paper, but you will also be able to use your written goals for reference later on – even during the sales call if needed.

Figure 8.6 Examples of SMART Objectives

Prepare Your Presentation

Once you have done your research, brainstormed your solution, and set your SMART objectives, you have got an excellent foundation to move forward. The only homework left to do is planning your sales presentation. Even if you have a stellar solution, and your objectives may be clearly defined, you cannot make your sales pitch, hoping to just "wing it." A well-planned presentation can often be the thing that makes or breaks a sale. If your customer sees you as well prepared (i.e., if you have thoughtfully tailored your style, presentation materials, and agenda to match what you know about your contact and his company culture), you will go far in establishing a strong rapport with your customer and earning his trust and respect.

Four Ps of Presentation Preparation

Preparing your sales presentation can seem like an overwhelming task. How long should you speak, and how much time should you allow for questions? Should you use demonstrations or examples? How formal should you be? What points should you address first? Here are four general guidelines to keep in mind as you begin the planning process.

1. Prioritize Your Agenda

Your presentation should be well organized. Think about how you want to lead in, when you will introduce key information in your presentation, and when you will use product demonstrations. When Tom Szaky, CEO of the garden products company TerraCycle, gives a sales presentation, he prepares by drawing up an agenda that prioritizes the information he wants to convey and arranging it in a strategic order. 

For example, Szaky knows that if he presents his product near the beginning of the presentation, his customers will decide before they know what makes TerraCycle unique, so he starts off all of his presentations by talking about the features that set his company apart. Not only will prioritizing your agenda give you a strategic edge, but it will also help your customer to see that you are organized. Bring copies of your agenda to distribute at the beginning of the meeting so that your customers can follow along with you as you give your presentation.

2. Personalize It

At this phase in the preapproach you should have some knowledge about your contacts in the company, and you should understand the company's particular culture and priorities. As you plan your presentation, you can use this knowledge to tailor your approach to your prospect. What tone will you set for the presentation? Is your prospect a "fun" company that would respond well to humor or interactive opportunities during the presentation?

Are you presenting to a group of busy executives who would value an efficient, no-nonsense approach? Think about the level of formality your customers will expect. This will dictate how you dress, how you speak, and how you design your visual aids and demonstrations. When Tom Szaky gives a presentation to buyers from Wal-Mart (one of his biggest customers), he dresses casually, perhaps wearing a corduroy jacket, a John Deere cap, and frayed shoes. Wal-Mart presents itself as a no-frills company, and this attitude carries over into its corporate culture. Understanding this aspect of the company and the contacts with whom he's working - representatives from the garden department - Szaky adapts his approach to match.

3. Prepare Illustrations

People respond best to things they can see and experience for themselves. Your sales presentation will not be complete without product demonstrations and visual aids to inspire your customers and help them see the value of your product firsthand. As you develop this aspect of your presentation, consider slides or handouts that will reinforce key points. Consider the things that will best help this particular customer visualize your solution as a winning one.

For example, in one presentation to Wal-Mart buyers, Szaky displayed a binder full of newspaper clippings in which TerraCycle had helped Wal-Mart generate positive publicity. He also used a short video and brought in a live plant grown with his potting mix. In addition, because his contact at the company had asked to see what the product might look like on the sales floor, Szaky brought in a merchandizing mockup to help his buyers visualize TerraCycle's potting mix in their stores.

4. Practice

Finally, once you've created your presentation, practice it. Practice in front of a mirror, deliver the presentation to family members and colleagues (if you can get a willing audience!), and run over your agenda until you know it inside and out. You want the presentation to come off smoothly, but you also want it to seem natural. Even experienced salespeople like Tom Szaky practice a presentation – perfecting their pacing and delivery and ensuring they know their stuff – before going into a sales call.

Selling Yourself: Six Power-Packed Tools to Let the Right People Know about Your Brand

Now that you understand how preparation can help you be successful in selling, let's go back to selling the most important brand of all –ƒ you! You researched, identified, and qualified your 25 target companies and obtained the contact information for at least two key people at each organization. Of course, there is still some homework before you see the payoff of securing an interview.

As Andrew Sum, director of Northeastern University's Center for Labor Market Studies, says, "You are never going to find anything unless you apply." However, you can think of this step in the process as the exciting part. Consider what happens when a company releases a new product. The company does not keep the news to itself, discreetly shipping the product to stores hoping the right buyers will find it. Instead, it leverages every resource it has to get the word out. Think about the new Prius. Toyota took advantage of the publicity surrounding the car's fuel efficiency to generate buzz with newspapers, radio, and television reporting on Prius-related press releases. Toyota leveraged Web resources (e.g., blogs, discussion forums, product fan sites) and highlighted positive product reviews in its press releases and online."

When a company has designed a new product or brand, it is excited to let people know about it. The more enthusiastically it shares the news, the better the payoff. The same should be true of your job search. You are a new brand that is about to go on the market, you know you have unique qualities to offer, and you should be excited to let other people know this about you, too. Sending the news to potential employers at your target companies is a good way to start. If you take advantage of this tool, in combination with five other power-packed tools for getting the word out, you will be surprised by the positive results you see.

Power-Packed Tool #1: Professional Social Networking

You learned about the power of professional social networking. More companies increasingly use professional social networks such as LinkedIn to identify potential job candidates. But it is not enough to simply create a profile on LinkedIn. To be noticed on a massive professional networking site, just as in the real world, you have to stand out. That means completing your profile, adding content, participating in discussions, and linking to other content, such as your blog. Also, share your content by joining groups on LinkedIn, such as The Power of Selling (a group of selling professionals to support you in this class and beyond), Sales and Marketing Executives, and Salesblogcast.com, or other groups in your area of interest. These groups include thousands of professionals with whom you can connect and network. And ask people such as supervisors from your job, internship, or volunteer organization; professors; or other professionals to speak on your behalf by posting a recommendation about you.

Power-Packed Tool #2: Direct Mail

Direct mail is a powerful but often overlooked source you have for getting your cover letter and résumé to people who are making hiring decisions. Now that you have researched and identified your 25 target companies and key decision-makers at each one, it is time to put that information to work.

You might think that sending letters to companies that do not currently have open jobs posted might be a waste of time. The fact is that hiring managers do not like to post jobs, as it takes time and energy to come up with the job description, clear it through all the proper channels, sort through résumés and cover letters, and interview potential employees. This means that a number of your contacts may have open positions they have not yet publicized, and they would be delighted if a qualified candidate like you could save them the hassle of a drawn-out hiring process.

And if you have done everything correctly (e.g., addressed your cover letter individually to key hiring managers, not just human resources), but your letter does not end up in the right person's hands, your contact at the company may very well pass your résumé on to someone else who would be a better fit. ("Hey Dave, is your department still looking for a marketing assistant?") If you want your letter to stand out even more, consider sending it to some top prospective employers with a return receipt requested or via FedEx. It's a good way to ensure that the recipient received your cover letter and résumé and there's a good chance your letter will get opened quickly.

Sending your cover letter and résumé to several people at your 25 target companies will set you apart from your competitors because very few people send information by mail these days. Think about the number of emails you get in your inbox daily. A letter stands out, and the best part about sending direct mail to your target companies is that it is easy to do. You can easily personalize cover letters and envelopes for the people at your target companies using the mail merge feature. Remember that hiring managers are busy, and sometimes letters get lost or forgotten. If you do not get the response you were hoping for, send your letter to the same people in your mail merge again in three to four weeks.

Power-Packed Tool #3: Company Web Sites

During the preapproach to a sales call, a good salesperson spends time at her prospective company's Web site, researching the organization and its key people in greater depth so that she can go into the meeting knowledgeable about basic company facts and informed of any recent developments. This is also an important technique when researching prospective employers – and it is a task that requires minimal effort on your part. If one of your target companies contacts you for an interview, the knowledge you gained from this Web site research will prove useful.

The online job boards for your 25 target companies are another avenue for getting the word out about your brand. It does not hurt to apply for published positions, particularly if you take steps (using techniques described here and in other chapters) to set yourself apart from most other applicants. If the Web site gives you the option, sign up for email alerts that will let you know when new positions open up. Company Web sites are excellent resources for finding advertised positions because the job descriptions posted there are often more detailed than the descriptions you might be able to find through general online job boards. Moreover, many companies post open positions only on their Web sites to avoid the cost of posting on other job boards.

Power-Packed Tool #4: Online Job Boards

The benefit of online job boards like Monster.com, CareerBuilder.com, and Yahoo! HotJobs is that they make it a snap to perform searches by industry and keyword, and they often return a wealth of results. Internet job boards have recently become one of the fastest-growing online categories. These sites can be an excellent avenue for learning about career opportunities in your target industry. They should be part of your efforts to find the right employer. These sites might help you find job opportunities through companies that you would not have otherwise considered working for. They will certainly keep you informed about the kinds of positions for which people are currently hiring in your industry and the particular qualifications for which many employers are searching.

Most sites will allow you to set up email alerts (customized by your chosen keywords) so that new job postings come to your inbox regularly. It is best to enter as many keywords as possible relevant to your interests and experiences so that you do not miss anything. For instance, if you want a job in advertising, you would choose advertising as a keyword. Still, you could also list words like promotions, account executive, account manager, account coordinator, customer services, brand manager, advertising agency, and social media. You might also consider creating a separate email account to keep track of your job-related emails, particularly if you have subscribed to alerts through several job search Web sites.

It is a good idea to go through several Web sites to stay informed about as many opportunities as possible. You can go through general job boards like Vault.com or CareerBuilder.com, industry-specific job boards like MarketingSherpa.com, location-specific job boards like SeattleRecruiter.com, or a combination of these options.

Although it is important to use direct mail when submitting a cold-contact application, when you apply for positions you find on online job boards, you should apply through the Web site using the format they prescribe. Just make sure you include a cover letter when you submit your résumé. Hiring managers are likely to throw away résumés that come in without cover letters because a cover letter is what allows you to personalize your application, sending the message that you care enough to make an effort in your job search. Finally, keep in mind that while many job seekers rely entirely on online job boards for their searches, and while these sites can be a good avenue for learning about opportunities, they are not an end-all method. They are strongest when combined with your direct-mail campaign and the other power-packed tools mentioned in this chapter.

Finally, when you want to let people know you are on the market and have unique skills, consider integrating several methods discussed in other chapters of this book to let people see your face. Phone calls, letters, and online communications are critical to your job search, but nothing creates an impression and establishes personal connections like face-to-face interaction.

• Informational interviews. Develop a list of contacts in your field of interest and contact several to ask about setting up an informational interview: "You do what I would like to do. Could I learn about how you got into the industry?" People naturally love sharing their knowledge and expertise, so most of your contacts will be more than willing to help. Informational interviews are excellent resources for establishing connections and generating job leads.
  
  
• Mentors. You are never too young or too old to have a mentor. Mentors can help you develop your knowledge and skills, build your network, and learn inside information about working in your chosen field. Mentors are your allies: the people who most want to see you succeed – and the ones who often have the resources to help you do so.
  
  
• Networking. It is impossible to overstate the importance of building your network. Online tools like LinkedIn are powerful resources, but face-to-face networking with personal and professional connections can generate surprising results. Your stylist might tell you, "Oh yeah, my brother-in-law is in sales. You might want to talk to him about a job. I am not sure if he has any jobs open, but I will give you his number so you can touch base with him."
  
  
• Internships and professional organizations. Internships are an excellent way to network, learn more about working in your chosen field, gain valuable experience, and sometimes get your foot in the door at a company. Another way to get exposure in any industry is by joining and getting involved in professional organizations.
  

Power-Packed Tool #6: Follow-Up

Following up helps you maximize your efforts after networking, applying for an online job, sending direct mail, contacting someone via networking (online or offline), and visiting a job fair. You will leave a good impression, help your contacts to remember you, and set yourself apart from other applicants. Follow-up can sometimes have surprising benefits, so even when a door seems closed, make the effort to send a personal note or thank-you.

Consider a college graduate who integrated follow-up into her job search. Shortly after applying for a public relations position at one of her target companies, she received a letter saying the position had been filled. Anika followed up on this letter with a note, thanking the interviewer for her time and mentioning how much she had enjoyed their meeting and her visit to the company. A week later, she got the position – the candidate the company originally hired had changed her mind. Because she was the only applicant who had followed up, she stood out, and the company hired her as a replacement.

Consider these techniques that will allow you to make the most of your follow-up efforts:

• Send thank-you notes. Send a personal thank-you note to everyone in your online network who gives you a referral and to anyone with whom you have an informational interview. Also, send a thank-you note or email to contacts you meet at career fairs. It is best to send a thank-you email the same day, then follow up with a handwritten note. When you write your handwritten note and mail it on the day of your meeting or interview, your contact will usually receive it the next day. And do it promptly. Do not let weeks go by – send your notes within a day so that they arrive while you are still fresh in your contact's mind.
  
  
• Call. Call your 25 target companies one week after you mail your cover letter and résumé. If you are sending your direct mailings to at least two contacts at each company, it will not be realistic to follow up with everyone. Pick the key contact at your target company – usually the hiring manager in your targeted department – with whom you want to follow up and ensure you get her on the phone when you call. If the call goes to voice mail, you can leave a message but try again until you reach her.
  

It is also important to keep thorough records of your communications with your target companies and contacts. Use the Excel spreadsheet you created for your mailing list to record the date you mailed your cover letters and résumés, the date you followed up, the result of your follow-up, and any future actions you need to take (e.g., call back in one week). You can use a similar system when you follow up with your online job board applications. Postings listed on online job boards do not always provide the contact info for individuals at the company, but whenever they do, make sure you follow up with this person by phone one week after you have submitted your résumé and cover letter.