Your Doctor May Be Your Best Sales Coach

On By Joe DeRosaIn SalesLeave a comment

doctor

In my previous blog post I talked about a selling strategy that helps to eliminate lost sales.  Lost due to a disconnect between the prospect and the sales person.  A communication miss fire on either end is responsible for every sale not made.  If the sales person is communicating and observing the prospects response, or reaction, there should be no last-minute surprises of lost business.  In fact, if you were really honest about it, most of the time you knew deep down that sale was going nowhere.  But the sales gods have been clear for decades that you never give up, never walk away, always be closing, and never take no for an answer.  If you’re into self-deprecation that might be exactly the approach you’re looking for.  But for those of us who are interested in transcending the age-old image of a product pusher to one of a true sales professional, looking for the “no” is how you should approach each sales opportunity.

For years I have taught and coached sales teams across a variety of different industries to approach a prospect as a doctor approaches a patient.  Curious, thoughtful, prescriptive and honest.  Here’s how:

  1. Curious.  The first thing a doctor does when he/she enters an exam room is begins asking questions.  What’s going on?  When did it start?  Is it like this, or like that?  Do the symptoms increase in intensity during certain times or are they constant and unchanging?  The doctor is beginning to diagnose your problem.  Asking questions, no matter how uncomfortable they may be, is the first step to a proper diagnosis.
  2. Thoughtful.  In my experience (and to be completely honest I believe I have the world’s greatest doctor) great doctors never provide knee jerk responses.  They go through their diagnosis phase and take a moment to process the information they’ve just gathered.  Sure this process step may take seconds, but in most cases pay attention the next time you go to the doctor and watch for that “medical processing pause”.  This refers to the time it takes for the doctor to thoughtfully provide their assessment and prescribe next steps.
  3. Prescriptive.  Depending on the assessment of what’s wrong with the patient the doctor may have one to many different prescriptions to offer the patient.  The prescription may not be solely medicine related.  A doctor may prescribe physical therapy, or eliminating a specific food from your diet.  He/she may also prescribe a mobility aid such as crutches or a walker, or even a sling or splint depending on the injury.  The point is that in many cases there are a variety of paths forward and the doctor presents these options in the form of prescriptions.
  4. Honesty.  This element of the doctor-patient relationship is the most important.  No matter how good the doctor is, if there is no trust that exists between him/her and the patient the above 3 ingredients are useless.  By the time the doctor gets to the prescription phase of the patient examine, he/she is presenting options along with their personal choice.  How many times have you heard a doctor say, “if you were my son”, or “when my mom went through this we decided to do…” The trust and honesty that exists between a doctor and patient – their ability to communicate transparently with one another – is the ingredient that results in the patient’s ability to improve their condition.

The relationship between a doctor and patient exists for one of two reasons:  to fix something currently broken, or to avoid something breaking in the future.  Isn’t that the relationship between you and your prospect?  The prospect has either agreed to meet with you because something in their business is currently broken or because something may be changing that may cause something to break that they’re trying to avoid happening.  Regardless of whether it is a current problem or future, follow the 4 steps above and you’ll find a more engaging, trusting, and action-oriented relationship develop between you and your prospect, soon-to-be customer.

Are You Losing Sales? It’s Probably The Last 3 Feet.

On By Joe DeRosaIn SalesLeave a comment

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Successful outcomes are the result of many different elements including preparation, practice, and skill.  With every action comes a reaction and the intensity of that reaction can be linked to the effectiveness of the originating action.  If you walk at a slow pace for exercise it will take longer to work up a sweat as opposed to a brisk walk or even a jog where you will sweat much quicker.  Action versus reaction.

How often have you left a sales call wondering where things went wrong?  You didn’t get the business.  The prospect seemed on board but decided to go in a different direction.  That reaction, whether we’d like to admit it or not is the direct result of an action we took at some point during the sales process.  In fact, the primary action that results in lost sales is communication.  Clarity of communication, followed by the ability to process that communication, is where many sales people fall flat.

In his book Exceptional Selling, Jeff Thull talks about “the last three feet” as being the distance that separates a prospect from a sales person sitting across a table from one another.   How often have you felt you’ve done everything right and in your final meeting – in that last three feet – with the prospect, you learn they decided against doing business with you?  It’s happened to us all at least once.  If you have been selling for years it’s most likely happened hundreds of times.  But why?

The main reason for this disconnect centers around a miss fire in communication.  You either said something to the prospect that turned them off, or you said the right thing that disqualified them as a prospect but you were too stubborn to see it.  We’ve all been taught to never walk away from a sales opportunity.  Further we  have been told for years that everyone is a prospect.  These ideas are just flat-out false.  Not everyone is a prospect and the quicker you find out who presents a real opportunity the better you’ll become at selling.  Remember your time, money, and energy are only of value to you so protect them.  The faster you can sort the real opportunities from the imaginary the better.

Watch for my next blog when I’ll present a sales strategy I have used with great success that eliminates the risk of the last three feet.

 

The Most Important Sales Question You Need To Ask

On By Joe DeRosaIn SalesLeave a comment

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Selling is a combination of both art and science.  It requires intelligence, curiosity, study, and practice.  Unfortunately too many books have been written by self-proclaimed gurus who are running around promoting persuasion, influence and manipulation.  As a life-long sales professional I cringe when I hear these tactics being promoted as the Holy Grail of selling.  Learn how to persuade a buyer and you’ll be golden.  Wrong.  Persuasion is only temporary if it’s not grounded in something more significant or substantive to the buyer.  While beating the buyer into submission is one way to approach sales I’d suggest a much different path.  Something that requires a fair amount of mental horsepower, patience and agility.  This approach can be summed up in one question…So What?

Sales people have been trained…brainwashed…into force feeding a prospect through a rigid selling process.  The problem is that most sales processes are inward focused and aligned to what their organization does and is capable of delivering.  They rarely take the customers viewpoint into consideration.  This results in the sales person trying to find a way to wiggle into the prospective buyers wallet, often times not knowing or caring whether there is a real or tangible need for their product.

So how can you avoid falling into the stereotypical sales rep persona?  Ask this one questions before and after your customer interactions – So what?  This product has  a 98% satisfaction rating!  So what?  My company has been around for 100 years.  So what?  We pay the highest commission rates in the industry.  So what?  I’ve helped many business owners like you improve their profits.  So what?

I’m sure many of those statements sound familiar.  You may have even used one or two of them before.  But so what?  What does your satisfaction rating mean to me the buyer?  Why should I care?  Too many times sales reps lob a one-liner out there and let it hang.  They believe that it’s such a powerful statement that the buyer must believe it too, yet we know this isn’t the case.

Once you begin to challenge yourself with the “So What?” question you’ll find yourself having different conversations with your customer and asking different questions.  You’ll begin to interact with your customer on a different level.  Your genuine new-found interest in what’s important to your customer will be seen and felt.  And while this may not guarantee a sale it will guarantee that you’ll be better prepared to separate the true prospects versus those who simply clog our pipelines who are not fits, matches, or beneficiaries of the value we provide.  Having this power will help you close more business that is a true fit while quickly sorting through the business that isn’t, saving you time, money, and energy that you can then direct toward those prospects who can truly benefit from the value you offer.

Happy selling!

5 Tips for Running a Better Business Meeting

On By Joe DeRosaIn Business, LeadershipLeave a comment
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We’re all busy.  The last thing we need is to attend another meeting. The minions gather around the board table and talk, ponder, and pontificate.  Time seems to stand still.  We’ve all been in meetings when we felt an overwhelming desire to be watching paint dry than to hear one more syllable uttered in the dungeon the business world refers to as “The Conference Room”.  In fact, so ineffective are most meetings that we’ve taken to naming our conference rooms with fun names so as to distract those weary attendees into thinking fun is on the other side of the door to Pebble Beach or Gilligan’s Island. So is there any way to spruce up our meetings?  Is there such a thing as an effective meeting?  Yes there is.
The next time you call a meeting follow these simple 5 steps:
  1. Prepare.  Know your material.  Know the salient points you’re trying to communicate.  Anticipate questions and formulate responses.  People hate showing up and feeling like their times been wasted because the leader doesn’t seem to have a clear agenda.
  2. Get revved up.  Have some energy for goodness sake.  Attending a meeting where the leader is monotone, or worse distracted or bored is a fate worse that death.  Show some energy, and respect, to those who have showed up at your request.
  3. Take frequent pauses and solicit responses.  No one likes to be lectured to, especially for 90 minutes – the average length of a business meeting in the U.S. according to the University of Tulsa.  Asking questions like “does that make sense?”, or “what do you think of that?” will keep people engaged and thinking.
  4. Take notes.  At the end of the meeting circle back to those who raised comments, concerns, opportunities, etc.  This lets the attendees know that when they are invited to one of your meetings they are engaged and expected to interact.
  5. Acknowledge great ideas.  The definition of “conference” is; a meeting of people to confer.  If you didn’t want anyones opinion you wouldn’t have asked them to join the meeting.  Even the best ideas, the best laid plans, the best strategies can be improved if you’re willing to listen.

Following these steps will keep your co-workers active and position you as a leader by demonstrating first and foremost your respect for everyone’s time, highlighted by your ability to efficiently navigate the team from topic to end-state.

 

Tunnel Vision – A Salespersons Secret Weapon

On By Joe DeRosaIn SalesLeave a comment

TunnelVision

As the internet-of-everything continues to grow, and social media becomes more robust with each passing day, professionals in every industry are forced to embrace the art of multitasking. In fact, so much so that our society places the skill of multitasking on a pedestal – a Holy Grail if you will of those who are super-efficient. Look at a handful of resumes today and you’ll find candidates advertising their ability to perform a dozen tasks with accuracy and proficiency. But can they really? Can any of us be really good at anything when we’re focused on everything?

Successful salespeople do many things well but one common area of frustration that plagues many is the never ending struggle to focus. To have a singular focus – perhaps tunnel vision – on only one or two things at a time. Tunnel vision leads to a laser focus on what really matters. Would a golfer think of his/her next drive while still on the green putting for birdie? Would a heart surgeon be thinking of office payroll with a patient on the table and chest open? Let’s hope not. Tunnel vision, laser focus, or concentration can all be attributed to those who excel in their particular craft.

Try these 3 Tunnel Vision ideas to improve your performance:

  1. Shut off email while making prospecting calls. Email is one of the biggest distractions a salesperson deals with. What if my customer needs me? What about my referral sources calling me with a prospect? The human mind often tends to work in extremes. A “this or that” mentality. The reality is that things are rarely this or that. Start out by shutting off your email for an hour while making calls and then check it after an hour to see what items require your immediate attention or response.  You’re ability to stay focused on your calls in the absence of the “You-Got-Mail ding” will yield better results.
  2. The early bird does get the worm. Start your day early setting aside 20 – 30 minutes to read. Glance at the news, read some blogs, or finish a chapter or two of a sales focused book. Starting the day early allows you to tunnel your vision on tasks that will enhance your conversations and activities throughout the day.  If your calls begin at 8 am, start your work day at 7:30 am.  Notice I didn’t say start your day at 7:30 am as my assumption is that your day is starting somewhere around the 6 am hour if not earlier anyway.
  3. Prepare your call list the night before. Being able to start your day focused on making calls rather than preparing for them is another way to focus your attention on action-based tactics. Preparing a call list requires a different energy than making the calls themselves. Be sure when you’re making calls you’re focused on nothing but the calls themselves. Multitasking will be heard and felt by the receiver of the call and will most likely lead to poor outcomes.

Be confident in knowing that acting with tunnel vision will produce better results while multitasking only produces diluted results.  The power of focus will help you prioritize your tasks for the day by applying the most amount of energy and skill possible during those activities.

5 Things Every Salesperson Should Focus On

On By Joe DeRosaIn SalesLeave a comment

focus

Sales people are an interesting breed.  They’re high-strung, often funny, and witty, sensitive and many times high maintenance.  I know this because I am one.  I’ve sold, managed, led, and built sales teams for the better part of the past 2o years.  I’ve had months when I hit my numbers and months when I’ve missed.  I’ve had sales teams that have blown the number out of the water and those who have drowned while trying to hit the number.  Yet over the years I have heard one question that continues to be asked over and over again…”what is the secret to success in sales?”.  Here’s the answer…there is no secret.

The difference between successful sales people and those who fail in this profession is simple.  Over the years I have identified 5 traits that separate those who succeed from those who fail.

  1. Clarity of goals – knowing exactly what you want to achieve and when.
  2. Discipline – being committed to perfecting your skills.  Starting your day before others and ending it after they’ve long given up.  Putting in that extra time when others are out having fun.
  3. Curiosity/Inquisitiveness – an insatiable thirst for knowledge.  Betterment.  Desire to outsmart, or out-understand others.  Constantly absorbing, learning, refining.
  4. Time Management – successful people know that time is their biggest asset.  They don’t waste it.  In Sales this means selling when people are available to be sold to.  Don’t do paperwork at 10 am.  That’s a waste of time.  Sell at 10 am and do your paperwork at 10 pm.
  5. Self-Reflect – 15 minutes a day to reflect on what you did, what results you generated, what you learned, what you’ll do different tomorrow.

Make these 5 things part of your life and success will find its way to your doorstep, not because it simply wandered over but because you attracted it through these strong and powerful habits.

 

Can Really Anyone Succeed?

On By Joe DeRosaIn LeadershipLeave a comment

Doubt

It all begins with setting clear goals.  Knowing what you want along with a rough idea of the time frame in which you want to accomplish those wants is where success begins.  No one stumbles into success.  Without clearly defined goals even winning the lottery will lead to failure as the bankruptcy rates for lottery winners seem to indicate.  We’ve managed to create a society in the United States where success is demonized and those who acquire it are viewed as the bad guys.  Lines continue to form for hand-outs and entitlement programs.  We’ve more than doubled the ranks on government assistance in the past 8 years, and the news is littered with stories on just how little the rich and successful do for those less fortunate.

Those who don’t succeed often whine about the who, the how, and the what.  Who prevented them from succeeding how they were derailed from success, and what’s missing from the system that if there would enable them to succeed.  These folks just don’t seem to get it.  They must have slept through history class…not just ours but civilizations across the globe.  Remember the caveman wasn’t born with fire or a wheel.  It took thought, vision, hard work and persistence.  Our country was founded on the basic principle that anyone willing to work hard while applying their God-given talents could succeed.  We never guaranteed success…only a chance at it.

People who complain about success will never attain it.  I’d propose that the biggest reason they will not achieve success is that they haven’t taken the time to identify what success is.  They simply look at the material things that they associate with success.  They have no idea what is required to obtain those things, they see only the after-results.  Whether it’s a heart surgeon, a mutual fund manager, a business owner, or a school teacher, those who are successful have a clear idea of what success means to them and for most it’s never about the money or stuff.  It is however always about the personal accomplishment, achievement and having the ability to say “I did it.”  That alone defines success.  You know, Frank Sinatra got it right in his song My Way, more people should listen to it.

So if you’re feeling low and not sure where you’re headed remember it’s up to you.  You have to think about what you want.  You have to answer the question how hard you’re willing to work to get it..  You have to be willing to put the time in.  You have to take complete responsibility and accountability for your successes and failures.  Once you do that success will find its way into your life.

 

5 Things That Will Turn Our Country Around

On By Joe DeRosaIn LeadershipLeave a comment

Are you one of the many people that think our country is headed in the wrong direction, frustrated with The Blame Game that is played daily in Washington? Do you feel embarrassed by what other countries think or say about the United States? If you answered yes to either of these questions I am going to propose 5 things that will help get our country on the right path again. Take a deep breath…you ready?

1. Implement term limits. We have them for Governors, and Presidents, but not for Congressmen, Congresswomen, or Senators. Politics was never intended by our Founding Fathers to be a career path.

2. Reduce the maximum corporate tax rate. According to Fortune, nearly 80 companies have changed where they are domiciled this year alone, in order to beat the U.S. tax rates. Apple alone holds more than $150 billion…with a “B” overseas. Imagine what could be done if that money was able to be put to work here in the U.S.

3. Implement a talent assessment tool for all political candidates. We test potential job candidates during the recruiting process. We even want to meet the babysitter before we leave our kids with her…or him. But no one thinks to test the person whose job it will be to protect us, to speak softly and carry a big stick. Caliper, DISC, Kolbe, Forte, the list is endless. Just use one!

4. Eliminate second chances and “get out of jail cards”. If you don’t pay your taxes at 20 that’s called a mistake. When you don’t pay your taxes for years after the age of 35 it’s called deceitful and if you don’t like that word you can call it criminal. How can one hold others accountable when they themselves have crossed the line and thought it okay?

5. Require every potential candidate for a Legislative and Executive roll in government to undergo a rigorous training and education on Middle Eastern history. We’ve spent more than $1.5 trillion on wars in the Middle East since 2001 according to nationalpriorities.org and have lost nearly 7,000 lives. More than 20% of the total Federal budget is spent on the military and this is a sore subject for many. However it’s important to note that it is the ONLY area our Constitution states as a must-provide by OUR government. Have you read our Preamble lately? Our leaders need to understand history before they try to jump in and try to “fix” things. Perhaps it’s time for a realist to simply manage the risks that arise from the cradle of civilization rather than trying to change or control it.

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A New Game Show: The Blame Game

On By Joe DeRosaIn LeadershipLeave a comment

Look around you. Put your iPhone down, stop your online shopping for just a minute, and stop posting on Facebook. Take a deep breath, look up, look around, watch, and observe. Listen to what you’re hearing…or not hearing for that matter.

A new gameshow is building both momentum and popularity amongst our Country’s leaders. It’s not Family Feud, it’s not Price is Right, nor is it Let’s Make a Deal. This new gameshow is called The Blame Game. The object is to point as many fingers as possible toward other people and escape both responsibility and accountability. The winner is crowned Teflon Don…or Donna. It’s the ultimate game for losers, and one that is gaining popularity because we allow it to. And the worst part is that there’s not just one winner…there’s many, many, many, many….

Our Country has moved toward a shallow ignorance. A state of numbness where we’ve insulated ourselves from the misguided missteps of our leaders. Everyone gets an unlimited number of “free passes” in The Blame Game, because we allow it. We give a free pass to those who inherited a mess, or those who just can’t make the tough – often times unpopular – decisions. We shrug our shoulders and continue on with our lives moving further and further away from our Country’s founding principles which include very specific references to God, power emanating from the people, a Constitution, private property ownership, and a republic rather than a direct democracy. (How many people would you guess don’t know there’s a difference?)

Our leaders of today are often times winners of a popularity contest. Great orators, sharp dressers, charismatic charmers, and savvy politicians capable of weaving in and out of distressed situations so as to not get to entangled in them whereby they must roll up their sleeves, jump in, get involved, and work toward a solution. They are a group of master delegators not for the sake of efficiency but for the sake of creating political insulation for when things go sideways.

While hope is not a strategy, I do hope (and pray) for a true leader to emerge soon. One that our Country can rally around. One who wants to be held accountable. One who makes decisions based upon their beliefs and convictions, not on polling numbers. One who possesses the character and integrity that promotes family values, personal responsibility, and self-improvement. One who other countries respect and in some cases fear…or at least know they mean what they say. Does such a leader exist? Is he or she already on the path to leadership or are they awaiting a nudge from family or friends to “just do it”? While we can wait and hope for things to get better, we should all go back and re-read our Country’s founding principles. Then and only then will we know whether our hope is possible or misplaced.

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Don’t Judge a Book by its Cover – Life’s Important Lesson

On By Joe DeRosaIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

Recently I took a cab from Manhattan to NY’s LaGuardia airport. By the time I reach my destination I’m usually feeling quite lucky to have escaped the ride with my life, but this trip was different.

As I walked down 45th Street on an incredibly warm and humid day, I did the usual hand/arm gesture (no not that one) that people do when trying to hail a cab. Within minutes a car came swerving over to the curb. The cabbie was a young man with a thick long beard looking a bit dishevled. In a low voice he asked where I was headed and put my luggage in the back of the car…and we were off…and that’s when the extraordinary happened.

The first thing I noticed was as soon as we got into the car he put the windows up and cranked up the air conditioning. He turned around and in soft but strong voice said, “good afternoon sir, how are you doing today.” I replied back “fine”, and he asked where I was headed. I told him Denver at which point he asked what I did for work. After I answered I asked about him.

He told me he was Palestinian and had just graduated from City College in NY with his pre-medical studies degree. He told me of his passion to find a cure for cancer, “it’s been too long that we’ve been fighting that disease, and I want to get my PhD in an area that focuses on finding a cure for cancer.” This young man was really surprising me.

I asked him if he was driving cab full time. He drove 3 days a week and taught motorcycle riding lessons on 3 different days working 6 days a week. He told me how many people he’s met along the way and how lucky he felt to have met so many different, and for the most part kind, people.

I complimented him on his work ethic and determination to contribute in a positive manner within the medical community. He then shared with me what he felt was the secret to life’s success. The secret that separated the ordinary from the extraordinary people. That secret was time.

Please explain I asked. He said, “It’s simple. Life is all about making the most of the time you have. The saying ‘ the early bird gets the worm’ is so true” he told me. “My shift starts at 1 pm. I do that on purpose because most of the taxi companies have a shift change right at 5 pm which is odd when you think about that being the time people are getting out of work. Next time you try to get a cab at 5 pm notice how difficult it is to get one. I start my shift at 1 pm so I’m always available during the heaviest hours…right after lunch and at the end of the day.” The right place at the right time.

“When my competition is resting, I’m working. When they’re eating I’m working. When they’re changing shifts I’m working. It’s all about time.”

This young man was incredibly perceptive relative to the ways of the world well beyond his years. His casual demeanor, intelligence, and thoughtfulness gives me hope in future generations. Willingness to work hard, have a goal, and stay focused are all essential elements to success. He has these. It wouldn’t surprise me if years down the road when we do eventually find a cure for cancer that it’s his face on the cover of the front page of the paper.

He was right. It’s all about being in the right place at the right time. Had I flagged down a cab earlier I would have missed the opportunity to meet such a wonderful human being. Time smiled on me that day.