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January, 2010:

It’ll be alright on the night… the art of the demo

Jan 29th, 2010
by mark.
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It’ll be alright on the night…
Being in tech sales has certain pluses and minuses. One of the pluses is that you get to see lots of cool technology before the guy on the street. One of the minuses is that you sometimes get to demo to state-of-the-art stuff before all of the wrinkles have been ironed-out.
If has a pound (or even dollar) for every time I’d sat in a customer meeting trying to divert attention while an applications engineer colleague desperately tried to get a piece of kit to work I’d be a rich man.
Although to a certain extent this comes with the territory there are some things you can do to minimise your chances of embarrassment…
Don’t just do a demo because you can. This is a “throw it at the wall” and see what sticks strategy. Have a very clear understanding of what the customer needs, what you want to show them and how this will advance the sale.
As the old British Army adage says “Prior Planning and Preparation Prevents Piss Poor Performance”. Do a dry run before the customer meeting. Do this far enough in advance of the customer meeting that you can fix any problems that you might find. In the dry run replicate exactly what you are going to show the customer.
If you have one, take a spare. If the demo is a really important one (for instance you are going to be on stage at a major trade show) send the spare via a different route. That way if your luggage gets lost or stolen you aren’t left empty-handed.
Take all the hardware you will need. If you rely on hooking-up to a piece of customer equipment it might not work the way you expect.
Don’t let anyone else tinker with your equipment! I can recall several demos where the apps engineer to have to stop and hacek for 10 minutes because someone else had used the machine and changed the Unix directory structure.
Be open with the customer about the state of the product. Better to explain in advance that they are really lucky to be seeing something hot out of the labs… but it’s not quite there yet, than to give them the impression it’s tried and tested… and then watch it fall over.
Get feedback from the customer as you go along…
“Is that useful to you?”,
“Does that explain how you would implement feature xyz in your abc?”
“Is that enough performance for you application?”.
Try and get feedback on other demos they may have seen from competitors. Be subtle… ask how yours shapes-up, not for exact data on your competition.
If the customer doesn’t seem to be liking something ask them why. It might be something that you can easily rectify or a simple misunderstanding.
So good luck with your product demos. I guess demos really act as accelerators of the sales process. Done correctly it can move you quickly to a close, done badly it you can move you quickly back to thebeginning.

Preparing for the big demo

Preparing for the big demo

Preparing for the big demo

Preparing for the big demo

Being in tech sales has certain pluses and minuses. One of the pluses is that you get to see lots of cool technology before the guy on the street. One of the minuses is that you sometimes get to demo state-of-the-art stuff before all of the wrinkles have been ironed-out.

If I had a pound (or dollar) for every time I’d sat in a customer meeting trying to divert attention while an applications engineer colleague desperately tried to get a piece of kit to work I’d be a rich man.

Although to a certain extent this comes with the territory there are some things you can do to minimise your chances of embarrassment…

  • Don’t just do a demo because you can. That would be a “throw it at the wall and see what sticks” strategy. Have a very clear understanding of what the customer needs, what you want to show them and how this will advance the sale.
  • As the old British Army adage says “Prior Planning and Preparation Prevents Piss Poor Performance”. Do a dry run before the customer meeting. Do this far enough in advance of the customer meeting that you can fix any problems that you might find. In the dry run replicate exactly what you are going to show the customer.
  • If you have one, take a spare. If the demo is a really important one (for instance you are going to be on stage at a major trade show) send the spare via a different route. That way if your luggage gets lost or stolen you aren’t left empty-handed.
  • Take all the hardware you will need. If you rely on hooking-up to a piece of customer equipment it might not work the way you expect.
  • Don’t let anyone else tinker with your equipment! I can recall several demos where an apps engineer had to stop and hack for 10 minutes because someone else had used the machine and changed the Unix directory structure.
  • Be open with the customer about the state of the product. Better to explain in advance that they are really lucky to be seeing something hot out of the labs… but it’s not quite there yet, than to give them the impression it’s tried and tested… and then watch it fall over.
  • Get feedback from the customer as you go along…

    • “Is that useful to you?”,
    “Does that explain how you would implement feature xyz in your abc?”
    “Is that enough performance for you application?”.

  • Try and get feedback on other demos they may have seen from competitors. Be subtle… ask how yours shapes-up, not for exact data on your competition.
  • If the customer doesn’t seem to be liking something ask them why. It might be something that you can easily rectify or a simple misunderstanding.

So good luck with your product demos. I guess demos really act as accelerators of the sales process. Done correctly it can move you quickly to a close, done badly it you can move you quickly back to the beginning.

Minuting customer meetings

Jan 26th, 2010
by mark.
No comments yet
The great Sir Winston Churchill once said “History will be kind to me for I intend to write it”. He was true to his word, writing “The Second World War”, “A History of the English-Speaking Peoples” and winning the Nobel prize for literature in the process (as you do).
[photo]
Likewise for us the importance of getting your version of a meeting circulated first is not to be underestimated. In fact I heard a story a while back about an ex-colleague who visited a very major account, had an OK meeting and went off on his way. A month or so later his boss wanted to visit this very major account with him and asked our friend to arrange it. So he picks up the phone calls them and asks for the meeting… to which they respond “no… we haven’t seen the action list from the last meeting yet”. Ouch.
As we’ve documented on Real Life Selling previously, sales people are notoriously shy of paperwork. However this is one case where you really have to grit your teeth and bash those minutes out.
If you don’t get your minutes out pretty quickly there are two risks…
* The momentum of the sale is lost. You’ve had a great meeting, got some commitment, but in two weeks time both you and they have moved on to the next urgent item.
* The customer minutes the meeting. “Great” you may think, “that’s saved me the effort”. But, of course, in their version of the minutes the commitments they made may be just a little softer than they seemed at the time and the items you committed to have been “bigged up”.
Here are some suggestions on minuting that I hope you’ll find useful…
Minute meetings as soon after they finish as possible. If it’s at your office, stay on in the meeting room for 15 minutes to write-up the meeting. If it’s at a customer’s site, sit in your car outside and write it up on your laptop before you leave, or at the airport, or on the plane home.
Concentrate on the next actions and use W3… who, what, when.
Start your follow-up actions immediately. You may not be able to finish them, but at least initiate them. So if you need a quotation… fill in the form and submit it. If you need someone to do something, email or call them and tell them what needs doing and by when.
Use your diary or electronic calendar to set some follow-up reminders.
Thank the customer for their time and hospitality.
And finally keep the minutes to-the-point and business-like. As Sir Winston once said “This report, by its very length, defends itself against the risk of being read”.

The great Sir Winston Churchill once said “History will be kind to me for I intend to write it”. He was true to his word, writing “The Second World War”, “A History of the English-Speaking Peoples” and winning the Nobel prize for literature in the process (as you do).

About to get his version in first!

About to get his version in first!

Likewise for us mere mortals the importance of getting your version of a meeting circulated first is not to be underestimated. In fact I heard a story a while back about an ex-colleague who visited a very major account, had an OK meeting and went off on his way. A month or so later his boss wanted to visit this very major account with him and asked our friend to arrange it. So he picks up the phone calls them and asks for the meeting… to which they respond “no… we haven’t seen the action list from the last meeting yet”. Ouch.

As we’ve documented on Real Life Selling previously, sales people are notoriously shy of paperwork. However this is one case where you really have to grit your teeth and bash those minutes out.

If you don’t get your minutes out pretty quickly there are two risks…

* The momentum of the sale is lost. You’ve had a great meeting, got some commitment, but in two weeks time both you and they have moved on to the next urgent item.

* The customer minutes the meeting. “Great” you may think, “that’s saved me the effort”. But, of course, in their version of the minutes the commitments they made may be just a little softer than they seemed at the time and the items you committed to have been “bigged up”.

Here are some suggestions on minuting that I hope you’ll find useful…

  1. Minute meetings as soon after they finish as possible. If it’s at your office, stay on in the meeting room for 15 minutes to write-up it up. If it’s at a customer’s site, sit in your car outside and use your laptop before you leave, or at the airport, or on the plane home.
  2. Concentrate on the next actions and use W3… who, what, when.
  3. Start your follow-up actions immediately. You may not be able to finish them, but at least initiate them. So if you need a quotation… fill in the form and submit it. If you need someone to do something, email or call them and tell them what needs doing and by when.
  4. Use your diary or electronic calendar to set some follow-up reminders.
  5. Thank the customer for their time and hospitality.
  6. And finally keep the minutes to-the-point and business-like. As Sir Winston said “This report, by its very length, defends itself against the risk of being read”.

A couple I learnt the hard way…

Jan 19th, 2010
by mark.
No comments yet
I recall one of my largest ever sales with mixed emotions. The deal for a mixture of hardware, software and design services was a whopper and had been in the pipeline for months. Likewise it had been in my forecast for months and all eyes were on me. I went in on my own for the final session to actually get the order and knew there would be some negotiating to be done. However, we were in a very strong position technically and I suspected that, as far as the engineers were concerned, it was a one-horse race.
For a one-horse race I sure got beat up. I was in my mid-twenties and meeting up with Reg, their procurement VP, who must have been around sixty and knew every low-down trick in the book. What I had expected would be a final, quick haggle on price turned into a mammoth session going over the price, technology, deliverables and Ts & Cs with a fine-tooth comb. By the time I left I’d given away half of the farm, my head was spinning and I still wasn’t sure if I’d got the order. It wasn’t so much a negotiation as a very long, painful series of concessions.
I remember two of his tactics particularly vividly…
1. The salami technique. He took me through our Ts and Cs line by line with him questioning each one, telling me why they couldn’t accept it and asking me what we could do about it. So during the course of the meeting I made more than one call back to base to find out if we could move… and mostly we could.
2. The power of legitimacy. I’m sure you’ve probably heard about this concept… it’s the un-thinking respect for standard terms and conditions, operating procedures and in general anything documented. Reg used this to full effect with his terms; they were written in stone… absolutely couldn’t be changed… never in the history of the company had they been modified… he’d be fired for even thinking about it. Of course, when it came to our Ts & Cs he had zero (0) respect for them and expected each one to be individually re-drafted for him!
So what did I learn from this exercise?
Firstly, don’t let them get you “on a roll” with the salami technique. If you do have to go over a lot of items just ask what they want on each one to begin with, don’t comment on any of them and move to the next. Make absolutely sure you have the complete, full list of requests before you comment. Then at least you are in a position to trade e.g. “I can do something on warranty if you can…” I actually wised-up to this half way through the negotiation with Reg, but by that point I was “on a roll”.
Secondly, when someone wants concessions from you make sure that you have the power of legitamacy on your side.
“The (written) quotation is fixed and firm”.
“Our system doesn’t allow that”.
“We put a lot of work into it to make sure it’s the absolute best deal”.
“Maintanenance is not negotiable”. (When I sold software I can’t recall any customer questioning this!)
Thirdly, prepare! If it’s a big deal don’t expect the customer to cough-up the order without some hefty negotiationing, especially of procurement are involved.
As it happened I did get the order, had my moment of glory and big bonus cheque. What I’d negotiated didn’t really effect the value of the deal, just the terms… and my bonus wasn’t paid on what the terms were. There’s probably a lesson for companies there as well… don’t send out young sales guys to negotiate on their own when they have their b**** on the table and a big bonus at stake!
When the negotiating balls are in the air

When the negotiating balls are in the air

I remember one of my largest ever sales with mixed emotions. The deal, for a mixture of hardware, software and design services, was a whopper and had been in the pipeline for months. Likewise it had been in my forecast for months and all eyes were on me. I went in on my own for the final session to actually get the order and knew there would be some negotiating to be done. However, we were in a very strong position technically and I suspected that, as far as the engineers were concerned, it was a one-horse race.

For a one-horse race I sure got beat up. I was in my mid-twenties and meeting up with Reg, their procurement VP, who must have been around sixty and knew every low-down trick in the book. What I had expected would be a final, quick haggle on price turned into a mammoth session going over the price, technology, deliverables and Ts & Cs with a fine-tooth comb. By the time I left I’d given away half of the farm, my head was spinning and I still wasn’t sure if I’d got the order. It wasn’t so much a negotiation as a very long, painful series of concessions.

I remember two of his tactics particularly vividly…

  • The salami technique. He took me through our Ts and Cs line by line with him questioning each one, telling me why they couldn’t accept it and asking me what we could do about it. So during the course of the meeting I made more than one call back to base to find out if we could move… and mostly we could.
  • The power of legitimacy. I’m sure you’ve probably heard about this concept… it’s the un-thinking respect for standard terms and conditions, operating procedures and in general anything documented. Reg used this to full effect with his terms; they were written in stone… absolutely couldn’t be changed… never in the history of the company had they been modified… he’d be fired for even thinking about it. Of course, when it came to our Ts & Cs he had zero (0) respect for them and expected each one to be individually re-drafted for him!

So what did I learn from this exercise?

  1. Don’t let them get you “on a roll” with the salami technique. If you do have to go over a lot of items just ask what they want on each one to begin with, don’t comment on any of them and move to the next. Make absolutely sure you have the complete, full list of requests before you comment. Then at least you are in a position to trade e.g. “I can do something on warranty if you can…” I actually wised-up to this half way through the negotiation with Reg, but by that point I was “on a roll”.
  2. When someone wants concessions from you make sure that you have the power of legitimacy on your side.

    3. “The (written) quotation is fixed and firm”.
    “Our system doesn’t allow that”.
    “We put a lot of work into it to make sure it’s the absolute best deal”.
    “Maintenance is not negotiable”. (When I sold software I can’t recall any customer questioning this!)

  3. When you want concessions from someone else… don’t be awed by the power of legitimacy. Feel free to question their standards terms, their company policies… especially if they are directly at odds with yours. Something has to give.
  4. Prepare! If it’s a big deal don’t expect the customer to cough-up the order without some hefty negotiating, especially if procurement are involved.

As it happened I did get the order, had my moment of glory and big bonus cheque. What I’d negotiated didn’t really effect the value of the deal, just the terms… and my bonus wasn’t paid on the terms. There’s probably a lesson for companies there as well… don’t send out young sales guys to negotiate on their own when they have their b**** on the table and a big sales bonus at stake!

Five things sales people can learn from sports

Jan 12th, 2010
by mark.
No comments yet
Five things sales people can learn from sports
Is it just me or does it seem to be the case that most sales people I know have either played sport at some time, or are obsessed by it? Just looking back at the sales people I’ve worked with over the years this seems to be the case. Thinking about it I think I can see why this might be…
Firstly selling is by its very nature competitive. You are always either competing against a quota or a competitor. So it’s not great surprise that people who revel in the excitement of competition are attracted to selling.
Secondly I believe that the social skills that are learnt on the sports field and afterwards in the bar are invaluable in creating the kind of rounded person who fits well in sales.
So what can we learn from sports…
1. Training. It amazes me that someone can expect to get to the top of their profession without training. Do people really think that because you’re good at something you can stop training? Does Tiger Woods train (when not busy elsewhere)… you bet. But often I’ve been on sales training courses where half of the people are there under sufferance; they’ve been there, they’ve done it, end of story. If you want to be good train, and train hard.
2. Goal setting. It’s been statistically proven that setting goals helps people achieve higher. Setting increasingly challenging goals is the key to high performance. If you don’t set a goal how do you know when you get there! You might want to take a look at this article on setting goals for 2010.
3. Resilience. If you’ve ever played sport you will know what it’s like. It’s raining, the sun’s going down, you’re losing, you’re sore in place you didn’t know you have and the opposition is looking to rub your nose in it. But you have to pick yourself up for the sake of the team and your own pride. Sport teaches people that kind of gritty determination to get stuck in when you least want to.
4. Teamwork. In sales everyone wants to be a star, which in itself is not a bad thing. But sometimes the task is just too big and you have to ask for help. In fact in key account sales if you’re not a team player you’re at a real disadvantage.
5. Magnanimity. As Rudyard Kipling said in his poem “If”…
If you can meet with triumph and disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same
When we do win let’s play it cool and if we lose let’s be magnanimous. When you don’t get the order (which does happen occasionally to us all) be willing to shake hands with the customer, wish them well and promise to be back… we will do business sooner or later!
Coming through! Sometimes you just have to press on...

Coming thru! Sometimes you just have to press on...

Is it just me or does it seem to be the case that most sales people I know have either played sport at some time, or are obsessed by it? Just looking back at the sales people I’ve worked with over the years this seems to be the case. Thinking about it I can see why this might be…

Firstly selling is by its very nature competitive. You are always either competing against a quota or a competitor. So it’s not great surprise that people who revel in the excitement of competition are attracted to selling.

Secondly I believe that the social skills that are learnt on the sports field and afterwards in the bar are invaluable in creating the kind of rounded person who fits well in sales.

So what can we learn from sports…

  1. Training. It amazes me that someone can expect to get to the top of their profession without training. Do people really think that because you’re good at something you can stop training? Does Tiger Woods train (when not busy elsewhere)… you bet. But often I’ve been on sales training courses where half of the people are there under sufferance; they’ve been there, they’ve done it, end of story. If you want to be good train, and train hard.
  2. Goal setting. It’s been statistically proven that setting goals helps people achieve higher. Setting increasingly challenging goals is the key to high performance. If you don’t set a goal how do you know when you get there! You might want to take a look at this article on setting goals for 2010.
  3. Resilience. If you’ve ever played sport you will know what it’s like. It’s raining, the sun’s going down, you’re losing, you’re sore in place you didn’t know you have and the opposition is looking to rub your nose in it. But you have to pick yourself up for the sake of the team and your own pride. Sport teaches people that kind of gritty determination to get stuck in when you least want to.
  4. Teamwork. In sales everyone wants to be a star, which in itself is not a bad thing. But sometimes the task is just too big and you have to ask for help. In fact in key account sales if you’re not a team player you’re at a real disadvantage.
  5. Magnanimity. As Rudyard Kipling said in his poem “If”…
    If you can meet with triumph and disaster
    And treat those two impostors just the same
    When we do win let’s play it cool and if we lose let’s be magnanimous. When you don’t get the order (which does happen occasionally) be willing to shake hands with the customer, wish them well and promise to be back… we will do business sooner or later!

What’s a Fair Sales Quota in 2010?

Jan 5th, 2010
by mark.
No comments yet

Here’s an interesting article on quotas by Susan Greco from Inc.com. We’ll take a closer look at quotas this year.