Taking Care of Business, the Email Newsletter of the Center for Career and Business Development

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Volume 5, No. 2

Friday, February 10, 2006

The Kinder, Gentler Way of Consultative Sales
by Beverly Ryle

n last month’s column I talked about how educated consumers are bringing about the extinction of the hard-driving salesperson at the same time that businesses are facing unprecedented competitive challenges.

It makes perfect sense for businesses who are trying to stay profitable in this new environment to set the goal of having every employee contribute to the revenue stream. It’s the lifeblood of the organization. But forcing an aggressive sales model onto people who aren’t ready for it is counterproductive. Trying to get “non-sales” people to sell in a way that is not comfortable for them, and is no longer effective anyway, just isn’t going to work.

It leads to the loss of people who have built invaluable relationships with their customers over time, and it overlooks qualities that make them ideally suited for building new relationships that will assure long-lasting revenue streams.

In my consulting work in the banking industry I have witnessed first-hand the tug-of-war that results from management’s push to make employees sell in the old way, and the pull against it by people who do not think of themselves as salespeople.

I’ve also had the opportunity to see how everyone can benefit from the kinder, gentler consultative sales approach.

Last year I was contracted by a well-established privately owned bank to teach their customer service representatives and tellers how to sell. The bank had come to realize that the frontline, the place where the customer meets the organization “face-to-face”, was of critical importance. In a business where product differentiation is limited, customer relationships are everything.

Service is the name of the game, and the people I was hired to train were highly skilled at servicing customers, but now they were being told that excellence in customer service was not enough—they also needed to sell. Naturally they resisted the idea. They didn’t want to be “pushy”, like some car salesperson.

On my first day with them, we talked a lot about the people who had aggressively tried to sell them cars, vacuum cleaners, appliances, insurance policies, etc. All their bad experiences with salespeople who would neither listen to them nor respect their needs came out.

Then we talked about their responsibility to their customers, and I encouraged them to think of it from the point of view of the highest level of need.

They were accustomed to thinking at the transactional level—cashing a check, making a deposit, moving money from one account to another, etc.

I asked them to think of the benefits they offered their customers as meeting a hierarchy of needs where the transaction lies at the bottom.

Why, I asked, do customers come to you with their transactions? The answer is, to get help from someone they trust in managing their money, the next level up in the hierarchy of needs.

And why do customers seek their help in managing their money? To ensure their financial well-being, the highest level in the hierarchy of needs.

A Consultative Sales Story

A few years ago, I went shopping for a washer and dyer, and the salespeople I encountered were all over me, telling me what I needed, pressing me to take advantage of some “limited time” offer, adding to rather than reducing my confusion with their chatter. When I finally found someone who asked me what I wanted, I told him that Lower Cape Cod, where I live, has a fragile environment, and I was concerned about wastewater. He showed me a washer-dryer combo which used less power, water, and soap and pointed out that it came with a fuel efficiency rebate. Then he left me alone. I ended up buying it, spending $300 more that I had planned. I left the store feeling good about my decision and I still do, every time I do laundry.

Once they could see that their real work was not cashing checks but helping people make decisions related to their financial well-being, they were ready to become consultative sales partners, resources for providing the education and information their customers needed to take full advantage of the bank’s products and services.

Instead of a sales pitch, a consultative sales partner engages in dialogue with a customer. Together they work out a solution to the customer’s problem that adds value to the outcome that the customer may not anticipated (see sidebar). To do this, consultative sales partners:

Listen first, talk later. Don’t present products or services until they know what the customer needs
Only present what is relevant. Focus on the features and benefits which match the customer’s expressed needs and skip things that have no bearing
Protect the customer’s best interests. Ask about other issues or concerns related to the sale without being afraid to bring up things that may affect the customer’s overall satisfaction with the results
Respect resistance. View a customer’s questioning or indecision as an opportunity for understanding and patience, not as an obstacle to be overcome
Think long-term. Look at each encounter with a customer as one more step in building a lasting relationship
Think of themselves a resource. Become the customer’s ally in the decision-making process

By making the choice to train their staff in an approach that is compatible with the driving force of the new economy, the empowerment of the individual, rather than a model which tries to imposes a solution on the customer, the bank was able both to retain its valuable frontline staff and meet its goals.

Six months after adopting the consultative sales approach, the same customer service staff that had dug in their heels at the idea of having to sell had dramatically exceeded their monthly quota. They had become comfortable with their new identity as consultative sales partners.

But they had also done more than accomplish their employer’s objective. They had added to their professional skill set one of the most important attributes a frontline employee can have, the ability to partner effectively with a customer.

Readers Write

Feedback on Last Month’s Column

For a “geek’s” perspective on the old model of salesmanship, take a look at “Sales-ucation” by Ross Lasley, owner of Kiss Computing in Eastham, MA.

Center News

Falmouth Chamber Business Educational Series
On Feburary 28, from 6 to 8:30 PM, Beverly will be speaking on “The Best Practices of Consultative Sales” as part of the third annual Business Educational Series offered by the Falmouth Chamber of Commerce, The program will take place in the Falmouth CC Board Room, Second floor, 20 Academy Lane, Falmouth, MA. Those interested in attending should call (508) 548-8500 or visit the Chamber’s website, www.FalmouthChamber.com.

BizWiz Conference
The Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce has asked Beverly to provide warm-up training for people who are not 100% comfortable with networking and find it hard to make tangible connections at a big event. This will take place at the 3rd Annual BizWiz Conference & Marketplace, set for Tuesday, March 14, 2006 at the Four Points Sheraton Hyannis Resort. Highlights of this year’s event will include interactive workshop clinics, a marketplace of over 50 business exhibitors, and a keynote speech by Dr. Charles Steinberg, Executive VP of Public Affairs for the Boston Red Sox.

Also in this issue ...

As we move forward into the 21st century it’s pretty obvious to just about everyone that work isn’t what it used to be. Whether we work for ourselves, or for someone else, or are in transition, things are changing rapidly and we’re caught in a shift of seismic proportions. Many things are being demanded of us, and it’s going to require more than just new skills to survive and thrive. We’re going to need to learn how to get serious about taking care of the business of our professional lives.

Taking Care of Business
was created to focus on issues related to this re-education process. If you find it helpful, please pass it on to others you know who are trying to find their way through the new realities of the world of work.

We also invite you to share your thoughts by
sending us an email.

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Quotes-of-the-Month

Consultative selling takes marketing a step further, because very often the customer’s final choice turns out to be something different than what they originally wanted. The time a consultative salesperson spends analyzing needs and preferences by asking open, in-depth questions and carefully evaluating answers assists the buyer in clarifying their own needs.

The old game of manipulative selling is over—no one has time to deal with manipulation anymore. The product pitch is dead—very few customers will take the time to make the transition from your product to their perceived needs. The days of “ask them what they want” are waning—if you do that, you’re in the same cockfight with those many other suppliers who ask them what they want and then give it to them. It’s a new ballgame.

Consultative selling is knowing our offerings and their business so well that we can help them understand their needs... You must help them to understand what they want and then to perceive that you’ve got it... Then, if appropriate, put a value on the expected results, so they know their return on investment. That’s consultative selling.

Lee Iaccoca

40 Oak Leaf Rd
PO Box 156
North Eastham, Cape Cod, MA 02651-0156
508.240.3532

www.SuccessOnYourOwnTerms.com

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The stick illustrations in this issue are by Eloise Morley.
Her email address is eloisemorley@earthlink.net