Salesmanship Matters!

“People do not make clear distinct choices between things; they make choices between descriptions of things.  How things are described has a huge impact on decision-making.”

Here’s what I know – salesmanship matters.  It always will.

Who your salespeople are as people…their ambition and skill..and the level of enthusiasm, commitment and confidence…it MATTERS!

What kind of sales team do you have?

Dangerous Debt

“A bad economy doesn’t create financial problems – it just reveals them.” – Joe Polish

People and businesses get away with bad decisions and bad performance when things are good.

Like too much debt for example.

When things turn bad, it’s a big problem.  If you don’t have the cash flow (profit) to pay the principal and interest payments, it’s game over.

Debt can amplify your progress or profits when things are good, but it can also amplify your losses when things go bad. 

You only have to go broke once to lose it all.

How much debt do you have?

Big worthy projects take longer than you think

Everything takes longer and costs more than you originally thought.  Plan for it.

From experience, I know.  It’s partly the projects – there are always delays and unexpected challenges along the way. 

The other part is my rosy expectations.  I estimate and declare how long I WANT it to take – and I underestimate.

Ok – there is a saying that things take as long as you allow.  If you have a hard deadline then it will be done by then – like getting ready for an event.

But when it comes to launching a new product, building a new building, getting a new business to make a profit, or rebuilding a department, it often takes longer than you originally estimated.  

But big important projects are worth the time.  As the years pass you are glad you did it. You reap the benefits year over year, long after the dismay of how long it took is forgotten.

What’s your big worthy project?

The competition does stupid things (too.)

I am in the home repair and home improvement business.  The business is filled with business owners who don’t know how to run a business.  In an effort to get more business, they come up with a lot of stupid ideas.  

For example, if they don’t know their cost and don’t produce financial statements and do not understand the story they tell, they underbid jobs.  They can make promises to customers they can’t fulfill.  They can bring “innovative” solutions that will not work short or long-term.  They can do all sorts of things that customers will like better than what you are offering.

Eventually, they pay the price and often go out of business.

Don’t copy them when they do stupid things.

One competitor was using three-year same-as-cash financing.  This has a fee to the business of 20%.  The customer loved it.  But it was stupid on their part and we could not match it.  

Some fix rotted wood without fixing the cause.

Some promise band-aid fixes are permanent solutions.

One of my competitors has 567 BBB complaints!

Many sell jobs for a price too low – and customers love it initially.  Until they have problems and the business’s phone number no longer works.

When one competitor dies of stupidity or ignorance, there’s another one right behind him to poke you with the same malady.

To combat stupidity-before-death on the part of your competitors, your salespeople need to build relationships with prospects, ask questions, and educate them.  Your salespeople need to consistently and confidently execute basic sales skills every time.

Sales skills are how you fight stupid.  

Don’t fight stupid with more stupid.

Sales starts in the R&D room

Marketing and sales start with product or service design.  If you design something people really want, it’s a hell of a lot easier to market and sell.

Is what you have to sell what they want to buy?

Why do you sell what you sell?

Are you trying to sell something you came up with or had or learned somewhere, or did you start by asking what problem people had that they wanted solved?

Is what you have what YOU want to sell, or what CUSTOMERS want to buy?

Culture makes the difference

“The difference between a high-maintenance team and a high-performance team is a culture of accountability, measurement, and ownership.” -Keith Cunningham

Are your people used to knowing where they need to go and what they need to do to get there, having their progress measured, and taking responsibility for their part?

Enjoy the journey

“An entrepreneur is someone who is grateful for the progress that has been made, and simultaneously dissatisfied with the rate it has been made.” – Ross Perot

There is so much to do – but don’t forget to enjoy the journey each day.

“Learn to be happy with all you have while working toward all you want.” – Jim Rohn

If they create it, they own it.

If you decide what to do by yourself and tell your people, while they may nod their heads, they could reject the idea and not work hard to make it happen because it was someone else’s idea and they didn’t fully agree with it or they just didn’t like they way they had no say.

If you involve your people in designing a solution, project, or program and they have a part in it, they will take ownership and work hard to make it work out.

Do you involve your teams in the discussions about what they should be doing and how?

Unmet Expectations

All upsets are unmet expectations.

But many expectations are not realistic in the first place because they were not carefully thought out – and now by trying or in the fullness of time, you are finding out how unrealistic they were.  

Other expectations were not communicated clearly to your team, so they didn’t even know you had them.

What are your expectations?  Do you need to think them through better or communicate them better so they have a better chance of coming true?

Gas or Less Brake?

To make the company go, do you need to put your foot on the gas, or get your foot off the brake?

How do you have your foot on the brake?