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Sales Dilemma
Posted By: basis on 7/1/2004 4:42 PM (CST) 250 Points
I am a partner is a small marketing communications and brand development firm that focuses on the high-tech B2B market. Until now I have been in charge of all new sales development. This is not where my talents or passions lie and this work takes me away from the creative efforts. This is not an effective use of my time or strengths. We do not want to hire a full time sales person, but we are interested in finding an independent sales rep who understands our marketplace as well as our unique offering within that market. Does anyone have any experience with this type of person or have any other creative ideas on how to approach sales effectively?

Posted by: Simon Accepted Answer
7/1/2004 7:30 PM (CST)
We have learnt a lot through recruiting sales staff for a growing business over the last two years.

Firstly, don't pin your hopes on agencies, sure you can get some CV's, but the best sales people are rarely on lists because they are too much in demand.

Secondly, when looking for superstar sales professionals I believe that age and background are almost irrelevant.

We have very successfully recruited a 'sales animal' - 120 calls a day to Financial directors! To find her I drew on the philosophy of a US chap called Chet Holmes - below is my interpretation - and it has worked for us. She is independent, doing just one day a week for us - we couldn't handle any more at the moment!

Psychological profile is everything.

The perfect sales person has two elements - ego and empathy. The ego gives them the drive to get on the phone, to push past the gatekeepers, to need to succeed and be seen to succeed. The empathy means they can quickly build rapport with prospects, on the phone, in person, wherever.

Their ego and empathy traits make them very eager to bond with clients and prove themselves worthy of almost any challenge.

How much training do they really need? Probably not that much, because this type learn very quickly. They grasp it right away, and they innovate on it, and they find ways to illustrate it you never thought of.

If you can't communicate your pitch in 20 minutes you need to work on it anyway. And if a super salesperson can't pick it up in a few days then the process needs reviewing (or you've got the wrong person).

So don’t think you need a specific background. It’s irrelevant. A star is a star is a star. And don't compromise until you know you have found them.

We ran an ad that started:
"Superstars Only - Don’t even call unless you’re a truly awesome salesperson." and finishes;
“We don’t hire backgrounds. We hire top producers.”

It filters out those without the ego from the start, and that is how we got our 'sales animal'. In fact, although we only get 5 calls, all of them were much better than anything an agency sent us.
 
Posted by: telemoxie Accepted Answer
7/1/2004 8:38 PM (CST)
Are you sure you want a sales rep? Do you need a full time "sales animal" - who might over-sell your capacity within 3-6 months, and then move on? Maybe you just need more appointments with people who are ready to buy.

I have about ten years experience working as a part-time lead developer, and a good bit of that time has been promoting companies such as yours.

Check out my profile, and give me a ring.
 
Posted by: JBtron Accepted Answer
7/1/2004 8:40 PM (CST)
Chad,

You are looking for someone like me.

I come from a strong branding and marketing background, and was hired by a high-tech firm where I led their transition to their product launch, specifically in a NIST-1 level of security solutions. I would certainly like to see what it is you are talking about.

But you are here for advice, so I’ll offer the following:

Simon gave a great answer, because all the successful people in MarCom have the ability to “paint blue sky” for their clients and prospects, and that’s part of the personality that Simon mentioned builds rapport quickly and wants to succeed on the client’s behalf in any situation.

So, you need a focused, high-tech sales professional who speaks marketing, branding and image development.

Try www.salesrecruits.com.
For high-tech sales, this is THE source. Some of these people will be appropriate for your needs.

The closing technique Simon recommends WILL get you salespeople. Whether they are the best people for MarCom sales has yet to be a proven commodity, from my experience. That’s why I said some of them will be appropriate.

REPS are reps. More than one loyalty can be a good thing, depending on your situation.

Also, check your competition. The world of MarCom is bursting with personalities, passion and determination to succeed, and the right combination probably already exists in a place where you MIGHT logically find them, were you so inclined. Headhunting is a decision the principals must make with their eyes and wallets wide open.

What are you using for your contact database? I’ve tried a number of products out there, but Act! seems to me to be the richest and most flexible resource I can find. If you’re not using Act!, I think you should.

Sales is like genius: 1% inspiration, 99% perspiration. If you really want to use your creativity, solve the sales dilemma. Get creative with a RECRUITMENT solution.

Write down a description of the person you REALLY want. Spend some time here, and get everything you can on paper. NOW…

This person exists. And they’re very close, you just have to figure out how to get them to self identify, or how to get in front of one, or MANY of them…(any thoughts yet?)

Finds the nearest chapter of the AAAA - American Association of Advertising Agencies - and go to one of their events. Talk to the members and don’t be bashful. If you’re in the industry, they’ll know it in a heartbeat and you can just ask.

You see? Have some fun with this! If you need help, give me a shout.

Hope this helps!

Best,

::JBtron
 
Posted by: Deremiah *CPE Member Response
7/2/2004 9:17 PM (CST)
basis,

Simon, Telemoxie and Jbtron gives great advice expecially the act software to keep in contact. A good sales person has to follow up, follow through, keep in contact and keep customer profiles. I have spent over seven years in sales and there are some great things right here on KHE. Put the word Sales in the search box at the top right of the screen and go for it. You can also read some previous suggestions that I've made to others about sales just by clicking on the following.

www.marketingprofs.com/ea/qst_question.asp?qstID=2093

www.marketingprofs.com/ea/qst_question.asp?qstID=2042

But Jbtron gives good advice and I would try that website and the above advice. "Be Creative and Make It Happen". I know you can. Is there anything I can do for you?

Your Servant, Deremiah, *CPE
 
Posted by: basis Author Response
7/3/2004 11:44 AM (CST)
So far I have heard several great ideas. The first thing I need to do is define who this sales person is: one “sales animal”?, several solid individuals each independently bringing business?, or someone to who helps me set up appointments? I think each solution has its benefits and its concerns.

The “sales animal” model needs a commitment we may not be able to provide. We are a small firm, and if the work demands outpace our bandwidth that salesperson will become quickly frusterated. The obvious upside is that this person could be that catalyst to taking our business to the next level. Particularily if this person had deep industry insight. This would allow us to sell as industry experts and offer relevent industry solutions.

The second option is a group of independent sales reps who don’t exclusively live off our business but use it to supplement their income. The down side to this model is that we may get very little commitment from any of the reps. One idea I had was to create alliances with some of the larger marcom agency reps who often times divert business away because customers don’t meet the criteria of the agency (ie, too small of an account). Realtionships could be built in which commissions would be paid for work transitioned to us.

The third option is to hire a lead developer. This is my weakest area of the sales process. Presenting our company to a new potential clients has never been a problem nor has developing new sales once a relationship has been established. This solution seems to offer real upside, however I am concerned about the transition between lead developer and myself. How do we make this process transparent to the customer?

Those are my thoughts after the first response. Any follow up would be appreciated.
 
Posted by: telemoxie Member Response
7/3/2004 2:40 PM (CST)
A handoff from "inside sales" to a salesperson or technical person has to be done carefully. If someone has spent time building rapport, we certainly don't want to have the prosect feel they were left at the altar. In some cases, a conference call to make an introduction might be a good step. In my business, I manage that "hand-off" process every day.

When do you hand a lead over to the next level? There is no simple answer, lots will depend on the type of customer, type of project, even the current workload of the sales and technical staff. Generally speaking, over time, prospects qualify themselves. If they are asking general questions (where are you located, what work have you done, can you show me samples) then they have have a mild degree of interest.

On the other hand, if the prospect starts asking very specific questions (do have have experience in this industry, have you worked with version 3.7 of software such and such, how would you handle this problem, do you work on a retainer) then I say something like, "You know, I think I know the answer - but I want to be sure you get the best answer. Would you like to talk with..." - and see what they say. They will either say, "No, not really, I was just curious". Or they will say, "Yes" - and be a bit more qualified.

My approach is to be sure the prospects have the information they need. If they need a brochure for the files, I can handle that just fine. If they need detailed info or a quote, that's when I refer prospects to my clients.
 
Posted by: telemoxie Member Response
7/4/2004 10:37 AM (CST)
By the way, here's a pretty good article reccomending a dedicated ongoing program to avoid the "revenue rollercoaster":
http://www.marketingprofs.com/3/doerr2.asp

And regarding your 2nd option, regarding building relationships with other agencies and complementary companies: this is a great idea, but it doesn't happen just by snapping your fingers, or by writing a line item in your strategic plan. One needs to build a list, make some calls, send some emails, follow up, set some appointments... and you can outsource this project as well, while you focus on serving your clients and billable work.
 


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