Ties R 4 Sissies

I’m not talking about the neck kind. I’m talkin’ about the fact that somebody wins and somebody loses in Sales.  Unlike in soccer, there is just no such thing as a tie.  Somebody is buying from you OR somebody is buying from the other guy.  There is a winner and a loser.  And it sucks to lose.

Couple more days left in the fiscal year for The Sales Guy and he is guttin’ it out like the best of them. Personally, I think he’s done a wonderful job in the past year BUT if The Sales Guy doesn’t make his number, he’s going to be a loser. All that hard work for the prior 364 days means zilch. 

So why can’t we have ties in Sales?  I mean, unless there is complete obliteration, there MUST be some good found on each side of the deal. Some aspect of each competitor’s solution has to be good enough to keep them in the game for a good fight. And when it comes down to the slugging, if you stay punch for punch til the bitter end, wasn’t the fight itself worth anything at all?  What about HOW you played the game? Isn’t that worth an honorable mention? Couldn’t the Coach come up with a second place medal in the form of 10 grand for the efforts?  After all, it’s not just The Sales Guy who is on the field -- the underperforming back field (product development, marketing, etc) or the late-to-the-game pricing/finance players contributed to the loss. Come on, Coach, pay The Sales Guy for his efforts if you like HOW he played.

Could you imagine what that would do for The Sales Guy’s confidence? NOTHING.  Why? Because winning is everything to The Sales Guy.  

I remember the experience I had “losing” full rights to the class salutatorian honor in 8^th grade. I remember exactly what I was thinking when Ms Arnold told me the news. How did I lose?  Don’t get me wrong, I loved sharing the glory with my best friend but A TIE???  I thought ties ONLY happened in soccer. In my case, I busted my arse for much longer than a fiscal year but time was up and I had lost.  A tie?  Come on.  Like one play during my middle school tenure wasn’t any better or worse than my co-honoree? Could we have a spell-off? Or a grasshopper dissect-a-thon? A clear winner was what we needed. Those were the rules!

Normally, I don’t advocate for rule changes to historic games but I’m pretty sure regular season soccer rules need an uplift. Why teams of fit athletes can’t gut it out until the better team scores to break a tie makes no sense to me.  Why not a shootout at least for EVERY game? As in a sales deal, someone has to make a decision – perhaps a human sacrifice – to determine the winner EVERY time. 

There always needs to be a winner and a loser. Winning gives us a reason to celebrate and losing makes us tougher for the next game.

So, Sales Guy, from the bottom of my heart – have a Powerbar, a cortisone shot, a high-five from a cheerleader, whatever you need at this point - get back on the field for 3 more days and win this thing!  I’ll be waiting at the front door with a bucket of Gatorade to celebrate!

Get Your Travolta On

Less than a week left in the quarter or to the fiscal year.  Get your Travolta on and Hustle!

"Hustle is doing something that everyone is absolutely certain can’t be done.

Hustle is getting commitment because you got there first, or stayed with it after everyone else gave up.

Hustle is shoe leather and elbow grease and sweat and missing lunch.

Hustle is getting prospects to say “yes” after they’ve said “no” twenty times.

Hustle is doing more unto a customer than the other guy can do unto him.

Hustle is believing in yourself and the business you’re in.

Hustle is the sheer joy of winning.

Hustle is being the sorest loser in town.

Hustle is hating to take a vacation because you might miss a piece of the action.

Hustle is heaven if you’re a hustler.

Hustle is hell if you’re not."

Attention! A-TENT-TION!

Listen up!  Do I need to drop of a brick of gold in the sunlight to get your attention?  And then follow it up with an interpretive dance wearing a chicken suit? 

As visually stimulating as that is, I actually find it to be quite rude. How many times have you heard, “Sales people have the shortest attention spans?”  Or, that you have to “flash a shiny object” in their faces to get their attention?  Then, commonly followed by somebody saying with arrogance, “ They are not that smart so you have to keep things simple.”   To that I say, “Phooey!”  

I truly believe good Sales professionals are some of the most skilled, nimble multi-tasking, productive jugglers on the face of this earth. Think about it, they have to be if they are going to be successful at what they do.  They are working on at least a dozen things simultaneously.  They are moving very fast and have to filter the noise like nobody’s business.

On any given night when he’s home, The Sales Guy takes position on “my” leather recliner to relax. It’s pretty easy to notice when he’s tired and thinking.  I can see it on his face and, just when I think it’s really into that super boring Nat-Geo special on the unique insect population in Burma, it dawns on me he’s totally not watching it and he’s creating his plan of attack for tomorrow.  It wouldn’t matter if I dropped the gold brick, danced the jig in the chicken suit in front of t.v. or paraded a million of those killer Burmese fire ants across his bare feet, his attention is focused on tomorrow’s game plan.

Ever look at a Sales person’s calendar?  OMG!  How they can focus on anything for more than an hour or so a day when they are supposed to talk to at least a handful of different people from different companies in a single day, put together compelling cases for why people should buy their stuff, build relationships, a pipeline, a family, a treehouse, work out, eat lunch, shower, etc. 

I don’t know how they do it but I can tell you they deserve a lot more credit than they typically get.  Then again, not sure they care what the rest of us think of them as long as they get paid.  We’ll save that topic for another time… I need to claim my seat on the recliner and grab the remote J

Get Your Game On!

The Sales Guy and I share a deep love for the game of soccer.  We are not the most skilled players – you won’t see either of us rockin’ a bicycle kick or a intentional half maradona. But, we both possess a quality that has propelled us to put our hearts and souls into every game we’ve played – it’s called drive. And that drive is what makes us hypercompetitive individuals who want to win – always.

Our natural tendencies are to protect the goal (defense) and set up plays for our teammates, who are much better “equipped” to hit the back of the net.  And, in those very rare situations, hit the back of the net ourselves.  We will do anything our aging bodies are capable of doing to annihilate our competition.

The great Mia Hamm said, “You can't just beat a team, you have to leave a lasting impression in their minds so they never want to see you again.”   And how true it is both on and off the soccer field.

While The Sales Guy is financially motivated and his drive compels him to WANT to win, he can’t do it alone. That's especially because he’s not just trying to beat an individual in head-to-head competitive situations --he's trying to take out another team. He relies significantly on his company’s reputation, record of winning and competitive intelligence for the “assist.”  Otherwise, he’s sittin’ on the goal line waiting for a potentially 100 mph knuckle shot.

It’s amazing how many companies treat having competitive intelligence as a “side job” for one or two individuals in an organization rather than dedicate serious focus to it.  It would be like the New England Patriots only scouting their competition and creating game plans for only  5% of their games.  And, in many cases, doing it during the game rather than before. I can’t imagine Tom Brady would enjoy or be as successful as he has been heading into any game without feeling fully supported and knowing his competition very well.  It’s not just about who they are and what they offer but understanding what tactics they use and what limits they are willing to go to that help coaches and players form the winning offensive and defensive plays.   And, when executed, potentially leave a lasting, talked-about impression on the competition, which can put them on their heels and put the fear of God in them next time you play.

Case in point from my own experience.. I remember when my college team was in the ECAC Championship game my freshman year. My coach had the opportunity to scout our competition the prior day. Before our game, he caught me stretching and told me the right wing player I knew I'd be battling the entire game could  not handle tight dribbling if her gait was broken and she was "stood up." So, the info I had in hand was the team's record, familiarity with a few of the players and how good they were but this level of detail about HOW she played proved to be the single most valuable tip my coach could've given me the entire game.  While it didn't work 100% of the time, it was pretty darn close.  I "stood her up" every time she approached and, using my new move, stripped the ball or sent her out of bounds.  Each of my team members got a "nugget" on competition like this and we went on to win the championship and secure our 18-1 season record.

So, the bottom line here is you gotta get smart about your competitors and get on the offensive before the game begins.  And, then, during game time, intelligence (gained through conditioning) and animal instinct kick in.  And, as the game changes, that’s when The Sales Guy pulls out all his moves – giving and receiving solid basket-weave-passes and has a much better chance of hitting the back of the net and hearing “GOOOOOOOOOAAAAAALLLLLLLL.”

my 17 cents

17 cents = the cost of my first purchase, which was 5 pencil top erasers at a New Jersey Kmart.

I REALLY wanted to buy something and, it was the end of the summer, so the naturally encased erasers on my pencils were totally burnt out.  Yes, even back then I made a zillion mistakes AND was a total dork.  What an ingenious idea those erasers were – so much pencil left and so many more mistakes to make, it was a dream come true for the longevity of my creative mastery through a writing utensil.  I NEEDED them. (PS - Yes, lead. It was 1983 or 1984.)  I was extremely satisfied with the performance of my purchase, especially the yellow eraser.  I still buy those damn erasers when duty calls.

I asked The Sales Guy what his first purchase was and his experience was the complete opposite of mine.  Man ‘o man did my question set off The Sales Guy.  He said, “It was some overpriced, used fishing lures some neighborhood kids sold me. I think I paid like 10 bucks for them.”  The lures “sucked” and he paid too much. However, he NEEDED them. 

So, this made me wonder… is this how it all began for The Sales Guy?  Did this initial purchase scar him for life and is that why he’s always trying to get a good deal?  J   Or, is it that he realized he could  make good money from selling? 

Do  you remember your first purchase?  I want to hear about it....

Customer incontinence and other entertainment

I promised you humor so here goes...

It's not easy being The Sales Guy by day and an event coordinator by night. Customers [because they are people] require entertainment and, sometimes, they turn into the entertainment.

A few months ago, The Sales Guy's evening call of duty brought him to the setting of a professional hockey game to entertain and "thank" a customer who recently made a big purchase.  The Sales Guy describes this customer as "gregarious, large framed, biker kind of guy."  So, naturally, he liked his sports and his beer.  And, naturally, The Sales Guy made sure his customer was delighted with the best seats, plenty of over-priced snacks and a steady intravenous of brew.

Even with the home team pulling off a win and intense inebriation, Customer wanted more and The Sales Guy obliged providing a midnight "snack" of the finest Angus steak and scotch. At around 1am, it was clear that Customer had an obvious hole in the foot and superhuman liver and The Sales Guy was responsible for ensuring Customer got home safely so it was time to call it a night. The Sales Guy escorted Customer to the men's room (he hadn't been virtually all night).  Customer entered and exited the men's room while on the phone and, upon exiting, looked down at his pants, felt them and said, "Oh, I thought I felt something warm."  That's right, Customer wet his pants and didn't even know it. (Wonder what he actually did in the men's room then - wardrobe malfunction?)

Funny as that story is, it's a little scary how quickly Customers go from business formal to business casual to the hardiest partiers you've ever met in your life. I had the opportunity to take about 8 customers out with one of my co-workers a few years ago. This was an eclectic group -- some outspoken folks from the UK, others from Alabama and yet others from rural Pennsylvania. And they all wanted Mexican food -- or so they said.  What they really wanted were the Mexican drinks. So being the responsible Sales Guy's Wife, I decided I would drive -- everybody.

Dinner started out slowly with small talk about the different businesses and their jobs and that ended quickly. The conversation then became about home life and hobbies.  And that's when things fell apart and, little did I know, that's when the drinks started really flowing. I was so distracted by the x-rated topics being discussed and planning my own escape route, I missed how much they had been drinking. Until --- until one of them got out of his chair, sat on the floor of the restaurant, crossed his legs Indian style, ascended to his knees and began walking on them!  What could I do other than let him run his course and leave the wait staff a giant tip!

There is something truly human - albeit crazy - about this kind of fun.  Circles of friends call it "good times." I call it "Customer Confidentiality." The Sales Guy calls it "leverage."

A.B.C.

Anyone familiar with the movie "Glengarry Glen Ross"?  If you're in Sales and you're not familiar with it, I'm super proud of you.  If you are familiar with the movie and the famous "ABC of selling" rant, I agree it's worth a laugh but I'm not sure anyone should ever train themselves to think that way or just naturally think that way.  "Always Be Closing"seems like a more-than-outdated concept.  Why? Because people are just people and the last time I checked, folks doing the buying are people and folks doing the selling are people.  So how about this.. change it up to "Always Be Caring?"

The Sales Guy does this so well and I love him for that and a million other reasons.  I am particularly fond of the way The Sales Guy prioritizes his time -- get to know and care about the buyer -- and then do the hardcore selling.  I'd even argue, it's not hardcore selling -- he's really trying to just understand what is going to make the customer happy and structure the deal that way.  While this approach may not be conducive to a short sales cycle, it scores big points when it comes to customer satisfaction and advocacy and genuinely being a good, respectable guy, which is way more important than anything else to The Sales Guy's Wife.

Hi, I'm The Sales Guy's Wife

Yep, you read that right. I'm identifying myself as "The Sales Guy's Wife." Many of you may know me as Karen (Ferry) Meyer but I'm really just the woman who gets into bed with The Sales Guy -- when he is home that is. My husband, "The Sales Guy," is a road warrior these days and has been for a while. Sales is his [career] passion and I support it.  I support it so much so that I have also been working in a related field for 5 years now and I'm plainly an enabler. 

Not saying his career drove mine but I will say that had I not taken an interest in what he was doing with all his time and how he was making *us* money, I probably would not have batted an eye at a career move toward sales enablement in any way shape or form.  The combination of The Sales Guy staying up at all hours writing RFPs, riding the roller coaster of up and down quarters and staining the pits on every dress shirt due to sweating bullets in customer presentations, drove me to realize sales people need help they aren't getting and I'm pretty sure I can influence that. 

And then reality set in, selling anything to The Sales Guy  or affecting change in Sales was going to be a lifelong effort.  Oh, and by the way, my true [career] passion is customer advocacy so, darn it, Sales has to get better. 

So I hope for this blog to be a mildly entertaining, mildly educational, addictive, dumping ground for anybody who wants to read and participate in it really. If you've ever sold or bought anything, you should get a chuckle out of what I'm hoping to unfold here about his experiences, mine and those along the way.

~ The Sales Guy's Wife