“It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change.”

-Charles Darwin 

Try selling snake oil to someone today. Selling features and functions will be just as silly.

I love this Darwin Quote. Like me, obviously you’re a person; therefore you have at least that survival advantage over every other animal on earth. (And yes I considered the fact that cockroaches can potentially survive a global nuclear fallout. I erred on the side of humans being smart enough not to destroy ourselves) I’m guessing you didn’t come here to read a biological interpretation of our world. I will attempt only to make this relevant to an organization’s survival and ultimately the people that work there.
You don’t have to be the strongest at your job; A lot of times it’s at the expense of your family You don’t have to be the most intelligent person either; All you have to do is adapt to change.

The best way to adapt is by understanding why it’s happening. The most common response is change sucks, it’s hard. It means you spend more time learning and less time producing. It’s why a certain type of people complains every time Facebook changes a feature. I will make one quick prediction. Those people that complain about Facebook changing will be the only ones still using it in five years. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that those who want to learn about new technologies and applications will at least try Google +. Trying something new is an indicator at least of someone’s aptitude for change.

Photo by tommm

Back to sales and change. I have seen plenty of intelligent people believe that their sales skills are, and always will be, superior to anything that comes along. I hate calling these people intelligent, but that’s what Darwin said so I’ll stick it out. Education tends to breed overconfidence at times. I’m not accusing anyone, just trying to make you think about that one. I can also tell who is going to survive. These people approach me with suggestions, and try to understand why their organization is investing in tools and training for sales reps. This is key; obviously if your organization is paying to give you additional training in these economic times, they are serious about change. They are serious about their entire organization adapting, not just you. If you’re humbled by change, embrace it and enjoy the thrill of leaving monotony, you are wired for survival. Remember, not everybody thinks this way. Most people tend to weigh too much value on the emotional part of decision making. We are unfortunately hardwired to use the least amount of energy to get a reward. That’s why we love Big Macs and designer handbags. Now what if you could shorten your sales cycle, increase your deal size and increase pipeline close rate with the least amount of energy? The world around us is changing, that means sales is too. Focus on the economics of decision making and sell in a way that does. Focus on deals that you know you can win. That’s how executives structure their decisions to survive in a world of change.

This is how it works.

1. Install it first on your laptop/desktop. By going to www.dropbox.com
2. Do the typical install and it will place a folder on your computer called “Drop Box”
3. Any file you put in your dropbox folder is placed out on the cloud and can be shared with anyone who has Dropbox. Files will be only visible to your account until you give others permission to access parts, or your entire Dropbox folder.
4.  Install the app from iTunes, or the Android Marketplace. Sign in with your account credentials.
5. When you open a file in your Dropbox folder and save it, that revision will be instantly available to everyone you shared it with.

This solution will not allow you to simultaneously edit documents with another person, but if two people do edit at the same time there will be duplicate files saved. I suggest renaming the file as “checked out” so coworkers know you are actively editing.
Apple currently uses iCloud to push purchases in your iTunes account to all our devices wirelessly. This does the same thing, but is open across more devices(Apple and Android). This should be rather obvious, but you must have a wireless internet connection for the documents to be updated. You also need to install the appropriate software on your devices to be able to view certain file formats.
For Apple, there are a number of third party applications to help you view and edit your documents on mobile devices:
Numbers(Excel), Keynote(PowerPoint), Pages(Word)

Within one’s own organization, many people are selling the same product. You would expect then that everyone would have a similar sales record. The difference is in the way you present your solution. People buy you, before they buy the product. If you want to earn a trusted advisor status, your message has to come from the right place and it must solve the right pain. Include in your presentation the dollarized value your solution provides to each of the critical issues you uncovered. To help attach a dollarized value your prospect will believe, use past results from your current customer base. These results demonstrate how your new prospect could benefit from a similar solution.

Keep your first value discussion at a high level and simple. Now is not the time to talk yourself into a corner so be ready to address questions surrounding the company you claim to have researched. Tell them that you would like to verify these numbers with a member of their organization and come back with a verified business case stating the value that they confirmed.

Develop your own style of speaking, but watch your video and eliminate your nervous gestures. If a value message is not received well, you are most likely not speaking at the right level. If you believe you have reached the right level and they still don’t get it, move on, this prospect is not your zebra. Spend your time and resources pursuing prospects that you know you can win! When your presentation and value proposition is solidified it will take pressure off of proposals and prevent your product from turning into a commodity.

I thought you or your staff might want to attend the upcoming “Midwest Forum on Talent Management” on September 16^th in Madison, WI.  One of my business associates, Paul Herr, will be giving a talk at the conference from 11 am until noon titled, “How to Measure and Improve Employee Engagement (room A2142).”  Paul Herr wrote a critically-acclaimed book on employee engagement in 2009 and now consults on this subject internationally.  

Paul Herr

Talent Management Conference Program Guide

It will be held at:

American Family Insurance National Headquarters
6000 American Parkway
Madison, Wisconsin 53783 

If you are interested, please click on this link to register:

http://www.regonline.com/builder/site/Default.aspx?EventID=947720

Best Regards,

Jeff Koser

P.S.  Discounted lodging can be obtained from:

LA QUINTA INN & SUITES

$80 per night

Madison American Center

5217 E. Terrace Drive

Madison, WI  53718

Tel: 608-245-0123

How has the current economic tide been affecting your business? Are there any positives to come out of it? Its safe to say this isn’t the kind of environment that inspires confidence. The latest global economic concerns have predicated a mass hysteria that really isn’t anything new, but is a crisis nonetheless. If your business is feeling the effects of the volatile environment you should stay proactive, rather than reactive. The silver lining of a crisis is that it forces you to streamline your business model. It’s the sort of sink or swim that makes you think about long-term sustainability in a way you never had to before. We have seen the competitive landscape shift as companies reorganize with a sharp focus on revenue and cost-cutting initiatives. The low hanging fruit has really been picked and squeezed, selling to early adopters in robust markets, without the need for a focused sales strategy.

You probably understand that economics is cyclical and this is why the current economic crisis shouldn’t go to waste. More than ever companies are scrambling for those problem solving solutions. What does that mean? More than ever, companies are ready to buy! Ergo, you have to be ready to sell your solution in a way that solves those restructuring objectives. Just yesterday Cisco CEO John Chambers said his customers don’t see a recession. As they reorganize you can be assured they are going to focus on the value they create and that their customers have come to appreciate.

“Our customers are saying they do not see a recession”

   -John Chambers Cisco CEO

Uncovering Value

ROI alone is not enough to garner attention anymore because everyone presents it and everyone presents a good one. You must align the parts of your message you think are important with what your prospect thinks are important. In effect, it needs to be simple, yet differentiated.

Reaching out

You should treat all of your sales as partnerships and by that I mean your customers should get the feeling your success rides on theirs. You aren’t selling widgets, you’re guaranteeing success. Start by reaching out to your current and past customers. Getting the right information is about asking the right questions. (Join the discussion in our new sales community and share your best questions!)

They will lead you to value you didn’t sell them. For example, maybe you provided new energy efficient windows to a university. You’d be surprised to find out that since installation class attendance has improved by 15% in addition to the anticipated energy savings. Discovering what resonated after the sale stirs a positive feeling of surprise and added benefit. Your genuine curiosity also improves your partnership, creating healthy up-sell and cross-sell opportunities.

If that isn’t enough already, remember our goal is to translate this differentiated value to new prospects. The more transparent your positive surprise is to new prospects, the more receptive they will be.

Research New Prospect

Filter through a company’s annual report and 10k, Google headlines, and scour their website. You’re looking to understand the culture and initiatives in place. If you have a management tool, search for merger and acquisition news. Identify where you can enforce value and how you supplement current operations. Determine who Power is. Change is disruptive to any organization and your ability to recognize and overcome that barrier is crucial. Part of that is speaking to the right person. If you start too low in an organization you get resistance and a small budget. Latch on to current sustainability initiatives and missions that contribute to their long-term vision.

Partnering

I mentioned partnering before; it’s important enough that it keeps coming back. Once you have differentiated your solution and distilled it down to what your prospect cares about, you know whether or not you have a zebra. With that in mind, present your business case to the executive you’ve identified as Power. Sure you will have your ROI along with other conservative estimates, including EVA, payback period and a monthly cost of indecision…, but you want their critical business issues front and center in the discussion. Your financial benefit claims ride on these rails. Your goal at this point isn’t to sell, it’s to partner. You have to earn trust before you can sell. If you peak interest, ask, and they will grant you executive sponsorship to verify your value. Once they confirm and adjust your figures internally, you will reduce your sales cycle, increase your deal size and improve your pipeline close rate.

To dig deeper into all the steps of our process: Read the book and bring your expertise over to the sales community.