http://kmethod.com - K-Method is breaking all the rules and
challenging outdated training practices by teaching managers how to develop and
train a better dealerships workforce.
Friday, May 30, 2014
Monday, June 11, 2012
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
Build, Maintain & Manage a Book of Business – The New Job Description of an Automobile Selling Professional
“Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day,” is the first part of an ancient Chinese proverb that explains why the majority of salespeople are not doing so well in our industry. If you think about it, our industry is pretty young, a little over a hundred years old and since its inception, not much had changed in the way that vehicles were bought and sold, until the Internet. Much has been written and said about how it has impacted the industry, but the quandary that we face today, is how to equip our salespeople to respond and succeed in these uncharted waters. The challenge is that the Internet not only modified how we sell cars, it totally destroyed it! It disrupted our approach to creating gross profit and exposed our internal processes to scrutiny that no other industry has experienced before. But more important than that, because we use to operate as a microcosm where we made up our own rules to include tailoring the job description of those that sold our product, it was easy to hide their flaws under layers of floor managers and closers. Inexpensive newspaper advertising, inappropriate commercials and other gimmicky campaigns were used to get the prospects to the lot for our people to do their jobs, however when the Internet came on line, it changed everything. Dealerships were no longer the destination for all things in the buying process and without notice what use to work was no more. So what do you do with a sales team that was always taught to keep your eyes on the lot and wait for the next up? Or more importantly, what do you do if you are a struggling dealer with lots of inventory and a staff of individuals that only knows how to stand around and wait for their ‘up’ to show up? In this case, you re-invent the wheel, that’s what you do.
If you step away from the table and look at the sales process, what you will see is that it is linear, where there is a starting point and a finishing point and both ends are properly defined. This explains why salespeople are struggling and why the Internet has disrupted the dealership’s sales process to the extent that it has. Stay with me…because most sales managers focus on the part of the sales process they can see, like the prospect coming onto the sales lot as an opportunity to close a sale today, they scrutinize and emphasize all the steps involve in that onsite client interaction (the road to the sale). However, when it comes to all of the other activities that cause the client to return or send referrals, in most cases they are silent because these activities are so ambiguous that they could not be measured in order to be duplicated. The reason that this is so critical for you to comprehend is that by introducing two new processes to the mix, (Business Development & Customer Relationship Management) it will close the loop by transforming the sales process from the linear, start at the meet and end at the close, to a circular motion where once a prospect enters the system, they never fall out.
Teach a man how to fish and he will always eat….
By redefining the role of the selling professional, we will be able to take into account all the variables that we now have to deal with. By defining the job functions as Build, Maintain and Manage a book of business, we will then be able to outline the things that they will need to know in order to be effective at this new role. A book of business refers to the customer database, and although the business owns the data, the salesperson has a symbiotic relationship with the clients that they sell to thus making them a joint owner of that data. I know that this statement may not be popular, but if you think about it, people do not do business with an entity, they connect with and do business with people that work within that entity. This is why you cannot remove the salesperson from the solution and then generate sustainable results. So by teaching them how Build a book of business, they will know how to generate their own lead sources, they will be able to actively engage in relationship building activities, expand their sphere of influence and connect with past clients to ensure that they remain in the fold. By teaching them how to Maintain a book of business they will be able to actively engage with clients to sustain the relationships during long and short selling cycles as well as throughout the entire relationship life cycle. And by teaching them how to Manage a book of business means that they will know how to leverage the use of technology to include CRM software to sustain all the activities that are needed to grow a vibrant and profitable book of business. But even more important than all these is the fact that managers will finally have a process to manage instead of trying to manage the person.
So right around now you might be saying that all this sounds great in theory but how do you teach salespeople to do all this? That’s a great question, but you will have to wait until next time as the thing that you need to wrap your head around now is that all roads do lead to Rome and all the programs that the business engages in to generate traffic from SEO, to BDC centers to text messaging, to whatever, still directs the prospects to a salesperson to convert. So if their ratios cannot be quantified and if systems are not in place to address the findings, then spending more money on lead generation is just like burning money!
Let's connect on:
My website: www.thekurtissmith.com or www.kmethod.com
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/kurtismith
K-Method blog: http://kmethod.com/blog/blog
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/TheKmethodGroup
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/thekmethodgroup
If you step away from the table and look at the sales process, what you will see is that it is linear, where there is a starting point and a finishing point and both ends are properly defined. This explains why salespeople are struggling and why the Internet has disrupted the dealership’s sales process to the extent that it has. Stay with me…because most sales managers focus on the part of the sales process they can see, like the prospect coming onto the sales lot as an opportunity to close a sale today, they scrutinize and emphasize all the steps involve in that onsite client interaction (the road to the sale). However, when it comes to all of the other activities that cause the client to return or send referrals, in most cases they are silent because these activities are so ambiguous that they could not be measured in order to be duplicated. The reason that this is so critical for you to comprehend is that by introducing two new processes to the mix, (Business Development & Customer Relationship Management) it will close the loop by transforming the sales process from the linear, start at the meet and end at the close, to a circular motion where once a prospect enters the system, they never fall out.
Teach a man how to fish and he will always eat….
By redefining the role of the selling professional, we will be able to take into account all the variables that we now have to deal with. By defining the job functions as Build, Maintain and Manage a book of business, we will then be able to outline the things that they will need to know in order to be effective at this new role. A book of business refers to the customer database, and although the business owns the data, the salesperson has a symbiotic relationship with the clients that they sell to thus making them a joint owner of that data. I know that this statement may not be popular, but if you think about it, people do not do business with an entity, they connect with and do business with people that work within that entity. This is why you cannot remove the salesperson from the solution and then generate sustainable results. So by teaching them how Build a book of business, they will know how to generate their own lead sources, they will be able to actively engage in relationship building activities, expand their sphere of influence and connect with past clients to ensure that they remain in the fold. By teaching them how to Maintain a book of business they will be able to actively engage with clients to sustain the relationships during long and short selling cycles as well as throughout the entire relationship life cycle. And by teaching them how to Manage a book of business means that they will know how to leverage the use of technology to include CRM software to sustain all the activities that are needed to grow a vibrant and profitable book of business. But even more important than all these is the fact that managers will finally have a process to manage instead of trying to manage the person.
So right around now you might be saying that all this sounds great in theory but how do you teach salespeople to do all this? That’s a great question, but you will have to wait until next time as the thing that you need to wrap your head around now is that all roads do lead to Rome and all the programs that the business engages in to generate traffic from SEO, to BDC centers to text messaging, to whatever, still directs the prospects to a salesperson to convert. So if their ratios cannot be quantified and if systems are not in place to address the findings, then spending more money on lead generation is just like burning money!
Let's connect on:
My website: www.thekurtissmith.com or www.kmethod.com
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/kurtismith
K-Method blog: http://kmethod.com/blog/blog
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/TheKmethodGroup
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/thekmethodgroup
The Professional Standards For Sales Excellence Selling System
The Professional Standards for Sales Excellence training program was designed to teach the specific steps on how to build, maintain and manage a book of business. Surprisingly, this is the first program of its kind to provide this type of in depth training on this most important subject matter because just about every business depends on the movement of goods and services to keep the doors open. I have always been baffled as to why selling is not being taught as a degree program in traditional learning institutions when you consider how important a role it plays in the survival of all businesses that spurs the growth of our economy.
It has taken me over a decade of diligent persistent research to assemble, organize and field test the curriculum that we now call the Professional Standards for Sales Excellence or PSSE for short. This program allows anyone to easily learn the foundational principles that are the core competencies of selling and business development so that each person can enter the work force then add the necessary product knowledge from any business and be effective and successful. These individuals will be competent and confident because they will know exactly what to do, when to do it and most importantly how to build, maintain and manage their book of business.
There are no scripts or word tracks to remember, no techniques that violates professional or moral ethics, just solid process based principles and strategies that are guaranteed to produce results. These processes are not industry or discipline specific, but mandatory for all who depend on selling and business development to generate revenue. It is a system that provides the processes and the step-by-step activities for anyone to follow and achieve any amount of success he or she is willing to work for. Furthermore, it provides sales managers with a program to give each member of their sales team his or her own unique personalized developmental plan in order to reach his or her full potential. Finally, it provides organizations with a viable business development strategy that utilizes their own internal personnel as the drivers by inducing permanent change in their behavior and performance to increase sales.
The expertise utilized to create this program comes from all perspectives in the selling and business development process. So whether you are a leader, a manager, a sales person or all three, you will find that PSSE will deliver the content that makes your business and selling life significantly more rewarding.
I’ve learned that the one common denominator of all truly successful professionals is that they see themselves as a work-in-progress and as a result are constantly working on themselves to improve. It is only by having this correct view that they are able to take full and personal responsibility of their professional development which is the primary reason for their success.
I am excited about the future of those that will use and share this information because I know exactly what the outcome will be.
To our mutual success,
Kurtis
Let's connect on:
My website: www.thekurtissmith.com or www.kmethod.com
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/kurtismith
K-Method blog: http://kmethod.com/blog/blog
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/TheKmethodGroup
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/thekmethodgroup
It has taken me over a decade of diligent persistent research to assemble, organize and field test the curriculum that we now call the Professional Standards for Sales Excellence or PSSE for short. This program allows anyone to easily learn the foundational principles that are the core competencies of selling and business development so that each person can enter the work force then add the necessary product knowledge from any business and be effective and successful. These individuals will be competent and confident because they will know exactly what to do, when to do it and most importantly how to build, maintain and manage their book of business.
There are no scripts or word tracks to remember, no techniques that violates professional or moral ethics, just solid process based principles and strategies that are guaranteed to produce results. These processes are not industry or discipline specific, but mandatory for all who depend on selling and business development to generate revenue. It is a system that provides the processes and the step-by-step activities for anyone to follow and achieve any amount of success he or she is willing to work for. Furthermore, it provides sales managers with a program to give each member of their sales team his or her own unique personalized developmental plan in order to reach his or her full potential. Finally, it provides organizations with a viable business development strategy that utilizes their own internal personnel as the drivers by inducing permanent change in their behavior and performance to increase sales.
The expertise utilized to create this program comes from all perspectives in the selling and business development process. So whether you are a leader, a manager, a sales person or all three, you will find that PSSE will deliver the content that makes your business and selling life significantly more rewarding.
I’ve learned that the one common denominator of all truly successful professionals is that they see themselves as a work-in-progress and as a result are constantly working on themselves to improve. It is only by having this correct view that they are able to take full and personal responsibility of their professional development which is the primary reason for their success.
I am excited about the future of those that will use and share this information because I know exactly what the outcome will be.
To our mutual success,
Kurtis
Let's connect on:
My website: www.thekurtissmith.com or www.kmethod.com
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/kurtismith
K-Method blog: http://kmethod.com/blog/blog
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/TheKmethodGroup
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/thekmethodgroup
CRM Success Strategies
To most people when they hear the acronym CRM in a business setting, the first thing that comes to mind is that it is a software program and therein lies the problem. The notion that CRM could stand for a set of processes that promote sound business strategies leading to increased profits is definitely not what they first think about when they hear it; yet that’s exactly what it truly means. Additionally, the thought that there are activities involved in maintaining good human relationships that lead to increased sales is very foreign to most people, yet that is exactly why the software was developed.
CRM application also known as a contact management system is a computer software that businesses use to maintain the customer record for the purpose of selling more goods and services. As widely used as this application is, most people who use the software have no idea what it is and why they are using it, only that they are suppose to put the prospects information in the application and miraculously it will do all the work necessary for them to make more money.Unfortunately it is not all their fault as this is how the software is sold by most vendors citing the tremendous sales increases that companies have experienced using their software. What most fail to mention is that there are other contributing factors that caused the spike in sales such as incentive programs, hot products or even good record keeping. The fact is that no software will increase your sales without some form of human intervention either in the programming, telling it what to do or in the external activities, doing what it told you to do.
So the key to success in CRM is in training the operator and I do not mean put the name and address in this field or that. I mean training the operator on how the application will assist him or her build, maintain and mange their book of business better. Here is the problem, software is written by people who in most cases do not like other people! Think of it this way; imagine someone who speaks C++, a programming language having a conversation with a salesperson who speaks features and benefits and you will understand why you are not able to get a positive return on your CRM investment. However, I am here to tell you that you can begin to make your CRM investment begin to pay for itself and it does not have to take long nor is it complicated. As a matter of fact, it is just a decision and the implementation of a few simple processes away. The key to success in CRM lies in the understanding that C = Customer; R = Relationship; M = Management; stay with me. The reason most CRM programs fail to produce results is that the emphasis is on the software and all the bells and whistles that it possesses and that approach is totally wrong. Let me point out the obvious again, in CRM the R stands for relationship, which means that the operator of the application has a job to do! The problem is that in most cases the operator has no idea what they are doing so the application can prompt all it wants because the operator is just going to keep marking it complete, complete, complete. The true value of CRM is not found in the application, the true value is found in the application’s ability to help you build, maintain and manage your book of business. It is there to help you provide proactive care for those important relationships that secure your business.
So here is the solution: R stands for Relationship. The user of this application must know how to engage, interact and build relationships during long and short selling cycles. It is important that they understand the how the application works especially the marketing sequences so that they are able to speak up when triggers and marketing pieces are in appropriate for the client they are sending it to. Providing people skills and technical skills training is a must so that they are able to interact effectively and communicate with the different personality traits they will encounter. They need to become comfortable using the phone as well as face book and the twitter so that it is not all about business so the relationship can grow and so on. Success with CRM will translate into sales only when the lines of C-customer become blurred by R- a real person, not a sales person is having a relationship with them by sharing this life experience in a natural organic fashion. But the most important aspect of this process that is violated regularly is the M-management, those thoughtful predetermined prompts and triggers and carefully selected marketing pieces being delivered at just the right times in the clients life that shows that you are sincere, such as a hand written anniversary note instead of a computer generated template that you can spot a mile away!
Let's connect on:
My website: www.thekurtissmith.com or www.kmethod.com
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/kurtismith
K-Method blog: http://kmethod.com/blog/blog
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/TheKmethodGroup
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/thekmethodgroup
CRM application also known as a contact management system is a computer software that businesses use to maintain the customer record for the purpose of selling more goods and services. As widely used as this application is, most people who use the software have no idea what it is and why they are using it, only that they are suppose to put the prospects information in the application and miraculously it will do all the work necessary for them to make more money.Unfortunately it is not all their fault as this is how the software is sold by most vendors citing the tremendous sales increases that companies have experienced using their software. What most fail to mention is that there are other contributing factors that caused the spike in sales such as incentive programs, hot products or even good record keeping. The fact is that no software will increase your sales without some form of human intervention either in the programming, telling it what to do or in the external activities, doing what it told you to do.
So the key to success in CRM is in training the operator and I do not mean put the name and address in this field or that. I mean training the operator on how the application will assist him or her build, maintain and mange their book of business better. Here is the problem, software is written by people who in most cases do not like other people! Think of it this way; imagine someone who speaks C++, a programming language having a conversation with a salesperson who speaks features and benefits and you will understand why you are not able to get a positive return on your CRM investment. However, I am here to tell you that you can begin to make your CRM investment begin to pay for itself and it does not have to take long nor is it complicated. As a matter of fact, it is just a decision and the implementation of a few simple processes away. The key to success in CRM lies in the understanding that C = Customer; R = Relationship; M = Management; stay with me. The reason most CRM programs fail to produce results is that the emphasis is on the software and all the bells and whistles that it possesses and that approach is totally wrong. Let me point out the obvious again, in CRM the R stands for relationship, which means that the operator of the application has a job to do! The problem is that in most cases the operator has no idea what they are doing so the application can prompt all it wants because the operator is just going to keep marking it complete, complete, complete. The true value of CRM is not found in the application, the true value is found in the application’s ability to help you build, maintain and manage your book of business. It is there to help you provide proactive care for those important relationships that secure your business.
So here is the solution: R stands for Relationship. The user of this application must know how to engage, interact and build relationships during long and short selling cycles. It is important that they understand the how the application works especially the marketing sequences so that they are able to speak up when triggers and marketing pieces are in appropriate for the client they are sending it to. Providing people skills and technical skills training is a must so that they are able to interact effectively and communicate with the different personality traits they will encounter. They need to become comfortable using the phone as well as face book and the twitter so that it is not all about business so the relationship can grow and so on. Success with CRM will translate into sales only when the lines of C-customer become blurred by R- a real person, not a sales person is having a relationship with them by sharing this life experience in a natural organic fashion. But the most important aspect of this process that is violated regularly is the M-management, those thoughtful predetermined prompts and triggers and carefully selected marketing pieces being delivered at just the right times in the clients life that shows that you are sincere, such as a hand written anniversary note instead of a computer generated template that you can spot a mile away!
Let's connect on:
My website: www.thekurtissmith.com or www.kmethod.com
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/kurtismith
K-Method blog: http://kmethod.com/blog/blog
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/TheKmethodGroup
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/thekmethodgroup
BDC - Business Development Center Success Strategies
Business Development Centers have always been a strange abnormality and a sticking point for me because they were created and sold to address a systemic issue that no one really wants to tackle. Slumping sales and under performing salespeople that are routinely described as order takers, because they lack the ability to be business developers, have created an opportunity for this anomaly in the sales and customer relationship management process.
A Business Development Center also known as BDC is nothing more than a system for generating prospects from predetermined sources and activities. The system consists of a series of processes and as such, any well trained individual under the correct supervision of a manager who knows how to manage processes will be able to produce results that are predictable, repeatable and track-able.
Unfortunately, the elephant in the room that most people are not willing to talk about is that the majority of salespeople in dealerships do not have the basic skill sets to do their jobs, and I am not referring to the usual in-dealership client interaction activities. I am referring to the ability to develop their own prospect sources; cultivate their natural markets that include their clients, business associates as well as their sphere of influence.
I am referring to them communicating effectively with prospects to sustain the relationships during long and short selling cycles as well as interacting with customers throughout their ownership life cycle; and finally leveraging the use of technology to keep all these activities together and running smoothly. If you query the average BDC expert, the argument they will put forth for having a BDC department is that it will serve primarily as a lead generator, a call center and a great follow up tool to produce and induce good survey responses. However, when you tabulate all the expenses that are involved, both hard and soft costs, what you have, in most cases is a department generating expenses that cannot be justified. What further re-enforces this fact is when you take into account where these leads eventually end up, on the salesperson’s desk.
The fact of the matter is that avoiding the root cause of a problem does not make it go away, it only postpones the inevitable and in this case, we are talking about maintaining a staff of salespeople performing like clerks that should be business developers. The issue is that in most businesses the key players do not have a well defined job description and the training to support the skill demands of the position. With this understanding, when most leaders in this situation are pressed with mission critical decision will resort to social proof for guidance in making their decisions. Many will hire a BDC team in attempts to increase their sales instead of holding the sales team accountable for doing the job they are hired to do because they know that in most cases these individuals cannot! Here is the solution, define the job description of the individuals responsible for generating sales. Spend the time necessary to identify, attract and develop the right talent because your business depends on it. Finally, train and hold them accountable for the outcome. What I mean by that is, if you need them to be good on the phone, train for that, if you need them to be good prospectors, train for that, it sounds simple but if you analyze the current skill sets of the people on your sales teams then you will appreciate why so many external software developers are creating products in attempts to address issues only your salespeople can solve.
Let's connect on:
My website: www.thekurtissmith.com or www.kmethod.com
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/kurtismith
K-Method blog: http://kmethod.com/blog/blog
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/TheKmethodGroup
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/thekmethodgroup
A Business Development Center also known as BDC is nothing more than a system for generating prospects from predetermined sources and activities. The system consists of a series of processes and as such, any well trained individual under the correct supervision of a manager who knows how to manage processes will be able to produce results that are predictable, repeatable and track-able.
Unfortunately, the elephant in the room that most people are not willing to talk about is that the majority of salespeople in dealerships do not have the basic skill sets to do their jobs, and I am not referring to the usual in-dealership client interaction activities. I am referring to the ability to develop their own prospect sources; cultivate their natural markets that include their clients, business associates as well as their sphere of influence.
I am referring to them communicating effectively with prospects to sustain the relationships during long and short selling cycles as well as interacting with customers throughout their ownership life cycle; and finally leveraging the use of technology to keep all these activities together and running smoothly. If you query the average BDC expert, the argument they will put forth for having a BDC department is that it will serve primarily as a lead generator, a call center and a great follow up tool to produce and induce good survey responses. However, when you tabulate all the expenses that are involved, both hard and soft costs, what you have, in most cases is a department generating expenses that cannot be justified. What further re-enforces this fact is when you take into account where these leads eventually end up, on the salesperson’s desk.
The fact of the matter is that avoiding the root cause of a problem does not make it go away, it only postpones the inevitable and in this case, we are talking about maintaining a staff of salespeople performing like clerks that should be business developers. The issue is that in most businesses the key players do not have a well defined job description and the training to support the skill demands of the position. With this understanding, when most leaders in this situation are pressed with mission critical decision will resort to social proof for guidance in making their decisions. Many will hire a BDC team in attempts to increase their sales instead of holding the sales team accountable for doing the job they are hired to do because they know that in most cases these individuals cannot! Here is the solution, define the job description of the individuals responsible for generating sales. Spend the time necessary to identify, attract and develop the right talent because your business depends on it. Finally, train and hold them accountable for the outcome. What I mean by that is, if you need them to be good on the phone, train for that, if you need them to be good prospectors, train for that, it sounds simple but if you analyze the current skill sets of the people on your sales teams then you will appreciate why so many external software developers are creating products in attempts to address issues only your salespeople can solve.
Let's connect on:
My website: www.thekurtissmith.com or www.kmethod.com
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/kurtismith
K-Method blog: http://kmethod.com/blog/blog
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/TheKmethodGroup
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/thekmethodgroup
Redefining Sales Training
I get asked many of times if I am a motivational speaker and I usually smile when I hear the question because I know why they are asking. I am extremely curious so when I’m engaged in a conversation, I ask a lot of questions that usually get people thinking differently about what they have come to accept as normal. Let’s take sales training for example, did you know that just about every company and everyone on the planet that exchange goods or services for dollars are involved in selling? Every teacher, minister, parent, politician, doctor, lawyer and so on is actively selling their ideas and or services on a daily basis. But did you know that as important as selling is to just about all professions it is not taught as a degree or credential program in most, if not all institutions of higher learning? The fact is that a great majority of the individuals involved in professional selling are struggling to make a living because they are making it up as they go and unfortunately the businesses and their families that they represent are struggling as well.
Selling is near and dear to me as it is responsible for transforming my life from a struggling manager at a fast food restaurant where I was told I was not worth $26,500.00 to making well over a $100K less than two years later. The fact is that regardless of your current economic status or where you live, selling something, an idea, a product or even a service, changes everything. Selling is the great equalizer because anyone can do it and what most people are not aware of is that the highest paid professionals on the planet are not doctors, lawyers or any of the so called educated professionals, they are salespeople! Furthermore, what’s even more encouraging is that if you look at the demographics of the majority of the millionaires and billionaires on our planet, what you will find is that a great majority of them are...you guessed it, salespeople!
So how do you learn to become excellent at selling? Where do you start? What books should you read and which speakers do you listen to and so on and so on? That was me and that does not have to be you anymore. Please allow me to cut through the clutter as I have spent a great deal of time and money asking and answering those questions to the point that, according to some, I actually know what I am talking about. You see, success leaves clues and if you do not use the clues like a road map, what usually happens is that you end up reinventing the wheel.
Selling is not complicated, but becoming good at it to the point of generating a meaningful income requires systems. Systems that will teach you how to build- generate your own leads; maintain – interact and communicate effectively to secure the relationships; and finally manage – leverage the use of technology to coordinate all the activities that secure your book of business! In addition to the aforementioned systems, there are two skills that must also be developed. The first is people skills - also known as Human Relationship or Interaction Skills that focuses on the specific activities involved in effective communication between two or more people. The second is technical skills that focuses on the specific activities or tasks involved in being productive as a professional salesperson such as using the phone, writing letters, negotiating correctly and leveraging the use of a computer and its pertinent software. Acquiring these two skills are necessary to execute the activities involved in the three systems.
With that being said, these three systems and the two skills will form the foundation, also known as the core competencies and is the first layer of knowledge of a professional sales person. These core competencies are non-negotiable and must come first before all other type of training can be truly effective. The biggest mistake that most people make is that they start engaging prospects before they have correctly built their foundation, and like an athlete who does not warm up before a race, they will get injured.
Technique based training programs like power negotiating or 1000 closes that are guaranteed to work are ineffective without the correct foundation. Just as learning how to negotiate before you understand people skills and telling a new salesperson they need to get referrals without them understanding what that really means or how it’s actually done is in most cases a complete waste of time.
The problem with traditional sales training that is offered in most companies is that the content that is delivered varies, and the emphasis is usually heavy on internal products and processes and very light on skills. Unfortunately, 99% of the time, there is never an emphasis on the systems and skills that I’ve just mentioned. It never ceases to amaze me how little salespeople and businesses know about managing a sales pipeline, activity tracker and how to correctly use CRM software. It’s time to get back to the basics, to insert a new and required layer of training for all selling professionals so that the businesses they represent and the families they work for have a better chance of succeeding.
Let's connect on:
My website: www.thekurtissmith.com or www.kmethod.com
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/kurtismith
K-Method blog: http://kmethod.com/blog/blog
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/TheKmethodGroup
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/thekmethodgroup
Selling is near and dear to me as it is responsible for transforming my life from a struggling manager at a fast food restaurant where I was told I was not worth $26,500.00 to making well over a $100K less than two years later. The fact is that regardless of your current economic status or where you live, selling something, an idea, a product or even a service, changes everything. Selling is the great equalizer because anyone can do it and what most people are not aware of is that the highest paid professionals on the planet are not doctors, lawyers or any of the so called educated professionals, they are salespeople! Furthermore, what’s even more encouraging is that if you look at the demographics of the majority of the millionaires and billionaires on our planet, what you will find is that a great majority of them are...you guessed it, salespeople!
So how do you learn to become excellent at selling? Where do you start? What books should you read and which speakers do you listen to and so on and so on? That was me and that does not have to be you anymore. Please allow me to cut through the clutter as I have spent a great deal of time and money asking and answering those questions to the point that, according to some, I actually know what I am talking about. You see, success leaves clues and if you do not use the clues like a road map, what usually happens is that you end up reinventing the wheel.
Selling is not complicated, but becoming good at it to the point of generating a meaningful income requires systems. Systems that will teach you how to build- generate your own leads; maintain – interact and communicate effectively to secure the relationships; and finally manage – leverage the use of technology to coordinate all the activities that secure your book of business! In addition to the aforementioned systems, there are two skills that must also be developed. The first is people skills - also known as Human Relationship or Interaction Skills that focuses on the specific activities involved in effective communication between two or more people. The second is technical skills that focuses on the specific activities or tasks involved in being productive as a professional salesperson such as using the phone, writing letters, negotiating correctly and leveraging the use of a computer and its pertinent software. Acquiring these two skills are necessary to execute the activities involved in the three systems.
With that being said, these three systems and the two skills will form the foundation, also known as the core competencies and is the first layer of knowledge of a professional sales person. These core competencies are non-negotiable and must come first before all other type of training can be truly effective. The biggest mistake that most people make is that they start engaging prospects before they have correctly built their foundation, and like an athlete who does not warm up before a race, they will get injured.
Technique based training programs like power negotiating or 1000 closes that are guaranteed to work are ineffective without the correct foundation. Just as learning how to negotiate before you understand people skills and telling a new salesperson they need to get referrals without them understanding what that really means or how it’s actually done is in most cases a complete waste of time.
The problem with traditional sales training that is offered in most companies is that the content that is delivered varies, and the emphasis is usually heavy on internal products and processes and very light on skills. Unfortunately, 99% of the time, there is never an emphasis on the systems and skills that I’ve just mentioned. It never ceases to amaze me how little salespeople and businesses know about managing a sales pipeline, activity tracker and how to correctly use CRM software. It’s time to get back to the basics, to insert a new and required layer of training for all selling professionals so that the businesses they represent and the families they work for have a better chance of succeeding.
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