Introduce the subject of consultative selling to Bob Gerrard and you might get a bit more than you expected. To establish a foundation for a discussion on the subject with the Mooresville, North Carolina, independent manufacturers’ rep, a definition of the practice is offered: “Personal selling in which a salesperson plays the role of a consultant. He or she first assists the buyer in identifying his or her needs, and then suggesting products that satisfy those needs.”

Gerrard, who with his son, Dave, represents leading manufacturers of dry bulk material handling systems and equipment for Gerrard & Associates, maintains that “The words consultative selling are a bit of an oxymoron. I know what’s being suggested by the term, but that’s not how the real world is. When things change and I’m paid for my time and not for selling equipment, then it might fit — but certainly not now.”

To further illustrate his point, he explains that “If either I or Dave approach a customer and communicate that we’re not really here to sell something, but rather to provide our approach to solving your problem, the chances are no one would believe us. My perspective is that people who use that term are trying to set themselves apart so they’re about 180 degrees away from being the typical pushy salesman.”

Dave Gerrard seconds his father’s view when he says, “Not that we don’t practice this discipline, but I’d prefer the term solutions selling. I say that based on the fact that concerning any principal we work with, a large part of the selling comes from being a consultant. Many of the lines we work with include a technology that customers either don’t understand or aren’t necessarily aware of. As a result, we’d maintain that one of the best sales techniques is to be there on the front end to learn all about their business and be able to provide solutions to their problems.”

Seminars Make the Connection

Bob Gerrard adds, “Sure, we’re doing some form of consultative or solutions selling when we’re selling our firm. But we’re quick to put on our regular sales hat when it comes time to do the product selling.” He continues that perhaps one of the best examples of what he’s describing occurs when the agency conducts one of its series of Design/Technology Seminars for Professional Engineering Development (DTS).

The seminars are a collection of PowerPoint presentations described in the agency’s “syllabus” as “. . . in-house training courses. . . intended to assist engineering personnel in continuing professional development with topics pertaining to job responsibilities by increasing awareness of unique or patented designs or technologies in the bulk material handling and processing fields.”

In general, the subject matter covered in the sessions includes “. . . unique or patented designs or technologies in the bulk material handling and processing fields.” The seminars are jointly created by Gerrard & Associates and its manufacturers “for whom we can identify equipment or systems that meet the above description. Typically, we use Internet meetings with each manufacturer to go through existing information or PowerPoints they may have in order to create a presentation with an educational rather than a sales slant.”

The stated goals for conducting the seminars are to:

• Establish credibility — As “‘educators,’ both Gerrard & Associates and our principals are seen more as ‘consultants’ than salesmen, as a resource for information rather than a sales pitch, which makes engineers more comfortable, willing to deal with us, and attentive to the things we promote.”

• Achieve rapid account penetration — “Whether they are conducted as a ‘lunch ‘n’ learn’ or a conference room presentation, there’s no waiting for us to meet everyone we need to know. Each DTS brings together a large number of people, with mutual interest in the fields involving our manufacturers and that we need to be seeing. Attendance is usually significant (15–20 for larger firms).”

• Realize rapid account development — “Returning for another DTS every month, every other month, or even quarterly, the same people involved in the same discipline tend to attend, developing rapid familiarity with Gerrard and our principals in a very short period of time.”

• Provide an ongoing process — “By the time we have run through the entire syllabus at a given customer location, new people will have come on board and it will be time to start all over again. In addition, there will always be new information in each DTS.”

Customer Critiques

Does this approach work? Bob and Dave Gerrard both answer in the affirmative, but perhaps more important is what some of their customers have said. Typical of customer reactions to a DTS program are the following:

• “All comments concerning the training for pneumatic conveying and storage of materials were positive. This training gave everyone a better insight on the importance of knowing the handling characteristics of the material that you are either conveying or storing. It became clear that all limestones, coal, or whatever, are not equal when it comes to material handling characteristics. These two DTS seminars (‘Pneumatic Conveying’ and ‘Storage of Materials in Silos’) were very informative and we look forward to more of these training seminars in the future.”

• “I have talked with several of the attendees of the ‘3 Phases of Pneumatic Conveying (Power)’. The responses I received from them were extremely positive. Several mentioned that they felt this was one of the best presentations they have been to since it was technical in nature and not just a sales pitch. They were also impressed by your depth of knowledge on pneumatic conveying.”

• “Thanks for your presentation concerning the different type of pneumatic conveying systems and how we as engineers need to develop the scopes and basis of design for each. The information you provided will aid us in narrowing down the system and requirements for the system when the need arises.”

More to the point, Bob Gerrard notes that his records indicate that from the 10 DTS sessions already conducted by the agency, qualified leads for 15 projects in the range of $19,000 to $3.4 million have been generated.

If on one level the positive comments from prospective or existing customers attest to the value of this approach to selling, Bob Gerrard adds that even the most cursory examination of the number of leads and sales opportunities that have grown out of these sessions offer the real proof that this approach works.

Experience and Relationships Count

But both Bob and Dave Gerrard maintain that their efforts in this area would never work without the experience and more than three decades of working in the territory of which Gerrard & Associates can boast. Gerrard & Associates opened its doors in 1973. According to Dave Gerrard, “Bob has been dealing with customers and conducting these seminars for so long now that he understands the technology perhaps even better than some of the customers. For instance, a customer can have a firm grip on the traditional way that a production process has been conducted. He might look at an ash dump system that has been run the same way since Methuselah was a child. But with Bob’s experience and expertise, he can educate them to an alternative method that might be much better for them. Our goal was and always has been to make our customers as competitive as they can be. After they’ve heard what we’ve had to say, they’ll come back to us as a result of how we’ve communicated with them.”

There’s More than
Products and Service

Bob Gerrard admits that this wasn’t always his approach and he’s arrived at where he is today probably as the result of a two-step epiphany. “Looking back I’d say that my orientation has always been product and service directed. In retrospect, I look back to an article Agency Sales magazine wrote years ago that emphasized how important it was to be there to assist customers and do all that was possible to learn about their needs. That’s an entirely different approach than just trying to sell a pump to the customer.”

A second point was driven home to him when his son Dave joined the agency a couple of years ago. “If I was always product and service directed, then Dave brought a relationship orientation to the agency. He’s gifted with a unique talent to establish and develop strong relationships. As a result, customers look to him for solutions to their problems. Thankfully I recognized that strength in him early on and it’s been great for the agency.”

Continuing on the subject of relationship building, Bob Gerrard notes that “Another important ingredient for successful solutions selling is having all the horses to get the job done. Something that we were missing was the capability to install products. Dave established a great relationship with an individual who can engineer and install products for our customers. That’s been a real asset for our organization.”

Dave Gerrard agrees that having all the horses at the ready to better serve customers is critical to the agency’s success. He makes the point that “We regularly deal with a wide variety of people — everyone from the manager of engineering at major U.S. companies to the head of maintenance at a feed mill — and all points in between. I’ve had more than one customer express surprise at our approach when we put projects together with them. They’re not used to a rep who can come in and work on getting all their budget numbers together, pick out the equipment and then come back with our partner to get the installation done.”

Neither man can point to any negatives in their approach to serving customers. “That’s not to say we always get the order,” relates Dave Gerrard. “On occasions when we may not be successful, all is not lost, however. An important part of the relationships that we’ve built is that when we may not get a specific order, the customer realizes it’s important to keep you in the mix and direct other applications your way. They appreciate the time and effort you’ve put in on the job and want to give you business whenever they can.”

It would appear that for Gerrard & Associates no matter how consultative selling is defined or whether it is an oxymoron, it’s the practice of the art that really counts. And for this agency, their manufacturers and customers, the art is being practiced quite well.