Category Archives: Feature

Smile — A First Impression Can Change Everything

By

A genuine smile can change everything — for the customer, your colleagues, and yourself. It’s powerful and critical to providing superior customer service.

Why is a smile so important? Because it fosters a positive attitude and forms a good first impression. It sets the stage for everything that follows, and it costs nothing. A smile invites people in. It says, “I like you. I care about you as a person. I value you. I care about your needs. I’m ready to help.”

A smile helps you build a positive outlook and attitude that is contagious. When you have a positive … Read the rest

Rep Strives to Empower Entrepreneurs

By

In 2019, when Jo-Anne Hernandez opened the doors to her agency, Business Lazo, little did she know she was going to run headfirst into Covid-19 and the problems and challenges that accompanied the pandemic. However, armed with the entrepreneurial zeal that is mandatory for reps, she’s successfully come out the other end to today head the Princeton, Massachusetts-based agency.

Business Lazo, LLC, is a sales, consulting and marketing company. The agency is a certified minority- and women-owned business with more than three decades of sales, consulting and marketing experience. According to Hernandez, “Our agency’s expertise spans from startups to Fortune … Read the rest

Sales Is What We Sell

By

An outsourced sales force works if you make it work.

There is only one product that a rep sells — sales!

With a focus on this reality, what can you do to make your rep sales team better?

Planning is the first step to making a rep firm better. There needs to be a plan for every line you represent. How can you work with your manufacturers to plan your work for that manufacturer in your territory?

How strong is the marketing plan for each manufacturer? What can you add to that plan to position that line to get an … Read the rest

Attitudes for Success: Be Optimistic — Maintain a Positive Outlook on Life

By

When faced with challenges are you more likely to see the glass as “half full” or as “half empty”? What does this mean if you are operating an independent manufacturers’ representative business?

One of the first manufacturers I represented when I started my rep agency in 1975 was a European manufacturer of PVC, single-ply roofing membrane. This manufacturer was one of the first single-ply membrane manufacturers to gain a foothold in the U.S. market. For 100 years commercial roofing subcontractors installed only built-up asphalt or coal tar pitch roofing systems. Single-ply roofing material was beginning to shake the roofing industry … Read the rest

Fully Present All the Time

By

As I sat by myself at a restaurant working on my laptop, I kept overhearing the people at the table next to me. From time to time, they would say something that caught my attention, and I’d find myself eavesdropping a bit. (When you’re on the road by yourself you take whatever entertainment you can get).

One of them complained that her husband was traveling for work so much that it felt like he was never around. Then she said something particularly interesting: “But at least when he’s here, he does a good job of being fully present.”

“Fully present.”… Read the rest

Motivating the Sales Team

By

Recently I was speaking with a vice president of sales who explained he was having trouble motivating his salespeople. “They’re just not putting the work in. They’re doing the bare minimum and I can’t seem to do anything to get them going.”

First, when hiring salespeople, you want to hire people who are self-motivated. Just as you can’t teach honesty, integrity, and other key character traits, you can’t teach motivation and you can’t motivate anyone. That said, here are a few ideas to nudge them in the right direction and maybe even motivate them a little.

Keep in mind that … Read the rest

Dealing With Rejection in Sales

By

Q: Here’s an issue that I confront with my salespeople all the time. They are afraid to press for the next step, because they don’t want to experience the rejection of hearing a “no.” So, they try to keep the sale alive by not asking for resolution. This keeps them involved with customers who aren’t interested and prevents them from moving on. Any thoughts?

A: Great question. There are two issues here. First, dealing with the sense of rejection that very often comes with hearing a “no,” and second, pushing for a resolution so that you don’t waste time with … Read the rest

How to Take Charge of Your Own Prospecting Training

By

I’ve never been trained how to prospect.

While it’s easy to play the blame game, your ability to improve your skills is in your hands. All it takes is a little initiative.

The truth is, you can stay where you are — average — and mope. Or you can take charge of your career path, invest in yourself, and become a top performer.

Let me share with you six things that you can do right now to overcome any lack of prospecting training.

1. Don’t blame your boss, you are in control.

Hey, I prospect, but my company’s never trained … Read the rest

Three Hurricanes Show the Path to More Effective Selling

By

Three of last year’s hurricanes took unusual paths for hurricanes.

  • Hurricane Lee roared into Nova Scotia, becoming the first such storm to do so since 2003, although at the time it made landfall, Lee had been downgraded to a post-tropical cyclone.
  • Earlier last summer, hurricane Hillary became the first tropical storm to make landfall in Southern California.
  • And in late August, hurricane Idalia made landfall in the Big Bend area of Northwest Florida, becoming the first major hurricane to ever pass through that area.

With their unusual paths, the three hurricanes did not cause as much damage as was feared. … Read the rest

Like Father, Like Daughters

By

Anyone doubting the admonition that “history repeats itself” should pay close attention to the history of the William Baker Company.

More than 40 years ago, Jim Baker, who heads the six-person Indianapolis, Indiana, rep firm, recalls he was at a point in his professional life when he was anticipating a course change. Armed with little knowledge about what his father, Bill, did for a living, he raised the prospect of a change during dinner with his parents one night. His father, who had opened the agency in 1972, floated the idea of the younger Baker joining the rep firm. Ultimately, … Read the rest

Reps Detail Challenges

By

The majority of reps relish the opportunities presented to them by being their own boss. With that appreciation for independence, however, comes the realization that there are many challenges that accompany being an independent manufacturers’ rep.

Several of those challenges were emphasized in the course of a MANAchat that was conducted over the course of three days earlier this year devoted to a discussion of what reps like least about their jobs. High on the list of challenges facing reps were:

Dealing with principals who don’t appreciate what the rep does for them — “I love what I do for … Read the rest

Competing for a Good New Line

By

When opportunity knocks how will you respond?

Is your agency in a position to compete effectively when good lines are available? To effectively compete in a “shootout,” your agency needs to be ready and rehearsed months in advance of any chance to go after a good line.

The business of getting a rep agency ready for live time is not complex, but it requires a very disciplined approach.

Your Profile

Is your company profile an effective working tool to provide a significant edge?

The profile must be totally professional.

First, the graphics presentation. Does your profile look as good or … Read the rest

The Second Sales Success Factor

By

A couple of months ago, my article was centered around the number‑one sales success factor: hard work. This month I’ll discuss the second most important sales success factor: self-discipline.

Self-discipline is important because it ensures that you do the hard work every day whether you feel like it or not, because there will be days when you don’t feel like it. One of the most difficult paths a salesperson maneuvers is that of staying motivated throughout the day. The amount of rejection a salesperson faces, along with the other ups and downs of the job, coupled with natural physical cycles … Read the rest

How Not to Plan Your Company’s Future: Common Mistakes When Identifying Customer Needs

By

When managers plan their business strategies, common sense dictates that these game plans should be in line with customer needs. The first step in planning is therefore to identify customer preferences.

Unfortunately, most conventional approaches to determining customer needs are flawed. Here are five of the most common methods used to gather customer opinions along with their drawbacks. Keep these often-made mistakes in mind when planning your business strategy.

Mistake #1 — Counting Cash

One way to find out what customers think — indirectly at least — is to look at revenues, the assumption being that if revenues are increasing … Read the rest

Prospecting or Closing: Which is Harder?

By

A colleague and I talked about the greatest value that a sales professional brings to a company. Is it the ability to prospect for new clients, or is it the ability to close a deal?

Both are extremely important, and neither is terribly easy. That’s why we typically don’t put limits on the income a sales professional can make. We want to incentivize them to keep working hard on a difficult-but-crucial activity that truly is the lifeblood of companies.

We came to the conclusion that, while closing deals is ultimately the most valuable thing we do, prospecting is more difficult. … Read the rest

Help! I Hate Cold Outreach and “Bad” Leads!

By

Do you have a strong discomfort with cold outreach?

Or much worse — do you avoid the phone as a prospecting tool altogether?

I’ve got six strategies to warm up any cold call and help you get over this big obstacle to prospecting.

1. If you have the ability to help someone, it’s your responsibility to reach out to them.

This is a home run play if you have the ability to help someone.

If I had a problem and you could help me with it, I would want you to talk to me. If you didn’t, I’d be upset … Read the rest

MANA Recognizes Members’ Milestone Anniversary Dates

Each year MANA recognizes members who are celebrating special anniversaries of their MANA memberships. In this issue we recognize members who are celebrating 75, 70, 65, 60, 55, 50, 45, 40, 35, 30 or 25 years of MANA membership.

MANA thanks and congratulates these members for their long-term support and commitment to MANA and our industry.

We also thank those long-term members whose membership anniversaries are not among the years listed in this issue. Your company name was either published within the past three years or will be published within the next two.

Representative Members
75 Years

Tim Gahan
Henry … Read the rest

Finding Warmth in the Southwest

By

It was a desire to get out of the wet and cold of Oregon more than 20 years ago that led John Armstrong to make a move to Arizona and ultimately to open his own rep agency.

According to Armstrong, “Since he got out of the Navy in World War II, my dad was a plumber. He also was an apprenticeship instructor for many years. Following in his footsteps, I completed the plumbing apprenticeship program in 1991. It was at that time that I thought to myself ‘This is not a bad gig.’ I turned out of the apprenticeship program … Read the rest

MANAchats Tackle International and Single-Person Rep Firm Concerns

By

Business concerns specific to reps that work in an international arena and problems encountered by single-person rep firms were the subjects of two MANAchats conducted earlier this year.

“Look for the low-hanging fruit and be quick to build relationships.” That was just some of the advice that developed in a MANAchat devoted to the subject of reps — the majority of whom represented U.S. manufacturers internationally — working in an international arena.

Addressing the subject of low-hanging fruit, one rep explained, “For me, the Middle East represents the best low-hanging fruit. They have the most money and have an even … Read the rest

How to Be the Top Sales Rep in Your Industry

By

Recently someone asked me how they can become the absolute best salesperson possible. This question caused me to go back and look at my 35-year sales journey in which I became a number-one sales rep in three industries during my sales career and number one in two more during my sales training career when I had to prove to two eventual clients my ideas would work in their industries too by outselling all their sales reps.

The plan below takes into account everything I’ve learned about what it takes to be number one in sales anywhere in any industry. It … Read the rest

Steps to an Effective Sales Process

By

All too often, salespeople are directed by the urgencies of the moment: A lead pops up, a customer calls with a problem or some paperwork to which you need to attend. They find themselves busily pursuing an agenda created by other people. They are busy, but too often with the wrong things.

The best salespeople, however, understand that sales happen as a result of methodically managing people through certain well-defined steps in a sales process. They have refined that process to the specifics of their selling situation, reflecting the uniqueness of their customers and their offerings, while at the same … Read the rest

How to Write Prospecting Messages

By

You’re in for a treat. I periodically dissect real-life prospecting messages sent by real sales reps. Today is one of those days!

Those who know me know I keep a file of bad prospecting emails. It’s one of my nerdy hobbies. In fact, I could probably create my own Smithsonian exhibit of poorly executed sales emails.

What qualifies a message as a bad prospecting email?

  1. Talking about features and benefits.
  2. Sales reps focusing on what’s valuable to them rather than what’s valuable to the prospect.
  3. Wasting the prospects’ time.

Today, we look at a prospecting email one of my friends … Read the rest

How to Prospect in a New Industry

By

You’ve been given a new territory, now it’s time to find a way to get business there. Let’s go through 10 steps to be successful prospecting in a new industry.

1. Know Your Value

What’s the solution you bring to your customers? We don’t sell a product/service, we sell an outcome.

2. What’s the Problem You’re Solving?

The value you bring is different from the problem. If the value is the solution, then the problem is, why do your customers need this? What’s the problem they’re trying to solve?

3. Am I Converting or Educating?

Convert means they’re currently buying … Read the rest

Overcoming Obstacles in Sales: Strategies for Success

By

Sales, an integral part of any business, can often seem like a field filled with numerous obstacles.

Every sales professional, regardless of industry or experience level, is bound to face challenges that impede their success. However, the ability to overcome these obstacles can set apart successful sales professionals from those who merely survive. My goal in this article is to focus on exploring various strategies to overcome common obstacles in sales.

Lack of Customer Interest

The most common issue sales professionals face is the lack of customer interest. Customers might not realize they need your product or service, or they … Read the rest

Keys for Success Selling Products to Architects and Engineers

By

What defines success for a manufacturer’s product representative who is selling to architects and engineers? Success is when a product representative is accepted as a trusted consultant and his manufacturer’s products are included in the specification as the standard of design.

Architects and their consulting engineers are important members of the team that is hired by a building owner to complete a project to meet a specific set of needs. Although architects do not write purchase orders, manufacturers of construction products must call on them to be sure their products are included in the building specifications. Here are key concepts … Read the rest

Following a Path From Banking to “Repdom”

By

A number of independent rep agency owners can point to having started their careers on the manufacturing side of the desk. At the same time, however, over the years Agency Sales magazine has profiled reps who can point to a variety of other career beginnings. Included in those are law enforcement, teaching, and even former professional athletes (golf, baseball, basketball).

Add to that list the career path — commercial banking — traveled by Mike O’Malley.

According to O’Malley, president of Asian Medical, Inc., “I was a commercial banker for more than 10 years lending money to small- to medium-sized enterprises … Read the rest

MANAchats Tackle Contracts and Shared Fees

By

The changing landscape of contracts between reps and manufacturers and the growth of shared territorial development fees were linked earlier this year in two MANAchats.

In one chat devoted to the contracts that reps sign with their principals, members of A League of Their Own (ALOTO), MANA’s Special Interest Group for women, discussed and dissected their experiences when it comes to negotiating and living with contracts. A subsequent chat was devoted to the existence and use of retainers or monthly fees paid by manufacturers to reps when pioneering work is called for.

In the first instance, one rep stressed the … Read the rest

Leaders Can Turn Employees Into Problem Solvers

By

The best leader is one who coaches their employees to find resolutions. As an executive coach, I’ve worked with numerous businesses and one thing remains true — the leaders who stymied their staff from being problem-solvers cannot create a sustainable business.

The ability to problem-solve is no joke, it’s one of the first things we parents and guardians set out to teach our young ones. Why? We want them to be able to successfully tackle every obstacle they come across. The same applies in the workplace because learning never, ever stops. An accountable, resolution-focused employee has the power to maintain … Read the rest

Why Less Work Is the Way to Sales Success

By

The above title, “Why Less Work Is the Way,” showed up in my email box from a sales speaker and trainer in another attempt to make a ton of money with an online course. I see this far too often. Another example of telling salespeople what they want to hear instead of what they need to hear. The average salesperson is desperate to significantly increase sales while at the same time avoiding calling on strangers and facing rejection. Look, unless you have tens of thousands of dollars to spend on online advertising, or you can afford to hire a bunch … Read the rest

Articles Boost Your Name Recognition

By

If you’re looking for a way to build your name and personal brand awareness, you might consider media exposure (getting quoted in periodicals, websites, talk shows, and podcasts). Such exposure can help attract prospects or make it so they have heard of you when you reach out to them.

However, it’s awfully difficult to earn media quotes. That’s why some sales pros are blogging and/or submitting articles. There are countless media outlets — both online and traditional — and many of them depend on outside writers to supply the content.

The writer Robert Benchley once said, “The freelance writer is … Read the rest