Category Archives: Feature

Salespeople and Motivation in Challenging Times

One of my ezine subscribers recently sent me this question: “I really struggle with the highs and lows of field sales. Most days I feel like the weight of the world is on my shoulders. In this economy, especially, it’s difficult to stay positive. Any suggestions?”

This is one of those rarely voiced issues that every salesperson must confront sooner or later. Sales is an emotional roller coaster, and unless you figure out how to manage those emotions and keep yourself motivated, you’ll have a difficult time succeeding.

I can empathize with the anxiety felt by the reader. It’s easy … Read the rest

Pricing Rules to Close More Deals

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Just because the customer asks for your price doesn’t mean you have to deliver it right then and there.

In fact, there are a few reasons why you definitely shouldn’t lead with the price.

I want to talk to you about seven rules for how to present your price so that you’re not shot down from the get-go, or challenged by objections either.

1. Do Your Due Diligence

You never put a price out in front of a customer until you have first understood three things:

  • One, what’s the critical need they’re trying to address? Is it a pain, is
… Read the rest

Life Is a Struggle

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Life is made up of a series of struggles.

We struggle to find ourselves and are envious of those it seems to have come so naturally to. We struggle through school. We struggle to find a career or job. We struggle to find a partner to live life with or struggle through life together with a partner. We struggle with raising children and maintaining a career. We struggle with an empty nest after the struggle of parenting. We struggle with aging parents. We struggle with retirement. We struggle to make sense of it all at every stage in life. We … Read the rest

Creating Professional Salespeople for Your Agency

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Do you own a multi-salesperson rep firm? When was the last time you evaluated the members of your sales team? Rate each of the following qualities on a 1-10 scale with 10 being best possible.

If your team overall doesn’t rate at least eight, you have trouble. If any one individual doesn’t rate eight you have a problem.

It is simply not smart to run an independent rep agency with a sales force that is less than 80 percent on the 100-point scale. You know the only thing you have to sell is the quality of your sales team.

  • Planning
… Read the rest

Avoid Sales Slumps

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No matter the industry or organization, they all seem to have a historically slow time of year, the summer and holidays are usually the biggest. In addition, changes in the economy, the market or industry, pandemics, and supply‑chain issues can also lead to slow sales. That said, there are some things you can do about it. You don’t have to simply accept your fate as most companies and salespeople do.

Some Things to Consider Doing During “Down” Times

Be a contrarian. The average salesperson cuts calls and activity by 37 percent when there’s a hiccup in the economy or market. … Read the rest

Keeping It in the Family

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Mark Finder’s origins as a rep in the fastener business are probably similar to those of many other reps in other industries. His father opened the B. Finder Associates, Inc., agency after sitting on the manufacturer’s side of the desk for more than two decades. Once his father opened the agency, headquartered in Deerfield, Illinois, Finder, as so many other “sons of the owner,” gravitated to the business.

B. Finder Associates, Inc., founded in 1969, has thrived and prospered owing mainly to well-established relationships with principals and customers. According to Finder, “My father started in the fastener business in 1946, … Read the rest

Taking a Chance

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It’s tempting to rely on well-known quotes and clever sayings to best describe what one rep is currently going through.

For instance, consider:
“We must either find a way or make one.”
— Hannibal, Carthaginian general and statesman

Or, how about:
“Ain’t no chance if you don’t take it.”
— Guy Clark, American songwriter and folk singer

And finally:
“If someone gives you lemons, make lemonade.”
— Anonymous, unless someone wants to step forward and claim credit

To a certain extent they all fit the path one rep is taking when it comes to her efforts to bring what she … Read the rest

Winning and Losing

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Winning is outperforming the competition or overcoming the desire to quit. Every person wants to quit at some point. Humans are predisposed to quitting thanks to homeostasis because the exertion or stress we incur when competing takes us out of our equilibrium (homeostasis). The cells of the human body are always focused on balance. Stressors take us out of balance. The first step to winning is overcoming a physiological predisposition to pursue the path of least resistance.

Some people have no trouble overcoming physiological resistance, while others will only act out of desperation. Key number one to winning is your … Read the rest

Reasons Why I Love Sales More Than Ever

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I’ve been in sales for more than 30 years and I love it now more than ever.

That definitely wasn’t my attitude when I started out. So why do I love it so much, and now even more than before?

Let me walk you through 10 things I love about sales — which ones resonate with you?

1. Helping People Achieve Things

My definition of sales is helping others see and achieve what they didn’t think was possible. That’s what I love about sales. I get to help others make the impossible possible. And I get to do that every … Read the rest

Social Discomfort and Networking

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On your way to a networking event, have you ever worried, “What if I don’t know anyone?”

While it might make you uncomfortable, not knowing anyone forces you to use your networking skills. Too many people go to a function and sit in the corner with their friends, co-workers, spouse, whoever. That’s a waste of time. If you’re going to do that, just go to a restaurant.

If you find networking a little overwhelming, you’re not alone. Many professionals who are good at networking have had to work hard to make it look that way. Sure, some people are naturally … Read the rest

Are You Focusing Enough on Your Top Salespeople?

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I’ve always reveled in the energy I felt out on the sales floor when I worked corporate. It always felt as though we were constantly training for the next big game, you know? But, just as with football, not all players on your team will be created equal. We’ve spoken about what to do about employees with bad performances, it’s now time we focus on your first string, your top salespeople. Why? Well, they’re the ones that win the games, they’re your Tom Brady, Jerry Rice. You need the best of the best to inspire and lead your team to … Read the rest

Mistakes Salespeople Make — Part III

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Over the decades that I’ve been involved in sales, I’ve worked with tens of thousands of salespeople. Certain negative tendencies — mistakes that salespeople make — keep surfacing. Here’s numbers four and five, not necessarily in order of priority. See to what degree you (or your sales force) may be guilty of them.

#4 Mistake: Poor Questioning

This is a variation of the third mistake, contentment with the superficial. I am absolutely astonished at the lack of thoughtfulness that I often see on the part of salespeople. Some use questions like sledgehammers, splintering the relationship and bruising the sensibility of … Read the rest

How to Hire Sales Reps

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Three times in the past two weeks, prospects or clients have asked me about hiring salespeople; so, here are my tips.

Keys to Hiring Sales Reps

Tip #1: Start with people skills.

If someone lacks people skills, they will never be able to sell effectively.

Tip #2: Look for self-esteem, self-confidence, work ethic, integrity, and the right attitude.

After people skills, these are the key character traits. These can’t be trained; people have them or they don’t. You have to look for these and test for them in your hiring process.

Tip #3: Be wary of unemployed salespeople.

Unless someone’s … Read the rest

Reviewing Employee Performance

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If you are in a managerial position, one of the most important tasks you have is to coach your employees. You must do whatever is necessary to ensure that you have a team made up of players who have the skills, training and motivation to be the best they can be.

An important part of coaching includes reviewing your employees’ performance. In order to do this, you must know what your employees are doing and how well they are performing. We all need benchmarks, personally and professionally. It’s like a road map: You are here — and you want to … Read the rest

After Your Principal Is Purchased — What Now?

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An independent manufacturers’ rep is in the midst of enjoying years of a positive relationship with a principal. The tenure between the two companies is something they both boast about. Mutual expectations have historically been agreed upon and realized and sales continue on an upward path.

Then, one day the principal is bought out by another manufacturer, or a venture capitalist enters the scene with its own plans for the future. What follows are the dreaded words: “I don’t expect to make any changes to our current relationships.” Shortly thereafter that rep — and very probably the entire independent rep … Read the rest

Is This the Future for Many Outside Salespeople?

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Don’t employ a kneejerk reaction by labeling John Ahlering as a pessimist when he begins to detail some of the many challenges that independent manufacturers’ reps face today. Instead, give him the benefit of the doubt that he is in fact a realist and one who embraces what MANA and Agency Sales magazine have long espoused when it comes to the importance of reps providing value to their principals and customers.

Looking back over a more than 22-year rep career, Ahlering, founder and president of Coastal Technology Group, LLC, is the first to admit the rep-profession landscape has changed considerably. … Read the rest

The Courage to Lead Means the Courage to Manage!

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Learning to build an agency on hard-edged demands is the road to success. Each salesperson who works for a rep agency should be managed against a very specific set of standards.

Planning

The first requirement that should be made a part of the salesperson’s responsibility and work plan is detailed planning for the territory, each significant customer, and each significant line.

One of the problems salespeople encounter is managing their time. Time and territory management go hand in hand.

  • Where does a salesperson need to be? Of course, it depends on the business situation, but it also depends on the
… Read the rest

True or False? Protecting Down Is Failed Leadership

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I was recently reviewing some old client files and stumbled across a case where a senior leader in the middle was not coaching down to his management team.

You see my client, let’s call him Tom, was focused on protecting down. Meaning, he didn’t want to break the status quo by following the recommended changes made by the head of the company to reorganize his team.

Eventually, Tom removed his kid gloves, stopped protecting down and instead coached down. Things turned around and his story took a different route. Today, I want us to play a little game about the … Read the rest

How to Stand Out in Business and Sales

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These days it’s extremely easy to stand out in business and sales. Work ethic, sales skills, follow‑up, and attention to detail are all at historic lows in many sales forces.

Here are some ideas that will help you stand out from all salespeople, even the best. Some of these are tips for standing out among other salespeople from a client perspective, others are tips for standing out from a peer perspective. Many of these will make the average salesperson groan because they require next-level commitment and hard work. The top salespeople on the other hand will love these, and probably … Read the rest

How to Create More Time for Selling

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Would you like to have more time to be prospecting and selling?

Perhaps a better, albeit obvious, question: Would more time for selling make you more money? (Of course it would!)

I want to help you have more time for what really generates money for you: selling.

Having a great process but not enough time to execute it properly is not a recipe for success. It’s a recipe for frustration.

I challenge you to read these five time-management tips, and then implement them this week.

1. Do Not Multitask

I’m going to pop the bubble right now.

When you multitask, … Read the rest

Mistakes Salespeople Make — Part II

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Over the decades that I’ve been involved in sales, I’ve worked with tens of thousands of salespeople. Certain negative tendencies — mistakes that salespeople make — keep surfacing. Here’s numbers two and three, not necessarily in order of priority. See to what degree you (or your sales force) may be guilty of them.

#2 Mistake: Lack of Planning

The typical field salesperson has, as a necessary and integral part of his or her personality, an inclination toward action. We like to be busy — driving here and there, talking on our cell phones, putting deals together, solving customers’ problems — … Read the rest

Drive Your Business by Empowering Your Employees

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Empowerment is a powerful tool that will drive your business. It is also the single most complicated skill to get employees to use. When employees are empowered, they have the authority to make decisions — to bend and break the rules — on the spot to take care of a customer.

Most executives and managers, however, are afraid to empower their employees. They don’t trust employees — and they don’t trust customers. They think employees will “give away the store,” and they think customers will take advantage of employees who are empowered.

Most employees are also afraid of empowerment. They … Read the rest

Challenges of the Single-Person Agency

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Meeting the challenges of seeing customers in person and networking with principals and customers were just a couple of the dilemmas detailed by reps participating in a MANA special interest group teleconference for single‑person agencies.

Over a three-day period, MANA members shared their experiences as they navigate a post-Covid selling world where getting in front of customers is more challenging than it’s ever been before.

Perhaps the situation that many single-person agencies find themselves in today was best described by one rep who boasts a long tenure in the profession. “I’ve been a rep since I was in diapers in … Read the rest

Taking a Detour Back Home

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Just as so many others who grew up in and around a family‑owned independent rep business, Jeffrey Blumenauer ultimately settled into a rep career.

Before following that path, however, he took a serious detour which has provided substantial benefits for himself and for the Blumenauer Corporation, located in Ocoee, Florida. “I grew up in the business,” explains Blumenauer, the third generation of his family’s company. “My time growing up was spent sweeping in the warehouse and in the office stuffing envelopes with invoices. I can remember meeting with principals as a kid and going on sales calls across Florida with … Read the rest

The Four Biggest Enemies of Sales Success and What to Do

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Sales success simply boils down to talking to enough of the right people the right way. The right people are people who have a need or desire for what you have, they have the ability to make a decision on what you have, and they have the means to invest in what you have. Speaking to them the right way refers to saying the right things all the way through the sales process from getting and keeping their attention on the first call all the way through closing the sale.

All of that said, here are four major roadblocks that … Read the rest

Another Landmine in the Rep’s Path

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Major problems in your business come from many “little things.”

Avoiding disaster should be a primary task of every member of the rep company team. You have all worked very hard to build a successful agency and position that agency with very good principals. Unfortunately, the world of the independent rep business is full of landmines that cause temporary or permanent damage to your business.

To follow is a landmine for you to think about as you are planning the operation and functioning of your agency.

Major Changes in Agency Management

Major changes in agency management must be communicated effectively … Read the rest

#1 Mistake Salespeople Make — Strategy Instead of Tactics

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Over the decades that I’ve been involved in sales, I’ve worked with tens of thousands of salespeople. Certain negative tendencies — mistakes that salespeople make — keep surfacing. Here’s number one of my top five, not necessarily in order of priority. See to what degree you (or your sales force) may be guilty of it.

Overconcern With Strategy Instead of Tactics

Gather a group of salespeople together around a coffee maker and listen to the conversation. After the obligatory complaints about all types of things, the conversation inevitably drifts to questions of strategy.

How do I accomplish this in that … Read the rest

Be Wary of the RFP Trap

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Whenever you have a lot of disruption in the world, it usually ends up disrupting your business and your job too. Over the past couple of years, we’ve had the pandemic, inflation, supply chain issues, and now a major war in Europe.

During periods of tumult, you’re likely to see some buyers and sellers behaving differently. As an example, I’ve had a few clients tell me that they’ve had more clients asking them to answer Requests for Proposals (RFPs) lately.

Those who know me well know I am not a fan of RFPs. I rarely respond to them. Clients who … Read the rest

A Walking Nightmare: When Bosses Practice Selective Accountability

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The other day I was catching up with one of my freelancers who seemed on the down and outs. After getting her to talk, she explained that in one of her other jobs, the boss was not holding the entire team accountable.

It was well known, even within their HR, that the boss heavily practiced selective accountability; they were partial to only one person on the team. Of course, it just so happened to be the smallest contributor to the workload and the least technically qualified or experienced. This meant that their work was frequently reallocated to other persons with … Read the rest

Six Ways Great Salespeople Master Their Time

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Who is in charge during your day, you or time?

As a sales professional, your time is valuable. And wasted time is wasted money.

Let’s explore six time management skills that could propel you to the top.

1. Be Ruthless

Top performers master their time. You see there’s two ways to look at the day. You can either control the day or the day can control you. Top performers control the day. They do this by being relentless with how they use their time. They are ruthless in terms of scheduling and following a process. This way, there is no … Read the rest