Have you an ongoing support team?

Oh boy!  Time to walk through the door.  Hope no one stares at you... is your tie on right, what about socks - are they paired.  Is your shirt inside out, trousers ... do they have a stain... did you slop something down your shirt already [is it noticeable?]

Obviously it's the first five minutes before you start work in that new place.  You have been there before. Even now the walls look closer, the staff have large fangs and sharp wit.  The nails to draw blood are hidden with a hammer to drive said nails into the wall. GLUP.

Where I have the pleasure of working currently building, developing and training the sales team there are support networks in place before you come in the door.  No I do not mean we rush out and hug you then drag you into and pamper you.  That action would probably drive the poor nervous person running out the self same door.

The business has tentatively been expanding the avenues of income.  While these avenues are being developed, then on sold, a new client customer base is being built - a process that is on going in any business. Over the last two months as new office staff have come in they are included in decisions.  The talents and skills of both the new and older staff members are utilized.  Encouragement for others to be supportive has been ongoing. Mentoring has a new level in that now it is shown  in not only passing on knowledge, creating new networks but also expanding the staffs collective skills basis and comfort zones.  For instance the new accountant is getting use to the idea that she has the power and it is expected for her to say 'No'! to any expense and the owners must listen. having just arrived two months ago she now has nearly completed a Quick-books bookkeeping course.  This takes three days out of the week and is two hours away from the office.  So staying overnight was going to be no option.  Instead of spending up to five hours travel [and waiting time] the account has stayed at a back packers hostel.  Now there is recommendations through her network . Initially a fifty year old grandmother on staff told the twenty two year old account about the hostel accommodation where that older staff member stays when in Melbourne..

Now a sales team is being trained up through sales situations, presentations, paper work, journals, basic book keeping and so forth. While one member of staff is writing these posts as a way of ongoing training and support, others are directing the new members on which areas to go to next, showing them different aspects of what the business actually does. Further because of an asset evaluation early in the sales time new dimensions are being incorporated within this business, explored by the same sales people who brought in those skills and assets not recognizing exactly how worth while their interest, skills and talents actually were. The challenge now is ongoing.  New teams are being picked through the sales peoples networks, then developed and supported by all the staff, their families and other stakeholders. The sales people are willing to accept the responsibility,  the rights and the collective accolades of their teams efforts.

Currently the business has had to develop in the wider area with a broader marketing base due to new Australian Federal policies, which have resulted in a lack of trained personal throughout the state. Big money is else where and that is where people had gravitated too.  Concurrently the ongoing problems have caused a staff shortage all around that impacts on the overall quantity of  service.

 Previously these factors had little effect until a previous sales person and office person dabbled a little too close to industrial espionage and gossip rumour warmongering. You are aware of the old word of mouth thing where what is gossiped about states ' Where the is smoke there must be fire".

Lessons have learned by the business, the new staff and the owners. The main one being that the people who have tried to destroy not only this business, but other small ones, have yet to discover is that loyalty to others actually helps and supports many people within the community. Selfish actions do not support a team - usually the team has been destroyed before that time or those people involved have have left.  However business do hang in there. Memories are long and direct. The new people are not being encouraged to take dirty action.  Instead it is being reinforced that dirty actions minimise the energy flows developing when a great bunch of people grow and strengthening together. Why go down to the abusers level.  Join together , move on, and inclusively together, with our support the business will grow, change, strengthen and be profitable once again.

Basically people support people, and business, who support them, give them a change to grow, develop, to stand up amongst many while having a innate sense of self worth, while asking for nothing in return.

Way to Go Sales Team.

A sales team  is part of the overall business workforce.  Literally any business is in business to show a profit thus keeping the share holders happy, the employees employed, the bills paid and expenses managed. This said the employees take their professional bearings along with their attitudes lead from the businesses management.

A business that supports the environment it is in in a manner which overcomes challenges (both major and minor) will in turn lead the way for their employees and others that it interacts with greater ease,  manages to grow from adversity, then turns potentially negative events into positive ones can harvest that same flow of energy through their structure.  Effectively the benchmarks the company sets are passed on through the staff. Both the staff, other stakeholders and the business becoming more resilient, responding to change pro-actively rather than resisting any change factors.  After all where would you now be should electricity then light bulbs not have been invented?  Way back before then what about the garnishing of fire embers and the shaping of a wheel?

Business and people who develop the right attitude, actually become aware, develop an internal Locus of Control managing to cultivate optimism social support through a sense of humor. Meanwhile as the staff are encouraged to exercise , to explore their spiritual side  they are also prompted not to give up.

Given this positive atmosphere that is moving forward what hope does the sales team have but to emulate it and come up smiling.  Way to Go.

Resilience in our Sales People.

Selling and Sales People go hand in hand ... correct?  Like so many other positions stress and its associated triggers also are right there too.  So, how does a sales person have the ability that enables them to adapt, therefore deal with stressful selling situations? Add to this the external disasters that good sales people are able to turn into a profitable situation for both client, the business they represent and their own bank balance.  Yet every one, in the three way situation, feels satisfied as they hold firm to the belief of a job well done!

The trick is that the sales person has learned to adapt a "roll with the punches " attitude.  The benefit is that by adapting to adversity the minor or major stress factors and life changes have less impact.

Lets start with the smaller practical factors with sales.

• Know who you are.
• Have belief in what you are selling.
• Expect the help you ask for to be given.
• Keep a tab on the follow ups.
• Do your paper work
• Present well, be courteous, mannered and leave with grace.

Now the slightly harder ones.

• Acknowledge that when you are selling there will be many who are not buying.  Simple fact. Live with it or do what you have been taught to do about it.
• When you cold call there will be many knock backs. Acknowledge there is a roller coaster ride to sales. Know that you are supported on the bad days, give out to others on these days to. Be part of a forward moving team. Celebrate both the good and bad achievements. 
• Rebalance and move on.
• Wow! Are they having a bad hair day or what?  Do not take their bad hair day on or it will follow you and your sales team around like a bad smell.

All these things bring about emotional changes and surprises. How you deal with these ups and downs, negatives, knock backs, frustrations, what your family members are doing [ or could be doing] may have been observed during your infancy and may even carry through into your selling period.  Note that the resilience you are looking for can and should be developed with a little effort.  Resilience is not resistance. Resilience is not a matter of blocking, out but of how you hold onto the challenge, grab a duster and flick away a few fears, then get on with the job of selling.

Shared understanding

Think about it. Your sitting in on some meeting somewhere and up pops a totally irrelvant idea for that time. What do you do?  Whip out the recorder and try talking into it? Change the conversation flow becoming the unwanted centre of attention.  [Great if you are at a wedding listening to the father of the grooms speech!].
No. Y you grab a bit of something to write on [table napkin, scribble pad or even piece of skin] and scribble furiously.

Now get to the time where need to remember what it was you actually were writing about and what happens.  Your blank.

Use of multi media greatly improves shared understanding through the avenue of shared seeing. Shared seeing involves animation, videos, power point presentations, music or voice overlays that take the client directly into what you want them to experience.  Putting this multi media into action your client follow up beings to look promising.

Since you have spent time listening to your client describe what they need, or you have left them with a further thought, send direct to that client an email with an attached tailor made company's page that addresses their specific needs. On the page have preselected  targeted visual stimulation presentations that range only two minutes duration. Add a free bee, other information and a direct survey for their needs.

• Note all feed back is classed as paper work and must be treated accordingly.  Email the information to the relevant people within the business you represent.

Visual representation explains to the client  why they actually want the product you are selling.  Sending the client a link to the information gives the client the opportunity for some down time viewing. The client may even pass the link to another, or other people, for their reviewing. Effectively you are setting the sales scene by arousing the clients discomfort of dissonance.

Rather than just sending a series of disjointed bits and pieces - have a presentation prepared through Google Documents. For on going information updates refer the client through to the relevant site ie.

Free updates on - Safety and Security for You - and your staff - just hit here.

The actual line gives you something, names the something and then tells you to action it here.  Has your trigger finger been tempted to hit the here yet?

At this point you have done the following

• Followed up on what you have said you will do.
• Gained a measure of trust that you will follow though.
• Given the client breathing room or the ability to share their work load through the appropriate channels.
• Set the scene for closing the sale.
• Triggered the connection between you and the client, the staff and their family connections.
• Increased the traffic flow through to the business you represent continual data service.

Just a question here. What happens when the client sees something that easily could be a before and after shot of similar problems they either are having, have experiences with or may be in fear of having.

Yes you have included a tailor made survey in the document you have sent have you not?

*

Courtesy, manners and politeness.

Little things that speak volumes. Once you are in sales your whole scope of activities are under review on and off the job. Any weakness within these will catch you unaware.  Your client will know even on a subconscious level that there was a weakness there.