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Harvey Mackay
Column
For the week
of December 6, 2010
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The Golden Rule
of Selling
After many decades of being
a business owner and salesman, I have never, ever changed my
Golden Rule of Selling: Know Your Customer.
Customers are the reason we
open our doors every day, and keep the machines humming all night
long. Customers determine what we eat, where we live, whether
we stay in business. We can keep our factories and offices going
until we run out of money, but unless we have customers to sell
to, we have no purpose.
Economic times like we are experiencing
right now challenge those selling even the most essential products.
That's why knowing your customer positions you to retain business
that may otherwise be subject to underbidding. A customer could
decide that your product may no longer be necessary.
Anyone can research information
on a company. A Google search usually produces more facts than
you'll actually need. But the company isn't your real customer.
There's a person in that company who makes decisions about how
the company is going to spend money, and who will get their business.
That's your customer. |
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I've written many times about
the Mackay 66, a 66-question customer profile that I developed
as a young salesman. It includes absolutely no information about
the envelopes a company buys, but rather focuses on the person
who does the buying. What are they like as human beings? What
are they proud of accomplishing? What's their life like outside
the office? In other words, what makes them tick?
Then, we guard this information
with our lives, being very sensitive to how we use it and who
has access. This is not office gossip. (You can access the Mackay
66 at my website, harveymackay.com.)
In tough times, having an established
relationship with a person often determines the outcome of the
sales call. Here's a sample of what I've heard:
- "We received a lower bid
from a different company, but I'm a little concerned about their
follow-through." (Our price is more than fair when you consider
our track record.)
- "Our end-of-year budgets
are mighty tight; can we arrange for deferred billing?"
(Sure, because we know the company is financially sound.)
- "Our business has really
fallen off lately. We'd sure appreciate any business you send
our way." (May I take a few of your business cards?)
"Whenever you are faced
with tough times, it's time to get busy," writes Tom Hopkins
in his book, Selling in Tough Times. The subtitle, Secrets to
Selling When No One is Buying, should grab the attention of any
salesperson who has experienced a sales slump. But make no mistake,
this book is not just for tough times -- the advice applies to
every sales presentation you'll ever make.
While there is a goldmine of
selling wisdom in every chapter, I was particularly interested
in chapter 5 -- "Start by Keeping the Business You Already
Have." Hopkins says, "If you have provided an exceptional
level of service to your clients, there's a wonderful side benefit.
During tough times you will likely be lower on their list of
services to reduce or eliminate than another company that hasn't
provided your level of extraordinary service."
He summarizes that chapter with
five brief points. We all need to remember:
- Loyalty is built over time and
by giving consistent attention to your clients.
- End every client meeting with
these words: "Is there anything else I can do for you?"
- Have multiple ideas for building
client loyalty through phone calls, e-mail, and postal mail.
- Know how to approach a neglected
client to regain their trust and keep their business.
- Begin a study of other companies
that have loyal clients and incorporate some of their strategies
into your business.
Hopkins' final bit of advice is critically important. "During
challenging times, it's more important than ever to dedicate
yourself to training, practicing, and improving everything you
do," he writes.
"Being well trained will
help you become one of those people who thrives not just now
but when things turn back around, as they always do," Hopkins
writes. "Don't just rely on your company to train you, either.
. . Too many average salespeople try to blame the lack of training
or motivation from an external source, such as the company, for
their challenges. Nobody can motivate you but you."
In short, you have to ignite
your own passion.
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Mackay's Moral: |
Tough times come and go, but great
salespeople just keep going. |
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The Author  |
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Harvey Mackay is a nationally
syndicated columnist for United Feature Syndicate. His weekly
articles appear in 52 newspapers around the country, including
the Chicago Sun Times, Rocky Mountain News, Orange County Register,
Minneapolis Star Tribune and Arizona Republic.
http://www.mackay.com/
Copyright, Harvey Mackay. All rights reserved. |
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