Successful selling: Transforming the accidental salesperson

Northwestern Financial Review, Feb 1-Feb 14, 2003 by DeHart, Dottie

[marketing]

When you chose business banking as a career, you never imagined it being like this. The field sounded so secure, so dignified, so respectable. And now you're finding out the truth. They want you to spend 70 percent of your time outside the bank talking to customers and prospects. In other words, they want you to (gasp!) sell. You're no salesperson - you don't have the faintest idea how to do it successfully. And yet, if you want to advance in your career, you must. So what's the solution?

First, recognize yourself as an "accidental salesperson" said sales consultant and author Chris Lytle. The term describes individuals who have ended up in sales not by choice, but by chance. Once you realize you're a member of this large and quickly growing club, you must learn to sell on purpose. "Most salespeople do not choose sales as a profession, it chooses them," explained Lytle. "This is definitely true of the average banker-salesperson. You are doing a different job from the one they hired you for. Now your success depends on your ability to sell your ideas, concepts, processes and products to others. The good news is that once you get proficient at selling, you won't want to quit. Selling can be a very rewarding profession - but first you have to get started."

A big part of the problem, Lytle said, is that selling sounds a lot more intimidating than it actually is. At sales meetings, CEOs and sales managers urge their teams to "take it to the next level." Most people translate this phrase into "I've got to work harder and sell even more than I did last year." And when you're already working harder, smarter and longer than you ever imagined you would, hearing that you have to take it to the next level is not very motivating, is it?

Truth is, "taking it to the next level" is just a bad business cliche unless you have a clear picture of precisely what level you've already attained and can envision exactly what the next level will look like when you get there. Lytle has developed what he calls "the chart" to help. This simple training tool lets you analyze the relationship you have with bank customers and the quality of the meetings that you hold. It enables you to envision better relationships and plan more compelling meetings.

The chart breaks prospect/client relationships down into four levels. Too many relationships exist at "Level 1," in which the salesperson is most concerned with being liked. At Level 2, he works on solving a.problem for the client. At Level 3, he has become a valuable resource for the client, and at Level 4 (a relationship that can take years to cultivate) he has become an "outside insider." Lytle said effective salespeople start from a base camp of Level 2 and have Level 3 and Level 4 "moments" with clients. "Consistently working at Level 2 -- with Level 3 and Level 4 moments occurring periodically - is what real selling is all about," Lytle explained. "Despite the stigma our society has attached to the profession, selling does not have to be a stressful high-pressure process that pits you against the `victim.' In fact, it shouldn't be. Selling is actually about being a problem-solver for prospects and customers. You're helping them, not stalking them. And once you realize this truth, you should be able to more fully embrace your new role."

Why do so many accidental salespeople end up in the Level 1 category? According to Lytle, it's a natural reaction to the aforementioned negative stereotypes. If being pushy is bad, then becoming more passive must be better. Accidental salespeople default to Level 1, much in the same way that your computer system goes into default mode when you don't indicate a choice yourself.

"Making a conscious choice to operate at Level 2 or higher is how an accidental salesperson starts to sell on purpose," Lytle said. "Think of Level 2 as the `base camp' from which to launch your assault on the summit of sales professionalism. Mountain climbers establish base camps part way up the mountain. They don't start their climbs from the valleys. Set your preference at Level 2 and your banking clients will perceive you as 100 percent better than every Level 1 salesperson who approaches them and choose to have several Level 3 or Level 4 moments with your prospects and clients."

Have you ever clipped and sent an article about an issue or trend in a prospect's industry to that prospect? If you have, you had a Level 3 "moment." Your approach was to be a source of industry information and business intelligence. Customers may not have the chart on their desks to rate salespeople. However, after seeing a parade of salespeople march through their offices, buyers develop a builtin rating system they apply to each salesperson.

"Each time you interact with a customer, try to operate at Level 2 or higher. Before you know it, you will find yourself enjoying selling," Lytle said.

Dottie DeHart does public relations work for Apex Performance Systems, founded by Chris Lytle.