The Economy is No Excuse

Joe Marr, Sandler Training Center - Ann Arbor

www.sandlerannarbor.com

734-821-4830

The Economy is No Excuse

It’s the fundamental responsibility of an effective salesperson to help prospects discover that their current situation is unacceptable, because they lack the salesperson’s product or service, so they’ll buy it.  But the biggest obstacles a salesperson faces are not necessarily real, but are the self-limiting attitudes and beliefs people have about the world around them.

 

Prospects tend to “externalize” their problems, and blame their inadequacies on things they can’t control, (the economy, the price of gas, Pfizer closing, auto lay-offs) because they won’t allow themselves to face their real problems, and since salespeople use the same excuses to rationalize poor sales performance, sales calls become “pity parties”, both longing for the good old days to return, and getting little done.

 

Look Past the Ugly Backdrop

There’s no doubt that Michigan has had more than it’s share of business woes lately, and its true that the state unemployment rate is now over 7%, (I remember 17% back in the 70’s).  But in fact, the US economy right now is the biggest, and in many ways the most robust economy in world history. The national unemployment rate is 4.4 % and declining, and real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) went up $790 Billion to over $13 Trillion in 2006.

 

And while thousands in Michigan are directly affected by the lay-offs and plant closings of late, and their pain is real and troubling, many who are not directly affected believe that the situation is dire and all-encompassing.  So helping prospects discover that you have solutions to their problems against this backdrop requires a finesse approach to prompt a sale, and finesse requires that the salesperson not buy in to the “doom and gloom” when facing a prospect.

 

No Excuses

An example of an excuse salespeople may give is: “Prospects need more time to think it over in this business climate where people don’t make decisions quickly." The salesperson won’t believe it could be the result of anything they do or fail to do. It’s rationalized as just “the current culture of our industry”.

 

Another example of a typical excuse is: “Longer selling cycles are happening because people are being more conservative and cautious in this market.” They’ll defend; “You have to understand,” the “people in Michigan aren’t moving as quickly as the rest of the country.” Once again, It’s not the salesperson facing their own issues…it’s the state of affairs here.”

 

And some salespeople will claim: “Poor margins are just a fact in this highly competitive market”. “There are so many competitors who are willing to ‘give it away’ to get the business in Michigan that we have to cut our prices to be competitive”.

 

The list of excuses goes on, and salespeople tend to attribute their challenges, problems, and frustrations to someone else’s (lack of) buying behavior, and not their own inability to adapt their attitude and approach to exploit the current situation. It’s the fault of the prospects they call on, the competitors, or the industry or region, and this mindset is a trap that assures they will not take any steps to improve.

 

The Real Reasons

The excuse; “In this climate, people don’t make decisions quickly…they need time to think-it-over” is really a stall. The reason they stall is they aren’t given permission to say “no”, and the salesperson doesn’t take the time to qualify the prospect before presenting their product or service.

 

And the excuse: “Longer selling cycles are happening because people are being more conservative and cautious in this market” is a rationalization too. This kind of excuse comes from a salesperson who is continuing to pursue several prospects that are stalled. This kind of stall is given by a prospect that is more comfortable telling the salesperson to call them back next month than to say “no”, even if they have no intention of taking a call then.

 

Certainly “market forces”, “stiff competition” and a region’s “business culture” can all be factors in marketing products or services, and salespeople probably prefer that their managers continue to believe that these are the biggest, or the only factors. But if salespeople want to perform well, they need to be honest enough with themselves to accept that most of these “reasons” for weak performance are excuses and rationalization.  

 

Get Systematic

So it’s the responsibility of an effective salesperson to help prospects discover that they have compelling reasons to buy, and help them believe in the value they will receive, so that they’ll buy it.  But the biggest obstacles they have are the attitudes and beliefs everyone carries into a sales call on both sides.  The best way for a salesperson to minimize these factors is to go in with confidence and an expectation that the prospect may or may not be in a position to do business; neutral and objective. This attitude makes it easier for them to systematically seek to understand the prospect’s real situation. 

 

The systematic approach should include establishing a genuine candor first, setting some ground rules for the discussion, getting the prospect to share the compelling reasons they may have to do something, the resources they have to do it, and how they’ll make the decision. At this point the salesperson has enough information to know whether or not to propose a solution, already knowing under what terms the prospect would buy. If they can’t meet the terms, they shouldn’t present.

 

If your sales team adopts an objective attitude and a systematic sales approach, they will stop longing for the good old days to return--because they’ll be making new “good old days”! 

Joe Marr is a public speaker, sales and management consultant and trainer, and runs the Sandler Training Center – Ann Arbor.  To reach him call: (734) 821-4830 or visit his website at: www.sandlerannarbor.com

© 2010 Marr Professional Development Corporation