Springboard

We Make Sales Happen

Where have you been?

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I’ve been AWOL, definitely MIA from this blog – a huge No-No.  I know this and yet the business required so much of my time these past few months that I neglected the one thing I know people look for – information.  Yes I was busy, new and existing clients, a pipeline to die for, and most importantly recreating our structure.  2012 taught me a few things – like having policies in my head was probably not a good idea, sure I communicated them (or so I thought) but how was anyone to really know what I expected if it wasn’t on paper?  So it’s now on paper.

We changed how we “on-board” a client.  We found that most clients had a ready, fire, aim approach to new business development and for many the idea of target markets was anyone that breathes.  We revamped our Client Acceptance Protocol and it made sense to create one for each new client so our consultants could more easily stay on task.  Our government contractors say,” it’s easy we just focus on this agency and that agency” and yet each of these agencies has multiple silos with separate decision makers so how do you know where to go in each agency?  We’ve found that a more in-depth market review and analysis in the beginning leading to a Client Acceptance Protocol for each new client prior to pipeline development led to a stronger understanding of the client’s unique capabilities, an easier transition for the consultant to communicate most effectively with prospects and it gave the client a better understanding of our strategy.

We did a billing and invoicing policy for our clients so there are no longer any questions regarding pay structures, how it’s handled and more importantly for me who handles it (and guess what …it’s no longer me)(side question – what are the things taking up your  valuable time that could easily and cost effectively be outsourced?).   We updated our Client Acceptance Protocol and it’s in the hands of everyone in the office so we all stay on task when it comes to marketing and new client engagement.  No longer can we choose to bring on a client if they don’t fit the mold (we call this rescuing puppies).  If they don’t fit, they don’t fit and we’ll be glad to introduce them to someone else who may be able to help.  In fact over the past several months I’ve given 5 opportunities to my competition – they were just a better fit.

Rescuing Puppies is the phrase my husband chose one night about 4 years ago as we were talking about a client that just wasn’t the right fit but I knew we could help them if they would just let us do our work and stop the self -sabotage.  Of course all of our pets are rescues and there is definitely something in my core about helping and taking care of others, but sometimes, in business, I want to help them more then they want to really help themselves.  As it turns out this particular client really wasn’t ready or willing to make the changes necessary for them to thrive.  This is something we see every day with smaller companies.  Almost 5 years into the business we can now spot a “puppy” a mile away and while we may have a personal relationship with the owner and we may want to see them thrive, we know the total costs will outweigh the benefits.  How often do you take on a client that isn’t the right fit?  What have you done to ensure your clients truly fit within your target?  Where are your policies?  If you’re like me you communicated, or at least thought you had communicated the policies and yet for some reason the same issues kept popping up.  Many thanks to Susan Katz, the Growth Coach for helping me to realize that it was easier to get the policies out of my head and on paper then it was to expect everyone to be mind-readers.

So while I’ve been missing, it was time well spent.  Look for our next blog on Prospect Rants.

Business Tips: “Accentuate the Positive, Eliminate the Negative”

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It’s easy to get caught up in a pit of negativity, especially when free time dwindles and schedules become busier than rush-hour traffic. We complain about the service at fast food joints if it’s not turbocharged, dwell on interactions gone awry, and get angry when we “can’t even get 3G” on our phones in areas with weak reception. That’s why when I came across Neil Pasricha’s blog, 1000 Awesome Things, I was refreshed to find someone paying tribute to the little things: “The smell of rain on a hot sidewalk,” “Perfect parallel-parking on the first try,” and “Tossing garbage in the trash can from far away.”

Pasricha’s blog isn’t a prescriptive list of methods for garnering happiness, but simply a reminder of the things that make us happy. There are a number of books that offer a more direct approach to bringing positivity to our lives, though, like the one I recommended this month in the leadership group for small business owners that I’m a part of: A Happy Pocket Full of Money, which instructs readers on how to bring abundance to their lives by giving and forming favorable relationships and through applying newfound discoveries in theoretical physics.

I was introduced to this work while reading Bob Doyle’s Follow Your Passion, which similarly explores the concept of the Law of Attraction. Though it’s a difficult and sometimes dense read, once you make it through the first chapter on quantum physics you’ll gain a greater understanding of certain universal laws, why they work, and more importantly – why they don’t.  I found that business picked up tremendously within weeks of starting the book.  I turned a few others onto it, too, who ended up having the same success in their businesses as I was having.  Deals assumed to be dead finally closed, opportunities seemed to show up out of nowhere, clients signed on the dotted line, and revenue increased.

Without deeply analyzing the principles of quantum physics and the Law of Attraction, one underlying concept that became clear to me in reading these works is this: negativity is the ultimate blockade to progress. Regardless of where the negativity stems from, if it’s bogging down any conversation surrounding your business, relationships, finances, and so forth, it’s pretty much proven to have a negative effect. I’d like to propose that we all act a little more like Neil Pasricha, and begin appreciating all the awesome happenings in our lives: we need to focus on the good.

Whether the country votes Democratic or Republican in the upcoming presidential election is as of yet to be determined, but what is apparent is that our economy is teetering on another recession. Many economists are predicting a less than stellar upcoming year – perhaps one that’s worse than the 2008-2009 calendar year.

As you are working on your goals and business plan for 2013, ask yourself: what can you do better? What can you can give to others? Those who hoard are rarely recipients of good opportunities from others. Appreciate your clients, your staff, your opportunities, your partners, yourself.  Give to others – make introductions, give referrals – even give your competition opportunities that just aren’t the right fit for you. You’ll be amazed at what comes back to you.  Give for the sake of giving and without expectation.  Think of it like Christmas: it feels good to see the smile on someone’s face when you give him or her a gift.  That feeling could exist year-round and it could be just what your business needs during a troubled economy to thrive – so long as your make an effort to give.

 

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Why Labeling Clients is Bad for Business

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“Once you label me you negate me.” – Soren Kierkegaard

We are a culture obsessed with labels – from the ones displayed on our designer jeans to the titles we use in the workplace to distinguish higher-ups from entry-level employees. Categorizing people, places, and objects is a way of simplifying our lives, of easily defining who is who and compartmentalizing them in our minds.

But labels are also risky – they make us inclined to expect certain behavior from certain people, which can cause us to project negative attitudes onto them. I see this happening a lot in the world of business. Oftentimes, business and sales people might judge their clients before much interaction has even taken place. It’s not something I’m proud to admit happens in the sector, but it’s a reality, and labels like “annoying,” “needy,” and “high-maintenance” might get tossed around as descriptors for clients with specific needs.

Usually, I find that applying such labels has a guarantee of making them come true – they are self-fulfilling prophecies, so to speak. If you dread dealing with a client because you regard them as any of the aforementioned problematic labels, then it makes sense that they are going to seem annoying, needy, and high-maintenance. This, I think, is what Kierkegaard was getting at in his famous quote – assigning a label has a way of automatically nullifying who an individual is beyond the classification. That is to say that all other distinctive aspects of a person fade away so that the label takes precedence.

Needless to say, this only makes doing business more difficult, which is why I’d like to propose a challenge: leave the labels behind. Rather than ascribing strict designating terms to people, think of your prospects more generally: as an opportunity to help someone. I guarantee it’ll make your interactions with clients more pleasant, and your attitude about working with them much more positive.

At Springboard, our sales team is committed to letting go of labels, and our resulting positive approach to sales makes our business development successful, expanding your company with our outsourced services.

Follow Springboard on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and LinkedIn as well!

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Self-Evaluate: Are you a Giver or a Taker?

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A few months ago, I read Bob Burg and John David Mann’s Go-Givers Sell More, the follow-up to their national bestseller, The Go-Giver, a work aimed at inspiring individuals to shift the focus in their lives from getting, to – as the title suggests – giving. Applying this concept to the workforce, Go-Givers Sell More emphasizes the importance of generosity in business transactions. As I perused its pages, I was forced to face the facts about my own altruistic intentions like a child who’s just realized that the tooth fairy isn’t real. When I did, I realized a troubling truth: I had become a taker.

As someone who runs a company that’s a part of the sales industry, I have a business that depends on introductions. When I stopped to really think about the current state of affairs at Springboard at that point in time, it occurred to me that for some reason, my referrals had come to a screeching halt. It was time for me to accelerate into high gear and drive my business forward, but before I could, I had to seriously evaluate what was going wrong with my business.

It’s easy to get caught in the hustle and bustle of daily obligations and tasks, and I had certainly fallen into the habit of so doing. I had become so busy, focusing on clients, family routines, and checking off my day-to-day to-do list that I had forgotten to incorporate one crucial element into my life: giving. Whether you want to call it karma, cause and effect, or something else entirely, Burg and Mann have gotten it right: receiving without reciprocation is bad for business.

I made the decision to make a change and make it my mission to give. I started building connections and providing introductions that I had promised in the past but forgotten to follow through on. I used my Motorola Xoom tablet to make connections on social media networks on the spot as I’m interacting with people in person. I seek out reasons to establish meaningful relationships with more and more people around me.

But intentionality has a lot to do with the outcome of your endeavors, I’ve learned; you can’t have a quid pro quo attitude, constantly expecting equal exchanges from others. Instead, you must focus on acting purely for the sake of helping others, without selfish goals in mind. If you’re hoping to give merely to get, then you’ve overlooked the thematic issue in this post entirely. Here’s the thing, though: once you give without expectation, you will get back. Since realigning my focus, I’ve received introductions and opportunities I never thought possible. And for every two introduction I make, I get back at least one.

If your referrals have dried up, take a page from Go-Givers Sell More and make it a point to give business opportunities away to others.

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Telemarketing: Is it an effective Sales Method?

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If you are looking to increase your company’s sales you’ve probably considered telemarketing.  It’s been a viable option for as long as you can remember but is it still viable?  Will you get business opportunities or just throw away money?  Here are a couple of things you need to ask yourself first:

  • Who do we typically target?  Are they easy to reach?  Do they have a gatekeeper?
  • What do we sell?  Is it a commodity where it’s all about the latest and greatest or lowest price or is it a service based on trust and relationships?
  • How long is your sales cycle?
  • What are your expected outcomes?
  • How will you be paying for such a service?

Challenges of Telemarketing and Cold Calling

  • Battling Perception:  According to a Nielsen poll, less than 10% of consumers trust telemarketers.  If you are selling a service based on trust and building relationships using a telemarketer creates a major conflict for your prospect.  If your sales pitch is, “I can save you ‘x’% on something you buy everyday” – that might get you in the door but be prepared to do battle with internet pricing.
  • Time vs. Reward: The goal of the average telemarketer is to call 100-125 people a day with the hopes of generating 8-10 interested parties. That’s right, 8-10 people out of 125. Cold calling is a numbers game with no real winner. If any other aspect of your business had a success rate of less than 10%, would you continue with it, or would you pull the plug?
  • The Internet: Telemarketing and cold calling were effective methods before the advent of the Internet. Back then, consumers needed someone to tell them what products and services were out there. Now, consumers have all of this knowledge available to them at the click of a mouse. Because of this, today’s customer is more knowledgeable than ever before. They know what they want. They have done all their research online. They don’t necessarily want a telemarketer giving them a sales pitch over the phone.
  • Building Relationships: Effective sales representatives are all about building long-term relationships. Telemarketers are all about quick turnaround. One of these salespeople has a higher probability of multiple transactions. We will let you guess which one we are talking about…
  • Do Not Call Lists: The National Do Not Call Registry allows consumers to remove their names from marketing lists, thus shrinking the overall reach of telemarketers. Millions of people have already added their names to the registry.
  • Caller ID: Ask yourself the following question: do you pick up the phone when you’re home at night and you don’t recognize the number? If not, then why should you expect a prospect to?
  • Weak Leads: How do you keep from getting appointments set simply because the prospect wants a telemarketer to stop calling them?

Telemarketing used to be highly successful but the way people buy has changed.

Springboard Business Development: Our stand on telemarketing

We aren’t telemarketers: we don’t believe it works – but then again, our clients are service providers who make sales based on building trust and relationships. To us, Business Development is about building long term happy client relationships.  It’s our job to help you increase your name recognition and exposure in the markets you serve, create partnerships that feed opportunities for years to come, open doors to the decision makers that need your services, and of course, help you to close the deal.  We believe relationships are the key to growing a service type business; we believe in making our connections face to face.

If you do decide to give telemarketing a go, here are a few things you need to ask:

  • Who will be training the telemarketing team?  How often will they call and when do they stop calling?  You’d be amazed to find out how many appointments are given just to get the telemarketers to stop calling.  The problem comes when you arrive to meet the prospect and they tell you they aren’t interested in anything you’re selling – they just wanted to the calls to stop.  You’ve wasted time and money.
  • What are you paying for?  Is it total calls, time, appointments set or qualified prospects?  Most likely you are calling for total calls or time so there’s no need to qualify the prospects or ensure they truly want to meet you

Ultimately your decision is about value of time and money, the type of sale, and your typical buyer. Don’t forget, this isn’t a selling process – it’s a buying process.  It’s not about you or what you’re selling, it’s about the buyer, the problem they need to solve, and what solving it means to them.  In a call focused on scheduling an appointment you just can’t get what’s necessary to move the buying process forward…at least that’s our opinion. We’d love to hear yours.

If you have any questions about Outsourced Business Development, please contact Springboard Business Development by calling 410-832-7560 or click here today!

Located in Baltimore, Maryland, Springboard offers outsourced sales solutions for businesses in the professional services arena. Our approach to business development makes it easy to find new clients without the financial burden of an in-house business developer.

At Springboard we know sales!

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