Optimism abounds as we approach New Year’s Day. In a year marked by frustration, the changing of the calendar signifies an opportunity to begin anew with a fresh slate. In the world of business, few positions are compelled to lean more Pollyanna than pessimistic than the humble sales rep. They simply have no choice; their livelihood depends upon it.
That’s certainly not to say reps should be whistling in the dark; they bear a heavy burden in carrying the fate of their respective dealerships on their shoulders. But opportunity looms for those reps willing to go the extra mile in finding new and creative ways to solve end-user challenges. Thus, we close out this month’s State of the Industry report on elevating sales with a look at how to maximize opportunities in an uneven business environment.
While it hasn’t been the best revenue-generating year, Topp Business Solutions of Scranton, Pennsylvania is leveraging programs from manufacturers and leasing partners to close additional business before the end of the year, notes Chris Falzett, company president.
“At the end of the day, COVID-19 has fast-tracked the obstacles we all face within our industry,” Falzett said. “Our hope is that by simply staying the course, opportunities will present themselves. If there is pent-up demand in 2021, the Topp team will be there to address it.”
Product specialization is one of the calling cards for Marco of Saint Cloud, Minnesota, which helps to sustain the dealership through any flavor of business disruption, be it a pandemic, economic downturn or other downward pressure from a localized or national standpoint. From production print to wide-format, document management, A/V and software. Having multiple “out pitches” enables a dealer with many penetration points to endure during the worst of times.
“We’re going to rely on our specialists because we have a general rep population that sells everything and specialists who assist them,” noted Steve Gau, president of the copier division. “We’re really leaning on specialists to help identify areas and trends that we see. Security has always been a talking point, but it’s really taken on more significance since people are accessing company intranet and company Skype from their home offices when they’re plugging into local, unsecured WiFi.”
Sticking to Basics
Vincent Colaianni, director of sales development for Brooklyn-based TGI Office Automation, feels one of the keys to leveraging opportunities heading into 2021 is stressing the fundamentals of the office automation industry. There is always a technology that needs to be addressed.
“Even with less prints, there is still a problem to solve,” he said. “There are prospects and clients that need a more robust technology infrastructure to keep up with the increased virtual business environment that current situations have created. Conversely, there are others that need to reduce operating costs so that they can simply maintain their business or a department. TGI can help with either of these requirements.”
Path to Normal
The pandemic has turned the entire business community into a cast of handicappers, as projections of vaccines being disseminated in high volumes by the middle of 2021 signifying a possible resumption of pre-COVID business perhaps returning by the third quarter. For Scott Whitt, vice president of sales for Hendrix Business Systems of Charlotte, North Carolina, he estimates it will take until then for 85%-90% of businesses resume pre-March levels.
That comes with a caveat. Whitt anticipates a percentage of businesses will be permanently changed, and the status quo will need to remain.
“The focus will be squarely on prospecting,” Whitt said. “We are constantly working on finding new ways to interact with clients on a deeper level and our salespeople will be utilizing a more concentrated and consultative approach to our clients’ needs. Hendrix remains true to our core responsibility of providing unmatched customer service and truly caring about the well-being of everyone in our community. We are excited and hopeful that our industry as a whole will rebound from this pandemic and come out the other end stronger and better prepared to help the business world move forward in 2021.”
