10 Areas Requiring Change!

At the turn of the year I met with my team as I always do to review our 2016 engagements. I wanted us to actually document and analyze anything that stood in the way of launching an effective sales and marketing strategy. We discussed many topics but specifically I wanted them to document any behavior, activity or habit that had a negative impact on our efforts. I opened the scope of consideration to include all players: the dealer principal, sales leaders and the sales rep. I even said they could cite cases if the company’s brand itself was the problem.

Below is just a sampling of the list we produced:

1. The company has no objectives, focus or direction.
2. The sales leader refuses to, or is incapable of, LEADING the reps to success.
3. The owner doesn’t support the sales manager and allows the reps to do an end-around on the sales manager.
4. A great sales leader is stuck beneath a not so great owner. Chaos!
5. The owner is out of touch and lost their desire to compete or be flexible.
6. Upper management doesn’t like confrontation so nothing gets done or solved.
7. A named accounts list vs. open territories prevents reps from proper canvasing of the marketplace.
8. The company sells managed I.T. but the dealer’s technology and network is behind the times.
9. Constant turnover in the sales department prevents execution or momentum.
10. The company claims double-digit growth indicating an excellent business position. However, you find that just a few clients are responsible for the growth.

I’ve seen micro managed sales teams fail and barely managed teams succeed. It’s all about motivation and positive momentum. It would be easy to say that it’s magic, but it’s not magic at all. Like a triple play in baseball, when it comes time to execute, they only throw out the runners if they’ve prepared for that play. When a sales team from top to bottom is practiced, prepared and ready, success usually happens. Let’s take a look at the above list and discuss each of them a little deeper.

1. The company has no objectives, focus or direction.

We’ve discussed this many times: a company that wanders through each day creates a team that wanders. Without growth or sales objectives most companies produce way less wins than if they do define their objectives. Without focus or direction, it seems that many of the deals are price driven and on the lower profit side. If you plan your way to success and put all of the necessary effort into it, most likely you’ll get there. The secret though for those who are really in bad shape is NOT to wait too long to change course.

2. The sales leader refuses to, or is incapable of, LEADING the sales reps.

Let’s talk about the incapable side first. This is so popular I hate to even bring it up. Many dealerships promote a current sales rep to the sales manager position just to keep them from leaving. I’m not saying it can’t turn out well; I am saying, it seldom does. A sales leader should have solid experience in leading a sales team to success and it’s not crazy to expect a candidate to share their leadership successes. On the other side, a sales leader who refuses to lead their team most likely has some issue with the owner and, like any other position, what you expect from them must be crystal clear and boundaries and accountability must be set.

3. The owner doesn’t support the sales manager and allows the reps to do an end-around on the sales manager.

One of the hardest things to nail down is chain of command. Empowering your sales leader to actually be the leader is a hard thing to do, especially in smaller companies. The owner is used to being the “buck-stops-here” person and often continues to deal with sales reps’ questions instead of sending them back to the sales leader for direction. Often they get different answers and they learn quickly who to ask to get what they want. If you have a sales leader, train them in what you want and then hold them accountable. Of course your door is always open, but before you give answers to any questions, direct them to their sales leader first.

4. A great sales leader is stuck beneath a not so great owner. Chaos!

This is a number one cause for sales leadership turnover. If sales reps pick up signals that the sales leader is being stifled, it can look to them that their income is being stifled as well. It’s bad medicine, and when you think about it, the only cure for this is either the owner changes or the sales leader leaves. Hint: Owners don’t seem to change very often.

5. The owner is out of touch and lost their desire to compete or be flexible.

It’s not everyone, but there does seem to be a level at which some owners check out of the fast lane and their pace slows dramatically. Some mention “Quality of Life” as the reason, with which I have no problem. However, the office technology world is a fast-paced, demanding industry and if the top of the house is not 100 percent in the go mode, the company will most likely be less relevant in the marketplace.

6. Upper management doesn’t like confrontation so nothing gets done or solved.

There’s nothing more frustrating than not getting answers in a timely manner. This drives consultants crazy as well. CHANGE is a necessary part of winning and growing your company. There is a profile out there where the owners are uncomfortable with confrontation and when you have a sales rep demanding one thing and the sales manager standing on policy or principle. It’s almost always the one that yells the loudest that wins. This always has a loser and if that is your sales leader, they usually leave.

7. A named accounts list vs. open territories prevents reps from proper canvasing of the marketplace.

Named accounts vs. open territories. I don’t see it very often today but occasionally do run into a company that has trapped their reps into a named account list only. Usually a few hundred contacts and they can’t call on anyone else. I’m told they can add new contacts to their list by retiring some of their existing contacts with a disposition that eliminates them as a prospect.

I understand why they do it, or at least why they say they do it. They want a focused effort by each rep to penetrate their own list. I have seen few companies succeed with a named account only list. The difference between canvasing and targeting is clear. Canvasing covers a marketplace to hopefully discover “right now” opportunities, calling anyone and everyone within one’s territory.

Targeting is more specific and more in line with the named account strategy. One has a focused effort to penetrate specific accounts and the other actually covers the marketplace to find other deals going down.

You need both! Reps can only stand so much rejection, then they move on. If you don’t manage your rep’s activity, I could see a named account list as a great babysitter; if you do manage your rep’s activity, then you could manage both the penetration of their named accounts and the canvasing of a territory, which is a more comprehensive coverage of a marketplace.

8. The company sells managed I.T. but the dealer’s technology and network is behind the times.

There is nothing more frustrating for a sales rep than when they only have a desktop computer and not a laptop. They have to be on the go, they should be as mobile as today’s technology requires. If they do have a laptop and no hot spot, that’s a problem as well. Their network, screen changes and email are all too slow. The sales department of a technology company should have up to date technology and the knowledge to use that technology. You have to eat your own cooking! You sell the latest technology; your team should use the latest technology.

9. Constant turnover in the sales department prevents execution or momentum.

This isn’t an easy one, as it requires a deep assessment as to what’s causing the turnover. However, we often find that constant turnover almost always comes from compensation and expectations; what you pay someone to do versus what you expect him or her to do. A big disconnect here is many owners believe and say, “They know what they need to do!” when in fact the expectations are not clear. Additionally, the financial picture was painted way more plentiful than reality. Define the job and compensation fairly, then build a career opportunity and the right folks will apply for the job.

10. The company claims double-digit growth indicating an excellent business position. However, you find that just a few clients are responsible for the growth.

Why is this a bad thing? It’s not really bad, but it can be misleading, especially to less experienced owners who believe that because they show double-digit growth their company is healthy and in an excellent position. None of us would turn down those bigger deals, but if your client portfolio contains a few gigantic clients and very little new business is coming in, YOU ARE VULNERABLE. Build a new business strategy today!

If you could sit in my chair and hear once or twice a month from a distressed owner asking me how to save the relationship of a large client who represents 20 percent of your annual sales, you can easily see why building a diversified client portfolio is important.

Although one might think our discussion will circle around new issues or topics, it seems year after year we discuss the same things. Small companies, large companies, direct sales or independent dealers, they all seem to deal with the exact same issues. We’ve chosen only 10 items; however, as each new engagement starts we begin to see very similar reasons for why things are the way they are.

The fact is, businesses win or lose because of their leadership. Most importantly you must be flexible, out think the competition, ensure that your sales team is well trained and the best as it relates to product and services offered in the office technology world. Recognize the need for change and follow through!