Jill Konrath | Selling to Big Companies

Desperate Seller Begs Marketing for Help

It's already hard to crack into corporate accounts. And, because of the turbulent economy, I fully expect it will only get harder in the upcoming months. In my opinion, companies must invest in online marketing initiatives that attract and nurture prospects till they're ready to work with salespeople.

But don't take my word for it! Listen to this desperate seller who's falling apart from cold calling.

This "Oughta Know Inbound Marketing" video was created by Rebecca Corliss from HubSpot - a company that specializes in "helping clients get found by search engines, social media and blogs.

It's posted on YouTube and it's on their company blog with all the lyrics, downloadable audios of the entire song and more.

As you can see, HubSpot practices what they preach! After all, I'm telling you to go to their website. I'm also telling you that salespeople need help like this - desperately!

Cold Calling Bloopers: How a Quick-Witted Seller Saved the Day

Cold calling is tough. We all struggle with it. That's why I laughed today when I talked with Sara, who works for a New York-based PR firm. She'd just seen my new video clips where I'm speaking about the challenges of connecting with corporate decision makers.

Sara understood exactly what I was talking about! That's when she told me her story:

I was calling a major media outlet to "pitch" one of our clients. Of course, I got voice mail. About half way through my message, my mind went totally blank. So I hung up.

As soon as my memory returned, I recalled the client and picked up exactly where I left off ...

"Hi. This is Sara calling again. We must have gotten disconnected. As I was saying..."

Now that's quick thinking. I wish I'd thought of it!

Have a Laugh on Me!

What kind of warped person would create a Mistake Bank where people's worst career bloopers were saved for posterity?  That would be business consultant John Caddell.

He recently asked me to share a memorable sales moment - my first copier demo while still a trainee at Xerox.  It'll take just 2 minutes & 56 seconds to listen to the mini-podcast, but it's guaranteed to make you smile.

WOW! Complimentary $400 Personality Assessment till June 12

My friend, Greta Roberts who is CEO of Target Teams, has invited my blog readers to take a $400 Corporate Personality Assessment for free.

Why would she do that? Right now, her company is doing the final validation of a highly advanced assessment to help employers predict, assess and develop the performance of job candidates such as salespeople.

I took it and was impressed with its accuracy. It highlighted my strengths and the work environment in which I flourish, as well as areas in which I'd struggle.

If you're interested, you must complete the questionnaire by Thursday, June 12th. They'll send you a detailed, customized & 100% confidential report via email in about 3 weeks.

Click on the link below when you have 25 minutes of uninterrupted time and are ready to begin. Make sure to:

• Complete all the questions in one sitting.
• Answer the questions as they relate to work.

Get started on the Corporate Personality Assessment now. 

After June 12, this assessment is $400/person.

P.S. if you plan to hire salespeople some time soon, this instrument gives you unbiased feedback on your job candidates. That's a good reason to check it out now.

Sales Mistake Immortalized on YouTube

We all make mistakes when we're selling. The key is to learn from them, so we don't repeat them in the future. A few weeks ago, I shared several of my more memorable goofs in Three Hard-Earned Sales Lessons from the School of Hard Knocks.

Now you get to listen to another one of my "biggies", which Dan Seidman of Sales Autopsy fame has now immortalized in this YouTube segment.

Hopefully, my own blunder brightens your day, as well as prevents you from making similar mistakes!

P.S. Thanks to computer training expert Patrick O'Malley for finding me on YouTube!

Holiday Cheers

Tis the season to be jolly, so I thought you'd enjoy this holiday greeting from four top women sales experts.

 

Click to watch the elfin dancers perform.

Left to Right: Sales Diva Kim Duke, me (Jill Konrath), Queen of Cold Calling Wendy Weiss and The Top Dog Leslie Buterin.

And many thanks to Jonathan Farrington of Top Sales Experts for putting this production together. (P.S. It takes a few minutes to load!)

Useless Facts & Other Irrelevant Matters

When I was a kid, I scoured the newspaper looking for those entirely useless facts that served as space fillers. I enjoyed bringing up this obscure trivia over the dinner table and impressing my younger siblings with my infinite knowledge.

Now it seems like this game of irrelevancy has moved to the internet. Ardath Albee of Marketing Interactions blog, just tagged me to share 8 random things about myself, so here they are:

1. I just launched the Sales Shebang which kicks off with a big conference for women who sell (products, services, ideas). Guys can come too! It's on November 5-6 in Minneapolis, MN.
2. I don't eat onions, garlic, shallots, leeks or chives.
3. I walked over 1000 miles last year.
4. I suffer from ARD (Addictive Reading Disorder).
5. I like to come up with titles for articles.
6. I wish I had a lot more time to write.
7. I own over 60 domain names.
8. I have way too many ideas - and not nearly enough time to implement them all.

Now, I pass on the tags to:
•  Kim Duke - Sales Divas
•  Lori Richardson - Score More Sales
•  Mark Hunter - The Sales Hunter
•  Nikki Owens - Sales Activator
•  Jonathan Farrington - Sales Leadership
•  Clayton Shold - Salesopedia
•  Colleen Francis - Engage Selling Solutions

Check out their sites. These are all really good sales strategists!

The Sales Wiz - A story of sales transformation

Download TheSalesWiz.pdf

A few years back, my two best clients were under severe pressure from Wall Street to deliver better results. When that happens, external resources like me are the first thing cut. Instead of having the next five months booked solid, I had no work on my calendar - and none in sight. My days were filled with twiddling my thumbs, cleaning my office and catching up on anything.

The only bright spot - a new Harry Potter book was coming out. As an avid fan, I could hardly wait to get my copy (like today). But my book didn't come. Long story; it took an extra week. With way too much time on my hands, I immersed myself in the earlier books and lived in their world of wizards and magical  happenings.

Then one morning I woke up with a brilliant idea. I would write a Harry Potter style book on sales transformation. Its focus? An experienced seller who was struggling to be successful in the rapidly changing business environment. (Looking back, it sounds suspiciously like my own story.)

Up to that point in my life, I'd never written anything longer than a sales proposal. The closest I'd ever come to writing fiction was a bit of embellishment about my firm's capabilities. But I didn't let that stop me. I started writing and didn't look up for three months. It was at that point I decided I'd better figure out how to get a book published so began research in that area. After crafting a proposal and submitting it to several agents, I went back to writing.

All told I spent six months on that endeavor virtually full time before I ran out of money.  The publishers weren't interested in a magical business novel written by a nobody. Even though my unfinished book never made it to the press, it was a transformational time for me. It got me writing and gave me confidence. Selling to Big Companies, my bestselling book, would never have been written without it. Nor would I have ever started speaking.

So to celebrate the release of the final Harry Potter book, I am releasing my companion novel written especially for salespeople - The Sales Wiz: Powerful but Highly Unorthodox Lessons for Transforming Your Sales Results. I hope you enjoy it!   Download TheSalesWiz.pdf

"Ugly Baby" Contest Winner

Thanks to all the people who contributed stories about calling their customer's baby (pet project, decision) ugly.

In every case, their hurtful comments were meant to be helpful. But because they didn't have all the information or understand the politics involved, they stuck their foot in their mouth big time and in most cases, lost the business.

The winner of the "Ugly Baby" Contest is .... drum roll .... Russ Emrick. You'll see why when you read his story below. Russ will be my guest on the upcoming teleseminar,  Attract More Business By Getting "Slightly" Famous.
      __________________________________________________________

Russ Emrick's Ugliest Baby Story

I sell medical software to hospitals. A few years ago a competitor won a project for $6 million dollars, leaving me with a $300,000 rump sale. After 6 months the hospital realized my competitor could not do some very necessary things, functions my solution does. (Yes, I had told them. Yes, my competitor mislead, ok spun their story).

The hospital called us both in to solve this. After a long meeting we struck up an agreement: I would turn on this functionality for free, believing I would get expansion business in the future.

That wasn't good enough for the other vendor. He said to the customer, "You need to know that if there is any work or interfacing required on our part there will be a charge."

The man's arrogance made me lose all sense. Instead of letting the hospital respond to what was clearly their problem, I jumped in.

"Let me get this straight," I said, "the hospital has already paid you $6 million dollars for a solution that doesn't work. I've flown completely across the county at my expense and offered to fix the problem for free but you still feel the need to reach into the customer's pocket for more money? Money to solve a problem of your making! That is unbelievable."

Of course he backed down and I thought I scored, thinking the hospital would appreciate my coming to their defense and saving them money. However, later in the inter sanctum of management my champion told me the bad news.

"Russ," Jim said, "the President personally made the decision to go with that vendor. Everyone at that meeting agreed or has a major investment in that decision, least of which is that none of us can afford to look like idiots having spent $6 million dollars on a solution that doesn't work.

"We have to live with that vendor and people for a long time. We didn't appreciate you having a confrontation with our vendor or you creating an adversarial relationship with them. Your comments have ended your relationship with the hospital."

Unknown to me, Jim (my champion) had gotten a call from the President and Department Director. My competitor had his champions as well. Jim was told that I was never to darken their doorstep again.

I never got to speak with Jim again and never was allowed back into the account. Less than two years later both my competitor and I were out. Even worse, they continue to bad mouth me and my company despite the good work and literally millions of dollars we saved them while our software was installed.

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For a few more ugly baby stories ....

The Buyer's Lament

Dr. Seuss published his first book, The Cat in the Hat, fifty years ago. It's since become a childhood classic. My mother loved Dr. Seuss's books from the moment she discovered them. I'm not sure if it was the simple rhyming schemes or the outlandish drawings that attracted her most.

I was raised on Horton Hears a Who, Yertle the Turtle and Green Eggs & Ham. When I was sick, my mother used to send my teacher notes that began: "Yesterday my darling Jill, was very, very, very ill." The rhymes went downhill from there.

It was embarrassing. Unfortunately, it was also genetic. I'm sorry to tell you that I've inherited that rhyming gene too. So today's feature sales article - or should I say poem - is a tribute to Dr. Seuss as well as my mother. Enjoy!

       The Buyer's Lament

Don't waste my time, please go away.
I will not talk with you today.
You call me up, you want to sell.
But all you do is tell, tell, tell.

I do not want to hear your spiel.
I will not play let's make a deal.
So listen up, take my advice.
Discover how you can entice.

If you aspire to earn my trust,
Research is an absolute must.
Know my goals, the issues I face.
Use this to build your business case.

What have you done for firms like mine?
How have you helped their bottom line?
Can you cut my costs or help me grow?
Now that's the info I want to know.

If you can help me solve my plight,
I'm wide open to fresh insight.
I need to find new perspectives
So I can reach my objectives.

Want me to remember your name?
Launch an account entry campaign.
Ten contacts is what it may take,
When there's so much business at stake.

Just think of this next time you phone
And you'll get past my no-entry zone,
Once you get your foot in the door,
I guarantee you'll sell lots more!

         ~ Jill Konrath, Sales Poet, 2007

Need help dealing with tough buyers? If so, you might want to check out the Getting Into Big Companies self-study program. One 60-minute segment focuses exclusively on how to create strong value propositions while another talks about creating enticing voicemail messages.

Hidden Secrets of Sales Master Finally Revealed

I've been tagged! In this new version of the game, the person who becomes IT, must reveal five hitherto unknown facts about his/her life. So as a good competitor, I'll play. But first, a big thanks to Ardath, Michael & Jim who forced me to reveal my deepest secrets. 

1. I never wanted to be in sales. In fact, I detested the profession and felt that all sellers were slimy manipulative sleaze balls. I was a high school teacher at that time and really unhappy with my job. Several friends and I wanted out, but we were young and pretty unqualified for most jobs. So we decided to create a company. After a year of researching, we came up with a great idea and pulled together a business plan.

For our next step, we took it to the Service Corp of Retired Executives (SCORE) - a group that offered free support for emerging businesses. Our counselor was impressed and thought we had a winner. Then he said, "Now which one of you will be doing the selling?"

We were shocked. Stunned. No one answered. It never dawned on us that customers wouldn't flock to us begging to use our services. So we said we'd get back to him on that. After the meeting, we had a serious discussion on this topic. I became the sales designee. Why? Because I was the least resistant. Which I guess proves the point that anyone can succeed in sales.

2. I was suspended for wearing pants to high school. In those days, girls were expected to wear appropriate feminine attire which was defined as skirts or dresses. But a combination of factors including mini-skirts & ice cold  Minnesota winters where wind chill temperatures of -20 below were not uncommon.

So I organized my first act of civil disobedience - on a specific date in January, all 175 senior girls were going to wear pants to protest this archaic rule. Only 3 of us did. We were promptly escorted to the principal's office, sent home to change and given after school detention for our  delinquent behaviors.

3. I suffer from ARD*. This serious condition, also know as Addictive Reading Disorder, has been impacting my life for years. There were times I had to swear off fiction books for months at a time because I had too much to do. You see, once I start reading a good book, it's virtually impossible for me to stop. Nothing else matters.

I stay up to the wee hours of the morning, even if I have a breakfast meeting.  When my kids were little it took every effort I could muster to break away for long enough to make a PB&J sandwich. More than once, I called prospective clients to tell them my earlier meeting had run over and I'd be 10-15 minutes late - all because I needed to finish a chapter before I made my sales call.

4. I'm a Founding Mother of Awesome Women - an organization committed to strengthening women's voices, sharing women's stories and celebrating women's achievements. We started this group several years ago and plan to really expand our reach in 2007 by doing much more via the internet.

If you're interested in joining us on this journey, check out our website and sign up for our newsletter. (Girls Only!)

5. I failed miserably in predicting my future. In 6th grade I had to write a report on what I wanted to be when I grew up. I couldn't decide between three possible professions - an interpreter at the United Nations, the first woman on Mars, or a senator from the great state of Minnesota.

Then when I was a senior in high school, my classmates voted me as the girl in the class who was "Most Likely to Succeed." The verdict is still out on that one!

In this game, we only have to share 5 things people don't know about us. But just in case you weren't reading this blog last November, I shared another deep dark secret then. Here it is ...

6. I fainted on a sales call from sheer terror. You can read all about it in this article called Sales is Not for the Faint of Heart. Have a good laugh on me!

Now I get to tag some people. So here goes. Tag! You're it!

Katie Konrath, Does Your Major Matter?
Steve Gershik, The Innovative Marketer
Mary Clare Hunt, In Women We Trust
Lori Richardson, Score More Sales

* P.S. There is no such disease as ARD. I just made it up so it would sound official and I could have an excuse for my atrocious behavior.

Politically Correct Holiday Greetings

Now here's a holiday message you just gotta love. Many thanks to Jerry Longsworth for warming my heart - and hopefully yours - on a cold winter day.
***

Hi Jill,

Please accept with no obligation, implied or implicit, my best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low-stress, non-addictive, gender-neutral celebration of the winter solstice holiday, practiced within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice, or secular practices of your choice, with respect for the religious/secular persuasion and/or traditions of others, or their choice not to practice religious or secular traditions at all.

I also wish you a fiscally successful, personally fulfilling and medically uncomplicated recognition of the onset of the generally accepted calendar year 2007, but not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures whose contributions to society have helped make America great. Not to imply that America is necessarily greater than any other country nor the only America in the Western Hemisphere. Also, this wish is made without regard to the race, creed, color, age, physical ability, religious faith or sexual preference of the wishee.

By accepting these greetings, you are accepting the aforementioned terms as stated. This greeting is not subject to clarification or withdrawal. It is freely transferable with no alteration to the original greeting. It implies no promise by the wisher to actually implement any of the wishes for herself/himself/others, and is void where prohibited by law and is revocable at the sole discretion of the wisher.

This wish is warranted to perform as expected within the usual application of good tidings for a period of one year or until the issuance of a subsequent holiday greeting, whichever comes first, and warranty is limited to replacement of this wish or issuance of a new wish at the sole discretion of the wisher.

Jerry Longsworth
Director of Sales, Naknan, Inc.

PS. ;-)

A PR Campaign Spoof You'll Love

Check out this great viral campaign just launched by BigFix. This security configuration firm has a strong corporate value of telling the truth in a market where prospective customers are fed up with enterprise sales reps who will say anything to get their business.

Breaking News: Security Scandal
WASHINGTON - In a surprise move that is sending shockwaves through the close knit high-tech community, thousands of software sales professionals have been subpoenaed by the Software Truth Commission.

The Perfect Pitch - or is it?

The story below is excerpted from Sales Autopsy, by Dan Seidman. Unfortunately, I feel uniquely qualified to testify to its truthfulness. Also, check out the special promotion from 22 sales experts if you order Sales Autopsy today on Barnes & Noble today.

Jill's Presentation is Music, Except to Her Prospect's Ears
Jill was excited to start her sales career at Xerox - the big copier company had the best sales training in their industry and was known as an organization that gave great support to its reps.

There was this one particular rule that her manager enforced: Nobody goes on a sales call alone until they have MEMORIZED their presentation, word for word.

Viralizing Your Sales Message

How do you get your company's name out there when you're not a household name? What does it take to get your new product or service offering to stand out among the myriad competitors in the market place?

The answer? Create an online experience for your targeted customer that:

• Addresses their critical business issues.
• Ties it in to your offering.
• Makes them laugh.
• Encourages sharing.

Finally you wrap it up by contacting thought leaders who write blogs & newsletters read by your ideal customer.

That's exactly what Bob Conlin of Centive did! His company sells on-demand sales compensation management systems. (Now that's a mouthful!) They've created "a parody on the commission chaos between sales & finance" that's all too real.

You can enjoy their video clip at the same time you absorb their sales message. And, if you get a kick out of it too, make sure you forward it to your friends.

How to Sound Impressive - or Not?

Yesterday I found a cool website that you need to check out. The writers of Huh? have taken marketing speak to a whole new level. They've managed to craft an entire website out of the most overused words in the business lexicon. And then they poke fun at themselves - or is it us that they're poking fun at?

Here's a quote from their Solutions page:

Most consulting companies just provide regular marketing solutions. Not us. We provide groundbreaking solutions. Our marketing solutions are newer than anyone else's, and they sound better because we give them cool titles like "Global Awareness Paradigms," and "Market Consciousness Philosophies," and "Creative Product Re-development Support."

Doesn't that just warm your heart!  Check out huh? for a refresher on what not to say and for a good laugh. Warning: It's a bit over the top.

P.S. I'm in Malta today visiting my daughter who's going to school there. I'll be back in the office the first of May. My posts may be few and far between till I return.  Bon Voyage!

 

Are You Suffering from "Truthiness?"

Ever hear of the word "truthiness?" If not, just wait! It was voted the 2005 Word of the Year by the  American Dialect Society. This new word, which first appeared on the Colbert Report on the Comedy Channel means:

"The quality of preferring concepts or facts one wishes to be true, rather than concepts or facts known to be true."

As I read the definition, I immediately thought of Ron. When I was a sales manager, a number of my reps suffered from truthiness, but without a doubt he had the worst case.

Finding the Fun in Serious Sales Blunders

One of my favorite ezines is written by Dan Seidman. He collects sales horror stories and then does a post mortem on them. You can find a whole collection of them on his Sales Autopsy website.  I thought you might get a kick out of one this morning.

FLAT SALES: Gary's Manager Pumps Up Sales
I'm a poor rep for Pitney Bowes. I'm poor because I'm new at selling and today it really shows. I can't afford a classy briefcase so I have one of those really cheap vinyl ones. I mean really cheap, too. The wood frame was, like, balsa wood - the stuff kite frames are constructed with.

It was one of those days when you have to travel with your sales manager. He either doesn't trust you or he's training you or he's in my car, hiding from his boss.  So I'm poor and cheaply outfitted and nervous as well.

A Sales History Lesson

Here's a great story about sales legend Alfred Fuller. It's from a "Living & Learning" column written by Larry A. Crider who writes a weekly "think piece" for local newspapers and public radio stations.
---

One of the most interesting stories in the history of American business is the story of Alfred Carl Fuller.  Fuller, who grew up on a farm, headed for Boston in 1903 to make his way in the world.  With only $75 in his pocket, the unemployed 18-year-old moved in with his sister and her husband hoping to start a new life for himself that wouldn’t include farming.

A Title That's Not as Boss as It Looks

Over the past couple years I've written extensively on how difficult it is to find the right decision makers in big corporations. Patrick McGeehan, writer for the New York Times, stumbled across one of my articles last week and called me for an interview on the topic of "title inflation." Never being short for words, I did manage to put in my 2 cents. The article appeared yesterday in the Sunday edition.

Interested in reading it? You can check it out here: New York Times

You do have to register to read articles on their site, but it is free!