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155: You Don't Want Sales

155: You Don't Want Sales

FromThe Leadership Japan Series


155: You Don't Want Sales

FromThe Leadership Japan Series

ratings:
Length:
13 minutes
Released:
Jun 15, 2016
Format:
Podcast episode

Description

You Don’t Want Sales   Clever, shallow, smooth as silk, glib, “rat with a gold tooth” salespeople are the scourge of the earth. They are focused on your money and how quickly they can separate you from it. There are no barriers to entry or qualifications to enter this field of work. Riff raff need not apply but they do. Some will tell you anything, they live for today and like a shark, are constantly moving in order to feed. Snake oil purveyors to the naïve and trusting.   So, how do honest salespeople get anywhere when the image of the profession is so negative. Movies like The Wolf of Wall Street, Boiler Room, people like Bernie Madoff, etc. - it goes on and on convincing us that we are permanently potential victims of scammers, charlatans and confidence men.   By the way, we are all in sales today. You might be in one of the “professions” but you are no longer above the fray. Lawyers are competing for clients just as voraciously as dentists, architects, engineers, doctors and everyone else who spent years slogging through varsity. The title might be vague, such as the popular “business development”, but the activity is the same, just without the skills.   The key point to differentiate yourself from the carnival barker, pond scum is to stop focusing on sales. Instead focus on the re-order. This mental shift is fundamental. A sale can be a one time thing, a transient satisfaction of a temporary itch. In some cases that may be all that is needed. This is the hard road of sales though – constantly prospecting to find new clients, having a pipeline that is razor thin and precariously teetering between feast and famine. Not recommended.   The re-order concept is totally relationship based and is linked to the idea of the lifetime value of the buyer. There is a degree of trust that brings the business to you, without you having to go and hunt it down. Clients want to work with you because they feel safe and secure. They know the value you provide and they know your word is your bond. Sometimes, it may be a long time between drinks before the follow up order appears, but it will eventually appear. In this profession of sales, we all know the client is never on your schedule.   So what is the key to gaining the trust and providing the value? I believe the concept of kokorogamae (心構え) or “true intentions” is the key. This is a Japanese mental outlook which appears in many traditional activities - calligraphy, flower arrangement, tea ceremony, martial arts, etc. I discovered kokorogamae through my study of traditional Japanese karate-do – the Way of Karate. In business, your true intention is to be a partner in achieving the client’s success, on the basis that the more successful they become, the more goods or services you will need to provide them, as they grow and expand their operation.   If your true intention is to build trust, then there will be no attempt to snow the client at the first meeting, to lure them into a false sense of security. Instead you will tell the client what you do, who else you have done it for and some evidence about the results achieved for them. Evidence not bombast is a constant theme in your client conversations. Fast talking salespeople invariably are an evidence free zone.   You will bring insights you have gathered, that spark those client “we hadn’t thought of that” moments. You don’t string together a bunch of statements and claims about your widget’s features. Rather you ask questions enabling you to best analyse whether you in fact have a suitable solution or not, for the client’s issue. If you don’t have it, you say so immediately - you don’t prevaricate or equivocate. If you can’t be of service to this client, then your job is to go find someone else you can serve.   Your questioning skills are such that the client feels safe in the knowledge that your really understand what their business needs. Most salespeople are poor listeners, but clients really want to know you have heard them, rather t
Released:
Jun 15, 2016
Format:
Podcast episode

Titles in the series (100)

Leading in Japan is distinct and different from other countries. The language, culture and size of the economy make sure of that. We can learn by trial and error or we can draw on real world practical experience and save ourselves a lot of friction, wear and tear. This podcasts offers hundreds of episodes packed with value, insights and perspectives on leading here. The only other podcast on Japan which can match the depth and breadth of this Leadership Japan Series podcast is the Japan's Top Business interviews podcast.