Focus On Goals in a Tough Economy

>> Gayhart: Hi, my name is Gayhart Schwan assumed spelling and welcome to Selling Power TV. Today we have the pleasure of meeting

with Howard Stevens assumed spelling he is the Founder and CEO of HR Alley, welcome Howard.

>> Howard: Thank you my friend.

>> Gayhart: Howard, in this tough economy what is your advice to sales managers on how to clean house and get back to basics and create

a more professional effective sales organization?

>> Howard: I think one of the first things to recognize is what is the definition of professional. One good opportunity you have and

clean house is a little threatening term maybe get more focused and get targeted would be a better way to express it, but in desperate

times it's easier to make significant changes and certainly everybody's focus and attention is on that. So I think the first issue

you look at is what are the biggest holes in your process, so I'm gonna strongly recommend taking a total quality management approach,

which is not to look for homeruns but to look for at places you're striking out that's where you're wasting your effort, that's where

you're losing your games and that's where you're putting in poor investment. Some of that is gonna be in people that are either

ill-suited for the job or in the wrong job or ill-trained and certainly you've got to address that. But more likely the processes

you have have gotten weak you really haven't reinforced them you haven't done the discipline to make sure a lead is qualified. But

the biggest area I think is to look at your existing customers, get serious about finding out what their needs are and what you're

doing for them and if you redouble your efforts to really provide value and add additional benefits and up-sell, if you will, to your

own customers in a way that really adds to their bottom line you're gonna make a homerun. The last issue is to recognize that in an

emergency people don't look for a lesser price they look for lesser risk. So really what we're talking about rather than do the easy

thing and cut price to see if you can get more leads and more business is to present a safer option and a safer opportunity. And most

customers would prefer to pay more for a guarantee or for some confidence levels that you're really gonna deliver extra work. I wouldn't

even be against actually offering a guarantee of some kind and it may just be a psychological guarantee as opposed to a financial

or legal document.

>> Gayhart: Howard, when you have a nervous salesperson and a nervous customer and get them together they both operate in a climate where

they don't make good decisions, so how do you remove that anxiety, what advice do you have for the salesperson to go in even though

it's raining out there, there is a ray of sunshine in that conversation?

>> Howard: I think you change the focus right off the bat and recognize that. And it's -- Gayhart I know really times are tough for you

now. With rather than talk about selling or anything else you've been a long-term customer we've got a good relationship let's talk

about what else we might do even if we don't charge you we're in this together. Long-term you become a good partner for us as a customer

if you survive so I'm committed first to you surviving and you doing well because long-term I'm not gonna do well if you're not my

customer, so let's start on that basis. Tell me about the things that are really the problems right now, let me see which things that

we can help you ourselves or maybe that we know someone that can help you and begin to switch my side of the desk to your side of the

desk and let's look at this big monster coming at us together.

>> Gayhart: So your advice is be confident, lay the cards on the table, get the customer engaged in a co-creation process, and move

all the levels that you can in order to retain and hopefully gain more business from the customer.

>> Howard: Yeah, I think the bottom line is in times of emergency is the time to think long-term not short-term. Your kid is sick

it's not the time to worry about whether they pass the test tomorrow.

>> Gayhart: Right, right.

>> Howard: It's time to worry about how do we get healthy together.

>> Gayhart: Thank you Howard we're going to continue our conversation with Howard Stevens tomorrow where we talk one more time about

how to sell yourself out of this recession.