Are You Promoting Yourself Or Your Prospects and Customers?
Written by Jan on December 18, 2007. Leave a Comment on this Post
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Not strictly sales tools related - but a reminder, nevertheless, that should hit home for all of us.
The guys over at 37signals, known for their Highrise Contact Manager (reviewed here) write a post about, what they call, self-promotion.
Seth Godin picks it up and comments - making the undeniable point that instead of self-promoting, the team of 37signals is actualy promoting products and tactics that benefit the person to whom they’re reaching out instead. “You-Promotion” is what Seth calls it.
It immediately made me think of Bill Caskey, who in his sales consulting approach (sales podcast here) often refers to the “Inner Game” - a salesperson’s true intent, someone’s genuine objective.
As a salesperson, are you pushing your product and countering these pesky objections that stand between you and the deal? Or are you truly focused on solving a customer’s problem - even if that involves walking away from a deal and perhaps even recommending someone else.
When push comes to shove, what is most important? Your own need to make plan, supported by the tricks and techniques that help you get there - or your genuine desire to solve your customer’s problem?
High intent and an honest inner game always win. Prospects feel it. Customers see it. And you should focus on it.
Being absolutely new on this site, I am trying to read as much posts as possible, and this one I have problem understanding. Do you really say that the “honnest inner game” is the ultimate tool for a long-term win with the customer? How many greateful customers you know? Working already in four different countries and handling more than 500 different customers in different industries, I still did not encounter a single customer recognising this “honnesty” in an honest way but rather as a quick solver of current issue.
You can be sure that handling my sales team I am forcing the “honnest” approach, but to the point where actually our company interests come into the game, and “honnesty” should lead to and be concluded by mutualy benefitial business.
Response to Dimitrije:
Yes, you have to protect yourself in the honesty game. But I suggest you think about your true inner game…it’s not just about honest…it’s about helping the customer determine if he has a problem you can fix. It’s not about being nice (although you can be). It’s about having a sales process that has integrity–meaning, the ‘orientation’of it is about helping people solve problems.
I’m tough on prospects. I expect a lot from them. I want them to sell me on why they are open or in pain. I don’t tolerate wishy washy language. If they have no problem, then I can move on.
You can have a strong inner game…AND be discerning about who you work with. Thanks for the post.
Bill Caskey
Thanks for your quick reply to my comment, I think that I understood the idea behind your reply. Therefore we are talking about determining if there is a problem in the overall functioning of the relationship and/or if the problem is preventing our joint development (and where I come from we are talking about over-proportionate development), and by simply solving this issue, or even if necessary, proposing somebody else for solving the issue in question, we create the further potentials for yourself towards that specific customer.
Hm, when I think again about what I just wrote, this sounds like a game of chess: sacrifice one figure if it will enable you to win the match.