Relationship, Relationship, & Relationship – It’s all in the “Channel”

Channel sales is an interesting topic.  Having been in “The Channel” in various sales & senior management roles for more than 23 years, I’ve seen a lot. 

The same trade shows years after year, some changing names, several times.  Same cities, same hotels.  How many times have you been to Caesar’s in Vegas?  Or the Venetian?  Remember Jay Leno performing at Comptel?  Magic Johnson speaking at Embarq?  (one of my favorites) How about all the logo changes you see on the polo shirts of our Channel peers?  

Seems like every year we’re saying:

 “Hey John, I didn’t know you left Company xxx?”.

   

“Dave, I’ve been with Company yyy now for 6 months.  Greatest place I’ve ever worked!  Here’s my new card”

All too familiar, right?

But one thing never changes in the “Channel”.  The simple fact that agent partners buy on relationships - not product, price, commission, or bonus.  (OK, maybe a few buy on commission & bonus).  That’s the main reason we work in the “Channel” vs working in “Direct Sales”.  Relationship is what wins business in the Channel.

My partners have customers they’ve worked with for more than 20 years.  A direct sales rep stands no chance of penetrating that customer because the partner has the relationship.  It’s just another example of people buying from people.  It takes a different kind of sales professional to understand how Channel sales works and then thrive at it. 

The days of convincing a partner to use your product simply because it’s a great product are mostly gone.  Too many companies these days have the same products.  Now if the partner (or often times, a friend or master agent of that partner) has known the Channel Manager for years, the odds of the partner listening to the new product pitch are greatly enhanced.  One thing I’ve learned over my 2+ decades working in the “Channel” is that I’ve made a lot of good friends all over the country at a lot of companies.  I do most of my business with the people I’ve had the longest relationships with.  I learned a long time ago from a gentleman I owe most of my success to, that the only way to be successful in the “Channel” and last your entire career, is to build a solid reputation as an honest & responsive sales resource for your partner.  I’ve done my best to follow that advice.

If someone calls, answer the phone.  If you miss their call, call them back.  Not “within 24 hours because that’s your company rule” but rather call them as soon as you’re free.  Maybe it’s on your commute home or before you run out to dinner.  If you see their email on Sunday, return it.  Trust me, it goes a long way in building the relationship.  Channel sales is 24 x 7 x 365.  Or as close to that as you can come.

I recently sat through a seminar with one of the nation’s largest Masters, reviewing some Q&A they had done with their partners.  You know what their #1 issue is in a Channel Manager?

             #1.       RESPONSIVENESS

Not price, not commission, not SPIFF but Responsiveness.  That says a lot about what a partner thinks is important and I agree.

And remember, you may not always have the ideal product for a customer, so if your product doesn’t fit and you know it, tell your partner.  If you’re my partner and you know my product isn’t the best fit, tell me.  I’d rather hear “No, doesn’t work on this one Dave.  We’ll try again on the next one” than spend cycles on something I’ll never sign

It’s all relationship in the Channel.  The more we all work on it and understand it, the more money we’ll all make.  And along with all the friends and the Vegas trips, money plays a little role in it too!

Happy Selling…

Dial Up Your Sales Efforts

Tired of endless Prospecting without Results?

Hundreds of thousands of people try and fail at sales every year. Ever wonder why?

Some people are just born sales professionals.  Most have to learn the trade and work hard every day learning new techniques.  With today’s social media, there’s plenty of material to choose from when looking to expand your knowledge and understand what has made others successful.

Here’s my 2 cents for this week…..

There’s really 4 phases to sales, regardless of product line:

1.       Prospecting

2.       Discovery

3.       Presenting

4.       Closing

I’m going to focus on #1…Prospecting.

Prospecting is merely finding people or businesses to sell your product to.  It involves deciding who is the proper contact and how to best engage them.  In my 25+ years of sales, I’ve learned many techniques to open doors.  Regardless of the methods you choose, one thing remains constant:  You MUST develop and stick to a consistent outreach plan.

Most sales take multiple contacts before a prospect will listen to your offer.  I have had the best success in the last 5 years using a combination of electronic messaging (includes email, Twitter messages, Linkedin inmails, and videos) and the old fashioned phone call, spread out over a 2 week outreach period.

My style has been electronic message of some type (your choice, email or Linkedin) on Day #1.  Day #2 involves a live phone call, including leaving your name and general message (practice your pitch!) if you get voicemail.  I often use Day #3 as on “off day” with no contact.  Day #4 is another phone call, with no message if I get Voicemail.  (Everyone has Caller ID so you get your message across without actually leaving one.)  Day #5 ends the first week with a different form of electronic message.  If you emailed the 1^st time, try Linkedin the 2^nd.

During week 2, I will try the more "social media" style contacts.  I have had great success using Twitter.  Many professionals will not have their work email on their phones, but will get a notice if they receive a Twitter message.  Twitter is an underused ace in the hole.  Since it is so rarely used in business, people find it differentiates you from the crowd.  It is my favorite technique.

The next few days can be designed however you feel most comfortable, combining all the mentioned contact techniques in a pattern.  Try mixing it up, and see what works best for you.

After two weeks of attempts, I’ll put the prospect into a follow up stage, giving them a break for 2-3 weeks before starting another round of communications.  It is not uncommon for me to go through 4-5 rounds of outreach before I am able to actually engage a prospect.  Persistence pays in sales.  That is a common trait in all successful sales professionals.

There is no golden rule that guarantees a prospect will talk with you, but following a designed outreach plan can help increase the odds of engagement for you.

Happy Selling!

What's Your Average Sales Cycle?

What’s your average Sales Cycle?

90 Days?  120 days? 180 Days?  Longer?  Really depends on your industry.   In the telecommunications arena where I have spent my career, the transition to internet based voice and cloud based data has pushed us towards the 180 day mark.

Accepting the fact that the sales cycle is this long is your first step to making the timeframe work for you.  Once you have resigned yourself that the customer’s new service will take 6 months to get installed, the next question becomes “How do I get paid for my efforts?”  Six months is a long time without a paycheck.

We all know the sales manager pitch “Keep your funnel full and deals will close each month.  Anything less is not enough activity”.  I guess that’s partially true but in some sections of the telecom industry, there is far too much background work required for a sales professional to keep up the level of activity to have a large deal close every month.

Working in the Channel, my focus has been on agent sales for the last 25 years.  An agent often sells many products, offered by many different suppliers.  Managing all the different offerings, timelines, quoting processes, order paperwork, etc. can be daunting.

Independent sales agents work hard, leveraging personal relationships, business relationships, referrals, past job connections, industry peers, and other various prospecting techniques to find a new customer.   Add in the face to face meeting with the prospect, the info gathering effort, design work across multiple suppliers, presentations, decision making time, contract review, provisioning, installation, cutover, and customer training, time is at a premium for the agents prospecting efforts.  I know very few agents who can manage all of these needs well enough to close a large deal every month to sustain their income.

So how do the successful agents keep consistent revenue growth coming into their agency?  The #1 technique involves shortening the sales cycle and getting commissionable products on board immediately.

I have developed a highly successful technique to provide a “Roadmap to New Technologies” and give the independent agent an opportunity to have commissionable services installed within 14 days, and commissions in the bank within 30 days. 

Using my company’s network services, we provide our agents the opportunity to turn a prospect into a revenue producing customer without interfering in the long term solution.  In fact, we make the transition easier, providing a clean, electronic inventory on all current services, in one concise invoice, available on a state of the art web portal.  All with $0 cost to convert, and no term or volume commitment to sign.  When your new solution is ready to cut over, simply send me an email and let me know which services to disconnect.

One of the key advantages we can give you is building credibility with your new customer.  Rarely are you the only bidder on a project, but using my services allow you the opportunity to show a client what your agency is able to deliver, while others are talking solutions that won’t be installed for 6 months.  You’ve cleaned up their inventory, consolidated their billing, and typically saved them some money while doing so.  All without requiring a contract!  My solution is delivered on a month to month basis.  Best guess is you’ll be the only sales professional in the bidding with this advantage in your sales kit.  And we'll pay you for it!

This approach has allowed my agents to gain a 30% growth in commissions from my company over the last 12 months and it shows no sign of slowing down.

I‘m happy to share more information on how you can take advantage of this technique and see more commissions flowing into your bank account within 30 days.

Drop me a note at dave@davehanron.com or on Twitter at “@DaveHanron”

Product or Technique? The "Roadmap to Success"

In the world of Channel sales, just about every independent sales Agent operates with multiple products in their sales kit.  Regardless of your industry, the product set will typically range from entry level services to the most cutting edge technology available, paired with everything in between.

So how does the Channel Sales executive convince the Agent to sell their product over someone else's?

A lot of factors can play a role in this decision.  Let’s examine a few…

1.       Residual Income – just as in direct sales, the amount of commission to be made in the comp. plan will drive what the Agent sells on a regular basis.  If the Agent makes 20% residual on Widget A and 7% on Widget B, he/she is going to sell Widget A whenever possible.  Simple 

2.       Support – Support from the Channel team also plays a critical role in the Agent’s decision on who’s product  to sell on a regular basis.  If the sales support on Widget A is better than that received on Widget B, easy decision.  It becomes complicated when Widget B provides exceptional support while the sales team support on Widget A is less reliable or even non-existent. The extra sales support makes Widget B easier to sell, and becomes a viable option as you should close more sales with Widget B, offsetting the lower residiual number vs. Widget A.

3.       Customer first – We hope every Agent sells with the best interest of their customers in mind but we know that is not necessarily the case.  Many times the products are driven by Factor #1 (residual Income) rather than customer needs.  It’s unfortunate, but it’s reality.

4.       Training – the amount of training provided by a Channel team can be critical in persuading an Agent to choose one supplier over another.  If you take the time to visit your agents, train them on the latest product offering your company has, and arm them with customer success stories and references, it helps build confidence in your business model and will drive more opportunities your way.

So with all these factors plus many more in play, is it best to confront the factors head-on or try another proven method to drive business?

IMO, accepting the fact that your Agents are going to sell other companies’ (even your competition) products is the first step to being successful in the Channel.  Trying to convince them to do otherwise simply doesn't work.  Once you understand the model, how you adapt your business model to the competition is critical.  

I have found developing a “Road map to Success” by using your product and illustrating how the Agent can add your product line to every potential sales opportunity they come across is the quickest and easiest way to grow business with your Agents.  By developing and training your Agents on a technique to put your offering in front of every prospect, you will see more interaction and more sales revenues.  The key is to differentiate your product by highlighting your advantages over your competition and illustrating why only your product will fit the “Roadmap to Success”, close sales quickly, and make more money.

To learn more about my “Road map to Success” and how I have successfully driven more business by integrating a “Road map” approach, drop me a note at dave@davehanron.com.  Happy to share my thoughts. 

Have a great “Road map” in place already? I'd enjoy sharing your comments with my readers

Phone calls? Emails? On site visits?

A lot has been said about sales prospecting techniques over the years and what works and doesn’t work…..

Sales Cold Call?

Having worked in sales for more than 25 years, both in front line sales and executive roles, I have my own personal opinions on what works best and what is really a waste of time.   But I’m not here to give my two cents worth, because I’m a strong advocate that everyone’s sales technique will be different.  And you should do what brings success to YOU, not what someone who says they are an expert in sales is telling you to do.  I liken it to a baseball player…..some players can hit a fastball better than a curve, and other players are vice versa.  But both players can end up being Hall of Famers.

What doesn’t change is what’s important…having a meaningful conversation with a decision maker.  So how do we accomplish that?

Do you prefer email?

There a 3 main goals to accomplish when prospecting a new client. 

•      Be Brief – no one likes to read a long email or listen to a long drawn out message 
•      Do your homework – have some direct knowledge of the business or person you are reaching out    to….it shows you’ve taken the time to do research
•      Bring Value – it’s wonderful you have a great product, but that doesn’t mean someone is going to buy it. Turn it around to show how you bring value or cash flow to your prospect

“Sales” is a profession and it takes a professional to succeed at it.  Sales rarely come on the first contact with any prospect, and often don’t close until the 5^th, 6^th, or even 10^th contact with the customer.  Bottom line is you have to be creative and find ways to stay engaged with your prospect even when you don’t have a meeting or call scheduled.   It is here where the “Email, phone call, & site visit” come into play.  All great ways to stay in front of the customer.  Another easy, yet often overlooked method is social media.   

Here's a tip that works great for me.....Many companies maintain blogs today and even if your prospect isn’t the writer of his company blog, you can be sure they follow it and would see a comment on it if you were to make one.  I have personally had great success with this method over the years.

Don’t overlook Linkedin.  Send an invite to your prospect after a couple contacts; I wouldn’t recommend sending it too early in the process.  Too presumptive for me….

ALWAYS Follow Up!

 Don’t give up!  ......Often it takes me 2 or even 3 cycles of 6 to 7 unanswered contacts to finally get in front of a prospect.  If they don’t answer you in your first go around, push a follow up out 4 months and try another cycle of contacts.  If that doesn’t work, push it out another 6 months and try again.  Using a CRM tool will help you keep your schedule on track.  Salesforce, Outlook, ACT!, and any one of a number of more systems will do a nice job.

Remember my earlier baseball reference?…..My favorite quote that I post in my office to remind me to follow up, follow up, and then follow up some more:

 “ It’s hard to beat a person who never gives up”  -- Babe Ruth

Let me know how you run your sales business?  I try to learn a new technique every day….you should too

What Makes a Good Vendor?

Having worked in Channel Sales for 20+ years, I have had many varied experiences with my Channel Partners.  I have seen people produce many, many thousands of dollars in sales, consistently year after year and make tons of money with my programs.  I have also seen the opposite end of the scale, Channel Partners who sign a marketing agreement and either never produce a single sale, or close but a few sales over the years.

So what is it in a Channel Sales group that drives an “Independent Sales Agent” to use one supplier over another?  I have my ideas which I try to run with faithfully with my team of Agents, but I’m really curious what you think?

The most important item I have found over the years, required to even get an Agent on board, is a good, meaningful Product.  Without a marketable product, there’s no reason to sign an agency agreement in the first place.  So let’s assume for this discussion we have a great product…….

A good Channel Team will drive more sales

After product, IMO, Responsiveness is the next most important reason to choose one supplier over another.  If an Agent sends in a quote request, and has it returned within the same day, they have a  GREAT Supplier to work with.  As the time to return a quote extends itself, it exponentially reduces the opportunity to close a sale.  I’ve heard of sales agents waiting days to get sales quotes, only to be told when they do present it to the customer, the prospect has already selected another vendor and has an install date scheduled……..ouch!

(As this is my #1 important trait, for the record, my team at Granite Telecom turns simple, non-complex quotes around in 24 hours or less)

Relationship is a vital cog in any partnership.  I try to be as involved in my agents sales efforts as possible and do my best to contact them at a minimum, once every 3 weeks by phone or email, with in person visits every 6 months.  Covering the entire United States and Canada, visiting even this often is a challenge.  For more regional reps, a monthly stop by would be great to cultivate the relationship with your Channel Partner.

Customer Experience or Service runs a close 4^th.  If your company can provide a top notch customer experience to the sales agent’s customers, you’ll have a better retention rate, meaning long term residuals, which is the name of the game in agency sales.

I have loads of other components I think fit in somewhere, just not sure where to list them?  There’s “financial stability of your company”, “price”, “sales ability”, “promotions”, “SPIF’s”, “commissions”, “flexibility” and many more……

I’d enjoy hearing your thoughts on how these components line up when you’re choosing a supplier…..maybe all of my fellow Channel Managers can learn a thing or two from our sales agents?

How Long Should You Wait on Hold?

How Long Should You Wait on Hold?

I hear the comments every day…..”You won’t believe what happened to me yesterday!”   …. “I waited almost 40 minutes to get through” ….”You’d think they’d hire more people to answer the phones”….” I can’t believe I waited that long only to get transferred”…”That’s the last time. I’m moving my business”.....… and so on.

Hold times can last up to 13 minutes

 

Granted, working in the communications industry, I might be exposed to more of the complaints than the average worker but it is certainly a sore spot when someone has a poor experience with a company’s customer service organization.

We’ve all made that dreaded call during our lunch hour to try and ask a question about something, maybe your cell phone, your cable bill, insurance bill, or even in the worst cases, the calls to file for unemployment benefits or Cobra insurance coverage.  I personally have had loads of these experiences, with some hold times exceeding an hour.  And that is FRUSTRATING.

Take a look at a couple of these examples of hold times from CBC News…..

      1.   Continental Airlines, 13 minutes
2. Air Canada, 10 minutes
3. IRS (Personal), 9 minutes
4. Amtrak, 9 minutes
5. AT&T Customer Service (General), 8 minutes
6. Delta Air Lines, 7 minutes
7. Southwest Airlines, 7 minutes
8. JetBlue Airways, 6 minutes
9. ACE Hardware, 6 minutes
10. AARP Healthcare, 5 minutes

Shocking, huh?  Not really.  I actually would argue that the time to get a resolution is actually longer.  How many times do you get transferred and put back into the queue?  Something to think about?

We each have tolerances in our business in order to balance operating costs with customer satisfaction.  The discussion here is what level of hold time are you willing to accept before you start losing customers?  And as hold time goes up, you WILL LOSE customers.  That’s a fact.

I have seen many statistics pop up over the years to measure hold time. “ATA” or “Average Time of Answer”, “AHT” or “Average Hold Time”, “TIQ” or “Time in Queue” are just a few that come to mind.  I actually use this statistic as a major selling point.  My feeling is providing a service with little or no hold time presents a professional solution and portrays a service orientated company.  If the operations of a firm are designed around short hold times, it means the company cares about its customers and will go to any means necessary to deliver a first class customer experience.  This is the type of company where I want my business to go.

Where do you put your business and why?  Do you think hold time affects customer retention rates?  Let’s find out what we all think…….

…….And just for the record, my company, Granite Telecommunications, answers all  customer service calls with a live person on average in less than 8 seconds 24x7x365……..