Chances are, when you think of the word “seller,” you hardly end up feeling warm and fuzzy. Go! I admitted it! You really don’t like salespeople, do you? Aren’t ALL just ___________ (fill in the blank)? Unfortunately for the business community, the sales professional is often viewed as an oxymoron. Why is this?
So when you think of salesperson, what is the first thing that comes to mind?
Unfortunately, many times what comes to mind is anything but comforting to your business or personal mindset.
Do you really understand what sellers do? Because you do not like them? Is it because it is easy? Is it because you burned one? Or is it just fun to do?
Are all the salespeople really in it just for the money? Are they really aggressive loners who will do anything for your money?
Isn’t this a negative representation of sellers? In other words … isn’t it just a stereotype? Are you not really doing the same (judging someone by title) that others do with the color of the skin or the clothes that people wear?
Unfortunately, when people don’t understand what salespeople are actually doing, they tend to overgeneralize and stereotype. Are you one of those people? Be honest.
Many would say that there should be a push to phase out ‘direct sellers’ from many different industries.
Sure, that makes sense! Move along! Especially if you don’t want to have open positions to place people, you don’t care if you get a paycheck or don’t need your company to pay any invoices.
What people are struggling with is the reality of seller competition. They wonder if the sellers are already relevant. They are also armed with the perception that there really are no professional salespeople. It is a pity that people think that way. But whose fault is it?
It’s the sales professional’s fault, of course!
Let’s face it … we’ve done a TERRIBLE job of explaining what we actually do for a living.
Many salespeople would say that there is a difference between a SALES STAFF and a SALES PROFESSIONAL. But what exactly is that difference, and where do you find a commonly accepted definition of it? Here’s a hint: it doesn’t really exist
Sure, there could be “bad apples” for sale. But there are “bad [insert occupation here]”also … to generalize to all people in an occupation as” bad apples “just by title is a fault and is a stereotype … plain and simple.
I would also say of the 5,000 salespeople I have personally spoken to and the thousands of members our organization has DEFINITELY DO NOT add to the image of a shady, oily salesperson who cares less about the buyer than the numbers.
If you’ve ever been burned by one of these guys, I am sorry on your behalf. In fact, if a salesperson has hurt you in your past, maybe you can share your story with me so I can discuss it as a case study when I lead training and guided discussions on sales ethics and the sales process.
With over 3,000 people in our organization, I have yet to find someone who was NOT humanly motivated to make a call, communicate the results or the next step, or even apologize when they get something wrong. Any salesperson who has done well in the field would actually avoid ‘not taking no for an answer’. Perhaps if you were to have lunch with one of them, you will find that they care more than you think.
Many people are passionate about public relations or marketing. For many, “it just feels better.” You may be surprised to find that occupations such as public relations or advertising are in the same marketing mix component (called placement) as the salespeople.
The promotional element of the marketing mix is made up of advertising, sales, sales promotion, and public relations. In other words, it is a subset of the marketing mix. Promotion is the communication function of the marketing mix, and the components of the marketing mix are used to provide information to the target buyer (or candidate). To be successful in promoting these groups, organizations use the promotion mix, which is made up of functions that are not tied to a specific product.
You may be surprised to find that you are actually closely related to a salesperson, not just in job title, but in responsibility and competition as well.
Everybody knows:
or the best salespeople are able to put themselves in the shoes of their customers and provide them with a solution that makes them happy.
o The best salesperson is the one the customer trusts and never has to question. The best salesperson is the one who knows that with each cold call that is made, they are closer to helping someone.
o The best salesperson is the one who gets immense satisfaction from the satisfaction that his customer gets.
o The best salesperson is the one who wakes up early every morning excited to come to the office, talk on the phone, and let people know exactly why they love their product, their job, and their customers.
It sounds very simple and there has not yet been a successful company that has survived with zero sales. So if selling is the most important job in a company, why is it so difficult to find someone to fit into an organization and stay there? Also, why do negative stereotypes exist?
It is because this simple job has not been defined too well.
In my book ‘Salesperson Improvement Models’, I thoroughly highlight the roles, competencies, and outcomes of salespeople. Below is a very brief summary.
See if you own any of these. For more information, you can download the free universal selling framework on how it all comes together called ‘Professional Sales Compendium’ on our website.
There are seven roles of highly competent salespeople
ROLE 1: ‘THE CUSTOMER-FOCUSED SOLUTION PROVIDER’
** Knowledge required for this role: —- Buyer knowledge —- Individual knowledge —- Environmental knowledge —- Customer market knowledge
** Skills required for this role: —- Expectations management ability
** Skills required for this role: —- Ability to understand where buyers are in the buying cycle
ROLE 2: ‘THE PERSUASIVE COMMUNICATOR’
** Skills required for this position: —- Communication management ability —- Opportunity management ability
** Knowledge required for this position: —- Business knowledge
** Necessary skills: —- Intrapreneurial skills, skills with Supervisors with Co-workers and with clients and people in general
ROLE 3: ‘THE FOCUSED CATALYST’
** Skills required for this role: —- Personal management skills
** Necessary skills: —- Purposeful ability —- Understanding needs —- Goals
** Knowledge required for this role: —- Knowledge of solutions
Role 4: ‘THE CONCERT FACILITATOR’
** Skills required for this role: —- Relationship management skills
** Knowledge required for this role: —- Personal knowledge
** Necessary skills: —- Emotional intelligence ability —- Social ability
Role 5: ‘The EFFECTIVE MANAGER’
** Skills required for this position: —- Technology Management Ability —- Sales Interaction Management Ability
** Knowledge required for this role: —- Technical knowledge
** Necessary skills: —- Procedural skill
Role 6: ‘THE VALUE-DRIVEN GUARDIAN’
** Necessary skills for this role: —- Ability to understand character and personality
** Knowledge required for this role: —- Ethics
** Necessary skills: —- Procedural skill
Role 7: ‘The STRATEGIC PLANNER’
** Skills required for this role: —- Priority management skill
** knowledge required for this role —- Strategic knowledge —- Competitive knowledge
I encourage all business professionals to take an internal look at themselves and what they are saying when they feel like throwing salespeople under a bus. I would also say that you need to know what you are talking about before making unprofessional comments about what salespeople do and the role they play, especially if you are in a position that is closely related to sales.
Finally, if you were to remove the word “salesperson” from this list, you would probably agree that it is a complicated and powerful list of competencies. Nowhere will you find the convergence of so many fields within one profession (purchasing, marketing, human resources, public relations, economics, finance, law, etc.). If you don’t believe me, spend a day with a salesperson on sales calls.
