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by Mike Scher, President and Co-founder of FRONTLINE Selling

There is an old saying “everybody talks about the weather but nobody ever does anything about it.”  The same goes for the economy.  We hear so much talk about how tough things are and how hard it is to sell in this economy, but no one seems to want to do anything about it. 

Well, I have some advice for all those who are complaining about how tough it is out there:
 “STOP YOUR WHINING!”  Sure, the economy is tough, but it is not non-existent.  People are still buying things, they are just more discerning about what they buy, how much they buy and from whom they buy it.  On the business to business side, budgets may be frozen or cut, but generally by percentage points.  After all, these businesses still need to operate and still need to increase productivity, sales, efficiencies etc. and need your solutions to in order to do so.

If your company sells a technology solution that is part of a $2 billion marketplace and IT spending is being cut by 5% (which is a huge cut), doesn’t that mean the marketplace is still $1.9 Billion?  Are you telling me you don’t believe you are good enough to out-market or out-sell the weakest 5%? 

We have enjoyed relatively unimpeded growth since for the past 20 plus years.  During a growth cycle, sales people and marketers look like geniuses, and for sure, there are some that are.  But the reality is that a robust economy does a great job in masking mediocrity.  If you are a sales or marketing executive, it IS tougher out there, but so what?  It’s not impossible.  It just means you have to work a little harder and a lot smarter then you used to.

What does it mean to work harder and smarter?  Well, it means sales and marketing must work together more effectively.  They need to communicate better and have a better understanding of each other’s strengths and weaknesses.  Sales and marketing executives need to have an ultra practical view of their solution offering and their marketplace -- most importantly, what it really takes to sell effectively.  In short, they need to develop and take seriously a co-dependant level of accountability. 

For Sales people that means “drive by selling” cannot be tolerated.  Showing up on a sales call and expecting the prospect to hand you an order is no longer acceptable.  You need to actually sell and not take orders.  That means everything from using prospecting methods that are proven to work to fighting harder for budget dollars to actually demonstrating business value AND becoming more diligent about managing and controlling the sales process.  You need to do the little things (such as extra prep for an appointment or being that much more diligent in the sales process) necessary to identify and win more opportunities.

Marketers, on the other hand, can no longer be measured on somewhat useless metrics like cost per lead or number of leads.  You need to plan and conduct your marketing efforts on an accurate perception of reality versus what you “think” or “hope” will happen.  Too often, marketers base their campaigns on what THEY believe to be logical; however, it doesn’t work that way in the real world.  Just because you write a value proposition doesn’t give you the right to have it resonate.  Just because you run an e-mail campaign or telemarketing program with a call to action doesn’t mean it will be heeded.  If you write a white paper, don’t assume it will be comprehended. 

Don’t get me wrong, you need to run programs, but this is no time for trial and error.  This is no time for chest pounding and saying “look at all the leads I produced, I did my job”.  You need to understand what your organization is trying to accomplish and run programs that have the right people doing the right things at the right time.  Ask yourself, “Do I need to find leads?”  Or “Are there not enough leads out there and maybe I need to create demand instead?”  “What’s the most effective way to reach my target audience and how do I validate that?” “Is my value proposition resonating?”  “Do I have the right message?” “Is this the right market?” “How effective are my messengers?”

No doubt, it is a tough climate out there.  One thing is for sure, you are not going to make progress by doing the same old things and expecting different results.  The choice is yours. You can complain about the economy all you want, or you can get serious about selling and resolve yourself to do things more effectively.  I hope you choose the latter.

About the Author: Mike Scher is President and Co-founder of FRONTLINE Selling.  FRONTLINE Selling has developed a Demand Creation System (DCS) to help firms become more effective at building sales pipeline by identifying, accessing and engaging with targeted executives at higher, more strategic levels.  The DCS is a repeatable, measurable and predictable approach to opportunity identification that combines state-of-the-art processes, methodologies and technologies.  Organizations of all sizes, including Microsoft, Oracle, Blackberry/RIM, CA and others utilize FRONTLINE’s Demand Creation System as either an outsourced service or as an in-house approach to penetrating net-new accounts.   For more information, visit www.frontlineselling.com or contact the company at 1.877.726.7871.

Executive Thought Leadership Forum on
Demand Creation Strategies
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
8:00 AM - 12:00 Noon (Continental Breakfast included)
Doubletree Suites Waltham (550 Winter St., Waltham, MA)
  
                           

AeA Members:  Complimentary;  Non-members:  Complimentary 
(Continental Breakfast Included)
Please Note: You must be registered in advance to attend this program.  Confirmation and  directions will be sent after registration is received.

This page was last updated on 02/12/09.  
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