In the interest of Halloween and all things creepy and scary, here are four signs your sales team might be zombies. Sales teams can sometimes resemble zombies, driven by habit and lacking strategic thought. These “undead” behaviors slowly drain company profits and undermine customer relationships. Here are four warning signs of brain-hungry habits, along with strategies to counter them. 1. Sale Zombies Don’t Understand Their Customers Successful salespeople align products with customer needs. However, many lack knowledge about how customers make money, their internal costs, or key challenges like labor expenses and material waste. Without these insights, they fail to offer meaningful solutions, missing chances to collaborate with specialists and partners. 2. Sales Zombies Don’t Recognize the Value They Provide Sales growth and commissions are not the real value of a salesperson's work. Strong sellers provide valuable services but often misjudge their economic impact, giving away c...

Industrial Distribution Magazine has a fun short video feature that provides insight into the world of distribution. This is perfect for someone who doesn't have time to read lengthy articles.  Frank had the honor of being featured recently as he discussed the reasons behind his book, The New Sales Guy Project. Check out 5 Minutes with ID  HERE .

Since the launch of Industrial Supply Magazine nearly 14 years ago, I have had the privilege of authoring nearly 150 articles for their readers.   I love the publications because they serve the markets that I find most interesting.   I also know that many of my long-time friends read and find value in the messages contained on their pages.   Last year I was offered to host an ongoing column devoted to sales in our business and I accepted the new challenge.  Here is the good news, the bad news , and the great news . The good news – Quoting one of my heroes, Teddy Roosevelt, this column gives me a “Bully Pulpit” for talking about issues that I feel strongly about.  The Pulpit part implies preaching, which I promise to tone down.  But still, things like the sales process, getting paid for our knowledge, and fee-based services have been part of my lexicon since long before starting River Heights Consulting.  I guarantee I will constantly remind peo...

In early December, I was in Fort Worth Texas for a Distributor Advisory Council meeting.  My early flight landed me in town about six hours ahead of the meeting time.  Waiting for early check-in, I relaxed at the hotel cafe, while sipping coffee, checking emails, and prepping for my meeting.  I grew restless after about an hour as the sights of downtown Fort Worth beckoned me.  As I walked, I was drawn to the brass plaques and historical motif pictures near my art deco-style hotel.  The weather was a beautiful 60 degrees and there was an astonishing number of others out enjoying the day, so “people watching” was the order of the day. I approached a lovely square with a giant decorated Christmas tree.  The area was abuzz with folks making their way to the shops and offices dotting each of the streets coming into the area.  It was an interesting cityscape. Glancing down one of these side streets, something caught my attention.  Off in the distance,...

I recently attended the AHTD Spring Meeting.  I always enjoy these meetings.  They keep me up to date with the industry and always provide plenty of networking opportunities.  It's important to eat meals and have drinks with future friends (I've never met a stranger) to gain insight.  During an after-hours meeting one night, a brand-new sales manager asked me about keeping customers as prices continue to rise. I thought back to an article I wrote for IMARK Now Magazine.  Specifically, I addressed how distributors could find new customers and nurture their current customers.  I began the article with these half dozen thoughts I believe distributors everywhere should use to better focus their businesses:    Thought One:   Over the years, distributors have done a poor job of selecting their customers.  In many instances, it is the customer who selects the distributor for reasons often unknown to the distributor. Thought Two: The cost of br...

Over the past couple of weeks, I have spoken with several folks about best practices for a first-time sales call.  This group was more than just rookie sellers launching their careers.  It included a couple of experienced sellers, a sales manager doing a “sanity check” on his gut-level feelings, as well as a seller in an expansion territory.  Based on this phone traffic, I would guess many others are also wondering about first-time sales calls.  With this thought in mind, I decided to weigh in on the topic personally. Quoting one of these conversations, “Years ago my first boss insisted we all carry a line card and present it to every new customer or new contact at an existing customer.  The line card was his baby; printed on high-quality (and laminated) card stock.  He even made us practice presenting it through role-play exercises in his office.” This gentleman’s comment about his boss’ pride and devotion to the line card caused me to recall my early ...

Distributor owners know, without a doubt, that people are their biggest asset.  They are correct in that nearly 60 percent of all gross margin dollars go to paying employees, but that’s not what I have in mind.  People are important to salespeople and often the importance transcends a purely business relationship.  Long-term customers often become friends, allies, and occasionally future business partners.    Moving a person from a stranger to an important customer, business ally, or even a personal friend, is a time-consuming and difficult process.  Here is a rough and simplified outline: 1.      Identify the person who might have the ability to influence the purchase. 2.      Gather background information on this prospect. 3.      Determine the points/product features the prospect considers important. 4.      Provide information and answer questions to build credi...

Questions for New Year’s Resolutions It is the season for New Year’s Resolutions.  If you are like me, you have probably made a few of them.  But I am not going to make resolutions for you.  The truth is it would be impossible for me to do that.  Instead, let’s spend a few minutes tossing out some questions that might serve to guide your resolutions.   Since we all have a lot on our minds this time of year, I have broken these questions down by position.  This is the first of three posts, each designed for specific positions within the organization.   This one is for Distributor Leaders.   Distributor Leaders What is the state of the technology you are using? Can you easily: ·         Track purchases by salesperson? ·         Track purchases by the customer? ·         Track purchases by supply-partner? ·       ...