Today, more than ever, the need for an unvarnished look at customer opinions is of unparalleled importance. Sounds like hype? It’s not.  Here are a dozen reasons why: 1. We are in the midst of a massive generational shift. Millennials come to the workplace with a much different mindset than your customers of old. What’s more, they are finding their way into leadership positions and their buying power is steadily increasing. They are impatient for change. They question the way things are done. As digital natives, Millennials are more than ready to toss your sales team aside and move onward to another supplier. 2. The choices of communications with customers have gone from phone and fax to a thousand options. Chats on social media, instant messaging on your website, text messages, and new options in development are quicker and easier for your customers. Each customer contact will do business with the organization that matches their preferred method of contact. Do...

Most distributor salespeople identify themselves as solution sellers.  Yet, experience dictates only a few dedicate the time and resources to truly comprehend the drivers behind customer decisions.  When questioned, most struggle to understand customer issues outside of their own products.   Truth is, their version of solution selling is mostly service and support wrapped around the technologies they sell.  While this wrapping of service and support probably does justify the “solution seller” mantra, I believe we, as sellers, will soon be obsolete if we don’t move our attention to providing solutions which push beyond supporting our line card.  Many agree with this opinion, but just don’t know how to get started. For years, I have advocated for distributor sales professionals reading the trade publications covering their customer’s industry.  Because so many of our readers are actively calling on manufacturing facilities, I thought I would shar...