Customer Centered Selling: Sales Techniques for a New World Economy - Softcover

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Robert L. Jolles is a master corporate trainer and one of the most sought after business speakers in the country. His programs and twenty plus years of delivery have allowed him to amass a client list that reads like a Who’s Who of Fortune 500 Companies. He not only successfully sold for two of the most respected sales institutions in the nation, New York Life & Xerox; he was instrumental in creating, delivering, and managing Xerox Corporation’s highly touted customer sales training programs. A published author of three bestselling books, and President of Jolles Associates, Inc., his programs teach you the lessons taught by Xerox to their sales force and customers. These programs have allowed him to amass a client list that reads like a Who’s Who of Fortune 500 companies. He lives in Great Falls, Virginia.

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Chapter 1

THE SELLING DILEMMA

I didn't want a big play once in a while, I wanted a solid play every time.

John Madden

There is a dilemma that exists within selling, and it has been around for some time. On the one hand, as I will explain within this chapter, salespeople are a dire necessity to many within our society. Unfortunately, however, it has become fashionable to attack those who choose selling as a careen The problems within selling have been accentuated by the many advances in technology and the perceived need to transfer that knowledge to the customer. This in turn has made many salespeople fit the stereotypical mold the public has held for so long of a profession they know little about: "Salespeople talk, but they don't listen."

I had been mildly aware of this problem but did not pay much attention to it. Then one day while I was shopping in the local mall with my family, a chance meeting with an old friend made me sit up and see the dilemma for what it is.

It was a cold winter's day, and we were looking to get warm, while killing some time and keeping our kids from climbing the walls. The moment we arrived at the mall, I learned that we were not the first to come up with this idea, but we nevertheless marched onward to the toy store. While our kids were playing with the floor items, my wife and I milled around with other parents, keeping one eye on the time and the other on our kids. A friend from college whom I had not seen for many years walked up and offered a warm hello. We feverishly went about catching up on each other's lives. Children were pointed out, wives introduced, houses and mutual friends discussed. Finally I asked my friend what he was doing professionally. The family seemed well dressed, and the stroller their child was in was top quality. He seemed to be doing well. Strangely enough, when I first asked him what he was doing, I could not make out his response. I asked again, and he began to explain.

"I work with people finding solutions to various situations within their organizations," he replied.

I scratched my head trying to figure out what he meant, then asked, "What does that mean exactly?"

This time, a little bit nervously, he responded, "I assist computer users in understanding their needs and recommend products to address these needs."

Well, some would take the hint and drop the topic right there, but I didn't. I could tell he was doing well, so why wouldn't he tell me what he did? I could not believe it would be illegal. Not this guy. So I reloaded my question one more time: "What do they call what it is you do?" I asked.

He looked down at the ground, stuttered and stammered, and finally whispered nervously, "They call me a salesman."

Oh my! Horror of horrors. I certainly saw no need to try to pursue this point any further. The look of shame on my friend's face resembled that of a molester being led in handcuffs past the TV cameras. My mind flashed a picture of this person being led out of the toy store with a coat pulled up and over his head. Through the crowd, whispers would be heard, "Caught the guy selling. Can you imagine?"

Oh, don't worry. I didn't leave him in this state. Imagine his relief when I told him that I teach salespeople!

My question is, What happened? Why is there this defensiveness, even shame, about being in sales? Every profession has its stereotypes, but the public's perception seems especially tied to these sales stereotypes.

RESPECTING THE ART OF SELLING

Sometimes it becomes almost fashionable to attack various professions. I must admit that I too have been caught up in the latest casualty of perception. When lawyer bashing began, my first feeling was that of relief. I thought, "Finally! Another profession is taking its lumps." How hypocritical! Yes, there are lawyers (unfortunately very visible ones) who discredit their profession. Does that mean all lawyers are bad people? What about the law? Is that unnecessary too?

Former ambassador and attorney Sol M. Linowitz writes in his book, The Betrayed Profession, "First we need to respect the law, then we can respect lawyers." I do not believe that anyone really thinks our society can exist without laws, and so we will always need professionals to help interpret the law. Linowitz's book was an inspiration to me with its reminder that the real problem in the legal profession is the respect for the law, not the degradation of lawyers.

I look at selling in a similar way. Before we can respect salespeople, we first have to respect the art of selling. But selling is a profession that is shrouded in mystery. What do salespeople do all day anyway?

My father once told me a classic tale. Many years ago, he was in business with his brothers. They ran a heating and air-conditioning company. Every couple of months, their insurance agent would visit. As my father tells it, here was a pretty relaxed person, driving a big Cadillac, with golf clubs neatly loaded in the trunk. It did not take long before my father decided he too wanted to be pretty relaxed, drive a Cadillac, and play some golf. Good-bye heating and air-conditioning, and hello insurance company. It is a decision he has never regretted, but the reality of selling was far different from his initial perception.

The perceptions people have of salespeople are rather amazing...of fast-talking individuals wearing fancy suits who cannot get their stories straight. This is not to say there once was not a time when the planet was infested with these creatures, but it is the '90s! Times have changed. Once upon a time, doctors applied leeches to sick people, but it is my impression those times are also behind us. Professions advance and become more sophisticated. So has the profession of selling.

THE GOOD OLD DAYS

In this book, I talk of change -- of new systems, new processes, and new techniques. I believe change is necessary. This is not, however, an indictment of all the old ways. On the contrary. The past was far better than we knew. With the advance of computers and technology, something very dear was lost: a generation of tremendous salespeople.

I have a vivid memory of watching the changes occur within the insurance industry. I consider myself fortunate to have sold when there were no laptop computers. In fact, no office then had its own personal computer. If you wanted an insurance policy illustration, you went to the general office, provided the ages and names, and waited. Often you did not go on a call with an illustration in hand, rather, you went to an office with a pad of paper, an application, and a rate book. Customers talked of problems and needs, while salespeople talked of concepts and solutions. In those next few moments, something occurred that has since become rare:People sold -- and they sold based on who they were, not how computer literate they were!

It was tragic to me to see so many talented and tenured salespeople become casualties during the computer revolution of the late '70s. These people had ten times the product knowledge of their competition. They had experience and business savvy that was light-years away from those they were now competing with. What they did not have was pages and pages of illustrations and proposals. They could not quickly manipulate an interest rate or a payment amount. Then again, most of them would not have, even if they had the knowledge. It just was not how they conducted business. They were the true heroes of the selling profession.

I am all for technology and was one of those "young whippersnappers" who fought his battles with his computer. In retrospect, it set my selling abilities back years. It...