The Scrambled Egg - a blog every sales professional should wake up to.

There have been countless times I’ve heard “I am the Decision Maker” in my sales career and I’ve fallen for the line more times than I can count. While we’re ultimately looking to get to the Decision Maker, it’s one of the worst things a sales rep can hear.  If you do hear this, seller beware, this is a prospect you should be VERY skeptical of.  

There’s an expression, “if someone tells you how rich they are, it’s because they’re not really that rich”. I’m sure you’ve heard or seen these people talk about how much money they make or how important they are.  As many of us know, they are making up for something they lack. The same is true in sales. If you hear this in a sales process the person can be hazardous to your sale.

Here’s what to look for:

1) The Self-Proclaimed DM – the prospect who unsolicited told you they were the DM. If they offer up the information without you asking, they are toxic. They are being deceptive and gating you from the rest of their internal purchasing process. The prospect is not bought-in and you need to discover their objections and handle them or move on to the next. Do your best to gain trust, otherwise do not waste time with prospects that won’t be authentic.

2) The Misunderstood DM/The Recommender – the prospect has a different definition. Many times in sales we have our own definition of the DM but it doesn’t necessarily match that of the prospect.  I find this many times when a sales person is proactively discovering a purchasing process. The prospect actually thinks they are the DM. Yes, they actually think they are.  Their definition is they will be evaluating all vendors and bringing their decision to the committee, board, etc. By the prospect’s definition they are the DM because they are deciding what to recommend. This person is actually, what I call, the recommender.  In this scenario, the prospect is not being deceptive. However the sales rep is looking for the person who signs the contract and checks.  Don’t dismiss the recommender as they are extremely valuable in a sale. Spend time with this prospect, ask more questions and determine if it’s just a difference in meaning.  

3) The Decision Maker – the big kahuna, the person in charge, the person who signs the check. You get the picture.  This is the person who can say yes without having to check with someone, they can re-allocate budget on their own, they can (but don't always) work alone. I find it most common this person needs at least a C-level job title if not the President or Owner. A rep should be asking questions in order to determine if they have the ultimate DM.  For example, “If you decide you want to go with this solution, who else do you confer with?”

Working with the Decision Maker is the fastest and easiest way to get a sale closed. It would not be true if we said we work exclusively with DMs, the reality is many times we find ourselves working with non-decision makers as well. A sales rep can still be very success when using a non-DM to get to the real DM. Be smart with which ones you spend your time with and know the signs of ones who are a toxic waste of time.  Don’t take things at face value, dig deeper and seller beware!

There is an old expression you can tell a sales rep is lying because their lips are moving. While I don't agree reps lying, I will agree moving lips are not a sign of effectiveness.  In fact, the less a rep can move their lips, the better position they'll be in. This brings me to two of my favorite skills in a sales tool belt. 

1) Silence is one of the most unnatural to master yet yields the most results. Many of us, regardless of making a sale, feel the need to fill in the awkward moments of silence. In sales the knee jerk reaction is amplified. Reps tend to fill in the space with useless information that could risk the deal or completely talk a prospect out of a sale.

Be comfortable with silence and learn to embrace it. Sometimes it can be gut-wrenching and the sound of silence can be deafening. Get over it and get comfortable with the mute button. Once a rep can embrace silence, it's a waiting game. The prospect also feels the knee jerk reaction to fill in the silence. If a rep can be patient, the prospect's need to fill in the silence will take over. What the prospect will divulge during the "filler" time is MUCH more interesting and valuable than anything a rep has to say. Silence is a huge advantage in a sale. While it takes practice and patience, the sound of silence will be welcomed technique.   

2) Ask questions. When a rep is telling a prospect something or making a pitch it gives the prospect time to think of objections, check their email, hit mute, talk to their colleagues, day dream, etc. 

Instead of making a statement, pose it as a question. This does 3 things. First, it minimizes the amount of talking from a rep. Second, it keeps the prospect engaged and they need to think of an answer to the question asked opposed to thinking of objections, checking email, miming comments, etc. Third, it forces them to come to the conclusion on their own. It might also uncover a piece of information that would have otherwise never been discovered.

Here is an example:

Statement "We have a tool that tells you the best time to post a blog article".

Question "When do you think is the best time to post a blog article?" Even if one elicits the answer "I don't know" it still engages the prospect and divulges the prospect might need help. 

What do silence and asking questions have in common?  They both minimize the amount of talking one does during a sale. The less one talks in a sale the more effective you are. In other words, less is more. Stop talking and start listening!

I've decided arugula is my favorite lettuce.  I eat a lot of salad and I mean A LOT.  After spending a lifetime of going for the crunchy lettuces like romaine, I'm totally bought into arugula.  If you haven't tried it, here's why you should:

6) Arugula is a time saver.  I've spent way too much time with romaine; cleaning lettuce, spinning the lettuce cleaner, chopping, chopping and then some more chopping. Whereas arugula usually comes bagged, already cleaned and doesn't require chopping.

5) Arugula saves money.  Every notice the other bagged lettuce doesn't last long? It quickly turns into that mushy, transparent, wet, starting to disintegrate type lettuce?  Arugula lasts longer, so I waste less and it saves me money.

4) Arugula is less in calories. I know I know, I'm splitting hairs here as all salad is low in calories, but stick with me on this one.  Arugula has a naturally zesty and bold taste (it even says it on the bag - I know cause I just checked).  You don't need to add as much dressing (if any at all) to get flavor. Just add lemon and some pepper and you have a salad that's tolerable (for those serious dieters). Try to do that with another lettuce and it's pretty darn bland!  Have you looked at the calorie content of some other dressings?  I love you ranch, but might as well get a Big Whopper!

3) Arugula is fun to say.  Remember the old school commercials for Ricola cough drops?  Click here to spark your memory.  Try saying arugula like you’re the guy in Switzerland yelling from the top of a hill with the alphorn (that's the long horn that sits on the ground). Now try doing that with Boston bib lettuce. It just isn't the same is it?

2) Everything cool has a nickname. Did you know arugula is also known as rocket lettuce? Rocket lettuce! Such a cool name. What other lettuce has a nickname and a cool one at that?

1) Size matters.  Yeap, I said it, size matters.  I'm always hungry, always.  So the fact that I can eat an unlimited amount of arugula without dressing helps to fill my bottomless pit.  Arugula is also jammed packed full of nutrition (unlike iceberg) so the more the better!

If you're not convinced about arugula yet, let's hear it!