What I learned from Phil Lee from the Sandler Sales Institute
To learn more about what he offers, check this out http://www.sandler-au.com/content/show/13262
This is the third time I have heard Phil Lee speak. Now, more than ever before do I see the need for his style of sales training.
Here’s some common issues with the sales process:
- Salespeople often discount to get business (and say it is the only way)
- The sales cycle is too long
- Lack of differentiation
- Too much unpaid consulting (giving advice for free)
- Not being viewed as a trusted advisor
- Getting shopped around
- Not feeling in control of the process
- Not getting in front of the real decision makers
- Getting told by your buyer that it is out of their hands
I know that in my industry (Promotional Products), all these things happen. And I don’t mean that happen occasionally. It is multiple times per day.
The reason for this is that there are two systems in place: A Buyer’s System, and a Seller’s System.
Here is the Buyer’s System
(it may seem cynical…keep an open mind… we all do these things)
1. Mislead
Not necessarily intentionally… sometimes it is a self protection mechanism because people don’t like being “sold to”. A shopkeeper approaches and says “Can I help you?”. Your response – “No thanks…I’m just looking”. Really? Of course they can help you. You just don’t want to engage them and get “involved” so you mislead to protect yourself. This is called a negative mislead. A positive mislead is when you state you are interested, and engage in a discussion when in fact you are not that interested. You may do this to be nice to the salesperson (it is easier to ask for brochure than say “get lost”).
Why do people engage in these behaviours?
To get advice.
To get the best deal.
Avoid conversations.
Lack of trust.
Resistance to being ‘closed’
I thought the “positive mislead” was interesting – and we get this all the time. People feign a general interest and ask you to contact them or send them info. It seems like an opportunity but in reality there was no need driving the request, and it is a red herring.
2. Cough up information
At this point is seems a buyer is interested and asks lots of questions. These lead you to believe you are getting closer to a sale.
Buyers do this to learn and compare… it is a research stage.
Often buyer’s will get as much as they can from each supplier they deal with – in the process getting smarter and smarter – and incrementally asking better questions. They are getting a free education at the expense of the buyer.
They’ll get the best price from each supplier, and use it to beat the other suppliers up… eventually getting the combination of lowest price (vendor A), fastest lead time (vendor B), best terms (vendor C) and take this to vendor D, who gets the deal.
3. Continue to mislead
When pushed for a response, or progress, buyers will give encouraging remarks such as “looking good. It is with the boss”, “Just waiting for approval” or even small delays “we’ve rolled it over to the next quarter, leave it with me”.
4. Hide
V M I A M N A
Voice mail
In a meeting
Not available
They went with someone else and they are too embarrassed to tell you. If you do get through you’ll be told some way in which you were lacking – you were too expensive or where just not creative enough.
Once you start leaving voicemails without callbacks, you know it is all over.
It all sounds terrible doesn’t it?
Why would someone put up with this? Two reasons:
1. It works sometimes
2. Salespeople enable buyers – they support them – by using a traditional Selling System.
Traditional Selling System
1. Bonding and Rapport
Gee, that sure is some fine fish you caught. You still fish much? Me too.
You want to be liked.
You want to be buddies.
If the buyer likes you (how can he resist?) then he’ll buy from you.
(so the conventional thinking goes…)
2. Presentation
You spill the beans on features and benefits, and how they can implement, and why you are so much better than the competition.
3. Trial Close
So, does this seem like something that’d suit you?
Is there any reason you’d not want to go ahead?
Etc… Do you want delivery on Tuesday or Thursday?
You answer objections.
You concede.
You haggle.
You discount.
Buyers know that the longer they can keep people at this stage the better deal they’ll get, as it just becomes too painful for a seller to pull the plug when it seems so close.
4. Follow Up
You keep chasing, like a dog after cars.
These two systems intersect quite well as you might have noticed.
The sections of one dovetail with the sections of the others. And, it works often enough that sellers have enough encouragement to persist.
When it fails, they take responsibility for their own failings within this system – I didn’t present well enough – our price was too high etc. They don’t look at the system as failing.
So, what is the answer?
The Sandler Selling System
Use another system to get different results.
1. Pattern Interrupt.
If you don’t want to be treated like every other sales person, stop acting like one.
Don’t say or do the normal things. Forget the long introductions… and the “pitch”.
This goes against your human nature, and is the reason why you need training (and more training, and more training)
2. Upfront contracts
State intended outcomes. These need to be a Yes or No, or a clear decision path. Don’t’ accept any “IWTTIO”. Challenge people to opt out.
3. Pain / Gain
This is in replacement of the presentation, or features / benefits song and dance.
Pain and gain is layers and layers deeper than the surface benefits. Often people won’t openly share it.
More often, people don’t even know their true reasons.
By uncovering them (together) you become a trusted advisor, and the only solution.
4. Budget / commitment
Prove that your solution solves a problem. Even if no formal budget exists, that it saves more than it costs. This goes back to uncovering pain.
5. Decision
6. Fulfilment
The actual action steps that will be taken, and a timeline.
7. Post Sell
Some key distinctions
The most important step in the Sandler Systems are:
1. Pattern Interrupt – change the way you are viewed by asking particular questions up front, and making statements
2. Getting up front agreements about how the relationship will be, and how the decision making process will occur
The point at which you break away from the traditional system – and take control of the process – is HARD. You are basically breaking your built in “sales person” scripts and saying “STOP, I don’t do it that way”. This intersection is called WIMP JUNCTION.
You have control over 3 areas (imagine a triangle…).
- Attitudes / core beliefs
- Behaviours
- Techniques
These form the success triangle.
Benefits of the SSS
- you stop being an unpaid consultant
- you don’t speak time on those “vaguely interested” (positive misleads)
- you know the path of the sales process
- you have a clear yes / no
The SSS would work when you have more prospects than you have time to deal with everyone. So, getting a “no” is not a big deal. You want the no so you can talk to the next person and keep moving. As David Blaise says, the aim of prospecting is to sort the gold from the dirt. Once you’ve found dirt, don’t go back through it… you won’t turn it into gold. Prospecting should be a matter of sifting, “dirt, dirt, dirt, dirt…gold!”.
Ongoing training with this system is needed because it is counter intuitive and goes against all your previous training.
Resistance from customers is because they are losing control (“but I want my free information and presentation from you!”).
The process starts from the first sentence of the first call, “You’re probably not interested in saving money on….” – you are challenging them to say “Yes I do” – an opt in which then drives the conversation forward. So rather than “pitching” to them – you go for the No and if they give you a YES, then you have truly begun.
Recommended reading
Sandler v. Other training
I believe that the Sandler system is completely different to almost all traditional sales training (Brian Tracy, Gitomer etc) which is a Prospect – Present – Close – Follow Up model.
These traditional systems will work, but with more inefficiencies built in.
In fact, I think that the very reason people don’t like cold calling is because of the resistance they encounter from prospects. The Sandler selling system takes a lot of that away because the goal of a call is to get a NO.
Tagged with: Phil Lee • Sales Tips • Sales Training • Sandler Sales Institute • SSI
Filed under: Sales
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