How Customers See High Performing Salespeople

We intuitively know there are skill and proficiency differences between salespeople who consistently achieve high results and those who don’t.  The search for defining those differences has been a robust area of discussion and study for many years.  The assumption is that if you can define the behaviors that correlate with success, you can hire and/or train to that profile.  Competency studies, formal academic research, anecdotal stories, and insights from sales managers and executives have all been the bases of models of high performance that, in the final analysis, revolve around some level of customer focus as a salient, unifying concept as well as on face-to-face, product knowledge and relationship skills. 

At C-Lens Index, after working for many years with different sales organizations, we recognize that all these studies and discussions describe a salesperson focused on delivering value through the sales process.  That means the customer actually benefits from the sales experience, both before buying anything and throughout the relationship that follows.  For example, the discovery process results in new insights about needs and their impact on the business, products and services can be creatively configured to the situation, the salesperson’s resource network can be brought in to help, and application ideas and examples from other sources in the customer’s industry are discussed. In all, the relationship—through the sales process—becomes an added value from the vendor.  Our point of view is that a salesperson who recognizes that delivering this value is the key to his or her role and whose actions reflect that philosophy will be a High Performer compared to those who are otherwise focused on product, fulfillment, or price-based selling.

We’ve been able to identify the behavioral indicators of that value-laden relationship and use them to measure what customers are actually seeing in the sales process.  We call those indicators “Sales Actions,” and they mirror the behavior and attitude of a salesperson who is focused on customer value.  In a recent C-Lens Index scan for a manufacturing company, we collected data from over 400 customers on their views of their salesperson.  We asked them how frequently they saw the sales actions played out and how important those actions were to them.  In analyzing the data, we compared the results of salespeople who were identified as High Performers with those identified as Low Performers.  These were defined by our client in terms of consistent long-term results as well as reputation in the company for professionalism.  In our sample of 58 salespeople, we worked with eight salespeople in each category.  The results provide some insights into what customers are seeing High Performers do more frequently than Low Performers. 

High Performers Seen Performing All Sales Actions More Frequently

Overall, customers see High Performers demonstrating each and every C-Lens Index sales action to a greater extent than low performers.  While this helps to validate the C-Lens items and concept, it also shows that High Performers are seen differently in the eyes of the customer.  The average frequency score of High Performers was 64.28 percent while the Low Performers scored 47.75 percent.  The larger differences will be discussed below. However, it is important to point out that these sales actions are associated with success, and they are aligned with delivering a value-based experience to the customer.  Apparently, customers see this difference.

The Largest Gaps Between High and Low Performers

We identified 12 Sales Actions out of 28 where High Performers scored 20 percentage points or more than Low Performers in terms of frequency as seen by customers.  Since the numbers in the sample were not large enough for statistical comparisons, we felt 20 percent was a sufficient arbitrary difference to note any trends or themes between the groups.  The following are the Sales Actions which were the largest gaps between High and Low performers

1. Asks in-depth probing questions to better understand my business and my needs.
2. Discovers what is on my mind by focusing on what I say and how I say it
3. Reassures me that the vendor company’s team working with me has experience and expertise in addressing needs
4. Finds other valuable resources for me that also might help address my needs
5. Always remains diplomatically straightforward in describing issues
6. Tells me how the vendor company, its products and services are uniquely different from other vendors
7. Provides clear, easy-to-understand examples of how the vendor company, its products or services will help me and my own customers
8. Directly and creatively addresses real or perceived concerns that I raise
9. Takes appropriate steps within the vendor company to accomplish tasks for me in a timely manner
10. Uses internal/external experts and resources to maximize the value to me of the vendor company’s products and services
11. Ensures my company and I are receiving the promised benefits of the products and service provided
12. Stays current and informed about my business performance, its strategy, recent changes, and emerging needs

What this tells us about High Performers versus Low Performers is most interesting:

High performers more frequently practice basic face-to-face selling skills.  [Asking questions (1) and Listening (3).]  We presume that comfort in using these fundamental skills effectively is an indicator of High Performance.  The lower frequency by Low Performers may indicate a need for training, lack of experience, differences in coaching and supervision or poor execution.

High performers also are seen more frequently describing product or service uniqueness and examples of how these can be applied.  [Tell how uniquely different (6), Provide clear examples (7), other basic face-to-face skills.]  Fluency and confidence in product knowledge is apparently an indicator of high performance.  It is one thing to describe features and benefits and quite another to tell convincing stories about how product or service uniqueness plays out and how applications actually work for customers.

High performers more frequently bring other resources and expertise that can help the customer to the sales process and, if needed, help solve problems.  [Find other resources (4), Creatively address concerns (8), Use internal/external experts (10.]  This suggests an openness to leverage value that salespeople have cultivated in their own personal networks as well as to widen out the scope of the customer’s situation and open it up to creative problem-solving.  Seeing beyond the immediate set of facts and data is a sophisticated skill that not only requires product and service knowledge, but confidence and knowledge of other applications.  Creatively solving problems—whether independently or with internal colleagues—shows a command of concepts and applications and fluency of thinking skills.

High performers show empathy as reflected in reassuring the customer that he or she is in good hands and acting diplomatically.  [Reassures me the team has experience (3) and Always remains straightforward (5).]  Is this a matter of higher emotional intelligence or experience in pre-empting difficult situations?  These Sales Actions could signify the High Performer is more “tuned in” to the customer’s reactions as the relationship unfolds.

Finally, High Performers are seen as more frequently being invested in the customer’s company and the buyer.  [Ensures benefits (11) and Stays current and informed (12).]  These are higher-order Sales Actions, requiring an effort and a certain amount of risk by opening up the possibility that the customer is not getting what he or she bought.  Nevertheless, this kind of pro-active inquiry into the outcomes of product and service applications as well as customer status is a mark of being truly interested in serving the customer.

Emerging Profile of High Performers

This study is certainly far from definitive, but it suggests what customers see in high and low performing salespeople.  For one thing, customers of high performing salespeople see them demonstrating all the Sales Actions more frequently than Low Performers.  While a small number of these Sales Actions are seen only slightly more frequently in High Performers than in Low Performers, most Sales Actions show enough of a gap to stimulate questions about what drives customers to see these differences.  It remains to be seen whether these behaviors are more “visible” because of experience, the deliberative nature with which they are applied, or other reasons.

When the more extreme gaps (20 percent +) are examined, an interesting set of suppositions emerges.  We will present these as questions rather than as definitive statements that will hopefully create more dialogue about what is at the core of high performance in salespeople.

1.       Are High Performers more comfortable and fluent with a broader scope of knowledge about customers, their businesses and how products and services are used than Low Performers?

2.       Do High Performers have wider networks and effective working relationships with a variety of resources inside and external to the vendor company?

3.       Are High Performers basically more empathetic or at least better able to identify what customers are facing both personally and professionally?

4.       Is it possible that High Performers are more engaged with what it takes to make customers satisfied, ensuring the value of product and services and a long-term, profitable relationship?

While these answers are as yet not defined, the data from this study suggest that skills and knowledge go only so far in creating high performing salespeople.  If these data are on the right track, then perhaps the path to high performance needs to include educating salespeople about the role they can play in the customer’s business and professional success. 

Data-Driven Decision-Making Results In Value-Added Customer Experience

Where Does It Hurt? Salespeople Know What Their Own Skill Gaps Are

We asked 99 salespeople in a mix of businesses to rate themselves on 27 sales actions that create value for the customer in the buying experience.  From our experience, we knew that most salespeople tend to rate themselves fairly optimistically, giving themselves a 4 or 5 on a 5-point scale as a kind of virtual pat on the back.  Knowing that, we devised a different scale for the C-Lens Index Self-Diagnostic that created a set of choices focusing on how frequently salespeople felt they performed a specific sales action as well as how well they thought they actually performed it.  So, the scale we used was:

1.       Do this frequently, Do it well.

2.       Do this frequently, Need to improve

3.       Do this infrequently, Do it well

4.       Do this infrequently, Need to improve

5.       Don’t do this at all.

When we looked at the data, it was clear the responses were not skewed to the positive end of the scale.  In fact, there were clear highs and lows across all the responses. 

In our first analysis of the data, we focused solely on responses made to all sales actions for Choice 2, Do this frequently, Need to improve.  There were eight sales actions where Choice 2 was equal to or higher than any other choice.  In other words, a plurality of respondents selected Choice 2 on 25 percent of the total number of sales actions.  That meant many salespeople were doing these specific sales actions frequently that they felt needed improvement.  The following are the sales actions that received the plurality of Choice 2 responses.  The percent represents how many salespeople selected Choice 2 for their response:

1. Ask in-depth probing questions to better understand the customer’s situation (44%)

2. Ask questions that reflect knowledge of how things get done in the customer’s line of business (41%)

3. Find other valuable resources for the customer that also might help address needs (31%)

4. Show the customer alternative approaches that address needs in different ways (33%)

5. Show the customer how the proposed solutions are financially worth the price (29%)

6. Give the customer good solid reasons for seeing me on follow-up calls (30%)

7. Bring along ideas for improving the customer’s business that are unique, insightful, forward-looking and fresh (32%)

8. Stay current and informed on how the customer’s business is doing, its strategy, recent changes and emerging needs (37%)

All other responses to these sales actions were either equal to or lower than the percentage shown. 

What can we make of these findings?

Themes Emerge: Knowledge, Confidence and Effort

To have a significant percentage of salespeople saying they need to improve basic questioning skills (1 and 2 above) is surprising.  We feel respondents might be reacting to the need to understand the customer’s business and how their business works, rather than simple skills like asking open- and close-ended questions.  If that is the case, it reinforces a theme that threads through most of the other responses that are rated “need to improve”, namely, knowing the customer’s business.

The other surprise was number of respondents who felt they needed to improve on developing alternative solutions and cost justifying a buying decision (4 and 5 above).  Again, these are frequently practiced sales actions that are rated “need to improve”, so our interpretation is that these require more than a base of level of product and business knowledge for proficiency. Constructing and generating these ideas also takes a degree of self-confidence along with competence.  In other words, these particular sales actions are harder to pull off than more straightforward skills like describing product features and benefits or even answering objections.

These themes of knowledge of the customer and self-confidence might also play a role in the other sales actions rated Do this frequently and Need to improve.  Reasons for calling, bringing fresh business ideas, finding other useful resources and staying informed about the customer’s status quo and plans (3, 6, 7, 8 above) all reflect a more consultative approach, more effort, and more risk.  Being proactive about ideas is not necessarily safe, even if the salesperson has the ability and/or the experience to back up his/her point of view.  

Proficiency in all these Do frequently, Need to improve sales actions require effort above and beyond baseline face-to-face selling skills.  Perhaps that’s why they are seen as improvement targets.

Total “Need To Improve” Ratings

We then added the results of Choice 4 Do this infrequently, Need to improve to these eight sales actions.  This provides a view of what salespeople feel they need to improve, regardless of how frequently they perform the sales action.  The combined total of Choice 2 Do this frequently, Need to Improve and Choice 4 Do this infrequently, Need to improve shows how big the gap in performance is.

The following represent the combined total of Choice 2 and Choice 4.

1. Ask in-depth probing questions to better understand the customer’s situation (48%)

2. Ask questions that reflect knowledge of how things get done in the customer’s line of business (50%)

3. Find other valuable resources for the customer that also might help address needs (49%)

4. Show the customer alternative approaches that address needs in different ways (47%)

5. Show the customer how the proposed solutions are financially worth the price (46%)

6. Give the customer good solid reasons for seeing me on follow-up calls (38%)

7. Bring along ideas for improving the customer’s business that are unique, insightful, forward-looking and fresh (58%)

8. Stay current and informed on how the customer’s business is doing, its strategy, recent changes and emerging needs (51%)

As the data suggest, about half the salespeople responded to that they need improvement on these sales actions, whether they felt they performed them frequently or infrequently. 

One generous interpretation of “need to improve” is that all professionals should feel they need to improve.  Whether it is a golf swing or a proposal presentation, it is healthy to be open to the idea that skills can always be done better.  However, in this C-Lens Self-Diagnostic, these eight skills were singled out and selected not as “Do this well”, but “Need to improve”.  While 75% of the sales actions in our C-Lens instrument were rated as “Do this frequently, do this well” or “Do this infrequently, do this well,” these were not.  We feel this choice is telling, and sales managers and executives should take notice. 

Moving Ahead: An Agenda For Development

This data provides an agenda for sales force development: Salespeople need skills and knowledge about how to help the customer, they need to develop confidence in practicing them, and support for making the effort.

The whole point of this improvement is to give the customer a valuable buying experience so that when a buying decision is made, it is made with confidence, certainty and a sense of comfort.  That can only happen if the sales process is laden with value, delivered through a competent--and confident--sales team.

Responses to: "What Happened To Consultative Selling?" From LinkedIn Groups

We asked "What Happened to Consultative Selling?" on a number of  LinkedIn Groups.  Here's a summary of the replies. What are your reactions?

The opinions fell into two broad camps: 1) those who felt consultative selling was alive and well, and 2) those who acknowledged consultative selling was under pressure and facing hard times.  Let’s look at each category.

How Consultative Selling Continues to Work

Where people have the skills and attitude, consultative selling is alive and well.  The necessary skills mentioned most frequently included face-to-face relationship skills, sophisticated product and technical knowledge, understanding current trends and challenges in the customer’s business as well as in the customer’s industry.  But more than skill mastery was mentioned.  Many LinkedIn respondents said consultative selling required confidence.  Salespeople who were successful at consultative selling felt they wanted to and could make a contribution, that their role was to find a “true” fit of product or service to the customer’s need, making recommendations with integrity.  The result was to become a trusted advisor—a person who the customer could rely on for the long view, the advice of a confidante, and the knowledge of an expert.

To earn trusted advisor status, these respondents summed up the journey.  Salespeople had to step up to a being a sales professional.  They had to study the profession, practice the fundamentals, learn the details of the customer’s world to earn the respect of the customer, and have a point of view about the different ways his/her products or services could help.  He/she had to build a network of resources, any of whom could offer support to potential problems the customer’s business might encounter.  These professionals exuded value and could articulate their role as providing that value well beyond the delivery of a product or service.

But It’s Tough To Be Consultative In A “Wal-Mart World”

On the other hand, some respondents paint a different portrait of why customers might not see consultative selling in action, despite sales managers’ entreaties and four decades or more of sales training. 

For one thing, many respondents point to a “remote-access” environment.  Purchasing processes designed and managed for the benefit of buyers seem to be the most frequently mentioned inhibitor.  These systems deny access to decision-makers and are staffed by buyers who are rewarded for lowest price, period. The long-term view and relationships can’t even get a beach head in this kind of environment, report our respondents.  Add the notion that some buyers often have short tenure—a year or two and they’re gone—, making for shallow relationships at best.

Then there’s what one respondent called the “Wal-Mart phenomenon” where low price not only prevails but is a philosophical and practical way of being.  Even if you could get through to the decision-makers, the decision is bound to be price-only, they say.  Our whole society has been driven to buy at the cheapest price possible at every opportunity.  This shows up in the purchasing process where your product or service is “commoditized”, where differentiation is minimized or ignored, and purchasing agents get a “commission“ for buying low.

Another reason is that salespeople are inexperienced, often untrained, focused on orders, not relationships and are impatient with a relationship-oriented sales process.  This crop of salespeople has a window for success that is 30-, 60- and 90-days long and where commissions are based on short-term results.  This sounds like an environment where control of the game is ceded to the buyer, and the seller is willing to do what it takes to get a score.  That means a lot of dialing for dollars, cherry-picking predictable orders from regular customers, without too much focus on segmentation, targeting, prequalification or penetrating existing accounts.

In addition, respondents point out that many companies don’t invest in or use more up-to-date sales training beyond a brief initial on-boarding.  The training investment is “past due”; people are “thrown on the phones” with a quota and numbers to call.  Whatever training that is done isn’t followed up or supported in the field. 

Finally, there is an interesting notion that consultative selling doesn’t fit every buying process.  While some relationships do lend themselves to exchanges of information, establishment of relationships among a number of different customer within an organization, and all the other consultative sales attributes, there are those who say that kind of approach might not be for every customer.  Some customers just want product information: a salesperson who can write up the order and make sure it is fulfilled without errors or delay.  That makes it easy for the salesperson since he or she is turned into a human catalog and order pad.  If you are selling in that kind of environment, you go with the flow and settle into the expectations your buyer has created for you.

Reactions?

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Customer Data Reveals Gaps

C-Lens Index Data from a December 2009 scan. 322 customers.  Industrial supply company selling through distributors.

Here is just a small portion of a larger set of data.  These are basic sales actions.  Look at what customers say they are getting:

Note: Click on the graphs for a better view.

Note the 1-5 scale is defined in the blue box.  Look at the responses for choices 1 and 3.  Choice 1 is Important to Me and TM (Salesperson) does it Frequently.  Choice 3 is Important to me and TM does it Infrequently.

These are five relatively basic sales actions--asking questions, listening, etc.  For each of these, from 25-to 30-percent of customers are seeing these infrequently.  The implication is that a significant number of sales people aren't seen by customers as practicing a basic skill.  Are these skills unevenly distributed across the population of sales people?  What else could explain this data?

What Do Customers Want Now? What The Latest Research Says

http://www.managesmarter.com/msg/content_display/sales/e3ia67226593de9282c5c1b54456e1f8605#

The latest research on what customers want now from sales teams.  While sales teams are fulfilling customers' immediate needs, long-range customer needs could use some work.

Does this research reflect what we've been hearing about "adding value"?