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Subject: "Beat Quotas with Web-Touch Selling" - continuing the conversation

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jeff.weinberger
Posts:20

06/12/2007 7:29 PM	Alert
Join in the conversation following our web presentation with Stu Schmidt and Barry Trailer. Ask questions, offer your insights on questions from your peers, and read the expert advice from our speakers.

jeff.weinberger
Posts:20

06/12/2007 7:44 PM	Alert
During the live event, we unfortunately ran out of time to answer all of the questions. Here's one that we didn't get to: Lead generation and lead handling are key issues for any sales organization. How do leading companies close the gap between sales and marketing to improve these areas?

jeff.weinberger
Posts:20

06/12/2007 7:45 PM	Alert
Another one we didn't get to: How do you get started selling over the web when you have a traditional sales force and corporate culture?

stuschmidt
Posts:10

06/12/2007 10:30 PM	Alert
An excellent question...around which discussion has been going on for years! Let me summarize the solution: measurement - what gets rewarded get done. All too often, Marketing is measured on the number of "leads" generated. Has anyone taken the time to define what we mean by a lead? All too often, sales simply says "these leads are all garbage", while they are not being measured on actually responding to leads in a timely fashion. Lead metrics must be integrated. Sales must be measured on timely response (did you know that a lead loses 25% effectiveness EVERY day). Marketing must be measured on lead conversion ratios (how many leads converted into active pipeline deals). Lead generation programs must be developed jointly between sales and marketing. What?!? Marketing measured on sales' ability to convert my good stuff into an actual active opportunity? What?!? Sales measured on responding to "A" leads in 24 hours? How dare you suggest that my (fill in the ownership...marketing or sales) goals are dependent on someone else's action? Try it...you may be surprised. There is much more to this topic, if you're interested in further discussion, let's talk...online.

stuschmidt
Posts:10

06/12/2007 10:31 PM	Alert
Posted By Stu Schmidt on 06/12/2007 10:30 PM An excellent question...around which discussion has been going on for years! Let me summarize the solution: measurement - what gets rewarded gets done. All too often, Marketing is measured on the number of "leads" generated. Has anyone taken the time to define what we mean by a lead? All too often, sales simply says "these leads are all garbage", while they are not being measured on actually responding to leads in a timely fashion. Lead metrics must be integrated. Sales must be measured on timely response (did you know that a lead loses 25% effectiveness EVERY day). Marketing must be measured on lead conversion ratios (how many leads converted into active pipeline deals). Lead generation programs must be developed jointly between sales and marketing. What?!? Marketing measured on sales' ability to convert my good stuff into an actual active opportunity? What?!? Sales measured on responding to "A" leads in 24 hours? How dare you suggest that my (fill in the ownership...marketing or sales) goals are dependent on someone else's action? Try it...you may be surprised. There is much more to this topic, if you're interested in further discussion, let's talk...online.

stuschmidt
Posts:10

06/12/2007 11:16 PM	Alert
Fire the old regime...wait a minute...I am the old regime...scratch that! First, it all starts with a senior management champion - period. There isn't a sales person I know that isn't captivated by what interests his boss's boss. This is often easier said than done. Where, after all, does the current "traditional" culture come from? So how do you start? The starting blocks are "change communication" basics: Know, believe, do. Let me start by saying that if you are senior management, and you're asking this question, skip directly to "do"...you have passed "know and believe". Know - start with facts. Show the data that clearly calls out that certain companies seem to be performing consistently better than you. Cost per lead. Sales cycle length. Cost of sales. Sales productivity. Call Barry and ask for a copy of the survey results. Before anyone is able to start the journey of change, they must understand, in their own mind, that there exists a reason for considering the change. Believe - beliefs are the basis for action. I was speaking to the CEO and VP Sales of a large manufacturing company a few weeks ago. The CEO "knew" that their sales performance could be improved, yet the discussion was strained, and we weren't making a real "connection" in the conversation. I finally asked the VP of Sales, "do you believe that a sale can take place without meeting your prospect face-to-face?" His reply was curt and immediate, "No. You must look them in the eye to sell anything." A deeply held belief that wasn’t going to change anytime soon. The only way to start to move a belief is is with facts, coupled with "what are they really trying to take care of?" Was that VP of Sales really trying to take care of the face-to-face thing, or, at some level, trying to take care of his future? Find that way to connect what he is trying to take care of to the "facts". Do this by asking questions. "What would it mean to the company (and you), if we able to increase overall sales productivity by 10%?" "What are these companies in this study doing differently than us?" People don't respond well to being told to do something. Questions, especially those that require more thinking than responses, are the way to go. Do - once a belief is open to inspection, suggest one, two or at the most, three specific things that could be done immediately that don't directly attack the core beliefs. Perhaps, if you're reporting to that VP of Sales I met, suggest that you could start with simple lead qualification activities over the web. Or perhaps, if you’re feeling bold, suggest that after a face-to-face relationship has been established, maybe certain ongoing account management activities (up-sells, for example) could be done without the need to meet in person (and spending the money, time and delays involved with the traditional approach). Once there is senior management support, then we can begin to work on sales force adoption. That, however, is the topic of another post. Interested?

stuschmidt
Posts:10

06/12/2007 11:17 PM	Alert
Posted By Stu Schmidt on 06/12/2007 10:30 PM You asked: "Lead generation and lead handling are key issues for any sales organization. How do leading companies close the gap between sales and marketing to improve these areas?" An excellent question...around which discussion has been going on for years! Let me summarize the solution: measurement - what gets rewarded get done. All too often, Marketing is measured on the number of "leads" generated. Has anyone taken the time to define what we mean by a lead? All too often, sales simply says "these leads are all garbage", while they are not being measured on actually responding to leads in a timely fashion. Lead metrics must be integrated. Sales must be measured on timely response (did you know that a lead loses 25% effectiveness EVERY day). Marketing must be measured on lead conversion ratios (how many leads converted into active pipeline deals). Lead generation programs must be developed jointly between sales and marketing. What?!? Marketing measured on sales' ability to convert my good stuff into an actual active opportunity? What?!? Sales measured on responding to "A" leads in 24 hours? How dare you suggest that my (fill in the ownership...marketing or sales) goals are dependent on someone else's action? Try it...you may be surprised. There is much more to this topic, if you're interested in further discussion, let's talk...online.