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New Sales Process Yields Measurable Results
Problem
A global distributor of electrical supplies to builders and contractors was experiencing flat sales, eroding margins and dwindling market share at a time when the construction market was steadily growing. Management described even the best sales reps in the company as "order takers". They also noted that there was no consistent sales process.
Insights
Paradigm Group visited multiple branches. We spent time talking with and observing managers and sales reps. We also interviewed customers and observed sales calls out in the field. Here are some of the insights we gained.
On one hand, sales reps were frustrated. They resented being branded as "order takers". They prided themselves on having thorough knowledge of the company’s extensive product line and felt that they were helping clients to understand and access appropriate products.
Customers, on the other hand, felt that the sales reps spent too much time "pitching" and very little time listening. They respected the sales reps’ knowledge and experience but didn’t feel they were getting much value from that expertise.
In addition to the perception gap between the customers and the sales force, we discovered that many branch managers were not really aware of what was going on out in the field. They were bogged down with extensive administrative tasks and much of what passed for "management and coaching" was simply posting sales results.
Solution
To solve the problems faced by this client, we designed a comprehensive development system for all sales reps and sales managers. It required that each participant complete a series of self-guided modules and assignments. This helped to provide a more consistent sales process.
The modules were a great start, but it was clear that the development process needed to actively involve branch sales management. With over 120 branches scattered across the country, the training needed to be reinforced through daily monitoring and coaching.
So, once the "learning" portion of the program was complete, Paradigm Group equipped the branch managers with improved coaching skills. Participating managers were trained to conduct intensive "simulations" regionally. The managers observed the simulations and provided specific feedback for each participant. The goal was to ensure that every sales rep made the transition from "knowledge" to "action."
Following the simulations, each sales rep was required to complete a thorough "final exam" which included completing a written test and a field assessment. Once again, the branch managers were an integral part of this phase, accompanying the sales reps on a minimum of 3 calls and providing specific call feedback. Throughout the process Paradigm Group met frequently with branch managers across the country in regional meetings. We helped them deal with individual situations and encouraged their coaching and mentoring.
Results
This client is extremely results oriented. They embraced the broad systems approach, but wanted to be sure that the system was having the desired effect. Extensive research was conducted to determine the impact of the initiative on business results.
At the end of the year, the client reported that overall sales revenues
were up 20% over the previous year.
Margins rose from 9% to 16%. The overall profitability of the business
increased by $38 million.
Managers reported feeling more engaged in the business and in greater touch with the field. Customers remarked on the change in approach and attitude on the part of the sales reps. They now described the reps as “really listening” and providing more helpful advice and insight.
Most interesting of all was a comparison that the client made between the performance of branches that underwent the training and a few that had been allowed to opt out. Sales for the branches that did not participate were flat and margins continued to erode. Similar branches that had participated experienced growth in sales revenues and increases in their profit margins. Being part of the "system" was no longer optional!
Do As We Say...Leading Through Change
Problem
The largest media and marketing organization serving the advertising specialty industry was facing new competition. This client’s senior management team realized that they had to initiate massive changes to the corporate culture in order to maintain dominance in their industry.
Insights
Departments were reorganized, jobs were shifted around, and managers underwent extensive training. Even the building underwent significant renovation. Despite this effort, the culture was still not changing at the hoped-for rate. People seemed to be thoroughly entrenched in older ways of doing things.
Solution
After careful observation and discussions held at all levels, Paradigm Group developed and facilitated a 360° feedback process that included the entire 70-member management group (from CEO to floor supervisor). The feedback was compiled and the survey results shared with managers and employees alike.
Results
Five key issues emerged that were previously unknown to management.
The biggest issue was that employees heard management saying it expected top performance but doing nothing about poor performance. This misalignment between what management was saying about the new culture and how they were actually behaving was the source of the “culture drag”.
Specific development plans were put into place. Within 30 days of the survey results being delivered, 23 “non-performers” were removed from their positions. Employees applauded management’s actions and long-awaited changes started almost immediately. The organization’s CEO observed that this process was the “single most significant activity I’ve been involved with in my 20+ years as a senior executive.”
Pipelines Run Dry and No One Knows Why
Problem
Sales managers at a regional newspaper were consistently off in their revenue projections each quarter. The numbers they were getting from their sales teams were always much higher than actual sales but management had no process to get better information from their people.
Insights
Upon investigation, Paradigm Group discovered that the managers were focusing only on final revenue figures. There were no metrics to track performance at each stage of the sales process. Mangers were not watching conversion rates at each point in the sales process, so they were unable to identify and respond to breakdowns in sales process. In short, there was no pipeline management.
Solution
Paradigm designed a simple tracking system that required the sales reps to report activity and results for each step of the sales process. This established baseline metrics that provided critical information for later skill development in the areas of prospecting, presenting and closing.
We emphasized to management that this program was not just a numbers game to increase activity. The goal was to monitor sales activity in a way that would ultimately lead to a higher quality of individual performance. Managers were trained on how to interpret activity numbers and create appropriate development plans for their reps. Paradigm provided assistance with skill-building activities so that the development process was maintained at a highly efficient level.
Results
As accountability for activity was tightened, several positive things happened. Once metrics were established, managers were able to strengthen skill areas that needed improvement. And, as the coaching began to improve, so did the sales reps’ ability to analyze and improve skills on their own.
Personalized development plans led to better conversion rates and more sales reps met or exceeded sales goals. Constant monitoring of key leverage points in the sales process led to improved forecasting.
Why Won’t You See Me?
Problem
The advertising sales force for one of the major producers of cable programming used to get appointments on the strength of the company name alone. Suddenly, reps found it difficult to get face to face with their clients.
Insights
Our preliminary fact-finding uncovered a group of sales executives who were not paying attention to the dramatic changes that were affecting prospective advertisers.
With the rapid development of new advertising options, prospects were being called by an increasing number of media salespeople. Feeling overwhelmed, advertisers had developed new criteria for taking meetings with media people. They were tired of simply being pitched. They were looking for account executives to engage them in an entirely new manner. Instead of conversations that focused solely on marketing and advertising, prospects wanted to discuss the things that were affecting their businesses.
Additionally, potential advertisers were looking for proof that their advertising investments would positively impact business. It was clear that a higher level of basic business acumen was required. Unfortunately, when trying to set up appointments, the client’s sales force was unprepared to offer their advertisers much more than the name of their company.
Solution
To address this challenge, Paradigm Group designed a unified approach to the customer meeting—a process that forced sales reps to understand more about their advertisers’ businesses even before they pick up the phone to ask for an appointment. They learned how to identify valid business reasons for meeting and how to establish compelling “hooks” that would offer reasonable value to prospects.
The program also helped client reps to approach client meetings with a higher degree of business focus once they got their appointments set up. The entire sales force has been trained to ask appropriate questions that address important business issues, such as the impact that various challenges and opportunities are having. The sessions focused on how to better prepare for higher-level meetings and how to engage the decision makers more rapidly and effectively.
Results
Immediately upon implementation, sales executives reported higher conversion rates when calling for appointments. They also reported that their meetings with clients were more in-depth and revealing than any previous meetings. The clients stayed actively engaged in the conversation and complimented the account executives on their approach.
Account executives were able to return with proposals and recommendations that were more on-target and had a higher acceptance rate.
In reports compiled 30 days after the training was completed, participants noted that they were being invited to more meetings with key decision makers. They were also projecting around $48 million in revenue just from the prospects they were tracking for the session’s implementation assignment.
A residual benefit of the training was that, because the sales force went through a unified experience, they became more cohesive. This fostered more coordination and reduced internal competition.
New Skill Set Required...Which One?
Problem
The leading global business journal needed to fill account executive vacancies created by internal promotions. Given all the change that was taking place in media, they recognized that these new hires needed a different set of skills than the people they were replacing.
Insights
Our client was looking for help identifying what to look for in new hires. They wanted to find account executives who would be successful and stay successful over time. However, they were “stuck” because they were looking at the current situation without the benefit of research that would provide clues about what would be needed to adapt to change in the near future.
The Paradigm research team conducted rigorous interviews with customers and current high performers. Then we compared their insights to the emerging trends we were encountering in our research. By focusing on what would be required 3-5 years down the road we were able to break through and identify the critical elements required for success.
Solution
Paradigm Group developed a customized roadmap for hiring and developing account executives. This roadmap was based on a Success Profile that detailed the skills and practices new account executives would need right away and well into the future. Managers were trained on how to use the Success Profile for professional development and for hiring.
Results
Because the Success Profile is centered on development, not evaluation, we were able to remove the stigma often associated with competency analysis. The comment we heard most often in follow-up evaluations was, “Where was this on the day I started as a manager?” The Success Profile remains at the core of the hiring and development effort.
When Sales Reps Don’t See Product Value
Problem
The broadcast sales force of a major media company had tried unsuccessfully for several years to train reps on how to sell interactive advertising to their clients. Sales remained anemic at best and only happened when Internet specialists accompanied broadcast reps on sales calls. Management had tried various approaches, including mandating higher interactive sales quotas, but there were few positive results.
Insights
After spending time in the field with the broadcast sales reps, Paradigm Group discovered that they felt totally unprepared to sell Internet advertising. There were several reasons for this.
First, online specialists conducting in-house training were using jargon unfamiliar to the broadcast reps. Alienated by the language gaps, the broadcast reps felt overwhelmed by learning products outside their comfort zones.
We also found that the broadcast reps didn’t really know the online products very well. They were only being given binders and hard-copy sell sheets that described the products they were expected to sell. There were real doubts about the value that online products brought to their clients. In fact, they were “bundling” interactive advertising with their deals yet telling their customers it was a “value-added” component. This resulted in interactive sales that were really “give-aways” since neither the client nor the sales reps saw any value in the interactive components.
Solution
We listened carefully and then designed a user-friendly online training program that taught sales reps what they needed to know to successfully sell Internet advertising. We put them into the online environment where we could demonstrate the products at the click of a mouse. 24/7 access allowed each learner to review and reinforce key concepts as often as needed.
Once the vocabulary issues were resolved, the online modules taught the value of the products and the types of business needs that would be well served by using online advertising. Regular testing held participants accountable for learning. A comprehensive final certification process required learners to demonstrate cumulative knowledge.
Results
The testing process yielded a significantly improved sales force. Total revenue reported from one 30-day implementation assignment was $2.7 million, with average deal size growing from $700 to about $14,000. More important, sales managers reported much higher levels of competence, confidence and willingness to sell interactive advertising.
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