Much of the content that I use for my blogs comes from the daily grind of selling hardware & software. There will be days when I hear something unique, have a conversation with a client or a spark if imagination that will cause me to write.
Actually, yesterday was one of those days. Our VP of Major Accounts came over to my humble abode of 24 square feet and asked me about an he email he had received from a potential new client. The email kinda went like this.
"Sorry, been out for a couple of days, however I wanted to reach out to you. What would be the timeline that we could get installation of the systems once we sign the documents?"
Trying to read between the lines, our VP explained that it seemed the client was ready to move forward (or maybe they were not) with that email and he was now in a quandary whether to offer some additional funds from the manufacturer and that he was able to encumber. Meaning, should he not give the funds and save them for a rainy day, or still give the funds to move to closure.
I offered up that if it were me and I had been able to garner anything additional for a client that I would pass it along with a covenant to move the order to closure. Not only would I be able to deliver the answer to question that was asked, but I would be able to put the icing on the cake with the additional funds.
Back in the day, we had two basic methods of communication, the phone conversation and the in person conversation. Tones of voice, the occasional mannerism helped both parties in communicating their stance and or point of view.
More now than ever, I find my self trying to read between the lines of voice mail messages, and emails. With voice mails I can get hear the tone of the message which will offer some help, but with email, there's basically nothing but a bunch of words that are begging you to decipher what the content really means.
I can't help myself and I find my self thinking about those received emails, ok this sentence means this but the next sentence contradicts the first and the last sentence leads me back to my first thought. It would not be as bad if clients and or prospects would communicate the old fashioned way with in person appointments or by phone.
One of my fears in the not too distant future is that many of those phone conversations and in person conversations will go away. I have this bad feeling that more and more people only want to communicate via email, text and social media. Why is that? Do they really want to hide? Is that just a Generation Y thing because they were weaned on computers, Xboxes and cell phones? Is that the way they want to communicate with others? Could it be I'm a Baby Boomer in a Gen Y world and I just don't get it?
I kinda went off on a tangent, but my point is that I think we all tend to try and read through the lines too much. There's nothing better that a good ole phone conversation and or an in person conversation. Thus, when it doubt, make that phone call, but maybe think twice about leaving a voice mail or sending another email.
-=Good Selling=-
Hey, here's a good question for you. Do any of us carry around demo originals anymore? I can't remember that last time I even looked for one. Back in the day, if you didn't carry demo originals with you were probably not selling much. When it came to copying documents from the glass, I used to ask the customer for their originals instead of using mine. Great for the demo, because they got to see real time quality of their copies. 
Just today, one of our newbies lost a deal for a new copier to a web site that sells copiers. The cost was so low, that he could not compete. In recent months, I've lost two opportunities for two new copiers with other web sites that sell copiers on-line. We all know and understand the pitfalls from ordering copiers on line, right?
There are many ways that OEMS can exercise pressure. OEM's have deep pockets and if the dealer channel is something they covet, then they could implore some of these strategies:
Wikipedia has several definitions of “workflow” – look it up. 
Since that time and bad experience I have treaded cautiously with workflow. Since my preferred content management product since 2001 has been SharePoint, I have tried to stick with what Microsoft has included within their releases (2001, 2001, 2007, 2010, 2013). While Microsoft included rudimentary workflow within SharePoint there are third party companies who have more expansive offering to work with SharePoint (Nintex and K2). While the capabilities have come a long way in the last 20 years, most companies that I deal with (small business) have been slow to catch on.
A few weeks ago, I was digging deep into LinkedIn just to see what's new. Didn't find much, however I did notice that I've been a LinkedIn user since 2005. Over the years, I've seen the good the bad and the ugly on LinkedIn. There's a lot more good than the bad and ugly!
I thought since this is Christmas week and most of my favorite shows are in re-run that I would dig up a few "Blast from the Past" blogs that are still located on the BlogSpot site.
Looking back, 2015 was not one of my best years in the industry. There were many factors involved but I can only blame myself for a somewhat lack luster performance (but I did have a good year of GP). The good thing is, that January starts a new year and I'm excited about entering my 35th of SMB sales.
Since the invention of xerography, copier sales people have possessed one critical skill: they are able to drive conversations. As we step into the bold new world of social selling, nothing changes. Until you start a conversation with someone, nothing happens.
In the past several years, plenty of trends in corporate IT have taken shape and intensified, but perhaps none quite as impactful and challenging as enterprise mobility. Sure, the Internet of Things is beginning to scale up and challenge managers in the IT department, but it will take years for this trend to see the same types of gains in adoption as enterprise mobility and, specifically, BYOD, have seen of late.