Thought I would repost this this is an article from OSD
SECRETS OF THE SALES SUPERSTARS
by Jim Rapp
What makes some industry salespeople so much more successful than others? What are the secrets of these few sales superstars?
Most any dealer will tell you these individuals don't come along every day, and they're pleased if they only have one or two on the payroll. Here we're talking top-of-the-line salespeople-not just reps who consistently do good work and keep owners or sales managers happy with their performances, but the ones who consistently hit it out of the ballpark for their dealerships.
So, who are some of these superstars, and what are their secrets?
First, meet Cornell Carr, an account manager with Lincoln Office, Peoria, Ill. Born on a farm near Branson, Mo., Carr and his family moved to central Illinois when he was 12 and his father accepted an offer as an elementary school principal.
Years later, when he finished his education, Carr worked at several jobs before joining Lincoln Office. He started in the service department, but wound up in sales. That was 23 years ago.
Today, he's the dealership's top producer, but he has only one customer-Caterpillar (CAT). CAT's world headquarters is in Peoria, but its operations are worldwide, so you might say that Carr covers the world. He works closely with top management in Peoria, but is also on a first-name basis with facility managers at CAT factories and offices around the world. What's so interesting is that he's working with literally hundreds of people he's never met face-to-face.
How does he do it? How is he able to put a package together for a new office across the country, when local dealers there are knocking down the doors to get the business?
"Three words tell the story," Carr says with a smile, "knowledge, honesty, and professionalism." He explains: "Certainly knowledge of the products we sell is vital, but more important is knowledge of the client-its people, its operation, and what it wants and doesn't want. Additionally, there's the knowledge the customer has about us-he knows we will do what we say we will do.
"Then there's honesty-this is a hallmark of Lincoln Office. It may sound corny or trite, but if you've ever done business with us, you'll know what I'm talking about," says Carr proudly.
"Finally, I work with a team that's as good as it gets-sometimes I feel that I'm one of the smallest cogs in the wheel. I listen carefully to what the customer says, then come back to the office and meet with an outstanding team of professionals-a design director, a project manager, customer service people, and more."
Carr can't say enough about the Lincoln team he works with. Lincoln Office sales manager Pete Simpson agrees, but says that Carr doesn't give himself enough credit.
When asked, "How would you describe Cornell Carr?" Simpson responds, "He's a true gentleman, has great organizational skills, enjoys what he does, and is just as much at home in the boardroom as he is working with an installation crew.
"Cornell is not just a good listener. He seems to know what the speaker is thinking! He adds value to the conversation. To sum it up, I would say that Cornell has all the skills that any good salesperson possesses, but has elevated them into an art form."
Our second superstar is Shawn Sims of Sims Business Systems in Tempe, Ariz. Sims is the niece of Mark and Connie Sims, the owners of a growing and highly successful equipment dealership and an OfficeDEALER Elite Dealer three years in a row.
The Sims dealership was started by Sims' grandfather in Chicago in 1954 and moved to Arizona in 1978. Sims grew up in Chicago and graduated from Northern Illinois University with a degree in elementary education. She decided that teaching wasn't for her and, just over four years ago, started working for her aunt and uncle as a sales rep.
Since then, Sims has become one of the top producers in the organization and, just a few months ago, was asked to open a branch office 40 miles away in Glendale, Ariz.
"What makes you so successful?" I asked. My first clue came when she asked me to call her at 7: 30 in the morning at her office and wanted to know exactly how much time the interview would take. "I start early," she said. "I'm trying to hire salespeople and still make sales calls every day." As Sims tells her story, she makes it clear that successful sales run in the family genes. "I never would have made it in this highly competitive business without my uncle Mark as a teacher and mentor," she says.
"When I started out, he told me, 'Every day you have to make at least 20 cold calls and get four new appointments.' I did this for a year. It was a struggle, but I kept at it. I wanted to prove that I could do it. I was the youngest rep at the time and the only female.
"So, I guess you could say, I stayed with it, worked the formula, demonstrated my determination and enthusiasm to my prospects, and then I started to get callbacks and referrals. The first year was really hard, but I have a good work ethic-if you tell me to do something, I'll do it."
Sims mixes that fierce work ethic with an equally strong determination to keep up to speed on product knowledge in a rapidly changing industry. She's taken networking and advanced computer classes, she reports, "so I can at least understand information technology and carry on an intelligent conversation with clients."
Sims is also becoming a specialist in wide-format equipment and its uses, and targets engineers, architects, and builders.
I asked her to share a success story with our readers. Here's her response: "In the Phoenix area, there is a large nonprofit organization with 17 locations, and each one needs a copier. I started with one branch. Over a two-year period, I proved to the organization that our service was good and asked that the group recommend our company to its headquarters. I then asked if I could speak to its finance board, the group that makes decisions on major purchases. The organization agreed. I talked about what I could do at each of the locations. The organization provided all the contact information and advised each location that I would be coming.
"Fortunately for me, the group was receiving no savings as a result of buying all its equipment from one large vendor, plus it was outsourcing all its color work. After a thorough study of its operation, we were able to save them some really big bucks. Now, I'm getting referrals from a number of the people who work at its various locations."
And what does Uncle Mark have to say about his niece? "I may be a little biased," he says, "but she is so exceptional, so focused, and works so hard every day that there's no way she can avoid being highly successful. Shawn will call and ask my advice on how to handle a certain situation. I'll give her my thoughts on the matter, not really knowing if it would have worked for me; but being the true believer, she tries it, and almost like magic, it does work! This says more about her than it does about me."
Bill Lipsett is our third superstar, but certainly not the least. Lipsett is a major account manager in the supplies division of The Phillips Group, Harrisburg, Pa., a major player in south central Pennsylvania with some $60 million in annual sales.
Lipsett sells supplies with a touch of furniture. He's been in our industry for 29 years, but only the last four with Phillips, coming to the dealership from outside sales with Corporate Express.
It didn't take him long to make his mark with the company-he was named Sales Representative of the Year at Phillips for 2005/2006. His boss, sales manager Tom Smith, explains, "Bill is not one to shine the spotlight on himself, but his achievements are extraordinary. This award is not based solely on sales or profits. Many other factors are considered-how well he works with our staff, for example. Bill has the highest level of integrity-he does what he says he will do. His depth of knowledge of each customer's operation, its needs, and the people involved is really off the charts. I sometimes think that if his customers were required to buy from someone else, they wouldn't know what to do!"
I asked Lipsett for the secrets of his success. He believes most of it comes from just being customer oriented. "It doesn't matter to me the size of the customer's operation or the size of the order. I give everyone good service all the time. When I get a customer, I do everything possible to retain that customer-whatever it takes. It's paying attention to everything that goes on with the customer, knowing all the people, not just the buyer. I also try to be careful not to skip over satisfied customers just because I never hear from them-neglect can kill you."
What secrets do these "head and shoulders above" salespeople share? They have all moved beyond the basics and are willing to work harder and smarter than their competitors. They go to great lengths to identify their customers' needs, make sure they know as much as they can about the industry and its products, and then use all the knowledge and skills they possess every single day, with every customer and prospective customer.
Jim Rapp, a 30-year industry veteran, has been talking with dealers and writing about it in OfficeDEALER since 1998.
Here is the link for thier web site
OSD
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