Get management out in the field

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Author: Colleen Francis

Seven ways you can boost sales and thrive in the new economy
Step #5: Get management out in the field

So far in this series of seven articles, we’ve looked at field-tested activities that you, the sales professional, can embrace today to generate dynamite growth in your sales, even in this new economy. Earlier, I shared with you how you can generate more sales from existing business relationships, and about how you can communicate in a manner that mitigates a prospect’s sense of risk. I’ve also talked about how you can use testimonials to your advantage, as well as customer targeting to get the results you’re looking for.

So far, the bulk of my advice has been on what you can do to change things. In today’s article, however, I’m going to broaden that scope a little more and share with you another field-tested activityâ€"-but this time, it involves what others (and by that I mean senior managers and executives) in your organization can do to have a positive influence on sales.

My advice is this: get your CEO to sit-in on sales calls. Have your VP of Sales and Marketing join you when making in-office visits to your clients or prospects. Get your sales manager to join in on a meeting when pitching to new prospects. There’s a case to be made for all levels of management to become outfielders on your sales team (As I write this, I can almost hear the cheers of “hip-hip-hurray” from my readers everywhere).

Why this matters

If you were to share this advice within your company right now, the very first question that you’d be asked by managers and executives is, of course, why. Why should management be out in the field when they already have professionals like you on hand who are great at what they do? My answer, and this is one that I give when conducting sales training to executives and employees of all kinds, is that becoming an outfielder in the sales process is the only way...the only way...that business leaders can get a pulse on what’s really going in your marketplace today.

Management guru, Tom Peters, also recognized that this activity is a vital element of what makes an organization successful. In his book, In Search of Excellence, (co-authored with Bob Waterman), he credits management at Hewlett Packard for coining a great euphemism for this approach: Management By Walking Around (or MBWA for short). Pretty much says it all about what this activity entails, doesn’t it?

It’s worth noting that this bookâ€"today, considered a classicâ€"was first published in 1982, when North America was in the throes of a deep, painful economic recession. What Peters and Waterman (and Hewlett Packard) recognized back thenâ€"that there was a lot you could learn from the people served by your businessâ€"still rings true today. Today, Peters is still fighting the good fight in favour of the MBWA approach. For example, his presentations laud the work of Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz, noting how “he religiously visits at least 25 stores a week.” Clearly it’s a lesson that’s not lost on the leaders of business today. Just last week, Amazon.com founder and CEO Jeff Bezos was in the news after he reportedly showed up unannounced to work on the floor at one of his company’s distribution centers.

What’s in it for you and for your customers

If these are challenging times in your marketplace, better for management to hear it firsthand from customers than from anyone else in your organization. Sure, it might be tempting for some folks in your accounting department to squabble over why the company is spending more on airfare to fly your managers out to meet with customers. However, the benefits can be substantial.

Maybe there are underlying problems or barriers to sales that need to be diagnosed. By having management out in the field, your organization can get to the root of the matter quickly. Just as important, the mere act of bringing in reinforcements sends a powerful signal to the people with whom you do business. It shows that you’re not backing down. Rather, you demonstrate that you’re bringing in extra resources, including the big guns from headquarters, to ensure that your customers’ needs are met thoroughly.

Moreover, this approach can help your management team decide what kinds of additional training and resources your sales team needs to regroup, reshape and revise its sales process. None of this can happen as quickly or as thoroughly without them first having the opportunity to see what’s going on out there.

Out in the field. It’s not just where the salespeople and the customers are, it’s where the answers are, too.

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