A simple KISS

Sales people can be their own worst enemies.   We lead complicated lives juggling opportunities, contacts, events, markets, building pipelines, developing account strategies, entertaining prospects, managing long sales cycles and somewhere along the way we complicate buying decisions for our prospects.  There are many ways we do this:

•  Great-looking websites that leave the prospect asking what exactly do you do and where’s the value for me?
•  Too many product options requiring too many decisions (when people have too many choices, studies have shown that they typically buy less);
•  Unable to explain simply what your product’s value is (go on, try right now to explain it clearly in a couple of sentences);
• Bombarding prospects with too much information and not showing enough value (contributing to paralysis by analysis and, given that your biggest competitor is likely to be the status quo, this is a very dangerous approach to take);
• Not differentiating what information is required at different times in the sales cycle.

When we export products and services, our opportunity to complicate gets even greater:

• Not communicating in the right language (as Germany's former chancellor Kohl once said: "If I'm selling to you, I speak your language. If I'm buying, dann muessen Sie Deutsch sprechen.”)
• Assuming that the sales approach will be the same in different countries (when selling in Italy, strong individual relationships built while socialising are very important, in Denmark consensus is key and socialising is not so critical);
• Using jargon that is not consistently understood across all of Europe – have it checked or avoid it!

The products you are selling abroad may be technically complex but it is your job to ‘keep it simple and stupid’ (KISS) for your prospects – simple for them to understand, simple for them to perceive the value, simple for them to buy.  If you don’t simplify the decision-making for your prospects in a language they understand and a manner they’re used to, they will either not make a decision or they will simplify the process themselves, coming to a decision that may make you lose that opportunity.

Who's afraid of the sales guy?

I’m petite and highly unlikely to personally inspire fear in anyone (except perhaps my husband!). However, what I am proposing for most companies and their employees is scary. I may look like I am selling software or hardware or mobile applications or outsourced services but what I am really selling is change. So be afraid, be very afraid!

Endless studies have been written about the psychology of change and its impact on sales (a simple Google search will turn up about 26m references). As well as change, prospects are also scared by:




Conflict. Decisions that colleagues or other departments oppose are simply too risky to pursue.
Work. If they think that your solution requires a lot more work on their part, they will not buy.
Failure. If you do not deliver, they will be held accountable for the bad choice.




And the bigger the company, the worse it gets (although they won’t necessarily always admit this!). And exporting makes the situation even scarier. Prospects then have fears about your ability to support them locally, fears about cultural misunderstandings and fears about solution fit to their local needs.

So, how can you minimise this fear?
1. Watch your language – avoid scary words that imply major change (transformation, radical, quantum, dramatic) both verbally and in writing and where possible, communicate in your prospect’s native language.
2. Improve on existing solutions - if appropriate, illustrate how your offering blends with and improves existing practice (small changes). Demonstrate an understanding of local norms.
3. Talk to more people – the more you are known within an organisation, the less scary what you are proposing will appear. This is especially important when your solution crosses departments – try convincing multiple department stakeholders of your value. Build some consensus. Link them with similar staff in your existing customer base.
4. Talk to senior staff – they are more likely to embrace change agendas, understand your value and have more influence on the final decision. By-passing middle management fears.
5. Map out the work-load – Be very clear what work will be required of your prospects and try very hard to actually minimise what they will have to do. Have a Plan B ready. Show how you will “hand-hold”. Build your solution with implementation effort in mind.
6. Build local partnerships – when exporting, this will help allay many prospect fears about your commitment to their country and minimise the potential for cultural misunderstandings.

However, inspiring fear in the gatekeepers of your prospects may not be a bad idea – make them afraid of not putting you through to their bosses.




Geraldine Fusciardi
http://www.strategy-structure-sales.com/