There is a process to selling often referred to as the Sales Steps. While there is some discrepancy among sales professionals on the number of steps, and there are varying terms used to describe each step in the process – there is one step in the process that most professionals refer to as the “Closing”.

Remember Alec Baldwin’s famous line from the 1992 movie titled “Glengarry Glen Ross?” He said “coffee is for closers.”  He was referring to those sales professionals adept at closing a deal, winning a bid, sealing a deal or getting folks to sign on the dotted line.

Closing is a tough skill for most, and sales professionals often admit that closing is a step they are not as proficient in as they should be. No wonder, it can be confusing with the myriad of Closing techniques one could use.

~There is the Alternative Close we are all very familiar with “which would you prefer a hamburger or hotdog?"

~And the Fear of Loss Close that goes something like this: “There are only three left and I cannot hold them, I would hate to see you miss out on the special”

~And there are the more professional approaches that we prefer and deem more palatable and less manipulative such as: “What would you suggest our next steps be?” “Where would you like to go from here?” Our favorite trial Close simply says” How does that sound?"

A Close actually happens before a person is literally asked to sign a contract, take delivery, or agree out loud. The signature itself is typically the formalizing of a Close (the agreement) that already happened.

We see that the Close takes place somewhere in the gray area between presenting a solution and overcoming the objections raised. It is that moment that a person makes up their mind and says to themself “if this person asks me, I am going to say Yes or No.” 

But take heed if you think the decision making process takes place in the same linear process as you are selling. You may be on step five in the sales process but your prospect may have already made a decision. Some prospects make up their minds to purchase before speaking to a sales representative; often being negatively influenced by a perception...a poor reputation or misguided rumor.

What can you do to improve your Closing skills?

You must first have a general understanding of when decisions are really made in the minds of prospects.

You must also learn how to better align with your prospects’ buying process.  

The AIDA principal is a great tool to get you started – a tool to map out the decision-making process your buyer goes through. Target your approach and recognize the point a decision is made.

You are sure to increase revenue when you couple your tried and true sales process with a more targeted approach and decision-making process. Now, go get that cup of coffee!

Closing Business At Your Event

Sr. VP of Sales (John) called to tell us that he just found out his annual conference budget was cut in half.

Yikes!

He was clearly distraught; in past years he had depended heavily on conferences as a way for his sales staff to interact with prospects and gather leads.

With his budget cut by fifty percent, what would he do?

John envisioned his sales funnel half empty.  We listened intently to him as his fears gave way to panic about missed quotas and the many awful ramifications that it could potentially bring. We assured John we would come up with a solution that would allow him to reinvent the way he and his sales staff went to conference.

We needed to devise a plan and begin implementation almost immediately.

We sat with John and his team. They showed us a list of the conferences they had attended the previous year.  Together we analyzed the sales funnel and mapped back all the leads that could have possibly been derived from a conference.

We needed to first prove that all their sales lead assumptions were in fact correct.

Did they equate to fifty percent of the sales funnel? Did the conferences he deemed the most important to his sales revenue actually yield a capture-able return on investment? Once travel time and expense was factored in (cost of sales), did some of the conferences still yield a high enough margin to justify their expense?

Once we narrowed down the conferences the Company should attend, we worked out entire strategy for John’s team -- one which they could execute upon immediately. 

They hit the ground running with a concrete plan. How’d we do it?

• We identified key decision makers and their needs in the current market place.
  
• We designed key selling messaging with the marketing and sales teams.
  
• We trained the marketing team to better connect with decision makers and influencers, and understand the critical point at which they should hand the lead off to sales for deeper relationship building.
  
• We provided skills for the conference team such as: the processes in which collateral was distributed and leads were gathered; revamping an antiquated system and redesigned it to be sticky while more cost effective.
  
• We taught trade show strategies for conference attendees. We find that Sales teams always need refresher courses on how to stand out in a breakout session, how assisting others gets you noticed, how to manage the booth space and show floor when exhibiting.

Our conference strategy allowed John and his sales team to actually close business during the conference instead of just filling a sales pipeline!  John’s team not only made quota but increased revenue by 20% year over year.

Want to be more effective at your next conference or trade show? We can help!

Guest Blogger: Laura Posey, CEO of Dancing Elephants Achievement Group. Her company specializes in small business growth. "It's not rocket science but it is science," shares Laura. "If you understand the psychology of entrepreneurs and buyers, you have the keys to the kingdom and can hit any goal you choose."

The Netflix Debacle

If you've looked at the news lately, you've seen Netflix in it. The super-successful DVD-rental and online video streaming service had been growing like gangbusters over the past few years, reaching over 100 million subscribers.

A few months ago, they announced two big changes - 1) they were increasing their prices by 60% and 2) they were splitting off the the DVD-rental business into a new company called Qwikster. That meant that customers who were used to having one account and paying $10/mo for both delivery and streaming service would now have two separate logins as well as paying $16/mo for the privilege.

As you can imagine, customers revolted. They left in droves and Netflix saw over 4 million customers disappear almost overnight.

In a panic, the company reversed its decision to start Qwikster, hoping to stop the bleeding. It didn't work... customers are still leaving. Instead of adding 600,000 as they anticipated this quarter, they expect to lose 400,000.

So what are the lessons for you in this mess? I think there are several:

Change is good, whiplash is bad - simply put, Netflix tried to change too quickly. They took a sharp right turn and gave their customers whiplash in the process. They raised prices too quickly and they forced clients to change their behavior (two accounts) all at once. Had they done either but not both, I think the fallout would have been much lower.

Simplify, don't complicate - one of the things customers loved about Netflix was the fact that with one account they could order DVDs or watch online. By splitting the two services, Netflix added complexity to the customer interaction, giving customers a reason to look elsewhere for something simpler.

Most often gone, is gone for good - it is difficult and expensive to add new customers. When you do something to make them upset, in most cases you'll never get them back. Making a change that angers some die-hard customers won't usually drive them away. Many will forgive you and stay. But when you anger the complacent or the mildly dissatisfied, they will typically leave for good. And, for most businesses, the majority of their customers are complacent or mildly dissatisfied already.

Price points matter - there is a whole field of marketing devoted to pricing strategy. Perhaps Netflix should have read the book on it. There is a bit psychological difference between $9.99, the old price, and $15.98, the new price. It is the difference between under $10 and over. Had they even gone to $14.98 instead, I don't think the backlash would have been as bad. Under $15 is much better than over. In the mind, most people see $15.98 as closer to $20 than to $15 so that 60% price hike seems even more offensive. In reality, Netflix should have increased prices more slowly over time, inching up a dollar with each hike over time. Now their customers are so price-sensitive, they won't be able to raise prices again for a long, long time.

As you are doing your planning for the coming year (yes it is time to start), think about the changes you're making to your business and how they might impact your customers. Raise rates, but slowly. Add new services, but not huge ones. Take away anything that complicates your customers buying and usage habits.

Graduate magna cum laude of Harvard Law School, Alexander Macris is CEO and President of the Themis Group (www.themis-group.com).  Mr. Macris provides the company's strategic leadership and serves as Publisher and Editorial Director of its media properties and their flagship publication The Escapist (www.escapistmagazine.com).

Mr. Macris has also served as editor-in-chief of the Themis Report, designed the award-winning Heroes Mini (2007 MI6 Award) as well as three other web games and two tabletop games, and concepted and edited MMORPGs for Dummies.

Q: Many of today’s corporate leaders have publicly voiced concerns and even negative comments over the work ethic and styles of younger employees. What can you tell us about this new and increasing population of the latest generation?   Why have they been labeled the reset generation?

A: The latest generation of workers is made up of people born between 1980 and 1995. The oldest of them turned 21 in 2001, and so they are often called the Millennial Generation. They are also called Generation Y, as they succeeded my own Generation X. 

Whatever you call them; Generation Y’s reception in the business community has been very troubled. They have been labeled demanding, self-entitled, and coddled. Managers have found they expect a lot of feedback but can’t cope with criticism, and that they have low job loyalty combined with high job expectations. Recent studies have suggested they are high in narcissism and low in empathy.

The term Reset Generation was coined from the reset button on videogames. Generation Y grew up with computer and video games and I think the lens of videogames is a great way to view the Reset Generation, to understand them better. I’m not going to suggest that videogames are the causal agent of how they behave, but I do think videogames provide a useful metaphor to understanding why they behave.

Q: You believe that they have been deceived, in what ways?

A: Reality for Generation Y is really bleak. A college degree is now the minimum requirement to find a place in the working world that affords some job satisfaction and material comforts. The college degree doesn't offer protection against turmoil in the labor market, as it once did, nor does it guarantee such things as health insurance or a retirement plan.  Meanwhile, the cost of a higher-education has increased by 63% at public schools and 47% in private schools in the last 15 years. That means most students have to borrow tens of thousands of dollars to attend college, and will be paying off loans until their 40s.

That was before the recession...Right now 37% of 18-29 year olds are either lacking a job or underemployed. (Cindy Krischer Goodman, “Recession Sparks New Attitudes for Generation Y,” Miami Herald) For those who are working, real earnings for workers between 25 and 34 have dropped by almost 10% since 2000.  (Business Week) Meanwhile, the Baby Boomers have held off on retiring, so there’s no upward mobility. The national debt, social security, and Medicare are all skyrocketing, so they can expect a tax burden that’s double what it was for their parents.

Is it any wonder that they are jumping jobs to pursue decent pay, good benefits, and upward mobility? For most of them, their current job isn’t offering those. Is it any wonder that 58% of Generation Y polled between 2000 and 2006 move home after school in order to pay the bills?

What we are seeing is a collision between the world that Generation Y was taught to expect, and the real world of America in the Greatest Recession; a tougher, more competitive, less forgiving world.  Employers are the site of the first collision between the world that Gen Y was told to expect and the real world that awaits them.

Q: What can you tell us about the way they perceive their superiors?

A: They don’t respect traditional hierarchies. They expect to have a casual business relationship with their boss. They have an expectation of upward mobility...very, very quickly. They already envision themselves in the boss’s chair.

One useful analogy I’ve offered is that each member of the Reset Generation sees himself or herself as the hero of their own videogame. You are their boss, not the hero; you are the old wizard that gives them the tutorial when they start the game!

Q: We have been told this reset generation appears to have little loyalty and are mainly made up of job-hoppers. This lack of loyalty raises a concern for many companies who could find they have to deal with the costly issues of employee churn. What kinds of management styles work best with this age group to help them achieve a career path within a corporate structure?

A: First, it’s more than just an anecdote; the data shows up in all the major studies of Gen Y work behavior. The majority of Gen Y workers job hop every 18 months (Wall Street Journal). Consider, for a moment, trying to run a knowledge business with a workforce that has 100% turnover every year and a half.

The job hopping has two root causes. The first is that the Reset Generation is simply not making enough money to meet its own expectations for its lifestyle, especially when you factor in their egregious college debt. It’s a common strategy among young workers to increase their wages by job hopping as soon as they earn enough experience to get a job that will pay more.

The second cause is the notion of the “reset” itself. I think everyone is familiar with the reset button, on video game consoles the reset button restarts the game, losing the player’s unsaved progress. Video gamers love the reset button. In most games, they get the opportunity to save their play from time to time, sometimes at will. They can gain a major advantage by strategically using the reset button whenever they’ve made a mistake; such as getting a character killed; they don’t have to keep playing and suffer the consequences. They can just press the reset button and start from the point before the mistake occurred. Job hopping is how you hit the reset button when you’re unhappy at work.

To address the first cause, you’ve got to have an aggressive retention system that’s going to find the workers you want to keep, and make it worth their while to stay. They should make more money by staying than going. If you have young workers at salaries lower than their replacement cost (i.e. at under market), you shouldn’t be surprised if they leave!

Addressing the second cause is harder because the Reset Generation’s expectations of jobs can be so high that it can be hard to make them happy. This is particularly so if it’s their first job.

The most successful management style I’ve found has been a coaching, empowering approach. We create self-managed “strike teams” with clear objectives and then give them as much power and flexibility as we can delegate. This creates leadership opportunities for the younger workers and gives them a sense of control over their own destiny. But for this to work the teams have to be held accountable for their performance and you need to have a strong corps of veterans who can advise and assist when trouble brews.

Q: Can you share with our readers some of the statistics about the size of this population of “Resets” compared to the baby-boomer population and why corporate leadership should care?

A: They are a huge cohort – 79 million strong, according to Fortune magazine, which makes them as big as the Baby Boomer cohort, and three times bigger than Generation X. There simply are not enough members of Generation X to supply the labor shortage expected when the Baby Boomers retire. For good or ill, Generation Y is going to be dominating America’s workforce very, very soon.

Q: Why do you attend public events in sunglasses?

A: A long time ago, when I was a young man about town, a friend and I decided to wear dark sunglasses to our favorite nightclub. It was something of a whim. But the two of us, nursing our drinks in the corner with sunglasses on, kept getting approached by folks. "Are you… somebody?" asked one visitor. "Yes," I explained. Since then, it's been something of a running joke to wear sunglasses. After all, I'm somebody. Maybe not somebody important, but at least somebody!

Bo Andersson is President & CEO Danfoss Flomatic, located in Glens Falls, New York, is a growing and progressive manufacturer of high quality valves primarily for domestic and municipal water and wastewater applications.

Danfoss Flomatic is well known for their deep commitment to customers, employees, and global partners; continually improving the design, production, and marketing of high quality valve products that are environmentally sensitive and meet or exceed customer expectations.

In a recent interview, Mr. Andersson said, " We keep a close eye on our customers’ level of satisfaction. Gathering information from several sources, including direct surveys of our top customers, illustrates a steady increase of satisfaction over the years. We’re continuing to operate as a technology company, leading the industry with new and innovative products which are covered by numerous patents and trademarks to meet the ever expanding needs of our customers.”

A tour of the company’s manufacturing plant would show that one of the last steps before the product is shipped is the addition of the warranty card.

“It’s not just a warranty card,” Mr. Andersson added. “It’s also a thank you note. We feel that’s a very important element to thank the product’s end-user that we rarely know. Anything worth doing is worth doing with the best possible sense of urgency. You have to earn it. You can’t go for the profit — it is something you earn each and every time.”

Background: Danfoss Flomatic products include Automatic Control Valves, Backflow Preventers, Check and Foot Valves in a size range from ¼” through 30”. The Danfoss Flomatic customer base is primarily in the water works, plumbing and industrial processing industries with exports to forty countries.

For more about Danfoss Flomatic, please visit www.flomatic.com.

Q. What do you consider is the job of a CEO?

Leadership- demonstrates a capacity for a positive healthy and upbeat attitude through good times and bad.

Communication skills- a CEO is a good, deep listener; speaks slowly and clearly to insure that everyone understands them. Insures that what they say is understood and not misunderstood. Good communication skills are the most important tool that a CEO has in his toolbox.

Demonstrate passion- Passion is the first step to success.Anything worthwhile doing shall be done with a sense of urgency and commitment. Staying focused on your commitments and goals more that anybody thinks is reasonable, is passion.

Make tough calls- making decisions in business is difficult. Making tough calls fairly, timely and with commitment is brilliant; very few CEO do this.

Run the company with a profit- CEO’s are responsible for the bottom line and employees like to work for companies that make money. A successful company also likes you to share it with them. A CEO insures that his employees are paid well and make a bonus at end of each year. Money is not the only motivator but as a CEO this is your insurance plan to keep your job and to keep your top performers. All of the other important and noble points above for CEO to consider do not make any sense if you do not know how to make money.

Q. What was the #1 surprise realization you had back when you began your role as a CEO?

It is sometimes a lonely feeling to be a CEO as you can not always say what you really think. You are held to a different standard. The door to change does not swing in somebody else’s face, it swings in yours.

Q. A consultants’ advice is easy to get, but we realize it is important to get advice from someone who has already done the job.  Have you had an experienced CEO to turn to for advice?

Yes, we work with consultants on various issues. I network with other CEOs on industry issues and learn new things every day. Seeking advice on technical and business matters is very important to energize the organization as well. I believe that all successful CEOs have also had good mentors and support from other CEOs. The trick for me is to pick-up the ideas that can help me and our organization. Often these are very small simple subtle things that will make a big difference.

Q. What is your strategy for ensuring customer satisfaction?

The number one thing for us is quality, quality and quality. Never compromise with quality. Control the manufacturing process inside out and work closely with your suppliers. They are your partners and you can never produce a better product than what your vendor allows you. Their component parts have to be better quality than the final product that you make or you lose.

We conduct ongoing customer surveys thru the mail and internet. We run statistical control on our service rate and customer satisfaction. We are always looking for new ways to make it easier for our customers to come to us for their product needs. This is a never-ending process that we measure and improve on all the time. Every thing we do or change in our operation is linked to helping our customer in one way or another. All of our new products are driven by a close working relationship with our customers’ never-ending need for better performance, materials and value. As CEO I am deeply involved with customer satisfaction as our most important strategic goal in our company on all levels.