By Steve Jensen
As part of the “Attention Economy” of today I noticed recently my reading habits had slipped. I reached out to a few friends for recommendations for my next 10 books. High on the list was Phil Knight’s bestselling story of Nike, Shoe Dog.
I categorize books I read into Sales (so I can continue to up my sales skills), Leadership (because too often we don’t see leadership as a skill that must be developed), and Success (because I believe that whatever you put into your mind is what you will end up doing with your life.) I chose this book thinking it would fall into my “Success” category. I was pleasantly surprised to find that it was a sales book as much as anything else.
One of the meaningful “Ah-Ha” moments of this book came to me as Phil Knight was reflecting on the early success he had with his “Blue Ribbon Shoe Company” by filling the trunk of his car with shoes and driving from track meet to track meet pitching his track shoes, rather than selling through retail channels. “I drove all over the Pacific Northwest, to various track meets. Between races I’d chat up the coaches, the runners, the fans, and show them my wares. The response was always the same. I couldn’t write orders fast enough.”
Knight continued with “Driving back to Portland I’d puzzle over my sudden success at selling. I’d been unable to sell encyclopedias, and I’d despised it to boot. I’d been slightly better at selling mutual funds, but I’d felt dead inside. So why was selling shoes so different? Because, I realized, it wasn’t selling. I believed in running. I believedthat if people got out and ran a few miles every day, the world would be a better place, and I believed these shoes were better to run in. People, sensing my belief, wanted some of that belief for themselves. Belief, I decided, is irresistible.”
The first sale that must happen for a salesperson to have sustained success is the sale that happens in the heart of the salesperson. I’ve believed this my entire career but hadn’t thought much about it for a long time, until reading this passage of Shoe Dog. Belief is not something where “fake it till you make it” applies. Belief fuels a passion that creates a different kind of connection with customers and their needs.
While it is certainly possible to sell something without having a strong belief in the product or company, this lack of conviction will often create different sales challenges to overcome that believers don’t have to deal with. Belief does at least these four things for a salesperson:
- Belief Drives Engagement: Belief is what drives a salesperson want to make that extra few calls. Belief drives the nature of the sales conversation and transforms stale data points into meaningful parts of a memorable customer experience. Non-believers can be motivated to win, but believers will be inspired. Inspired salespeople have a “mission mentality” that drives every part of sales performance. “Inspired” and “Motivated” are light years apart.
- Belief Fuels Customer Connection: Simon Sinek‘s “Start With Why” should be required reading for all sales professionals. He correctly shares that “People don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do it. And what you do simply proves what you believe.” One of the Laws of Sales I train is to “Connect Before You Correct.” Inspired believers are able to connect with customers in ways that non-believing (yet highly motivated) salespeople can’t. Our newest salesperson at Xvoyant understands the sales coaching world in ways few do, and he joined our team because of his belief that coaching is a difference maker and that the Xvoyant solution was a difference maker for members of enterprise sales teams. In a very short period of time, he has brought industry leaders around the world to our growing company primarily because his belief helped him connect with customers faster than anyone else thought possible.
- Belief Develops Raving Fans: Believers create fellow believers. These customers are less likely to feel buyers’ remorse, these customers become avid advocates in helping develop the product, bring more people to the cause (i.e. more customers), and I’ve found them to be a little more patient when there are issues to work through. Inspired salespeople develop inspired buyers. Inspired buyers help shorten sales cycles and overcome internal challenges. An inspired buyer is a salesperson’s best friend. The best way to find them? Be an inspired, believing salesperson.
- Belief Leads to Fulfillment: The sales profession is the greatest profession in the world. But it is a challenging one. Customers are more empowered than ever before, and competitors are more aggressive than any time in history. Products are copied very quickly and it is difficult to differentiate on product alone. Believers differentiate by providing a more memorable customer experience. Legendary customer experiences come from inspired salespeople. As these salespeople see themselves as a difference maker to their customers, the job becomes less of a job. These salespeople are appreciated by their customers in a different way than other salespeople are, and these reps understand they are doing more than just hitting a number…they are making a difference to those they work with. Believers get a greater satisfaction in what they do every day than those that are just motivated do.
So how does a salesperson become a believer? This is a question every salesperson and every sales leader needs to answer. Sales leaders need a team of believers. Salespeople need to believe in order to have influence in their market. Without belief, you can have success, but predictable, sustainable success becomes very, very challenging. Here are 2 ways to build belief:
- Understand a “Day in the Life” with your product. Too often, salespeople’s exposure to a product is limited to a demo environment. My conviction about solutions I’ve helped provide have had the most significant impact to me when I’ve spent time with my solutions inside a customer environment. Products have no value…they can only derive value. Spending time with customers to experience how the products derive value creates a clear understanding of why we matter. I make it a point to spend time onsite with customers on a regular basis. Not only does this build customer relationships, it always further cements my conviction on why we should work with every company we can. Move past the demo and move into the real world with your customer. The stories you will be able to share as a result will change how you sell.
- “Go Deep” on the Drivers of Value. There are only two ways a product creates value. The product can solve a problem the customer cares about, or the product can achieve a result the customer cares about. The problem or the result aren’t the key elements here…what matters is the fact that a customer cares about it. Believers understand how to “Dollarize” why these problems or results matter. To increase your conviction, immerse yourself in the drivers of dollarization. Very few salespeople are really strong at understanding how to demonstrate impact…the before scenario vs. the after scenario. This is NOT an ROI of a product. It is the value of the problem you solve or the value of the result you achieve. One of the first people to join me when I started Xvoyant recently shared with me why he wanted to help build our company. When I shared my vision of how coaching would change the careers of salespeople around the world if sales leaders just had the tools to help them, he was able to see not just the financial impact to a company, but the very meaningful change to the careers of professional salespeople. This belief had him jumping in to our team and since then he has driven much of our success…all because of his belief. Believers understand clearly how to dollarize the value of solving a problem or achieving a result. If you have a clear understanding of how to measure success and why it matters, you will find it fueling a conviction of why what you’re doing matters. This understanding will help drive belief faster than you may think.
Never lose track of the fact that the first saleevery salesperson must make is the sale that happens in the heart of the salesperson.
Understanding the “Why” will always be more important than the “How” or “What.” If you don’t believe your company provides the best solution to help your customers solve problems or achieve results that matter, you can’t expect the target prospects in your market to believe you can either. If you don’t believe, it is silly to expect your ideal prospects to believe it. If you can’t get to a point where you’re a believer, do yourself a favor and find a new solution to sell. The reality is the market you work with won’t buy from you in a predictable way until you do.
A mentor of mine, Rick Page, wrote a bestselling sales book titled “Hope is Not a Strategy.” He says you can win without a plan…its called luck. None of us were hired to be lucky. We were added to our respective teams to move the needle in a predictable, sustainable way. So make sure you get the most important sale done right: the sale driving your conviction about your product, your company, and most important, yourself.
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Steve Jensen is the VP of Marketing at Xvoyant