Becoming Professional about Sales

I happened to catch part of a financial programme on the radio over the weekend, where the debate was around the forthcoming departure of a star fund manager – Neil I think he was called -   would (or should) Neil’s investors follow him to his new fund or stay put ?

The debate centred on whether Neil’s success to date was a good bet for future success or whether he had just been a bit luckier than his peers.

From the pro-lobby we heard that Neil was a long term performer. He has his own systematic, consistent approach to fund management and often avoids the investments favoured by the herd.  As a result his investors had enjoyed returns that had significantly outperformed the rest. 

Against this we heard it was probably just luck.  Sure, Neil had had a good run over the decade, but the last two years hadn’t been so impressive, it was suggested that Neil had perhaps had his day.

To me the debate was about different mind sets and beliefs and it struck me how that is often reflected in peoples approach to sales.

Those who believe it is largely a matter of luck, perhaps holding to a ‘win-some, lose-some ‘ philosophy, will never challenge the status quo. They believe that as long as they are doing no worse than their competitors, then they are doing OK. OK, until the number of second places start to climb. As we all know there are no second places in sales worth having.

Then there are those who will look to out-perform the rest, to create a comparative advantage.  They look to create opportunities where others may conclude there are none.  They do not accept that market conditions dictate their sales. They get frustrated just churning out quotations or playing the pitching and presenting game.

Their mind set is one of on-going improvement. They understand that it is often a small % differential between themselves and their competitors that wins business and that difference is about value perceived by the prospect, not price. To continue to win it needs to be sustainable, opportunities create opportunities, success breeds success.

We find these are the businesses that have a systematic approach to sales, one that ensures they have a clear focus and a consistent methodology for approaching and qualifying opportunities. They do not follow the herd.

I decided that if it was down to me , I’d be keeping my money with Neil.