Stop Selling Your Product
Now before you read further I recommend you to check my previous post as context. In that post I describe how one of my first sales calls, where I “lost” the client, lead into one, if not the biggest, learning in my sales career. I understood that no one is interested in your product. It is not what your clients buy and it is not what you should sell to them.
A brief backdrop about how I stumbled to the learning:
14+ years ago I was starting my shiny new key account management role at a magazine publishing house. Nervously I reached out to my portfolios biggest clients (FMCG company) media agency and presented myself as the new contact. And before I got much further I was turned down with the agency stating that due to the recession the client will focus on tactical and sales generating medias (which magazines of course are but for some reason there is still a split between “tactical” and “branding”, a poor classification in the industry that deserves its own post), therefore magazines are not part of the media mix anymore. And regardless of my head spinning with learnings around how to handle objections - I just put down the phone and felt powerless.
Month or two later I heard a chief editor of a certain magazine talk about constant theme around food that their readers kept giving input. I instantly recognised that the theme is something that could be addressed by the “lost” FMCG client I had still silently sitting in my portfolio (with a hefty sales target of course). So an idea to do some advertising around the theme was formed and I reached out to the client again.
This time calling the brand directly I explained that there seems to be a need within food enthusiasts around specific theme that their brand could easily address with an idea I had. Thus making sure they are top of mind with the looming trend before others.
The answer was pretty different than in the first call: “You know this is exactly what we have identified as a rising trend and we would be super interested to hear more, can we set a meeting to discuss more.”
After a few meetings we signed a partnership with the client and they came back. buying ads in magazines which they had already stated they would not do this year.
Without closing too much details above I hope the learning shines through:
People do not buy your product. Stop talking about it.
In the second approach with the client, I did not talk about magazines anymore, knowing that magazines are not in their plans.
Instead of your product, start thinking what it is that your clients are buying
In this case the client bought into an idea that would give them competitive advantage.
After that on my career I have always focused on the question: “What are the clients buying? What are they measured against?” The products and services I have been selling have changed but the question is always the same.
Another powerful question question to be self critical is: “Am I selling or am I presenting a product?” Going through your product, explaining how it has 4 corners how it is better than all others and that you can order it black is not selling. Its more or less product presentation…
At this point I was not yet aware that I had actually stumbled to a model that was written down and presented by Simon Sinek as the Golden Circle.
A model that later has been my best secret in succeeding at sales. Secret I am sharing here and will keep discussing later on also.
What are you selling? What do you think your clients are buying? Cheap price? Gas mileage? Megapixels? I don’t think so…