WHAT IT IS ALL ABOUT

As a Sales Trainer, I judge my success by how well reps that I have trained do. I have had many discussions with other trainers that disagree with me and feel that success as a trainer comes from how far out they are booked for speeches and training sessions.

Then on Saturday (December 24^th) I learned what it is really all about. Not just training but living.

My family and I were on our way home from a wonderful week at Disney World, we stopped for something to eat at one of our favorite roadside restaurants, Cracker Barrel. As we were pulling into the parking lot we noticed a red minivan that had “HO HO HO” across the sides, back and hood. We chuckled at it and I made the statement that there was someone who really loved Santa.

If any of you have ever eaten at a Cracker Barrel you know that to get to the restaurant you need to stroll through their shopping area that is filled with all sorts of toys, crafts and my favorite CANDY! As I was making a mental note of what I was going to buy on my way out after eating we were shown to our table. Here is when I first noticed the couple sitting a few tables away. IT WAS SANTA AND MRS. CLAUS!

Like everyone else in the restaurant, we were watching the two of them (actually staring, but that is rude so I will say watching). Every few minutes SANTA would get up, pick up a large Christmas decorated bag, and walk through the restaurant looking for something. He would sweep each section with his eyes and then go back to his seat and continue eating.

It was about his third trip around the restaurant that I saw what SANTA was looking for each time he got up, CHILDREN! He was looking for children that have come in to eat. When he saw a child he would walk up to the table give a HO HO HO, talk to the children and their family and then reach into his bag and give each child a wooden toy.

I made a comment to my wife and daughters about how nice it was that Cracker Barrel has a SANTA for children traveling on Christmas Eve.

After a couple of minutes my server came to the table and I commented to her how nice it was to see SANTA, and how I felt that Cracker Barrel went above and beyond with this promotion. She immediately corrected me. She told me that SANTA did NOT work for the restaurant. He and his wife travel from north of Dayton Ohio every year and make stops along the way handing out the toys. She told me that every toy is handmade and decorated by SANTA and MRS. CLAUS.

She went on to tell me he starts making the toys in June and makes 1000 to give away on his trip south. This was his 5^th year stopping at this Cracker Barrel. (Our server told us that he was later this year than usual and they were actually getting worried he wasn’t coming)

I just sat there and watched him for a little while. He always had a smile, he shook the hand of everyone that walked over to him. He had his picture taken at least 10 times while I was there with children, families and the entire staff of the restaurant. He handed out 31 toys in the short time we were there (I started counting after I was told the story so it was actually more than 31)

I wanted to go over and talk to him and ask about what he did before he was SANTA, and try and find why he did this, but then it hit me. HE WAS SUCCESSFUL. This man was doing something he wanted to do, not had to do.

He finally came over to our table and we had a delightful discussion. I never asked him what he did or why he did it. HE WAS A REAL LIFE SANTA and none of that mattered.

I used to measure success by the success of the reps I have trained, but after meeting SANTA at Cracker Barrel I now know what success really is.

SUCCESS IS BRINGING HAPPINESS TO OTHERS.

We may not all dress as SANTA and travel across the country handing out toys to children (but think how awesome that would be to do) but we can all become successful by doing things that make other happy. We can all be successful by doing things that are good, not because we are told to, but because they are the right things to do.

I hope that everyone is having a wonderful Holiday Season and is looking forward to GREAT 2012.

My entire family wishes each of you and your families a Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, and a GRAND NEW YEAR.

Lorin

WILL IT BREAK IF YOU PUSH TOO HARD

I had a sales rep that is a long time friend of mine call me today and ask me an interesting question. Before I tell you the question let me tell you that I first hired this rep in 1987 to work for me and he was with me until I sold the business in 1994. He had worked his way up from a rep to my GM over the 7 years he was with me. I am telling you this so you know that I am the one who trained him from his start in sales and we have kept in touch ever since.

The question he asked me was, how much and how hard should you push a prospect to buy? I was floored. After 25 years in sales he was asking me this question. I wanted to know why he was asking and he said that it seems that things have changed so much over the past 3 years that he wasn’t sure his normal instinct as to how much to push was still valid and he felt he may be losing sales because of it.

This made me stop and wonder if the answer I was about to give was valid. Is what was normal in years past still normal today? I told him I wanted to think about it for a few minutes and asked him if I could get back to him. We agreed I would call him back in about 3 hours when we would both have time to talk.

To tell you the truth, I was relieved to have some breathing room. I really hadn’t thought about it like this before now and wanted to get some additional feedback before I gave him any advice.

I called a few reps I know and asked them the question. And just as I thought, my usual answer that I would have given would have been off track a little.

What I was told by the reps I called is that in today’s market you need to push some prospects harder than ever before and others you can barely push at all. It seems that what was normal has almost disappeared.

I thought about their answers and it made good sense. In today’s economy more and more businesses are either thriving or on the brink of failing. The number of businesses that are in the middle is dwindling to a smaller and smaller number every day.

This means that the thriving businesses can be pushed harder and the failing businesses can’t be pushed at all. So in a nut shell, the answer for my friend was yes and no!

I called my friend back as promised and gave him the good news! He didn’t seem to be as excited about my findings as I was. Then I followed it up with but you need to take each customer on their own merit and no one answer fits every customer.

Here is where the laughing started. My friend got very quiet, and then in what may be the most serious voice I have ever heard him use he said, so that’s the word from the great training superstar? I laughed and said I would rather tell you what I know and be right than what you want to hear and be wrong.

I guess more than anything else I learned that the market is at best fragile and we need to alter our selling to meet the needs of the customer. In other words, nothing has really changed.

Lorin

I KNOW TOO MUCH TO SELL THIS

I want to start today’s post with a question; do you think that someone can know too much about their product or industry?

Last week I was with a rep who was one of the most knowledgeable people I have ever met about the industry he was in. He had come from the industry and held about every position up the ladder over his career.

As he carried on conversations with prospects, I was lost most of the time. The prospect and he went off on tangents that sounded like they were speaking a foreign language to me. But, I listened, and listened, and listened. Although I didn’t really understand a lot of what they were talking about, I did know enough to pick up that some of the conversation was not very positive.

After a few days with the rep, and after listening to several of his presentations, I asked him why he was taking the conversation in a negative direction. He looked at me and said, well everything I said was true about the industry and he understood that some of it was negative but he said it was the truth.

I asked him if he thought the information helped him make sales. He said he didn’t know. I assured him it didn’t.

I talked to the rep about what a sales rep is supposed to do. I started with NEVER lie to a prospect or customer. I have personally fired reps that I have caught lying to customers. However, I also told him that you don’t need to offer negative information either.

Let me try and give you an example of what his conversations were like. The prospect and the rep would be talking about the industry and the rep would make statements like, a lot of the businesses I am walking into are having a very hard time right now paying their bills.

This may in fact be a true and accurate statement, but unless the customer says to you, are other businesses having trouble paying their bills, I sure wouldn’t offer the information. As a matter of fact if I were asked I would say I didn’t know, it isn’t my place and I don’t know for a fact that other businesses are having trouble. I have had some very successful and profitable businesses tell me they were in financial trouble to get rid of me, as I am sure every sales rep on the streets has also.

My point being, just because you know things, doesn’t mean you need to convey everything to your prospects. Especially the things that can hurt your sale.

So I started with the question, do you think that someone can know too much about their product or industry?

Now answer it for yourself.

Lorin