We no longer live in that World

WHY SALES TEAMS ARE STILL ACTING LIKE ITS THE 1960s

Looking back at the way retail stores used to sell their wares is similar to how too many companies are doing it now. The way people used to sell “what” they did made a lot of sense. There was no Internet, no TV...radio was the main form of entertainment. Stores used to paint their services on the spaces available — the signage, the wall on the sign of the building. There was no other way to understand what a store sold or what it was for. Where else could you look? So the opportunity to list every possible thing a store owner used was a primary concern. This was the only way to pass on that information to passersby, to help direct a potential customer into the store.

WE NO LONGER LIVE IN THAT WORLD.

For the past 50 years or longer, we have been able to provide information to the masses to categorize, target and deliver our messages to potential customers. There is no longer the need to list every possible product on the shelf or every possible service delivered. Through digital and search engine marketing strategies, we can focus directly on one product, one message, one target. That’s not to say people won’t see more, learn more, or buy more once they get there, but with fractured attention spans, keeping focus on delivering one compelling message is paramount.

SO WHY ARE SALES TEAM STILL CREATING MATERIALS LIKE IT’S A 1960 STOREFRONT BILLBOARD?

Most Powerpoint presentations, sales slicks, brochures and trade show displays still follow the strategy from 50 years ago: list everything in the ad, so people know what we sell. "Make sure no opportunity is lost to reinforce (usually through a series of lists and bullet points) all there is to offer and buy from the company. We don’t want to have any confusion in the market to who we are…”

The truth is, most people will not engage past the initial few lines...maybe a headline, and then they move on. Somehow, companies expect a potential customer to actually read through the ton of carefully crafted messaging that fills the banner wall at the show, or stop and read the list, the paragraph of description in the ad. But they don’t. They just move on and any opportunity is lost. Without a direct engaging message that leads them in to find out more, it actually pushes the sale away, not bring it in.

Looking hard at the main reason a person would engage (not “buy from”) your company should be a priority. Potential clients look at how the company presents themselves more than what they say. They make decisions based on comfort levels, tone and personality — much like people do with other people. We size them up quickly, make a judgement from a little info, and decide if they want to learn more or get to know them better. Once they take that next step, little by little a relationship forms, and maybe the sale will happen.

YOU DO IT AS WELL.

Anyone reading this can take a quick test to prove the point: name the last brochure you read all the way through, the last ad in a magazine you fully digested, the last trade show you walked from booth to booth reading every back wall. Can’t remember? If you are like most people, you didn’t and won’t. So why would your clients be any different?

THINK ABOUT IT...!!!