Should your next sales hire be a “Tweener”?

Continuing the hot topic of Sales 2.0, I had a wonderful conversation today with Sales 2.0 author and expert Anneke Seley, CEO of Bay-area sales consultancy PhoneWorks. Anneke is well-versed in the shift in technique and approach that is disrupting the business development profession.

Checking Anneke’s blog uncovers a interesting interview with a sales vice president Bill Lohr who describes the new “hybrid” sales role he employs at his software services company he calls a “Tweener”: 50% inside and 50% field.

So, the logic goes, opportunities under $500k are managed with clients via phone and Webex, and more complex deals are handled in person — with the same account exec.

Seems to make sense, and it works well for Mr. Lohr. But what would widespread adoption of this new model mean for the profession?

For one, it requires a new sales personality profile. I can’t see many of the attention-deficient outside sales guys I know sitting behind a desk half the time, and I have trouble envisioning an inside rep with all the skills necessary to close larger deals. These are, in general, two different people.

However if technology and customer demands are indeed colliding, business development professionals must adapt. Like they always have. They could even gain real benefits. Half the travel? A great start. A little deal variety? That’s a plus. 

The economy’s troubles are forcing companies to find new ways of buying and selling. The most important thing for sales professionals to do today is to remain relevant to their customers and employers in an increasingly networked and information-rich marketplace.

BusinessDevelopments featured in Hall Martin’s blog

Yours truly was featured in an interview today on “Angel Investing in Austin”, a blog by the Director of the Central Texas Angel Network, Hall Martin.

Hall’s blog is a great update on what’s going on in Austin’s tech startup community. If you have interest in funding, start-ups and high tech I recommend subscribing…

Getting to VITO in the downturn

In the good times it was quite difficult to reach VITO (Very Important Top Officer). Seemed he, or she, was always so very busy.

So what’s his excuse now?

Unfortunately VITO’s even busier now. He’s lost the people he used to delegate to. Downsizing has given him two or three more jobs to do, with less budget and more time pressure than ever. So why should he talk with you?

This is our challenge: how do we make ourselves and our offerings relevant in this environment?

First, review your value proposition. What you are offering should be directly impactful in the short term to VITO’s bottom line. Really cool technology with a two year return scenario just won’t get anyone’s attention when they’re worried about making their quarterlies. The only kind of messages that are heard are ones that will lift revenue or reduce cost in the near term.

Next, research research research. Calls and meetings with decision makers must be well-researched and show you have paid the price of admission. Focus on quality and demonstrate you have done your homework.

Touch early and often. You need 8-10 touches, calls email, webinars, etc. to raise your visibility and become a viable resource. Don’t nag, but stay in front. Look for events and announcements that give you an inroad to problem solving.

Be more productive. Sales cycles are extending and budgets are being cut. Use social networking and online technologies that are quite good at cutting pursuit time. Broaden your focus to include more prospects.

Become your customer’s conscience. He is overwhelmed and needs to get things done. Show him he can rely on you to come through, efficiently, with targeted solutions for his problems.

Let VITO know you’ve got his back.

Collaboration and partnering leads to innovation

BD guru says: Innovation not come only from within, young graasshoppah……

A study by Boston Consulting group says that “two out of the three top sources for the best ideas now lie outside the enterprise.” You don’t need to be a financial modeler to know that companies with strong partnering models are typically the best performing. CEOs are more eager to partner and engage with other organizations than ever before. Why? Alliances can mean a dramatic improvement in the quantity and quality of innovation. The days of “built here” are gone – the market is moving too fast. 

Time to hit the phones!

Please come fire all my salespeople!

With the start of the fall season, many new sales and business development advisory opportunities seem to be crossing my desk. This year, however, they seem to share a pattern: the CEO or VP Sales is “frustrated” with their sales teams (expletives deleted) and would I please come fire them all. They complain that their people “just don’t have it in them” to constantly cold call and keep a high rate of activity which of course will make everyone successful forever. “If only they’d do it my way!” I hear. 

Everyone wants to hire that nearly-deranged person who lives for cold calling and rips through a call list just for the adrenaline rush. But even if you can find candidates with the right mix of experience, the good ones are prohibitively expensive and can be a management hassle. In my experience, someone who gets off to cold calling 100 times a day is usually deficit in other areas and can’t do much else.  And they churn quickly.

Fine! you say. That’s what you want. But think about who your prospects are. If they are more than just meat for a boiler-room phone center, I suggest that you look at the way you currently go to market.

The days of picking up the phone and convincing a stranger to spend large sums of money with you are simply dead. The environment has changed. What buyer in their right mind (especially in IT) actually picks up random phone calls these days? Caller ID and email filters mean never having to speak to a salesperson. 

Update your sales strategy and move your company into the age of collaborative new business acquisition. Utilize the amazing new sales and web 2.0 tools and hire awesome service-oriented sales talent – not phone weasels. This takes a new set of skills, new hiring approach, management style, which of course, starts at the top. 

Next (related) post: “Generation Y Joins the Sales Team” (or “Sally Get Your Gun”)

Welcome to BusinessDevelopments(tm)!

Hello! This is the first of what I hope will be many posts on my blog, BusinessDevelopments(tm).

Having followed the work of my business partner and marketing mad scientist Chuck Besondy, I decided to take the plunge and create my little area to discuss the latest and greatest in the world of Corporate Sales and Business Development.

I hope you enjoy my observations about the business world, sales, opinions, or whatever else I hope will be interesting and useful to you.

Please feel free to contact me with questions, suggestions, comment, rants, or anything else!

Jonathan