8:30pm and where are you?

Yes I am at work. What am I doing you may ask? Well I am preparing a file for print, so this could be considered in production terms “ripping time.” Ripping is when a print file is processed and is prepared to be printed. I happen to be preparing 6000 post cards with complex variable data that are needed for an open house that we are putting together.

Why 8:30pm you ask? Well I am in outside sales and this is the only time that I have to myself where I can sit down and think. 8 to 5 is selling time and that is when all good salespeople should be out meeting new potential clients and talking with old ones. It is the time when you should be finding leads and closing business. It is not when you should be printing something.

Time is always of the essence. We never have enough time either for ourselves or to accomplish everything that we would like to at our work. Some jobs differ as they can be walked away from and they come to a stopping point at the end of the day. Mine on the other hand never has an ending point it just starts over each day and goes till I give up.

Commitment to the task and integrity is what all companies are looking for. If we could find people that took pride in their work and made sure the task was completed we would not find many of our jobs being sent over seas. It is hard to get mad at someone just because they will work till the job is completed or have taken the time to get an education and work for a price that attracts a company’s attention.

We are ultimately lazy and this is seen in ever vertical market there is. Whether you are a plumber or an electrician an auto mechanic or a printer we all know someone that is always looking for short cuts and isn’t concerned for the quality of their work. It is a shame that we take so little pride in what we do that we can be replaced so easily.

At my job people always look at me crazy as I tend to offer a hand, show up at accounts that are not mine, take time out of my day to explain or teach a concept to someone new. I don’t fight over accounts. I have been known to hand over a prospect to someone that has the relationship or can get the deal done quicker. I try to put my clients first and make sure their needs are tended to.

In any organization there are many levels of management that are constantly looking at the numbers, maximizing margins, protecting the company’s interest. Who looks out for the client? I have always felt that I was that person. I was the front line sales rep that had to make sure someone that knew what was going on argued on their behalf.

Now there are times when a client is unreasonable but many times things go wrong and the customer is just waiting on an action on the part of the vendor. When things do not get done the customer isn’t sure what happened other than the promise wasn’t kept. It is our duty to ensure that the promises are kept and that things go as smooth as they can. The larger the company is and the more complex of an operation that has to be performed, the more that can go wrong. Many times things can get started off on the wrong foot with inaccurate paperwork, poor order entry, lack of documentation, lack of explanation or a vague or incomplete statement of work. When orders are delayed things start off poorly. Then if the implementation and execution isn’t smooth you know you are heading for disaster. Billing and Service after the fact just make things worse if you have already started down this slippery slope of non performance.

I get caught in between the customer and our company all the time. It is normal for something to go wrong at some stage in the game. The more experience you have and the better you get just means that you deal with these situations quicker and with more style. I like to think that I am pretty good at what I do and that many times it looks like everything is under control even when I am about to come unglued.

Customers don’t know your business like you do, and they have no clue as to what happens after they sign the “magical documents” you provide them. Many start to get excited about all of the business problems their new purchase is going to solve and start to believe all the reasons why they signed the paperwork you gave them in order to feel good about what they have done. Once things start to come down they start to have feelings of uncertainty that unravel their thoughts and give them fears that create new objections you must over come.

It is in your best interest to soft sell your timeline and to build in some help for yourself by selling your customer some of the potential pitfalls upfront so that they know there will probably be some things that go wrong and how you have overcome them in the past. When they realize that this is part of the overall process and that you have prepared for it, they tend to be a bit more forgiving.

What happens many times is that deals that we have been working for a while or deals that came up suddenly many times mature quicker than we had originally expected, as the customer comes to the decision that he or she is going to move forward. Many times this happens at the end of a month, quarter etc and then the pressure is on within the company to find product and people to do the service functions that surround it. Supply chain demands push everything to the limit. Backorders are commonplace and technicians and analysts are booked out weeks in advance. No one is available for that new order you just brought in at the last second.

But no one is going to stop an order they simply let nature take its course and everyone plays the “quiet game” till the customer breaks the silence just to inform everyone that they are about to pull the plug on the deal. If the proper expectations are set up front and the order coordinators stay in contact with the customer as the order in entered and processed to that the customer knows what to expect and what is going on many of the issues could be avoided. All to often the customer sets the salesperson up but trying to hold them to the fire on deadlines and time schedules.

This actually works against the customer in many ways. It sets an unrealistic expectation and pushes the salesperson away to their quiet place. This refuge is where all sales people go to “hide” from the potential negative responses that come from a client that is awaiting action from someone. When the desired actions don’t take place the typical response is the “pull” the order and look for a new vendor that can fulfill the order as they expected the process to proceed.

Communication and preparation are necessary to keep the customer engaged in the process and to ensure that they never feel caught unawares. Sometimes the simplest things make the greatest difference. Even a quick email sometimes can fend off the wrath of an unfulfilled order. Customers need to be able to plan and make arrangements so they do not look foolish in front of their supervisors and customers.

Often time’s promises are made on their behalf to others and no one wants to look the fool. We must protect our customers from themselves and set proper expectations so that we can over deliver what we have under promised. The reverse can be deadly to the highly sought after “new business.”

I am a hunter, and I am always looking for a “clean kill.” I like many salespeople hate to get messy. I am the type of person that pays close attention to details and can get lost in the minutia if not careful. I have to make sure that I keep myself out of the office and in the field or I will stay busy and not productive.

This is why it is 9:30 pm and I am still working. I am targeting this rip to be done by 10:00 pm and that means I will be able to go home by midnight. I will have enough time to get some sleep so that I can hit it hard tomorrow and start another hunt for my next customer.

Pirate Mike…


P.S. It is 12:11am and it turns out that the press I was going to use is having technical difficulties.