Playing Your Role In Team Selling By Steve Waterhouse

I just had a conversation with a very good client on the roles of non-sales people in the field. Specifically, he was asking what non-sales people should do on client visits to go beyond simply fixing a specific problem or answering questions and become a valuable part of their company’s strategic team.

When we speak of non-sales people, we mean engineers, technicians, finance people, operations managers, specialists and senior managers who go into accounts with or without a sales person.

We often forget that sales people often play a few specific roles with the client. In many cases, those roles set up situations that are less than conducive to the free flow of information. Simply put, buyers keep their guard up and their cards close to their vest when in the presence of sales. What’s worse, a sales person loses 50 IQ points just for their title when viewed by an engineer or technical specialist. (I say this as an engineer turned sales person who has suffered this transition.)

The good news is that the other members of our sales team can often fill in the communications gaps and gather loads of worthwhile information. Have you ever noticed that each specialty speaks a unique language? Doctors talk medical-speak, technicians talk tech-speak, finance people speak money-speak and senior executives speak biz-speak. The words they share in common give them a level of respect and camaraderie with their peers that is tough for others to quickly achieve. This gets to the heart of their value on the team.

Here is a simple, five-step plan that will help you get the most out of your team.

1. Listen

Sales people put the client on edge and their very presence tends to reduce communications. Ironically, non-sales people are often greeted with candor and volumes of information that would never have been shared with the sales reps. Unfortunately, too often we only meet with all parties in the same room. To get the most out of your team members, schedule time for them to meet one-on-one with their peers. During these conversations, the flow of information will increase and each will gain a unique perspective on the client and their needs. They will also build rapport that will help build the relationship.

Here is a true example. One of my clients sells medical devices. Since the devices are complicated, they usually bring along a clinical specialist on sales calls to meet with the doctors and lab technicians. As the conversation got deeper into the money end of things, the lab manager invited the clinical specialist to join her on a tour of the lab. It was the ride home that was the most enlightening part of the day. The clinician related stories about every sales person who called on that account, including their own. He knew who the nurses and doctors liked and who they hated. He knew what our competitive advantage was and where we were at risk. He presented a complete picture of the vendor from the client’s perspective. How did he get all that information? Easy… He just listened! Since he was seen as a peer and not a ‘sales person’, he was on their side and they opened up to him.

Each member of the team should be listening for two types of information:

By collecting this information, we will build a fuller picture of the account and often learn about trends in the industry or market.

2. Probe

While passive listening is important, probing will get you to the information you need to gather. If the team enters the meeting with both group and individual agendas, the members of the team can use their peer connections to probe for the details. Technical people can discover the direction that research is heading. Finance can learn about the company’s cash position and acquisition plans. Senior managers can learn about corporate strategies and challenges. Together, they will get a clearer picture of the opportunity and what place they can play in it.

When I was a design engineer with Raytheon, we were developing a very sophisticated satellite communications system for submarines. On a visit to the Navy, I learned that their long-term goal was to make a portable unit that could fit in a backpack. Although it was not part of our original bid, we started thinking about how we could convert one system into the other. In the end, the Navy requested a formal proposal and we were already a year ahead in our thinking. (Tom Clancy was actually ahead of us and wrote about this secret system in one of his books.) Good job of probing, Tom.

3. Record

Knowledge is not power. Only shared knowledge has power. The key to success in team selling is the sharing of information as it is gathered from different sources. The simplest way to do this is through email. Since many non-sales people do not have access to the company CRM system, they can email their news to the lead sales representative who can copy it in. The goal is to make as much information as accessible to as many people as possible.

4. Analyze

Each player should analyze what they have learned and decide what value it has. Compare it to what you thought you knew and look for supporting or contradictory information. Look for information that might be valuable to others and make sure it gets to them. Recognize that the same piece of data will have different meeting to different people. Use your team to get multiple views and develop better intelligence.

5. Report

Knowledge management is one of the weakest areas in businesses today. While many have formal KM systems, few teach their people what to enter into them. Even the best system lacks the ability to reach into your head and extract information. Therefore, it is incumbent upon each individual to ensure that what they learned gets to the people who might want to know it. Senior management, sales, marketing, operations, engineering and others have specific needs for information that could be learned by other members of the team. Developing a culture of open reporting will multiply the value of everything you learn.

You might also be interested in my article, "10 Ways to Motivate Your Sales Team". To get a copy, simply email article13@waterhousegroup.com.

Working together, your team of sales and non-sales people can gather more information, build better relationships and further the sale faster than any non-integrated team.

Happy Selling,
Steve

Steve Waterhouse is Principal and Founder of Waterhouse Group (www.waterhousegroup.com), a sales consulting and training company that helps companies dramatically increase their sales. He can be reached at 1-800-57-LEARN or info@waterhousegroup.com.
 

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