John Ploetz Bloggin

Ethical Sales

Some people say sales is all about finding someone to buy your products or services at your offered price and selling it to them no strings attached. Others say sales is really all about “controlled advantage taking”. Both of these groups would agree that the sales person should try to get the customer to buy at all costs for the sake of closing the deal; and that no improper ethical line is crossed as long as the customer gets your product or service after payment is made. I say ethical sales involves disclosing to the customer through a straight forward communication process the full details about buying your product or service and that the sale needs to have true value for the customer at a mutually agreed price. I believe sales people have a duty to make sure that customers understand what they are getting and that customers receive what they expect. My top 5 requirements in selling ethically include:

1. Organization – Make sure you have an organized system to track the sales process with each customer. This will reduce overall confusion or misunderstandings and help you be more efficient in connecting with customers and ultimately closing a sale.

2. Follow through – Make sure to follow through on every promise you make. The important part is the communication process. Make sure the customer understands all the details involved in the transaction and is informed in a timely manner throughout the process. As you receive relevant information, pass it on to the customer.

3. Keep your promises – You are only as good as the last promise you make. Follow up with customers when you say will. Always deliver more than you promise to deliver. Never promise anything you can’t deliver.

4. Put your proposal in writing – Even if you provide a sales proposal verbally, always follow up with an e-mail or written note outlining your proposal. If you can’t put it in writing you shouldn’t be saying it.

5. Follow up – Always send a thank you note or e-mail after a sale has closed letting them know that if they have any questions or concerns they can feel free to contact you. This step is the best way to obtain referrals and get feedback on where you need to improve in the sales process.

Next up SEO and SEM – Are the search engine companies changing the game?

John Ploetz

25 Jul, 2013

John Ploetz Bloggin

Data can really say anything you want it to say. It is up to us to interpret data correctly and then use it wisely to help us market correctly. Recent survey results boasted that 83% of people prefer Google for their search engine. http://articles.latimes.com/2012/mar/09/business/la-fi-tn-google-search-engines-pew20120309 What does that really mean? Were survey participants asked a survey after using Google search engine? What about the other people that use other search engines like Bing or Yahoo, did they also take the survey? Would people’s answers change after new privacy policy changes were made? What about those that didn’t take the survey or the 31% of the people that don’t access the internet http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2010/02/almost-a-third-of-americans-still-dont-use-the-net/. All of a sudden our 83% starts to look like a much smaller number. This leads me to my top 5 questions to ask when working with data to develop reports used in marketing.

1. What data do I really have? Make sure you understand what data you have actually collected. This includes the size of your data pool and the demographics in your pool.

2. Is my data usable? Data needs to be current and valid. How recently was the data collected and are your sources valid.

3. Am I missing data on a group that I need to market to? If you have gaps in your data pool figure out a way to start collecting additional data or see if you can access that data through another source.

4. Have I correctly thought through my data analysis? Make sure you know what you are analyzing and what results you are trying to obtain when generating data reports. Always double check your thought process. Have someone on your office team review your logic to make sure you are pulling the right report information.

5. What are the needs for the future? Think through what problems you have with your data on current projects and about what additional information would have improved your marketing capabilities. Think about changing surveys or asking customer service reps to collect additional data when making customer service contacts. Make sure to add these data fields in your data management software once you start collecting the new data.

Data is only as useful as how it was collected, what group was sampled and how it is used. Data should be used with care. In other words it should be used in an unbiased manner as a tool to help us predict trends or measure current and past customer usage. When we use data as a means to justify current or future actions by manipulating the actual data we have in front of us then data loses its real value. In the end it is just data. It is up to us to use it wisely and understand exactly what we have that we are analyzing. Remember data is just information, slivers of what happened at a particular moment in time, nothing more.

Next up – Ethical Sales

John Ploetz

18 Jul, 2013

John Ploetz Bloggin

When it comes to handling people, managers should strive for consistency. Everyone likes to know where they stand in specific situations. We know it’s always easier going over to a sister’s or brother’s house to celebrate a birthday, then it is to go to a party we’re invited to by a host or hostess we met just a week ago. At the birthday party, good or bad, we know what to expect. With the other party we are faced with the fear of uncertainty. Everyone wants to be at ease in their environment. It’s no different in the work place. When it comes to the work place, managees want to know:

1. How they will be treated in the workplace;

2. That they will be treated consistently; and

3. What part they will be expected to play in the process.

Managers should keep these three concerns in mind when working with managees. There are 5 areas that mangers should focus on to develop consistency in working with managees.

1. Understand managee differences – People are motivated differently. Each person has unique ways in how they like to be:

a. communicated with;

b. praised; and

c. rewarded.

Make sure to take the time to understand each person’s unique characteristics. Taking the time to assess a managee’s traits early on will help you to work better with the managee. There are many tools you can use to help you assess a mangee’s strengths, traits, and weaknesses, DiSC http://www.discprofile.com/ and Myers Briggs http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk/tt/t-articl/mb-simpl.htm are just two tests that can help you assess a managee. Once you have assessed a managee’s personality traits, write down steps you will take when dealing with that managee that focus on that person’s unique traits. As you build and deal with that person notate what has worked and what hasn’t. Try to be consistent in how you manage that person and make fine tuned adjustments as necessary.

2. Communication – Regularly communicate with managees. Set a regular schedule, weekly is good, and the meeting doesn’t need to be long. Let them know when they are doing a good job, what they can do to improve, and what the goals are that you have for them. Putting this in writing is best so both you and the managee can see the process in action.

3. Fairness – a manager must treat each managee with the same level of respect. Do not play favorites when it comes to basic interaction. But remember a workplace is just that and certain people will be given perks based on their performance within the company. Always make it clear to managees how and why a perk was given to a specific managee and what would need to be done for that managee to get the same perk or reward.

4. Follow through – managees have great memories especially when it comes to things that affect them. When you tell a mangee you will do something stick to that time table or explain what has caused a delay in completing what was promised. Always stick to the time table when scheduling managee reviews even if a raise isn’t in the picture.

5. Vision – a manager must keep an eye on the strategic goals and direction that the company has committed to achieve. Make sure to maintain those goals as part of the day to day instruction, mentoring, and guidance you give to the managees.

Next Up – Data Data Everywhere