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Customers
On 34th Street
Now
that we are deeply embedded in the holiday season,
I feel obliged to make one of my silly analogies
on life. I love this time of year, not just
because of the holidays and the
fact that I can
get a little time off, but also because it gives
me time to reflect and think about life's many
lessons and gifts.
One
of the things  I like to do around the holidays is
watch the timeless classic "Miracle on 34th
Street". You remember, this is the one where the
delightful Edmund Gwenn (my favorite version of
this oft imitated classic) plays jolly old Kris
Kringle and is hired by Macy's to play Santa
Claus. He tries to convince a no-nonsense,
skeptical little girl, played by the adorable
Natalie Wood, that it's okay to imagine and that
there really is a Santa Claus; and "he is
him".
Aside
from being an overall heartwarming story, the part
I really like (being an old sales and marketing
guy myself) is when Edmund, I mean Kris, starts
telling Macy's customers where else to find
gifts that Macy's themselves does not carry. At
first, Mr. Macy
was ready to ride him out on a rail, if not on his
portly posterior. But then he realized that this
was a stroke of genius. Sure, he figured, if
Macy's becomes the authority on where to find
the gifts customers really want, then everyone
will come to Macy's. "And, if they come to
us," he thought, "they'll probably buy
something from us too, not to mention all the good
will we'll create." Well, I don't have to
tell you, this strategy worked like a charm. In
fact, it worked so well that Gimbels, Macy's
major competitor, started doing the same thing.
"Ok!
Enough of this holiday dribble!" you say. " What does this have to do with my business?" you
ask. Well, I can't help but make the analogy
about positioning oneself as an authority so
people come to you for advice, guidance and
perhaps a purchase or two. We've always
encouraged our clients to present themselves as authorities in their fields of expertise who
should provide solutions to customers' problems, as
opposed to sales reps pushing a product down their
client's throats. This means you may end up sending a
prospective client away, even to one of your competitors,
because you may not sell or offer what they need.
In doing so, you've positioned yourself as a
trusted advisor, or business partner. On the
other hand, if you try to force-fit your product
or service to your client's specific problem, in
time they will not be satisfied after all and that
seemingly quick and easy sale will come back to
haunt you. Just in case you're beginning to
doubt this strategy for even a second, please let
me advise you - Don't! It really works. I've
done this myself for years, as have many of my
clients, and it works. I have businesses calling
me for advice whom are not my clients and who have
even purchased a competitor's product in the past.
Yet they call me still because they know I won't
steer them wrong. Someday, they may purchase from
me, when they are ready.
I
speak to prospective buyers all the time and when
they start out the conversation with, "Can you
tell me why I should buy your product or service?" I say,
"No, not until I know what kind of problems
you're trying to solve and what your objectives
are. For all I know you might be using the right
product already but using it incorrectly, or you might be
better off with a different product than ours. So it
depends on what pain you're trying to remove and
your unique situation. I might need to recommend
you to another consultant or service provider."
Sometimes
this leaves them speechless for several minutes;
well maybe just seconds, but it does stop them in
their tracks and gets their attention. It makes
them think, "Hey, this guy's not going to try
the hard sell and force me to buy his product. He
really wants to understand MY needs, not his
own." Then I ask a lot of  questions and listen
really well (the secret of successful sales
professionals). Assuming that we have a good fit
for the client, I then evolve into the next phase
of the discussion since I know we can help solve
their problem. By the end of the
conversation, where I wax eloquent about the
virtues of our services and how just the right
product can help improve their business and
resolve their problems, they can't wait to have
a planning meeting with me to learn more and start
moving ahead, which is my objective all along. But
they feel like they're "buying" as opposed
to being "sold". There is a big psychological
difference between the two.
So,
if you haven't tried acting like a Macy's
Santa Claus yet, give it a try. It takes courage and
it can be risky because you're suggesting the
prospect might need to look elsewhere. But that is
not nearly as bad as selling a customer the wrong
product or service. If you try this I
believe you'll be pleasantly surprised. And you
may get a customer for life who keeps coming back
for more and more, because you've sold them what
they need, not what you want. You become their
trusted advisor (or, their Santa Claus). For those of you who
already do this, you know exactly what I mean.
Happy
Holidays!
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