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To bid or not to bid? That is the question.

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“They get bids for everything and always take the lowest bid.”
“They send out an RFP and I can never speak to the decision maker.”
“We’re becoming a commodity. All they do is take the lowest bid.”
“It’s the government. They have to take the lowest bid.”

Many companies have become smart buyers, but many have become too smart. They’ve refined the buying process so far that they have precluded the words ‘quality’ and ‘value’ from the buying process AND they have taken the words productivity, ease of use, and morale out of the delivery process.

The typical request for proposal (RFP) has a bunch of standards about what has to be offered by the vendor, but far too little (or nothing) about what happens after the company takes ownership. They have the ‘specs’ in the RFP, but not the details of use, value, productivity, or morale.

The major flaw with the RFP process is that the people conducting the bidding are not the people who use the product or service once the bidding is complete. Nor, for the most part, do they care.

The main goal of bidding is NOT get the best product. The main goal of bidding is get the cheapest price. And oftentimes that precludes the best product. It also lowers the profit of the company doing the bidding. Long-term, this is not good for the survival of a company.

REALITY: “The customer took the lowest bid” is as bogus as “the dog ate my homework.” The fact is you let the customer control the selling/buying process. Not good.
REALITY: If you follow the customer’s RFP requirements you will lose even if you win. If you win, it’s likely you did at a severe reduction of price and loss of profit. Not good.

That’s the bad news. Let me give you the good news, and the sales news…

There are several strategies you can employ to get around the bidding process, or legally and ethically change the bidding process. Here are some ideas you can begin to use immediately:

1. Ask for a clause to be put into the RFP that states all claims must be backed up with customer testimonial videos as proof. Any procurement department should be happy to add this clause into their bidding process. It will assure them that everything being claimed will come to pass. This will also help in establishing the reality of installation, ease-of-use, and long-term serviceability. PROVE IT TO WIN IT.
2. Request that the people who actually use the product or service you’re selling be more involved in the selection process. Especially as it relates to their actual experience and their projected needs. This is not as difficult as it sounds, especially if you can apply internal pressure to senior management where your product will be used. Keep in mind that procurement and purchasing don’t actually use what they purchase. They just buy. They’re relying on the person or people who made the INTERNAL request, and will often get their input before making a final decision.
3. Make an appointment with the CFO. He or she is most interested in making a profit, not just saving a dollar. Make your case against taking the lowest price and in favor of making a profit. RULE OF SALE: The higher you go to make your presentation, the easier the sale becomes.
4. Have an active social media presence that is easily findable, so your reputation is both visible and impressive. The customer will check you out BEFORE you get there, and may use it as part of the decision-making process.
4.5 GAIN BETTER INSIGHT TO THE PURCHASE OF YOUR PRODUCTS AND SERVICES. Talk to the person who MAKES the budget, not the person who spends it. Make service response time a mandatory part of the bid. Talk to those responsible for what happens AFTER purchase, not the people buying it. Make certain that third-party proof, in video, is a major part of your proposal.

CAUTION: The bidding process is often tightly controlled by those who execute it. The only people likely to influence change of modification are C-level executives. Get with them as part of your normal selling process.

NOTE WELL: Every company, even the government, has ‘preferred vendors.’ People who have achieved a ‘higher than equal’ status. Become one of them.

Reprinted with permission from Jeffrey H. Gitomer and Buy Gitomer.

About the Author

Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of The Sales Bible, Customer Satisfaction is Worthless Customer Loyalty is Priceless, The Little Red Book of Selling, The Little Red Book of Sales Answers, The Little Black Book of Connections, The Little Gold Book of YES! Attitude, The Little Green Book of Getting Your Way, The Little Platinum Book of Cha-Ching, The Little Teal Book of Trust, The Little Book of Leadership, and Social BOOM! His website, www.gitomer.com, will lead you to more information about training and seminars, or email him personally at [email protected].

Why did you lose the sale? Really?

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74% of salespeople complain about losing a sale because their price was too high. And 74% of them are wrong.

How did you lose the sale?
Why did you lose the sale?
Was it really price? Or was it you?

Losing the sale manifests itself in ‘blaming complaints’ about: price, unreturned phone calls, bidding, loyalty to others, and other blame-based excuses about why a sale does not take place, and the relationship isn’t being built. Ouch.

Here are the major reasons why salespeople lose sales:

1. The customer was loyal to someone else. Your first job is to uncover what makes the customer loyal. What’s the real reason they continue to do business with someone else? Ask yourself if you and your company possess the same qualities.
2. Lack of real connection to or with the buyer. The prospective customer is looking for comfort, peace of mind, and assurance
3. Lack of engagement. You weren’t able to create real interactive dialog.
4. Lack of perceived value. If the customer does not perceive genuine, definable value in your offer, then there is none.
5. Lack of perceived difference. If the customer does not perceive genuine, definable difference between you and your competition, then there is none.
6. Lack of relationship. When long-term relationship is present, truth, trust, and value are the basis of purchase.
7. Lack of hustle. Response time to a customer’s need for service and/or information are critical factors in purchase.
8. Poor salesmanship. This has fundamental flaws of preparedness and presentation skills. There’s an obvious lack of questioning skills or sales strategies that create a buying atmosphere.
9. Poor attitude. The way you present yourself and your word choice combined with your tone and demeanor leave a HUGE impression on the customer. And that impression is either positive, neutral, or negative – and YOU CHOOSE how you made them feel.
10 Lack of ability to reduce or eliminate risk. This may be the prime factor in losing sales. And the least talked about. The simple answer is: PROOF. Can you substantiate your claims?
10.5 Failing to do your BEST. Without a doubt, this is the BIGGEST flaw in salespeople. Whether it’s attitude, belief, self-confidence, preparation, or follow up, your execution at a level less than BEST leaves a huge opening for your competition to win.

REALITY: None of these reasons are ever stated by salespeople. Instead, they (you) blame the loss of a sale on price.

“They took the lowest price,” is the most often stated ‘reason’ for the loss of a sale. And it is totally bogus. It’s easy to blame ‘price’ for the loss. It’s harder to face and discover the real ‘why.’

The reality (and life-long value) of why you lost a sale is forever silenced when you blame the loss on price, and move on to the next sale.

REALITY: “The customer took the lowest price,” is as bogus as “My dog ate my homework.” The fact is you let the customer control the selling/buying process. Not good.
STRATEGY: Get the customer to change the criteria of proposal submission in a way that is both in favor of the customer and you.
GIVE THEM IDEAS TO GET THE ORDER: Make the customer aware of the cost of buying inferior products as it relates to work stoppage and lack of productivity. Make them aware of the value of their image and reputation.
PROVE IT TO WIN IT: Make everyone competing provide a VIDEO testimonial for each item they’re selling and every claim they make about it. Document and prove elements like service response time, how friendly you and your team are, and how easy you are to do business with.

THE REALITY OF BLAME: The opposite of blame is responsibility. In sales responsibility is taken, not given. Be responsible TO yourself and FOR yourself. Don’t blame the customer, HELP the customer. Do not let the REAL reasons you lost the sale get tangled up in blame.

ASK YOURSELF: Why did you really lose that sale? What could you have done to make it?

PATH OF LEAST RESISTANCE: Lowest price is the EASIEST excuse for a salesperson to make. Customers take lowest price because they perceive your product or service is the SAME as your competition. Not good.

If you are sick of losing sales like that, then you better discover WHY they took the lowest price, and create greater value differentiation. And while this is easier said than done, it is BY FAR, the biggest sales and profit opportunity you possess.

“Jeffrey,” you whine, “But what about bidding?” You know the people that take three bids then choose the lowest price? I’ve got some surprise answers about bidders next week!

Reprinted with permission from Jeffrey H. Gitomer and Buy Gitomer.

About the Author

Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of The Sales Bible, Customer Satisfaction is Worthless Customer Loyalty is Priceless, The Little Red Book of Selling, The Little Red Book of Sales Answers, The Little Black Book of Connections, The Little Gold Book of YES! Attitude, The Little Green Book of Getting Your Way, The Little Platinum Book of Cha-Ching, The Little Teal Book of Trust, The Little Book of Leadership, and Social BOOM! His website, www.gitomer.com, will lead you to more information about training and seminars, or email him personally at [email protected].

Salespeople have questions. Jeffrey has answers.

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I get a ton of emails from people seeking insight or asking me to solve their sales dilemmas. Here are a few that may relate to your job, your life, and (most important) your sales thought process right now.

Dear Jeffrey, What is your opinion of tracking daily sales dollars versus activities that will result in revenue? Does it really matter if Monday’s sales dollars are lower as long as the month pans out in regard to your goals? My thought is “Who cares which day the dollars get posted as long as they do get posted.” Ocha

Ocha, So I’m assuming your boss is making you do this and he or she is paranoid you won’t make your number by the end of the month. Both of which, tracking the daily sales dollars and the daily sales activities, are stupid. What you need to do is track the sales cycle and know where you are with respect to that sales cycle and what your expected revenues are. Because if your expected revenues are underneath your daily dollars, but your daily dollars are over your goal, you think you’re doing well, when in fact, you could be achieving 20, 30 40, 50% MORE sales by making certain you’re looking at your target dollars not just your actual dollars. Received dollars are real easy to record, but if you’re a salesperson and your boss needs to know what activity you’re doing every day – whether you’ve made five follow-ups and whether you did three cold calls – you’re doing it all backwards and you’ve got the wrong boss. What you need to do is look at the sales cycle and parenthetically look at the dollars, but they have to be compared to what you projected those dollars to be. Best regards, Jeffrey

Dear Jeffrey, I have a regional billboard company with two years of experience. For the smaller, greener, and less connected salespeople of the world, how do you keep a strategy in mind at all times to help land clients such as AT&T, Best Buy, or Taco Bell? Stuart

Stuart, You’re not going to land those people without years worth of trying, banging your head against the wall, seeing their ad agency, and doing all kinds of other stuff. UNLESS somebody in your family, somebody in your circle of friends, or somebody in your circle of influence knows someone up high at those big companies. If they do, and you can be introduced, you can get in the door. And if you can get in the door with some kind of impact, you’re going to win. But here’s the secret: don’t just be selling them a billboard. Give them a design that helps them get a response. And maybe you could even arrange with your company to give it away for 30 days to measure that response and go from there. The biggest mistake anybody in advertising makes is walking into a sales call with some kind of a media kit that shows how big a quarter page ad is, or how big a billboard is, or how many 30-second commercials there are. Go in with something already finished so people can look at it, like it, invite other people in to see it, and ultimately buy it. Best regards, Jeffrey

Jeffrey, You are pretty critical of CRM systems. They are here to stay, so how do you suggest we make them less threatening and more useful to the sales rep? How do you suggest someone shows the value of CRM to the sales users? Mike

Mike, Make the CRM applicable to the sales cycle, not just what they did on Tuesday. Don’t count the number of cold calls. Rather, study the sale from the beginning to the end and coach on that. That will actually help the person who is forced to use it.

Keep in mind salespeople just want to make a sale. They don’t want to be accountable. They got into sales so they wouldn’t have to be accountable. But that doesn’t mean that they’re not responsible. And it’s the managers or the leaders responsibility to help them be responsible for themselves. Best regards, Jeffrey

Jeffrey, I sell broadcast television advertising in a small market. I have mountains of information that shows TV as a great way to advertise, but how do I work that into my sales presentation without being overly analytical and pedantic? I need to give my prospective clients reasons to buy, but I don’t want to overwhelm them with data. Dennis

Dennis, Good. Nobody wants data. Everyone hates data and, in fact, no one believes data. 74% of all people don’t believe data. Where did I get that number? I made it up. But it sounds good. It’s data. What you need are video testimonials from customers who have already advertised on your station, got great results, and are willing to recommend that another prospective customer use your TV station. That’s all you need. If that’s not working for you, or you can’t get them because you don’t have any relationships, then do a 30-second spot where you are the voice. And do a spot about whomever you’re trying to get – the car agency, the car wash company, the cemetery lot salesperson. Whatever it is that you’re trying to get people to buy, do that. You make the commercial. It’s 30 seconds. It’s only 90 words. Figure it out. You’re a smart guy. Your method of being pedantic is too pedantic. Making a commercial in advance and getting a testimonial – those are the only two ways to sell. Best regards, Jeffrey

Reprinted with permission from Jeffrey H. Gitomer and Buy Gitomer.

About the Author

Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of The Sales Bible, Customer Satisfaction is Worthless Customer Loyalty is Priceless, The Little Red Book of Selling, The Little Red Book of Sales Answers, The Little Black Book of Connections, The Little Gold Book of YES! Attitude, The Little Green Book of Getting Your Way, The Little Platinum Book of Cha-Ching, The Little Teal Book of Trust, The Little Book of Leadership, and Social BOOM! His website, www.gitomer.com, will lead you to more information about training and seminars, or email him personally at [email protected].

All airlines are the same, except for their people.

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As you may know, I’m a regular flyer. About 200 flights a year. Mostly on major airlines, but because I’m more interested in flying non-stop than getting travel miles or points, I take whatever airline is most convenient for my schedule.

This past Friday I found myself flying Alaska Airlines from Atlanta, Georgia, to Portland, Oregon.

There are only a few Alaska gates, and they’re hard to find, in Delta-dominant Atlanta Hartsfield Airport. FYI: Alaska is part of the same SkyTeam co-op airline alliance as Delta. That’s where the similarity ends.

The Alaska ticket agents were amazingly friendly. Actually smiling, laughing, engaging, helpful, and friendly. I hope airline employees at your airport act that way!

NOTE WELL: Yes, there’s an occasional ticket agent or two that are friendly and helpful, and there are some friendly, helpful agents in Charlotte, North Carolina, that I’ve known for more than a decade. But these Alaska people were amazing.

I engaged them in a few minutes of lighthearted conversation and asked them what the hiring criterion was. That’s when the startling admission came, “We’re actually Delta employees who were hand-picked and retrained.”

Hand picked and retrained. What does that tell you?

WAIT A MINUTE! Retrained? It’s the same computer system and the same baggage criteria. Just cross out “Delta” and substitute “Alaska” right? Right.

“We were trained to greet and treat customers in a different way,” said one of the agents. “You know – smile, chat, be friendly, thank customers as you look them in the eye, and not use certain unfriendly words and phrases like ‘policy’ and ‘all set.’”

Wow! There’s a concept.

Yes, I boarded the plane happily and on time. Yes, the flight attendants matched the ticket agent’s and the gate agent’s friendliness. In-flight service – all five hours of it – was excellent. NOTE: These days, flight attendants emphasize they are there for “your safety” and never say the word “service,” let alone the word “friendly.”

These flight attendants were gently professional, and friendly; not assertively demanding – almost rude when telling me and others to “turn off electronic devices.” I fell asleep between ordering and receiving food. Next thing I knew, a flight attendant was gently rubbing the side of my arm, and smiling as she helped me put my food in place. Classic.

Well, that would have been the end of the story had I not spent the weekend with a 10-year Alaska Airline employee. I told him about my experience and he just smiled.

I asked him what makes Alaska different.

Here is his eye-opening response about the big things Alaska does better than other airlines:

  • It starts before training. It’s all about who they hire. It’s about finding the BEST people. They have some process of pre-identifying the right people.
  • No test at time of hiring. Interviews are human to human. They ask questions and go with gut feelings.
  • They select people they believe will be hard workers. People who they believe will go beyond what’s expected. “North” of what’s expected.
  • They select people they believe have a natural inclination to take ownership. People who are caring and friendly.
  • They select passionate people who love what they do.
  • They don’t just train front-line employees, they train all employees. They have found that front-line people are buoyed by internal employees if attitudes are consistently positive throughout the company.

Why is this eye opening? Because it’s not fancy! It’s nothing new.

It’s not complicated. It’s natural.
It’s not costly. It’s human.

You know the rest right? Alaska Airline’s leadership and management is ‘by example’ not ‘by the book.’ All employees feel valued and are happy to serve. And customers love it. It’s humanized and natural. It’s caring people serving traveling people in need.

Well, why don’t all airlines do this? Long list of reasons. Too numerous and way too negative to mention here. This is a business lesson, not an airline reprimand.

HARD QUESTIONS:
What’s your culture?
How consistent is attitude throughout your corporate environment?
How is that affecting your morale?
And more important how is that affecting your customers?

Reprinted with permission from Jeffrey H. Gitomer and Buy Gitomer.

About the Author

Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of The Sales Bible, Customer Satisfaction is Worthless Customer Loyalty is Priceless, The Little Red Book of Selling, The Little Red Book of Sales Answers, The Little Black Book of Connections, The Little Gold Book of YES! Attitude, The Little Green Book of Getting Your Way, The Little Platinum Book of Cha-Ching, The Little Teal Book of Trust, The Little Book of Leadership, and Social BOOM! His website, www.gitomer.com, will lead you to more information about training and seminars, or email him personally at [email protected].

Who is Martin Rooney? And why you need to know.

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In early August I got a call from a guy named Martin Rooney who had just moved to Charlotte from New Jersey. Turns out we had a mutual friend who insisted Martin and I meet.

I agreed to meet. He’s a new guy in town and he’s a friend of a good friend. We’d have a short meeting and be done. So I scheduled a 30-minute breakfast.

At breakfast, Martin and I began to talk. Three hours later, we were still talking.

We talked sales, martial arts, fitness, health, speaking, writing, and 100 other things. We exchanged books and agreed to carry the conversation deeper. Martin agreed to help me get ‘in better physical shape’ at his training facility.

Martin Rooney bills himself as a Fitness Philosopher. But he is at the top of his profession as both a trainer and a speaker on fitness. He has been a trainer-consultant to athletes from the NFL, MLB, NBA, and has trained numerous Olympic medalists. He produced the fastest athlete at the NFL Scouting Combine four times. One hundred of the athletes Martin has trained have been drafted to the NFL, and the contracts signed were in excess of a billion dollars. Not bad.

My training is taking place at one of the facilities he licenses in his, ‘Training for Warriors’ program. He now has over 70 locations worldwide and over 1,000 trainers have become certified in his training system. Not bad.

So, what’s the attraction? Adonis wants to train an overweight old man. Doesn’t seem like a fit – until you discover our mutual passions: thinking, writing, and speaking. We also both have four daughters, and we’re both from New Jersey. We are helpers at heart, and we exchanged amazing ideas in the first three hours. So many ideas that I believe I have found a new life-long friend. Not bad.

He gave me a copy of his book Rooney’s Rules. He creates a new health, fitness, sales, philosophical rule every day.

Here are a few examples of his philosophy, his thinking, and his writing:

  • Want to be REMEMBERED tomorrow? Then don’t FORGET to do something great today.
  • You don’t become the thing you THINK about all the time. You become the thing you DO all the time.
  • The real garbage holding you back is all the time you throw away.
  • Try new things. Biting into the unknown may be the best way to cut your wisdom teeth.
  • Success may have less to do with the depth of your background than it does with the strength of your backbone.
  • When fighting this battle called life, taking yourself lightly may be your heaviest artillery.
  • Hindsight is worthless until you are able to use it to gain insight that can be used to positively affect your Foresight.
  • Algebra and Trigonometry are less important than learning to correctly add your strengths, subtract your faults, divide your time and multiply your talents.
  • Just like a well-prepared meal, a well-prepared day often ends with a clean plate.
  • If you aspire to retire after building an empire, the best way is to inspire as many people before you expire.
  • Most people often develop a weak set of knees when it comes time to take a stand for themselves.
  • Perhaps the most important thing you can be when you grow up is Yourself.
  • The key to confidence has less to do with inborn talent than it does with ingrained practice.
  • Just like the tide, you will rise or fall as a result of the most influential bodies around you.
  • The Road to Success does not intersect with the Path of Least Resistance.
  • Joy follows success. Success follows experience. Experience follows failure. Don’t fear failure. Without it there is no joy.
  • Your life will not be measured by how many days you get to ‘take off,’ but instead by how many of the days you ‘take on.’
  • The easiest way to lead an unsuccessful life is to work hard all day to get out of a hard day’s work.
  • Most people think the difference between easy and hard can be found in the problem. Successful people know it’s found in your head.
  • Your Reputation and Credibility are just like your muscles. They take years to develop but can be lost in a short time of misuse.
  • Action is your most important export. Better to use it up in the storefront than to keep it stored away in the warehouse.
  • You’re a product of your priorities. You have 168 hours a week. If you can’t find five to workout, you’re not busy; you’re insane.
  • Don’t go ‘halfway’ with anything you do. Either go ‘all out’ or not at all. Your ‘whole heart’ always beats your ‘half ass.’
  • Make your enthusiasm for success stronger than your fear of failure and you will become unstoppable.
  • One way to stand out is to be kind, fair and hard working in a world that often isn’t.
  • Unlike a great steak, great effort can be rare and well done at the same time.
  • Waves of problems will always break on the shores of your life. It is not the wave, but how each is ridden that will reveal you.

Pretty cool, huh? Martin Rooney is a deep thinker and doer who is able to express himself in a very intelligent and thought-provoking way.

He’s putting me through my paces. And I’m loving it.

SO FAR: I have been to Martin’s workout facility six times. I’m getting personal training from a world master. And it’s a fun exchange of ideas along with the grunting. I love it. I am building strength and friendship at the same time.

Reprinted with permission from Jeffrey H. Gitomer and Buy Gitomer.

About the Author

Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of The Sales Bible, Customer Satisfaction is Worthless Customer Loyalty is Priceless, The Little Red Book of Selling, The Little Red Book of Sales Answers, The Little Black Book of Connections, The Little Gold Book of YES! Attitude, The Little Green Book of Getting Your Way, The Little Platinum Book of Cha-Ching, The Little Teal Book of Trust, The Little Book of Leadership, and Social BOOM! His website, www.gitomer.com, will lead you to more information about training and seminars, or email him personally at [email protected].