Show the Sales Love

Dear lovely reader,

February being the month containing Valentine’s Day, we dutifully purchase greeting cards bearing other people’s sincere thoughts and add our name to the bottom, just as Hallmark mandates. But in addition to spouses and romantic interests, let’s make sure to take this opportunity to show some love to those in our work circle as well. Sadly, there is no line of cards that address our feelings toward this aspect of our life (HR frowns on this kind of thing). But don’t worry, I am here for you.

The Company

Salespeople, your feelings toward your employer are likely to be mixed. At times, you are a solid team all going in the same direction, posing for a group photo, and celebrating a milestone of one kind or another. But there are also times you wonder if there isn’t a secret conspiracy team holding you back to systematically make your tasks harder.

Salespeople often carry the belief, “This place would fall down without me.” While that statement bears some modicum of truth (after all, nothing happens until a sale is made), the same can also be said for the groups that process, quote, produce, finish, and deliver that sale. And then there’s the management team sweating the small stuff, poring over numbers, attending trade shows and conferences to gather information necessary to chart the course ahead, and doing it all while acting like a duck: calm up top but paddling like crazy beneath the surface. It is not uncommon for animosity toward the sales team to grow like a virus. After all, why do they get to leave at 3 p.m. and you are still there after hours? Let’s show the love, shall we?

Salespeople, if you are going to beat your chest and believe yourselves to be more important than others, lean into it all the way and take responsibility for those quiet stretches when work isn’t coming in. If you in fact caused the days when the presses run 24/7, you also caused the slumps. Own it. You might be hitting your numbers but if the company isn’t, it is your job to step up and make extra calls regardless of whether you personally need the business. If you truly respect your co-workers, show up for them in the down times and put in the hours.

Owners/managers, unless you have been in sales, you can’t understand how incredibly difficult it is to do the job. And if you have sold before, trust me when I say it is harder now than ever. Show some love by dropping off an encouraging note on a rep’s desk. Send an internal email to commemorate a major sale. Spend some time sitting with a rep just to listen. Sure, they are getting paid for their work and that is a form of appreciation, but everyone responds positively to words of encouragement. Plus, it will cost you nothing, not even an overpriced card.

Associates

Let’s take a deeper dive into your co-worker. Despite what you might think, salespeople are not universally admired. And despite what you might think, a salesperson’s success is a team effort. Sure, it’s difficult to make contact with the prospect/customer and land a job. But it’s also difficult to process that order and mother it through the system and out the door, especially when it is only one of dozens or even hundreds currently in progress.

Sales reps, take the time to do more than just say, “thank you.” Put it in writing. A handwritten note goes a long way. If a customer expresses gratitude or praise, pass it along with equal or greater enthusiasm. Another way to show your appreciation is to spend time helping out in the shop. As any parent will tell you, it’s a rare but welcome moment when a child follows up the daily question, “What time is dinner?” with another: “Is there anything I can do to help?” More often than not, help is not needed in the kitchen (I, for example, am the “Get out of my kitchen” type), but we sure appreciate being asked. Similarly, your help in production might not be needed, but you are sending a powerful message that exemplifies teamwork. Besides, as we all know, actions speak louder than words.

Clients

Years ago, I paid an invoice with a check (for those of you under the age of 30, paper was once used to transfer funds). Later that month while reconciling my checking account, I looked at the check and saw someone had written the words, “Thank you for the business,” in the memo section. What a lovely gesture! So much of business is transactional. Taking the time for an easy showing of appreciation was quite a differentiator and definitely unexpected. It elevated my experience as well as my impression of this particular vendor. Showing the love like this costs nothing for you to end a client phone call with, “Thank you for the order,” or “I appreciate the business.” As the airline pilots say during final approach, “We know you have a choice and appreciate you choosing us.”

Print

Do you own this communication medium a debt of gratitude? Without question, yes. Love and honor the industry by using it, studying it, and defending it. Make certain your next marketing campaign includes print, such as a direct mail piece. One Toronto, Ontario-based printer creates its annual calendar using several different types of stock. This allows it to use it as a reference when talking with a client. Next, honor the print gods by learning something about printing’s history. Years ago, while in Antwerp, Belgium, we stopped by the Plantin-Moretus Museum. There, we learned about a medical and pharmaceutical guide that was used for 150 years because there was no easy way to update it before the printing press came around. Good thing nothing changes in medicine over the course of one-and-a-half centuries! Nothing like a good bloodletting to cure a scraped knee.

Print has made a huge impact on the history of mankind. Anyone who says print is dead would think differently if they ran their fingers through a swatch book or saw the impact of an insanely clever solution to a customer’s need made possible only by print. Defend our industry by continuing to sell ideas. There is nothing like the feeling when you solve a problem with the perfect design, the client agrees, and an order is placed. When you are done and the job has shipped, remember to be grateful for the opportunity. There are not many jobs out there where you get to come up with an idea and see it through to completion.

All the world feels underappreciated. Show the love this month but continue this practice throughout the year. A note. A compliment. A kind word. A little goes a long way. Sometimes your gestures will be earnest. Sometimes they will be forced. Sometimes they’ll come through gritted teeth. But their impact will make a difference and your job will get that much easier, happier, and more fulfilling.

Love, Bill