A (Surprising) Sales Tip
By Mike Kind on February 4th, 2010
I must admit I’m a little embarrassed to be writing this but I had an interesting experience last week that made me realize that nothing is too obvious.
One of our salesmen excitedly came into my office the other day and to let me know that he had landed his first job from an old customer who had stopped doing business with him a couple of years ago.
He had reconnected with them to let them know that there had been a lot of changes within the organization and that he would appreciate the opportunity to share them.
The salesman had done a couple of quotes but had finally landed his first job. When I inquired as to what he had done differently, he informed me that he “hand delivered” the quote. He went on to tell me that the job he landed was around $20,000 and that the lost jobs that he sent via e-mail were in the same range. The account purchases over $1,000,000 in print annually and have since been in for a tour and press proof.
One take away of course is that there may be some “hidden gems” in those old accounts that you haven’t heard from in awhile but even more importantly, don’t lose sight of the importance of the personal touch. Amazing…..
One Response to “A (Surprising) Sales Tip”
By Marty Rego on Feb 10, 2010 | Reply
There is no substitute for the personal touch. Any vendor who thinks he or she is going to build relationships via email and websites is kidding themselves.
In the latter, a vendor simply gets caught in a bidding game. Once the client bids you out against 5 or 10 other printers, you’re dead.
But with a personal relationship, it’s a different ballgame. Your challenge, though, is to demonstrate how your personal touch brings value to the client.