Comments on: What Would Happen If We Saw Things The Way Our Customers Saw Them?

By: David Brock

David Brock — Sun, 23 Jan 2011 21:08:21 +0000

Thanks for joining the discussion Howard. Great input!

By: Howard Olsen

Howard Olsen — Sat, 22 Jan 2011 19:38:59 +0000

Nicely said. You illustrate exactly why it’s so important to Ditch The Pitch and really connect with your customer. You could have two different people purchase exactly the same product or service for exactly the same price on the very same day and each could (probably would) have an entirely different reason for making the decision. That’s why you really need to engage your customer in conversation, find out what thier issues are and help them solve their problem with what you have to offer. But there’s a catch to this, you also have know your product / service well enough so you can adapt and be able to show it’s relevance in each individual situation and context. . In other words you’ve got to speak the customer’s language. If you want to know why John Smith buys what John Smith buys, you have to look through John Smith’s eyes. The good news is that to get there all you need to do is ask him what he sees.

By: David Brock

David Brock — Sun, 12 Dec 2010 23:25:24 +0000

The ability to put oneself into the “shoes” of the person we are communicating to, regardless of each other’s roles, is a critical element of connecting with that person. As you mention Norm, the great sales people do this effortlesssly. The peddlers don’t even try. The gap between the two approaches is a chasm. Thanks for joining the discussion Norm.

By: Norm Roth

Norm Roth — Sun, 12 Dec 2010 22:46:03 +0000

One of the primary differences tween the great sales professionals and the also rans is that the great ones do see things as their prospects see them. In order to understand the prospect/client one must do the necessary pre sales research of the client company, enter into socratic conversations with the correct people, learn abouy them, learn their implied and explicit needs gain agreement on the pain and then move forward toward solution and need payoff.. In the end a relationship of trust has been built and a sale should be made, more importantly as we learn to understand the client and they us we will have a client for life and a friend

By: David Brock

David Brock — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 20:01:23 +0000

Andrew, thanks for the great comment!

By: Andrew Rudin

Andrew Rudin — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 15:26:39 +0000

Dave: thanks for the post and for recognizing the impact of communication gaps. Similar to the other commenters, I have spent time addressing this issue. Techno-speak is a hard habit to break, and here are some reasons sales organizations perpetuate the problem:

1) “We only want to hire people with industry experience!” When companies do, we risk the communication discord you describe. Often, experienced salespeople have forgotten what it’s like NOT to know the technical jargon they have mastered. And they can’t empathize with a prospect who gets slammed with five or six acronyms in the first sales call. A great book that addresses this issue is “Made to Stick” by Chip Heath and Dan Heath.

2) Product developers view their offerings as full-featured and sophisticated (who wouldn’t!). Prospects often value simple and easy-to-use. There’s conflict because many technology marketers DO think that the best way to drink technology is from a fire hose!

Breaking buzzword dependency among salespeople isn’t easy, but it’s mission critical if you’re selling into new market verticals. A college class I taught, “Strategic Uses of Information Technology,” reminded me of the difficulty. I deducted points for using industry jargon on assignments, and required that classroom discussions define all but the most common acronyms. At first these rules weren’t popular, but they got the idea across. If we’re going to succeed as technology salespeople, managers and executives, we must excel at communication. There’s room for all us to improve.

By: David Brock

David Brock — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 17:07:35 +0000

Sarah, thanks so much for the comment and compliment! I’m glad you find it useful. I think it’s an issue all of us face, and as we work with customers we need to be keenly aware that we are speaking different languages.

Thanks for taking the time to comment, keep it up, it creates a richer dialog. Regards, Dave

By: Sarah Mitchell

Sarah Mitchell — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 16:09:56 +0000

Hi Dave,

This is a fantastic post and one I understand all too well. I spent a great deal of time selling software armed with materials loaded with techo-speak. Now I’m a copywriter and spend most days trying to convince clients to embrace common terms. It’s hard.

If you think it’s difficult in B2B selling, it’s even more critical for industries that sell directly to the public. I’ve recently begun to work with the aged care sector and they present example after example of jargon-riddled collateral. I’m doing my best to convince them to abandon industry terminology and remember who they’re actually selling to: elderly people in the private sector.

I’m going to bookmark this post and send it out when I’m having difficulty making my point. Thanks again for a valuable and succinct explanation of an all too common problem.

By: David Brock

David Brock — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 15:08:19 +0000

Bob, I really appreciate the comment. While marketing is the blame for a lot of things, I think much of it starts with the orientation companies have—we see it in product development, policies, etc. Overall, we would be much more effective if we start all efforts with the customer in mind.

Thanks for the great insight. Please keep visiting and contributing. Regards, Dave

By: Bob Apollo

Bob Apollo — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 14:45:37 +0000

Great post, Dave

As a vendor, your capabilities are irrelevant unless and until they can be connected to your prospect’s challenges in a language they can relate to. Your value propositions can’t be generic – they have to relate to what really matters to the prospect. And finally, the really smart sales people have figured this out. That’s why (as in your example) they tailor the “corporate” presentations churned out by marketing. Imagine what could happen if product marketing listened to and learned from their wisdom? Imagine what they could produce if they saw their role as problem solving marketing instead?

Bob