Tips for a Starving Salesperson

You're looking at what many of the day (1936) called a flying boat. It was operated by Pan American Airways System. It splashed down in the bay and had no landing gear. Ramp workers waded into the water carrying the gear and wrenches. The wheels were attached. Then the massive aircraft was towed up the ramp to dry land for unloading.

My Grandfather, Uncle and Father are standing under the wing. It's amazing how technology has changed since this family photo was taken in the summer of 1936. The flying public has benefited.

How well do we embrace change (adapt)? Printing, how we sell, and the tools available have certainly changed during my career. But has our talk track kept up? Or, when we talk about technology, do we "show up and throw up?" Do we really address what would make innovation valuable to clients?

I talk with salespeople from all over the world. If I'm honest, I see more than a few (most actually) that resist. They say things like "I have clients for our established solutions. The boss is happy I'm
keeping equipment busy." I even have a client that doesn’t believe in digital printing. These guys are pilots of "flying boats" not future solutions.

To sell modern answers you have to be able to paint a picture of the future. You have to get into your client's head. Together, you have to contrast the world they live in with the world they want to live in. Your technology or new service has to be presented as the path to get them from where they are to where they want to go. It's not features and benefits. It's lifestyle.

Clients are under pressure to stay informed. They are expected to solve an evolving suite of problems. Their directors count on them to bring innovative solutions to meetings. You can help them with this critical part of their job.

Reps, you can't survive without embracing change. You owe it to yourselves, your employer and your market to get neck deep in available technology. You need to be — are expected to be an expert — not on features but on the new solutions you can provide.

Please trust me on this. If you don't embrace what's available, you'll eventually lose clients to someone that has. Your days are numbered. You'll be a starving salesperson that never saw it coming.

The flying boats don't splash down in Miami these days. Ramp workers no longer wear swimsuits and carry landing gear. Those days are gone.

So much is possible today. Don’t fear it. Learn it. Get excited by the possibilities. Be your client's source of information. It will change, for the better, the way you live.