By Mark Blezard
Great news employers, we no longer need sales executives. That's right, sack them all and funnel the savings into your next dividend. No more bonus payouts, no more territory disputes, the end of huge commission cheques.
Seriously? How can this be so? Because we all sell online now, clicking buttons, firing off emails, liking posts. It's simple, we can write an algorithm to do these menial tasks. For example, does this sound familiar? "Hey, John, did you follow-up that sales lead from the US?" John, "Yes, I've emailed them but not heard back yet."
Or, how about this, "Sue, have we got our foot in the door of Billingham Widgets yet?" Sue, "Almost boss, I've sent them an email and we're following them on LinkedIn and Instagram."
Even worse, "Do you know why Pilkington Corp has stopped ordering?" Answer; "We think they've gone out of business. I emailed them a dozen times, they've stopped replying and their website is down?"
And herein lies the reason for my rant. Too many of us think sales is a purely online engagement. And the more we do online the more our telephone skills go down the toilet. Furthermore, the irony of this is that prospects have started answering calls again yet block emails. The telephone works!
So, if you want to be a fully rounded sales professional – pick up the PHONE and start dialing. A free subscription to MailChimp can do half of the above, so preserve your profession and polish those traditional sales methodologies.
