Tag: clients

Be On Display

“Follow the 20 Butt Rule. When 20 of your customer’s butts are gathered in the same room, yours should be too.” – Jeffrey Gitomer

Imagine this…

Your customers are standing in line waiting to speak with you.

They mention how much they appreciate your support.

Your conversation ends with the customer asking you to stop by their office to discuss other ways you can work together.

Is this a dream?

Are you in Fantasy Land?

Nope.

This scenario is real.

How do elite sales people open doors and create access?

They EXHIBIT at conferences.

One of the most underutilized opportunities in sales is attending your customer’s conferences.

These conferences are amazing ways to establish yourself in your local marketplace.

You get to connect with the busiest customers and key opinion leaders outside the chaos of their office.

The customers literally come to you.

A good day exhibiting at a conference crushes a month of driving around your territory walking cold into offices.

Here are 3 Ways to Get Yourself on Display:

  1. Contact the CME Office of each academic medical center you cover:  
    • Ask for the person who coordinates their CME events.
    • Ask that person for their most updated course schedule.
    • Ask to be included on their distribution list.
  2. Ask your top customers what local conferences they attend:
    • “Dr John – What’s your favorite local medical conference?”
    • Ask your customer for their contact person for that conference.
    • Contact that person and tell them you want to help support their next event.
  3. Ask your customer what local organizations support their patient population:
    • EG- “Miles for Migraine” hosts a yearly 5k run in cities throughout the country.
    • Top customers & Key Opinion Leaders from multiple institutions attend.
    • You literally can go for a run with your top customers.

Your BIGGEST customers are the HARDEST to access.

That should excite you.

Those barriers are there to keep the average sales people out.

Don’t be average.

Leverage your resources, courage, & creativity.

When you do this, your value to your customers & company will be on full display.

#BeOnDisplay

-Joe Ciccarone

Next Week’s Vibe:  The Exhibitor’s Playbook: How to Engage, Connect, & Get Invited Back. The elite salesperson’s guide to working a conference.

 

 

The Art of the Start

“Every day the world you live in is created by your attitude.” – Zig Ziglar

Sales professionals live in a sea of rejection.

It’s an occupational hazard.

We hear “No” infinitely more than “Yes!”.

Our job is to weather adversity and keep our positive attitude flowing.

Nothing will destroy your success (or career) faster than a poor attitude.

The good news is that we control 100% of our attitude.

Start each day by creating the attitude you want to bring into the world.

Here’s the advice a mentor gave me:

  • Wake up 15 minutes earlier.
  • Read from a positive, thought provoking book for 10 minutes.
  • Write the best idea you learned in a journal.

This process pushes out any negative thoughts floating in your head when you wake up.

It fills that negative space with positive.

It’s one of my favorite parts of the day.

As an added bonus, in just a few weeks, you will create a KILLER JOURNAL filled with the best ideas you ever came across.

It’s a simple process, but CONSISTENCY is key.

Like bathing, this must be done daily to be effective.

Our minds will go in the direction they are pointed.

What we think about becomes our reality.

We are 100% responsible for the energy we bring into each room.

It’s up to us to bring our best self to our family, friends, & customers.

Wake up positive.  Live positive.

Get your morning right, the rest of the day follows.

#StartRight

-Joe

*** If you would like 12 AWESOME books to consider, click THIS LINK.

 

 

 

Don’t Be Sorry

“When customers yell at you, or blame you, don’t say, “I’m sorry.” Just say, “Thank you!” – Jeffrey Gitomer 

It’s inevitable…

Something is going to go wrong with your product or service.

You’re going to walk into one of your busiest offices and run face first into an angry customer.

Your fault or not, the customer is going to take their frustration out on you.

The interaction usually begins like this:

  • Your customer looks at you and says ,“I need to talk to you. Come in here.”
  • You get hustled into an empty exam room.
  • The door is shut a bit too energetically.

Game on…

When this happens, no matter how upset your customer is, DO NOT say “I’m sorry.”

Thank them!

They just gave you an amazing opportunity to connect & prove the type of value you can bring them.

When you respond:

  • Take full responsibility for fixing their situation.
  • Substitute the words, “I’m sorry,” with the words, “Thank you!”

The situation may be about finances.  It may be a misunderstanding.  It may be real or perceived.

Whatever it is, thank them:

  • “Dr Matt – Thank you for bringing this to my attention. I really appreciate you letting me know your perspective.  I will work on this immediately and fix this for you.”

The advantages of “Thank You!” vs. “I’m Sorry.”:

  • Creates an opening to partner with your customer.
  • Turns an obstacle into an opportunity.
  • Shows your desire to take action.
  • Exhibits a ton of self-confidence.

If you feel personally responsible for what happened, add:

  • “I apologize this happened.  You got my word I will fix this.”

Being confronted by a customer is not fun, but it’s an awesome opportunity to take your relationship to the next level.

It’s not what happens, it’s how you respond.

Respond by empathizing, engaging, & serving.

#Mindset

-Joe

 

The Last Time

“Start where you finish.”

One of the first principles you learn in public accounting is that your ending balance becomes your starting point for the next period.

This principle is just as important in the world of selling.

A killer way to start your customer conversations is by picking up where you left off.

“The last time we spoke…“

Use this phrase to set up your OPENING.

This phrase is engaging and grabs the customer’s attention.

Make this tactic even more impactful by adding “you said..” at the end.

  • Dr Dawn – “The last time we spoke you said…there were 2 patients you identified for chronic migraine treatment.  I’m following up to see how their injections went?”
  • Dr Jamie – “The last time we spoke you said…it may be time to conduct a chronic migraine training for the residents.  I’m here to see if we can schedule a date?”
  • Dr Kris – “The last time we spoke you mentioned…you heard that the department was losing money on Botox.  I am here to see if we can set up a meeting with your billing staff and our business practice specialist.”
  • Dr Andreas – “The last time we spoke you asked me … to get you a list of ULS proctors.  I have 3 names for you.”

“The last time we spoke…”:

  • Gets your customer’s attention
  • Builds on your previous work
  • Creates a call continuim

#ConnectTheDots

-Joe

Power Up

“Small salespeople ask weak questions.” – Anthony Iannarino

Our job is to ask power questions to people in power.

Below are 3 POWER QUESTIONS to ask your thought leaders, chairpersons, & key influencers:

  • “_______________ has been a hot topic to many of our top customers, how are you handling this?”
  • “As you look out to the year ahead, what is the most exciting project you are working on?”
  • “From your perspective, what is the most important issue we should be discussing today?”

#PowerUp

-Joe Ciccarone

Level Up

The fastest way to level up your sales game is to ask better questions.

These 3 questions generate awesome dialogue:

  • “When you see ________,  what treatment options come to mind?”
  • “What type of outcome are you looking to get when you _______?”
  • “What has been your experience with _________?”

“Questions are to sales what oxygen is to life.” – Jeffrey Gitomer

#RaiseYourGame

 –Joe Ciccarone

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