Throughout the history of business-to-business selling, there have been many changes. The telephone, air travel, voicemail, email, the Internet, social media, and mobility have shifted the way our customers buy and consequently, how we sell. However, the changes have been gradual. Even the most recent changes in which we’ve seen technology destroy traditional buying processes has taken two decades to make changes in the way we sell.
I think the reason these shifts in selling have taken so long is because change is hard … and changing salespeople is almost impossible. During any point in the last twenty years, a business owner or general manager might have claimed “We’ve got to make these changes because our customers are buying differently.” Salespeople would nod their heads, smile with respect, and then completely ignore their bosses’ requests. Because of their relationships, tribal knowledge, and easy access to other jobs, most salespeople took their time to accept change. Some haven’t changed at all.
Well, there’s nothing like a global pandemic to act as a catalyst of business processes. As we move out of the COVID-19 pandemic, we won’t be returning to the 2019 way of selling. We will be returning to the future. This crazy time we’re experiencing is accelerating behaviors and trends that were in action long before we ever heard of the term social distancing. If they kept creeping forward at the natural pace, it would’ve taken us years to evolve to where we’ll be in a few short months.
And salespeople … we don’t have a choice this time. We’ve been forced to work and live in a different way. The world is noticing that certain aspects make sense and some of the things we used to do don’t make sense. Our world of selling has changed, and all the experience in the business world won’t change that.
So, over the next five weeks I’ll present details about the top five changes that I believe all salespeople need to embrace right now. We’ll cover why writing skills will become relevant again; how online video calls must improve; why knowledge will become more important to salespeople than personality or sales skills; how you better start using your CRM system; and finally … how in-person meetings won’t go away but will become even more critical to your success.
Tune in for our first session: Writing skills will become relevant again.
