August 2015 Office Technology

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CONTENTS Volume 22 • No. 2

FEATURE ARTICLES 10

Production Print Yeah, it’s big; time to get on board?

P R I N C I PA L I S S U E S The FDA UDI Rule Compliance dates are fast approaching

24

by Teresa Hiatt Six Sigma Transactional Black Belt

by Brent Hoskins Office Technology Magazine

Admit it. You may not sell production print devices, but you have at least stopped to look at them, in awe, at your manufacturer’s annual dealer meeting or at some other industry event. They are amazing. In terms of immensity, when fully configured with inline finishing capabilities, they essentially sit at the top of the office technology stack as “one mean copying machine.” (OK, really a “printing machine.”)

If you linger a bit while standing before one of these monsters, you will find yourself wondering about the revenue they could generate for your dealership.

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Compliance dates for the implementation of new regulations for the unique identification labeling of all medical devices are approaching. Activity to ensure compliance is underway all over the life sciences industry. The regulations represent some challenges for printing.

SELLING SOLUTIONS Managing the Metrics The new math of sales excellence

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by Gil Cargill Cargill Consulting Group Inc.

Remain in Control You must own your social media logins

Within the typical sales organization, there is a belief that sales is a numbers game.

This is correct, but it is not accurate — and I will explain why. I know my words may be a little confusing, but bear with me. As always, sales is a numbers/activity game, but the numbers have changed.

by Jon Mitchell Dealer Marketing

As a dealership principal, you would not give complete and total control of your financial books to one individual without knowing how to access them or be able to take control of them yourself at any point, if necessary. It is not a stretch to say this could be a potentially detrimental move to the longevity of a business. While this is an over-the-top example, you could see a similar level of damage to your dealership and your dealership’s reputation when you allow someone else to create and hold the “keys” to your dealership’s social media accounts.

Accentuating Urgency Get the customer to articulate the effects of delaying

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by Troy Harrison Troy Harrison & Associates

“How do I create a sense of urgency in the customer’s mind so that my proposal doesn’t just sit on his desk?” It is one of the most common questions I get. The place to address time frame and urgency issues is in the questioning phase of selling, which should happen before you present and propose.

COURTS & CAPITOLS 20

The New Providers Cloud services require new terms & conditions

by Robert C. Goldberg BTA General Counsel

BTA has recently been presented with an abundance of cloud agreements.

Many have been presented on a take-it-or-leave-it basis, however, as competition increases, so does the flexibility of the providers. Standard contracts from cloud providers can now be viewed as starting points for negotiation.

D E PA R T M E N T S Business Technology Association

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• BTA Calendar • BTA Highlights

6

Executive Director’s Page

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BTA President’s Message

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Advertiser Index

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EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S PAGE

How Do BTA Dealers Rate Their Vendors?

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hank you for casting your ballot in this year’s BTA Channel’s Choice program. We received 343 completed ballots from independent BTA member and non-member dealers. Dealers were asked to rate their primary and secondary line MFP vendors in key performance categories. In addition, they were asked to rate vendors in two other categories: Third-Party Leasing and Remanufactured Cartridges.

The results of this balloting process, tabulated for BTA by Industry Analysts Inc., determined the winners of our 2015 Channel’s Choice Awards.

On May 7, during BTA Mid-America’s Cruise to Success event in Minneapolis, 2014-15 BTA President Ron Hulett announced and presented the 2015 Channel’s Choice Awards. In case you missed the earlier announcements of the winners, among MFP vendors, Sharp Imaging and Information Company of America received the 2015 Channel’s Choice Award for Superior Performance — Primary Brand, as well as the Channel’s Choice Awards in the Distribution and Product Line performance categories. In addition, in a three-way tie, Sharp, along with Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A. Inc. and KYOCERA Document Solutions America Inc., received awards in the Corporate Support category.

KYOCERA also received the award for Outstanding Performance — Secondary Brand.

Konica Minolta also received the award in the Inventory performance category. The other two Channel’s Choice Award winners: GreatAmerica Financial Services in the category of Third-Party Leasing and MSE in the category of Remanufactured Cartridges.

BTA is providing its members a complimentary summary of the 2015 Channel’s Choice Report. Among the eight-page summary features, based on the balloting process: a list of the first and second runnersup in the top primary brand and secondary brand categories; overall comparisons of the primary and secondary brand manufacturers; and overall comparisons of both remanufactured cartridge vendors and third-party leasing companies.

For those seeking a more comprehensive view of the results, the 122-page 2015 Channel’s Choice Report is available to dealers and others for a fee. Here is a sampling of the type of information you will find in the report: n Among primary vendor providers, in terms of “effectiveness of sales training,” two companies ranked overall above the industry mean: Sharp and Canon. n Among secondary vendor providers, in terms of “parity between vendor direct and the BTA Channel,” five companies ranked overall above the industry mean: Muratec, OKI Data, Kyocera, Xerox and Canon. n Among third-party leasing companies, in terms of “response time,” three companies ranked above the industry mean: GreatAmerica, LEAF and De Lage Landen. n Among remanufactured cartridge companies, in terms of “impact on service costs,” two companies ranked above the industry mean: West Point Products and LMI Solutions.

For more information or to purchase the 2015 Channel’s Choice Report, contact BTA at (800) 843-5059 or info@bta.org. The complimentary summary of the report can be downloaded by BTA members at www.bta. org/ChannelsChoice. Access to the summary is a member benefit. You will need your username and password. n — Brent Hoskins

Executive Director/BTA Editor/Office Technology Brent Hoskins brent@bta.org (816) 303-4040 Associate Editor Elizabeth Marvel elizabeth@bta.org (816) 303-4060 Contributing Writers Gil Cargill, Cargill Consulting Group Inc. www.gilcargill.com Robert C. Goldberg, General Counsel Business Technology Association Troy Harrison, Troy Harrison & Associates www.troyharrison.com Teresa Hiatt, Six Sigma Transactional Black Belt teresa@hiattaviation.com Jon Mitchell, Dealer Marketing www.dealermarketing.net

Business Technology Association 12411 Wornall Road Kansas City, MO 64145 (816) 941-3100 www.bta.org Member Services: (800) 505-2821 BTA Legal Hotline: (800) 869-6688 Valerie Briseno Membership Marketing Manager valerie@bta.org Mary Hopkins Database Administrator mary@bta.org Teresa Leerar Bookkeeper teresa@bta.org Brian Smith Membership Sales Representative brian@bta.org Photo Credits: Bigstockphoto. Cover created by Bruce Quade, Brand X Studio. ©2015 by the Business Technology Association. All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced by any means without the written permission of the publisher. Every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of published material. However, the publisher assumes no liability for errors in articles nor are opinions expressed necessarily those of the publisher.

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BTA PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE 2015-2016 Board of Directors

Attend Grand Slam, Hosted by BTA East

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re you ready to hit a grand slam for your dealership? If so, I encourage you to register today for BTA’s annual Grand Slam district event, where you can learn from industry experts, gather new ideas for your business and network with your peers and exhibiting sponsors. Hosted

by BTA East, Grand Slam will be held Sept.

24-25, 2015, at the Boston Marriott Copley Place in Boston, Massachusetts.

The event will kick off at 3 p.m. on Sept.

24 with opening comments and the keynote session, “Technology Trends, Business Models & Customer Engagement,” led by Jeff Hayes, president of InfoTrends. Following the keynote, Sally Brause, director of human resources consulting at GreatAmerica Financial Services, will moderate the dealer panel, “Company Culture & Your Bottom Line.” The panelists: Dave Barrows, corporate director of sales, Gobin’s Inc., Alamosa, Colorado; Bob Gobin, president, Gobin’s Inc., Pueblo, Colorado; Dave Johnson, vice president of sales/branch operations, EO Johnson Business Technologies, Eau Claire, Wisconsin; and Chris Taylor, president, CEO and co-owner, Fisher’s Technology, Boise, Idaho.

Following the panel, a welcoming reception will be held from 6:15 until 8 p.m., giving attendees an opportunity to network with peers and sponsors. Breaks between sessions on both days will give attendees additional networking time.

The second day of Grand Slam will begin following a 7 to 8 a.m. breakfast. Three educational sessions will be held in the morning: “Future-Proofing Your Dealership,” with Mitch Morgan and Chris Ryne, partners, Growth Achievement Partners;

“Advanced Selling Skills for Winning the Complex Sale,” with Tom Cooke, founder and president, and Kim Ward, director of training and development, Learning Outsource Group; and “3D Printing Moves From Hype to an Innovative, Disruptive Force,” with Keith Kmetz, vice president of hardcopy solutions and services programs, International Data Corp. (IDC). Lunch will follow the morning educational sessions.

After lunch, the final two educational sessions will be held: “Understanding & Increasing the Value of Your Dealership,” with Jim Kahrs, president, Prosperity Plus Management Consulting Inc.; and “Preparing the Way for Digital Information Management Systems Organizations,” with Stephen Rolla, senior partner, Pros Elite Group. Closing comments and prize drawings will wrap up the educational portion of the event.

From 5:15 to 10 p.m., attendees will travel to Fenway Park to see the Baltimore Orioles take on the Boston Red Sox. Attendees will enjoy a private dinner in Fenway’s Champions Club prior to the game.

The BTA Managed Services Workshop, led by Morgan and Ryne, will be held Sept.

23-24 as a front runner to the event. Workshop attendees will receive free registration to Grand Slam. Visit www.bta.org/MS for additional information or to register.

BTA member dealer registration for Grand Slam with a baseball game ticket is only $199; a registration includes a second registration for another of the member dealership’s employees for free. Non-member dealer registration with the baseball game ticket is $249.

For more information on the sessions, additional pricing information or to register, visit www.bta.org/BTAEastEvent. I look forward to seeing you in Boston. n — Dave Quint

President Dave Quint Advanced Systems Inc. 2945 Airport Blvd.

P.O. Box 57 Waterloo, IA 50704 dquint@asiowa.com President-Elect Rob Richardson Allied Document Solutions & Services Inc. 200 Church St. Swedesboro, NJ 08085 robr@ads-s.com Vice President Dan Castaneda International Copy Machine Center 1515 Lee Trevino, Ste. EE El Paso, TX 79936 dan@icmc-elp.com BTA East Greg Gondek ACT Group 20 Commerce Drive Cromwell, CT 06416 greg@advancedcopy.com BTA Mid-America Bob Evans DigiTec Office Solutions Inc. 12560 Reed Road, Ste. 200 Sugar Land, TX 77478 bobevans@digiteconline.com BTA Southeast John Eckstrom Carolina Business Equipment Inc. 5123 Bush River Road Columbia, SC 29212 johne@cbesc.com BTA West Cathy Dimon Northern Business Systems 3526 International Fairbanks, AK 99701 cdimon@acsalaska.net Immediate Past President Ron Hulett U.S. Business Systems Inc. 3221 Southview Drive Elkhart, IN 46514 ron.hulett@usbus.com Ex-Officio/General Counsel Robert C. Goldberg Schoenberg Finkel Newman & Rosenberg LLC 222 S. Riverside Plaza, Ste. 2100 Chicago, IL 60606 robert.goldberg@sfnr.com

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Production Print Yeah, it’s big; time to get on board? by: Brent Hoskins, Office Technology Magazine

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dmit it. You may not sell production print devices, but you have at least stopped to look at them, in awe, at your manufacturer’s annual dealer meeting or at some other industry event. They are amazing. In terms of immensity, when fully configured with inline finishing capabilities, they essentially sit at the top of the office technology stack as “one mean copying machine.”

(OK, really a “printing machine.”)

If you linger a bit while standing before one of these monsters, you will find yourself wondering about the revenue they could generate for your dealership. After all, they are highticket products designed for high-volume output. However, they are niche products, require a greater level of investment than standard office MFPs and are associated with longer selling cycles. Nevertheless, is it time for you to get on board?

“With a color general office device, you are probably seeing an average of 10,000 to 30,000 pages per month,” says Dino Pagliarello, director of product marketing at Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A. Inc. “At the very high end of color production print, you will see customers do 100,000 to 150,000 pages, if not more, on a monthly basis. With that kind of volume, you are going to see a lot more clicks, aftermarket revenue and service opportunities. In addition, your hardware margins are going to be greater. On top of that, there are opportunities for services revenue from a consulting standpoint.”

Production print gives dealers a “much more balanced attack,” says John Fulena, vice president of the Production Printing Business Group at Ricoh Americas Corp. “They can go after general office opportunities, but they can also go after production print opportunities. In fact, Ricoh has seen a 20 percent growth in production equipment sales to dealers.

With this addition of production print, they will be playing in a different area with significantly more volume, because that’s the nature of the beast.”

The beast does like to consume toner and paper. Fulena

emphasizes, in particular, the output of monochrome pages. “Everybody talks about monochrome declining or staying flat,” he says. “It is true. There is no question that a lot of pages are moving to color. However, there is still a tremendous amount of monochrome volume in production print environments.”

Of course, even with that “tremendous” monochrome volume, the growth area for production print is on the color side. “Color pages are on the rise, with a 13-percent compound annual growth rate (CAGR),” says Jim Hamilton, director of the Production Group at InfoTrends, a market research firm.

(He notes that while color page growth is occurring through electrophotographic sheet-fed devices, high-speed, continuous-feed inkjet is responsible for a “very significant amount” of the page growth.) “However, monochrome pages, which account for most pages in the production print space, are dropping, with a CAGR of about -5 percent.”

Even with the decline of monochrome pages, overall (color and monochrome) production print page volume is growing at about a 2.5 percent CAGR, Hamilton says. “These pages are more colorful and, ultimately, more targeted, personalized or relevant to the end consumer,” he says. “By 2019, production digital print devices will produce around 625 billion pages in the United States.”

If you have an eye on your share of those 625 billion pages, keep in mind one reality Hamilton cites: Even with the growing output, the number of production print unit placements in the U.S. market is declining. “The trend is toward fewer devices with higher speed, greater productivity and color capability; in some cases, one device can do the work of two older ones,” he says. “In 2014, close to 68,000 production digital printers were placed in the United States. By 2019, that figure will be closer to 61,000.”

Even with declining unit placements, today, production print often contributes a noteworthy percentage of the annual revenues of dealerships that have successfully taken

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on the product category. “On They have to be able to average, it’s in the 15 percent ‘walk the walk and talk “I was recently visiting range in terms of overall revethe talk,’ so to speak. one of our dealers ... the nues, if you look at that specific They have to understand once-traditional dealership category by itself,” says Joe Conthe production print has transitioned to being treras, director of product and business, because the heavily focused on solutions marketing at Toshiba needs are different than production print ... they are America Business Solutions Inc. in the workgroup. That’s “However, the bigger picture is where I think dealers moving less product, but are the pull-through of a broader can make a mistake by seeing more margin, more revenue ... ” set of products [lower-volume transitioning some of

— John Fulena MFPs, etc.] that will result from their existing people Ricoh Americas Corp. offering production print.” over; that may not be the While production print may smartest thing to do, becontribute around 15 percent of the revenues at many deal- cause they may not understand the needs of the business.” erships, Fulena says other dealers have opted to “strongly Contreras notes that part of the challenge for the dealerconcentrate” on the product category. “I was recently visit- ship new to production print is going up against the coming one of our dealers in upstate New York; the once-tradi- petition. “That’s why having a production print specialist tional dealership has transitioned to being heavily focused is so important, because they are going to understand the on production print,” he says. “It was a tough decision for workflow and the types of jobs that are going to be printed,” them to concentrate on production devices as strongly as he says. “They are going to understand the ROI on centralthey now do, but it has worked out extremely well for them. izing output. They are also going to know the types of soluThey were selling a lot of office products. Now, all of a sud- tions that should be integrated with this type of product to den, they are moving less product, but are seeing more mar- help reduce and manage costs, as well as manage the overall gin, more revenue, higher volumes and more repeat busi- print output of the system.” ness. Plus, the annuity stream is significantly better than It is paramount that dealers are fully committed to makwhat they were seeing previously.” ing the necessary investments when entering the producWhile Fulena cites the example of a dealership that strong- tion print market, Contreras says. “You can’t go into it with ly concentrates on production print, other dealers, of course, just ‘one foot in the water,’” he says. “You have to commit have not pursued the product category at all. What’s the hold and make the investment. If you don’t make the personnel up? “The necessary investment is the primary source of ap- investment, you are setting yourself up for failure.” prehension,” Pagliarello says. “It is not a small investment, Fulena shares a similar viewpoint. “Very successful probecause these are not inexpensive devices. You are going to duction print dealers have the people who are focused and be buying a number of units, training your people and mak- committed to the product category,” he says. “It may be a ing sure that you have the support structure in place.” large organization or a small organization, but each of these Manufacturers agree on the simple reason production dealerships has a separate group of people that handles print dealers must plan on having demo units as part of the these products. That’s probably the biggest key. Without a investment. Says Contreras: “Customers are going to want separate group, the dealership would struggle.” to see the product and its output before actually buying it.

Production print may not be a good fit for every dealership, That means the dealer has to buy the equipment and have it Fulena adds. “You’ve got to know your surroundings,” he says. on the showroom floor; these products are generally two or “You need to know your competition. Are you competing with three times what a general office MFP would cost, but it’s a a number of direct sales offices? Are you competing with other worthwhile investment.” Says Pagliarello: “You need to invest dealers who have a very strong presence — or, perhaps, a weak in demo equipment for your showroom so you can demon- presence? How many different types of products are being strate the product to your prospective clients.” Says Fulena: placed in your territory? Plus, you have to ask yourself wheth“You have to be able to present the equipment and, so, have to er it’s a good fit for your dealership. Just because it sounds like have a demo unit in order to show the applications.” a great idea and you can handle it financially, does it really fit As suggested, another component of the required invest- with what you are trying to do with your overall goals? Bement is ensuring that the right employees are on board. “The cause, if it doesn’t really mesh, you are going to struggle. And personnel required are totally different,” Fulena says. “You whenever you struggle, it never works completely.” have to go out and find the right people to sell the equipment.

Dealers who decide that production print is a good fit for 12 | ­w w w. o f f ic et ec hno lo g y m a g.c om | Aug ust 2 0 1 5

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as long as the dealer is willthem can rest assured their ing to make the approprimanufacturers will provide “Dealers who are not ate investments.” the necessary support and considering production Is it time for you to take guidance. Says Contreras: print right now need to ask another look at production “We have a very in-depth themselves: ‘Why not?’ ... It print? “Dealers who are training program that eduis an area where they can not considering production cates the dealers on the inmake money. They really print right now need to ask tricacies of the product and need to take a second look themselves: ‘Why not?’” Pahow to focus on the market gliarello says. “This is an needs.” Says Fulena: “We at why they are holding back ... ” area of growth. It is an area have dedicated representa — Dino Pagliarello where they can make montion for production print Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A. Inc. ey. They really need to take a dealers. For those dealers second look at why they are who are ‘hungry’ and really want to pursue this product category, we will support holding back, because they are missing the them however we have to in order to make them successful.” boat on a great opportunity for additional Says Pagliarello: “I am 100-percent confident that if a dealer profit and revenue for their organizations.” n Brent Hoskins, executive director of the came to one of our district sales managers [DSMs] and said, Business Technology Association, is editor ‘I am interested in becoming a production print dealer,’ that of Office Technology magazine. He can be DSM would walk the dealer through the process, serving as reached at brent@bta.org or (816) 303-4040. the trusted advisor to help the dealer build out the business,

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Remain in Control You must own your social media logins by: Jon Mitchell, Dealer Marketing

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s a dealership principal, you would not give complete and total control of your financial books to one individual — especially a third-party service provider — without knowing how to access them or be able to take control of them yourself at any point, if necessary. It is not a stretch to say this could be a potentially detrimental move to the longevity of a business. I am sure thoughts of mismanagement, improper billing and the opportunity for embezzlement come to mind. Any of these things could be very damaging to an otherwise successful and healthy business.

While this is an over-the-top example, you could see a similar level of damage to your dealership and your dealership’s reputation when you allow someone else to create and hold the “keys” to your dealership’s social media accounts.

As the social media director for Dealer Marketing, I work with dealers who want to get active in social media. However, when we go to set up a dealership’s social media pages, we sometimes learn that someone else in the company has already set them up and has admin rights. Sometimes this is a former employee who may have left the dealership under adverse conditions. Sometimes it is an ad agency that was previously hired to manage the company’s social media.

Sometimes no one knows who set up the pages.

Regardless of whether you have someone managing your social media internally or externally, as a dealer principal, you need to have administrative access to each of your company’s social media accounts. Collectively, these accounts comprise the online, digital face you show your customers and prospects. Imagine the reputation damage that could occur in the wrong hands.

There are three reasons you need to have administrative control over your social media accounts: (1) To maintain control of your business’s voice; (2) To avoid the dangers of rogue or disgruntled employees; and (3) To provide the ability to act quickly.

Control Your Voice Your word is one of the most important things you have as an individual and as a business owner. The voice and

personality in which your company’s message is delivered is important and has to be consistent with your vision as the owner, but also consistent with the dealership’s personality.

Social media is one of the most effective platforms to deliver a message and to engage with everyone in the world — including your customers. It is the quickest medium for delivering your thoughts on the latest technology and news that affect your industry, or to quickly respond to a customer service issue that may arise.

Regardless of what is being said, you want to make sure the way your message is delivered is consistent with who you are as a company. This may require a social media policy to be implemented company-wide, but that is a topic I will write about at a later date.

Beware of Disgruntled or Former Employees Consider a scenario where you have an employee manage the social media accounts for your business. This individual may be a contract employee or one of your IT guys who seems social media savvy. You asked this individual to create social media accounts for the business, to brand the pages appropriately and to begin posting for the company.

He (or she) agreed to do so and, as far as you are concerned, that task has been successfully delegated and it is not something you have to worry about doing yourself.

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Now, let’s fast forward a year or two Many people today use platforms Many people today when that employee has found an oplike Twitter and Facebook as a means portunity to advance his career with to reach out to a company for customer use platforms like another company or, heaven-forbid, you service questions and support, so if you Twitter and Facebook had to fire him for some reason. Now that are thinking about not having a social as a means to reach former employee is gone and so are the media presence, I would strongly adout to a company for login credentials to your social media acvise against it. It is frustrating to not customer service counts. If you and the employee parted be able to find the company you want on favorable terms, then it may be as simto engage with on a social media platquestions and support ... ple as giving him a call and asking him form. I have personally reached out to to give you the user IDs and passwords companies like ADP and Google via to the accounts (and then quickly changing the passwords). Twitter after exhaustively scouring their websites for supIf you did not part on such good terms, the “keys” to your port contacts and coming up empty-handed and frustratsocial mouthpiece are in the wild and in danger of being ed. In both instances, when I reached out to these compaabused — along with your company’s reputation. Sure, you nies via Twitter, I received a response within an hour with can reach out to technical support for the various social helpful directions. networks you are involved with and they can help you, but in the time it will take to get something done, some terrible Getting Administrative Rights things can happen. I have experienced this firsthand with Each social media platform has a different way to assign MFP dealership owners nationwide. Trust me, it is not a administrative rights. For social networks like Facebook situation you would like to encounter. and LinkedIn, you need to have a personal profile set up There is nothing inherently wrong with having someone first. Twitter makes it simple with a user name and passelse in the company or an outside agency managing and word for your company account. Google’s platforms (Google strategically posting to your accounts; it is actually advis- My Business and YouTube) can be a little more involved. able if this is not your area of expertise. However, as the For detailed instructions on each of these platforms, visit business owner, you have to make certain you retain control http://blog.dealermarketing.net/social-instructions. of those accounts.

As you probably noticed from reading through these reasons to maintain login control of your social media acThe Need to Act Quickly counts, they all involve putting the owner of a business in Recently, our agency had a client who had an incredible the best position to protect its reputation and brand. This video produced that showcased some of the services his also allows the owner to react quickly to implementing new company provided. The video had excellent production qual- features, putting out a press release on the latest technolity and told a great story, and he wanted his customers (and ogy news or doing quick damage control should something prospective customers) to be able to see it. He wanted to cre- go wrong. ate a YouTube channel so he could easily point people to the Please take my advice and protect the business you have video and share it through his social media accounts. He also worked so hard to create and grow to what it is today. Just wanted to be able to see some back-end analytics. like it is important to protect your personal reputation, it is The best-practice approach to set up this YouTube channel important to protect your business’s reputation. Do not let would be to connect it to the company’s Google+ page, which a simple thing like not being aware of your social media ache already had. The problem was that the owner of the com- count security jump up and bite you. n pany did not know how to log in to the Google+ page to conJon Mitchell is the social media and campaigns director for nect it to the YouTube channel, and the IT manager he put in Dealer Marketing, a full-service marketing agency focused charge of creating the Google+ page never actively managed on MFP and managed IT services dealers. He leads a team the page and could not remember the login credentials. that manages custom social media strategies for dealerships So I began the painful process of reaching out to Google across North America and Australia. directly. If you have ever tried to get support for Google+, you Previously, Mitchell worked in the Hewlettknow that finding the Holy Grail or the Ark of the Covenant Packard ISS division and managed a would be easier than tracking down a phone number to call. document management system for a Blue After exhausting every angle I could think of (even reaching Cross affiliate. He can be reached at out to a friend of mine who works at Google), I went to Twitter jmitchell@dealermarketing.net. to try and find a resource. Bingo.

Visit www.dealermarketing.net.

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COURTS & CAPITOLS

The New Providers Cloud services require new terms & conditions by: Robert C. Goldberg, general counsel for the Business Technology Association

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ver the years, BTA has reviewed countless dealer agreements on behalf of members. These agreements contain basic provisions regarding territory, product, quota, payment terms and dispute resolution. As members expand into services, it is necessary to contract with numerous third-party providers whose terms and conditions do not fall into the basic provisions to which we have grown accustomed.

These new terms and conditions require a new perspective for negotiations and mandate reconsideration of transactional documents to ensure protection from previously unforeseen liabilities. It is now essential to address privacy risks, data, damage claims, security and service commitments, as well as a host of additional factors.

BTA has recently been presented with an abundance of cloud agreements. Many have been presented on a take-it-or-leave-it basis, however, as competition increases, so does the flexibility of the providers. In 2014, the cloud computing market was approximately $157 billion and is expected to grow 50 percent in each of the coming years. Software as a service (SaaS) has been the biggest growth area, allowing end users to offload software and receive regular upgrades, patches and fixes. End users are attracted to cloud solutions due to their flexibility and cost savings, but they are fearful of privacy and security issues.

Standard contracts from cloud providers can now be viewed as starting points for negotiation. Basic terms to be discussed are price, service levels and liability caps. Questions should also be posed as to whether the provider is subcontracting any of the services being purchased. Dealers are best served with direct relationships and should avoid those that will be subcontracted. The cloud agreement should prohibit subcontracting and if that is unacceptable, subcontracting should only be with the dealer’s consent. Carefully examine a provider’s right to suspend services after non-payment. What are the notice requirements for suspension and the period to cure any deficiency?

In the event of termination of the cloud services, what are the responsibilities of the provider to assist in migrating the data to another platform? Make certain the agreement is clear as to who is responsible for privacy and security. Many agreements disclaim any liability for each and place responsibility on the dealer and/or end user. The provider must be responsible for the privacy and security of the network and data under its control. Be wary of provisions that only address “security of the network” while declining liability for “security for the data.”

Most cloud contracts do not make service-level commitments

without insistence. If a service-level commitment is negotiated, then failure to meet it should be compensated in dollars or credits. Extending the agreement at no additional cost may only provide more of the subpar service experienced. Know your provider and investigate its performance by speaking with current and past users.

From a dealer perspective, one should review each thirdparty agreement entered into and note the limitation of damages and the exclusions that were agreed to. Those limits and exclusions must then be reflected in the dealer’s agreement with the end user. If an end user experiences a loss, he (or she) will certainly make a claim against the dealer who sold the solution. If the third-party provider has limited its exposure in terms of a claim, the dealer may find himself with greater exposure even though his company did not provide the service or cause the loss.

Today’s business relationships have become more complex and additional risks have been introduced. Consider the services you are providing and the possible problems that may occur. Make certain your transactional documents limit your exposure to those problems and do not have a wider responsibility than the provider itself does. BTA will help guide your way with industry templates and notification of significant changes that may impact your business. n Robert C. Goldberg is general counsel for the Business Technology Association.

He can be reached at robert.goldberg@sfnr.com.

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EDUCATION CALENDAR August 20

Building My Business Webinar: “Proactive Prospecting — Turning an Interruption Into a Sales Conversation” If you are in sales, you are also in prospecting. Getting in front of the right buyer is the single most crucial element in sales success, yet many sellers struggle to maintain and leverage a consistent prospecting regimen. This webinar, led by Tibor Shanto of Renbor Sales Solutions, will show you: why reps are reluctant to prospect; how to help them overcome this reluctance; a proven process for prospecting success; how to deal with email and voicemail; and a means of creating sustained change behaviors in your team members. You will learn why looking for need and pain will limit prospecting success, and what you have to introduce into the call if you are going to overcome apathy and complacency in buyers. Visit www.bta.org/BuildingMyBusiness to register.

September

23-24 BTA Managed Services Workshop

Boston, Massachusetts The BTA Managed Services Workshop has been updated to include the Managed Services Business Model. This model is the first of its kind, specifically for BTA dealers, and has been developed by workshop instructors Mitch Morgan and Chris Ryne of Growth Achievement Partners (GAP), and Continuum. GAP has been assisting dealers in making this important transition since 2009. Continuum is a large, experienced provider of managed services operations to dealers, and currently manages more than 500,000 endpoints. The companies’ combined knowledge in the managed services space will allow dealers to walk away with a “time-tested” business model and key metrics to guide success in this important strategic area. Workshop attendees receive free registration to the Sept. 24-25 Grand Slam district event, hosted by BTA East. Visit www.bta.org/MS to register.

24-25 Grand Slam - Hosted by BTA East Boston, Massachusetts BTA East will host Grand Slam, open to dealers from across the country, Sept. 24-25, at the Boston Marriott Copley Place in Boston, Massachusetts. The event will feature a keynote session

by Jeff Hayes of InfoTrends, a panel discussion focused on company culture and the bottom line, and five additional educational sessions presented by industry experts. In addition, there will be time to visit with 30-plus exhibiting sponsors, many of which will hold drawings for great prizes during the event. Dealer attendees can also enter on-site for a chance to win one of five $100 American Express gift cards and be entered into the BTA District Event Sweepstakes. The event will wrap up with a Baltimore Orioles versus Boston Red Sox baseball game at Fenway Park. BTA member dealers receive 2-for-1 registration! Visit www.bta.org/BTAEastEvent to register.

For more information, visit www.bta.org/Education or call (800) 843-5059.

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BTA HIGHLIGHTS BTA would like to welcome the following new members to the association:

Dealer Members All Copy Products, Denver, CO Alliance Office Systems, Southlake, TX American Business Machines, San Dimas, CA American Business Machines Inc., Houston, TX American Copier Solutions, Cleveland, OH DPS-Digital Print Solutions, Richfield, OH JT Ray Co., Tupelo, MS Milk Man Toner Company, Lincoln, CA Officejox, San Diego, CA Wal-Smart, Mayaguez, Puerto Rico Service Associate Member Associationbackgroundchecks.com, Blue Springs, MO Vendor Associate Members Nuance Document Imaging, Burlington, MA ReBox International, Dallas, TX For full contact information of these new members, visit www.bta.org.

BTA’s 2015 Channel’s Choice Report Summary is now available for download on the BTA website. Free to BTA members, the summary offers a brief look at the results of the BTA Channel’s Choice balloting process and provides comparisons of how dealers rate the performance and support of each of the industry’s leading hardware vendors, as well as remanufactured cartridge vendors and third-party leasing companies.

Visit www.bta.org/ChannelsChoice for more information.

For information on BTA member benefits, visit www.bta.org/MemberBenefits.

For the benefit of its dealer members, each month BTA features two of its Vendor or Service Associate members in this space.

BTA Vendor Associate member Laserfiche uses its “Run Smarter” philosophy to create simple and elegant enterprise content management (ECM) solutions.

Since 1987, more than 35,000 organizations worldwide — including federal, state and local government agencies and Fortune 1000 companies — have chosen Laserfiche ECM software to streamline document and business process management (e.g., accounts payable, case management, third-party and contract management, and records management). www.laserfiche.com

BTA Service Associate member Beyond Technologies helps its clients that use e-automate realize value through business process improvements, accurate data reporting and proven industry best practices.

Through personalized training on your system using your data, Beyond Technologies can analyze your current processes and the propriety of your financial statements, transactions and reports. The combination of industry, functional and analytics expertise enables Beyond Technologies’ consultants to identify the biggest opportunities — and to anticipate and address potential barriers. www.gobeyondtech.com A full list of BTA Vendor and Service Associate members can be found online at www.bta.org.

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PRINCIPAL ISSUES

The FDA UDI Rule Compliance dates are fast approaching by: Teresa Hiatt, Six Sigma Transactional Black Belt

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ompliance dates for the implementation of new regulations for the unique identification labeling of all medical devices are approaching.

Activity to ensure compliance is underway all over the life sciences industry. The regulations, collectively known as the U.S. FDA Unique Device Identification (UDI) Rule, apply to every level of packaging and represent some challenges for printing.

All “labelers” of medical devices, including manufacturers, reprocessors, packagers or relabelers, must be ready to reach compliance by these fast-approaching dates.

Because of the complex nature of some of the requirements, it will take adequate planning and careful execution by both solutions providers and suppliers to be sure all aspects of compliance are in place by the required dates.

In many cases, BTA Channel dealers are the solution providers for the printers and software that print these codes.

Many dealers should take note of the opportunity this legislation might offer. This is especially true in regard to small- to medium-sized suppliers of medical devices.

More Than a Printer Industry expert Mark Shaffer, life sciences business development manager for Domino Digital Printing Solutions, is actively helping affected clients understand and respond to the new regulations. With 25 years of experience in printing, packaging and marking, he tries to bring the message that the regulations may require a holistic view of the labeling process.

(For further information, view Shaffer’s UDI informational video at https://vimeo.com/120058280.)

According to Shaffer, manufacturers and labelers sometimes see the regulations as simply printing a label on products and surmise the transition will be easy since they have been printing labels on products for years. “We see clients approach us with what they believe is a very simple requirement, such as being able to print a unique code on a specific device, and want to select a printer with that capability,” he says. “While we could just give them product specs, we know there is a bigger picture. Because a production line may have unique challenges, we strive to help the client understand that everything in the system interconnects — the coding device, the software, the OEM packaging machine, the IT requirements, etc. Every piece is a potential failure point if it is not examined as part of the whole system, instead of a stand-alone element. A compliance

readiness audit may reveal there are no challenges, but it may also uncover hidden issues. If identified early, these issues can be managed, but if overlooked, they can be costly and time consuming.”

Quality Control Printing the code on the device and/or the device’s package is only one aspect of the system requirements. The code represents the serialization of each individual device and it must be tracked throughout its entire journey — from creation to packaging, from distribution to the medical provider and to the end user, and, in some devices, even to destruction. This requires a sophisticated system of software, reporting, hardware, database import and export on a global scale, and strict control of products like never before.

Even companies with a long history of printing codes on products may face significant process challenges. UDI requires a special code structure and the correct content has to be there.

Successful implementation of UDI involves change management, which means developing a planned, structured approach to any changes to substrates, coding, equipment or infrastructure that may be required. Early communication, checking for kinks in the process and picking the right timing for implementation are all part of change management best practices for UDI. “There are a variety of scenarios that need to be addressed up front,” Shaffer says. “Beyond the basic, ‘Can the printer print the code?,’ we have to consider a series of questions: Can it accept outside data? What is the source of that data? Is it compatible with the OEM equipment in use? Can it export data out to regulatory databases? A risk assessment has to be part of every engagement and action taken to mitigate the risk before serialization begins.”

High Stakes In most printing applications, if 995 out of every 1,000 items have a perfect label, the error rate could be considered acceptable. With medical devices covered by UDI, even one device with an unreadable label could negatively impact production efficiency significantly. It could shut down the production line or even the facility, since the tracking data would be tainted. Additional quality control steps are required and the reduced operational efficiency of the line could drastically reduce margin.

UDI regulations are designed to improve safety by providing accurate tracking for all covered medical devices, which

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impact if not properly addressed.” allows each device to be tracked back to Because of the vital purpose of the UDI its initial manufacturer. In the case of deBecause of the vital Rule and the risks of an ineffective or invice failure or recall situations, it will be purpose of the UDI efficient solution, it is critical that solupossible to find affected devices and take Rule and the risks of an tion providers and labelers work together required action. Medical practitioners can ineffective or inefficient to create viable end-to-end solutions. The access the database for real-time informasolution, it is critical that deadlines are approaching. n tion on patient devices, which could reduce Teresa Hiatt, currently the public relations medical errors and save lives. solution providers and liaison for the Southwest Florida Chapter of The implementation dates, available at labelers work together ... the Association for Talent Development, the FDA site dedicated to UDI, are hard is a Six Sigma Transactional Black Belt and fast. Visit http://www.fda.gov/Medical with more than 20 years of experience in Devices/DeviceRegulationandGuidance/UniqueDevice Global 500 technology companies. She has served on Identification for the dates. Manufacturers will not be allowed industry panel discussions specializing in technical sales to sell product in the United States after the deadline if it is not productivity at national conferences with properly labeled.

Shaffer has an initial recommendation for anyone affected by Gartner Research Group and CompTIA, and has delivered breakout sessions on sales training UDI requirements. “Take the time to work with a solution provideffectiveness at the InfoTrends Office Document er to conduct a compliance readiness audit that closely reviews Technology Forum and SMT Sales Training the hardware, software, infrastructure and people involved in conferences. Hiatt can be reached at the process,” he says. “The audit may confirm everything is ready, teresa@hiattaviation.com. but it may also uncover simple issues that can have far-reaching

Are you an ELITE Dealer?

Now Accepting Nominations for the 2015 Elite Dealer Awards ENX Magazine and ENX’s digital weekly The Week in Imaging are now accepting nominations for the 2015 Elite Dealer Awards.

Elite Dealer Nominations Form Available at www.enxmag.com Nomination Deadline: Sept 1, 2015 engage ‘n exchange Elite Dealer 2015 V3.indd 1 engage ‘n exchange

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SELLING SOLUTIONS

Managing the Metrics The new math of sales excellence by: Gil Cargill, Cargill Consulting Group Inc.

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ithin the typical sales organization, there is a belief that sales is a numbers game. This is correct, but it is not accurate — and I will explain why. I know my words may be a little confusing, but bear with me for just a moment. As always, sales is a numbers/ activity game, but the numbers have changed.

If you adhere to the old rules, you will be lost in a sea of “peddlers” all claiming that their products or services are superior to anything else on the market. If, on the other hand, you adhere to what I call the “new math of sales excellence,” you will have a distinct and permanent competitive advantage over your peers.

Before I go into detail regarding the new approach to sales training, let’s examine why existing sales training philosophies consistently fail. Study after study has shown that sales training has a positive impact on a sales force that lasts for approximately 5.3 weeks. Most sales training does not take into consideration the processes associated with finding, acquiring and retaining customers.

Granted, all sales training starts with the false assumption that a sales representative magically has an appointment and/ or an interview with a prospect. The missing ingredient at the beginning of the sales process is how that salesperson gets in front of the customer. Traditional sales training attempts to change a person’s behavior. If you stop and think about it, that premise in and of itself is somewhat ludicrous.

There is no sales training, motivation and/or threat that can make a person want to be more successful than he (or she) wants to be, yet sales trainers and decision-makers who hire those trainers claim it can be done. Stop and think about it. What person’s behavior has ever been changed by the application of an external force for one, two or three days? The answer: None.

We change our behavior when and only when we want to eliminate the discomfort that the undesirable behavior creates. For instance, take a look at the issue of New Year’s resolutions. One hundred percent of New Year’s resolutions are focused on changing one behavior or another. Salespeople will say things like, “I am going to work smarter this year” or “I am going to work harder this year.”

This year, millions of us said: “I am going to lose 10 pounds” or “I am going to get a new job.” I could go on with an endless stream of New Year’s resolutions, all of which evaporated

within 30 days. You see, we want the result that a behavior change will produce, but very few people are willing to go through the process of change in order to achieve that result.

The exact same phenomenon applies to traditional/old-school sales training. The new math of sales excellence is indeed a breakthrough in the sales improvement arena.

Please note: This concept focuses on helping the entire company become more proficient at finding, acquiring and retaining profitable revenue. Only when the entire company is harnessed and operating as a team will the organization generate a huge improvement in its top and bottom lines.

In developing the concept of the new math of sales excellence, I realized that there are five metrics that must be managed to optimize the top line. These metrics are: (1) The number of first meetings on the calendar at all times; (2) The dollars per transaction; (3) The conversion ratio of leads to orders; (4) The length of the sales cycle; and (5) Available selling time.

Now, let’s take a look at each of these individually.

First Meetings The number of first meetings contained in a sales rep’s calendar dictates, with virtual mathematical precision, the number of first orders that will be realized at the end of the typical sales cycle.

For instance, if the sales cycle is six months long and a sales rep traditionally converts 10 percent of his first meetings into orders, then six months from today’s date, the sales rep may anticipate (with slight deviation) 10 percent of his first meetings occurring this month becoming first orders six months down the road. Simply stated, if a sales rep has no first meetings today, he will have no first orders six months from now.

Conversely, if he increases the number of first meetings but his proficiency stays the same, he will have more first orders six months down the road. You see, old-school sales training attempts to improve the proficiency of the sales rep.

Again, we get back to that bugaboo regarding change. If we change the process that the company undertakes to find and book first meetings and, in doing so, increase the number of first meetings, we will increase (in direct mathematical

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proportion) the number of first orders that a sales rep generates.

Improve Conversion Ratios Conversion ratios can easily be improved if a sales team utilizes any one of the thousands of customer relationship management (CRM) solutions available today. It is an absolute tragedy that these powerful tools, which assure pervasive, accurate and consistent follow-up, are ignored by so many salespeople.

As a matter of fact, some studies show that some of the more popular sales automation software solutions are accepted and utilized by less than 10 percent of the salespeople who have access to them. In order to be successful today, you must convert more leads to orders than ever before. This can only be done by getting in touch — and perpetually staying in touch — with all leads.

Studies have shown that 45 to 63 percent of leads who say “not now” will buy an identical solution from someone in six to 18 months. Other studies show that 90 percent of salespeople abandon their effort to move a lead into the sales process after

Conversion ratios can easily be improved if a sales team utilizes any one of the thousands of customer relationship management (CRM) solutions available today.

Dollars Per Transaction In today’s frenzied sales arena, many sales reps confuse discounting with building friendships and relationships that will produce revenue. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Buyers have learned that they can negotiate substantial discounts just by asking.

After all, it costs a buyer nothing to ask for a discount. If discounting is a consistent issue within your company, make sure you build value based on solving problems for customers. Discounting is required when the customer perceives that your product or service will not impact their business’s operating conditions in any positive way.

Conversely, when the prospect perceives that a very strong improvement will occur, he will appreciate your offer at a higher level, give a higher value to your solution and reduce his desire to receive a discount.

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four attempts to activate that particular lead. Those same studies show that the typical customer is not ready to buy until he has received eight or more marketing touches.

So, utilize a CRM to make sure that, once a lead is obtained, it is touched perpetually and you will see your conversions going up and your cost of sales going down.

do that?,” the response is very predictable: “There is no one else who can do it.”

I recommend to all of Management should augment its sales our clients that they team with non-sales, administrative peoconduct a time and task ple. In this regard, I strongly urge you to analysis and, in doing put the lowest-value work in the hands of so, get an understanding the lowest-cost employee. Also, measure the value of a salesperson based on the revof how their salespeople enue he produces per hour of sales time. spend their time.

Length of the Sales Cycle Increase the available hours of selling time This is a vital metric that is ignored all and your sales will go up. too often. Many managers have mistakenIn summary, moving any one of these ly reduced the amount of sales support available to the sales five metrics even slightly will produce a significant increase in team. This forces sales reps to handle tasks that can frequent- your organization’s ability to generate revenue. You will note ly be delegated to other members of the team. By moving tasks that I have made no recommendations regarding “magic closaway from your salespeople, you will be able to help them sell es” or any of the other soft skills associated with traditional/ more transactions in a given time period. old-school sales training. I am recommending that companies Let’s take the following as an example: Assume that your bring their sales processes into the 21st century. When you do average sale requires 100 hours of selling time. Let’s further the math, you will see that moving each of these metrics by as assume that the average customer is only available to your little as 10 percent will produce a huge improvement in your sales team between the normal business hours of 8 a.m. to 5 company’s top and bottom lines. p.m. If those two assumptions are true, then a sales rep whose So, allow me to ask you a few questions: Can you and your typical sale requires 100 hours of selling time has the ability to team complete 10 percent more first meetings per month? Can close 20 new accounts in one year. you and your team close the average transaction for 10 percent When you shorten that sales cycle to 75 hours, that same more dollars? Can you and your team convert 10 percent more sales rep has the ability to close 26 accounts in one year. Ex- of your leads into orders? Can you and/or your team reduce amine, in a step-by-step process, what your sales team goes the length of the typical sales cycle by just 10 percent? And, through to move an opportunity through your funnel or pipe- finally, can you give your sales team 10 percent more selling line. You may find that you have some extremely negatively time, with the accountability to use that time to pursue new impacting requirements on your sales team that have devel- revenue? If you can answer “yes” to all of those questions, you oped as a result of non-documented sales processes. are in line for a staggering 72-percent increase in your organiA company that does not have a sales playbook that de- zation’s ability to produce sales. n scribes the step-by-step process required to close new busiAfter concluding a sales and management career at IBM, in ness is a company that will not produce consistent, predictwhich he led his sales team from a dead-last rating to first place able, profitable transactions, and it will have a revenue graph in less than a year, Gil Cargill launched his own consulting that looks like the Himalayas — with many peaks and valleys. prac­tice in 1978. He has spent the past 36 years as a consultant, speaker and trainer, helping thousands of businesses achieve Available Selling Time dramatic and permanent improvements in sales productivity.

This is an area that management can dramatically and posCargill has taught salespeople across diverse industries the itively impact in a few days. I recommend to all of our clients importance of developing sales processes, the advantages of that they conduct a time and task analysis and, in doing so, get implementing new technology and the benefits of tracking sales an understanding of how their salespeople spend their time. performance. He is a frequent speaker at national conventions This time and task analysis is a simple logging system that asks and meetings of Vistage Interna­tional, formerly The Executive salespeople to write down their activities on a 15-minute basis.

Committee (TEC), and has been a consultant to such Once this is completed, management should analyze what organizations as Toshiba, ComputerLand, the sales team is doing. I am willing to wager that the average Micro Age, Apple Computers, Borg Warner business-to-business salesperson spends far too much time Weyerhaeuser and many thousands of growing doing non-sales, administrative tasks. Our studies, based on small-to-medium-size businesses.

400 sales forces, show that the average salesperson spends 34 Cargill can be reached at (310) 305-7198 ext. 111 percent of his day engaged in non-revenue-producing/adminor gil@gilcargill.com. istrative activities. When we ask the question, “Why do they Visit www.gilcargill.com.

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SELLING SOLUTIONS

Accentuating Urgency Get the customer to articulate the effects of delaying by: Troy Harrison, Troy Harrison & Associates

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roy, how do I create a sense of urgency in the customer’s mind so that my proposal doesn’t just sit on his desk?” It is one of the most common questions I get and it is one of the most frustrating situations for any salesperson (including me). You have made your proposal, the deal is good, the buyer likes you — and then the whole process stalls.

Isn’t that painful?

This is when the salesperson (you) tries to go back and create some urgency on the part of the buyer — “Let’s get this person excited so he (or she) moves and makes a decision.” The trouble is that your buyer has already made a decision, and that decision is that your proposal does not warrant action now (if it ever does). It is too late.

And all the fancy “objection resolution” techniques in the world will not help; you can “feel, felt, found” until you turn blue.

The place to address time frame and urgency issues is in the questioning phase of selling, which should happen before you present and propose. Always remember that 80 percent of your chance to win or lose a sale happens when you are asking questions. If you do not get to know and understand the buyer’s needs — and effectively prioritize those needs — all the great presentations, objection resolutions and closing techniques in the world are not going to save the sale.

First, we have to ask questions designed to discover if it really does benefit the prospect to act sooner, and if it really does not (and it will not sometimes) we have to be honest with ourselves and the customer in recognizing that fact. We are always in love with the benefits of our product and we always think that sooner is better when it comes to buying (and selling). But does the prospect feel that way? Is there a genuine advantage to acting sooner?

Second, we have to understand the time value of inaction.

Again, this happens through questions. For instance: Does your prospect have a goal to reach and is whatever you are selling a key touch point for reaching it? Is something going on right now that is costing money each day it continues and can what you are selling reverse that? Or, perhaps, is the problem your prospect is confronting one that is significant? For exam-

ple, does he receive complaints from employees on a regular basis — and your product can fix these problems?

Third, are there any inherent barriers to implementing your solution? Do departments need to be reorganized, facilities renovated or moved, or new staff hired before your solution can be implemented and fully taken advantage of? This is the time to be realistic. If your prospect genuinely cannot use or cannot maximize the use of your product quite yet (and the issue is not simply a stalling tactic), you can be of the highest service to your prospect by helping him stage or plan the sale and implementation.

Finally, we have to understand the overall corporate priorities. Even if there is a sense of urgency within a given department, there might be other priorities in the company that need to be taken care of first. For instance — and I will use myself as an example — maybe I am selling a sales training program, but the client is revamping its production plant for more capacity so it can handle elevated sales. Our “stuff” is only important within the context of the overall picture of needs. Understanding the overall context of the sale is one of the greatest weaknesses of salespeople. It is difficult to recognize that our “stuff” lives within the scope of our customers’ companies.

The key is to get the customer to articulate the consequences www.offi cetechnol ogymag.com | Au g u s t 2015 | 29

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that urgency. Sure, you can use tired old of not acting or the benefits of acting soontactics like the “if you buy today, it’s at this er, not you. If you are telling him, it will not The key is to get the price, but not if you buy next week ... ,” but work; if he is telling you, you have a shot. customer to articulate today’s customer sees through that. What Remember, contentions only become fact in the consequences of not you can do is discover, channel and accenthe sales process when the customer either acting or the benefits of tuate urgency that already exists. states them or agrees that your contentions acting sooner, not you.

And even if you do all of this, the sale are statements of fact. will sometimes still not happen — because Here is the equation required for a sale If you are telling him, it we sell to human beings. That said, this to happen: Need articulated by the cuswill not work ... method gives you a great shot. n tomer + the solution articulated by the Troy Harrison is the author of “Sell Like You salesperson and agreed to by the customer Mean It!” and “The Pocket Sales Manager.” + timing. A good friend and client of mine He is a speaker, consultant and sales navigator who helps refers to this as “their window being open.” In this analogy, companies build more profitable and productive the customer can have needs and you can have the perfect sales forces with his cutting-edge sales training solution. However, if the customer’s window (timing) is not and methodologies. For information on booking open, you are simply throwing rocks at a window. Yes, you can speaking/training engagements, consulting or sometimes break the window, but have you ever seen a winto sign up for Harrison’s weekly e-zine, call dow owner be delighted that his window was broken?

(913) 645-3603 or email troy@troyharrison.com.

Notice that nowhere have I spoken of “creating urgency”’ on Visit www.troyharrison.com. the part of the buyer. That is because you really cannot create

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