February 2011 Office Technology

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CONTENTS Volume 17 • No. 8

FEATURE ARTICLES 10

Green Smart Initiatives good for the environment & for business

by Brent Hoskins Office Technology Magazine

COURTS & CAPITOLS The rights to use the original cover art have expired.

Our planet has come a long way and so have efforts to protect it.

Today, the focus on the environment is no longer just seen as a cause championed by certain individuals and groups. Instead, it has become an obvious, mainstream priority within many global corporations, including manufacturers of office technology. Reflecting the now common public discourse and emphasis on protecting the environment, the websites of MFP manufacturers include varying details on their green initiatives.

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The Office Party Hangover Take precautions to avoid legal repercussions

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by Robert C. Goldberg BTA General Counsel

With Christmas and New Year’s Eve behind us, so are the numerous holiday parties that come with them. Since office celebrations occur throughout the year, it is worthwhile to review best practices for conducting an office party.

SELLING SOLUTIONS Major Account Sales Professionalism & preparation are key

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Sales Team Recruitment Tools & concepts for increasing hiring success

by Terrill Klett Selling Office Supplies Successfully

What is the difference between selling to a major account versus a small account? The difference lies with the professionalism and preparation in dealing with higher-level contacts. This becomes apparent during the initial appointment.

by William Stonehouse Crawford Thomas

As long as sales organizations have existed, one of the most confounding issues has been finding the right people to sell and to manage. Typically, one of the primary differentiating factors in the success that organizations achieve is the talent they are able to retain. Employers today are now looking to employee search firms and recruiters to deliver targeted candidates, especially in an economy that forces sales managers to spend more time closing deals than sifting through off-the-wall résumés.

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Back to Basics Seek to boost sales rep learning opportunities

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by Mike Lamothe Office Document Consulting

The sales team is one of the most significant resources in most dealerships. So, before we can begin to position new strategic directions like MPS, I believe we need to provide sales reps the appropriate training and tools to help them succeed.

A Model of Success Who are your reps trying to emulate?

by Tom Callinan Strategy Development

So who is the model of success in the copier industry today? Who is the man or woman in the bullpen winning all the awards? If your dealership has been in business more than five or six years, I would give you odds that it is not the guy out cold-calling and making all the dials. Why is it important to understand your company’s success models? Because the people you hire are smart, and regardless of what you tell them, they look at what is working for the successful reps and emulate them.

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

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• BTA Highlights

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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

Drop by BTA Booth at 2011 ITEX Show

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see that this year’s ITEX National Expo & Conference, scheduled for March 22-23 in Washington, D.C., will be the 11th for this annual industry event. Time flies.

It doesn’t seem that long ago that we saw the launch of this show, as it began its 10-year stay in Las Vegas. Now it enters a new chapter, so to speak, with the move to Washington, D.C. I am looking forward to attending the show in its new locale.

Will you be there? If so, please drop by BTA’s booth (#136) in the exhibit hall and let us tell you about the latest benefit offerings from BTA. We’ve been busy adding to our program line-up, so you may not be fully aware of all of the ways the association can assist you through education, information, guidance, research and member discounts.

Under the dedicated leadership of its dealer member volunteers, the association has come a long way in recent years.

If you have not yet registered for ITEX, there is still plenty of time to do so. You can find the online registration form at www. itexshow.com. As a BTA member, you will receive a discount on registration. Instead of $199, you can register for $79, which will get you into the exhibit hall and the Power Hour education sessions. On the registration form, just enter the BTA Promo Code: 501F. Your membership status will be verified when you register.

Have you looked at the schedule for ITEX? There is an impressive array of Power Hour education sessions, covering topics that are of great interest to office technology dealers. There are education sessions scheduled in five tracks — Document Solutions, Hybrid & Beyond, Managed Services/IT, Sales & Marketing, and Service &

Supplies. The list of presenters includes some of the most highly regarded experts in the industry. The show begins with a keynote address, “Innovation Impact — How Technology Will Transform Your Business,” to be presented by Mike Stramaglio, CEO of MWA Intelligence Inc., along with an executive from Intel.

Concurrent with the Power Hours is the multi-session MPS Strategy Forum.

The ITEX Show website promotes that the Forum will feature presenters who will share “actionable formulas and strategies that not only help you close print management contracts, but give you the roadmap on how to identify, sell, monitor, measure, train, apply, service, finance and leverage MPS for higher profits.” The presenters for the Forum, which requires an additional registration fee, include representatives of software vendors, hardware manufacturers, consultants, dealers and various other companies serving the industry.

And finally, if your schedule allows, you may also want to attend one of the two pre-conference, multi-session workshops on Monday afternoon, March 21 — “Transforming Your Business — Moving Beyond ‘Hybrid,’” to be presented by Strategy Development and InfoTrends, and “Enhancing Your Service Operation: From Benchmarks to Proactive Service Dispatch,” to be presented by Pros Elite Group, along with representatives of U.S. Fleet Tracking, Digital Gateway and various dealership service departments. These workshops also require an additional registration fee.

It looks like it’s going to be a busy couple of days in D.C., but it will undoubtedly be a good venue for learning and networking, and to see the latest products and services of the exhibiting companies. I look forward to seeing you there.  — 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 Tom Callinan, Strategy Development www.strategydevelopment.com Robert C. Goldberg, General Counsel Business Technology Association Mike Lamothe, Office Document Consulting Terrill Klett, Selling Office Products Successfully William Stonehouse, Crawford Thomas www.crawfordthomas.com

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 ©2011 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 2010-2011 Board of Directors

Discounts Available in BTA Marketplace

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n the spring of 2010, the Business Technology Association unveiled the BTA Marketplace, providing BTA member dealers with the opportunity to take advantage of discounts and value-added offerings from participating BTA Vendor Associate members. Have you taken advantage of some of the many offers that are available?

If not, I encourage you to take a look at this member benefit today.

Below is a sampling of the 22 vendors currently participating in the BTA Marketplace and the BTA dealer member discounts they offer. Certainly, BTA appreciates all of the participants for their support of this member benefit and, in turn, their support of the association and the dealer channel itself.  DocuLex offers network-enabled document capture and image processing software, along with browser-based document and content management programs. With each resell of DocuLex WebSearch software, BTA members receive a free copy of WebSearch Connector.  DocuWare is a document management software company with more than 100,000 users in 72 countries. For all BTA members who sign on as a DocuWare Authorized Partner, DocuWare will waive the annual Partner Support Fee for the first year.  emFAST offers a fax messaging/routing solution that can be tailored to a customer’s requirements. BTA members receive a free MFP connector with every FACSys EZ or FACSys Foundation sale (eligible MFP manufacturers include Sharp and Ricoh).  FMAudit offers print management software solutions for device assessment, data analysis, TCO proposal generation, ongoing device monitoring for supply levels,

meter collection and service alert filtering.

FMAudit offers new BTA member clients a free 90-day evaluation of the FMAudit USB Viewer.  InkCycle Inc. has offered aftermarket inkjet and toner cartridges to dealers around the world for more than 18 years.

BTA members who are new, current or existing InkCycle customers who have not ordered recently receive 10 percent off their first order and free ground shipping on orders over $350 placed by March 30, 2011.

To take advantage of any of the BTA specials offered to BTA member dealers, visit www.bta.org/BTAMarketplace. Simply click on the link included in the selected vendor listing, which leads to the contact information and necessary discount code. You will need your member login and password. The other BTA Marketplace participants are: Azerty, Bradshaw, Color Imaging, Computhink Inc., Densigraphix, Digitek Computer Products, Diversified Computer Supplies Inc., Electronic Systems Protection Inc., Falcon Technology Solutions, ILG, Image Star, Miracle Service (Nexent), Polek & Polek, Sharp Electronics Corp., Square 9 Softworks, Supplies Network and Trendler USA. While on the BTA website, check out our new companion offering — the BTA Marketplace Webinar Series (www.bta.org/BTA MarketplaceWebinars). BTA is now hosting semimonthly webinars designed to give dealers the opportunity to learn about the products and services of BTA Vendor and Service Associate members. The goal is to provide attendees a cost-free method of learning about what various vendors have to offer. Next on the schedule: “Using Enterprise-Grade Marketing Tools In Small Business Packages,” to be presented by Nick Panayi, president of StructuredWeb Inc., at 4 p.m. Eastern on Thursday, March 10.  — Rock Janecek

President Rock Janecek Burtronics Business Systems Inc. 216 S. Arrowhead Ave. San Bernardino, CA 92408 rjanecek@burtronics.com President-Elect Tom Ouellette Budget Document Technology 251 Goddard Road Lewiston, ME 04240 touellette@bdtme.com Vice President Terence Chapman Business Electronics Corp.

219 Oxmoor Circle Birmingham, AL 35209 tchapman@businesselectronics.com BTA East Todd J. Fitzsimons Network Imaging LLC 122 Spring St. Southington, CT 06489 tjfitzsimons@networkimaging.biz BTA Mid-America Ron Hulett U.S. Business Systems Inc. 3221 Southview Drive Elkhart, IN 46514 ron.hulett@usbus.com BTA Southeast Mike Upchurch Business Machines Inc. 3121-C Glen Royal Road Raleigh, NC 27617 mike@bmi4u.com BTA West Greg Gray Burtronics Business Systems Inc. 216 S. Arrowhead Ave. San Bernardino, CA 92408 ggray@burtronics.com Ex-Officio/Immediate Past President Bill James WJS Enterprises Inc. 3315 Ridgelake Drive Metairie, LA 70002 bjames@wjsenterprises.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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Green Smart Initiatives good for the environment & for business by: Brent Hoskins, Office Technology Magazine

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ur planet has come a long way Doing the proper — or right — thing is and so have efforts to preserve an understandable goal and unquestionand protect it. While well-intenably lies at the core of the environmental tioned ideologues may still be waging movement. “Certainly, Xerox prides itself campaigns and protesting to save rain on being a responsible corporate citizen,” forests and the like, today the focus on says Wendi Latko, manager of environThe rights to use the the environment is no longer just seen as mental products and services at Xerox original cover art a cause championed by certain individuCorp., similarly expressing a corporate have expired. als and groups. Instead, it has become commitment to green initiatives. “We an obvious, mainstream priority within definitely have a sense of responsibility many global corporations, including for doing the right thing.” manufacturers of office technology.

There is, of course, a welcomed benReflecting the now common public disefit resulting from the implementation of course and emphasis on protecting the processes and programs designed to proenvironment, the websites of MFP manutect and preserve the environment — the facturers include varying — and in some cases extensive — savings in costs and resulting increase in profitability. Says details on their green initiatives. Visitors can read not only Latko: “We have found through years of experience that, about specific programs, but can also download comprehen- quite frankly, it makes good business sense. Doing the right sive environmental sustainability reports that address cor- thing from an environmental standpoint results in cost efporate strides, goals and measurable positive impacts. ficiencies within our own operations.” Says Kern: “There are Despite their increasingly visible, collective environmen- economic benefits. If you are efficient — which is environtal message, basic green initiatives are nothing new among mentally friendly — you are also more profitable.” the industry’s manufacturers. Cartridge recycling and Today, increasingly, end users are also seeing the associaequipment remanufacturing programs (providing for the tion between the positive environmental impact inherent in reuse of materials and, so, redirecting landfill-bound waste), new MFPs and the resulting cost savings. Nearly every bid for example, have been in place for many years. So, too, has that comes into Konica Minolta includes inquires about the been the corporate commitment that drives such programs. manufacturer’s environmental policies, says Kern. “I was at “This is driven by our core philosophy, which is known one of the largest companies in the world last week and that as ‘kyosei’,” says Paul Albano, a senior product marketing was one of the major things they wanted to talk about,” he manager within the Imaging Systems Group of Canon U.S.A. says. “The world is coming around to seeing that it is good Inc. “Basically, this statement means ‘living and working to- business to be environmentally responsible.” gether for the common good’ and aims to create harmony Latko shares the same observation about bid requests. between people, products and nature.”

“Over the last couple of years, we have seen a significant Kevin Kern, senior vice president of marketing for Konica increase to the point that today, virtually all of them do Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A., cites a corporate philoso- include at least some inquiries about our environmental phy that is akin to that of Canon’s. “Our company’s heritage initiatives,” she says. “What we are starting to see now is an dates back to 1873,” he says. “It has always had a ‘do-the- increase in the sophistication of those inquiries. A few years right-thing’ mentality. So, everything we do as it relates to ago, they would just ask whether we had an environmental the environment is seen as the proper thing to do.” policy. Today, they are asking detailed questions about our 10 | w­ ww. o ff ic et ec hno lo g ym a g. c o m | F e b r ua r y 2 0 1 1

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processes related to specific electronic files (PDFs, etc.,) aspects of the products and rather than paper output; “We have been working services that are a part of and improvements in toner, with dealerships to help the bid.” making it more environthem with their sustainability One might assume that mentally friendly to manuprograms. The first step is to it may only be larger corporafacture and allowing for the ask yourself, what is it about tions — given that they often fusion of the toner at a lower have their own environmentemperature. “We just celeyour operation that can tal sustainability programs brated the 10th anniversary affect the environment? in place — that express a of our Simitri polymerized Then, look at your impact on those areas ... ” specific desire for equipment toner,” says Kern. “It takes — Mario Rufino manufactured in a way that 40 percent of the gasses out Canon U.S.A. Inc. lessens any negative impact of the process because it is on the environment. Howmuch more energy efficient ever, that is not necessarily the case. “We’ve seen it in compa- to manufacture. It also is 9 percent biomass.” nies of all sizes,” says Latko. “I think that the value proposition As noted, MFP manufacturers also have cartridge recythat we focus on from the customer standpoint is really the cling programs in place that allow for the return of used same for all sizes of companies and, sometimes, even more toner cartridges (and toner bottles) one at a time or in bulk. important for the smaller enterprises.”

Certainly, many environmentally conscious end users have Albano shares the observation and also emphasizes that been taking advantage of such programs for a number of the interest in green initiatives within smaller companies years. “We have been running our program since 1990, alprovides an opportunity to office technology dealerships. lowing for the recycling of toner cartridges and the reuse “Smaller enterprises are usually more adamant about tak- of certain parts and components in the production of new ing advantage of green initiatives because it helps them cartridges,” says Albano. “Since 1990, we have diverted more control costs and remain leaner — especially during tough than 210,000 tons of cartridges that possibly would have economic times,” he says. “This represents a unique oppor- otherwise ended up in a landfill.” tunity for dealers to partner one-on-one with their customIn part to better facilitate a business climate that helps ers to help them identify and address some of their environ- sales reps more effectively discuss an MFP manufacturer’s mental initiatives, such as reducing energy consumption, strides in protecting the environment, increasingly, dealerconserving resources and recycling more.” ships are establishing their own environmental sustainabilCertainly, there is plenty for dealers’ sales reps to talk about ity programs. Other dealers interested in doing so may want in terms of the strides MFP manufacturers have made in to lean on their manufacturers for guidance. “We have been making their products more environmentally friendly, which working with dealerships to help them with their sustaincan help customers reduce costs. Perhaps the most common- ability programs,” says Rufino, noting that such programs ly cited among them is Energy Star compliance, an indication include a means of collecting used cartridges, etc., for recythat a product consumes a minimized level of energy under cling. “The first step is to ask yourself, what is it about your guidelines set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency operation that can affect the environment? Then, look at in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Energy. Mario your impact on those areas of your operation. Whether posiRufino, manager of the Environmental Management & Prod- tive or negative, how can you control the impact?” uct Safety Department of the Corporate Planning Division of Albano says he has been encouraged by the strides dealCanon U.S.A., notes, for example, that Canon imageRUNNER ers have made in embracing sustainability efforts and conADVANCE MFPs are all Energy Star compliant and “use 70 to trolling their impact on the environment. “If you look at 75 percent less energy than previous models.” dealers’ websites, many now have a section dedicated to the Beyond just citing Energy Star compliance, reps can also environment,” he says. “They have established ‘green teams’ emphasize such strides as: the use of lighter metals in the and are hosting events and seminars to grow awareness and manufacture of products and, in some cases, bio-based plas- build relationships with their customers around this topic. tics (using raw materials extracted from plants, which reduc- Our dealers have been asking us to be a part of these events es CO2 production); smaller footprint designs (reducing the to talk about sustainability and best practices, which cusenergy costs associated with shipping); product functionali- tomers can implement in their own offices.” ty that is designed to save paper and, thus, energy, such as duWith manufacturer sustainability programs in place — plexing and software that provides the option of producing and increasingly within dealerships themselves — should 12 | ­w w w. o f f i c e t e c h n o l o gymag.com | February 2011

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themselves in advance to be dealership sales reps now able to answer environmenbe proactive in talking “Businesses are seeing tally focused questions that about manufacturer green ‘green’ as being smart. customers may ask.” initiatives? “Yes, I think they When dealers promote The timing is right for all should be proactive,” says sustainability ... It is to the dealers and their customers Kern. “If you bring it up, you benefit of the customer, it to recognize the value of encan manage the conversais to the benefit of the vironmental sustainability, tion on the topic. You have says Rufino. “It makes good a great story to tell, so why dealership and it is to the business sense,” he says. would you not want to tell benefit of the planet.”

Kern agrees. “Businesses it? This can help you change — Kevin Kern are seeing ‘green’ as being the conversation from just Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A. smart,” he says. “When dealtalking about product to ers promote sustainability, talking about business.”

Rufino says it is clear that sales reps are seeking to it is to the benefit of all. It is to the benefit of learn about sustainability and are increasingly sharing the customer, it is to the benefit of the dealerthe green message. They are asking more questions of him ship and it is to the benefit of the planet.” n Brent Hoskins, executive director of the and others at Canon. “It is not, ‘Oh my gosh, I just lost a Business Technology Association, is editor customer; here’s a list of the customer’s questions. Can you of Office Technology magazine. give me the answers?’” he explains. “That’s the way it was He can be reached at brent@bta.org. in the past. Today, it has shifted. Reps are now preparing

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Sales Team Recruitment Tools & concepts for increasing hiring success by: William Stonehouse, Crawford Thomas Business Solutions Recruitment

A

s long as sales organizations have existed, one of the most confounding issues has been finding the right people to sell and the right people to manage. Typically, one of the primary differentiating factors in the success that organizations achieve is the talent they are able to retain.

Prior to the dawn of the information age, the challenge was finding people who were qualified to sell a specific product line with proper education or sales experience. This would have typically consisted of simple, local networking, posting classified ads in printed publications and one or two reference checks.

This simplified version of the recruiting process of decades past was hit-or-miss and employers often felt restricted by the candidate selection, which was limited at best. The solution was to spend money on job fairs, recruiters and additional advertising to generate candidate flow — the expectation and driving force behind using these services.

With unemployment higher than ever and candidates flooding employers’ inboxes with a deluge of résumés, it is now almost the exact opposite, which is equally challenging. A flood of underqualified or marginal candidates who were laid off months ago are looking for any job with a paycheck to get them back on their feet until they can find their dream jobs, which may be in another industry.

In contrast, employers are now looking to employee search firms and recruiters to deliver targeted candidates as they realize the problems that mass applicants can bring, especially in an economy that forces sales managers to spend more time closing deals than sifting through a mountain of off-the-wall résumés to find that needle in the haystack.

To further complicate the general hiring environment, office technology companies have broadened their ideal candidate profile to accommodate the changing workforce, which now includes Generation X (born 1965-1980) and the Millennials (born 1981-1993). Gone are the days of a candi-

date with a four-year degree, 10-plus years at one employer with direct industry experience and the vision to retire with the company he (or she) joined right out of college.

Meanwhile, the information age has brought a new challenge to the office technology industry: Sales professionals are now selling to the most informed consumer ever. This means that subpar reps stand no chance in navigating a sales landscape that is a virtual minefield of online price comparisons, competitors’ electronic marketing efforts and the consumer’s ability to quickly run a Google search to find all of your competition in his area.

There is also the issue of copier/MFP rep recruitment by other industries. I can safely say that the number-one background or sales experience my non-office technology industry clients (dental products, medical devices, pharmaceuticals, Web services, business services and IT) look for are top producers with two to four years of copier/MFP sales experience, because they know that if a sales rep was successful pounding the pavement in your industry, then they will coast to the top 10 percent. This is a shame, since it is generally the two- to four-year mark before reps start becoming highly profitable to the dealership or the OEM sales team. It also speaks volumes about the caliber of sales reps the office technology industry needs to sustain sales volume or to grow.

It is true in any industry that the lower the turnover rate, the easier it will be to increase total sales volume and profitability. It is no surprise that this industry has one of the highest turnover rates of any B2B-based sales environment, with good sales teams seeing turnover in the 20 percent range and the bad ones seeing 100 percent or more. If your turnover ratio exceeds the 30 percent mark, it should be a sign that it is time to make adjustments to management and the hiring process.

I often encounter managers who are not quite sure how

18 | ­w w w. o f f i c e t e c h n o l o gymag.com | February 2011

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to calculate their official turnover rate.

Other essentially free resources are The formula is easy: Simply divide the major job board aggregators. These An online presence the number of separations during the are sites that pull open position listings enhancement will help month by the total number of employand job posts from employer sites, or all functional areas of ees at mid-month, then multiply this paid or free job boards, and concentrate your business and will number by 100. them in one easily digestible site. Two of also ... establish better Despite the current challenges to the leaders in this area are indeed.com staffing in this industry, there are some and simplyhired.com. credibility with ... current effective strategies to consider. One free These can be powerful ways to get and prospective clients. tool that has proven to be one of the traffic to your online career page and atmost effective for recruiters and emtract talent you may not have been able ployers alike is LinkedIn.com. In 2011, LinkedIn will move to reach otherwise. Including your open positions on these from being a useful tool to becoming the standard for any- types of sites is generally free once you have your career site one looking to add talent to his team. A network similar to optimized and synced with their crawling bots that scour Facebook, this networking site is designed with the profes- your site daily. This is often something that can be set up for sional in mind. It allows one to easily reconnect with former you by a staffing firm or other partner with the technical reemployees, colleagues and classmates. This tool is the gold sources to get it done properly and effectively. These free tools standard of professional networking and must be treated can be just as effective, or more effective, than some of the seriously. As with any social networking tool, having a bad solutions that have high costs and are only as productive as corporate presence is worse than having no presence, so it the amount of energy and effort the employer puts into them. is necessary to establish a coherent corporate page and to When considering resources that necessitate a fee or finanmake sure your managers’ profile pages are well-thought- cial investment, a realistic plan needs to be outlined for the out and professional. specific growth or turnover one is trying to address. Often, I Remember, often the best candidates for your open posi- see dealers and OEMs being sold on solutions that are obvious tion are currently employed, so using sites like LinkedIn al- mismatches for their goals and that demand too much time low you to interact with successful reps and managers who and management to be successful. I personally discourage have made it through any mass layoffs. These people will be paid job postings on the major job boards, as you will soon able to show up to work and make an impact on day one. We see that every part-time bus driver and self-employed handycall candidates who are willing to make a move for the right man will think he qualifies to sell managed print solutions. opportunity “passive” candidates, as opposed to the “active” As you are looking for specific work experience and skill candidates who are on every job board known to man and sets, you may be able to use your budget more effectively applying to any and every job they come across. by searching the boards yourself, as résumé database acLinkedIn is useful for researching applicants and search- cess is typically far more affordable than job postings and ing for new candidates just as you would on any job board, can actually yield targeted results. The caveat is that these but candidates will also be using this tool to research you resources are only as effective as the time one puts in and and your company. First impressions can be your last when come with no guarantee, unlike employee search firms, trying to lure top talent. which can often be flexible in pricing and may operate on The same mentality goes for your website. If you are no- contingency fee agreements. ticing an increase in rejected offer letters or “no shows” to In a contingency agreement, services are offered free uninterviews, then an online overhaul might be in store. An til you decide to actually hire a candidate, and can include online presence enhancement will help all functional areas guarantees offering a no-cost replacement should the canof your business and will also help your new hires establish didate not work out in a specified period. Basically, this is better credibility with both current and prospective clients. analogous to creating an outsourced HR department. ReThe simple rule here is: The better your corporate image, ceiving unlimited prequalified résumés and having somethe better the talent pool you will have to draw from. The one coordinate interviews is always a great way to help number-one reason I hear from candidates after turning managers close more deals. You can use these agency candown an interview or an offer has to do with them having a didates to compare against internal candidates, or to see if negative impression of the company, or not feeling that the you need to create a position for an all-star who may walk opportunity is stable enough. There is no shortage of rea- through your door. sons to make a few tweaks to your online marketing and Today, with more systemic economic uncertainty than presence to build a more powerful following in general. most in business today have ever experienced, and more 20 | ­w w w. o f f i c e t e c h n o l o gymag.com | February 2011

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A mentality one sees in successful information and resources available to sales management teams is sales manboth employers and candidates alike, it Recruiting should not be agers, directors and owners treating has never been more important to make ... done only when you their candidate pipeline just as they every hire a successful hire and avoid bad have a specific opening. treat their sales forecasts. Whether your hires who can quickly and easily bleed It should be a year-round management team decides to put in the an employer dry. The excessive costs effort that allows you man hours and recruit using free and of a failed hire makes the cost of backpaid job boards, or you go the route of ground checks, personality inventories, to change your lineup using a third-party recruitment team, thorough reference checks and usage of when needed ... the aforementioned tools and concepts recruiting firms relatively negligible. should help you increase the quality, caRecruiting should not be something that is done only when you have a specific opening. It should liber and shelf life of candidates in your hiring process.  William Stonehouse is the president of Crawford Thomas, a be a year-round effort that allows you to change your lineup when needed, and that requires having a roster of astute nationwide sales recruitment firm based in Orlando, Fla. The firm’s largest division specializes in the bench players available at a moment’s notice. Most imporplacement of sales reps, MPS reps, tantly, recruiting is a component of the office technology production print specialists, sales managers, industry that will dictate an organization’s success. It is an regional directors/presidents, etc. activity where constant re-evaluation must take place in Stonehouse can be reached at your internal process, your corporate image and the tools william.s@crawfordthomas.com. you use to work toward building a sales force that is as dyVisit www.crawfordthomas.com. namic as the industry you are selling in.

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22 | w w w. o f f i c e t e c h n o l o gymag.com | February 2011

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A Model of Success Who are your reps trying to emulate? by: Tom Callinan, Strategy Development

I

got started in the copier/MFP business in 1984. That sounds like a million years ago, and as a business model, it basically was. The sales trainers of the day focused solely on activity.

The mantra was: “Make 50 cold calls per day and you will be successful.” There were no CPC deals, no one wrapped aftermarket into agreements, copiers broke every week, so no one was happy with their device, and customers had no loyalty to their vendors because they blamed the service issues on your company.

Back then, the copier was new technology, so decisions were made at a fairly high level. Think about selling iPads today — call as many companies as you can, get an appointment and, through your great product knowledge and research, show them how they can use the iPad and a custom application to (fill in the blank), which improves their efficiency or the customer experience. The customer does not have an iPad now, so it is new and exciting.

I was one of those sales reps who actually listened to the trainers. I came in early, made my phone calls, then went to my downtown Philadelphia territory and knocked on doors, which I followed with phone calls at the end of the day.

I earned “Sales Rep of the Month” my first month, set the company record for sales during my fifth month and earned “Sales Rep of the Year” after my first year.

So, why am I telling you this ancient history? I was a model of success at that company. When a new crew of sales reps started on the first day of every month, management would point at me and tell them to emulate my actions. Keep in mind, my actions were all activity-based and required deep product knowledge — which was not difficult when you only had six devices to sell.

So who is the model of success in the copier industry today? Who is the man or woman in the bullpen winning all the awards, driving to work in his (or her) German sports sedan and earning the big bucks? If your dealership has been

in business more than five or six years (and that is the case with 99.99 percent of you), I would give you odds that it is not the guy out cold-calling and making all the dials. Instead, that “super salesperson” is the tenured sales professional who opened new accounts long ago and has “inherited” all the accounts of the dozens of reps who did not make it at the company over the last five years; that rep is out upgrading end-of-lease deals.

Why is it important to understand your company’s success models? Because the people you hire are smart, and regardless of what you tell them, they look at what is working for the successful reps and emulate them.

You could stand in your Monday morning sales meeting shouting from the rafters that the sales force needs more activity; activity drives success in sales, and sales team members leave that Monday meeting and their models of success are the number of tenured reps who are the “big hitters” in the bullpen. But unfortunately, most of these “big hitters” are not making the dials, are not sending out e-mails and are not holding lunch-and-learns. (I apologize to those true superstars who do these things. If you are reading this article and fit into that category, you are a true superstar.)

Your smart, yet struggling, sales reps look at those “big hitters,” then tell you, “My territory is no good,” or, “I’ve been through all my accounts and they aren’t buying.” Now they are talking the upgrade talk.

You now know you do not have a sales professional you can point to who is the “model of success” for these new reps. So how do you fix it? The first thing I would do is properly structure your machines in field (MIF) into territories. Whether you properly structure your territories or not — and we strongly recommend you do take the time to scientifically structure your territories — you will need to develop a model salesperson. Notice that noun is singular.

Now maybe you have a $40 million dealership with 37 sales reps and you are saying, “One sales rep? That’s crazy.” I

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agree with you and I assume you have Make it one of your multiple offices, so strategic goals for I would develop a 2011 to develop a model sales rep in model salesperson in each office. each office and put Let me suggest a way to fix the probtogether a plan to lem of having the accomplish the goal. wrong type of sales model to really grow your business: Make it one of your strategic goals for 2011 to develop a model salesperson in each office and put together a plan to accomplish the goal. My plan would certainly include my sales managers, and the goal of developing this team member would be one of their compensation drivers.

You know the issue: You put the salesperson in the same bullpen, compensate him the same way as the tenured reps, recognize him in the same way as the tenured reps — or, as the case may be, do not recognize him because he is not achieving as the tenured reps are — and manage him as you do the tenured reps. All of this needs to change.

I realize the model rep is going to be in the same bullpen, but do something to differentiate him — paint the metal cap of his office cube red and blue to signify he is different and is the future of the company. Keep in mind, you will have one new “model rep” per office this year, but once you have executed on your plan, you will scale up in future years.

I could not possibly provide you a detailed plan on how to change your sales model in this article, but I hope I have provided you with a new way to think about a significant problem in our mature industry. It is not 1984 (or even 1994) any longer. What made you successful then is not what will make you successful today, so you need to think differently.

Start by having a model of success in the bullpen that links to what you are telling your sales reps in your meetings. n Tom Callinan is the founding principal of Strategy Development, a management consulting firm for the technology and outsourcing space and a leading MPS consultancy specializing in business planning, sales effectiveness, advanced sales training, and operational and service improvement. From 1998 to 2005, Callinan was an executive with IKON Office Solutions, most recently vice president and general manager of IKON’s largest business unit with revenue of $1.4 billion. Prior to IKON, Callinan was the founder and CEO of Copifax Inc. Copifax was acquired by IKON in 1997. He can be reached at callinan@strategydevelopment.com or (610) 527-3317.

Visit www.strategydevelopment.com. www.officetechnologymag.co m | F e b r u a r y 2 0 1 1 | 25

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

Dealer Members M & H Duplicating Systems, Griffin, GA MTC Imaging Solutions, Warner Robins, GA On-Site LaserMedic, Chatsworth, CA Arizona Digital Products, Scottsdale, AZ Quality Office Systems Inc., Portland, OR Publication Associate Member RechargeAsia Magazine, San Gabriel, CA Service Associate Member DataVault, West Brookfield, MA Vendor Associate Members Lion Technology Group, Pompano Beach, FL SalesChain LLC, Southbury, CT For full contact information of these new members, visit www.bta.org.

Evolved Office Marketing Services Evolved Office delivers highly targeted marketing services for office technology dealerships. Whether you are looking for a monthly newsletter or want to launch a fullscale direct marketing campaign, Evolved Office has the tools to take your dealership’s marketing efforts to the next level. Evolved Office offers these services at a discount to new client BTA members: custom e-mail newsletters, custom print newsletters, promotional postcards and website feeds. If you are not a current client of Evolved Office and would like to take advantage of the 20 percent discount as a BTA member, visit www.bta.org/EvolvedOffice.

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 ECi Software Solutions is a provider of “best-in-industry” business management and e-commerce systems software for growing and mid-size companies. ECi’s solutions are known for a combination of technological innovation, top-ranked customer support and business consultancy that fuel the efficiency of every aspect of a company’s operations. From equipment sales and service to e-commerce and back-office operations like inventory and accounting, ECi offers complete, fully integrated software for dealerships of every size and business model. www.ecisolutions.com BTA Service Associate member Archipelago Financial Services is a team of financial, accounting, legal and insurance professionals working together to provide a holistic vision of creative financial strategies for its clients’ businesses and personal needs. Building a comprehensive plan that includes all these perspectives allows Archipelago’s clients to: increase wealth, improve business and financial structures, maximize asset protection, reduce gift and estate taxes, achieve financial and life goals, and more. www.archipelagofinancial.com A full list of BTA Vendor and Service Associate members can be found online at www.bta.org.

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COURTS & CAPITOLS

The Office Party Hangover Take precautions to avoid legal repercussions by: Robert C. Goldberg, General Counsel for the Business Technology Association

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ith Christmas and New Year’s Eve behind us, so are the numerous holiday parties that come with them.

Unfortunately for some, the aftermath of these festivities are not fond memories, but legal repercussions. This past holiday season was no different. I have received several calls regarding issues that resulted from company holiday celebrations. Since office celebrations occur throughout the year, it is worthwhile to review best practices for conducting an office party.

A festive atmosphere combined with the consumption of alcohol at an office party is a mixture for potential problems.

Issues can include sexual harassment, hurt feelings, excessive alcohol consumption, religious discrimination, sexual discrimination and even physical fights among attendees.

Claims may arise from attendees and third parties if an attendee happens to be involved in an automobile accident after he (or she) has consumed alcohol and left the party.

Employees should never be required to attend a company party. Make it clear to your employees that there is no business purpose to the event. Some may not feel comfortable socializing in a work context and others may perceive the party as a religious celebration or they may have an objection to alcohol being served. By making the event voluntary, an employer avoids the issue of overtime compensation. Failure to attend should not result in repercussions or even idle banter about being a “party pooper.”

It is best to hold your party off company premises and after work hours. You should avoid any decorations that have overt religious significance. A Christmas tree is fine, but a nativity scene may not be acceptable to everyone in attendance.

If alcohol is being served, it is best to arrange for a restaurant or caterer to serve it. The restaurant or caterer will have the required insurance and permits for serving alcohol. Also, make sure you have a professional bartender who is instructed to check IDs when appropriate, and to stop serving anyone who appears to have overconsumed while at the party.

Make certain that anyone who has consumed more than the legal limit is not allowed to drive. Offer cab fare to any employee who requests it or establish a group of designated drivers. Designated drivers should be exempt employees in order to avoid wage and hour violations. For that matter, no nonexempt employee should be requested to perform any function at the party.

Remind employees that company policies apply to compa-

ny social events. An office party is not a license to “let go” and behave any differently than one would in the office. A gift exchange should prohibit adult-themed gifts. Hanging mistletoe is also asking for problems. If a claim of sexual harassment is made, it should be addressed immediately, pursuant to your company policy on harassment. Consider allowing guests to attend the party. While this will increase the cost of the party, having guests should discourage improper behavior.

You should consider having some type of entertainment for the group to focus on during the party. At my firm, we ask the three newest employees to sing a song or read a poem they have written. There are also a number of games and contests that can be fun and provide an opportunity for gifts and prizes. The goal is to find something to fill the time other than drinking and talking.

Review your insurance policies to determine if the event is covered. Often, comprehensive general liability policies are sufficient for off-site events, but they may not cover liquor and/ or food consumption on-site that is served and/or prepared by the employer.

Holiday parties are a wonderful means to share the joys of the season with fellow employees. By taking certain precautions, you can ensure it is not a regrettable celebration. n Robert C. Goldberg is general counsel for the Business Technology Association.

He can be reached at robert.goldberg@sfnr.com. w w w. o f f i c e t e c h n o l o g y m a g . c o m | F e b r u a r y 2 0 1 1 | 27

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Selling Solutions

Major Account Sales Professionalism & preparation are key by: Terrill Klett, Selling Office Products Successfully

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hat is the difference between selling to a major account versus a small account? As far as the steps involved, not as much as you would think. They both require initial contacts, appointments, possibly a document output analysis, a demonstration and a closing.

The difference lies with the professionalism and preparation in dealing with higher-level contacts. This becomes apparent during the most important step in the major account sales cycle: the initial appointment. This is where your selling team is under the microscope. The higherlevel contacts in corporate America are listening — they are concerned about improving document workflow, compliance issues, environmental sustainability, security and, of course, reducing and/or managing costs.

First, let’s define a major account as a commercial business with at least 12 MFPs and 40 printers. The first step, even before the prospecting stage, is to identify what businesses qualify in your marketplace, along with the key contact names. The chief financial officer and chief information officer are very receptive compared to other executives. Do not wait for their replies. In the meantime, try to contact senior management, all the way down to the purchasing department, if necessary. You will be surprised once you get an appointment — even at a lower level — that your value-added message is heard loud and clear and you have just won yourself a sponsor (to move you up the ladder).

Write an initial letter no longer than 10 sentences and do not pitch yourself or your company. To grab immediate attention, use a search engine to research the company and find a key statement from its website, preferably from the person who will be receiving your letter. Large companies may have thousands of articles and references on the Web, so a good Google search is: “ABC Company + John Doe + goals + compliance + security.” The keywords will bring any relevant information to the top of the search engine to simplify your process.

Outside the body and on top of the letter, type out a key initiative or quote and put in it red. When the hand-addressed letter is received, the recipient’s curiosity will have them reading your 10 short sentences. The last sentence should pinpoint an exact follow-up time: “Please accept my telephone call this Friday morning at 9 a.m. to discuss.”

Telephone calls will now be more receptive with the gatekeeper because you can reference the contact name, letter and exact time you identified. When your phone call is transferred, immediately reference the letter and time along with what all Clevel executives appreciate: “Is now a good time to spend 60 seconds or would you like to schedule a definite future time?” Very rarely will you be turned down, so immediately relate back to the benefit outlined in your letter. Managed print services (MPS) benefit statements are catching on. An example is: “Our organization is dedicated to improving workflow and reducing costs through a process called managed print services. I have researched the direction of your company and in 30 minutes I can highlight how our cost management processes match up to your goals.

Would next Tuesday afternoon work out better for you?”

The presentation should have one primary goal — to generate enough interest to get a second appointment. This appointment can be a hand-off to the project leader, or even an immediate document output analysis. Preparing a PowerPoint presentation is an excellent idea. Ten slides should be appropriate, and make sure the initial slides are all about the company’s initiatives, goals and direction. While a PowerPoint is a good addition, most of the time you will not end up turning on the projector and a handout will suffice. A handout will also keep everyone going in the right direction.

Once you get them comfortable (because they are talking about themselves), have a slide/handout that asks about their current procurement procedures and challenges. Learning their buying process is key because it can lead to new opportunities. Continue your presentation with light selling (two to three slides) and then reveal your home run — what benefit you can add to their organization. MPS seems to be drawing everyone’s interest, so effectively explaining the process will allow you to penetrate the account enough to be able to close and implement. n Terrill Klett has a proven track record selling major accounts. He has authored the book Selling Office Products Successfully and is currently developing MPS webinars for the BTA channel. He can be reached at (770) 757-1846 or terrillklett@aol.com.

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Selling Solutions

Back to Basics Seek to boost sales rep learning opportunities by: Mike Lamothe, Office Document Consulting

I

was visiting a dealership a few weeks ago and management team members had concerns about how they could begin to transition their dealership to offer managed print services (MPS). They had completed their own research and had a pretty good understanding of what needed to be done from a back-office perspective. Plus, they were already using dealer management software and were considering add-ons that would complete their service and operations infrastructure. But, there was a problem.

What was the problem? It was their sales reps. The dealership had six sales reps with varying lengths of tenure — everything from six months with no industry experience to 20 years with extensive experience. The primary concern from the dealership principal was: “How do I get them to a point where they can effectively sell MPS?” In this and coming issues of Office Technology magazine, I would like to focus on sales reps and the impact they will have on the success or failure of your MPS program.

The sales team is one of the most significant resources in most dealerships. It is the front-end of our business and a critical factor in our success or failure. So, before we can begin to position new strategic directions like MPS, I believe we need to understand the sales reps’ strengths and weaknesses and begin to provide the appropriate training and tools to help them succeed.

Industry reports are stating that rep productivity is at an all-time low; numbers are in the range of one to one-and-ahalf devices per month. Yes, the recession has had an impact, but I have always believed our industry is recession-proof. So why are reps selling less? I believe it is due to a few reasons.

With the convergence of technology (fax, scan, print and copy) along with added software to help end users utilize the technology more effectively, our industry has seen radical change and sales reps have not kept up with that change.

The question remains: “Can you teach an old dog new tricks?” I believe the answer is “yes,” provided that the “dog” — in this case, the sales rep — is willing and able to accept this new approach to selling. We are in a new world where the organizations we are approaching have undergone dramatic change in the last couple of years and are focused on surviving the global recession.

So where should we begin to help our reps make the necessary transition? By going back to the basics. Whatever happened to round tables and knowledge sharing? Some of my

most effective years selling were supported by the sales team and management sitting around the bullpen or boardroom discussing wins and losses. We also spoke about some of the challenges we were facing trying to get past gatekeepers.

Things have not changed from that perspective. Today, reps are spending significant amounts of time calling and e-mailing prospective customers, with minimal success. We need to get back to sharing our successes and failures. It is the way we learn.

In my selling days, we often brought in guest speakers from various verticals to further advance our knowledge. You might want to consider beginning each sales meeting with a circle of knowledge. Who should be in that circle? Perhaps you should consider starting with the IT professionals in your dealership who will begin to infuse a different perspective.

Additionally, bring in software organizations to talk about how they are succeeding at selling their solutions. I think you will begin to see how sales reps selling office technology need to advance their skill sets.

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and tools that will help advance our sales and bring them in to share their specific professionals and allow them to succeed at areas of expertise. Invite a comptroller, Remember, go back positioning strategic programs like MPS. CEO, CIO, president, director of IT or any to the basics first and Remember, go back to the basics first and other professional you believe will proyou will provide your you will provide your sales team with the vide additional knowledge that can bensales team with the necessary foundation to advance their proefit your sales force. Imagine sitting in a necessary foundation fessional abilities. n meeting hearing from a CIO about what Mike Lamothe is president of he (or she) values in a business partner, to advance their Office Document Consulting (ODC). With what he considers before changing venprofessional abilities.

25-plus years of professional sales and dors and what makes him tick. management, he brings extensive industry Finally, use the Internet to help eduexperience, having worked at both the cate your sales team. Have your reps join dealership and manufacturer levels. Today, Lamothe assists some of the numerous industry organizations that are offerclients with the implementation and ongoing ing free memberships and provide daily e-mail updates. Have them research any topic related to the industry and then have support of MPS programs and offers guidance in such areas as strategic selling, development of them write a summary of the topic they researched or an artiselling and marketing tools, organizational cle they read. Then, have them present that information to the right-sizing, and assessment consulting and rest of the sales team. I think you will find this highly effective design. Lamothe can be reached at and the conversation amongst your reps will begin to change. odcconsulting@live.com or (647) 389-5048.

In future articles, I will be focusing on additional areas

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30 | ­w w w. o f f i c e t e c h n o l o gymag.com | February 2011

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