Sales and marketing consultant, Brett Clay, author of “Selling Change, 101+ Secrets for Growing Sales by Leading Change”, reveals his top ten list of mistakes salespeople and companies are making in today’s market. Clay says, “Some of the ways salespeople lose customers are perennial. Others are related to the changing market. The biggest mistake, though, is failing to evolve and stay competitive.”

The Top Ten Ways to Lose Customers

1.    Don’t Deliver What You Promise

The ultimate way to lose a customer is to take their money and not deliver the goods. To gain customers, under-promise and over-deliver.

2.    Don’t Return Their Calls

Twenty-four hour call centers, mobile phones, instant text chat, online knowledge bases, and social media have helped customers become accustomed to instant response. To gain customers, be responsive.

3.    Sell Them Features

Customers don’t care about product features. Customers only care about how they can benefit. To gain customers, focus on what the customer wants to do.

4.    Don’t Listen to Their Needs

In the drive to streamline operations and lower costs, companies that become focused on themselves and their own needs, rather than the customer’s, will find themselves losing those customers. To gain customers, listen to what customers want—and deliver it.

5.    Sell Them a Solution

Selling solutions to customer problems sounds like a great idea—except that today’s Internet-empowered customers have access to the best solutions at the best prices from everywhere on the globe. So, selling solutions results in losing customers to suppliers who offer a better solution at a better price. To gain customers, help them achieve their goals.

6.    Assume They Need What You’re Selling

Assuming the customer’s problem is that they don’t own your product and neglecting to discover their real problem is a sure way to lose the customer’s interest. To gain customers, focus on how the customer can benefit.

7.    Be Transactional

Companies and salespeople who, under pressure to meet sales goals, focus on minimizing their efforts lose business to those who focus on customer success. To gain customers, add value.

8.    Focus on Relationship

The old adage: “Customers buy from people they like.” The new adage : “Customers buy from websites they like.” To gain customers, focus on delivering value.

9.    Do What You’ve Always Done

As the market landscape continues to change rapidly, those who continue to do the same things the same way are the proverbial deer in the headlights. To gain customers, invest in new capabilities.

10.    Don’t Embrace Technology

Technology is amplifying and accelerating competitive advantages. Individuals and companies that fall behind in technology will deliver inferior service at uncompetitive costs. To gain customers, leverage new tools.

About Change Leadership Group and Brett Clay

Clay is the author of “Selling Change,” named the best sales book of 2010 and 2011, and is the CEO of Change Leadership Group, LLC, a firm that helps clients improve their sales, marketing, and leadership capabilities. A veteran of 20 years in international sales and marketing management, most recently with Microsoft Corporation, he is an award-winning author, award-winning marketer, trainer, speaker, consultant, and business leader. http://www.ChangeLeadershipGroup.com.

Seattle, WA (PRWEB) June 29, 2011

Brett Clay, author of ‘Selling Change, 101+ Secrets for Growing Sales by Leading Change’, named the best sales book of 2011 by Axiom Business Book Awards, says “The trends of globalization and Internet-empowered buyers are devaluing the roles traditionally filled by salespeople—to provide product information and take orders.” Gerhard Gschwandtner, CEO of Selling Power magazine and host of the Sales 2.0 Conference says “70% of purchasing decisions are now made online, before the buyer comes in contact with a salesperson.” The result is a greatly diminished need for buyers to interact with a salesperson—such a diminished need, in fact, that Gschwandtner predicts 15 million traditional sales positions will be displaced by technology over this decade, leaving as few as 3 million of the approximately 18 million current sales positions.

What is changing? In the past, the role of the salesperson was largely to help inform the customer and transact the purchase. But, today, in a drive to lower costs and in response to customer demand, companies provide a wealth of information on their websites, enabling customers to thoroughly research their options and make a purchase—without the assistance of a salesperson. Today’s well-informed customers have access to the best products at the lowest prices offered by scores of global suppliers, resulting in increasingly efficient markets. Often, the best available price is below the production cost of even the most efficient vendor.

Clay says, “Online commerce and global competition are not news. Yet, many company executives are in denial about the reality of today’s marketplace. They are hoping that ‘when the economy turns around’ they’ll return to profitability. This is not a temporary problem. The fundamental structure of the marketplace has changed. When the economy turns around those companies that have restructured their sales and marketing organizations will get stronger—and those that haven’t will simply disappear faster.”

What are the options for restructuring? Clay says, “At the ends of the spectrum companies are left with two options: a) become the most efficient producer of the product or service or b) become the most differentiated creator of customer value.”

Companies that choose to be the most efficient producers must eliminate the high costs of salespeople by automating the transaction process and moving remaining salespeople into customer support roles. This option matches a buying cycle that is controlled and operated by the customer. Clay says, “In the past, many companies have operated from a perspective of ‘sales enablement.’ Going forward, companies must reframe their thinking to ‘customer enablement’”. Examples of ‘customer enablement’ include online diagnostic tools, return on investment calculators, knowledge bases, and other decision support tools that enable customers to identify their problems and determine the best solutions—without the involvement of a salesperson. Rod Brooks, Chief Marketing Officer of PEMCO Insurance says, “Today, customers are in control. They control the buying process and the company’s brand. That’s why we’ve invested heavily in transforming our sales and marketing at PEMCO and have made ‘the voice of the customer’ our most important strategic initiative.”

Companies that choose to create the most business value must hire or train highly skilled salespeople who operate as ‘customer counselors’ identifying value-creating opportunities and guiding customers through the process of realizing those opportunities. This option matches a buying cycle where the customer is highly dependent on the supplier’s goods and services. Clay says, “At this end of the service spectrum the salespeople are so actively involved with customers, that they can appear to be an employee of the customer. These salespeople must be highly skilled and capable managers who can lead projects and deliver the customer’s business results.” Required skills include ‘soft’ skills in the areas of change leadership, management and human behavior, as well as ‘hard’ skills in the areas of project and operations management, finance, and technology, among others. Brooks says, “The companies that lead with customer intimacy and value-added service will have sales forces that are more than order takers and will be the survivors.”

Many buyers, and indeed many company executives, may not lament the ‘death of a salesman’ forecasted by Gschwantdner, Pulitizer Prize-winning journalist, Thomas Freidman, and others. However, says Clay, “Sales organizations are like canaries in the mine. Once a company’s salespeople have been marginalized, so has the company’s product—and so has the company. Whether they like it or not, both salespeople and companies will have to invest in new sales capabilities to survive.”

About Change Leadership Group and Brett Clay
Clay is the author of “Selling Change,” named the best business book of 2010 and best sales book of 2010 and 2011, and is the CEO of Change Leadership Group, LLC, a firm that helps clients improve their sales, marketing, and leadership capabilities. A veteran of 20 years in international sales and marketing management, most recently with Microsoft Corporation, he is an award-winning author, award-winning marketer, trainer, speaker, consultant, and business leader. http://www.ChangeLeadershipGroup.com.

Bellevue, WA (PRWEB) July 19, 2011

Brett Clay, author of ‘Selling Change, 101+ Secrets for Growing Sales by Leading Change’, named the best business book of 2010 by Independent Publisher Book Awards says the closing of Borders Books not only marks the end of an era and the beginning of a new era, but it also demonstrates the fate of companies that follow the approach of change management, rather than change leadership.

Borders Books Union Square San Francisco, May 2011

“The liquidation of Borders Books marks the end of the paper-book and brick-and-mortar bookstore era. And it heralds the new era of the electronic book and Internet bookstore,” says Clay. While ebooks sales have already exceeded paper book sales, according to Amazon.com, the permanent closing of 400 book stores is a vivid milestone in the evolution of the publishing industry.

Borders’ management faced formidable constraints, such as store leases, that inhibited its ability to shift with the market. The Borders situation further demonstrates the paramount importance of agility in today’s market. In the past, managers used return-on-investment arguments to justify their budgets and spending. “Today, managers should be prioritizing investments using ‘agility-on-investment’, or ‘AOI.’ That is, the amount of agility gained from a particular investment,” says Clay.

The idea of adapting to a change in the environment and then utilizing ‘change management’ processes to execute the adaptation is no longer effective. “If you are adapting to a change, you are already in a follower position. As the Borders case demonstrates, that position can be fatal,“ says Clay. Many people are still operating in the mindset that “change” is some mysterious environmental phenomenon that must be adapted to, much like adapting to the weather by putting on a raincoat. Technology has obsoleted that mindset. “Today, ‘change’ is not some mysterious phenomenon—it’s your technology-enabled competitors. And you have two choices in dealing with them: 1) lead, or 2) lose. The traditional option of following and adapting doesn’t exist, anymore,” says Clay.
The winners in today’s market are the highly agile companies that are making change happen. Borders shows the fate of those who are not.

About Change Leadership Group and Brett Clay
Clay is the author of “Selling Change,” named the best business book of 2010 and best sales book of 2011, and he is the CEO of Change Leadership Group, LLC, a firm that helps clients improve their sales, marketing, and leadership capabilities. A veteran of 20 years in international sales and marketing management, most recently with Microsoft Corporation, he is an award-winning author, award-winning marketer, trainer, speaker, consultant, and business leader. http://www.ChangeLeadershipGroup.com.

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View the original article, here.

Brett Clay, author of the award-winning book, ‘Selling Change, 101+ Secrets for Growing Sales by Leading Change,’ announced that Change Leadership Group® is offering a 100 percent rebate to the first 250 readers who buy ‘Selling Change’ and post a review of the book online.
The announcement coincides with the launch of the ebook version of ‘Selling Change,’ now available from all major retailers including Amazon.com, Apple iBooks Store, BarnesandNoble.com, Borders.com, Google eBookStore, Kobo.com, Sony and others.

‘Selling Change’ has been called, “the go-to handbook of leadership in this decade,” by Independent Publisher Book Awards.

Jeff Keen, CEO of USA Book News, said “’Selling Change’ is an outstanding leadership handbook that all salespeople, managers, and executives should read.”

Jeffrey Hayzlett, former CMO of Eastman Kodak, and best-selling author of The Mirror Test said, “The most value is created by driving change. But now, it’s not a luxury—it’s survival. Read this book and thrive!”

Gerhard Gschwandtner, publisher of Selling Power magazine said, “‘Selling Change’ is a must-read for sales executives in 2011.”

Jeffrey Gitomer, bestselling author of The Little Red Book of Selling said, “This is the first POSITIVE book about change in a decade . . . at a time when we need it most! Buy it today, and implement it as fast as you can.”

Rebate Terms for the Book, “Selling Change”
Eligibility requirements: either hard cover or ebook purchases; reviews of the book “Selling Change” appearing on Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, Google eBookstore, Apple iBookStore, Kobo.com and GoodReads.com; limited to the first 250 people to submit rebate requests to rebate(at)sellingchange(dot)com. Disparaging or inflammatory reviews are not eligible. Offer ends July 30, 2011. Terms and conditions available at http://sellingchange.com subject to change.

‘Selling Change, 101 Secrets for Growing Sales by Leading Change’, by Brett Clay, Non-fiction; Hardcover $22.95, ISBN 978-0982295236 ; ebook $9.95, ISBN 978-0982295243; Available wherever books are sold.

About Change Leadership Group and Brett Clay
Clay is the author of “Selling Change,” named the best business book and best sales book of 2010, and is the CEO of Change Leadership Group, LLC, a firm that helps clients improve their sales, marketing, and leadership capabilities. A veteran of 20 years in international sales and marketing management, most recently with Microsoft Corporation, he is an award-winning author, award-winning marketer, trainer, speaker, consultant, and business leader. http://www.ChangeLeadershipGroup.com.

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Press release: http://www.prweb.com/releases/ChangeLeadershipGroup/SellingChange/prweb8594960.htm

Brett Clay, author of the award-winning book, ‘Selling Change, 101+ Secrets for Growing Sales by Leading Change,’ announced that ‘Selling Change’ has been released in ebook format and is now available from all major ebook distributors and retailers.

The ‘Selling Change’ ebook is available for purchase from book retailers, including Amazon.com, Apple iBooks Store, BarnesandNoble.com, Borders.com, Google eBookStore, Kobo.com, Sony and others.

The ‘Selling Change’ ebook is also available for check-out from over 13,000 libraries using the Overdrive digital media service.

Author, Brett Clay, said, “The recognition the hard cover edition has received from the awards organizations has been incredible. Now, the same book will be available in digital form, greatly expanding its availability.”

Awards for ‘Selling Change’:
“Best Sales Book of 2011” – Axiom Business Book Awards
“Best Business Book of 2010” – Independent Publisher Book Awards
“Best Sales Book of 2010” – USA Book News
Finalist—“Best Business and Economics Book of 2010” – ForeWord Reviews
Finalist—“Best Management and Leadership Book of 2010” – USA Book News
Finalist—“Best Business Book of 2010” – Next Generation Indie Book Awards
Finalist—“Best Business Book of 2010” – National Indie Excellence Book Awards

Praise for ‘Selling Change’:
“Do you think change is scary and borders on impossible? Think again. ‘Selling Change’ shows how to more effectively sell your ideas, products, and services to your employees, stakeholders, and customers. Author, Brett Clay, has translated the complex and abstract principles of change psychology into an easy-to-read, fun, and practical format that business leaders and salespeople are sure to find valuable,” said Jim Barnes, awards director, Axiom Business Book Awards.

“‘Selling Change’ is a handbook that shows how to lead customers or stakeholders through change and create high value for them in the process—and that’s why it’s a must-read for salespeople and business executives in 2011,” said Gerhard Gschwandtner, publisher, Selling Power Magazine.

‘Selling Change, 101 Secrets for Growing Sales by Leading Change’, by Brett Clay, Non-fiction; Hardcover $22.95, ISBN 978-0982295236 ; ebook $9.99, ISBN 978-0982295243; Available wherever books are sold.

About Change Leadership Group and Brett Clay
Clay is the author of “Selling Change,” named the best business book and best sales book of 2010, and is the CEO of Change Leadership Group, LLC, a firm that helps clients improve their sales, marketing, and leadership capabilities. A veteran of 20 years in international sales and marketing management, most recently with Microsoft Corporation, he is an award-winning author, award-winning marketer, trainer, speaker, consultant, and business leader. http://www.ChangeLeadershipGroup.com

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Press release: http://www.prweb.com/releases/changeleadershipgroup/sellingchange/prweb8591814.htm

Bellevue, WA (Vocus/PRWEB) March 25, 2011

Adding to a growing list of accolades, Axiom Business Book Awards announced that Selling Change, 101+ Secrets for Growing Sales by Leading Change by Brett Clay won the Gold Medal Award in the sales category, naming it the “Best Sales Book of 2011.” In separate news, ForeWord Reviews named ‘Selling Change’ a finalist in the Business and Economics category of its 2010 Book of the Year Awards. Final ForeWord Reviews winners will be announced at the American Library Association conference in June, 2011.

Awards for ‘Selling Change’:

 
“Best Sales Book of 2011” – Axiom Business Book Awards
“Best Business Book of 2010” – Independent Publisher Book Awards
“Best Sales Book of 2010” – USA Book News
Finalist—“Best Business and Economics Book of 2010” – ForeWord Reviews
Finalist—“Best Management and Leadership Book of 2010” – USA Book News
Finalist—“Best Business Book of 2010” – Next Generation Indie Book Awards
Finalist—“Best Business Book of 2010” – National Indie Excellence Book Awards

 

Praise for ‘Selling Change’:

 
“Do you think change is scary and borders on impossible? Think again. Selling Change shows how to more effectively sell your ideas, products, and services to your employees, stakeholders, and customers. Author, Brett Clay, has translated the complex and abstract principles of change psychology into an easy-to-read, fun, and practical format that business leaders and salespeople are sure to find valuable,” said Jim Barnes, awards director, Axiom Business Book Awards.

“’Selling Change’ is an outstanding leadership handbook that all salespeople, managers, and executives should read,” said Jeff Keen, president and CEO of USA Book News.

“‘Selling Change’ is a handbook that shows how to lead customers or stakeholders through change and create high value for them in the process—and that’s why it’s a must-read for salespeople and business executives in 2011,” said Gerhard Gschwandtner, publisher, Selling Power Magazine.

“The most value is created by driving change. But now, it’s not a luxury—it’s survival. Read this book and thrive!” said Jeffrey Hayzlett, former CMO of Eastman Kodak, change agent, and best-selling author of The Mirror Test.

”This is the first POSITIVE book about change in a decade … at a time when we need it most! Buy it today, and implement it as fast as you can,” said Jeffrey Gitomer, bestselling author of The Little Red Book of Selling.

”This powerful, practical book shows you how to make more sales, faster and easier than you ever thought possible!” said Brian Tracy, bestselling author of The Art of Closing the Sale.

‘Selling Change, 101 Secrets for Growing Sales by Leading Change’, by Brett Clay, Non-fiction, Hardcover, $22.95, ISBN 978-0982295236, Available wherever books are sold. Volume purchasing available through 1-800-CEO-READ. Coming soon in Portuguese, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, and Polish.

http://ChangeLeadershipGroup.com/BestSalesBook2011

About the Author
Brett Clay, author of ‘Selling Change’, is the CEO of Change Leadership Group, LLC, a firm that helps clients improve their sales, marketing, and leadership capabilities. A veteran of 20 years in international sales and marketing management, most recently with Microsoft Corporation, he is an award-winning author, award-winning marketer, trainer, speaker, consultant, and business leader. http://www.ChangeLeadershipGroup.com.

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www.ChangeLeadershipGroup.com

Read the PR Web Press Release

There Is Always a Better Way

#1 Importance of coaching

Your performance will always be higher if you have a world-class coach than if you try to learn something on your own. I had been working very hard, on my own, to learn how to podcast. But, here was someone who had been working very hard—for a lot longer. I wish I had met him sooner. You can try and try, but you’ll get better faster and you’ll be better in the end, if someone shows you all the tricks and tips.

#2 Kaizen

Things are changing so rapidly that you must always be changing and improving. A couple years ago when I began scouting for web platforms and podcasting solutions, a certain set of capabilities were available on the market. Two years later, all the vendors have added functionality and the assumptions of two years ago are no longer valid. To maximize my efficiency and quality, thereby remaining competitive, I have to update my information—and my tool suite. In other words, I have to by committed to openness and continuous incremental improvement.

#3 Simply Showing Up

A couple of years ago, when we were defining scope at the beginning of a consulting engagement, a client said, “We don’t need to outrun the bear, just our competition.” He was referring to the joke where a bear comes into the camp where two boys have pitched their tent. As one boy starts putting on tennis shoes, the other asks, “Why are you putting on tennis shoes instead of running away from the bear? Aren’t you scared?” The boy responds, “No, I’m not scared. I don’t have to outrun the bear. I only have to outrun you. …Bye!” Outrunning your competition is usually simply a matter of just showing up on the playing field. When it comes to innovation, the competition often doesn’t bother to show up to the game. So, on one hand, I was very humbled at the podcasting workshop by how much there is to know that I don’t know. On the other hand, at least I had showed up—about 53 times. The last time I looked on iTunes I had 53 episodes on my podcast. Even though I have a lot more to learn, at least I am on the field (on the Internet actually) and I am learning.

What opportunities should you be showing up to capture?

What has changed since you originally started—and that you now need to upgrade?

Who can you find who knows 10 times more than you do—and can give you a huge productivity boost?

Trend #1: The salesperson of yesterday is becoming extinct.

Gerhard Gschwandtner, CEO of Selling Power magazine and host of the Sales 2.0 Conference, predicted that up to 15 million traditional sales positions will be displaced by technology over this decade. The trends of globalization and Internet-empowered buyers are devaluing the roles traditionally filled by salespeople—to provide product information and take the order. Gschwandtner says, “70% of purchasing decisions are now made online, before the buyer comes in contact with a salesperson. Customers are on the web, so if salespeople and marketers are not on the web, they’ll lose the business to competitors who are.” Gschwandtner continued, “A new breed of salesperson, which I call Salesperson 2.0, will evolve that is highly proficient with technology.”

Trend #2: The customer is in control.

The Endangered Species

Trend #3: Marketers are becoming publishers.

The fuel for these customer-driven buying cycles is Brian Halligan and Dharmesh Shah’s concept of “remarkable content”– information and entertainment that attracts and engages buyers. The need to produce this content requires marketers to acquire new competencies. Rosenberg noted, “marketing organizations increasingly look like publishing and media organizations.” For example, a new trend in 2011 is the use of video, which is being enabled by technologies that greatly reduce the cost of producing video content. Speaker, Dave Fitzgerald went so far as to proclaim, “The whole world is going to video.” Marketing organizations, therefore, must now learn to be competent in video production.

Trend #4: Sales operations is becoming the revenue engine.

While remarkable content is the fuel, sales operations teams are becoming the engine on which marketing and sales are run. As most of the marketing and sales cycle increasingly happens “online,” the people, processes and technologies used to create and operate those “online” activities become mission-critical for the business. Michael Gerard, VP, Sales Advisory Practice at IDC, summarized, “The sales-operations function will be the driving force for productivity improvements in 2011.”

Sales 2.0 Conference Discussions

Get Sales 2.0 Conference recap information from web tools expert Miles Austin, president of Fill the Funnel, via the links below, or read more impressions and takeaways on the Sales 2.0 Conference blog.

Sales 2.0 Day 1
Sales 2.0 Day 2

About Change Leadership Group and Brett Clay
Clay is the author of “Selling Change,” named the best business book and best sales book of 2010, and is the CEO of Change Leadership Group, LLC, a firm that helps clients improve their sales, marketing, and http://sellingchange.com [leadership] capabilities. A veteran of 20 years in international sales and marketing management, most recently with Microsoft Corporation, he is an award-winning author, award-winning marketer, trainer, speaker, consultant, and business leader. www.ChangeLeadershipGroup.com.