Getting People to Give you Time – Sales and Marketing Ideas #1

IDEA 1 :

GETTING PEOPLE TO GIVE YOU TIME

Many sales people need to take steps to get people to give them their undivided attention, to spend sufficient time with them and to do so willingly because they believe it is useful. But….

People are busy, these days pressure on time seems to be greater than ever before, and anything other than a realistic attitude to this is likely to help you sell successfully. Clearly a more professional approach is more likely to be seen as relevant, but the more imaginative sales people can take specific action to maximize time spent.

Idea

In a major international airline….

There is a particular salesman known internally as “the donut man”. Given that part of his job is to call regularly on travel agents and brief their staff on new developments (such as new routes, fares, and special offers), has a problem. If he does this one person at a time, then even in a medium-sized city agency it could take a long time to brief everyone. The agency will not let him do it with everyone at a time- telephone must answer and business must continue. So he has to evolve a cunning plan: he arranges to see half the staff at a time, and promises to arrive “bearing gifts”. At the appointed time he appears with a tray of coffees, teas and donuts from the nearby cafe. Half the staffs take a break together, they gather around, and he can brief them in a convivial atmosphere. When he has finished the staff swap: now the brief group go back on duty, and the other half take a break. They all like it. They pay attention. And they look forward to his next visit.

Most important, they are up to date, and we able to steer their customers towards this particular airline in their day-to-day work.

In practice

  • Think about how your customer’s businesses work and aim to fit in with their special nature.
  • Sometimes something unconventional can fit this criterion and work well; stay open minded.

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