Leadership eBook September 2012

7/30/2019 Leadership eBook September 2012

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Copyright2013MarkHunterwww.TheSalesHunter.com

The Sales Leader in YOU!By Mark Hunter The Sales HunterMaking a D i f fe rence When I t Matters Most

Ourcustomersarebuying

confidence.

Itsuptoustoshowit.

Why Leadership?Noothertraithasawideraffect

onsalessuccessthanleadership.

Leadershipisnotreservedforthosein

officialpositions,butisfoundinanyone

whoenvisionsbiggoalsandhasthe

tenacityandintegritytoaccomplish

them.

ThiseBookhighlightssomeofthemost

vitalstepssomeonecantaketoward

becomingasalesleader.

WhetheryouareaCEO,asales

managerorsomeonejuststartingoutin

thesalesindustry,youcanstrengthen

yourskillsandmoveconfidentlytoward

moreinfluence,moresalesandmore

satisfaction.


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L.E.A.D.E.R.S.H.I.P

Listening:Leaderstakethetimetolistento

whatisbeingsaidandmoreimportantlytowhatisnotbeingsaid.Createanenvironmentthat

fostersdialogueatalllevels.Createan

environmentthatencouragespeopletoshare

theiropinions,insteadofcomplainingtoothers.

Empowerment:High-performingteamsmaketheirowndecisions.Theyknowtheorganizations

visionandgoals.Theyreencouragedand

supportedinmakingtheirowndecisions.

Attitude:Leadersunderstandhowattitudeimpactstheperformanceoftheteam.Theskills

ofateamwillneverbefullyrealizedunlessthe

teamhasasuccess-orientedattitude.

Organizationsadoptthestyleoftheleader.When

leadersfailtoembraceapeople-oriented,growth

attitude,theybecomemanagersofaprocess.

Driven:Leadersdonotallowsetbackstobecomepermanent.Rathertheyusesetbacksas

stepping-stonestoaccomplishgoals.Leaders

knowpeoplearewatchingthemduringdifficult

timestoseehowtheyshouldrespond.Itsduring

difficulttimeswhentheleaderstruespiritcomes

through,anditsthisspiritthatbecomespartof

theorganization.

Encourage:Leadersneverunderestimatethepoweroftheteam

andarealwaysdrawingoutthebestin

peoplethroughtheirencouragementandsupportinlargeandsmallthings.Encouragementisan

intangible,yetleaderswhovisiblyandverbally

encourageotherpeoplegenuinelyunderstand

thepowerofencouragement

Nunc cursus magna quis

Donec sit amet arcu.

Relate:Greatleadersunderstandthepersonal

andprofessionalsidesoftheirorganizationsandtheyunderstandhowbothinteractwitheach

other.Leadersallowthemselvestobecome

exposedontheirpersonalside.

Simplify:Nowadays,informationisoverloadingeverythingandeverybody.Leadersknowhowto

preventinformationfromcomplicatingtasksand

theyworktostreamlineprocesses.Justas

importantisthesimplificationofthetasksathand.Thisisachievedwheneveryoneknowsand

understandstheobjectivesoftheteam.

Helpful:Leadersarenevertoobusynottohelp,noraretheytooproudnottohelp.Trueleaders

helppeopleinallkindsofsituations.However,

leadersalsoknowwhennottohelpandallowthe

teamandtheindividualstoachievethesatisfaction

ofaccomplishingthetaskthemselves.

Imagination:Leadersdreamand,moreimportantly,theyallowotherstodreamwith

them.Throughthisprocess,theyallowthe

organizationtomovetoahigherlevelthroughthe

useandapplicationofimaginationasaleadership

tool.

Passion:Nothingdeterminesthelevelofoutputmorethanthepassionexhibitedbytheteam,and

thisstartswiththeleader.Withoutdemonstratedpassionfromtheleader,thereisnohopeofthe

teameverachievinggreatness.Thelevelofoutput

isdirectlyrelatedtothepassionoftheorganization

andeachmemberoftheteam.

10 Traits of Effective Leaders


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Sales is Leadership.

Leadership is Sales.

Thosewhodemonstrate

leadershipwillsucceedin

theircareersintangible

waysandintangibleways.

1.

2.

3.

Salesleadershipcannotbereducedtosimplybeing

thetopperforming

salespersonintermsof

numbers.

Salesleadershipisbeing

thetypeofsalesperson

andsalesteamthatisseenbynotonlyyour

customers,butalsoyour

competitors,asthesource

toturntoforanswers.

Salesleadershipisbeing

abletoaskcustomers

andprospectsquestions

thatbothyouandthe

customerarenotgoing

toknowtheanswerto.

Tradition-boundsalespeople

wouldneverthinkofaskinga

customeraquestiontheywouldntbeabletoanswer.

Leadershipinsalesisjustthe

opposite.Itsbeing

comfortableandpersonally

confidentenoughtoask

toughquestions.

Themoreyougrowinyour

abilitytodothis,themore

likelyyouwilluncoverthe

typeofcrucialinformation

thatwillequipyoutoclose

theprofitablesalesthatother

salespeopleregularlymiss.

Askingt

heRightQues

tions


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20 Must Have Leadership Traits for Success

1.Althoughmanagersare

concerned

aboutaresult,

leadersarealso

concernedaboutwhya

resultoccurred.

2.Beliefandattitudemodificationareasmuch

ofaconcerntoaleaderas

skillsmodification.

3.Short-termresultscanbedrivenbya

managers

words.Long-term

resultsaredrivenbyaleadersactions.

4.Leadersunderstandthatvaluesandethicsplayamuchlargerroleintheeffectivenessof

along-termrelationshipthanmostpeople

typicallythink.

5.Successfulleadersrealizetheimportanceofnotjustthemajormovestheymake,but

alsothesmallones.

6.Successfulleadershaveteamsthatareunifiedinknowingboththegoalsofthe

organizationandhoweachpersonsactions

affecttheachievementofthosegoals.

7.Strongleadersareabletoimpactperformanceasmuchbywhattheydonot

sayasbywhattheydosay.

8.Leaderscreatebothformalandinformalcommunicationnetworkswithintheir

organization.

9.Leadersrecognizethatestablishingandnurturingmentoringnetworksisessentialin

high-performingorganization.

10.Leadersutilizetheinformalnetworkofanorganizationto

receivefeedbackandmonitorthe

healthoftheteam.

11.Successful

leaderscreate

organizationscomprised

ofindividualswhohavea

desiretocontinuously

improve.

12.Leadersworkto

createanenvironmentamongtheentire

organizationthat

encouragesdialogue

amongpeersinanefforttoimprove

themselves.



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20 Must Have Leadership Traits for Success13.Leadersarecomfortablewithcommunicationflowingbackuptothemand

howtodealwithitonceitsreceived.

14.Leaderskeepthefocusoftheorganizationonthetrueobjectivesanddonot

allowtheenergyoftheorganizationtobe

spent.

15.Leaderscontinuouslyreviewthewaythingsarebeingdoneandworktoimprove

thembyfosteringwithintheorganizationa

spiritthatisnotthreatenedbychange.

16.Successfulleadersrealizethepersonalimpacttheymakeonthepeopletheycomein

contactwitheveryday.Byunderstandingthe

sacredroletheyplayinthelivesofpeople,

theyaremorecognizantofhowtheychoose

tointeractwiththem.

17.Successfulleadersrealizeyoucannottotallyseparateapersonsworklifefrom

theirpersonallife.18.High-performingleadersareoneswhodonotmerelypassalong

information.Rather,theyfilterthe

informationtoensureitswhatthe

organizationneedstoknowandthatits

communicatedinanappropriate

manner.Thisdoesnotmeanleaderskeep

theirteamsinthedark.Agoodleaderwill

analyzetheinformationtodetermine

whetherornotithelpstheorganization

achieveitsgoals.

19.Leadersaccomplishtheirtasksthroughotherpeople,notthemselves.

20.Leadersunderstandhowapersonsoutputisimpactedbytheirattitude.

With each personwe meet, our goal

is to earn the right,privilege, honorand respect tomeet with thatperson again.


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Oneaspectwithregardtosalesleadershipistopaycloseattention

toyoure-reputation.

Iranacrossthisphraseandwasstruckbyit.Youre-reputationiswhatothersmay

findoutaboutyouandyourcompanyviatheweb.

Maintainingareputablestatusonthewebisaworthyendeavor.

WithGoogle,itseasytoseewhatpeoplearesayingaboutyouoryourcompany.All

greatleaderswillalwayshavepeoplewhoareindisagreementwiththem.Takethe

timetoseewhatisouttheresoyoucanthenrespondshouldsomethingnegative

comeupinaconversation.

Iknowplentyofwarningshavebeengiventhatyoushouldbeconscientiousofwhatyou

sharepersonallyonsocialnetworkingsites.

Surprisingly,somepeoplestilldonotheed

thesewarnings.

Theysharequestionablecommentsorphotos

onFacebookorTwitter,forgettingwhois

connectedtothemonthosesitesorsimplyforgettingthatitsnottoodifficultfor

anyonetocomeacrosstheinformation.

Ifyouwanttokeepahighlevelofprofitsandsalesmotivationandifyouwantto

haveampletimetofocusonyoursellingskillsthenbesureyouareviewedasa

leader.Carryyourselfwithintegrityandconfidencewhereveryoupresentyourself,

includingoutincyberspace.

Howisyoure-Reputation?


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Itsthemeetingforwhichyouvebeenwaiting.

Finally,youvebeenabletosecureameetingwiththeCEOofthecompanyyouknowyou

canhelp.Forthepastyear,youvebeenresearchingthecompanyanddeveloping

relationshipswithasmanypeopleaspossible.

Inparticular,youhavegottentoknowthetwogatekeeperswhohavebeenuptonow

blockingyourwaytotheCEO.Lastweekyourcalltotheadministrativeassistantfinallyhit

homeandyoureontheCEOscalendarinthreeweeks.

Nowisthetimetomakesureyourleadershipskillsareashonedaspossibleandtoget

readyforthisimportantmeeting.

Thedegreetowhichyoupreparewilldirectlyimpactthesuccessofyourmeeting.

Beloware6keythingsyouneedtodobeforeyourmeeting:

1. SetupGoogleAlertstoreceiveanyupdates

thatmayappearontheinternetforthe

company,thepersonyouregoingtomeet

andtheothertoppeopleinthecompany

withwhomtheCEOinteracts.

2. Ifthecompanyispublicallytraded,readtheirannualreportsandtheirquarterly

filings,andlistentotheoftheirquarterly

investorcalls.

3. Benchmarkthecompanywiththeirmajor

competitorstodeterminehowtheycompare.

Are You Readyto Meet withthe CEO?

Continued


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4. Identifythestrategicobjectivesonwhichthecompanyisworking.Inparticular,

learnallyoucanaboutthekeyinitiativeswithwhichyouhavereasontobelievethe

CEOismostconcerned.

5. Monitorthenewstodetermineifthereareanypoliticalornewsworthyevents

thatcouldimpacteithertheCEOorthecompany.Monitorthetradejournalsand

industrywebsitesthatpertaintothecompanysindustry.

6. KnowtheeducationalbackgroundoftheCEOandidentifyanykeyalumniand

schooleventswithwhichtheCEOmaybeconnected.

Usetheinformationyouobtainfromthe

activitieslistedabovetohelpyoudevelopa

listofpeercomment/questionsyoucan

sharewiththegatekeeperorCEOifthe

opportunityarises.

Peercomments/questionsarethosethings

youcansharebrieflywiththeCEOor

gatekeeperthatallowthemtoseethatyou

areawareoftheenvironmentinwhichthey

operateandthatyouarecomfortable

talkingaboutthosethings.

Bypositioningyourpeercommentasa

question,younotonlyhavetheabilityto

sharesomethingwiththem,butyoualsowill

engagetheminconversation.Makingapeer

comment/questionpartofyouropening

dialoguewiththeCEOwillreassuretheCEO

thattheyarenotwastingtheirtimewith

someonewhodoesnotunderstandhowvaluabletheCEOstimeis.Italsodemonstrates

thatyoucomprehendtheirlevelofdecision-makingresponsibility.

Rememberyourpeercomment/questionisnottheopportunityforyoutoshareyour

5,000wordopiniononatopic.Yourcomment/questionshouldbebriefandframedasan

openingtogettheCEOtosharetheiropinion.

Itisnotnecessaryforthepeerquestion/commenttorelatedirectlytoyourmeetingtopic.

Infact,isbetterifitisonacompletelydifferenttopic.YouwillshowtheCEOthatyoudo

nothavetunnelvisionandyouhaveabroaderunderstandingoftheworldinwhichthey

operate.

Continued


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IfyourewonderingwhyIusethetermpeer,itisbecausethetopicyourebringingupis

designedtobeatopictheCEOmayverywellbediscussingwiththeirpeers.Thisallowsthe

CEOtonaturallybegintoseeyouasoneoftheirpeers,thusincreasingtheircomfortin

sharinginformationwithyou.

Earlierinthisarticle,Imentionedthatyoushouldnthesitatetoshareyourpeercomments/questionswiththegatekeeperaswell.Thegatekeeperisreallyanextensionof

theCEO.Whenyoumakerelevantcommentsorposepeerquestions,youincreasethe

gatekeeperscomfortlevel.Ifthegatekeeperfeelscomfortablewithyou,thiscontributesto

theCEOfeelingcomfortable.

Ifyouhavemanagedtolandthatall-importantmeetingwithaCEO,dontdelayinyour

preparation.Investtheeffortandtimenowsoyoucanexperiencethevaluabledividends

later.Betheleaderyouarecapableofbeing.BetheleadertheCEOwillremember.

We influence each

person we meet.Our goal is toinfluence them

positively.


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Whatdoyoureyesandhandshavetodo

withsalesleadership?

Youreyescommunicateconfidence.Yourhandsdemonstrateleadership.

Salespeoplelosecontrolofmanysalescallsandtheir

ownsalesmotivationduetotheirlackofeyecontact

andhowtheyusetheirhands.Itsimportanttonote,

though,thattheeyesandhandsservedifferentpurposes.

Youreyescommunicateconfidence.

Ifthesalespersoncantgivethecustomereyecontact,

thenclearlythesalespersonisnotconfidentaboutwhattheyretalkingaboutorworseyet,thecustomer

intimidatesthem.

Ineithercase,thesalespersonsabilitytoclosethe

saleisgoingtobeseverelyjeopardized.Thisis

especiallytruewhencommunicatingpriceordealing

withobjectionsraisedbythecustomer,asitsat

thesecriticalpointsofasalescallwhereeyecontact

isabsolutelyessential.

Yourhandshelpyouconveyleadershipin

severalways.

First,itswithyourhandshake.Thefirmnessofyour

handshakeisgoingtogoalongwayin

communicatingyourconfidenceandinessenceyour

abilitytolead.ThemainreasonIbelieveyourhands

helpdemonstrateleadershipisinhowtheyreused

asacommunicationtool.

Leadersusetheirhandmotionstomoveatapaceconsistentwiththewordsperminute

theyspeakat.

Overlyfastandjerkymovementscommunicateasenseofpanic.Incontrast,deliberate

handmovementsthatflowinsyncwithwhatisbeingsaiddemonstratethesalespersonis

incontrolandhasanabilitytolead.

Continued


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Anotherwayyourhandsdemonstrateleadershipishowtheyreheldinrelation

tothebody.

Thefurtherthehandsareextendedfromthebody,themoreitshowsleadership,due

tothespacethepersonislookingtocontrol.

Finally,thehandsdemonstrateleadershipbecausetheycanshowsomeonethat

youarelistening.

Whenthehandsarestillwhiletheotherpersonistalking,itconveysyouare

listening.Obviously,listeningiscrucialtoleadership.Trueleadersshowthisnotjust

withtheirears,butalsowiththeirpostureandwiththeirhands.Whenyouhold

yourhandsstillwhiletheotherpersonistalking,itisaveryvisiblecontrasttoyour

handmovementswhenyouretalking.

Youreyesandyourhandstwocommunicationtoolsthathelpdemonstrateconfidenceandleadership.Beintentionalandconscientiousinhowyouuseyour

eyesandyourhands.Theyaresayingmorethanyourealize.

The level of prof it youmake on a sale wil l reflect

the level of confidence youhad going into the call.

The level of trust you buildtoday will determine the

level of profi t you achievetomorrow.


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Sales leaders learn how to get thebest and most useful informationout of customers.

Theresnobetterwaytoimprovethequalityof

informationyoureceivefromapotentialcustomerthan

byaskingshortquestions.

Weallcanrecallfartoomanytimeswhenwevesat

acrossthetablefromacustomerweretryingtohelpandweknowwecanhelp,iftheywouldjustprovideus

informationabouttheirneedsandgoals.

Ourproblemindealingwiththistypeofcustomeriswe

needtofindabetterwaytoengagethemandtoget

themtothinkaboutwhattheywantandneedand

thensharethatinformationwithus.

The answer to this dilemma?Short questions.

Ibelievethatshortquestionsgetyoulonganswers(whilelongquestionsgetyoushortanswers).

Whattoooftenhappensiswearetalkingtoacustomerandaskingthemwhatwebelieveare

simplequestions,butinreality,thosequestionsaresimpleonlytous.Tosomeoneunfamiliar

withourproductandservices,thequestionsarecomplex.

Forexample,weaskaquestionthathasacoupleoffactswrappedupinit.Asaresult,itwinds

upbeingmoreofastatementforwhichwearesimplylookingforfeedbackoragreement.No

wondercustomerscangiveusthecoldshoulderandtheblankstare.

Whatwewanttodoisaskshortquestions.Intheirsimplestform,theyarequestionslikewhy

andhow.Orpossiblytheylooklikethesequestions:

Couldyougivemeanexample?Couldyouexplainthatagaintome?

Best Information Comes

from SHORT Questions

Continued


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The shorter the question,the more likely we are to geta long answer.

The next step is to ask themanother short question,following up on what theyjust said.

Thebeautyaboutthisisitallowsthe

customertodoallthetalking.Bydoingthe

talking,theylltellyoutheirneedsanddesiredbenefits.

Theylltellyoutheirgoalsandwillrevealalevelofinformationyouneedtodeterminehowto

bestservethem.

Whenusingtheshortquestionapproach,thereareonlytwothingsyouneedto

remember:

First,askthecustomerasofteasyquestiontowhichyouknowtheyll

respond.

Second,aftertheyhavegivenyouaresponse,continuewiththeshortquestioningapproachby

asking,Couldyougivemeanotherexample?

Youthenpauseandallowtheclienttogiveyoumoreinformation,uponwhichyoufollowup

againwithanothershortquestionsuchas,How?orWhy?

Basically,youwanttodowhateveryoucantogetthemtalkingmore.

Second,dontkeepaskingthesameshortquestions.

Ifyoudo,youllcomeacrossasaninquisitive3-year-oldratherthantheprofessional

salespersonyouknowyouare.Youcanavoidthisbestbypickinguponasingleitemtheysharedwithyouanddrillingdownonjustthatoneitem.Whenyoudrilldownonasingleitem,

youdemonstrateyourlisteningskillsandyourabilitytotrulydiscerninformation.

Thebeautyofthisapproachiswhenitworks,thecustomerwillmanytimessharewithyou

exactlywhattheywantandwillbeginaskingyouquestionsaboutfeaturesandbenefits.

Shortquestionsgetyoulonganswers.Longquestionsgetyoushortanswers.Itisuptoyouas

totheapproachyouwanttotake.


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DoYouTalkAboutYour

Products?OrDoYou

TalkAboutYourCustomersBusiness?

Salesleadersknowthatthelimitedtimetheyhavewithacustomershould

bespenttalkingaboutwhatthecustomerismostinterestedin.

Ifyouarespendingtimediscussingwith

yourcustomerstheirbusiness,then

yourebehavinginawaythatmost

salespeoplefailtocomprehend.

Itsnotthatyoudonttalkatallabout

whatyousell.

Whatitmeansisyoureplacingthe

interestsofthecustomeraheadof

yours,andwhenyoudotalkabout

whatitisyousell,youredoingsoina

waythatwrapsitaroundhowitis

goingtohelpthecustomersbusiness.

ToomanysalespeoplewhosellintheB2B(businessto

business)sectorseemtoforgetaboutthefactthatifthe

customertheyresellingtoisnotsuccessful,thereisno

waytheyasasalespersonwillbesuccessfulsellingto

them.

Asasalesleader,youhavetorecognizeandembracethat

yourcustomershavetobestrongandhealthy.Thelast

thingyouwanttodoistoselltoacustomerwhocantpay

you.

Takeafewminutestoaskyourselfwhatyouknowabout

yourcustomersbusiness.Askyourself,Whenwasthe

lasttimeIhadasoliddiscussionabouttheirbusiness?

Continued


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Imafirmbelieverthat

unlessyourehaving

seriousdiscussionswith

yourcustomerabouttheir

businessandhowtheycan

improveit,thereislittle

chanceyouwilleverbea

greatsalesperson,letalone

asalesleader.

Thebeautyinhavingthistypeof

discussionwithyourcustomers

istheinformationyoull

learn.Veryquicklyyoulllearninsightsandstrategiesthatwillhelpyoumaximize

opportunities,notonlywiththecustomertowhomyouaretalking,butalsowithothercustomers.

Thisknowledgewillquicklyworkitswayintoallofyourdiscussions,whichinturnwillhave

customerssharingwithyouevenmoreinformation.

Theendresultissimpleyoullbeseenassomebodyvaluable,andtheymay

actuallylookforwardtomeetingwithyou.

Youwillstandapartfromother

salespeople,whothetypicalcustomercanusuallydowithout.


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Sales Leadership is possib le for anyonededicated to the profession of sales andthe goals of their customers.

Decide today to walk with conf idence,integrity and a life-long commitment tocontinual learning.

You wont regret where that decision will take you!

For a Free Weekly Sales Tip andother resources, visit

www.TheSalesHunter.com

MarkHunter

[email protected]

(402)445-2110

www.Facebook.com/TheSalesHunter

www.Twitter.com/TheSalesHunter

www.YouTube.com/TheSalesHunter

www.Linkedin.com/in/MarkHunter

Leadership eBook September 2012

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Transcript of Leadership eBook September 2012