This is a special post to let you know that I’ll be giving a speech, “Growing Your Sales: Revealing the Secrets of the Big Corporate Buyer” on April 20, 2011 (next week)!
One of my small “secrets” is to really do your homework on the business you are selling in to. “Well, duh, that is no secret!” you may be thinking. But sad to say, in my corporate buying experience I built up a level of disdain toward salespeople because many did no homework at all or just did not think about my needs/wants (it was all about their great product). I found a funny example of this in an Inc. Magazine article (linked) about entrepreneurs selling to large corporations. The supply manager at UPS said that she would regularly receive proposals from suppliers in Fed-Ex envelopes!
It is really all about them as the buyer of your service or product. If you can shift into this mindset then you will go a long way toward building a strong relationship with your customer. I’ll be giving some tips on how to make this shift and have your customer saying, “Wow, you are the best supplier!”
If you are curious about learning more and want to grow your business by selling to large corporations then make plans to be there! My speech is part of a conference by the local chapter of the Institute of Management Consultants (linked). If you are a member of the Phoenix International Coach Federation chapter then you can attend at the member rate (send me a comment if you need the code).
I would love to see you there! Paula