TURNING A MORNING WITH A SALESPERSON INTO A
MUTUALLY PROFITABLE EVENT
You do go out on calls with your salespeople from time to time—don’t you? I ask because in a time of dwindling staffs and overworked managers, time to accompany salespeople one-on-one seems to be a fading commodity. Whether you have a sales staff of twenty or two you’ll never get a true feel for how your station is being represented unless you hit the streets with individual salespeople. That’s the first trick to ride-alongs: simply doing them. The second is to make them worthwhile, which is where many managers miss some golden opportunities.
Contrary to widely-held belief, the purpose of a radio station manager's ride-along is not to check up on the salesperson. The numbers will tell you whether a person is really making the calls he claims to be making or seeing the decision-makers she should be seeing.
The real value lies in educating the manager about every client who's on the station.
It’s important not to make that ride-along call too early in the sales relationship, too. Certainly not on the first Client Needs Analysis visit. Probably not on the follow-up call when a proposal is first presented. Somewhere in the vicinity of call number three or four, when the relationship is maturing but still fresh enough to identify opportunities or issues, is perfect.
In this Monday Sales Blast, I’ll reveal three reasons why you should block out a few hours every few months to make calls with each person on your sales staff—and one temptation to avoid at all costs.
1. Meet new customers/put a face to a name
You score major points with new clients when you accompany your salesperson on an early visit. Bringing “the boss” along just to say hello and show an interest in the business says two critical things to a new customer”:
- Your business is important enough to the station that the manager is taking the time to meet you in person
- Here’s the person who runs the station—you can take any problems straight to the top if you have to
There’s plenty of value to you as the radio station manager in getting to know your customers personally. When account lists are reduced to printouts of who-spent-what and how long it took them to pay, you take yourself out of the sales loop in a meaningful way. Look at your lists: Would you know some of these people if you ran into (or over) them today? Would you know any of them? What their place of business looks like? What vehicle they drive?
If not, you need to get out of the station.
2. Catch things your salesperson might not notice
You probably have been in the business a lot longer than most of your salespeople. Which means that your eye may observe opportunities or potential issues that your salesperson will miss. Things on the upside such as expansion of the customer’s physical plant or display space, which signals new products and more need to advertise.
Potential issues you might uncover include age and condition of inventory and fixtures that may speak to cash flow problems. And what about the training and attitudes of the customer’s employees: could they create customer service issues that even the best advertising campaigns can’t resolve?
3. Provide an extra push in closing a sale—when appropriate
If your salesperson is having a problem getting a new client to “yes” or is unsure about how to handle a problem, your presence can make all the difference. Simply by showing up, you add an air of authority to the proceedings: you‘re the boss, you know the most and you can solve issues, perhaps even on the spot.
You also cared enough to make the effort. How many other stations can say that?
One thing you should NEVER do on a ride-along
Another way you can pitch in is to present a specific part of an advertising idea or proposal.
Warning, however: You are NOT there to take over the sales call!
If you’re going to be part of a presentation, you and your salesperson should work out in advance exactly when you’ll enter the discussion, what you’ll contribute—make it brief yet significant—and when you’ll step aside.
The salesperson needs to handle the presentation, not be stepped all over by you. You’re extra ammunition. Aim, fire, then step back.
A valuable manager ride-along boils down to three things:
- Taking the time and making a number of calls
- Orchestrating the involvement you’ll have in each call
- Doing your part—then stepping back and listening
Lift your eyes from those sales call sheets and account aging lists and go out with your salespeople.
Oh, and if you carry a list yourself and think you’re so damn good—have them ride along with you sometimes, too!
