Are You a Saint or a Sinner?

When it comes to selling services, that is
by James A. “Alex” Alexander, Ed.D.

Research shows that only 13 percent of business executives are fully satisfied that their salespeople are selling the right services to the right customers in the right way. Yikes, that sounds like sales hell!

My 16 years of personal experience in helping senior managers build profitable services businesses supports this finding. The capability of effectively selling services is the biggest differentiator between top services organizations and everyone else. It is here that smart investments can yield both rapid and often dramatic improvements in performance.

That’s why, starting next month, I’m kicking off the Ten Commandments of Selling Professional Services Series. These 10 directives, or “commandments,” provide the framework from which to first understand sales performance problems and opportunities and then implement positive changes.

You will discover that the process is simple, the problems are easy to understand and most of the remedies are straightforward. There is one caveat, however. Just like the Ten Commandments used in the biblical sense, there are no exceptions — to excel in professional services selling, you must do all 10 well.

To make progress tomorrow, the logical starting point today is to first determine your ability to live up to each of the 10 Commandments.

Commandments to sell by

1. Clarify complex customer issues. [View webinar recording]
2. Communicate the invisible. [View webinar recording]
3. Customize each solution. [View webinar recording]
4. Commit high-level executives to action. [View webinar recording]
5. Coordinate the sales team. [Webinar recording coming]
6. Compress the cycle time of selling. [Webinar recording coming]
7. Concentrate on the stars. [Webinar recording coming]
8. Control the cost of the sale. [Webinar recording coming]
9. Commercialize the sales promise. [Webinar recording coming]
10. Continue to learn and grow. [Webinar recording coming]

Interested in improving your services selling? Then take the first step now. Complete the five-minute survey and find out if you are a saint or a sinner! You will get a quick diagnostic of your services selling capability and some guidance on where to focus your improvement efforts.

In addition, I will integrate the results into the article series, including your insights and ideas for specific topics you’d like me to talk about.

Head for the pearly gates

Starting next month, I’ll look at each Commandment and provide detailed definitions, burning issues from the survey, heavenly practices to emulate and the biggest sins to avoid.

Join me next time when I discuss Commandment 1: Clarify complex customer issues. I think you will like what you see.

1.  Alexander, James A. 2000. The state of high-tech professional services: An industry in transition.

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About James “Alex” Alexander

 

Alex is founder of Alexander Consulting, a management consultancy that helps companies create and implement professional services strategies for product companies. Contact him at 239-671-0740 or alex@alexanderstrategists.com, or visit www.alexanderstrategists.com.

© Alexander Consulting