In reality the saying is a service message - the customer can’t always be right but you don’t tell him so in so many words.

The customer is right in the sense that his welfare is put first and we do not tell him he is wrong we just point him in the right direction.

As an example, lets use a retail situation, a man turns up in the TV shop and wants to buy a telly.

He is definite that he wants a large flat screen TV that will be mounted on his wall above the fire.

The salesman, if he is any good, will ask the right questions that will probably change a lot of what the customer wants.

For instance, what size is the room where the TV will be placed? Too large and could dominate the room, too small and it could difficult to see from the sofa?

What is the construction of the wall where he wants the TV mounted? Is it strong enough to take a television, dependent on size?

Has the customer realised that many people end up with a crook in the neck from staring up at a television on a wall? Why ignore decades of eye level telly because of fashion?

The question could go on and on - but do you get the point? The customer was probably not right with his initial request. A good salesman would not sell him what he asked for but what he needed and would be satisfied with.

Who would be to blame if he got what he asked for but it was unsuitable? As far as hte customer was concerned it would be the salesman - why did he sell him the TV - it was unsuitable. Again the customer isn’t right, he got what he asked for - but in another way he is right, as the good salesman would not have sold it to him, at least not without dire warnings.

It is the same here at Enigin. Through Enigin Distributors many, many people inquire about our energy saving products, it is understandable as the energy saving business is very much a booming business, even in a recession because saving energy saves money and protects profits.

But we do not just sell products we sell solutions, we need to look at clients needs- audit their energy use and then make recommendation based on data and facts,

Just because they wish to put in energy saving lights doesn’t mean to say that is the best course for them, they will save energy but will it give a good return on investment?

Potential customers are often dumbfounded when Enigin say they don’t want to just sell them what they have asked for - they are not trying to sell them up but to sell them right.

Not that we won’t seel some a product if they insist, wew are a business and the TV salesman will sell you the wrong TV if you insist after his warnings.

What we do here at Enigin, as our Distributors do globally, we advise clients, strongly, that they need to make sound decisions based on the true situation, or else they will not make the energy and financial savings they can, and hence will be disappointed and unlikely to look to make anymore savings or purchases. As far as they are concerned we have let them down - which is an injustice.

So remember - listen to the salesman, it’s not that he will say no, but he will allow you to make the decision and even the changes that will lead you to the right choice, whether it is a TV or a energy saving solutions for your business.

It is a stark fact that salesmen are not the most trusted of individuals, we are all wary when we know the purpose of contact from someone is to sell us something, even if it is something we need or want.
A change took place earlier this decade when the Edelman Trust Barometer reported a significant change in who people trusted. In 2003 only 22 percent trusted “someone like me” (that is liking the sort of person you are). The following year a major sea-change became apparent when that 22 percent turned dramatically into 51 percent - this changed art of sales.

You are probably yelling at the screen declaring this is rubbish as sales have always relationship based. Very true and that hasn’t changed, but the social aspect has come into to play in the 21st century demands a different relationship.

Suddenly more intimate knowledge of the customer was needed than just a case of sharing a meal and a chat about sports. Why the change? Because suddenly what you were selling, solutions, products or services, became available from so many different suppliers, large and small, with the internet proving to be a leveler.

The expectations of customers changed, with a form of partnership now expected, allowing an honesty and transparency from the selling company. This allowed customers top make sound, intelligent decisions on how to deal with the selling company.

That open honest attitude has transformed many companies, with blogs often at the forefront of the honesty and openness that customers require.

The “relationship” based sales are no longer the relationship between individual seller and buyer - the desire is not that the salesperson is a “person like me” but the selling business is a “person like me”! This means their experience of dealing with a company has to be good, or at least not poor, across their dealings together, including sales, marketing and services and in all their dealings with the company.

They expect personal treatment from the company not just the salesperson who sits across the desk from them.

At Enigin we value the personal contact we have with our customers and encourage all our Enigin Distributors worldwide to approach their energy saving businesses in the same vein.

All business will profit through taking an interest in their clients as a business, not just the salesman but the whole company needs to have that personal relationship with a customer. You have to think collectively to become a “person like me” as far as your clients are concerned.

Here the second part of the superb duo of articles by Geoffrey James for BNET - which have proved to be a great reminder for all of us connected to Enigin, staff and all of Enigin’s Distributors - in the first article he wrote about The 7 Deadly Sins of Selling - he has followed it up with The 7 Virtues of Selling - enjoy:

• Virtue #1: Patience. If you don’t have patience, you’ll get frustrated and ineffective when things take longer than you’d like. How to get it: Realize that success is usually achieved one step at a time. Be patient with yourself and resist the temptation to compare your progress to that of others.
• Virtue #2: Commitment. It’s only through commitment to your customers that you’ll be able to focus and follow through on helping them. How to get it: Be willing to do whatever it takes (within legal and ethical bounds) to achieve success. Banish all thoughts of EVER giving up.
• Virtue #3: Enthusiasm. Your enthusiasm for your firm, your product, your customers and your life make you a magnet for sales success.  How to get it: Surround yourself with people who support and believe in you; avoid negative people and naysayers.
• Virtue #4: Growth. If you are not growing as an individual and as a professional, you’re slowly dying and declining. How to get it: Spend time every day learning something new that will help you accomplish your goals. Read books, listen to tapes, take courses, network with peers.
• Virtue #5: Courage. If you’re not willing to fail, you won’t take necessary risks. That takes courage to persevere even in the face of enormous odds.  How to get it: Realize that success usually comes only after setbacks. Viewing “failure” as an unavoidable component of success.
• Virtue #6: Honesty. Customers know when you’re not being honest with them, or even being honest with yourself.  Then they balk.  How to get it: Simple.  Live every moment as if you are on camera and your family and friends is watching your every move.
• Virtue #7: Flexibility. Life is change, and nothing ever stays the same.  You can’t possibly be successful in sales if you can’t adapt to changing circumstances.  How to get it: Focus on the process not the goals.  Observe what’s working and what’s not.  Then change your approach.

It is the first part of a superb duo of articles by Geoffrey James for BNET - he titles it The 7 Deadly Sins of Selling: - enjoy:

Everyone has heard of the traditional seven deadly sins (lust, greed, etc.).  Did you know that there are also seven sins of selling?  And they’re deadly sins,  because if you indulge in them, you’ll find your sales efforts dead in the water.  Here they are:

1. SIN #1: Not being personally accountable. Don’t pass the buck somebody else in your firm; your customers want your personal skin in the game.
2. SIN #2: Failing to understand the customer’s business. Don’t expect customers to answer dozens of questions just because you didn’t do your research.
3. SIN #3: Being an adversary, not an ally. Since customers are risking their career doing business with you, they expects you to represent their best interests.
4. SIN #4: Selling products not solutions. Don’t burden customers with features and functions; tell them how your solution will help their business.
5. SIN #5: Being inaccessible when needed. If customers are important to you, you’ll answer their email or voice mail within minutes, not hours.
6. SIN #6: Selling rather than helping. Customers want you to be thinking about how to help their firm, not how to sell your products.
7. SIN #7: Wasting the customer’s time. If your solution isn’t the right choice for the customer, say so.  Don’t waste their time pitching something they don’t need.

Look out for a follow up soon.

What I would like to share with you is the power of a dynamic presentation.

At Enigin we see how powerful demonstrations can be as we show clients what our products can do - most notably our IMEC range of motor controllers.

Using an attache case fitted out with a single-phase IMEC controller and an amp meter and volt meter we can plug in an electric motor.

With the motor plugged in and on it bounces and vibrates loudly, inching its way towards the edge of the table on which we have placed it. The meters show the voltage and the amps being used, generally the amount as stated on the motors plate. It is noisy and dramatic.

Using our demo case we can then switch the IMEC motor controller on, immediately the motor quietens and stops vibrating and moving, the amp and volt meters drop as less energy is used to run the motor at exactly the same rpm - a dramatic and dynamic change.

Then, carefully using a glove, the spinning spindle on the motor has a light load added by pinching it between thumb and forefinger - the meters rise as the extra power to deal with the load applied is intelligently supplied by the motor controller.

This demonstration is a dynamic way of showing how IMEC saves energy and the work put on a motor by using only power that is needed to fulfil it’s role.

Ian Wrigley has used this demonstration for many years to show people what motor controllers can do and has made many sales, substantial sales on the back of this dynamic demonstration.

If the product you are trying to sell can be demonstrated dynamically it is worth paying out a small amount to make up a demo - whether it is in a case, on a frame or whatever. If you can easily show your clients what can be achieved it is far better than all the words you could use.

At Enigin plc we train Enigin Distributors to work the numbers to get plenty of appointments, but meaningful ones - so you do not want to “blow” them when you do get them.

Hence, when you do have that initial meeting with a customer, you need to be certain that you don’t blow it.

Here is the last of the 9 dumb, but very common, errors that will blow an initial customer meetings — but also advice on how to avoid them.

9: Failing to Qualify the Lead

• Why It Happens: Sales pros wrongly believe that the purpose of the initial meeting is to move the sales process forward by finding out about the buying process.
• What It Doesn’t Work: It’s useless to gather buying information without first confirming that the customer has a need that justifies investment and that the customer has money to invest.
• What Results: You end up spending your time on a false opportunity, thereby missing other real opportunities that might eventually close.
• What To Do Instead: The first area of conversation should always be a clarification of the problem and an assessment of the financial impact of the problem. Then confirm that the company is actually ready to spend money to solve the problem. Only then should you be interested in HOW the company might go about making a decision.

At Enigin plc we train Enigin Distributors to work the numbers to get plenty of appointments, but meaningful ones - so you do not want to “blow” them when you do get them.

Hence, when you do have that initial meeting with a customer, you need to be certain that you don’t blow it.

Here is the eight of the 9 dumb, but very common, errors that will blow an initial customer meetings — but also advice on how to avoid them.

8: Overscheduling the Meeting

• Why It Happens: Sales pros naturally hope that they’ll have a productive meeting, where they’ll learn everything they need to know, so they try to schedule a large block of time.
• Why It Doesn’t Work: Prospects are reluctant to give sales professionals large blocks of time. Also, you’re setting yourself up for an awkward situation if you find out that the prospect isn’t a potential customer and need to leave.
• What Results: It’s harder to get that initial meeting, and you run the risk of wasting your time, and the prospect’s time.
• What To Do Instead: Ask for a short amount of time, but schedule extra time on your calendar to accommodate an extension of the meeting. If you are nearing the end of your allotted time, and the meeting is going smoothly, remind the contact that your time is nearly up. Then ask if he or she would mind extending the meeting a little, as you are fascinated by what you’re learning. In most cases, the contact will let meeting continue.

At Enigin plc we train Enigin Distributors to work the numbers to get plenty of appointments, but meaningful ones - so you do not want to “blow” them when you do get them.

Hence, when you do have that initial meeting with a customer, you need to be certain that you don’t blow it.

Here is the seventh of the 9 dumb, but very common, errors that will blow an initial customer meetings — but also advice on how to avoid them.

7: Asking Repetitive Questions.

• Why It Happens: As the sales rep works to uncover the buying process, question like “and he reports to who?” starts sounding like a scratched CD.
• Why It Doesn’t Work: Reporting structures are among the most boring information on earth and the prospect rightly starts becoming bored explaining them.
• What Results: The conversation lags and you end up finding out only the least important elements of the buying process.
• What To Do Instead: To keep the conversation interesting, sprinkle it with questions that have built-in, positive assumptions, like: “Your industry is in tough economic times, but your company seems to be doing better than everyone else. How do you guys do that so consistently?” or “You’ve obviously developed a wealth of business contacts. What’s your secret?”

At Enigin plc we train Enigin Distributors to work the numbers to get plenty of appointments, but meaningful ones - so you do not want to “blow” them when you do get them.

Hence, when you do have that initial meeting with a customer, you need to be certain that you don’t blow it.

Here is the sixth of the 9 dumb, but very common, errors that will blow an initial customer meetings — but also advice on how to avoid them.

6: Asking Obvious Questions.

• Why It Happens: The sales pro wants to learn about the buying process and business model, and therefore asks questions about the identity of top management.
• Why It Doesn’t Work: In today’s wired-up world, there’s wealth of information available online about nearly every company.
• What Results: The prospect rightly concludes that you didn’t care enough about the opportunity to do some research prior to the sales call.
• What To Do Instead: Never ask a customer a question that you can get answered somewhere else. Before your first customer meeting, dredge through news stories on the web, the company’s SEC filings, and the company’s Hoover’s listing. Familiarize yourself with the basics of the customer’s finances and memorize the names of key individuals.

At Enigin plc we train Enigin Distributors to work the numbers to get plenty of appointments, but meaningful ones - so you do not want to “blow” them when you do get them.

Hence, when you do have that initial meeting with a customer, you need to be certain that you don’t blow it.

Here is the fifth of the 9 dumb, but very common, errors that will blow an initial customer meetings — but also advice on how to avoid them.

5. Trying to Close.

• Why It Happens: Sales pros who are highly goal-oriented often want to close the deal quickly in order to move onto the next opportunity.
• Why It Doesn’t Work: Hard sell tactics don’t work any longer… if indeed they ever did work. Customers who feel railroaded will simply not buy. Period.
• What Results: Because you’re focused exclusively on making the sale, the customer feels manipulated and, worst case, simply decides that you’re a pest.
• What To Do Instead: Use the initial meeting to up a situation where the customer actively brings up business and opportunities and asks for your help. Develop a strong feeling of trust, credibility and rapport through conversations that have substance and balance.