Following the death of her husband, Mrs. Perwinkle decided to take a safari in Africa with her poodle Cuddles. Shortly after getting off the plane, Cuddles the poodle started to chase butterflies and soon became lost. While trying to find Mrs. Perwinkle, Cuddles noticed a lion heading his way.
Quickly finding a skeleton on the ground close by, he settled down to gnaw on some bones with his back to the lion. Just as the lion notices Cuddles, the crafty poodle loudly said, "Boy, that was one delicious lion! I wonder if there are any more around here?"
A look of terror comes over the lion and he quickly runs away into the trees. A monkey who had been watching the whole scene from a nearby tree, figures he can put this knowledge to good use and trade it for protection from the lion. As he runs after the lion the old poodle sees him and figures that something must be up. The monkey catches up with the lion, spills the beans and strikes a deal for himself with the lion.
Now, the old poodle sees the lion coming with the monkey on his back and sits back down with his back to his soon to be attackers, pretending he hasn't seen them yet, and just when they get close enough to hear, the old poodle says, "Where's that darn monkey? I sent him off an hour ago to bring me another lion!”
How well do your salespeople see far off danger? How well do they respond to threats as their sales calls change and develop? How prepared are they to handle the possibilities that come up unexpectedly? Being able to see the situation and handle change and challenge quickly calmly and with an appropriate response is a vital selling skill. But awareness is not enough. Without a system it can be tough to know what steps need to be taken next. Without ongoing reinforcement it can be tough to execute the steps you know you need to take. Yes we are talking about preparation and practice.
Our clients prepare, they practice and they sell more.
Tired of your sales team being unprepared to handle the lions and monkeys that show up on their sales calls?
Contact Matt Nettleton, Sandler Training DTB at matt.nettleton@sandler.com or 317-678-8800.
