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Solutions Selling in a 'Commodity' Market

EDITOR'S NOTE: This article first appeared in the February 2007 issue of Recharger Magazine.

In speaking with many people in this industry, I’ve heard a similar refrain over and over again — we all feel that the aftermarket imaging supplies industry is getting further and further commoditized each and every day. There is downward pricing pressure, we have overseas competitors, and let’s not forget that the OEMs are getting more and more aggressive all the time.

How can we continue to demonstrate value to our customers and prospects? How do you communicate that through your salespeople? What approach should you and your salespeople take?

One thing you can do is change how you and your sales staff sell your products and services. Adjust your focus and approach away from the highly transactional or commodities sell, and take the approach of selling solutions. This is a great way to communicate the value your organization offers over your competitors. Why should your customers buy from you? What do you offer and what can you do differently from your competition? These are all aspects of an overall solution you can offer to your customers.

I’ll bet that, for the most part, a big percentage of your revenue last year came from what we call simple sales: standard orders for everyday inkjet and toner cartridges for regular customers, placed by a lower-level person in the organization at little risk to either party. You and your customer service reps do it all day long, asking simple questions about price, availability, delivery or pickup, Tuesday or Thursday, cash or credit. That’s what we mean by simple sales.

Some of your sales are complex — meaning that there are two or more parts or processes to the job — maybe unusual cartridges, delivery requirements, multiple locations for a client, special stocking requirements, credit terms or supplies management. These types of sales generally involve people at a higher level in the organization. These sales cost more and carry more risk to you and your customer than so-called simple or commodity sales.

With proper training and the desire to succeed, a salesperson can do very well at the simple sale in a short time. But the complex sale requires more training and a different approach to selling. One difference is that the sales cycle is longer as more elements are involved in the process, such as a buying team or committee and multiple meetings. There are a couple of ways to create a solution-selling sales staff. One is to train your existing salespeople. Another is to hire solutions sellers.

Training a solutions seller

The first thing you have to face is that some sales reps will “get it” right away. Some won’t and you may not be able to train them. At some point you will have to decide what part of your staff will be the solutions sellers and what part will be the transactional sales types.

Some our most successful customers and franchisees have figured this out and, by trial and error, changed the way they sell. That affected how they prospect, how they present, the kind of customers they have and the kind of work they do for them. In most cases they have fewer customers who buy more from them. It is very likely that a salesperson who has been with you for more than two years and hasn’t figured this out is not going to do so on his own. He needs to be taught to sell solutions.

Ten percent of salespeople will “get it” on their own. Thirty percent will never become solutions sellers because they cannot or will not. But 60 percent can learn to sell solutions and will sell solutions if trained. What you need to know, as a sales manager, is what training is needed and where to get it.

Training needs

Among the skills solutions sellers possess are these:

The ability to select prospects by profile. Solutions sellers do not canvass tall buildings or industrial parks to find people who’ll buy from them. Your salesperson must learn to select prospects who are likely to need products or services you can deliver. The profile may be based on type of industry, size of company, title of buyer or specific applications.

The ability to gain access and establish credibility with prospects. Access to C-level buyers with bigger responsibilities, needs and budgets is limited and must be earned. Credibility is the foot in the door. The seller’s experience, research and approach signal to the C-level buyer that he or she is being approached by someone who can help, not just a product-pusher.

The ability to uncover needs and opportunities. Solutions sellers know which questions to ask and how to ask them to discover the priorities, needs and desires of top executives. The wrong question can end a meeting in less than a minute. The right questions, asked correctly, can lead to a profitable, long-term relationship.

Knowledge of how to move a sale through the cycle. From prospect selection this is accomplished in multiple steps through multiple meetings with various individuals or groups, discovering bumps or blocks in the road and effectively getting past them to the point of offering a solution, gaining permission to proceed and making delivery.

Knowing how to assure customer success and explore future opportunities. Solutions sellers know that their job is to ensure not only that they have delivered what they produced, but that the results they promised to the customer become reality. In doing that, they create the opening to explore future opportunities with the customers and those in their circle of influence.

Sources of training

Books and tapes. There are some highly effective books and tapes that we’ve used in our organization to train solution sellers that generate millions of dollars in revenue. Your salespeople should read them. You should read them. If you haven’t already, create a company library that includes the books listed below.

Recommended Reading
  • Consultative Selling, Mack Hanan, AMACOM
  • Selling to the Very Important Top Officer, Anthony Parinello, Adams Media
  • The New Solution Selling, Keith Eades, McGraw-Hill
  • Selling to Big Companies, Jill Konrath, Dearborn
  • The SPIN Selling Fieldbook, Neil Rackham, McGraw-Hill
  • Think Like Your Customer, Bill Stinnett, McGraw-Hill

Solution selling seminars. A couple of companies we’ve used in the past include Sales Performance International and Huthwaite Inc. In particular, Sales Performance International really specializes in the branded model of solution selling.

Remember, there is a 10 percent chance that you already have a solutions seller or a salesperson who can and will, sooner or later, learn it on his own. Sixty percent of salespeople can and will learn to sell solutions if training is provided.

Many salespeople can learn to sell solutions, and you can work to provide the training to help them move into that sphere. But some salespeople are reluctant to expand what they know and leave their simple-selling zones. Some will not learn the skills for gaining access and selling to higher-level marketing decision makers. Some cannot adjust to the longer selling cycle, so you may have to hire a solution seller.

Hiring a solutions seller

Of course, hiring a solutions seller is faster than training a current salesperson. However, you have to know that it may cost you more to find these people and you have to know what you’re looking for. Solution sales also tend to have a longer sales cycle but create longer-term customers.
If you’re looking to add a salesperson now, you may want to focus your efforts on finding someone who can sell solutions now. How would one go about that?

Identify your hiring criteria

You are looking for a salesperson who can build credibility with prospects, move prospects through the sales cycle, ensure customer success and build on that relationship. To discover that kind of salesperson you will look for proven ability to deliver on sales goals, meaning you won’t hire a rookie. You’ll want someone who can define a market and take a value-based sales approach, focused on revenue and margins, not lowest cost. This salesperson will need to be able to understand decision makers and identify their pains, match solutions to problems, and clearly communicate their proposals to prospects and customers.

Ask specific questions

Develop questions that will yield useful information on specific examples instead of generalities. For example:
  • How do you sell a solution? Walk me through the process.
  • How do you select accounts to focus on?
  • How do you build credibility with different decision makers?
  • How do you learn about/assess a customer’s situation and objectives?
  • Who are some high-level executives you’ve sold and how did you get in to see them and develop a relationship with them?
  • How do you demonstrate a solution’s value to a potential decision maker?
  • How long can it take you to close a deal?
  • What was your role after the sale was made?

Look for red flags
  • The candidate cannot articulate the business value of a solution.
  • The candidate cannot give details about how he or she closed a deal.
  • The candidate reverts to discussing features, volume and price.
  • The candidate is unable to detail his/her previous successes.
  • The candidate says things that don’t match the résumé.

If your candidate displays these characteristics, move on to the next candidate.

Where to find a solutions seller

Your current salesperson may be able to learn to sell solutions. Maybe you have a CSR or another employee who is not now in sales but who understands how to ask questions and explain the value of an offering. If you look outside your company, account executives from advertising, marketing or direct-mail agencies and from suppliers may already have the training and skills to be a solution seller. Job banks at the American Marketing Association (www.marketingpower.com) and the Direct Marketing Association (www.the-dma.org/jobbank/) may work for you. Monster.com, CareerBuilder.com and the other major sites should be considered, as well as your city/state job postings on craigslist.org. Employment agency or “headhunter” fees can be high, but they are worth it if you find the right person.

By following these guidelines, you can increase your hiring effectiveness and get on the fast track to strategic growth through solution selling. Don’t forget, customers who look for this type of sale generally buy more and for longer periods of time.
WooJin Kim is general manager of the imaging supplies group of Franchise Services Inc., a leading franchise company with a number of key franchise brands worldwide, including the newest brand, inkTone, focusing on imaging supplies and inkjet refill services. Kim has more than 18 years experience in the high-tech industry. Contact him at wkim@franserv.com.

This article originally appeared in the February 2008 issue of Recharger.

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