After recent training sessions in Anchorage, Paul extolls the benefits of selling like an Alaskan.
Show Notes
Be proactive. Anticipate the customer’s needs. Being proactive is not a nicety in Alaska, it’s a necessity.
“Don’t send in your truck half empty.” Sell your complete solution.
When there are tough times, support your customers and your community.
How eager are you to learn and improve in your profession?
De-commoditize your solution. Remember that your bundled package includes the value you bring to the table.
Integrity – Make a commitment to be open and honest with the customer.
Visit www.ToughTimer.com to get started on the 30-Day Tough-Timer Challenge!
Order your copy of Selling Through Tough Times from Amazon or Barnes & Noble!
Click here to purchase the latest edition of Value-Added Selling!
***
Thank you for tuning in. Our show is updated weekly with the questions you ask. So, please go to the home page to ask the question that you want answered.
Thank you to our production team at The Creative Impostor Studios.
Be sure to follow our show in your favorite podcast app and share this episode with a colleague or friend.
And most importantly…make it a big day.
Why and how do I sell like an Alaskan?
(Transcribed from podcast)
On today’s episode, we are going to talk about salespeople from Alaska and what we can learn from them. And what triggered this episode is, I recently spent a week in Alaska with one of my clients and I learned a great deal from them, especially how to sell. A lot of it is just a reminder on some of the basics and fundamentals. But on today’s show, we’re going to answer the question, “Why should I sell like an Alaskan?” So let’s go ahead and get started.
Before we do get into the show, just a reminder, you can pick up your latest copy of Selling Through Tough Times. What’s interesting, being in the Alaskan market, gosh, it’s a tough environment. That’s one thing that I learned. And in Selling Through Tough Times, we dive deep into what it takes to sell during a tough time, in a tough environment. So pick up your copy today. It’s available at Barnes & Noble, Amazon, wherever you get your books.
So let’s get back to it: Why should I sell like an Alaskan? And just as a heads up, if you’ve never visited Alaska, I highly recommend it. I went in January where it’s cold. Maybe pick the summer months. Anyway, it’s such a great place. I mean, it is filled with beautiful scenery, great people. And there’s a certain mystique about Alaska, right? It’s kind of separate from the rest of the U. S. It’s on its own, although it’s part of a huge land mass, it is kind of an island in a sense. But it’s such a great state—a great place to go visit. So check it out. It’s also really cold there, if I didn’t mention. In fact, only in Alaska will you hear a salesperson say, “Wow, it warmed up today. It’s only -19.” Man, it was cold up there. But it was a great experience.
So let’s get back to that: “Why and how should I sell like an Alaskan?” And we’re going to get right into it. I’m going to offer you seven tips—seven ideas—things to think about.
Number one—and this is one thing I learned from this sales team is you absolutely have to be proactive. In Alaska, you can’t wait for a customer to tell you what they need. They expect you to anticipate their needs. You know, from a business standpoint, you’re constantly trying to figure out what product or service your customers will need in the future, because it takes a little bit of time for things to get to Alaska. So it’s important that you are always thinking ahead, always thinking a few steps ahead.
So, as a salesperson, here’s how you can take that concept and apply it. First of all, reach out to your customers on a regular basis and be proactive for them, which means you’re going to ask questions that will cause them to think in the future as well. Imagine, every single week, if you call your customer and say, “Hey, just wanted to give a quick call to see what you have coming up over the next couple of weeks. I want to make sure that we’re prepared for you, that we have the material you need when you need it.” Being proactive is not a nicety, it’s a necessity when you’re selling in Alaska. So, salespeople out there, think about how you can apply that same technique. If you are more proactive for your customers, you’re thinking ahead for them, you are creating value. So look for ways to be proactive.
The second tip: leverage your knowledgeable expertise. The unique Alaskan environment, it’s an opportune environment to create more value because Alaskan sellers have a deeper knowledge of the local terrain: what it’s like to compete, what it’s like to build, what it’s like to serve customers. They understand the logistical constraints. And when you think about logistics, I know that’s a challenging topic right now, given supply shortages, and everything that’s going on, but your logistical knowledge as a salesperson can help your customers, and it can also create more value. It can help them achieve what they’re trying to achieve. And in the Alaskan environment, the local knowledge and expertise is absolutely critical.
One thing that I learned from my clients is a lot of companies will go up in the Alaskan market to try to compete—builders, contractors, and that’s who my customers are primarily selling to—and they just don’t know what they don’t know. They’re unaware of the environment, some of the constraints. And so they’re able to leverage their knowledgeable expertise to help their customers. I would encourage you to do the same.
Number three—. This was a great message. One that I heard from the president of this company. And the message was, never send a truck half full. From Alaska, you’re shipping your product into Alaska from other parts of the country, other parts of the world. And in just being a good businessperson, the president of this company said, “When we ship a truck in, we do not ship it in half full. Air is the most expensive thing we can ship.” So, they are packing the truck full when they’re bringing in product. That way, they make sure that they not only have the inventory that their customers need, but also, that they’re taking full advantage. They’re using their resources wisely.
I thought about this concept and how it applies to salespeople. Think about how often salespeople are shipping a truck half full. Meaning, they’re not selling the full package that they could be selling. And this is interesting. This is about creating value for your customers, because the last thing you want to do is welcome your customer into your store, or you have a sales call, or you sell a solution, and you only sell half of the solution. You only provide half of what they truly need. That creates a disservice. That’s the same as shipping air. It costs you money without creating any value. The key for salespeople is to provide customers with a more complete solution. Educate the customer on what is available. And by doing that, you’re creating more value. By providing them a complete solution, you’re enhancing the overall customer experience. So, in Value-Added Selling, we call this cross serving. Cross serving is about educating the customer, making them aware of the full solution. And by doing that, you’re creating value.
Now, the fourth tip here is, you have to support your community and your customers. In Alaska, there’s a strong sense of community, and it is because they’re on their own up there. You think about it, Alaska is really on its own. And so, while I was up there, it was interesting. When my flight landed, there were some delays and there were some weather issues. And what happened there was really bad windstorms—I think 70 to 80 mile per hour gusts. And it created some damage. It knocked out power. Well, during my visit, one of the leaders within this organization had to step up and just serve, not only his customers, but also the community. At one point, he just put generators in the back of his truck and he drove into a remote part of Alaska just to support the local community.
That’s something we as sales professionals and businesses in general, we need to keep in mind is that, when there are tough times, when things happen, whether it’s a natural disaster or other issues that are going on, we need to make a conscious effort to support the communities that we do business in. We need to make an effort to support our customers in a way that they can go out there and continue to run their business. So, we look for those opportunities to support our community and our customers.
Number five. One thing that I learned from this sales team and the individuals that went through our training, there was this eagerness to learn. They had this desire to want to improve and get better. And they demonstrated their commitment in practicing this. During my sales training sessions, role-playing is a big part of it. And you can imagine the moans and groans you hear from salespeople when you say, “All right time to role-play.” But this team was different. One of the better teams, I would say, from a role-playing perspective. They took it seriously. They practiced it. They planned. They worked together. They gave good feedback. And I think that that demonstrated their eagerness to learn and to want to get better.
And that’s what great salespeople do. Great salespeople are constantly looking for those opportunities to want to improve and get better. They have this insatiable desire to want to do their best. And that means they’re willing to do things that their competition isn’t willing to do. They’re willing to make it a habit to do those things that other people deem as just a pain in the neck—role-playing being one of them. So as a salesperson, ask yourself, how eager are you to learn and to improve in your profession? Make it a habit to do those things other people deem as too much of a pain in the neck. You do that, you’re going to be a top achiever.
Point number six: you have to de-commoditize your solution. De-commoditize your solution. Customers are constantly going to tell you that you’re selling something that is the same or similar as someone else, especially when you’re in distribution. And this client of mine, they were in distribution. So, they’re selling a product that is similar to the competition. But, you’ve got to remember, we’re not just selling a product. What we’re selling is a bundled package—something that is much bigger. And customers will constantly tell you, “Hey, you’re selling the same thing as everyone else.” They’re doing this to commoditize your solution and focus the conversation on price.
Instead, we need to remind the customers that we are selling something much bigger. We’re selling a bundled package. We’re not just selling a product, we’re selling the value of our company… “And you’re also getting the value of me as your salesperson.” Remember you, as the salesperson, you bring a unique dimension of value: your knowledgeable expertise, your ability to solve problems, your ability to come through for the customer and follow through. These are absolutely critical elements of value for your customer. So we need to remind the customer of that and de-commoditize our solution.
And another thing going hand-in-hand with this: don’t listen to everything your customers tell you. Don’t listen to them. You know, this company I was working with, it is clear, they are unique in their market. They offer things that their competition does not offer. They offer additional services that their customers’ other competitors do not offer. So they offer something that is unique. But salespeople can get brainwashed by their customers into believing that they’re selling something that is the same. Don’t listen to everything your customers tell you. And when they start talking about commodities, shift that conversation. When they try to commoditize your solution, shift the conversation towards value and towards your bundle package. And included in that as the personal value that you bring.
The final thing I want to touch on is profound integrity. Getting to know this sales team, it is clear that integrity is part of how they operate. They want to make sure they’re delivering on what they promise, that they’re not over-promising. And when you think about integrity, integrity is more than simply not lying. It’s about being honest about your company’s capabilities. It’s about stretching yourself, too, and coming through for your customers when they need your help. So, integrity, it speaks to the core of your character, who you are. This group of Alaskan sellers, they embraced integrity at levels that you don’t often see.
They truly care about the customer. In fact, I remember one seller who was visibly disappointed at his competition. One of his competitors up there doesn’t always operate with integrity. And this truly affected the salesperson. And he was concerned, not just with the competitor’s lack of integrity, but how that would impact customers in the area. And so, they make a commitment to be open and honest with each other, with their customers. Integrity is something you must have all the time. And that means you must deliver the bad news just as quickly as you deliver the good news. It means that you look for ways to help your customers when they are in need, even if that means putting their interests above your own. It means that you’re always operating with integrity.
So, that’s why we’ve got to sell like Alaskans. What a great week up there with this team. Take these seven ideas, learn from them, embrace them, and you are going to be a top achiever.
Make it a big day.
