When Complacency Becomes Corporate Treason

Sometimes, calling a duck a duck is harder than it should be. Sales departments all over the country have resigned themselves to a statement that can be catastrophic to their company’s long term interests. That statement is everywhere. “After the market comes back…” This is pure unadulterated genius. They may as well say what they are really thinking. “It’s hard right now so let’s just wait until it is easier”. Make no mistake about this mindset and the damage it will ultimately cause; it is pure corporate treason, plain and simple. At the same time, it is also great for our business. As companies make the decision to sit on their collective hands, companies like mine are innovating their competitors. Although I can only speak for Defiant Sales, we are a “non-participating company” as it relates to the recession. Your company? It should be. When markets contract and companies wait for it to come back, you should be laying the groundwork to dominate right now!

We get the same question all of the time, “How can we grow when the market size is shrinking?” The answer is simple and requires a complex solution. The answer is to take business from your competition and then use that new business to catapult yourself to number one when the economy comes back. Seems simple enough and yet so many companies think that the better play is to wait. These are the same companies that will complain about having too many competitors, or being at a price disadvantage, or ….. Fill in an excuse here. Remember, it is always business that brings us out of a recession. The “sit and wait” approach is great if your plan is to go out of business but nobody plans to do that intentionally. So the question becomes really simple,” Are we going to make the moves to win later and grow now?”

There are differing opinions on how to best approach this dynamic. The most effective way is almost always the most direct. Causing prospects to take action is the goal and advertising is the least efficient way to accomplish this. Conversely, speaking directly with your market is the path of least resistance. Where most companies struggle is in developing the vehicle to take your message directly to buyers. Consumer markets and b2b markets require the same approach in the crafting of a message but require very different vehicles to drive action. However, both need a systematic approach that removes the reliance on individual performance. There is no better way to ensure high contact rates and strict follow through than to implement a system for both. Tracking vital stats and managing them properly can have a huge impact on outcomes. The knowledge that comes with statistical analysis provides such a competitive advantage that companies employing these tactics find themselves light years ahead of their competition. It is literally the attention to detail that will reveal the most effective messages, the best and worst sales people, the best lead generation sources, and many other areas of concern for sales. If you cannot recite the closing percentages of your reps, or the conversion rates of your lead generating sources for example, you are missing the boat. While there are dozens of moving parts in any given sales force, it all starts with understanding where you are in key areas of selling. The difference between good and good enough is often the difference between staying in and going out of business. There is no better time to get serious in your approach to selling than right now. While others wait for the recovery, you should get busy causing it!