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A sales force is more efficient when it works together

SELLING IN THE INDUSTRIAL DISTRIBUTION channel is becoming more and more about servicing the relationship with the customer than about pushing products. Customer demands and expectations have increased. To effectively provide service to customers, a distributor needs to respond as effectively to a call inside as it does when making a personal visit to a customer.

Experts say customers tend to talk more frequently with inside sales, yet only outside salesmen can really know the customer. In many distributorships there is little communication between inside and outside sales. In this case, many opportunities will be lost because of the lack of communication within the sales force.

It isn't easy to bring the sales force together, but a team approach can capitalize upon all of the information the distributor has about the customer to form an even stronger relationship. When the sales force has a better understanding of the customer's needs, works together and makes the most of opportunities to service the customer, it produces more sales.

That is the driving force behind the development of many sales force automation software programs. One example is Selltis L.L.C.'s solution, says president and co-founder Brian Gardner.

"Selltis brings the whole sales team together," says Gardner. "From lead management to quote management to after-sales support, it puts the whole selling team on the same page."

Many managers are looking at sales from the outside, he says. Most have very little contact, input or control of the process from the identification of a prospect until a request for quote is issued. That is a very critical point in the sales cycle, points out Gardner. If it can be managed effectively, he says there will be more successful sales hits.

"We call our approach 'managing from the front end'," says Gardner. "All of the activities related to a customer are entered into the software and what develops is an extensive database containing valuable information on the customers."

Most distributors have islands of data on various systems. Improved communication can lead to better customer service and satisfaction as well as greater utilization of opportunities. Gardner says Selitis brings it all together in a form that distributors can use effectively.

Gardner says he never intended to develop software, but he is in a position to know the needs of a distributor. He spent fifteen years in industrial sales.

"The idea started when I found there was nothing on the market that fit the needs of the distributor for whom I worked," he says. "We needed to bring all the information together so all of the inside and outside sales, as well as customer support staff, had all of the information available."

Simple division

Crane Engineering Sales, Inc. of Kimberly, Wis., a distributor of fluid handling and wastewater products, is one company that chose to use Selltis software. Vice president of operations Jeff Koeper says that the company has seen positive results.

"As we added more product lines, we divisionalized our company," says Koeper. "The problem is that many of our customers, and even individual sales, cross multiple divisions."

Many of Crane's sales involve not only the sales team, but also the company's engineering departments. The company realized it needed a team approach.

"Using our software solution, a sale from the pump division may bring a sale to the filtration department," Koeper says. "We may have missed these opportunities before."

By organizing data on all customer activity, adds Koeper, the sales force has become more efficient. He says it isn't just about the sales tool.

"We've taken on a new sales process," says Koeper. "We have used all of our customer information to not only increase sales but to reduce waste."

He says his engineers often had well over 100 open accounts, but now that number is only 20-40. The accounts receivable department can also make valuable use of this team approach.

One source of waste was time spent developing quotes for accounts that were on credit hold or some other financial problem, adds Koeper. Now communication throughout the organization increases efficiency and gives everyone access to better customer information.

There are a variety of sales force automation products on the market. Experts say the important thing is to find a system that works for your company. But the team selling approach does not necessarily rely on software solutions.

Personal touch

While Brookfield, Wis.-based T & A Industrial Distributors does use its own database management software program, the key to their team selling approach is the people., says president Jim Ketter.

"We feel that developing our bonds with the customer and providing continuity in our relationship is important," adds Ketter. "In 1970, we started to focus on the customer and sales relationships and realized that inside sales had a 10-1 customer contact ratio."

Recognizing the importance of familiarity and relationships, T & A assigns an inside sales person to each account. When a customer calls inside, the receptionist directs the customer's call to his usual rep. Sales people come to understand the individual needs of each account, adds Ketter.

This prompted T & A to develop a team selling approach. Outside sales are paired with the inside sales partner for that account. Each customer has an alternate inside sales contact for cases when their primary contact is unavailable.

"As an organization grows in size and complexity, so does its need for better communication," says Ketter. "This is where the database comes in. It allows all of the people involved in an account to share information."

However, direct communication is what is encouraged most at T & A. Information is shared within the team and together they develop the value added reports that the company makes to its customers.

"It is like a marriage to find inside and outside salesmen that work well together," says Ketter. "It is also necessary to find the right sales team to fit the customer."

Customers can find it disturbing when a salesman leaves the company or changes territory, says Ketter. With team selling, there is still continuity during the transition and the remaining team members can teach the particulars of the account to the new salesman.

Getting out

Another approach to breaking down the barrier between inside and outside sales as taken by Pittsburgh, Pa.-based Construction Tool Service Inc.

"We like to call it an integrated sales team," says president Paul Connelly. "The concept was to marry inside and outside sales."

The company was looking for more efficient ways to use its sales force, says Connelly. Outside sales visits are expensive and salesman can only make a certain amount of sales calls per day.

"We wanted to be more effective and customers' purchasing staff are often too busy for chatting, so we send someone only when they really have something to say' Connelly adds. "Inside sales has much more contact with the customer."

To this end, Construction Tool has trained all of its inside staff extensively in application knowledge. When a customer calls in, it isn't necessary to call around to find the outside sales staff, says Connelly.

In addition, the inside sales staff has been taking its knowledge to the street. Connelly says that select inside staff are now spending between one and three days on the outside.

"They service their own primary accounts when they are inside," he says. "On the days they are outside they are making sales calls, but the other members of the sales team still provide expert service.

According to Connelly, new members of the integrated sales team spend their first year with the company building expertise and developing their contact base with customers. Then the work on the outside begins.

"This gives them an opportunity to put those contacts to good use," says Connelly. "We reward them for both their inside duties and their sales on the outside. The system has worked great so far."

Sales manager John Becker says the approach has been targeted at mid-level customers.

"It has helped our company diversify and become more stable," says Becker. "Some of our larger accounts fluctuate in sales, while these mid-range customers are more stable and more loyal."

Sales have increased considerably with these customers, Becker says. The salesmen have developed their talents and increased their value to the company, he adds.

"It does require more training," cautions Becker. "We are working with them at their individual skill level and then we give them the tools to succeed."

One of the salesmen who has found the arrangement successful is John Ocilka. He says it's a different world on the outside.

"It's faster paced and requires different selling skills," says Ocilka. "You need to be able to come up with answers to the customer's needs on the spot."

An outside salesman has a different perspective on the customer's needs, he adds. It can be valuable to see the actual processes on the customer's site.

"Communication is the key factor," says Chuck Kotulsky, operations manager. "We use contact management software, modem telecommunications, and weekly sales meetings."

In addition, sales people communicate among themselves and need to make daily entries in the database.

"We didn't know how the program would work out when we started it," he says. "But the program has been such a success that we're expanding it."

No matter which way a company chooses to implement a team sales approach, the potential rewards are great. It is important to make sure all of the employees buy into the program and use their communication tools to the fullest.

The common ties between all of these programs is the need for increased levels of communication and the chance to find better ways to serve the customer, miss fewer opportunities, and make more profit. That is real team spirit.

COPYRIGHT 2001 Cahners Business Information in association with The Gale Group and LookSmart.