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 SAVVY
SELLING - JANUARY
19, 2007
Company
Tours: A Personal Way to Sell
by Michelle Nichols
EXECUTIVE
OVERVIEW
Giving
prospects a tour of your business
facilities could catapult your
sales proposal to the top of
the heap and win the order
During a recent speech, a strategy
I mentioned for differentiating
a company's products or services
elicited a collective gasp from
the large audience. What secret
sales weapon triggered such
a response? Taking prospective
customers on a tour of their
company or factory.
It's difficult to stand out
from your competitors. While
the physical and financial aspects
of your business are easy for
you to take for granted, they
can open a meaningful window
into your operations for your
prospects. A tour can be an
inexpensive way to forge a connection
and could make your proposal
rise to the top of the stack—and
win the order for you (see BusinessWeek.com,
6/2/06, "Connections That
Close Deals").
I once read about a salesman
who was trying to win a big
sale, so he arranged to pick
up a group of decision-makers
in a limousine for lunch—but
first, he took them on a tour
of his spotless, efficient factory.
They watched products being
made, met the friendly receptionist,
and schmoozed with the personnel
in accounting, quality control,
and shipping who would be handling
their orders. In the end, the
prospects left with a warm personal
relationship that couldn't be
bested by the competitor's glossy
brochures.
Sign Me Up
In the 1980s, I worked in sales
for Amdahl Corporation (now
Fujitsu (FJTSF)), which manufactured
and sold enormous computers.
Like all the other sales reps
in this company—and there
was even one who wore a Boston
Celtics championship ring—I
had to spend my first year at
company headquarters giving
factory tours and helping with
customer presentations.
I saw firsthand the effect
on prospective clients of a
visit to headquarters. After
spending time with our company's
hardware engineers and software
experts, and joining the president
for lunch, even prospects who
were initially skeptical often
left ready to sign on the dotted
line.
A variation on this idea is
to take your prospective clients
to visit customers who are already
using your products or services.
This serves two purposes, as
your present customers will
feel flattered when you ask
them to show how they use your
products and explain why they
chose you over your competitors.
Synchronize Your Watches
When you take your clients on
a tour, add some creativity
to the jaunt. For example, if
the decision-makers are car
buffs, perhaps you can rent
a Hummer for the drive, or if
it's a warm, sunny day, hire
a convertible. If they're into
the arts and you know of a mural
or sculpture that's a bit off
the beaten path, make sure you
drive past it.
You'll be surprised how much
clients will open up when they're
outside their office. Just remember
to get a clear understanding
of exactly when they must be
back at work. You don't want
the visit to end on an anxious
note.
A third way to use facility
or factory tours to sell more
is to host targeted group events.
Perhaps your chamber of commerce
or business or community groups
would like to see what goes
on behind the scenes in your
company. If you have just installed
an impressive printing press
or other visually exciting machinery,
you can show it off and explain
how it will help you serve them
better.
A Family Feeling
A fourth, more general, type
of tour is to host a community
open house. A dairy near my
home did this recently and I
brought my young son to see
the cows, watch the machines,
and get free samples of milk
and ice cream. Now, when I see
their milk in the stores, I
have a warm feeling about their
brand because I've been to their
factory.
A month ago, I toured Ford's
vast Dearborn Truck Plant in
Dearborn, Mich. It's part of
the Ford Rouge Factory complex
that was originally more than
a square mile in size. Built
in the 1920s, the Rouge was
the product of Henry Ford's
vision that the basic materials
to build cars—sand for
glass and ore for steel—would
arrive by ship, truck, or rail
car at one end of the factory
and finished cars would drive
out the other side.
Ford (F) not only sold me a
ticket to tour their impressive
plant, they also "sold"
me on a new brand concept for
their entire corporation—caring
environmentalists. For example,
at one stop on the tour, we
took an elevator up to an 80-foot-high
observation deck where a guide
pointed out the sedum plants
growing on the roofs and some
areas of porous pavement that
allow groundwater to return
to the earth.
Be a Tour Tourist
I must admit, I love factory
tours. When I was growing up,
my parents were schoolteachers
and we traveled during the summers.
We went on a lot of tours. I
recall watching candy, breakfast
cereal, and even plywood being
made. Last Christmas, my husband
even bought me a book of factory
tours, Watch It Made in the
U.S.A.: A Visitor's Guide to
the Companies That Make Your
Favorite Products.
To get ideas for your tour,
research the factory tours available
in your area or those you will
pass on your next vacation.
Perhaps you can take the whole
family on a "tour of tours,"
just as my family did years
ago.
If you want a powerful way
to differentiate your offering,
give your clients a chance to
see with their own eyes what
your company makes and how you
run your business. Show them
the right things in the right
way—and then you can show
them where to sign your contract.
Happy selling!
Michelle Nichols is a professional
sales speaker and consultant
based in Reno, Nevada. She is
also the Savvy
Selling podcast host for
BusinessWeek. She welcomes your
questions and comments. You
can visit her web site at www.savvyselling.com
or contact her at michelle.nichols@savvyselling.com.
Her toll-free number is (877)
352-9684 and direct line is
(775) 303-8201.
Copyright 2007. All rights
reserved.
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