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SAVVY SELLING -OCTOBER 11, 2004

Sales and Service: Can't We All Just Get Along?

By Michelle Nichols

Those who sell tend to forget that they are only as good as their customer-service teams. That's a costly blunder, but one so easy to avoid

I love being in sales. It's hard to beat the emotional high of finally closing a big deal. But signing any contract is like a wedding. Like any lasting relationship, the real work -- and profit -- comes during the course of the many years that follow the exchange of "I do's." In many companies, this job belongs to the customer-service department, which is responsible for the care and feeding of the customers, and whose job it is to respond to the occasional "whoops!"

Customer-service teams are all too often unsung heroes -- and that lack of recognition is just plain crazy. If you increase sales by 10%, but simultaneously lose the same percentage of clients due to lousy customer service, all your latest selling efforts would be for naught. You might just as well have stayed home in bed!

Savvy business owners encourage their sales and customer-service departments to work together. This strategy keeps customers happy, maximizes revenues and profits, and also makes for a more pleasant work environment. These were some of the points that came to mind when I recently adressed a conference of sales people and customer-service reps.

Here are my suggestions on how the teams can work together to maximize results:

For salespeople:

• Respect. In many outfits, the way customer-service professionals are treated brings to mind the recently departed comic Rodney Dangerfield. Sadly, they "don't get no respect," and that is a huge mistake. Let the customer-service folks know how valuable they are to you personally. If you have an awesome customer-service team, one that can calm the savage heart of an infuriated customer when things go wrong, it is your best ally. Those folks will help you save that account, maintain your current sales, and prepare a foundation on which to build new ones.

• Extreme needs. Before you accept an order with unusually rigorous or demanding requirements, find out if the customer really needs it. Question if there is some flexibility in the specifications. In this age of e-mails and overnight-to-anywhere-in-the-world shipping, some customers want everything yesterday, in a custom color and size.

By distinguishing your customer's needs from his or her preferences, you will free the customer-service folks to focus on the orders that really are urgent.

• Promises, promises. When it comes to shipping, don't promise your company can get an order out today without checking if fulfilling that pledge is actually doable. Unless you are willing and able to stop what you're doing and process the order yourself, find out what is already on the books before you make promise that may prove difficult or impossible to keep. Promises, in other words, that will soon came home to roost in the laps of the customer-service team.

• Fa-la-la. Sing the praises of your customer-service people to your clients and do it loud enough so they can hear. Sell your customers on what great service they are going to get, and that it will be prompt, accurate and friendly. Let them know that the sales-support squad will be a pleasure in the event of questions or a reorder.

For customer-service people:

• Talk friendly. Since you are probably connecting with customers over the phone, a friendly and helpful tone of voice is essential. There's no use compounding customer's frustration with a a voice that suggests a grumpy or uncaring attitude. One customer-service pro tells me that she puts a mirror on her desk. That way, when the phone rings, regardless of what's going on in her life, she can look in the mirror and check that she is wearing a smile. It shows in her voice!

• It's Yes or it's No. There's no sense in telling the customer "yes" if it ain't gonna' happen. You'll end up with a disappointed customer -- maybe even an ex-customer. It's wiser, not to mention more honest, to say, "No, but," and then offer an alternative solution that can be achieved. Try something like, "No, we can't do that because of this reason, but we can provide this alternative solution for you."

• Watch your rep. Remember that repairing a bad reputation is like making a U-turn in an ocean liner -- it's possible, but never quick or easy. So do whatever it takes to maintain a good reputation. One of my favorite cartoons shows two police officers down at the station and one is on the phone. He tells the other that the cable company has called because they've just been robbed. To which his partner replies, "Tell them we'll show up to investigate between 1 and 5." Ouch. Bear in mind that cable companies are not alone in their industry-wide bad reputation.

No matter which team you're on, sales or customer service, it's important that both sides work together to serve the customer and win the right to ask for another order, preferably a larger one. When there's a problem, forget finger-pointing, which just puts everyone on the defense, delays a resolution, and makes all concerned lose sight of the big picture. Instead, make your motto, "Let's solve this challenge together." By thinking and working together, you can all accomplish -- and sell -- so much more. Happy selling!

"By Michelle Nichols of Savvy Selling International. Please visit Michelle's web site at www.savvyselling.com for additional sales articles and resources on selling."

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