When Sales and Service Meet

Interior Grocery Design | Frozen Foods Design | Interior Decor Design | Freezer Section Design (Photo credit: I-5 Design & Manufacture)

Recently, I went to my favorite Publix to shop.  I love shopping there because of the positive, friendly attitudes of the staff and the great selection of food items.  I enjoy cooking when time permits but also like some quick frozen options when we are busy. I’m also a bargain shopper.  I enjoy looking for specials on some of our favorite brands.

As I approached the frozen food area, I saw one of the department managers busily stocking items next to where I was headed. He greeted me with a big smile and “Good Morning”.

I turned to the glass doors to see the selections and studied them for a few seconds when the manager walked over to me and asked, “Have you ever tried those?”  He pointed to stuffed chicken breasts which had a variety of stuffing choices:  bread stuffing, cheese, cordon bleu, etc.

I replied that I hadn’t tried them.  He said, “They are really good.”  He opened the door for better viewing and then pointed to each variety and briefly told me which his wife liked, which he liked, which his kids enjoyed.  He was enthusiastic about the quality, how easy they were to cook and the time needed to prepare was short. I commented that I liked the quick dinner idea. Then, the manager smiled and simply said, “They’re on sale…Buy 1, Get 1 Free so they’re a great bargain too. Would you like to try them?”

When I entered that aisle, I had no intention of buying the item and had not even given it a thought until he spoke.  No high pressure push, just an honest discussion of the taste and quality and a personal reference to what his family enjoyed.   I said, “Sure” and made my choice out of the varieties available.  He went a step further and pulled those 2 boxes out.  He handed them to me with a smile saying, “Let me know what you think about them after you try them”.  I thanked him and walked away looking forward to trying them soon.

What did the manager do right?

• Probed for interest and experience with the product
• Related the product experience to his own enjoyment of it and enjoyment of others
• He believed in the value of the product: his choice of words and enthusiasm were genuine
• Mentioned some key benefits: save money, easy to use, great quality
• Asked if I was ready to commit
• Ended the sale by personalizing: handing me the product with a smile and request for feedback after trying

With his soft, customer service focused sales approach, he not only increased revenue for his department, but confirmed to me the reason I continue to be a loyal customer of Publix.

Sometimes we over-complicate upselling and cross-selling when our Customer Service teams are asked to take on this role in addition to service. Is our training creating selling “robots” who read an Upsell phrase or question without any genuine interest in the product/service?  That robotic approach will fail because the customer can tell that the Agent/CSR doesn’t believe what they are selling is a really a good thing.

I Was Hired to Be a Service Rep, Not a Sales Person

I’m sure you’ve met this person on the phone or face-to-face.

They are friendly but have no idea how to get you interested in the product or services they are trying to sell.  They were hired in a Customer Service focused role and now they have to sell.  So what is really going on?

1. They don’t really believe that the product or service is all that great.

They have no passion for what they are talking about. If face-to-face, you can see the lack of interest in their eyes and flat tone.  If on a call with a call center representative without visual, the disinterested tone is even worse.  If they have no passion for what they are selling, how can they get me excited?

2. They have been given a brochure with a list of features and that is their sales tool.

The Manager has read over the product information with them and asked if they had any questions.  They have no idea how to discuss the product in terms of how it will benefit a Customer personally, just the generic rundown of items listed.  My favorite experience happened at a financial institution I was working with on sales culture. I did a pre-consulting visit with a branch where they didn’t know me.  The Teller was very sweet and friendly but when I asked about the different checking accounts they had, she pulled out the brochure, turned it sideways so we could both view it and then pointed at each feature with her pen while reading to me out loud.  She had never been coached on how to find out what my needs and interests were before discussing features or benefits.  She simply read the list of 15 features for each while I watched in amazement that she could do so with barely a breath for air.  She asked no questions, just read and looked at me at the end to see if I showed any interest.  The Teller handed me the brochure and asked me to  let her know when I decided what I wanted.  She was a poster-child for Self-Service sales as I could have done as much online and opened an account via their website.

3. They hate sales.

Companies are moving high quality Customer Service Representatives into Sales roles that some Reps greatly dislike.  Many have told me this when I coached with them.  Some Reps change their mind about Sales once they improve skills and gain confidence.  Others will never make it in the dual service/sales role whether from fear, lack of ability or negative attitude.  Of course a company needs to decide if everyone will both sell and service and then hire for skills accordingly.  However, this doesn’t solve the initial problem of having a positive Customer focused employee now becoming resentful or disinterested in their job due to the sales requirement.  Some businesses build more dedicated sales and retention teams so the Service person becomes a “referer” rather than closing the sale.  But even in this scenario, the Service Rep still needs to “sell” the Prospect or Customer on talking with the sales rep.

So as a Manager or Business Owner, what can you do?

A combination of things. Revamp your hiring strategy including new job descriptions, skill expectations so you have the right people on board from the start. Try to save great Service Reps who can’t sell/dislike selling by looking at the structure and seeing if there are opportunities to have specialized service with little selling.  You’ve invested time and training in these employees so you want to do everything possible to retain them without losing sight of the revenue needed for the growth of my business and continued employment for other employees.  Reps who can create a great Customer Experience help make cross-selling, upselling and Loyalty building easier.

Make sure your Sales training  isn’t rote or impersonal but uses roleplay and on the job coaching after real life sales observations with your employees. Teach selling that is truly focused on Customers needs, wants and the continued customer experience. Ensure that dislike of Sales by the Rep isn’t because they don’t know how to sell or are lacking confidence in themselves or don’t believe in the products.  Find out what is really holding them back from selling.

There is no one perfect solution to the above issues, but in today’s competitive market, I think we can agree that every employee must be focused on best practice service, sales and helping your business be successful for the sake of everyone involved.

The Lost Art of Asking Great Questions

When I monitor calls at a Call Center, I frequently hear a lot of talking going on and not so much listening.  The talking is being done by the Customer Service, Inside Sales or Tech Support Agent who is so focused on delivering THEIR message that the only time the Customer or Prospect can interject something is when the Agent comes up for air.  There seems to be such a rush to talk “at” the caller instead of talking “with” the caller.

If we are doing all of the talking, how are we learning what the customer thinks, needs, wants?

This is where a lot of “assuming” comes in and I have had Agents defend their excessive talking by stating, “Well I knew where they were going and I needed to get on the next call”.  Wonder what metrics they are being measured and rewarded on?

When a Service or Tech Support agent is not listening, a lot of problems can happen but the most serious one is that the need is not met, the problem is not correctly solved, and the Customer or Prospect has to call back.  This adds to our call volume and creates an upset caller.  Now, we not only have to solve the problem the right way but in addition, we have to diffuse the caller.

When a new Sales Agent talks incessantly on a call, it is often because they are avoiding the often inevitable “No” or other objections.  If they are experienced, they have a bad skill that has become a habit or they feel they must overwhelm the caller with product details and features to make them see how wonderful the product itself is rather than discovering how it fits what the caller truly needs.

A lot of Monitoring and Coaching centers around two main areas:  soft skills (how they treat the caller) and product/technical knowledge.  The skill of asking great questions is often lost in the coaching process with the myriad of skills being scored.  Yet, when I monitor, I generally find that 7 out of 10 Agents are not asking great questions to truly assist the caller.

Simply stated, when we ask questions, we can listen. When we listen, we hear clues that may not be apparent if we hadn’t asked those great questions.  We also have a chance to hear the caller’s communication style (Bottom line?  Detailed?  Friendly?) and get in sync with that style.

Next time you monitor calls or observe in-person interactions, be sure to listen for how much time your Agents spend talking versus  how much time their Customers or Prospects speak.  If your Agent is doing all of the talking, it’s time to coach on how to ask the best questions.  And be sure your Metrics and Goals allow for your Agents to have this dialog so calls aren’t rushed.  Calls may be a bit longer but you’ll see the results in increased sales and improved Customer Experience.