Photographer: Andrey Popov
By Dave Fellman
The Covid-19 crisis has affected everyone. Business and personal. I think we all know that things are going to be different moving forward.
But let’s consider exactly how things will be different. What has changed and what hasn’t?
The biggest change is that “physical face-to-face” is going to be harder to accomplish than ever before. But wasn’t that a trend even before Covid-19? When I first started in sales (which was, admittedly, many, many years ago) it felt like most buyers’ default position was to agree to meet with most salespeople. In recent years, though, most buyers have required some convincing. We should expect them to require even more convincing in the future. What does that mean to you? It means that you have to understand that you’re selling the meeting in the early stages, you’re a long way from selling print or signs or marketing services!
As for physical face-to-face, if there’s any sort of silver lining to this cloud we’ve been under, it’s the “mainstreaming” of video conferencing. Relatively few people were using this technology last year. Many more have come to depend on it this year. No one will be shocked if you ask them to meet with you via Zoom or GoToMeeting or some other platform.
Here’s some videoconferencing advice, though. You can look good or bad via videoconferencing. Or to put that a little differently, you can look professional or amateurish. Give some thought to creating a “studio” for your videoconferencing sales calls. Take a look at how the reporters and contributors on the news have set up their “broadcast locations.” I think you’ll agree that some are more professional than others, and those are the ones you want to emulate.
Here’s the single most important thing that has not changed. You most fundamental selling challenge is still to get people to talk with you and take you seriously. If you can accomplish that, you’ll have people thinking seriously about buying from you. But don’t put your cart before your horse!
Finally, I think you know that some of your customers will not survive this crisis. It’s also true, though, that some of your competitors will not survive. There are going to be “orphans” in the marketplace – that’s my term for people who may have been happy with their current printer, but now they need a new one. Be sure that you let those people know that you’re alive and well and interested in becoming their new printer!
Dave Fellman is the president of David Fellman & Associates, Cary, NC, a sales and marketing consulting firm serving numerous segments of the graphic arts industry. Contact Dave by phone at 919-363-4068 or by e-mail at dmf@davefellman.com. Visit his website at www.davefellman.com.