Episode 24:
High performing sales people don't sell. They explore, they guide, they advise, and co-create. So…how do we foster curiosity?About this episode
Nancy Maluso is the Chief Marketing and Strategy Officer for Edgio. In this engaging conversation, Nancy and I delve into the pivotal role of representative curiosity in sales and the art of fostering it effectively. We stress the importance of understanding the customer's world to guide them through transformative changes. The discussion underscores the virtues of patience, active listening, and curiosity in establishing robust customer relationships. We explore challenges in cultivating curiosity among salespeople and propose innovative approaches for learning beyond conventional methods.
We discuss the value retrospection in personal and professional growth, emphasizing the need to comprehend customers on multiple levels. We advocate for assisting customers in succeeding, even if it means recommending alternatives. We spotlight the potency of generosity in networking, coupled with the honesty of fit and the construction of enduring customer loyalty. Real-world examples illustrate how transparency and long-term relationships can create customers for life.
We conclude with a discussion of tailoring enablement strategies for diverse product types and a deep dive into the transformative power of curiosity.
Discussion points:
- Rep Curiosity Crucial: Understanding the customer's world is essential for sales success.
- Fostering Curiosity Environment: Create a learning atmosphere with feedback and coaching for salespeople.
- Patience and Active Listening: Fundamental in building strong customer relationships.
- Understanding Different Personalities: Tailor approaches based on varied customer personas.
- Thinking over Information: Enablement should focus on teaching how to think and ask the right questions.
- Learning Opportunities Outside Traditional Methods: Expand curiosity by exploring unconventional learning avenues.
- Helping Customers Succeed: Even if it's not with your product, foster success for long-term relationships.
- Generosity in Networking: Give more to build lasting connections.
- Honesty About Fit: Communicate openly and transparently with customers.
- Creating Customers for Life: Transparency and long-term relationships are key.
- Tailoring Enablement: Adapt strategies based on different product types.
- Curiosity for Growth: A potent tool for personal and professional development.
- High performing sales people don’t provide information about products. Instead, they provide insight into how a company’s business can be changed by change in process, tech or people. They help the customer explore the “why change/why now” conversation and guide them through the change management considerations
- Sellers have to be incredibly curious and interested…it’s not something they can fake. They can’t cram a few minutes before a customer call and then truly engage the way they need to. Instead they have to keep probing into what is going on in the customers environment including politics, goals and objectives, functional objectives, individual objectives etc. They have to understand a day in the life of their key stakeholders.
- Know your customers at the organizational, functional and personal level. Be curious about their world and dig deep. Help them to be successful even if not with your offerings.