Our Consultative Approach to Relationship-Building
There’s a memorable scene from the 1992 film Glengarry Glen Ross (NSFW – strong language) that sums up one of the uglier stereotypes of the sales profession, one where the “ABC” approach rules supreme. The idea that one should, as the movie suggests, “Always Be Closing” might work in the short run in certain situations, but it does absolutely nothing — zip, nada, nil — in terms of establishing anything close to what could be called a working relationship.
I’ve been very fortunate to really see how that approach has been left behind locally. As the first female radio sales rep at Lite 96 (“back when I was in radio”) and one of a handful in the entire market, we brought a closer attention to listening skills in our approach. That was my entry into the consultative selling approach. It’s a far cry from that ABC model and instead is based on building relationships aimed at a win-win for both myself and my clients.
A great example was the tire and auto service chain aiming to reach women for the first time. By listening to their business goals, we launched a multi-channel campaign that told a story and built a brand, long before the internet.
I have a few qualifications that have prepared me.
When I came to print media as radio clustering took hold, New Plains Media was just adding its second media channel – El Perico. From Neighborhood News for Hy-Vee to Today’s Omaha Woman for the Women’s Fund and the addition of OmahaJobs.com, we feel that we are uniquely positioned to understand your business and be a planning-table-partner when it comes to your own success.
The niche media foundation of our business allowed us to understand the dynamics of building targeted audiences around unique interests and helping our clients do the same. We know content and the community and to connect the two. Those often long-term relationships give us opportunities to identify and execute on new and deep opportunities for your business. We’ve now combined all of our media experience and marketing savvy to take the next logical step by acting as a publisher for our clients. New Plains MediaMedia = Bigger audience, increase engagement, more revenues.
Based on solid relationships, real opportunities and lessons learned, we’ve added incrementally deeper and broader offerings …, not just hit-and-run “sales” of the ABC variety.
It’s probably no surprise that consultative selling is an investment. Just as in your personal life, relationships take work. It’s a more thoughtful, deliberate approach that requires research and planning.
That’s why we don’t do “cold calls.” When your phone rings and we’re on the line, it’s the culmination of a process that prepares me to engage in a more meaningful conversation aimed at growing your business. We do our homework.
Of all the skills that go into such a sales model, I have found that listening is the key. Don’t tell the editorial department, but we like to listen like journalists. Practicing an active listening style allows us to understand your business in a way that gives me confidence whenever I offer a set of solutions. Confidence is a great feeling, but it comes only from being a good listener and being able to tell an authentic story. It’s the foundation of any relationship we seek to build.
And you know what? It’s not only more productive for us, it’s a lot more fun and personally rewarding to know that we bring more than just a “buy this” mentality to our relationships.
We have a wide array of products and partners in our toolbox, and our goal is to use them along with our combined years of experience, including my decades-long work in television and radio, to deliver a set of solutions that will drive more business to your door. We are a small but nimble company, and I don’t have time, nor would I want to waste your time, by making scattershot, bottom-feeding, ultimately unproductive and uniformed cold calls.
That’s just not our thing. It’s not who we are.
You’ll see this more thoughtful approach reflected in our recommendations. I can’t tell you how many times prospects have been surprised by the fact that print media (our Reader and El Perico) make their way into our solutions only when we know … really, really know … that print is the right match for your needs. More times than not, it probably won’t because our customers need unique solutions that drive results and that starts with their own digital presence and branding, before we should even start talking about any kind of advertising.
The only reason I got into sales in the first place was to help people … to help them succeed in marketing their business. Sure, I want the sale as much as the next person, but I want it on truly collaborative terms after demonstrating that I know your business and, as one former president famously put it, “I feel your pain.”
Besides, being a mom gives me an overdeveloped skill set (sigh) at being a pain magnet, so let’s talk soon about what keeps you up at night and how our arsenal of marketing tools might be a good fit to take your business to new levels of success.
