AT&T Technicians: Delivering the WOWEDFactor = Success In SellingCase Study

•  Question One: Is it possible to teach service technicians to sell effectively?  My answer: Absolutely YES.

• Question Two: Would the best strategy be to teach conventional selling techniques, like "how to close a sale" and "how to handle objections"?  My answer: Absolutely NO.

Had an opportunity to develop and deliver a series of seminars for AT&T technicians on how to sell extended warranty agreements to their business customers when they were on a repair call.  Initially the request to us was: "Teach our people techniques to get clients to buy the agreements."  In essence, the request was for the zero-sum manipulative selling stuff. (e.g., "The 10 key words to get people to buy now!"  "The 5 most effective closes."  "How to handle objections.") My take on these approaches: they only service to compromise the perception of trust and integrity - not enhance it. 

Bud Bottle and the Rose Bud

At our Ethical Selling System seminar, the Director of Sales for Missouri Eagle, an Anheuser-Busch distributor, shared with me a WOWEDSighting he regularly delivered to his customers, who are convenience store managers.

If the manager is a woman, every time he calls on their store, he presents her with a long-stem rose bud in an empty Bud bottle.

Let's  re-visit our WOWEDFactor definition.  In essence, it's a humanizing, engaging or connecting interaction that builds value for the person who delivers it and the company s/he represents.

He explained to me that once he engaged his customers in a genuine WOWEDFactor interaction, their perception of trust and confidence was enhanced.  As a result, the dollar value of the transaction was enhanced.  This is the formula upon which the Ethical Selling System is based: delivering humanizing, engaging or connecting interactions will enhance the value of transactions.  More later on how this approach has been applied successfully to develop business in different industries and professions.

Firestone
firestone@wowedamerica.com
314-863-4000