It’s not the job interview from hell for nothing and tonight we saw why working for SAS might really be hell. Not for him the subtleties of interviewing but the in your face, I need to know all about your personal life crash, bang, whallop approach. With no task this week, sales training tips were a little more subtle than other weeks…

Maybe this approach will work? Perhaps we will we find out if any of the apprentices are actually drop dead shrewd? Or discover if Lohit really deserves to be there? Or uncover whether Katie really is as appalling as she seems? Maybe we’ll discover whether Kristina is the real deal, whether Simon has any substance and if Tre’s supercharged, self-confidence is accurate or misplaced?

Or maybe we won’t…

I thought last year that the interviews were aggressive and unrealistic. If anything they were worse this year with one of the interviewers being aggressive and intrusive to the point of rudeness.

Sales training tip: If you want to have a good interview then you need to give your potential employee some room to talk. You need to find out what motivates them and why. You need to plan and prepare questions.

Many of you who know me from sales training seminars will know that I believe that planning and preparation is critical for sales success. This is not because I am the process driven type. In fact, quite the opposite as I’m the sort who opens up the new DVD player and sets it up without even looking at the instructions! Until I get stuck at least!

For the last year in sales training I have talked about how in last year’s final of The Apprentice the candidates let themselves down by not even knowing what SAS’s company did. I did not expect the same basic sales mistake again. Amazingly, both Tre and Katie had to admit that they had done little or no research.

Sales training tip: Planning and preparation is critical to your sales success. Make sure that when you go on a sales meeting you know what you need to know. It is not uncommon for clients and prospects to ask, “What do you know about our company then?” Ouch! Even if they don’t ask this, lack of planning and preparation means that you have to ask basic information questions at the expense of more focused and targeted sales questions. This can lose you the client, the sales and your reputation.

SAS explains that today is going to be a gruelling interview process to see if the candidates are good enough to work for him and his companies. Three people will be fired. The interviews are going to be conducted by 3 of SAS’s friend and colleagues – Bordan Tkachuk, Claude Littner, and Paul Kemsley.

The interviews themselves were vaguely interesting however they jumped around so much it was very difficult to work out what really went on in them. There was also a heavy amount of bias as to who got airtime and for what. To say these interviews actually took hours, we really saw only a few minutes and these were all very “themed.”

Katie was asked about ruthlessness. When asked if she had ever lied or cheated she said yes to get someone else’s husband because she wanted him. She then said that this act was only an 8 on a scale of 1 to 10 for ruthlessness.

Paul focused on the fact that she was a mum with two young kids. Katie said she wasn’t a “softly, softly mum” who does cooking and wears florals. She was a 90k a year, brand consultant who works for a global business and has a gold card. She does talk a good game! She also has some very strong stereotypes of people.

Sales training tip: Be careful of stereotyping your clients. Whilst it is important to do background research we need to be careful not to stereotype individuals. Once we pigeon hole people in this way it is very likely that this will effect every interaction with this person (or group). I have heard many salespeople stereotype prospects as tyre-kickers only to later discover that they bought off of one of their competitors that very day!

Lohit had a hard time from Claude. “Do you know the word humility? Would it apply to you? You talk about how you have achieved more than people twice your age. I am twice your age I would like to think I have achieved more than you.”

Paul asked what made him angry and he said when people don’t deliver. Paul asked if he had lost his temper yet and then accused him of being “middle of the road” and “boring”!

Next we saw Paul with Simon. ““Look at me when I am talking to you”

Sales training tip: Some people have a look to listen rule. This means that if you do not look at them when they are talking they do not think that you are paying attention. As a sales professional it is important that you start to notice visual information like this so that you can use it to your advantage. Spend some time in your sales meetings and sales training working on understanding people and how to communicate more effectively with a larger variety of people.

Simon was accused of having had a great education and starting in the city but then losing himself after getting made redundant. Do other companies let good people go he was asked? At least he was humble enough to concede that others had produced better results. You’ve gone from being an employee in Credit Suisse to being an entrepreneur and now you want to go back into employment. I don’t know where you are going said one of the interviewers.

With Tre we focused on whether he was running a company from his bedroom and whether he did or did not have 15 offices around the world. Was this his company or his family’s? Paul told Tre that he was confused and asked why he talks about success when the only success he had had was one that ended in disaster. He continued by telling Tre that he asked the questions and Tre should just answer!

We saw little of Kristina in interview other than to see her being asked a few simple questions.

Back in the boardroom SAS met with Paul, Claude and Bordan to give the following damning indictments…

Kristina.

They like her. She has “stickability” and is competent, hard working and fun. She’s a credible candidate who was pleasant and good on interview. She’s bright cheery and smiley. “I would employ her as a manager”, one stated. Borden thinks she could be a good asset.

Tre.

They have doubts about. When you get him in a corner he gets aggressive. He doesn’t like being questioned. But they acknowledge that he has been picking up contracts and has the best record of any of the candidates in the competition and that he has “been instrumental” in some of these wins.

Lohit.

Was the least credible candidate said one and has no leadership skills. Paul says he has no chance. Borden thinks the same. SAS says that he thinks Lohit doesn’t know what he is saying a lot of the time.

Simon.

Has all of the background and training. He is intelligent, articulate and well researched. Paul thinks he is a gross under achiever and asks what he has done. Borden says he could not get to grips with his career story and what happened. Claude says he thinks he has lost his way but that he would not write him off because he’s only young and given a chance he could succeed.

Katie.

Paul says she is bright and capable. You could give her a job to do and she would do it but she could upset people. She’s a powerful aggressive lady. Claude doesn’t agree – he thinks she is a showman and a great talker. But he doesn’t think she has a clue. Borden says the girl is ruthless. I don’t know if I saw the real Katie or if I could begin to understand anything but the charade. Paul thinks she is a go getter. They agree her motivation is all about winning.

Sales training tip: A core skill of selling is the ability to engage, communicate and present to others. Katie is a great presenter and communicator. Whatever you think of her other skills, experience or ability she has consistently made a strong case for herself when presenting and in the boardroom. Despite the fact that she has made several wrong business decisions she is still, at this late stage, seen as a key player because of her strengths in presenting herself well. As a salesperson you need all of the skills, knowledge and techniques and you need to be able to present yourself as confident, articulate and credible. By doing regular sales training you can ensure that you not only have the right sales skills but also the right interpersonal skills too.

SAS calls our famous five to the boardroom. He starts by talking to Kristina and asks her if she would move house to get the job. She says she would. He asks if she is sure. She says, “Absolutely positive”.

Sales training tip: As a salesperson people will often lie to you or be economical with the truth. You need to learn to listen beyond what they say and focus in on the way that they say it as well. Kristina absolutely meant what she said – you could hear it in her pace, pitch and tone.

SAS turned on Katie and took a similar tack with his questions. She said she would move. He asked if it was a simple as that. She said that “it can be.”

Sales training tip: Listen to language. People tell you what you need to know but we often ignore it, hearing instead what we want to hear. Not only did Katie not answer positively but her words were vague and non committal. “It can be that easy”. That is never a yes.

“This is it I am going to pick the two finalists. Three people are going. Lohit I am trying to search what you are going to do for me. I can’t see it. Lohit you are a very nice fine fellow. I want to put you out of your misery. You’re fired.”

And there were four.

SAS turned his attention back to Katie…

Ed. Now I’m with Claude. She has made bad business decisions, switched people off and has a nasty streak. She is a good presenter and can sell herself but that’s it for me. Surely she is about to go…

Katie, you’re in the final!

Amazing. He obviously sees something I haven’t. But there’s something strange going on now. Her cheeks are a strange pink colour. There is no joy on her face. She is looking down. Is she embarrassed? Upset? Angry? She looks at him very, very strangely.

“Tre you have something. But my colleagues find that you have difficulty in accepting criticism. They find you difficult and I have to say that they are spot on because I find that also. I think you need to grow up and be a little less defensive. I cannot see you slotting into the organisation. Tre you’re fired.”

SAS turns back to Katie. You don’t look happy. She says that she hasn’t planned for this and that she needs to speak to her parents and support network before moving. They have a conversation and she bows out of the competition.

What a surprise (not). She’s been playing them all along.

SAS says that what we saw there was someone who wasn’t going to give me the commitment. He congratulates his finalists Kristina and Simon.

Nick’s closing words about Katie say it all, “She’s a game player. That’s what she is, a game player.”

So what sales training tips do we learn from tonight’s episode…

Sales training tip 1: Research! Research! Research!

Whether you are visiting a client or interviewing a new salesperson you need to do your research. Planning and preparation are what separate professionals from amateurs. If you want to get more business then you need to do your prep on your prospects. If you want to get that great sales job or promotion you need to do your research. If you want to land good salespeople for your sales teams you need to plan your interview.

Sales training tip 2: Know the personalities involved

Research the individuals that you are selling to. What are they like? What do they like? How are they going to be? We saw Paul last year, we knew he was direct. The apprentices should have been much more well prepared.

Sales training tip 3: Only sell to reality

Clients will often say one thing to you when they mean another. They do this for all sorts of reasons… Maybe they just want to expedite the sales process. Maybe they don’t trust you. Perhaps they just don’t want to share with you. No matter. Whatever the reasons, your role is to open up your communication channels and seek out the real meaning and intent behind their communication. You will only make sales if you sell to reality.

Related posts:

1. The Sales Apprentice: Sales Training Tips From The Hit TV Show, Part IX
2. The Sales Apprentice: Sales Training Tips From The Hit TV Show, Part IV
3. The Sales Apprentice: Sales Training Tips From The Hit TV Show, Part V

630am. The phone rings, waking our Sales Apprentices from their self-contemplation. Time for some sales training lessons. SAS would like to meet you in Greenwich. “We’ve done selling. We’ve done exporting. We haven’t touched importing. Billions of pounds of goods are imported every year.”  SAS wanted our teams to speak to 5 countries who will each pitch 3 products to them. Our heroes are to decide which country they wish to work with and then sell those products to the trade. As usual, the team that makes the most cash wins.

First stop was the Royal Naval College where our two teams, headed by Katie and Tre, met the representatives of the countries to see their products.

After viewing some frankly weird products Katie and her team decide to back Canada who had a self-assembly rug, a sports shoe insole which is being trialled by Everton and a portable light therapy device. Tre and his team pitched for Sweden, home of weed filled dolls, a silent but deadly air purifier and a vacuum nozzle. 

After making these decisions Katie and Stealth headed en masse for the Canadian trade commission to find out more. Tre took Simon to the Swedish trade office but sent Lohit and Jadine to book appointments for the next day. 

Sales training time management tip: Sales superstars use their time well. They plan out what they need to do and they get on with it. Getting a head start on the next day always makes sense and having a few sales meeting “in the bag” will surely start your day with a bang.

Jadine however had other plans. She was missing her daughter and got somewhat emotional. Lohit got sidetracked by her. Whilst I feel sorry for her and I respect him for helping this was the wrong time to get down in the dumps. Without sales meetings with bona fide clients, your sales efforts are doomed. This was not a maybe, a perhaps or a whatever task… it was a “must do” and they blew it. We later found out that Jadine had trade cold calling experience and Lohit once held the record for the most sales in one day on the telephone. Jadine made no calls. Lohit made some but snagged only one sales appointment. Not good. 

Sales training tip: Cold calling for appointments is critical for your success. Work out how many appointments you need and make the relevant number of calls. If you’re scared of cold calling then check out my No Fear Cold Calling and Power Canvassing products and seminars… they’ll warm you up! 

Back from the Canadian office the girls team had left it too late to book appointments for tomorrow. Tre’s team have missed a golden opportunity here to get ahead. 

Back at the house Tre, Lohit and Simon briefed each other on the products, who they are going to sell to and their (one) appointment. Jadine is absent. 

8am, day 2, and the teams have one day to convince UK retailers to buy their foreign products. They must be back in the boardroom by 630pm or face a fine. With no appointments Katie tells her team to get straight on the phones. Personally, she is targeting rug shops. Marathon runner Naomi is on the hunt for sports shops for the insoles. Kristina will be looking for high end chemists who might be able to retail the lamp. 

Tre’s team start edwell. Their one appointment at a children’s store results in an order. There is an important lesson to learn here. 

Sales training tip: Selling is not difficult. Tre and Simon only picked this product yesterday. They have never sold it before. Lohit made a cold call getting the appointment and they have closed the deal. Many salespeople have this kind of result when they start out. Problem is, they get fixated on failure and rejection rather than on success and they make the whole think too complicated and difficult. Keep your sales as simple as you can. 

Pretty soon both teams got down to something the announcer is calling “door stepping”, door to door sales to you and me. Now this confuses me and it has confused me every time they have done it. Why walk the streets hoping to get a bite when you can cover 10 times as much ground securing meetings on the phone? With a targeted campaign they could have covered hundreds of businesses on the phone… 

Kristina (my current recommendation) who did seem to be setting up appointments on the phone landed an appointment to “pitch” the lamp. With 10 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry Kristina kicked off with some hard science… (Ed. So the commentator called it). Certainly she did sound knowledgeable but some sales questions wouldn’t have gone amiss. At one point the client said, “The fact that it is portable is a strong selling point”, Kristina talked straight back at him. 

Sales training tip: When someone makes such a strong statement you need to “ask it back”. “Why do you think this is a strong selling point?”, “What makes that such a strong selling point?”, “How will that help you shift these?” or even “How is that going to help your customers?” 

Kristina made the sale… could it have been bigger had she asked a few more questions? We’ll never know. 

Meanwhile, Jadine and Lohit were going door to door with the dolls and the vacuum nozzle adaptors. Why? Why? Why? After one presentation the shop owner said that he would have to get back to them as he needed to speak to the decision maker. He eventually did make the sale but this cost them a 10% fine as they were late back. This need never have happened. A proper sales meeting set up on the phone would have seen the right decision makers in the right place at the right time. 

Meanwhile Katie and Naomi did a deal for £1500 of insoles. The buyer said that they had convinced him. Passion and enthusiasm can go a long way in sales! 

The girls’ team were struggling to sell the rug in a box. Kristina doesn’t know how to put the rug together so she told her prospect that it is so easy that he ought to do it to see for himself. Very clever but also a smart sales move. Most salespeople are far too quick to demonstrate. Getting the client involved in this way allowed him to actually experience the product rather than him resisting your sales pitch. 

Right at the end of play Jadine and Lohit demonstrated a great sales training tip on sales negotiations – never cave in on first offers. A buyer they had been waiting for all afternoon rang in and asked if 5 really was the minimum order. Jadine said. “Yes” – pause – the client bought. Excellent. 

In the boardroom SAS is not a happy bunny because some people are late. The figures are in. Katie’s Stealth have eclipsed Tre’s Eclipse with £2226.59 to £1344.29. Over £4,500 of sales with no leads and no product knowledge and all in one day. 

Sales training tip: If you sometimes sit around moaning that you haven’t got any sales leads and that there is no business out there, stop it now! There’s business out there whatever your field and our Sales Apprentices just proved it! 

Next day in the board room Jadine said that the reason why Tre wasn’t a good team leader was that he didn’t praise them enough. 

Let’s nail this now. Selling is about you, not your boss. Sure, it’s nice to get praise and when I do consultancy I help sales directors and business owners to get the most out of their sales teams by getting this motivational tool right but ultimately I ‘aint talking to your managers now, I’m talking to you! If you did the work and you did the deal, you don’t need anyone else to say “well done”. You should pat yourself on the back and know that it will be reflected in your pay packet, your promotion prospects and your long-term well being. 

Lohit blamed the list of numbers. A bad salesmen blames his tools. I’ve written about it before so I won’t again here but you have to decide… 

Sales training question: Is your sales career about results or reasons? Everyone always has a reason for not getting results. Reasons will stop you changing and taking action to get the results you want and need. 

Tre admitted that he may have made some mistakes. No really, he did! SAS thinks it is a disaster and he is surprised at Tre. Simon and Lohit say that Tre makes good contributions usually. Tre admits he has cocked it up, just not “royally”. SAS is not impressed. “Lohit I think you’re very articulate and I am struggling to see where you can fit in my organisation.” On Jadine, “In business you get home sick. In business you miss your children. Life sucks you have to get over it. It should never effect what you’re doing.” 

SAS says it’s a difficult one but I had already written the final line, “Jadine, you’re fired.” I hadn’t however bargained for the kind words from Big Al, “There’s nothing bad I want to say about you.” Go home and see your daughter. Jadine looked relieved more than sad. 

So what are the main sales training lessons of the show? 

1. Plan and prepare

   It was patently obvious tonight as with all of these tasks that timings were going to be important. It was also clear that the team that could see the most qualified prospects would be the winner. As a salesperson you have to plan and prepare your day effectively. You need to know what are the key tasks that you need to get done, when and why? Take time to plan your activities and appointments so that you can get the most out of your time. The time spent planning will be well worth it.

2. Utilise the phone
   The phone is one of the most important business tools that you have. It allows you to reach people at the other side of the world or the other side of the street in seconds. As a salesperson you should be an expert at knowing when to use the phone and when not to. Prospecting and setting up meetings is an area where you can cover far more ground than you can on foot.

   I am not knocking cold calling using shank’s pony per sae and in some industries it is still very effective however it should always be coupled with powerful use of the phone.

3. Don’t visit people willy-nilly
   Many salespeople worry that taking time out to plan is time wasted. They are wrong. Even had our teams been right to hit the streets (which they weren’t in the way they did it in my opinion) they would have been better planning and preparing their routes first. As a salesperson I never went out on one client meeting. I always set up more than one at the same company or at a nearby company whenever I could. OK, so this takes some time to plan and prepare but not as much as driving willy-nilly across the country.
4. Make results not reasons
   There are always reasons why you didn’t hit target, reasons why your client didn’t buy, reasons why you did not get promoted. Reasons might make you feel better in the short term but they will hold you back in the long run.

   You lost the deal because you hadn’t got the right sales skills, then get them. You missed target because you haven’t got enough leads, then get more. It’s up to you – reasons or results?!
    

Tonight’s all about taking action so take a moment and plan…. What are you going to do to get more sales results and less reasons?

Related posts:

1. The Sales Apprentice: Sales Training Tips From The Hit TV Show, Part VIII
2. The Sales Apprentice: Sales Training Tips From The Hit TV Show, Part V
3. The Sales Apprentice: Sales Training Tips From The Hit TV Show, Part VI

Hi and welcome to the latest Sales Apprentice dissection – sales training lessons we can learn from The Apprentice. Tonight’s episode started with the team being informed that they would be meeting the next day at Hamley’s toy shop. This was a nice touch as I am really getting a little bored of wondering whether this team of "professionals" are going to drop their towels when answering the phone!

At Hamleys next day, SAS tinkered with the teams and for the first time elected the project leaders himself – Ghazal and Adam – thus avoiding the usual election fiasco. This week’s project was a sweet one – to design, manufacture and then sell confectionery at London Zoo. The team making the most profit would be the winner and would avoid the inevitable wrath of SAS in the board room.

Adam’s team started the ball rolling by discussing what sort of sweets they were going to make.

Adam, a car sales manager, gave it some thought and suggested something with an animal theme. Katie was, not surprisingly, unimpressed. She instead started talking about the Big 5 – the animals that everyone wants to see on a safari. Now this might be fine if you’re selling to people at my old (private) school but Katie, the reason why people are at the zoo is because they ‘aint on a safari! And I’ve never heard of the Big 5 so you can be sure that little children haven’t! It’s come up before so let’s say it again…

Sales training lesson: Never forget who your market is and what they want! You might think you’re being clever but if your market don’t get it you’re an ass!

Ghazal’s team seemed to be starting more promisingly with Cheeky Monkeys. My niece would like that and she would run a mile from the Big 5 I am sure. Monkeys are a safe bet and she’s nearly 4 and likes to be cheeky!

Planning and preparation are essential to sales and Adam seemed to have the edge here…

He split his team into two taking one half with him to the sweet factory and sending the other half to the zoo. They were to research locations for their fixed stall and speak to parents and children to see what would sell best. A good plan and a pity that they subsequently picked the wrong location and fluffed their research! Still, this was better than Ghazal’s "market research" which seemed to consist of holding up a lolly and saying "my inclination" is that this will sell.

The day dragged on with Tre and Christina rushing backwards and forward down the motorway and the others getting involved with designing their sweets. From the off Adam’s sweets seemed flawed. Their "natural" lolly was full of additives and looked, in SAS’s words, like "puke" and their labelling was irresponsible, even illegal. Ghazal mucked up her timings after mucking up the chocolate which cost her two hours. This meant that her team failed to produce enough sweets for the day…

Next day in London Zoo sales efforts were laughable…

Adam’s team hadn’t even managed to sort their pitch out (what is it about pitches that they all keep mucking up on?) and they all seemed to run around with little direction or focus. Adam’s team were banned from selling their "natural" lolly due to the fact that it wasn’t infact "natural". They lost valuable time here and this probably cost them the task.

Back in the board room Ghazal’s team won by a whisker despite the fact that they ran out of sweets to sell. They made £994.31 and Adam’s team came a close second with £983.80.

After a few recriminations Adam took Sophie and Natalie back to the board room. The girls tried to gang up on him but Sophie was fired.

Should Adam have escaped? Did SAS sack the right person? Was Sophie fundamentally flawed for this role?

Yes! Yes! And Yes! In my opinion. Sophie is not our Sales Apprentice!

Good salespeople operate in the real world. Sales and selling is a great leveller. I see it in sales training programmes week in and week out. Just because someone has a high IQ, an impressive degree or a big forehead does not make them any better or any worse at selling. Clearly, these assets can be used to great effect when selling (well maybe not the Tefal head!) but often they become more of a sales deterrent than a sales aid. Here are 5 characteristics of great salespeople

1. Salespeople have common sense

Salespeople can see how things are and can equate them in the real world with real people. Technical skills can be a great advantage in some sales markets but many technical salespeople make things far more complicated than they are. If you find selling difficult then you are probably making it too complicated. Sophie made everything complicated! Remember how much milk she ordered in the 1st task? "No common" as my Mum would say!

2. Salespeople work hard

Even though they lost the task Adam’s team should have won due to the fact that the other team ran out of product. Adam’s team didn’t run out of product because he insisted that they worked until 1am making the sweets. Ghazal’s team however knocked off at 11pm. On Adam’s team Sophie was the one complaining about working on. Adam was having none of it! Salespeople work hard.

3. Salespeople believe in their products

Good salespeople believe in their products. They believe that they add value for their customers and that they provide value for money. Sophie said that she had a problem with selling something that she didn’t think provided value for money. She then went on to say that she could sell high ticket items. Maybe she can but I doubt it. Everyone knows sweets, drinks and snacks are expensive at that kind of venue. What’s more the other team were selling for more.

As a salesperson it is your responsibility to understand your product, how it adds value for your customers and why it provides exceptional value for money. This is true whether you are selling a £2 lollipop or a £1m pension fund.

4. Salespeople have belief in selling

Good salespeople are proud of what they do. They know that nothing happens in business until someone makes a sale. Sophie admitted that she was "uncomfortable" with the sales process. Might have thought about that before you put yourself in front of SAS ("This is the real world luv!" – SAS).

5. Salespeople can deal with rejection

Good salespeople know that rejection is something that happens. No-one can do the deal every time. They know their statistics and their ratios and they know that every "no" takes them closer to a "yes". Sophie had no concept of this way of thinking.

In fairness to Sophie she did recognise this and in the car leaving she said, "Now I know what it’s all about I don’t want to be a part of it." My last nagging question was how she didn’t already know this if she was so intelligent…

But for once I am going to let someone else have the last word in my blog… SAS himself because he said everything that I want to say…

He said that Sophie seemed to have a moral issue about sales and that that was naïve. He said that he was not a charity and that business was about profits. He said that he had lawyers who didn’t want to do the law and engineers who didn’t want to do engineering. He was worried that she was the same.

Salespeople have to want to sell. You have to want to sell.

Related posts:

1. The Sales Apprentice: Sales Training Tips From The Hit TV Show, Part III
2. The Sales Apprentice: Sales training tips from the hit TV show, Part II
3. The Sales Apprentice: Sales Training Tips From The Hit TV Show, Part I