Book of the Week: Can I Have 5 Minutes of Your Time? by Hal Becker

Hal Becker is one of the most widely known speakers. He is famous for becoming Xerox's #1 sales rep (out of 20k+ reps) at the age of 22. After Xerox, he started a telemarketing form called Direct Opinions and eventually sold it to become a professional consultant. 5 Minutes was his first book, written in 1993, and serves as a primer on the fundamentals of great salesmanship. The concepts Hal discusses are the foundation of sales training programs in organizations all across the world today. It's a simple yet profound read.  If you read it and think, "Duh," that's kind of the point--it's living it out that's the real challenge.



Here are my top 10 takeaways from the book:

1. Attitude and desire are fundamental. "I can train people to sell," Becker says, "but there's just one catch. You have to want to learn, to practice, to excel. I can't train desire." If you don't actually have the drive to be successful in sales, no process, tactic, or approach will do you any good. It all starts with intrinsic motivation. Are you self-inspired?
2. A problem is an opportunity. "A problem is a creative opportunity for me to be a hero." Most salespeople avoid problems at all costs. They don't want to deal with customer complaints. They fail to follow-up, because they are afraid of dissatisfaction. These sales people usually don't have a lot of repeat business. Each problem should be viewed as an opportunity for another sale, or at the very least a referral. Are you a hero for your customers?
3. Benefits are more important than features. People don't care, whether they are in B2B or B2C, about what the product is. They care about what it does. The benefit is what really needs to be communicated; the feature merely serves to validate the benefit. For example, you might be talking about improved fuel economy in selling a new car. Only when someone asks you how the fuel economy has improved to you need to talk about the new transmission, braking technology, etc. Benefits take precedence.
4. Steer clear of misunderstandings. More often than not, it's merely a misunderstanding that kills a sale--or a relationship. Poor communication is detrimental. It's important to actively listen to customers and paraphrase what they tell you to be sure that you are both on the same page. Each of you needs to know what the other expects. Otherwise, your customer will end up feeling as if you've broken a promise or you may end up harboring bitterness toward your customer. Have an open, honest conversation.
5. To avoid commoditization, makes sure your customer knows what makes you different. In discussing price, Becker says, "Price is not the overriding issue unless your customer is uninformed...when you don't know much about what you're buying, you buy price." It's true. Think about it. Why would you buy what you perceive to be an identical item if it's more expensive? You have a better product to offer. Show them that it's better! Don't assume that your customer just believes that a higher price represents a higher value. They don't. Often, they're cynical; make them believers. Prove that you deserve to command a higher price.
6. Selling starts with dissatisfaction. When you're looking for new business, looking for dissatisfaction in prospects. Becker suggests using the phrase, "If you could change anything about your present supplier, what would you change?" Often, customers will have some dissatisfaction but not realize it unless you bring it to their attention. Their current sales people are too afraid (see #2) to ferret out that dissatisfaction, so that provides a perfect opportunity for you. Do some digging. Most customers could go for some improvement.
7. Great salesmanship boils down to hard work. Becker dismantles the notion of "work smarter, not harder." He says that working smart is just common sense, but it's those who are willing to work hard that really make a difference. He admits to not being the smoothest or the smartest. He became Xerox's #1 rep by working the hardest.  And this notion resonates will nearly all great sales success stories. You get what you put in. In some lines of work, you can rely on your brains and coast your way into a comfortable livelihood. Not in sales. In sales, you are exactly as successful as you push yourself to be.
8. Seldom make promises. This advice flies in the face of traditional old school tactics of "tell them anything to get them to buy." Becker says, "Never make promises unless you're 100% sure you can deliver." The temptation for us as sales people is to overpromise. After all, customers often push us into a promise, don't they? "Your competitor does this. Can you do it too?" I don't think most of us are just trying to trick our customers into buying. I think most of us are just people pleasers and we want to make our customers happy. We need to curb this desire and be willing to risk turning away business if it means being honest about our capabilities. An unkept promise is death to credibility.
9. Reputation is everything. "Never, ever compromise your reputation to make a sale." This one is tricky because pressure is often placed upon sales people by upper management to get the sales at any and all costs. The "Code of Ethics" waiver is often inconsistent with the day-to-day demands of management. But, there: one of the most successful sales people that ever lived said it; you now have permission to act with integrity even when it means losing business. If you get fired for your integrity, you don't want to work for that company anyway.
10. Selling can be fun. This is Becker's final thought: "Make selling fun." It doesn't have to be a chore. It can be an emotionally rewarding career. There is no greater opportunity to provide value for and establish relationships with people than in sales. If it's just a job or you're just doing it for the commissions, you're missing out on a lot. Sales can be exciting in an of itself. It just takes a little bit of #1: attitude.