What Can Google, Apple, and Microsoft Teach Us about Sales?
Posted by: Cheryl Clausen in sales coaching, tags: how to sell, increase sales, sales changesThe fact that a turf war is going on may not be at the top of your list of things to pay attention to. However, as I read the article Rob Enderle recently wrote about the competition among the big three to provide the operating system for your next computer or notepad I realized this was yet another opportunity to make an important point.
If anyone understands the importance of what’s going on now it’s Bill Gates. After all, he was the nerdy upstart who virtually took down the giant… IBM. IBM was to computers what Kleenex is to facial tissues. They were the big gun who could outspend and out promote all the competition. That is until… Bill Gates completely changed the game.
Now if you’re tempted to believe this is only happening in the software industry think again. You only have to look back to the recent election to see the same thing in government. Then candidate, Barak Obama came out of nowhere and did what almost no one thought was possible.
Here’s why this is important to you and your sales. Right now you are in the eye of the hurricane when it comes to sales. Just like what’s happening with operating systems in the computer industry… how, why, and the way sales occur is in the midst of a big change. How people use their computers has changed. Why people use their computers has changed. The way people use their computers has changed.
Google is responding to those changes. They’re in a more nimble position to make those changes than Microsoft and Apple who are tied to the past. However, Google doesn’t have the marketing muscle of either.
No matter what you’re selling, no matter what industry or sector of the economy your business is in, the same is true. How you sell to the people most likely to buy your stuff has to change. Why you sell what you sell to the people most likely to buy your stuff has to change. The way you sell what you sell to the people most likely to buy your stuff has to change.
But I Hate Change…
If you’re like most people you absolutely hate change. You want to keep doing what you’ve been doing and pretend things will go back to the way they were. You want to keep doing what you’ve been doing and hope for the same old results. You want to keep doing what you’ve been doing and bet this is just another passing fade.
Fear of change makes you very vulnerable because things are going to change no matter how you respond to those changes. You either change with the world around you… or you get left behind. You either make the changes you need to make to serve the people who buy your stuff the way they want to be served or… you fail.
Time for Phenomenal Success
What this also means is now is the time for phenomenal success. When you are the one who changes when others won’t… you hold the key to setting yourself apart. When you set yourself apart… you have the potential to be found by hordes of buyers. When you help those buyers the way they want to get helped… you have the potential to own the market even… if you’re just a one man computer nerd who happens to know how to cut a good deal in a market that appears indomitable.
What changes do you need to make to take full advantage of this opportunity?
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