Progressive Distributor - Out in the cold

Out in the cold

What to do when your regular buyer leaves the company

by Art Sobczak

So you’ve been beaten up pretty badly for the day. Your prospecting yielded zilch, and you’re gazing at a quota number that appears to be filled with helium, floating a bit more out of your grasp every day.

You page through your tickler system and look for a member of the 20 percent club: those in your account base who represent 80 percent of your business. You search for a slam dunk that will book you some quick numbers so you can bob up to at least quota sea level. Aha, here’s one that probably needs to re-order by now. You give him a call.

“Quality Industries, may I help you?”

“Yes. I’d like to speak with Kyle Johnson,” you say.

“I’m sorry, but Mr. Johnson is no longer with our company.”

Your heart sinks faster than a high-rise elevator. You search for an intelligent response, but “uhhh” is all you can muster.

“What happened to him?” you finally ask.

“He’s just no longer with the company.”

Those are code words for being canned. Wonderful. Here’s a guy you had a great relationship with, who always had time to shoot the bull (maybe that’s why he’s no longer there) and who always could be counted on for an order. He loved your products. Oh well, better find out who the new guy is. So you get the name of Jennifer Stevens, hang up and re-group.

Ever been in that situation? Most of us have. Here’s what you don’t want to do:

“Hi ya, Jennifer? Hey, I’m Dale Wilson with Complete Supply. I hear you took old Kyle Johnson’s place. Well, Kyle used to buy all his fittings and bearings from me. I know it’s getting to be about time for you guys to re-order, and I’m sure you’ll want to do the same thing. I’d like to talk with you a bit about the way he did things and get you going on your next order.”

That would be funny only if I hadn’t heard it before. Many times, actually.

Let’s look at some better alternatives for working with new buyers.

1) Don’t assume. Keep in mind the new people had lives before taking this position and might have existing relationships with other vendors, maybe even stronger than the relationships you had with the people they replaced. Coming across cocky is a lock to get you crossed off the list.

2) Send a welcome note. When you learn the new person’s name, hand write a card or note congratulating the buyer on the position. Do not sell in the card. Mention you look forward to speaking with that person, and sign it with your name and your company’s name. The new person won’t get much mail personally addressed during the first few weeks on the job, so your gesture will be memorable.

3) Learn about the new buyer. You likely have allies in the department. Snoop around. Learn where the person came from, what his or her personal interests are and what that person has been doing in the first few days there.

4) Call to introduce yourself and add value. Here’s when you need to make the best impression. Say something like:

“Hello, Ms. Stevens, I’m Dale Wilson with Complete Supply. First, congratulations again on your new position with Quality Industries. (Pause, chit chat.) I’ve had the opportunity over the past several years to provide Quality with bearings and fittings that the engineering department says work superbly in your line of wheels and components. I know you’re probably quite busy in your new position there, and I’d like to arrange a time when we could take about 20 minutes by phone to discuss how you like to deal with vendors, what your preferences are and anything I can do to make your job easier.”

Notice this approach is focused entirely on the new buyer, not on the caller. Granted, the caller is coming in with some status — that of a long-time vendor — but he’s not flaunting it and ramming it down the new buyer’s throat as the way things have and will be done.

One final note: After introducing yourself to the new buyer, find out where your old buyer went and call there.

Art Sobczak helps salespeople use the phone to prospect, sell and manage accounts more successfully. Call (800) 326-7721 or reach him via e-mail at arts@businessbyphone.com.