‘Right’, I said to myself, eyeing the suspicious guy knocking at my door; ‘if you’re not about to sell me broadband, I’ll eat my ludicrously ambiguous EU cookie directive notes’…
A year later and, thankfully, my notes are still here (although somewhat more extensive, and tea-stained) – the guy was actually selling gas & electricity.
But we can all relate to this event; when an obvious salesman knocks or calls, we feel intruded on. Put out. “We’re busy enough as it is! Take your plastic name tag and shove it where the…!!”
….. Breathe …..
This image of the ‘salesman’ is downright annoying and, unfortunately, especially prevalent for digital businesses throughout the UK. Leading speakers in the sales world (I strongly suggest reading the latest work from Jill Konrath and Neil Rackham) are preaching firmly against it, and sales teams around the world should listen. Our budgets are tight and ROI is king. No new partnership should be conducted as a “fast sell”.
At Found, we have been incredibly mindful to avoid this from day one. Our company is founded on the principles of consultancy, results, integrity and putting our money where our mouth is. So, when I became Sales Director in November 2011, I immediately renamed my team: ‘The Partnerships Team’. I’m a firm believer that the word ‘Partnerships’ is fitting, and does proper justice to our approach to new business.
So. I’d like to invite you to sit back, pour yourself a cup of tea, and relax: if you’d like to talk, we’ll work closely with you to ensure your company has considered all the options available to you across your media plan. We’ll give you accurate forecasting and work to performance KPI’s across every digital channel. We want to revel in your successes and be rewarded when we achieve for you.
Here’s to the end of the site-to-site ‘salesman’. Here’s to a partnerships-driven, target-smashing 2012.
