Get ready for a comeback (page 1 of 2)

After the screaming highs and desperate lows of the dot-com boom, economic observers are becoming cautiously optimistic about the prospect of an upturn: Out of 150 chief information officers (CIOs) surveyed at an Oracle-sponsored CIO summit late last year, 80 percent see the economy as improving and 19 percent say it's flat—just 1 percent believe the economy is getting worse.

But is this perception reflected in your sales results? And, if it's not, is it because things are improving slowly—or because your sales force is still selling like it's 1999? Keith Block, Oracle's executive vice president of North American sales, has some very specific ideas on how to prepare sales organizations to take advantage of tomorrow's upturn.

Surprisingly, it's not by doing what has been done before. "The way customers purchase has changed forever," says Block. In the old dot-com days, there was so much business coming in that a lot of the fundamentals, such as the way a company is organized or how it goes to market, didn't matter much. But this type of "fire hose" sales process is not an option any longer—even in an upturn.

"Even though economic recovery is at our doorstep, organizations have all been subject to increased margin pressure and lowered revenue forecasts," says Block. As a result of these constraints, businesses are becoming more selective as they evaluate new products and services—they want to be convinced that what you offer will provide them with benefits that can be quickly realized and easily measured.

Putting the Customer in Focus
As customer expectations change, so must the sales organization. The critical first step is to focus the sales organization on specializations, such as vertical industries. "Customers are not looking for general answers anymore," says Block. "They're looking for solutions. The one-size-fits-all approach doesn't make sense anymore."

But Block also believes that succeeding in an economic upturn requires more than just specialization—it also means a back-to-basics focus on the customer. "I think the way you treat your customer is very important," he says. "Transactions will always be a piece of the business, but there needs to be a long-term approach around strong relationships, delivering solutions, and serving the account."

This transition—from immediate product sales to long-term solutions—can be difficult. "Today's customers want to make sure that the salesperson understands their business, is servicing their account, is giving them a good solution, and is someone they can have a great relationship with," says Block. "They're simple principles, but the execution can be challenging."

The combination of investing time, developing references, and building relationships is a cultural shift for selling organizations, but, according to Block, it's a long-term change that will work to your advantage. "It's almost like a leap of faith for the rep. If you make these investments in your account base, you may not see the dividends immediately, but, over time, you build up a tremendous portfolio of goodwill in your account base, and that pays off in the end."

Proving the Point
Execution is also about proving the point. It's important to understand the customer's business and develop strategic relationships, but those steps are only the start. If you can't convince customers to bank on your solution or product, you're not going to make your sales goals.

Conversely, if you can show how your solutions or products have benefited key customers in important vertical markets, you've got great potential to go after their competitors.