How to Excel in International Sales

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How to Excel inInternational Sales

• Vincent S. Daniels
• Nova Southeastern University
• http//hudson.huizenga.nova.edu

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How to Excel inInternational Sales

• Introductions
• The Domestic Export Market
• The Global Chameleons
• Matching and Mirroring
• Using Time Effectively
• Questioning Techniques
• Lunch

3
How to Excel inInternational Sales

• Help from the Government
• Ethics in Global Sales
• Influencers and Decision Makers
• The Ultimate Global Road Warrior
• Discussion

4
The Domestic Export Market

• Purchasing agents for U. S. companies operating
  overseas
• Three in your region
• __________________________________________________
  __
• __________________________________________________
  __
• __________________________________________________
  __
• Dealing with local company has benefits
• __________________________________________________
  __
• __________________________________________________
  __
• __________________________________________________
  __
• Can lead to greater exposure to and opportunities
  in international markets
• Often operate separately from domestic
  purchasing, offering opportunities for major
  contracts

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The Domestic Export Market

• Purchasing agencies of foreign companies in the
  U. S.
• Three in your region
• __________________________________________________
  ____
• __________________________________________________
  ____
• __________________________________________________
  ____
• Often directed by home-country management
• Purchasing agents often U. S. natives with
  industry experience
• Selling is more secure as they are governed by U.
  S. law
• Opportunity to learn about another country
  without travel
• Can lead to invitation to visit, which can open
  more doors

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The Domestic Export Market

• Exporters
• Three with whom you have business
• __________________________________________________
  
• __________________________________________________
  
• __________________________________________________
  
• Often product or country focused
• May have strong ties to a country of origin
• Many are very small, and not well financed
• Financial risk potential, but still may be good
  opportunities
• Financial risk may be minimized
• Cash sales
• Letters of credit opened to your company
• Assignment of proceeds (still risky if they do
  not comply with terms)

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Matching and Mirroring

• Matching and Mirroring
• Communications is the common element among
  mankind
• The bulk of communicability is based on
  Physiology and Tonality.
• The verbal component accounts for only 7 of
  communications
• So why do salespeople talk so much?
• In international sales these three components
  become more difficult to accomplish effectively

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Matching and Mirroring

• What are elements of tonality?
• _____________________
• _____________________
• _____________________
• _____________________
• What is matching?
• How can we make our verbal content more
  effective?
• Use of vocabulary
• Use of grammar
• Use only familiar words

• What are elements of physiology?
• _____________________
• _____________________
• _____________________
• _____________________
• _____________________
• What is mirroring?
• How do these elements differ in different
  cultures?

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Global Chameleons

• Time, distance, language and culture make
  international sales much more challenging
• With the involvement of distance and time you
  must make the most of the time with the customer
• Set up appointments in advance
• Know what outcomes you want, and inform customer
• Use the advanced agreement concept
• Establish and agenda
• Define your role in the meeting
• Define prospects/customers role what does he
  have to prepare in advance
• Mutually agree to next step
• Pre-determine the outcome to lead to next step
• Get commitment for yes or no

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The Global Chameleon

• Prepare yourself based on culture language,
  history, customs and religion
• Language includes vocabulary, grammar and style.
  Embrace the style to begin to understand the
  culture.
• Take time to learn the history
• Customs vary from country to country and region
  to region. Customs may also vary from group to
  group based on ethnic, religious, economic and
  environmental grounds.
• Many cultures are strongly based on religion.
  Become familiar with the religion and its
  involvement in business culture

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Using time effectively

• What are your five non-productive time stealers
• __________________________________
• __________________________________
• __________________________________
• __________________________________
• __________________________________

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Using time effectively

• Being on the road is great, exciting, energetic.
  We are in our element. Creative, innovative -
  making deals.
• Then we come home. Boring!
• What five non-productive time stealers
• Working with the clock instead of goals
• Making long socializing calls with clients and
  non-clients
• Pushing papers
• Writing long (and often worthless) proposals when
  we do not know the next step
• Getting ready to get ready what is this?

13
Using time effectively

• When not on the road, how do you use your time
  productively
• __________________________________
• __________________________________
• __________________________________
• __________________________________
• __________________________________

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Using time effectively

• When not on the road, use your time productively
• Disqualify suspects, and concentrate on
  learning about the REAL prospects and customers
• Network
• Get exposure
• Write articles or a book
• Address any audience of value
• Learn, learn, learn! Study, study, study!
  Degrees and certifications.
• Set short term goals daily, weekly, monthly
  and let these guide you. You do not work on the
  clock, you achieve success by achieving goals.

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Questioning Techniques

• The primary key to effective selling lies in
  asking good questions. The ability to ask good
  questions, to have strong questioning techniques
  is not as easy as it sounds. This is a skill
  bordering on an art. We will discuss several
  types of questions to include direct (open and
  closed ended) questions reverses and negative
  questions.
• The importance of good questioning technique is
  compounded by the fact that the client never
  tells us the whole truth. Sometimes they hold
  back from telling the salesman everything, and
  sometimes they really do not know what the whole
  truth is.
• Just like the doctor or psychiatrist who has to
  find out what the patients real problem is, it
  is the duty of the salesperson to find out what
  the customers real problem is. We cannot treat
  the symptoms, we must deal with the real problem.
  Most salespeople want to offer solutions, but
  hey usually do not fully understand the problem.
• The only way to discover the real problem is to
  have the customer talk about it. We need very
  good questioning and listening techniques. Only
  if we can get to the bottom of the problem can we
  offer effective solutions.

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Why ask questions

• We ask questions to lead a prospect on a journey.
  The prospect or client takes the journey, but
  we, as salespeople, must usually lead them on it.
  The purpose of the journey is to help the
  clients to find problems, and to let them get
  excited about solving them. The journey can be
  seen in several ways
• What ? Why ? Effect ? Feeling
• We want the client to discover What is the
  problem, then Why is it a problem (the Whys
  behind the What?, then the effect of the
  problem, and, when possible, how he or she feels
  about that.
• Intellectual ? Personal ? Emotional
• The What is almost always an intellectual
  response. We need the client to personalize it
  and them get emotional about it.
• Well ? Not Well ? Sick ? Very Sick ? Critical ?
  Life Saver
• When we start with the client he is feeling
  pretty good. When we help him to discover a
  problem he becomes less well. An additional
  problem makes him sick. As he personalizes it he
  becomes very sick and even critical. We then
  toss him a Life Saver, but we avoid presenting a
  solution.

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BIRD DOG Reversing

• Reversing is the most important type of
  questioning technique uses in sales. It is used
  to search for the reason(s) a client would ask
  something, or offer up certain information. The
  development of this technique is a skill and
  requires time and practice.
• The key is to remember that every time a
  client/prospect asks a question there is a
  reason. The duty of the salesperson is to find
  out what that reason is. The reason is usually
  an indicator of a problem.
• The purpose of reversing is to find a PAIN or
  problem. It is to find the What, what is the
  problem.
• Sample reverses are
• There must be a reason you asked me that?
• Good question, why do you ask that just now?
• You must be telling me that for a reason.
• There must be a reason you invited me in.
• Sometimes a client needs help in offering up the
  problem
• Typically when I visit a company like yours they
  have problems like , I dont suppose that is the
  case here?
• Last week I visited a company that had some
  problems, like Probably these are not problems
  for you.

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Softening Statements used with Reversing

• Often, depending on your skill level, reversing
  can sound harsh and aggressive. As salespeople
  we want to avoid sounding aggressive. We need
  people to trust us. To dampen the aggressive
  nature of Reversing we use softening statements.
  These typically preface the reverse Samples are
• That's a good question
• That's a good point
• Than sounds important
• I'm glad you asked
• I appreciate that question
• I respect that
• I understand
• Makes sense
• I see
• Everyone asks that
• Interesting, you are the third person this week
  to ask me that

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BIRD DOG Dumb Questions

• Quite often we have to act Dumb in order to get
  more information from our prospect/client.
• Sometimes we assume we know the reason the client
  is telling or asking us something, but the fact
  is that we are often wrong. Remember that the
  client buys for her own reasons, not for yours.
• Another reason for Dumb questions is to get the
  prospect to delve deeper into the possible
  problem. We may want more information, without
  appearing to be aggressive and probing.
• Also, a Dumb question allows a client to rescue
  us, which will be covered later.
• We may ask Dumb questions even if we have done
  our research and think we know the answer.
• Samples of Dumb questions are
• Im confused
• Im not sure I understand
• Let me see if I have this straight (make error)
• Would you mind going through that again so I can
  make some notes

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BIRD DOG Digging Questions

• With the Digging questions we are looking for the
  effect of the problem. These are fairly direct
  questions, as by now the prospect should be
  personally involved in the PAIN, perhaps even
  emotionally involved.
• You may also continue to use interviewing,
  reversing and dumb questions to make the Digging
  more effective, and to get the client more
  personally involved.
• Digging questions might be
• What effect has this problem had on your sales?
• How much more profit might you have if you could
  solve this problem?
• But this problem is probably not affecting your
  bottom line. (Negative works even better than
  positive)
• This problem is probably not so big that solving
  it would be a priority now.

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BIRD DOG Objections

• Who can overcome objections? Only the prospect.
• The salesperson can only assist the prospect in
  overcoming the objections. To do this we use
  very special questions.
• Which means?
• Lets pretend. (Suppose I could.)
• Magic Wand
• We have a problem. Any ideas?
• That could be a problem.
• If you were me, what would you do?
• Lets talk about this. You start.
• If you cannot overcome the objections then the
  sale cannot be made.

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BIRD DOG Getting the decision

• If you follow the BASS Selling Strategy, and do
  it well, with good questioning techniques, then
  getting the business is very easy. Just ask
• What would you like to do now?
• What should be the next step?
• And then reconfirm, Are you sure?
• If it is harder to close, perhaps because you di
  not do your disqualifications well, then you will
  have to use a harder, negative technique
• You sound interested, but youre probably not
  ready to make a deposit now?
• I get the feeling that you are not ready to move
  ahead right now. What do we have to do to make
  you comfortable with making a decision?
• If you cannot get the decision, go back to PAIN.

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Help from the Government

• The U. S. Commercial Service
• www.export.gov
• www.floridaexporter.com
• Gold Key Matching Service
• Trade Leads Database
• International Partner Search
• Trade Missions
• U.S. Pavilions at Certified Trade Fairs
• International Buyer Program

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Ethics

• How can we clearly define ethics in global sales?
• Are ethical and legal the same?
• Is the playing field equal?
• As a salesperson you are in the middle, so make
  sure you work for a company with a similar
  concept of ethical behavior
• You are between your company and your customer,
  or your company and the distributor. In a
  situation of questionable ethics you will be the
  focal point perhaps the scapegoat.
• In reality, unethical behavior in international
  sales is rarely brought to court. Punishment is
  usually loss of job and reputation.

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Foreign Corrupt Practices Act

• The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act generally makes
  it unlawful to give anything of value to foreign
  government officials, foreign political parties,
  party officials, or candidates for public office
  for the purposes of obtaining or retaining
  business.
• UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH POLICY 05-02-18

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Influencers and Decision Makers

• In international Sales the salesperson must
  relate to all levels within the company.
• Decision makers become influencers, and vice
  versa.
• What are the levels of influencers and decision
  makers that you work with?

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Sales Channels and Strategy

• Direct Sales
• Agents
• Distributors
• Multi-level Sales Force
• Internet Transactional Sales
• Email
• Phone Sales

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Sales Channels and Strategy

• You may use different sales channels for
  different markets
• You may use several sales channels in a
  particular market
• A sales strategy should address sales channel
  issues
• Discussion of sales channels used by participants

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Thank you

• Vincent S. DanielsExecutive Director,
  ExecEdHuizenga School of BusinessNova
  Southeastern Universityvdaniels_at_nova.edu954-262
  -5181
• http//hudson.huizenga.nova.edu