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Sean Luce
Luce On Sales
Sean Luce is the Head National Instructor at the Luce Performance Group in Houston and can be reached at sean@luceperformancegroup.com
Must-Haves For Your Advertising Strategy
In my advertising seminars for business owners, I cover many points in a short period of time. By far, the most asked about section is the one on developing an overall advertising and marketing strategy. Listed below are the tips that I share with business owners on advertising and marketing.
Could Your Team Pull This Off?
Recently, on a visit to a media company where I consult, the sales manager and I decided to conduct an interactive sales training with a twist. The goal was in-depth training in several specific areas. The training method that I am about to describe cannot be pulled off by every sales team, but the benefits are worth the effort for those who can achieve it.
Reviewing This Week's Game Films
Sales managers would love to have a video cam in the field with their reps to watch how their stars perform on sales calls. Obviously, we don’t have this luxury in media sales like the NFL does on Monday morning when the coaches break down game films from the day before to see how their players performed position by position.
Top 40 List for Sales Success
Just in case you forget -- and we forget about 99 percent of what we encounter daily -- here are my Top 40 Points for Sales Success, which I believe can lead to selling more every day. They are not easy to follow, and I have struggled with them many times. Keep them with you and keep them in front of you. Just a couple tweaks here and there could mean much more money in your pocket.
Make Your Advertising Rise Above The Clutter
According to research from "Advertising Age" magazine, a typical consumer encounters between 254 and 5,000 advertising messages per day in one form or another. That number includes signage on cars, t-shirts, radio, TV, newspapers, and so on. If a business is going to be remembered, the advertising message must rise above the daily clutter of messages.
Observations From The Road
Since the beginning of the year, I have been on a whirlwind tour of the United States and Canada doing seminars, consulting for clients, and attending Convergence 2013. I have noticed some common threads in my travels, and I wanted to share some of those observations.
Recognizing Your Superior Performers
At Luce Performance Group, we continue to give out awards that recognize top performances in several categories from the various media companies that we consult. I remember one night when we gave out our awards tied to the Radio Advertising Bureau's national convention in Dallas, the president of our company, George Luce, put it best during the commencement of the LPG awards show that night: “This is the most important night of the year for LPG.”
Entertainment Is Education
A few years ago, after giving a speech in Dallas, I ran across some interesting words inscribed on a plaque at one of Dallas’ famous downtown pubs. The words, were simple, yet succinct: “Entertainment is education, education is entertainment, and if you don’t know that, you don’t know anything about either one.”
It’s Your Choice To Win!
James Allen had a quote that I’ve always loved, “You will become as small as your controlling desire; or as great as your dominant aspirations.” After finishing a speaking engagement in Los Angeles, I was having dinner at Casa Vega restaurant in Sherman Oaks with a good friend of mine, George Gallo. George is a screenwriter, producer, and director in Hollywood.
5 Tough Tactics To Tackle Ad Agencies
As a boy, I used to play Stratego, a two-person, war-type board game. The object was to uncover the opponent’s flag before yours was found. Whenever a confrontation occurred between one of your pieces and one of your opponent’s, the hidden number behind the player was revealed. This decided who won that battle.
How To Calculate Your Clients’ Full ROI
The No. 1 buzzword (okay, buzz phrase) for retailers is “return on investment.” Media salespeople are discovering that one way to quantify and qualify their clients' objectives is to use the ROI formula. Here are a few reasons you should use ROI calculations with your client.
Selling To The Egomaniac
Selling to someone with a massive ego can be one of the easiest sales to close, or it can be one of the most difficult. Making a little mistake or infringement to this personality type can wreak havoc with your chances of selling. A large ego creates a more fragile psyche. Playing to the ego is only part of the process. Learning how to maneuver to this type of buyer is much like a chess game.
Establishing Your Credibility Statement
What makes a new prospect want to meet with you? Even sales veterans have a tough time establishing a reason why a prospect should meet with them, but a well-rehearsed credibility statement will provide that information in a succinct, effective manner.
The Black Belt Formula
(By Sean Luce) If you invested approximately 1,820 hours over five years to earn a black belt just to break into sales management, would you have been a better sales manager when you took over your first sales department? Most probably we all would have. That’s what it took me to achieve one black belt in martial arts. This short black belt course will give you some techniques as a sales manager for you to strive to achieve your business black belt.
“Ichinen Iwa Wo Mo Tosu”
That’s Japanese for “a focused mind can pierce through stone,” and it came from a Samurai warrior. The Samurai were known for their intense focus on the battlefield, which required a plan, a goal, and plenty of focus. Are you prepared for the battle of 2013? It all starts with a plan. I hope you have one! If you were hoping the end of the world was going to come on December 21, then you better get re-dialed in quickly.
2013 Resolution: Make Your Boss Look Good
Most of us make New Year’s resolutions, or at least attempt to make them. The majority of resolutions never get past the planning stage. Why not make a resolution that will not only help you this year, but also in years to come? Resolve in 2013 to make your boss look good.
It’s How You Make Them Feel
One of the shortest and most remembered speeches in American history was the 273-word Gettysburg address by Abraham Lincoln. He didn’t need to say much after the Union and Confederate forces lost 50,000 men in one battle over a three-day period that was the turning point of the Civil War. This article is in honor of less is more when it comes to powerful words. Someone told you they loved you once – and it changed your life. Three words.
Leadership Lessons From a Great One
(By Sean Luce) During my travels in Europe, I often took note of the influence of Alexander the Great who is a favorite leader of mine. Almost 2400 years after his death, his presence is still felt in modern-day Europe and Asia.
Coaching Reps To Make More Money
(By Sean Luce) The challenge of coaching sales reps in the field has never been more important than it is today due to increased media consolidation that has increased responsibilities of sales management. The real art lies in the difference between just riding with a rep and coaching a rep in the field to increase their sales skill sets.
Improve Results With Clients Now
One of the functions that I perform in my consulting business is to travel in the field with media reps to coach and train them. I see the issues first-hand that the reps encounter day in and day out. I would like to share five practices that I have observed that can improve media reps’ results with their clients.
Five Surefire Signs Of Failing As A Manager
How would you rate yourself as a manager? Have you ever received a handful of surveys that were not what you expected? An IBM general sales manager who thought that she could do no wrong received some surprising news. After reading the surveys like the one shown below, the manager called the sales reps into a room and asked for constructive feedback. The staff told her outright that she was favoring some sales reps over others.
Which 50% of Advertising is Wasted?
John Wannamaker, of retail fame, is credited with that jewel of a statement “I know that 50 percent of my advertising is wasted, I just don’t know which 50 percent.” Being a business owner myself, quite frankly, that statement scares the heck out of me just to think that half of my marketing efforts are going to waste. I am sure that if any of your clients are thinking this way, it’s pretty tough to convince them how effective electronic media works or, more aptly, how effective electronic media is.
Focus Follows Fun!
In our crazy deadline-oriented world, we often forget to have some fun. I like to remind the sales managers that I work with that focus follows fun. Creating a fun work environment can be accomplished in various ways. One of the best that I have found to establish a fun atmosphere is to specifically design an event that challenges the group in an enjoyable way.
What Size Russian Doll Are You Hiring?
When searching for a new sales rep in the pool of recruits, is there a list of magic-bullet interview questions to use when searching for the fire-breathing, won’t-take-no-for-an-answer over-achiever? David Ogilvy, the advertising guru and founder of the ad agency Ogilvy & Mather, Inc. took his managers in a conference room one day and handed them a set of Russian nesting dolls.
Find The Liquid Fire In You
I started my consulting business, Luce Performance Group, in the summer of 1999. My venture began with a vision of coaching media reps to become the best that they could be in their field. As with any career change, I was taking a risk in starting over. Before I set off on my new career, I decided to visit my parents in Lincoln, Nebraska.
Just Say No To Bad Sales Tactics
Listed below are the still-too-common mistakes made by sales reps that I work with around the world. This list can serve as a reminder for veteran sales reps and an initiation for new hires. Sales managers can cover this material in their next sales meeting then post it on the sales bullpen bulletin board for future reference.
Service After The Sale
We are all guilty of it. We sign an annual contract, turn in the order and count the commission in our pockets. As soon as the first ad hits the open market, the competitors will target a fresh prospect which is your new client. If a sales rep does not service that new client, competitors could potentially steal them away. To head off the competition, make sure to provide plenty of service after the sale.
Don’t Get Burned With Objections
Objections are an everyday fact of life. They are also a key part of the selling process. Learning to overcome objections should be an ongoing training and roleplaying topic for sales reps of all experience levels. This point is especially true during a closing presentation.
Increase Your Appointment Closing Ratio
In the early morning, when most sales departments are abuzz with reps on the phone setting up appointments with prospects, I often hear the proverbial, “I’d like to come over and talk to you about advertising.” Inevitably, I also hear, “We have something special that you might like to see coming up for Christmas.” These techniques endure despite their meager five percent closing ratio.
Six Tactics To Get And Keep Clients
Although many sales reps do not want to admit it, they have taken a client for granted at least once. One rep’s top client is usually someone else’s number one prospect. There is a tendency to take our current clients for granted in a rush to procure new business. I am often asked how to get business away from an account where the competition is firmly entrenched.
Should You Attend The Radio Show?
Measuring desire in a salesperson is a question that I have tossed and turned about many times over the years. Before making an investment in a potential sales rep, what characteristics should managers consider? I received the following email regarding attendance at next month’s NAB-RAB Radio Show. Put yourself in the sales manager’s position and decide whether or not to take Cindy to the conference.
The Magnificent Seven
Are you a micromanager of people? By all means, please sign up as an aide at Children's World. Although some days may seem like Children's World, sales managers are supposed to be supervising adults, not kids at a daycare center. When something goes awry in the sales department, the blame most often belongs with the sales manager. Finding skilled talent, training that talent, and implementing the process systems are the responsibility of the sales manager. In the end, accountability belongs with the leader.
Kicked Out. Now What?
In your selling career, hopefully you will never be physically thrown out of a customer's business. I have been thrown out before. Customers can become irate for many reasons. We must make sure we are not the reason for their frustration. An old Chinese proverb states, "Never let success go to your head, and never let failure go to your heart." In other words, whatever you do, don't take it personally.
How to Master the Sales Game
Are you a student of the sales game? When I first started my career, I believed that the sum of sales boiled down to three elements: 1. Qualifying prospects; 2. Determining the prospects' needs; 3. Influencing prospects to spend money on my product in order to increase their business.
Fifty Shades of the Ozarks
On a recent consulting trip to the Ozarks, I rode shotgun on sales calls with Brad Trail who is one of our top performers. Brad is the leading producer for the Ozark Horse Trader (ozarkhorsetrader.com), a weekly shopper of unusual market dominance.
Sell Digital to Increase Revenue
I was one of the smart ones. I attended the recent Convergence 13 hosted by Radio Ink in Santa Clara, California. There was still some talk about how digital can "add value" to the radio revenue experience. But the only way radio revenue will get back to the 2007/08 levels is with digital sales added. However, the model of adding digital to radio is old and lacking substantial growth curves.
Manning Or Tebow…What Say You?
Denver Broncos quarterback legend John Elway, acting in his current role of VP of football operations for the club, chose Peyton Manning to be the team's new quarterback. That makes perfect sense. If John Elway was looking for a QB similar to himself, Peyton Manning would be the current NFL quarterback that comes closest. If you were doing a sales hire, would you choose someone who was closest to your skills and talents?
Avoid The 8 Sins Of Media Sales
Most of us know what it takes to make the sale. However, many times we find ourselves flabbergasted when we lose the sale or don't get the reorder. There are thousands of reasons customers get upset with us. When you draw the line in the sand, the clients who get mad usually do so because you've committed one of the flowing eight sins of selling media.
No One Sees Or Hears My Ad
The number one objection I hear from media customers is, "I haven't had anyone see or hear my ad." The previous number one objection was, "That's too much money." The media that retailers use for their marketing has shifted since 2007, and so has the rate at which they expect results. Retailers often demand that customers rush through the door and say they saw or heard about the business through one form of media or another. You MUST manage their expectations.
Strictly Confidential
I recently had something hit me like a smack in the head -- metaphorically speaking. It was in the form of a client reminder and a question. I was on a rather important customer marketing profile call (a.k.a. a CMP).
Check Your Companies Fun Meter
(by Sean Luce)I called a sales meeting in the middle of the month. We were behind budget and my people were expecting me to pull out one of the latest video training series. Things were tense. I did pull out a video, but it wasn’t the customary training video.
Why Sellers Should Never Give Up
The average sales call is closed after 5.3 calls/attempts. Most sales reps never get past the first few calls, nor do they have the determination to keep working on a qualified business prospect. A rep will simply quit. In many cases, they are so close to the finalizing sale. The same can be said for prospecting. Having more than one arrow in your quiver can be a key to getting the appointment with a busy owner/manager.
The Heart Of The Matter
How many sales reps are (answer honestly) finding out what their prospects’ and clients’ needs are for their business? I mean asking the questions that really make the prospect ponder on what would happen if they used your radio station. Do you really find out what problems they’re dealing with?
7 High Impact Negotiating Techniques
(by Sean Luce) Recently, I attended a speaker’s convention on rather late notice. I arrived one day after the convention started without a hotel reservation. I tend to become very parsimonious towards my expenses. I try to negotiate the best deals. Surveying the convention site, I selected my target. Using these seven techniques, I was able to stay at this hotel for less than half of what other attendees paid. These same techniques can easily be applied when a client attempts to negotiate with you.
10 Tips To Increase Your Billing
How much time do you spend in front of prospects or clients? Is it as much as 45 minutes per client? Most of us work eight to nine hours per day. Could one more call be squeezed in per day? The answer in most cases is “yes”. Salespeople are in front of qualified prospects only 40% of the time which means a rep being is in front of the wrong decision maker 60% of the time. The most successful sales reps invest better than 50% of their time in front of the correct decision makers
Limit Your Pink Slips. Always Recruit.
Let me start by saying there is no doubt a sales team needs to be fired up versus being fired. If firing someone is the best answer, then something was missed in the recruiting process. Many of the mistakes made in hiring a sales force start with a desperation move. The problem begins because a bench of potential “1st round draft picks” is not available. A sales manager must take the time to continuously look for superior talent. That means a sales manager must recruit every week.
How To Find The Decision Maker
Sometimes a sale will backfire at the last minute even though it appears that the prospect is signed, sealed and delivered. Other influences can have an impact on the sale. Sales reps have been conditioned to call on people with the right titles: owners, general managers and agency buyers. However, other influences may need to be identified.
A Life Lesson. A Sales Lesson. Never Give Up
An Alexander Karelin will appear in each of our lives sooner or later in the form of one of life’s challenges. These life challenges can be from the minute to the massive. These trials can be anything from a flat tire on the way to see a customer to the loss of a loved one. We all encounter them. It is up to us to decide how to meet life’s challenges.
Have You “Red Tailed” a Client Lately?
How much bonding can be done with a client over a PowerPoint presentation even with all the bells and whistles? How stimulating is it for a prospect or client to sit through that Customer Marketing Profile or a seventeen minute closing presentation? Yes, sizzle can be added to the presentation, but is that really building a relationship with the client?
Should All Sales Reps be Treated Equally?
Absolutely yes without a doubt, and I would start by treating them all with dignity and respect. Sales reps are high on the list of the most valuable assets in a business. The sales department is the money generator that keeps the cog in the wheel turning. When it comes to treating sales reps equally, remember that everyone is different. Each person’s DNA is unique, so they should be managed differently. Does that sound like double talk?
Seven Questions to Ask SM's
(by Sean Luce) Sales Managers I work with complete a weekly questionnaire. In addition, they forecast 3 month rolling projections for their sales staff. The recaps give me a chance to prepare for weekly conference calls that keep the consultant and management on the same page. The goal is to identify the problems before they occur.
Finding Your Station's Sales Leaks
(by Sean Luce) The following is a case study I used last week for a consultant property in Missouri to identify and assess challenges and opportunities in the sale department. This is a good exercise for January-when you come back from the holidays-or anytime you want to maximize your department’s potential.
Why Businesses Should Advertise Every Day
(by Sean Luce) During a recent keynote address to business owners, I posed a question that has been asked many times over the years. Which is more important in advertising, the frequency or the message? The majority of hands were raised for the message. Surprisingly, quite a few of those hands represented radio stations whose main feature is frequency.
Breaking Old Habits
(by Sean Luce) With 2011 drawing to a close, I like to do an inventory and take out the old and bring in the new which translates to setting goals for the upcoming year. I have had an affinity for sports since childhood. I often use the correlation between sports and sales in my training. I have observed that there is not much difference in the way the best athletes prepare to win, and the way the super achievers in sales become successful. The little things are the primary difference between a good and a great athlete. The same holds true for sales professionals.
Your Daily Management Test
(by Sean Luce) After my last article on “Listening.” I was asked for the 10 questions on my Daily Management Test. I hung them up on my car’s dashboard in laminated fashion. They were 10 questions to give myself a quick critique on my day’s performance. As I drove home, I mentally would play back the day’s events and challenge myself with the following test.
Want To Sell More? Listen to Your Clients.
(by Sean Luce) Many sales reps are too eager to talk. They are thinking about what to say next in a conversation instead of paying attention to the client. The majority of the time the client will actually tell a rep exactly what is needed in order to sell the product or service to them. As my mom used to say, “Listen up”.
SM's: Set Simple Rules For High Performance
(by Sean Luce) My previous article entitled: “Ten Reasons I failed as a Sales Manager” received an interesting question from one of Radio Ink’s readers. Before I respond to the question, let me state that I made all of those mistakes as a sales manager. The key is to learn from those mistakes. I had some outstanding mentors early in my career who allowed me to make the tough mistakes. They knew that those mistakes would pay big dividends down the road, and they did.
10 Reasons I Failed As A Sales Manager
(by Sean Luce) Monday was Columbus Day here in the States, so let’s revisit the Christopher Columbus School of Management. The mantra is:“You don’t know where you’re going when you leave, you don’t know where you are once you get there, and you don’t know where you’ve been once you get back.” Not a good place to be, especially in management.
Do Your "Quiet" Research First.
(by Sean Luce) Several years ago, I was on a call with several key decision makers from Pepsi. During the luncheon, I ordered a Coke. One of the most utterly stupid moments in my sales career was ordering that Coke. I try to limit those "stupid moments" to once every 10 years.
Feel Broken Today? This Will Help You Get Over It
(by Sean Luce) Since early in my career, videos have been a key component of my sales training. I started using videos as a sales manager and have continued showing them in my consulting business. The videos originally provided me with a chance to swallow some water in case I became nervous while speaking. Videos are now a key component of my speaking engagements. In my experience, the videos should be no longer than 5 minutes, but I did have an exception to that rule. I would show a documentary about Ernest Shackleton called "Endurance." I had never found a story to rival Shackleton’s tale of human endurance in the Antarctic until this past July.
Coaching Sales Reps to Make the Grade
(by Sean Luce) How many sales managers ride in the field with their sales reps on coaching calls? Coaching calls should be the most basic and on-going part of training sales reps. For various reasons, training in the field has gone by the wayside. Since lack of instruction in the field is a primary cause of poorly trained sales reps, I would like to share some tips on how to coach and grade reps in the field.
Improve Your Sales Meetings TODAY
How challenging are your sales meetings? Do you challenge your sales reps? Or do you just cover the normal administrative inventory, avails and rates, maybe throw in a few success stories, and hit the door? Then, do your sales reps "hit the door"? Like really hit it, and charge out into the field with improved selling skills and motivation?
Is Selling Internet Really Hard?
During one of my recent seminars for business owners, called "The Shift -- How Online Advertising Can Strengthen Your Media Mix," I pointed out that since 2007-2008, how ad dollars are allocated has been changing, with the Internet grabbing hold of money that had typically gone to radio, television, and, of course, newspapers. Add the "Great Recession" in the fall of 2008, and it was the perfect storm for reallocating media dollars.
Never Give Up
Those of you who have attended my seminars know that I tend to show a lot of motivational videos, and especially those of athletes, as business and sports have a great deal in common. Not only does your attitude determine your altitude, being physically fit means being mentally fit. Nutrition, exercise, rituals, and deep breathing make a huge difference when it comes to the end of the day and you don't feel like making that one more call -- the call that could make your year. Imagine if you make one more call every day each week. With 240 days a year, on average, that you are selling, 240 calls would make a huge difference!
The One Question That Shouldn't Be Asked
Regardless of what media you sell or represent, finding an emotional connection between yourself and the prospect is one of the most demanding aspects of a sales call. If you don't go deep enough, you could skim over the prospect's real needs. Don't be afraid to ask a question you think might be shrugged off. You might get a response of, "It's none of your business" -- but it IS your business, if you want to uncover the prospect's needs.
How To Overcome The "Radio Doesn't Work" Objection
Two weeks ago, I made a prospecting call with a sales rep. It was right in the wheelhouse demo of our station, right in the geographical circumference of the stations coverage and the product would be a product (above mid-line specialty furniture) our listeners would shop for. They do have multiple locations. We walked the business. We did a physical in-store for 5 minutes and took down all the vital information. The rep called immediately for the owner from the car. Voicemail. The rep then walked back in the business and asked the receptionist for his personal voicemail box. She was successful. Here's what happened:
You Can't Find Good Radio Salespeople Because You're Not Looking
Sean, I just can't find any good salespeople." I've heard that line over and over the past few years, and it's incredible to believe that in many areas -- especially the West Coast, where there is 14 to 17 percent unemployment -- radio stations "can't find" find good sales reps. I wonder if the real answer is that management doesn't want to train them.
ITP Or Nothing.
A few weeks back for Radio Ink, I wrote about the open house we did in a large market. We interviewed 15 candidates on a Saturday and found two sure-fire potential sales reps. One came almost directly out of a university and the other had sales experience from selling alarms and satellite services. Here's an update on that story.
