Sales Traps To Avoid

Darryl: We are back for another episode of The Inside Inside Sales Show. How's everybody doing this week? What's new and exciting with you? Anything top of mind, think about it. What's one thing that you think about, that you accomplished, that you did since the last time you and I hung out together? You got it? Is it there? Okay. Hold that thought. In fact, let me rephrase that. What's one thing you accomplished as a sales rep, that you are proud of since the last time we talked, okay? One thing. Maybe you had a great call. Maybe you handled an objection well. Maybe you finally got a hold of that individual you've been chasing for forever. One thing. It's in your mind. Okay, so here's the next question. It's kind of like a magician, right?" Pick a card out of the deck. Look at the card. Don't tell me. Do you remember the card?" Okay. That's what we're doing here. So here's my question. When you first started in sales, first week, your first month, your first year, would you have accomplished, done, achieved what you just thought about when I asked you to think about one thing notable you've done? Now, of course, if you're already just new in sales, then this whole scenario doesn't count. So I understand that. I'm going to come back to you in a second. See, that's the whole conversation. I've had the good joy, sometimes curse, of working with many, many, many, many new reps. And it wasn't long ago, in my mind at least... Don't let the hair and the age fool you, that I was a new rep. I remember being shoved into my first sales job, having almost no training." Here's how the product works." Maybe an hour or two." Okay. Go." Right? Not a single conversation. We didn't even talk about openers, objection handling, discovery. I remember going my library, and I'm not making this up and borrowing tapes of Zig Ziglar, audio cassettes, and listening to Zig in my car ride, as I drove to my territory, because I was doing door- to- door sales, just so I could understand the whole premise. And Zig was a phenomenal sales rep, but he was almost a bit of a counselor. I remember even then, him talking to me, if you will, because Zig and I were having a conversation, clearly, in the car, about mindset. And at the time I didn't even know what the hell that meant. I do now, with age, because with age, you start to realize with not just job experience, with life experience, how you react to any situation is a mindset. I remember my firstborn child was born emergency C- section, six weeks early, preemie, are they even going to live through the night? And you could go," Oh my gosh," and panic, or you can say," Okay, listen, this is out of my control, so I'm going to gather all the facts I can, so I can be there for my partner." That was a mindset. It sounds stupid. That's just an example. Life teaches you mindset. But when I was selling my first time, I had no idea and I remember Zig saying in this one recording, he said," Okay." He goes," You're driving down the road and someone goes flying by you. Zoom. And they cut you off and you have to break and vroom, they're gone. In the distance. And you're sitting there cursing and yelling at them, just livid because they're an idiot." And then he stopped. In this Southern gentlemen way, he says," Here's what you need to know. That person has no idea who you are. They have zero idea that they've even impacted you because they're in their own world. They're clueless. You have had zero effect on their life but meanwhile, they have complete and total control over you because of their actions, because of what they've done. And how do they have that control? Because you gave them that control." It was a mindset and it was like, damn! That's sales? And I remember that being my reaction. That's a sales skill? Because to me that was a life lesson right there. A total life lesson. So that's what I found so cool. But I had to train myself. I had none of this knowledge. My employer sucked at that. Nice people. The best people. Sucked at training." Go and survive." And I understand now, their whole motto was, for every time we hire, one will survive and nine will fail. So, okay, now I get that. But back then it sucked. So imagine that. I'm giving you this story as looking back upon my own sales career. I gave you an example of something you've done, if you're a veteran sales rep and would you have done that when you were first starting? Would you behave that way? Would you have known to do what you did that way. And the fact of the matter is we've all been there. We've all been starters. So what we haven't done before, and I'm really excited about this... And this was not my idea. I want to give full props. This is the idea of today's guest. We're going to talk about sales traps to avoid, if you're a first time sales rep. Now you may have left the whole sales game and then come back and it's very easy to fall into these exact same traps again. So with that, we're going to get into it. I'm actually really looking forward to it. Today's guest is not a stranger, if you follow any of our content. For those of you know, that every single Friday, we have this dynamite show called The Drive and it's hosted on The Sales Experts Channel. And we don't talk sales, per se. We don't talk about sales traps to avoid for first time sales reps. We actually just about the news of the sales industry, what went on that week, who got hired, who got fired, who got acquired, who made a lot of money, who reported record results, what's going on at the water cooler? What are they saying in social media, what are people bitching and moaning about this week, you're complaining about? All that stuff. It's the news in a half hour, 30 minute rapid fire process, a he said, she said. And this is the she said of The Drive. This is, ladies and gentlemen, my own director of sales, Catherine Robles. Welcome to the show, Catherine.

Catherine: Hey Darryl, I'm so happy to be here. I finally got the chance to be part of these amazing podcasts. So thank you. Appreciate it.

Darryl: Now, for those who don't know Catherine, she's a bit of a sales community junkie, in all sincerity. She's all over LinkedIn. She's on the Sales Experts Channel. She's one of the recognized experts. I know she's very active in... I'm going to miss something here. And you're very active in Rev Genius. You're very active in Thursday Night Sales. You're very active in the whole Women in Sales community. I've already mentioned that she's the co- host of The Drive. And the list goes on. In fact, Catherine, what are you doing? You got something planned that we should share with our community and it will all be of course, on The Sales Experts Channel. But what's your initiative you're doing around... We're planning for International Women's Day/ month.

Catherine: Yeah. Great that you're actually bringing that up. So March, as everyone knows, is the month. We've chosen it to be a month. It's usually a day, but we're going to go with a month, where we recognize women around the world. So, from people from the mom, all the way to the leader in front of a company, in front of a team. The way that we've brought it up into our little world, to say, in a ways, that we're going to be teaming up with all of the other Sales Expert Channels, to highlight what each of them thinks about society, how can we elevate the game for women? So we know that women, obviously, we are underrepresented. We, in the leadership roles, it's a lot more challenging. There's not that many out there. Yes, many have been able to do it and they've paved a really good way for the ones coming behind, but there's still a lot of work. But then when we bring it back home into sales, it's even more complex. I'm glad to see that a lot more women are coming around and they are finding their own voice, to really amplify that message but we still have a lot of work. So that's the idea behind it, is just all these experts that are part of the channel, come together. We elevate the game, we highlight what is going on, what each of them could be doing right now to empower and support the journey of all the women that are coming behind and obviously recognize the effort of the ones that are already ahead in the curve.

Darryl: So if you're not familiar with The Sales Experts Channel, you should check it out. Just Google The Sales Experts Channel. It's run by Deb Calvert. We've had Deb on the show before. It's hosted on BrightTALK, over 75 of the industry's brightest, smartest, most gifted sales experts. It's actually the number one destination online, for those of you who aren't aware. They have 100s of 1000s of visitors, every single year. Millions of users. So the content is crazy and it's all there on demand. So check that out. And that's what we're doing with Catherine, who's also one of the experts. And today we're talking about sales trips to avoid. So I want to kickstart it. Before I even throw it over to Catherine, she's going to walk us through a number of traps that she's seen and then we may go off in tangents. But I want to kickstart it. And one of the traps that I see, and I was actually having this conversation last night with my brother- in- law, who, as of this recording, will be turning 51 years old tomorrow. And he is a veteran sales executive. And we were talking about the common mistake of... I'm going to go generational on you, okay? A Gen Y or maybe a more recent millennial, seller, selling to Gen X or early millennial buyers and taking their own biases of how they and their generation buy and sell. For example, maybe they're all over social media. They're Instagram divas. And trying to apply that when they prospect and engage with the buyer and they just miss the mark, that that's not how their buyer typically, typically buys and they're confused as all hell and then they blame the buyer and then they say," I'm doing everything right." And what they're doing is they're projecting their own bias of how they like to buy and not on how their target prospect wants to buy. So I'm going to open up, that is a sales trap that you should avoid. Catherine, before I let you go, I wanted to get your thoughts on that take.

Catherine: Darryl, I love it. I love it because that's really what I see that happens all the time. You said one, you're following just the checklist, right? So," Oh, I'm doing everything right. They told me to do videos and so I'm using them. They've mentioned to use these script and so I'm using it. What is wrong with it?" But you tend to, and that's a human reaction, you tend to forget how the person on the other side is thinking and what they're going through. You're right there with your own energy and just trying to push it but you forget, obviously, how it is perceived from the other side. And that's maybe the biggest challenge out of all with our sales people, regardless of the level, is always try to be... I don't even know how to say it because it's not only self- aware, but just stop for a minute and try to think it from the recipient side of things, if you were the one receiving that video. If you were the one receiving that email, how would you react? How much do you really know about your audience so that you can tailor your approach, so that it is impactful and it is relevant for them? Because it's not only about you sending out information or sharing information. It's how you also put it out there. I always tell that to my kids. It's like, you can be saying exactly the same thing, but the way that you say it will make you different from the ones around you.

Darryl: So let me throw it out there for shoots and giggles. This may not apply across the board but you'll get the idea. How would you sell to your parent if there was no relationship there because you know who how they think, you know how they operate. You know whether they're technologically savvy or not. So maybe it's a parent, maybe it's an uncle, maybe it's a friend of the family. How would you sell to them? Is that how you're selling now, if that's what your buyer is. Now, obviously, every industry is different.

Catherine: Right.

Darryl: The buyer might be a 30 year old person, so you have to factor that in. But I'm generalizing. Typically, the higher up you go in your career, which takes time, the more budget you have. Trust me when I say I've got a lot more budget given to me to spend now than I had 20 years ago. So that's cause and effect. All right. That's it for me. Catherine, you had a lot of thoughts on this, so where do you want to go first? Sales traps that first time sales reps should avoid. Where are we going first?

Catherine: I think that one that would definitely kind of tag along or piggyback with what we were just discussing is finding your own tone, right? Finding your own voice, making sure that you're, as I was saying before, just not worried about checking boxes or doing absolutely everything that is said out there. But you are you. You are a human. This is a human interaction, at the end of the day. And you will hear that around a lot is, people buy from people. So make sure that whenever you are having a conversation, a part of you is coming out. Again, it's important to be mindful and adjust according to your audience. I can't be just all giggly with the CEO, but I do need to try to bring a little bit of humor into the conversation because then I would be different. They would remember like," Oh, this person. Yeah, they are so much fun." Allow them to imagine working with you for a longer time or your company, because at the end of the day, you are the face of the company. So I would say that the biggest one is not lose yourself. Just trying to follow all the best practices and really following the framework to the dot, if that makes sense.

Darryl: That does make sense. And I love, because as you were saying that, I was thinking to myself, what a prospect actually said to me just a couple of days ago. And they said," Darryl, whenever I talk to you, you have got such great energy." So that's nice. Thank you very much. What I took from that though was okay, they view me as differentiated from others, as the guy with good energy.

Catherine: Yeah.

Darryl: So you said, you used the example of humor. That's another good example. There's someone..." I like talking to that person. They make me smile, right? They stand out from the crowd because of that." For me, it was energy. So you're right. Finding your own voice. But how do I do that? It sounds so easy when you say it, Catherine, but I don't know what my voice is. I just don't know. So how do I do it?

Catherine: It's really hard actually, because you would say... There's a very fine line into being proud of who you are and really having your defined persona. Personal persona. And there's another fine line into just being... And have been... It's to say in being a bull in a china, right? Or china store. You know what I mean.

Darryl: A bull in a china shop. You got it.

Catherine: There you go. And that's exactly where the fine line is. You cannot just say like," Oh, this is how I am. If you don't like it, then too bad. I want you to see me for who I am." Again, you have to be very careful into adjusting to your audience. Try to move your tone or adjust your tone so that it is relatable to the person on the other side. And you're going to have a lot of people that would also give you their two cents around it. I've had it. I'm a very energetic person. I love a good laugh. I will. And I laugh loud. So I've had many people in my whatever number of years that I've been around in the grownup life, saying like," Oh, you need to tone it down. Oh, you can't talk like that. Oh you shouldn't." But then when I'm talking to my prospect or clients or customers or just person on the other side, they actually enjoy a little bit, again, a little bit of that human. But you've got to be very, very careful on how much, at what point as well. So it's not easy. It takes time. But more than anything it just comes from you really knowing who you are. And the best way to start is really outlining what your values are, what makes you special? What makes you important? Talk to the people around you. Take advice or feedback from your family. Don't ask your moms because moms usually would be like," Oh, you're perfect. You're the best child ever." Not my mom though. But that doesn't matter. Anyhoo, ask around. Ask for your family. Ask your friends, ask within your work environment, different levels," Okay, what do you think, two things that make me special, that make me different?" And then keep that in mind as you are progressing in your career and as you're absorbing as well, other personalities, other guidances, training, coaching, whatever it could be. Look for that balance. Look for the right mix. Again, the ultimate goal is for you to be different. You want to stand out from the crowd, regardless of the level you're at. See level, go through exactly the same challenge as the newly joined rep into the sales force. We want to be different. We want to be remembered for who we are.

Darryl: So she's saying two things that are really important here, right? She's saying you want to be different. In other words... But that doesn't mean you go project a persona whom you are not. You want to be different. So understand how you're different, that's part of how you're made up. Your tendencies. Like for me, as I figured out over the years, and I will tell people this and they would roll their eyes, but this is an example of exactly what Catherine's talked about. I'm an introvert. I don't like to people. But I know I can be sarcastic. I know I can make people laugh. So what I learned is to channel those attributes because they're native to me, they're within me, I'm comfortable with them, to start a conversation because that's hard for me because I don't like the people.

Catherine: Yeah.

Darryl: So I'm using the skills that I had to my benefit. So that's exactly, find your voice. I love it. All right. Next sales traps to avoid for first time sales reps. I talked about projecting your biases upon the buyers. That's not the case. You talked about finding their own voice. Next. What's next?

Catherine: It all ties back. And this one is fun. Don't forget to have fun and don't forget again, to reflect or get people to have fun when they interact with you. Sales is a tough job and it gets tougher. And you will have days where you literally just want to sit down and cry for hours. But that's just one of the many things. More than anything, it's a very fun profession. It's a fun environment and you should always look for a way to enjoy it. Have fun while doing it. Look for the best things that you can implement in your routines, in your calendars, to keep the fun going, keep your energy level up. What can you implement as well, to bounce back from those challenges? And then obviously just work around with the people that you have, your network. It could be your external network and your work company network, on making sure that you have a clear understanding of that fun and they can have fun with you as well.

Darryl: So let me give you an example because some may listen to that and say,"Oh yeah, Catherine, have fun." Okay. No, no. She's actually being really shrewd here. And let me give you some examples of what this could mean. You could be doing prospecting and getting exhausted, right? Maybe getting rejection. You're not getting through to everybody. Maybe the date is not clean. Whatever it might be. Maybe you just had a bad sleep and it's just rolling over into your day. Okay, you need to stop and go energize, however you energize. Maybe it's getting away from the desk and going and reading the news or reading the comics. Who the hell knows? Maybe it's calling somebody. Maybe it's calling a colleague or your boss you really get along with and they restore your mindset. It's mindset here again, right? Your demeanor. And then you re- engage. Another example of having fun, if you're going to lead a video for example, or before someone answers the phone, before you do that, smile. Now a smile is not necessarily having fun but it does release all the chemicals in your system. And all of a sudden, you're like," Okay, I'm in a better mood now because I smile." And then it comes across in your voice and in your eyes and in your expression. And all of a sudden you're more relaxed and then you're having fun. All right? So those are just a couple of examples of what you can do, but you got to be self- aware, which is the first thing, when Catherine said find your own voice. That's really being self- aware. The second one's fun. Love it. Fun is intentional. Here's another example, all right? Actually I love this one. Go For No. It's a great book. You should read it. The biggest thing that takes the fun out of the job is all the rejection. So what you can do is you can turn it around. You can say," I'm actually seeking nos. In the next hour, I want 10 nos or hangups. I want 10, dammit. And if I don't get 10, I'm going to be ticked off." All right? So now you're working the phones. When they say no, you're like," Yes! That's another one. Damn, I'm having fun." And if they stop and say," Well, actually I'm interested. Tell me more," you're almost annoyed because I want to hit 10 and you want to talk, damn you and you're going to take up 15 minutes of my time and that could affect it. The whole point is you're you're using gamification. So it's suddenly, the projection isn't so bad. You're going for the no and you're making your day fun. All right, next one. What's on your list next, my friend?

Catherine: I'm going to change the one that I have thought and I'm going to go with never stop learning. And that is actually something that it's hard. We get busy, we get settled. We feel comfortable, right?" Oh, I already know it. I've already understand it. Why do I need to look for farther?" But it's always good to have your mind as open as possible for new and different ways of doing things. You also have to look just how it ties back again into all the other things that we've mentioned is, when you change little things, small things, you are challenging your brain as well, to kind of adjust as well to it and find new ways of finding your voice. Of getting your voice to come through whatever task you're doing at that time or whatever, type of conversation you could be experiencing at that time. Then you also, at the same time are finding new ways of having fun and getting people to have fun while at it. But you need to put that effort. You need to invest in yourself. You need to keep on learning, be open- minded to hearing others, share what has happened. But more than anything and this is something I always tell to everyone, is like, you will hear a lot, but you are you. So whatever success happened over there, it doesn't mean that it's going to be exactly the same for you. So while you are learning, make sure to understand that it takes time to achieve that level of success. And maybe what you're learning is not really as applicable to you as it was for others, but it's still good things to know.

Darryl: So I love that you brought that up, Catherine. I've had this conversation. In fact, we've done episodes all around the theme of learning is earning. But in the concept of a new rep, let's talk about that. A sales trap many reps who are new make, is they rely 1000%, which is like 10 times worse than a 100%, upon the employer to teach them. They think that's the way it works. Because maybe you're new to the workforce, maybe it's your first or second job and you have no other context. You think they teach me and away I go. And often if you haven't figured this out yet, most employers suck at training or teaching. So here's the thing. Let me use an analogy. If you're big into tech, computers, does the technology just show up on your doorstep or do you go and research it and buy it? If you're big into photography, does the camera and the lenses and the flashes and everything else just show up on your doorstep or do you go out and buy it? We know the answer. You're not wanting to hear this. You go buy it because it's your passion. It's a craft that you're committed to. I want to be the best damn photographer going. Sales is the same way. So a common trap you avoid, you fall into, if you're a newbie, is that you wait for them to train you or you talk to the buddy beside you, who you think is really, really good, but remember you're new, so you don't know that they suck as much as you do. Here's what you need to do. You need to spend your money and go buy the books from the proven experts or watch the videos or watch the webinars. It's easy to spend your time and go look at how you can be a better sales reps. Earning is learning. I love that. Stop relying on them to do it for you. Okay.

Catherine: Totally. If I may interrupt you Darryl Praill.

Darryl: You may.

Catherine: It is your journey at the end of the day, right? And that's the whole reason, is like the biggest trap is that you forget that it is your journey. You forget where you want to be. You kind of just get that short sight to say, in a way, where you all you're like," I'm here. I'm going to do my best here and that's all that matters. I'm an SDR, for example. I'm a BDR and that's all that matters. This is what I'm going to do. This is what they've given me. I'm only going to focus on this." But you have to start from the get- go, having your own drive. Where do you want to go? What do you want to accomplish? Where do you see yourself? Do you really want to keep them going up the sales ladder? Do you want to move somewhere else? What kind of information or knowledge do you need to add into your journey? And then obviously just get surrounded by the right people.

Darryl: So then when we were talking... I want to shift onto our last one. We're almost out of time but I really wanted to cover this. Because you had mentioned before, when we were in the green room, the idea of constantly looking for hacks. And that one jumped off the page at me. So let me give you an example, Catherine. I'd love to get your take. When you said that, this is where my mind went. My mind went to the old," Oh my gosh. If I have another new rep think that their job, the fastest route to success is to email spam as many people as they can with the same old, same old, non- personalized message. To try to make the message that's in your email sound like it's personal to them, but it's still generic enough that you can send it to 10,000 people. To do instant pitching." I'm just going to connect with social media and the minute they connect back, I'm going to pitch them." To not personalize any of the outreach and just to fall into an off the shelf cadence or playbook, without making it relevant to their audience or their buyer or whatever the issues might be. Or using bots to go and to screen scrape or to go and as you do, auto follows on social media. All of those are shortcuts that nine times out of 10 blow up in their face. Big way. That's where my mind went to. But I want to hear your point of view on the idea that sales reps will often fall into the trap of looking for hacks.

Catherine: Yeah. The least amount of effort to get you quickest to that end goal, right? Again, we go back into just letting people feed you kind of situation and looking for a way of cutting the line. So it takes time. It's a process. Don't look for hacks. Yes, as I said, there are cool things out there. There are things that have worked for others, but you have to, as well, find that great balance into what you should be going through as part of your process and your growth and development journey, as well as what you can actually start using from there, to get you there faster. So it's not about just doing it on your own. But don't be only focused into how can I get there faster without really learning. Because many times you don't learn as you are just jumping from A to B, from the get- go. So that one is a hard one. It's one that we all need to avoid, definitely. And when you're young, because you want to prove yourself, as well, you try to grab a lot more of those successful stories from others, to try to replicate them immediately. Take your time. Take your time. Not take too much though because that will not work out well. But take your time to really understand what is happening and really look for the way to make it better or achieve that success. You. Right? Go back into it. It's like, don't lose yourself along the way.

Darryl: And I want to kind of build on a tangential comment and then we're going to wrap it all up. Last Friday, on our version of The Drive, we talked about how, in the water cooler talk of the show, section of the show, how SDR shaming was a really, really big topic on LinkedIn and whatnot. And all the SDRs were rallying around each other to support each other and say," Yeah, why are you always picking on us? You're doxing us. You're making me suicidal. It's all rejection."

Catherine: Yeah.

Darryl: Okay. Some of that's true. But here's where we go back to the hacks. A trap is to fall into that echo chamber of what your colleagues are saying." You're better than that. Think for yourself." If there's SDR shaming going on, why? Why is that taking place? It's taking place because the buyers have had enough of the hacks and the shortcuts that the SDRs are taking. It's not about you. It's about what you're doing to them and how it's affecting your ability to be successful. It's a reaction, all right? So don't fall in the echo chamber and understand why people, when they react that way, why they're reacting. So don't do that. So let's recap. We talked about you projecting, when it comes to sales traps to avoid, for early stage new sales reps. Don't project your own buying biases upon the buyers you're pitching to. We talked about find your voice. You got to know who you are, dare to be unique and embrace your uniqueness. We talked about have fun. If you have fun it's going to make a big difference in how you're remembered, how you engage, how you enjoy your job. Be intentional about having fun. We talked about learning is earning. It's incumbent upon you to constantly refine your craft and invest in yourself, as opposed to waiting for others, your employers, to make you the rock star that you think you can be. And we talked about stop looking for hacks. So I think we covered off roughly five sales traps that you should avoid, if you're a first time sales reps. I'd love your take on things but in the meantime, what you need to do is you need to go and follow Catherine. You need to listen to her on The Drive. You need to support her on The Sales Experts Channel and all she's doing, specifically around International Women's month. Not a day. It's a month.

Catherine: Yep.

Darryl: And you need to join her every Thursday night at Thursday Night Sales. Hang out with her, as she listens to the whole community, hosted by Scott Lise and Amy Bollas and then just be part of the community like she is. That's what you got to do. That's Catherine Robles, my friend. I had a lot of fun. In the meantime, we'll talk to you soon. Take care. Bye- bye.

Catherine: Bye.