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sell sell sell If you’re to believe the Hollywood hype, sales is a passion deeply rooted in the American psyche. Whether it’s Jerry Maguire or Jordan Belfort, american movies leave us in no doubt that selling is a religion with devout followers aplenty across the pond. But should we believe it? If they went head-to-head with their British counterparts selling pens to punters, would they really be shown the money first, every time? Well if Americans’ long-running love affair with sales has helped them get ahead of the Brits in the deal-making stakes, the gap is closing fast. But there is lots we can learn from our American counterparts and if you’re a Brit starting to sell in the US, what do you need to know? The landscape First up, you must realise that you’re not dealing with one country. Federal America is more like 50 countries, each with its own customs, idiosyncrasies and, of course, its own laws. Every state is different and must be approached as such. That means you have to modify your pitch and sales approach with every state line crossing. Then there are the little things like using Zs in your website copy instead of Ss. A misused idiom or alien catchphrase that will mark you out as someone who either doesn’t know the local lingo or simply hasn’t bothered to get it right. Either way that’s someone Americans won’t want to buy from. Think about the bigger picture and consider every last detail to ensure you acclimatise to your sales surroundings. Buying habits To learn anything about sales in the US we have to look at the buyers. If a British company (or any other foreign company for that matter) wants to sell in America they must grasp that Americans prefer to buy from Americans. It’s nothing personal; it’s just a fact that the US has a special love for homegrown produce, whether that be soda or software. We discovered this at sales-i when we first entered the US market. We started by building our US customer base and learning as much from that process as we could before opening a sister office in Chicago. One of the biggest lessons we learned during this transition was that if you want to come in and sell to Americans, you have to look and act the part. Luckily, there are plenty of ways you can do this. While British buyers are open to unorthodox or unscripted sales experiences, Americans prefer a defined process so they know exactly what to expect next. Furthermore, sales cycles tend to be a lot longer over here in the UK, with lots of chasing, whereas in the US buyers and sellers alike are slightly (and refreshingly) more blunt. If a deal isn’t up to scratch or they don’t want the product, they’ll say ‘No’ from the get go. In Britain, as many of you will know all-too well, getting clients to come clean and make a decision can be one of the most difficult aspects of sales. The sales environment The sales environment itself has fundamental differences on opposite sides of the Atlantic, and this has a lot to do with the physical landscape. Buyers in the 10 A guide to selling stateside Paul Black, CEO of sales-i, discusses the key differences between sales in the U.S. and UK US are more receptive to distance selling, largely because in a country as expansive as America, face-to-face meetings just aren’t always feasible. This style can be unchartered territory for visiting British salespeople who are used to using personal interaction when sealing a deal. In the US, you have to know how to use a phone (or Skype), and many top billers will smash their targets without physically shaking one hand in a month. Tech is all around Another difference, which has also been attributed to the feeling of ease with which Americans do business over thousands of miles, is the successful adoption of sales technology. Indeed, Americans first pioneered and then fully embraced online meetings and sales management tools to make distance almost irrelevant. Back in the UK, we’re coming round to these online systems and intelligent solutions, but when faced with the choice between a Google Hangout and a morning coffeeshop meeting, we prefer the latter option. It’s easy, however, to get carried away with the differences when in fact there are many features shared across the Atlantic sales divide, and many tactics that work well in both countries. After all, the basic sales process is the same everywhere, from sourcing leads to closing the deal. Likewise, the collateral that supports selling in America and the UK is in many instances interchangeable. Companies can quite easily syndicate products and the associated marketing materials across countries with only slight changes in wording or style. At the heart the of American selling, as with so many areas of life in the U.S., is a feeling of national pride much more profound and all-embracing than that in the UK. Consumer preference for American goods is a sign of that pride, and a symptom of an incurable homesickness Americans feel even on their native soil. Selling in America is like a local custom with its own rules and etiquette that must be adhered to. In Britain most buyers want an easy life and a good product at the end of the day without too much cold calling and hot air. In America, you’re not just selling soda and software; you’re selling a little piece of the American dream. And while your efforts to crack the market will flatter the locals, you’ll only earn their respect if you sell by their rules.
sell sell sell Selling to Generation Y James Eder, founder of the Beans Group @jameseder @thebeansgroup www.thebeansgroup.com What is the Beans Group? The Beans Group is the umbrella for three unique but very much linked brands - Student Beans, Hexjam and Voxburner. What is it doing? We help students to stretch their loan with our unique range of discount vouchers and special offers from some of the UK's top companies. The site provides UK students with a valuable resource to help them make the most of their university experience, and gives brands unrivalled access to a loyal student audience. Having grown up in the age of the Internet, we knew that when students arrived in a new city, they would turn to the web for help. Being in an unfamiliar city and living on a limited budget is tough; but we knew that a little entrepreneurship on our part could solve these problems. We’ve developed the Student Beans Network, reaching millions of students every month, alongside our student verification technology that is helping brands drive sales and conversions online. Hexjam was created earlier this year, giving us an exciting new home for the popular youth lifestyle content we had been producing under the Student Beans brand for over 5 years. Hexjam content is a blend of fun, useful, inspirational, identityreinforcing and topical and is instantly sharable. Voxburner is the youth insights arm of the business, and our global industry events, research and reports keep marketing professionals in touch with the fast-paced world of youth marketing. We run flagship event Youth Marketing Strategy in London and New York - bringing the industry together, it’s where the future of youth marketing is decided. How did you come to making this business? I always wanted to do something that really makes a difference. A lot of people advised me to go out and get some work experience first, however setting up in the student market I thought; what more experience do I need? I learnt a lot more and a lot faster by going out and getting started. I wanted to create something of real value that people would actually use. With Student Beans, we’ve created the ultimate win-win environment where companies get increased awareness and students save money! What’s the beans? Our mission is to empower young people to thrive - everything we do has young people at the heart. Whether it is helping them to save money or bringing them into the business as part of our internship scheme. It’s amazing for us to be part of such a transitional part of a young person's life, often moving away from home for the first time and we’re there for them. We have embraced the Generation Y mind-set to deliver a forward-thinking, engaging user experience for all. What makes the generation Y different from older generations? What are the ways to reach them? They are the innovators, the early adopters many of whom embrace change. They are generation that have grown up connected in more ways than our parents' generations could ever imagine. Facebook is the heart of their communication, with SnapChat, Twitter and Instagram alongside. It will be interesting to see how WhatsApp will be commercialised. 11
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