I asked Phil Whitebloom of BeenThere Consulting Services if he believes that a concluded sale that did not go well for the customer/client could be turned around into a long-term positive experience for everyone involved.
He told me “Yes. Absolutely. Of course, it would be best if that situation never came to be in the first place. It has happened more than a few times in my career. In full transparency, not every situation that went bad ended well. Though, many of them did, and have happy endings.”
When operating in the world of new and evolving technologies, it is almost inevitable that not just one thing can go wrong, but many things can go wrong. In the mid-1990’s, in the world of behind-the-scenes television, an evolution was taking place. Analog systems were transitioning to digital systems. Along with this change, mechanical functions became software applications. Books have been written about this topic.
Phil was the National Sales Manager of Sony’s Government Sales Division at this time. “This is a story that took place over 5 years. Yes, you heard that right. I won’t go into all the details, or even most of them. I was part of a large team at Sony. It consisted of my salesperson who was the account manager for the customer, a large number of engineers, third-party vendors, and a software company based in the United Kingdom.”
Today, Phil Whitebloom is the owner of BeenThere Consulting Services, a sales coaching firm based in the Baltimore-Washington DC corridor. His company is a sales coaching company, helping businesses and individuals to successfully find new prospects, close more sales, retain customers, and exceed their financial goals. https://beentherecs.com.
“It was a very competitive situation. Not because there were a large number of bidders, but because there were only a few companies that could take on such a complex and first of a kind technical challenge. They also had to know how to work within the US Government procurement process. More than three years transpired between the first meeting and the contract award to Sony.”
BeenThere Consulting Services https://beentherecs.com understands how to sell into multiple customer types, including government. Although the process is the same, navigating the nuances could make the difference between winning and losing sales. Contact Phil directly to discuss your situation. Phil@BeenThereCS.com.
Phil went on to explain that just before it was time to submit the final bid, the software company who was struggling was purchased by another company. It took the skills of the people in Sony’s systems integration group to keep the project on track. There were the usual technical problems that occurred during the building of such a complex television workflow system. What was not expected was going to be the difficulty of getting a first of a kind software solution to actually work. It took over one year to get the system to customer satisfaction and sign-off.
BeenThere Consulting Services coaches businesses that the sale really begins after they have been awarded the contract. Does your business deal in complex selling situations? Contact https://beentherecs.com/contact-us.
During the one-year installation, the customer grew so frustrated and unhappy, they were ready to declare a “contract default.” They brought in their legal team to discuss what had to happen, and by when to prevent this from occurring. In the end those demands were met and the system was in place for almost two decades before the next technology generation was needed. Phil said, “The system was so successful the government was considering building a duplicate facility in another part of the country as a fail-over. If you are wondering, this was a $17M sale.”
Phil Whitebloom could not over emphasize enough the importance of his salesperson, Rusty Vernon. Rusty was one of the most successful and respected salespersons in the industry. It was the relationships he had built with this customer of almost 20 years, combined with his professionalism and attention to every detail was what kept this deal together. Rusty was the model for everyone else to follow.
BeenThere Consulting Services coaches salespeople on not just the selling process, but on how to build and maintain relationships. Some will say that there is no skill more important. Schedule a meeting with Phil to discuss how he can help your sales team. https://calendly.com/BeenThereCS.
Key Takeaways to turn a failure into a success:
- Don’t let your emotions take over. Staying calm and focused on resolving the problems to everyone’s satisfaction is what matters.
- Acknowledge and accept responsibility for the issues. Assure your customer that you will get the situation resolved.
- Over-communicate to all involved parties. If you are not communicating, it appears nothing is being done.
- Set milestones and report on the progress and completion of each of them.
- Before declaring success, ensure that your customer is in agreement that all issues are resolved, and your product or service is delivering as promised.
- Make regular check-ins with the customer to ensure that everything is still good.
- Continue to bring value to the customer by keeping them informed of new ways you can help them in your area of expertise.
- Building relationships is a lifelong journey.
About Phil Whitebloom
Phil has been in sales and sales leadership for over 40 years. He is a multiple award winner and has helped customers such Fortune 500 companies, U.S. and local governments, institutions of higher education, houses of worship, television/radio companies, and more. Along with his sales teams they have solved thousands of problems, and generated billions of dollars in revenue. He is also known as a strong leader, boasting diversity and employee retention. His company, BeenThere Consulting offers Mastermind group, one-on-one sales coaching, etc…Sales Coaching
Send Phil an email Phil@BeenThereCS.com let him know your thoughts on this topic and share your stories.
To learn more about BeenThere Consulting Services and how we can help you and your business go to BeenThereCS.com. To discuss specific needs or programs with me go to at Contact Us or schedule a meeting with me Calendly BeenThereCS.
The BeenThere/SoldThat Podcast
Join Brianna Hendley of Achievant Business Coaching and me as we cover sales and business-related topics designed to build your skills and increase your knowledge. Our mission is provide you with takeaways to help you achieve your goals and dreams.
Click on this link to listen or search your favorite podcast provider (Been There Sold That Podcast).
BeenThere SoldThat Podcast
Achievant Business Coaching, Your GPS to Success
Brianna Hendley, the founder and CEO of Achievant Business Coaching has a wonderful program underway. Do you want to accelerate your success? Click below to learn more.
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You Must Write a Book
Many of you have told me that you are thinking about writing a book. Some of you are in the process of writing. The questions I have for you are, “What do you want your book to do? How will you measure the success of your book?” If the answers to those questions are important to you, then you must learn from an expert, highly accomplished author, entrepreneur, and coach. My friend and mentor, Honorée Corder is that person. The first step is purchasing her series of books, and when you are ready, her courses. I have done this myself. I don’t know how I could have done it without them. Here are the links:
You Must Book Business Series
Empire Builders Masterclass
Join the Advance Reader Team
“Handling Objections, Clues for Closing The Sale”
Would you like to be a member of the “advanced reader team” for my new book to be released in the coming weeks?
Contact me and in the Message box https://beentherecs.com/contact-us/. Tell me that you would like to be on the Advance Reader Team. I will add you to the list. Approximately two weeks before the release date, you will get an email with a link on how to read the book. My ask is that you write a review and tell your friends and colleagues.
BeenThere Consulting Services, LLC
BeenThere Consulting Services is a sales coaching company. Coaching is more than training. We work with your specific sales needs in real-time. We address what is impacting your business now, while creating enhanced processes and developing skills for future success. Our promise is that you will have actionable take-a-ways after each meeting, which will increase your sales and benefit your business overall.
No one program fits every need. We offer a variety of options to meet the needs of those who want to improve their sales.
- One-to-one coaching: Custom programs designed to meet client’s needs.
- BeenThere Sales Coaching Hour: Group Coaching focused on specific topics and skills development.
- BeenThere/SoldThat Mastermind SB: High-end group coaching for small business owners, where members work together to solve problems for themselves and others.
How to contact us
To determine which program will work for you or someone you know, contact us at https://beentherecs.com/contact-us/.
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