IT Solutions Providers: Remember It Takes An Orchestra To Sell

By Dennis O’Connell, Business Development Manager, HTG Peer Groups

As a salesperson have you ever considered what role that would be in another industry? I have always envisioned myself as the conductor of an elite orchestra. The conductor’s responsibility is to know the music, to know how each part of the score is supposed to compliment the other parts and instruments, to know the exact moment when they should play and how much energy they should have. It is also the conductor’s job to NOT play any of the instruments. He or she has a job, and the orchestra would fail if the conductor were to try to do too much. 

In the IT world, who is my team and how do they help? Contrary to the common wisdom that sales is a solo act, without help we will usually fail. So the first thing we need to get over is the thought that we can succeed alone. We can’t. Know your team. 

My orchestra consisted of the Engineer, the Dispatcher, the Client/Services Rep, my boss (yes he’s smarter than he looks), the financial person and the owner. They say that the heart of the orchestra is the beat and on an IT team I liken this to the Engineer. They provide the deep knowledge on our solutions. They can understand the client’s technical person and make them feel at ease, and they can turn that conversation into solutions which have value to the client and revenue to me.

The Dispatcher and Client/Services representative are my working interface between the client and the engineer. They keep me scheduled; they listen to the client, and then provide history on problems; and they know the mood of the client. I think of them as my wind instruments. To add a sailing analogy, they provide wind for my sails.

My boss, the financial person and the owner are the members of the orchestra who have small roles to play in the actual sale itself but who provide the notes needed to make each opportunity unique. They provide sanity, a sounding board and direction.

In terms of making a sale, it is the salesperson’s job to conduct an orchestra and bring together the individual contributions of each instrument to make a magnificent whole.  But the difference between a good salesperson and a great salesperson is how many people want to be members of your orchestra. 

How do we know we have success? When the crowd gives the orchestra a standing ovation, we have success. When the customer provides us with a signed agreement we have success. As the sales person, when you get the signed agreement, stop and give yourself and your team a standing ovation.

But remember that you have only made it to Intermission. After Intermission, we still need to deliver the solution, turn our customers into raving fans and transition them from transactional customers to lifelong clients. Each of these steps will require the team to continue to function as a team. 

Sales is not about a onetime event but about building a relationship.

Dennis O’Connell is part of a team of coaches and consultants serving the IT industry. Prior to joining the HTG Peer Groups staff, he spent almost 35 years in various roles on both the technical and sales side of IT companies including a large OEM along with both large and small managed service provider.  As a business owner, he create his own peer group to provide guidance and feedback for his company.  He loves helping sales executives maximize their potential and their impact on their company’s bottom line. You can reach him at doconnell@htgpeergroups.com or on LinkedIn.

This article originally appeared at http://htgpeergroups.com/blog/entry/it-takes-an-orchestra-to-sell.html