UH Bauer Conference Looks at Hit Being Felt By Sales Industry
Careers, Jobs
Discussions Focus on How to Stay
Resilient in Economic Uncertainty
In a ravaged economy, salespeople are on the front lines, working harder than ever to keep merchandise moving despite vast reductions in spending and dwindling lines of credit.
“Selling & Sales Management in Turbulent Times,” a multidisciplinary conference at the C. T. Bauer College of Business, University of Houston April 2-4, will assemble a who’s who of business innovators and industry leaders, as well as academic researchers from UH, Harvard Business School, Northwestern University and other leading business schools from around the world.
Sponsored by UH Bauer’s Sales Excellence Institute and the Marketing Science Institute, a non-profit organization that links business practice with marketing science theory, the conference features sales guru Robert Cialdini, psychology professor at Arizona State University and author of “The Power of Persuasion Under Conditions of Uncertainty;” Martha Rogers, founding partner of Peppers & Rogers, co-author of several best-selling books and co-director of the Duke Center for Customer Relationship Management at Duke University, and top sales executives from 3M, CEVA and Hilti International.
Sales training needs have changed drastically due to the faltering economy, said Executive Professor Randy Webb, Director of Undergraduate Studies in The Program for Excellence in Selling at UH Bauer and former CEO of Uncle Ben’s Rice. The conference will address that landmark shift, with an emphasis on leading-edge issues in the theory and practice of sales management during a downturn.
“If you are a salesperson, you want to be well-prepared in a recession so that you have the knowledge, experience, determination and resilience to succeed,” Webb said.
Webb and Stephen Haines, Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Centex Homes Houston, recently spoke about some of the strategies they advocate in difficult times. “Before, it was pretty much just keep people lined up and take orders,” Haines said. “Now is when you need real sales people to be successful. Sometimes the best defense is a good offense.”
So, what constitutes a pro, as opposed to the “order takers,” sales people who are out in full force when the economy is great but who struggle in times like these?
“The better ones, despite the circumstances, are not likely to hunker down,” said Haines, who has managed sales teams for nearly 20 years. “They’re almost always out there thinking of a new way to generate sales.”
He and Webb recommend sales people get back to basics, offering these pointers:
• Accept, acknowledge and deal with the drastic change in the sales environment. “Face it head-on,” Webb said. “You can’t deny there’s a problem. People are going to be very wary about what they buy. First, they don’t have the money. And second, there’s fear. Look at the amount of wealth on paper that’s been lost.”
• Check your attitude if it’s negative and/or anxious. Attitude, more than ability, determines whether a salesperson will be successful, Webb said.
• Listen, then be a problem solver. This is not the time to market wants and wishes. “Your job is to uncover real needs. There has to be a real mutual benefit,” said Webb. Haines agrees, offering this perspective: “Don’t prescribe to your customer; discover the problem they’re having and come up with the solution.”
• Pay attention to details and don’t be afraid of repeating key points numerous times. Don’t assume a potential customer will remember what you say. “They can never hear it enough,” Webb said.
• Stay informed. “Read the Wall Street Journal; pay attention to what’s going on in Congress,” Haines said. Keep up on current local events such as company relocations, consolidations and other business activity, Haines noted. The information can then drive the way you or your customers do business.
• Conversely, don’t over-analyze all the negative news to the extent it keeps you from doing your job. One of Webb’s colleagues summed it up this way: “Close the newspaper, turn off CNN and go sell.”
The Sales Excellence Institute is a global hub for sales, sales management education and research, encompassing the Program for Excellence in Selling, the MBA Program for Sales Leadership and the Global Sales Research Center. SEI provides a link between UH Bauer and business, providing access to students, research and executive education.
For more information on registering for the conference, which will be held at the Hotel Derek, 2525 West Loop South, contact Rachel Cheney at 713-743-0185 (sei@uh.edu). For registration fees and information, go to www.salesexcellence.org. For media inquiries about the conference or the UH Bauer Sales Excellence institute, contact Jessica Robertson at 713-743-4348 (jnrobertson@uh.edu) or Chester Jacinto at 713-743-4609 (cjacinto@uh.edu).
About the University of Houston
The University of Houston, Texas’ premier metropolitan research and teaching institution is home to more than 40 research centers and institutes and sponsors more than 300 partnerships with corporate, civic and governmental entities. UH, the most diverse research university in the country, stands at the forefront of education, research and service with more than 35,000 students.
About the C. T. Bauer College of Business
The C. T. Bauer College of Business has been in operation for more than 60 years at the University of Houston main campus. Through its five academic departments, the college offers a full-range of undergraduate, masters and doctoral degrees in business. The Bauer College is fully accredited by the AACSB International - the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business. In August 2000, Houston business leader and philanthropist Charles T. (Ted) Bauer endowed the College of Business with a $40 million gift. In recognition of his generosity, the college was renamed the C. T. Bauer College of Business.
Contacts:
C. T. Bauer College of Business - University of Houston
Jessica
Robertson, 713-743-4348 (office)
713-419-5486 (mobile)
jnrobertson@uh.edu