It's easier to find a diamond
in the rough
than it is
to apply pressure to coal.
In working with business
development professionals over
the past 30 years, 2 challenges consistently arise.First it is extremely difficult to change the
behavior and thinking of traditional sales people who are typically
product
oriented and push-sell based on features, benefits and pricing of
their
product.It is true that any system will
work as long as you have one.That
system of continually pushing the value and service of the product,
although
inefficient and ineffective, will generate a certain amount of
business. However, it will almost always puts the individual
representing the
product in
an adversarial role.Helping a person to
recognize the limitations of that system, changing the thinking that
drives
it, and elevating them to a higher level of business development has a
low
probability of success and is a painfully difficult process.
Secondly, finding individuals who are by
nature problem
solvers, introspective, somewhat introverted, more interested in asking
questions and learning, empathetic and able to understand problems from
another
person's perspective, make much better candidates for developing into
business
development professionals.What sets them
apart is their desire to understand the nature and scope of the
problem, its
ramifications to both the individual and the purchasing organization
and being
externally focused in helping to find a solution to their problems-
whether or
not they purchase it from the them. This type of individual engenders a
more open
relationship with strengthened trust and a superior exchange of
information, resulting
in a longer lasting professional business relationship.
In the modern world of service oriented,
technical services
companies, a technical engineering specialist who has backed into the
role of
business development provides a much better candidate for success, is a
more
reflective student, and is more inclined to learn both the thinking and
process
of professional business development.
It is much easier to discover a diamond in
the rough and to mentor
and coach the individual rather than to try to retrain traditional
sales thinking
and process.
