THE REORDER 10/01/20

Sustainable Sales Success Lessons

Tradecraft: Sustainable Sales Success Lessons in the Beverage Arena

Very early on, I was lucky enough to run into some of the truly great Jedi salespeople in NYC. These craftspeople knew that longevity didn’t mean Foreau, foie gras, and four negroni lunches. They helped me succeed with simplicity.

Take these to heart and go make waves.

“Don’t take this too seriously.” – Dan Lerner

Wine taken too seriously is a farce and beyond boring. Dan Lerner said something like this to me at the Core Club in 2008 and it was an over-the-shoulder bullseye. Remember this: If you make beverage sales your life, it will take your life.

“Take care of your relationships at home. It’s a lot harder if that isn’t working.” – John Coyle

If you do not give care to your home relationships, your family, and those around you in your daily life, the beverage game gets incredibly hard, super fast. Imagine being out to dinner with buyers of the opposite sex and not having trust at home. It will crush you. I actually have come to take this as a credo in life in general. Chaos without care at home makes everything harder.

“That isn’t real wine.” – Michael Wheeler

I was out on a tear one night and I ended up at Blue Hill in Manhattan during their last call and I ran into Wheeler and Phil Sareil. I bought a bottle and Wheeler said it wasn’t real wine – as in, it wasn’t a wine of substance, terroir, or nature. Whether I believe he was right or wrong (he was most likely right) is of no importance. Wheeler taught me at that moment that putting wine in buckets is a hard habit to break. I had put the wine in question into a box that I believed he would agree with and I couldn’t have been more wrong.

Context matters. Understanding comes with experience and seeing wine as more than the tech info checklist or tribe that promotes it is vital. It’s easy to like what other people like. But it may be a bucket of fake frosty cake that may not be what you think it is.

“Never open a bottle for a closed mind.” – Robert Chadderdon via Christopher Russell

I think about this one often. You don’t need to push, you need to connect. A lot of wine has been wasted on folks that will never give it the time of day in the name of the appointment or the new sales blitz. To have a strong, curious perspective about what you present and don’t present is empowering. Put yourself in the shoes of the buyer.

“Why would we want to do what everyone else is doing?” – Naomi Rosen

You don’t have to be like everyone else. You don’t have to say what everyone else says. Naomi has her own style, sense of clarity, curiosity, and immense charm. She approaches her work as a meaningful specific. Consider doing your own personal version of this as a practice.

“Orders only matter if you have dialogue, and philosophy over numbers.” – Looper

You need a philosophy.

I once realized that I had sold 175k in a week with no connection whatsoever. Zero dialogue. I could have been an order machine. Avoid this dynamic at all costs. Find a philosophy that you can hang your hat on every day no matter how much or little you sell and you will find much more clarity in what you do.

“

THE REORDER 09/15/20

The Worst Word in the Wine Business

The worst word in the wine business is…drum roll please…the appointment.

May I have an appointment?

Imagine looking at your email and having 25 plus people email you requesting the same thing: an appointment.

Appointments are for dentists, therapists, and proctologists.

I wish I could jettison this word forever because it immediately brings a strong connotation of a bothersome necessity that belongs to the old postal service model of sales in the beverage sales game. So, why did we decide to use this word? A question for the ages…

An appointment is supposed to be a dialogue, an interchange, a discovery, a connection, a first dance, a new direction. A new opportunity to see something beyond what is in front of you.

I have said this often: appointments are highly overrated – but if you want to do one, fine – just make sure it means something more than an appointment.

“

THE REORDER 08/15/20

Death of a Beverage Salesperson

The classical beverage salesperson that we all knew will not get a do-over. The beverage version of Willy Loman really is dead and there won’t be any kind of sequel.

Gone are the postal routes, encyclopedia sales methods and schlocky promises. Covid-19 has forcefully jettisoned the sad-sack, antiquated practices of the mediocre plus.

For those of us that actively participate in the streets of NYC in the beverage ecosystem, the old way of sales was already on the way out and we saw the last hurrah. Covid-19 just accelerated it.

Here is what won’t be going away: the Connection Artist. The Artisan Salesperson in a new and more perilous landscape.

The salesperson will either evolve and lean into a more connective artist or disappear into the ether. Why? Because the playing field is now a head-spinning, multi-dimensional pitch to play on – a shape-shifting game is now the daily field of play. In short, it just got more complicated.

The Connection Artist is a multi-faceted, tech-forward, learned, fuller-scoped, market-savvy beverage player. This new modality of the connector is fluent in what was done before by the classical beverage salesperson, chooses wisely when to apply past principles, and when not to.

The beverage game today is a freshly-picked paradigm of immense opportunity and the Connection Artist is the star player.

“

THE REORDER 03/20/20

Salescraft: What to do in an Economic Downturn

The current pandemic is the worst market event I have witnessed since September 11th. There is a complete restructuring of the marketplace and the future looks uncertain and at times, downright scary.

What do you do when an economic downturn like this forces your hand and you have to adapt?

These are choppy waters, and the challenge is to observe what is going on, stay present and enter these waters without flinching.

Some ideas and thoughts below. Do not despair.

Zen and the Art of Sales in a Crisis

I vividly remember walking out of the restaurant called Bolo during the economic meltdown more than a decade ago and wondering if I would ever sell a drop of wine again and be able to support myself. I was as scared as I had ever been. The moment I stopped scaring myself, other avenues opened and possibilities arose. I saw the edges and the spaces available clearly.

While the future is uncertain, what we are in today shall pass. If I could hug you, grab you by the shoulders, look you in the eye and tell you that the fight or flight response will not serve anyone, especially you, I would.

It is easy to get tied up in your imagination and think about what has been lost as a forever kind of thing – but the truth of the matter is that you don’t know. What will be reborn, rebuilt and revitalized will surprise you.

What is vital in times like these is to continue to envision a better future.

SALESCRAFT – WHAT TO DO

Retail

Retailers have understandably gotten a positive bump in these turbulent times. If I am sitting down and considering what would be best to offer – it looks like this:

Reaching out thoughtfully with both ideas AND inquiring about needs. Putting up ideas like the ones below. Start here if you are locked up.

Any wine that retails under $24.99 in “good” Inventory that can be a go to core item.

Any wine or spirit on special deal.

A wine or spirit that will be on special deal in the future.

A wine or spirit that has been overlooked for no good reason.

Rosé that can be on deck for when the weather breaks (Most have probably sent offers by now, but I would encourage sending a follow up offer or two now to gauge the temperature/reaction).

Any wine or spirit that is a “call category.”

Restaurant

Get involved. Call your representatives and go to saverestaurants.co to be a part of saving the restaurant industry.

And, reach out to friends and colleagues in this diverse industry that are currently unemployed. There is massive uncertainty, so please extend a hand and support however you can. Give to the gofundme pages that are all over social media supporting various restaurant staffs, if you are in the position to give.

“ These are choppy waters, and the challenge is to observe what is going on, stay present and enter these waters without flinching.

Company

Some companies are in straight up survival mode and they will do whatever they have to do to stay afloat in this trying time. Realize that you probably don’t know what is truly behind the curtain and that the better you can adapt, the better you will fare long term. Also, don’t be afraid to ask to help so you can understand the challenges and what you can offer to get through them.

IMPORTANT NOTE: If companies start adjusting commission and/or salaries down in order to endure, it can potentially set off a domino effect of panic. This type of survival move can have a culture shattering effect unless it is messaged properly and the messaging is exceptionally difficult because no one wants to lose anything in a downturn.

Personal

Be thankful – consider that whatever the future holds, it is a gift.
Immediately scale down any extraneous spending.
Learn something new that you have always wanted to, but never had the time. Challenge yourself to think forward, not back.

THE REORDER 03/01/20

The Concrete Ceiling of Sales

There is nothing worse than being stuck and feeling like your head is hitting the concrete ceiling in sales.
As an artisan salesperson – while you expand your world and as you exceed expectations, the volumes will go up and the connections will accelerate, bringing more references and more accounts. Eventually, you are going to run into a problem: the concrete ceiling of sales.

I can tell you with certainty that it is difficult situation when you’re doing well but you also know clearly the effort required to do more. You are at capacity within the system that you work in. This is the hamster wheel of the high performing sales rep.

The typical symptoms

Feeling like you have to hit a home run every month.

Making deals that benefit everyone but you.

Setting up systems for growth that are undone by the functionality of the company you work for.

Asking to help and not being heard.

Placing and processing orders becomes a problem and not a pleasure.

“ The stuck sales soldier is the hamster in the wheel and the artisan salesperson is at choice.

Once you sell a certain amount and you are connecting a viable quantity of wine and spirits to a group of steady customers, you are hedged to the functionality of the company you work for.

Put yourself in these shoes: there is only one way to get out of the hamster wheel and that is to change a company from the inside or move on.
Both of these are worthy paths you can take, and both are difficult.

The stuck sales soldier is the hamster in the wheel and the artisan salesperson can make change – remember that you are always at choice.

THE REORDER 01/31/20

The Blueprint of the Artisan Salesperson

I used to think there would be a time where things would just happen and it would be near automatic. Wine would flow like a river, spirits would tumble into cocktails and an ease would be ever present as you influence/witness/serve as the salesperson. It would get “easier.”

The truth is that the artisan salesperson never arrives at this heavenly place. You have to always keep reinventing your practice, rethinking why and how – not just with your customers but with what you do on the regular.

Below are five fundamentals that will open the door to being an artisan salesperson – a salesperson that wants to do right.

If you get off track – start here.

#1 Philosophy – It starts with you.

You cannot do this at a high level without a philosophy. You have to know where you start and where the work finishes. You have to know why you are choosing to do the practice of sales. If it is just for commission, at your best you will only ever be just good enough.

#2 The Customer – never a number

Customers are not randoms or black and white numbers in a cell that could be raised 3 percent, they are people. Even in this persona over personal technological world where it can be difficult to know people, and many want to just click and buy, it is better to have a personal connection. I would argue further that you need to have a feel of what it smells like in that restaurant or why that retailer does so well on that block. These observations cannot be faked – get to know who you serve by showing up.

#3 What are you selling?

What is the context of the products? All technical details aside, where does what you offer fit in? Who are the competitors? What makes yours unique? Why this one over that one? This takes effort and you must taste more than you talk to acquire reference points. Actually taste the competitors and see what comes. Have a way that looks at the wine beyond the quality call. Look at the style.

Hint: pricing is almost always the last thing to sell first

“ Most salespeople (often at no fault of their own) get hyper-fixated.

#4 Buyer thinking – Think like a buyer.

Think like a buyer and you will be able to be a savvy matchmaker. It is not easy to do and takes real intention, but if you can put yourself in the buyer’s shoes, you can truly see what drives their choices; not just product or what they like, but something deeper.

#5 Look for the spaces

You must pan out and look more broadly to see the spaces. Most salespeople (often at no fault of their own) get hyper-fixated. I have often. The only way to really be “in it” is to pan out and look at the edges.

The customer just inquired about a pallet of this – why did that happen? What is really going on? If you can figure that out – you will always have a head start.

THE REORDER 12/01/19

The Fluid Salesperson vs. The Tweaked Salesperson

I was sitting with a fluid, jedi beverage salesperson recently and he said something to me that made immense sense.

He said:

“I sacrifice earnings for quality of life.”

While this may seem like an obvious statement, to most owners of importer/distributors, it would sound like heresy.

This is a strong salesperson who has been doing this a really long time – I don’t mean a few big years, I mean 25 plus years of present and high “earner” work. He is a legend.

Ten minutes later I ran into a young and up and coming salesperson. One who has talent pouring out of his wine bag and immense potential. His eyes couldn’t focus, his gaze and manner went towards the ground and he couldn’t bear to listen to more than three words before interrupting.

“I am so busy,” he said.

He was tweaked to the gills. No focus, no balance, and as he tripped over his words, he less than casually mentioned that he was “way up” over last year.

“ ...His eyes couldn't focus, his gaze and manner went towards the ground and he couldn't bear to listen to more than three words before interrupting.

This is the image I want to stay with you: your number could be sexy as fuck, but what if for a little less you could last a lot longer?

What if you could run at a steady clip and not tire as much? Compounded interest works.

If you are so tweaked as a salesperson that you can’t concentrate and it seems so hard you can barely get through, chances are it is you who are adding pressure and constraints. You are the problem.

Try doing less. Try finding another way. Try looking at the possibilities instead of the daily numbers.

1 2 3 … 7 Next »