Selling, The Southern way (Part 2)

(I'm sorry this is going to be a little bit rushed, I will elaborate on this at a later date)

Last Thursday we discussed the differences in selling and buying style from my personal experiences in Germany and in the deep south. (Article is here) today we are going to dive into the persona of the southern buyer and the southern sales person.

If you think of sales as a continuously escalating series of dates where you and the buyer feel each other out to see if you are good matches you'll notice that in the south there is a considerable 'getting to know you period' before you may ever get a sale. That is somewhat industry dependent but when discussing service contracts and capital expenses a good presentation is only going to get you this far in the south. The outsider derisively refers to this as the 'good ol' boy network' and uses this as an excuse for not getting the sale.

While that is a mindset, it is in my opinion the wrong mindset. People like buying from their friends, probably more in the south than anywhere else. What this simply means is that you have failed to establish the necessary report to properly pitch your product/services. Yes, it can be frustrating. But if you are a sales person in the south this is part of the process. This is the most important part of the process some might argue. You have to enjoy meeting people and building sincere friendships and you better believe that sincere part is important.

Selling, The Southern way

I had an interesting conversation with a sales director a couple of weeks ago. He was from New Jersey and had settled in the south. I'm sure you can guess where I am going with this: Differences between sales from north to south or in this case from country to country. 

Anyone that has read any of Jeffrey Gitomer's books (I recommend reading at least one of his books such as: The Sales Bible: The Ultimate Sales Resource, New Edition) know that he loves to speak on the differences in buyer and seller temperament in different parts of the country. He is a transplant from New York and had quite the culture shock moving to the Carolina's and experiencing a slower paced, much more relationship driven process than in the north. 

Being a transplant from Germany into Alabama I had a very similar culture shock when I started selling in the US. The sales process in Germany is much more process oriented than it is here. Sure, you go play golf with your customer, if you can, and you'll buy them dinner but that does not imply that much familiarity. Visitors to Germany will know that people that have done business for year together often still call each other by their surname. Case in point is my fathers own lawyer. They have been good friends and vacationed together for over 30 years, yet they still call each other by their full title and name. 

Possibly the biggest difference and also challenge to me has been the icebreakers. 

The tried and true go to method to establish common ground is the scan of the office for memorabilia,  family pictures, and other conversation starters. This is something that is simply not done, if I sat in the office of a potential buyer in Germany and I started asking him about his children or sports trophy that would actually be considered a sign of disrespect as our relationship isn't at that point. And for a lot of people doing business for years the relationship will never be to that point. It's a cultural thing. General politeness and a good value proposition will get you a sale more often than not. 

How is the south different? Find out tomorrow.