What, Me Sell the Add-on Sales Program?

Kathleen Peterson Rants & Raves by Kathleen Peterson

“Hey, get with it! Take it to the limit! Fire up! Feel the heat! Clap your hands to the beat!” These are the types of “cheers” we hear when attending certain sporting events. Remember your high school “pep rallies?” Now let’s consider how the notion of “cheers” and “pep rallies” can factor into the ever-popular “add-on” sales programs found in many of today’s Contact Centers.

Sales initiatives are nothing new in the Contact Center, but successful sales initiatives could be something new! I say that somewhat sarcastically because in my 25+ years of working with Contact Centers I have seen more failures in this area than successes. I think that sometimes it is because the cheers and the pep rallies begin before enough serious work has been done. Asking reps to cheer on a sales effort because you said so is disingenuous at best. The best cheer for the success of these programs comes in the form of a leader’s ability to sell the program prior to cheering it on!

I would like to outline what I believe to be the serious improvements that must be made to sales initiatives within the Contact Center. First and foremost I will address my readers – the leaders of Contact Center operations. The success of these initiatives rises or falls depending on your leadership skills! That is the bottom line; like it or not.
Let’s begin with a question. How do you, as leader, “sell” the notion of a sales program to your front line? I have seen many leaders that do absolutely NOTHING in this realm. Rather, they “announce” or “cheer on” the program. Announcements take many shapes and “cheers” is only one of them. It may be a memo requiring the front line to adopt the Contact Center version of “Want fries or dessert with that order?” These programs typically yield minimal short-term results and absolutely no long-term results (unless you count the continued aggravation of the front line.) Also popular are the metric targets – sell seven add-on widgets and receive a prize. Sadly, in these initiatives we rarely see an eighth! This confirms that we have not developed a skill, but just a behavior associated with a reward. Well, there is no reward in the long-term!

Some companies invest in software programs that link products to one another – “Would you like the matching tee shirt?” The yield in this case is similar to that of the memo; expect no long-term benefits. Why are these approaches so popular? I believe they fit into a pattern of trying to make something big happen with very little effort. This is not an easy notion to hear or adopt. However, so many folks with leadership responsibilities in today’s Customer Care arena are spread too thin and are weary from chasing efficiencies and cost-cutting schemes. The thought of giving due diligence to a program as complex as add-on sales immediately sparks a search for the path of least resistance! We cannot blame them. But we can challenge ourselves to a new approach.

Globally, organizations are emerging from the economic downturn. The time is ripe for innovation! Leaders will now enjoy recognition for contributions to the bottom line coming from additions rather than from subtraction (most of us have mined all that “efficiency” gold!).

WHAT TO DO?

Leaders must learn to “sell” their add-on sales program rather than simply announce or cheer it! You can utilize the very same “sales” elements that are learned in any sales training program: (1) define the program, (2) craft features and benefits, (3), identify and respond to objections, (4) test understanding, and (5) close the SALE!

1. Define the program – Document exactly what the program intends to accomplish. Present the team with your company’s financial objectives for the next six, twelve, eighteen months (whatever you have). If you don’t have them, someone else does. It is your job to get these figures in order to contextualize the program in strategic terms. Keep in mind that the front line must understand the positive yields of this effort. It is one that results in attention from senior leadership. When the attention is positive, the “visibility” enjoyed by the Contact Center will change. The perception of the Contact Center will alter from that of a back office “Cost” Center to a strategic asset “Value” Center.

2. Craft features and benefits – What are the “features” of the add-on sales program? Two were just mentioned –  aligning to strategic objectives and improving visibility of the Contact Center as a strategic asset. What other features are worth mentioning? Next, you must articulate the “benefits.” For example, the benefit to aligning to strategy is that the company will be more financially stable when sales improve. That stability allows for greater rewards (investments) to be made within the organization. For the Contact Center, rewards can come in the form of training programs, technology upgrades, incentives, commissions, bonuses, etc. Obviously the key here is to assure that there ARE benefits to the program. Without them the program will be a “hard” sell!

3. Identify and respond to objections – What do your “customers” – the front line reps – think about your add-on sales program so far? The answer will vary depending on whether the program is new or just another “thing” they are being told to do. It will also depend on whether your turnover rate robs you of experienced team members.

Whatever the issues, the leadership team must be able to solicit and overcome objections to the add-on sales program. Many front line reps have articulated objections around issues related to their understanding of the job for which they were hired. Hired for a “Customer Service” role and then forced into a sales role may make the frontline rep feel that there has been some switcheroo. While you can address this situation, it is better handled during hiring. Make sure that add-on sales is part of the job description, hiring competencies, and new-hire training. If this has not been the case, the leadership team must be able to recruit the enlisted to act on opportunities to optimize! The most successful option here is transforming the service process into one that will yield add-on sales just by doing it well.

Keep the objection in mind; your “customer” (the rep) feels betrayed. It is the job of the “seller” (the leader) to overcome that objection. One way to do that is to be brutally honest about it; bring up the add-on sales program to the frontline before it is even formally articulated! Engage in a discovery dialogue that illustrates how service excellence naturally leads to sales. Have reps write down the skills required to provide service; then have them do the same for sales. Often reps are startled by the similarities in the list. It is the leader’s job to carefully respond to objections that emerge from whatever approach is taken. The mission is to contextualize the program in such a way that the reps will be open to taking a chance on developing a new way to provide service. This service provides relevant and actionable information to customers. The information is significant enough to result in the customer purchasing additional products or services. Ask the reps to recall times when they had the benefit of service excellence that resulted in add-on sales. How about when the guy that changes your oil mentions replacing your windshield wipers because they look worn? This guarantees that the next time it rains happy thoughts will flow to you through your clear windshield! Helping customers help themselves – that is an add-on sales cheer that can be supported by gathering testimonials from reps and customers alike.

4. Test understanding – Results will speak for themselves. When improvements are being considered coaches must contextualize and calibrate feedback: how to identify and overcome ongoing objections to the program, how to reinforce features and benefits, and how to help reps recognize buying signals rather than simply trying to “sell” something! Leaders must also test their own beliefs about the program. If all your calls and contacts are about complaints and Customer Experience failures an add-on sales program may be premature. It may be time to engage in cross-functional alignment to fix issues rather than attempting to sell. Testing understanding at this stage is to test that the program has a chance of succeeding! Making necessary adjustments is part of any successful endeavor.

5. Close the sale – Leaders must be examples of knowing when to stop selling and go for the close. This is a critical success factor when selling. Buying signals must be recognized. When you see the questions beginning to change (“So, will we be paid extra?”), bingo … acceptance has begun. CLOSE THE SALE! The one glaring failure in transforming Customer Service leaders and staff to becoming more sales-oriented is not knowing when to CLOSE. It is critical to recognize when it is time to stop selling and start closing. If the leader can’t manage it, how will the rep?

You must integrate add-on sales programs into the very fiber of your operation in order to be successful. A Customer Service Contact Center is already a Sales Center! Every contact handled gives the customer reason to continue being a customer or to take their business elsewhere. Focusing in on how customers can be better served is a natural sales channel. Assess how good you are at selling your program. If you can’t sell it, there won’t be much to cheer about!

“I have never worked a day in my life without selling. If I believe in something, I sell it, and I sell it hard.” Estée Lauder

My Best,

Kathleen