Partnership Principles That Lead To Sales Success

by Randy G. Pennington

We have heard it before­p;building partnerships is the key to long-term success in selling. Everyone nods in agreement with the concept, but the ability to build lasting partnerships is not as easy as it appears. There is no universal 12 step program. There are, however, certain principles that will lead to lasting success when applied in a creative, client-centered manner.

Fundamentals are the minimum. Relationships are the difference.
Delivering quality products and services was a strategic advantage ten years ago. Today, they are the minimum to compete in the market. The market's ability to devour those who will not change means that great fundamentals are no longer enough to maintain customer loyalty. Advantage in the future lies in our ability to develop strong relationships forged in a bond of mutual respect, openness and trust. It is a long-term process that yields lasting results.

The temptation to abandon the pursuit of partnerships in favor of short-term results hits everyone. The pressure of needing another sale to make quota, win a contest or ensure there's enough money to pay the mortgage next month can make a doubter of even the most ardent relationship builder. The logic appears sound, but the end result is a lost opportunity. Relationships flourish when everyone's needs are met, and a short-term, "make the sale" focus places emphasis on our needs rather than those of our internal and external customers.

An important aspect of building a successful business relationship is understanding ROI­p;Return On Investment­p;from the customer's perspective. Meeting planners traditionally calculate ROI from a "dollars saved" perspective. They want to show their customers that they can deliver value. Cost savings is a fundamental, however. It is the minimum a planner must do to maintain credibility. The relationship building opportunity comes when we help a planner achieve their customer's ROI. We build a partnership when we help them help someone else be successful.

Communication is everything, and everything is communication.
Communication is a continuous process to learn the needs of others, respond to those needs and position ourselves as the solution in the mind of the customer. It is, in essence, an on-going marketing program that lets others know their value. Every word and action contributes to that message. In our personal lives, our partners often value small acts unaccompanied by fanfare more than boisterous words or lavish gifts at those expected times. The same is true of our business partners. Extra attention to the unnoticed details that ensure a meeting's success are often appreciated more than a large public display.

Stars are externally focused and internally driven.
Successes in every walk of life share two things in common: they are driven by an internal desire to be the best they can be and they focus on external goals. Tom Peters once observed that most successful business endeavors come at the hands of "mono-maniacs with a mission." It is easy to zero in on the internal motivation that is so critical for any effort to succeed, but, the organizations and individuals we honor as leaders in their field always have a mission to accompany the motivation. That mission is always focused on producing results externally.

Building successful partnerships can be viewed as both a strategy and a goal. Strategically, it is a necessary tool for ensuring survival as a sales professional. More important, it should be a goal for everyone concerned with the long-term viability of the industry. It is incumbent on everyone to create an environment where the labels of supplier and planner exist only on paper. Functionally, there must be only one designation, meeting professional.

Past success proves you were right once.
The Chicago Bulls of the National Basketball Association will probably break the league record for most wins during a regular season this year. Bull's star Michael Jordan put the expected accomplishment in perspective when he said that winning over 70 games in the regular season doesn't mean much if you lose in the play-offs. Most partnerships, business and personal, began with everyone committed to success. Too often, however, they end when on of the partners becomes complacent. To be truly committed to the success of a partner means being truly committed to our own continuous improvement.

You are either green and growing or brown and dying.
Arie De Geus, retired manager of planning at Royal Dutch/Shell, said, "The ability to learn faster than our competitors may be the only sustainable competitive advantage." Developing winning partnerships is not an activity. It is a way of life that continuously evolves. These principles are not designed to provide specific answers. To the contrary, they raise additional questions.

Albert Einstein once said, "The problems of today cannot be resolved by the same mind that created them." To be green and growing is to search for principles and experiment with their application rather than rely totally on a list of prescribed action items. To be green and growing is to ask better questions of ourselves and our organizations. To be green and growing is to look for new and innovative ways to put into practice what we have known intuitively for a long time­p;success in the future depends on our ability to create interdependent partnerships where everyone takes responsibility for positive results.

© 1996 by Pennington Performance Group. All rights reserved.
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