You have greatly deserved your spurs. Your gray hairs show seniority and within your organization you are seen as the authority. You are an active networker, show your face regularly at the big-boys-networks (Rotary and LIONS Club) and are also appreciated there because of your talent to connect. When you meet new people, you make a confident, business and social impression. The commercial area has little secrets for you.

Internally, you give guidance to the commercial department within your organization. You will ensure that “your” people give sufficient attention to your customers, but also that they are sufficiently active in the much needed market operation. To do this, you send them on the course “Telephone acquisition”, and “conversation techniques”. Not because this immediately yields new customers, but to improve the necessary hard-selling competencies. You reward them firmly when they perform and perform critical conversations when they are lagging on schedule.

You enjoy respect. Your colleagues from the MT look at you, full of expectation that you will continue to put the company on the map and let it grow. You take care of more customers, more turnover, and promote up-and cross-selling among your people. When there are strategic customers who enjoy extra attention, you step into your well-deserved, beautiful bolide and paves with your charms and insights the way back for your sales colleagues. Your colleagues are looking at you.

In short, your experience and expertise already opens doors. For you it seems easy, question of bubbles and Hoppa, again a new appointment. Linkedin? You actually don’t really need that! Of course you do it, because you also want to keep in touch how you are in the (labor) market. Maybe the grass is still greener somewhere. You accept invitations from your Top 10 customers, do not respond to InMails from prospective suppliers and are critical which colleagues can or will not….

Wake up call

Today a new sales colleague started, 24 years with a commercial background and with 2 years of work experience by your recruitment department reaping at the competitor. He gets the job title “Junior Account Manager”, a phone, laptop and lease car. So he is allowed to prove himself…. Yet? But….

He has not (yet) authority

He’s still unsure how he happens to new people

He has no seniority (yet), he is from another generation, grew up with internet and social media instead of playing football on the square and Dukes of Hazard.

He does not yet have the quality to pass gatekeepers by phone, let alone convince customers of the added value for an introduction

He doesn’t have (yet) his own frame of reference, best practices and inspiring cases

When he goes to a network meeting, no one comes to him as it happens to you.

He must first prove himself

New Generation Sales

Where you see LinkedIn as Digital Rolodex, as the confirmation of an offline relationship, LinkedIn is now an opportunity to distinguish itself.

By sharing relevant knowledge about developments within your market, by proactively informing his network about what’s playing, he builds on his authority.

By building his profile strategically and customer-oriented and inviting potential customers prior to an appointment, he makes a reliable first impression.

By secretly leaving the word “Junior” for his job title on LinkedIn, he takes the impression that he has insufficient substantive knowledge

By looking up the decision-maker himself and sharing knowledge with qualitative InMails and adding value, he disables the gatekeeper

By sitting together with Marketing, he asks for the right cases and best practices that he can use to endress the prospect

He networks in a different way than you, less time consuming, for him more effective. Although online, but not less socially and with the same goal in mind. Come to the table from an advisory role, add value to the relationship so that it ultimately becomes customer and possibly even ambassador.

Dear commercial Director, I have nothing but respect for you. You have earned your spurs, you have often also gone on your face. Have probably lost deals and won a lot of deals. And over the years you have become more authentic and successful, that is your experience. But do you want to do me one pleasure?

Do you want to be in this changing market, where procurement processes become increasingly complex, where relationships are decisive more than ever, where online orientation and content are an important source for your potential customers, not thinking that everyone is just Way can do. Do you want splash to adopt an open attitude towards Social Selling and LinkedIn. They see as a key inspiration and success tool for your sales team, junior or senior, experienced or inexperienced, product specialist or pure seller. Do not want to lie down if they want to gain knowledge of these tools to improve their relationship management and acquisition skills. Do you want splash – perhaps just like them – to be curious about what LinkedIn has to offer your team (and you) with additional strength towards your market?

After all, there are more roads leading to Rome and new customers. And precisely that insight, precisely that attitude to investigate new trends and to implement new working methods, makes you even more an authority within and outside your organization.

I wish you and your team a lot of success this year.