B2B, SMB, B2C, ABC ~ Acronym Nightmare (Sales Speak)

"Wealth, like happiness, is never attained when sought after directly. It comes as a by-product of providing a useful service."
~Henry Ford 

I have gone on record to have a strong dislike for acronyms.  The reason being, far too often, sales professionals, their managers, technical and/or operations team have a lingo of their own, cloaked by acronyms.  Unfortunately, unless you live in their world, they may as well be speaking in code for all that it makes sense to their audience.  Too many people fall into the habit of using acronyms that can discriminate or turn off their prospects. 

The title of this Blog did use acronyms that are popular amongst professionals and businesses created as a universal language amongst club members of “Business Speak”.  Allow me to enlighten and explain what they mean:

1.    B2B: Business to Business: (Source: Wikipedia) Business-to-business (B2B) is commerce transactions between businesses, such as between a manufacturer and a wholesaler, or between a wholesaler and a retailer.   B2B branding is a term used in marketing.

2.    B2C: Business to Consumer:  Wikipedia identifies as Retail which is the sale of goods and services from individuals or businesses to the end-user aka the consumer. The consumer is the one who pays to consume the goods and services produced. As such, consumers play a vital role in the economic system of a nation. In the absence of effective consumer demand, producers would lack one of the key motivations to produce: to sell to consumers. The consumer also forms part of the chain of distribution.

3.   SMB: Small-to-Medium Business:  This is usually a key identifier on the size of a company or sales professional target of set of types of businesses they identify as customers and potential customers (aka prospects).  Each organization can vary on their own interpretation on how they identify Small to Medium Business. Often it used to disquished by the size of the company (i.e. Small – 10 to 200 employees and Medium 200-1000 employes.  They are usually owned by private owners or investors, and sometimes employee owned.

4.   Enterprise or Major Accounts are very large scale corporations that can have between 1000 to 250,000++ employees spread globally, multiple countries, lead by a CEO who reports to a Board of Directors supported by a team of executives that fall under an organization chart reporting to the CEO.  The CEO is held accountable by an elected Board of Directors who drive investments by shareholders with a strong eye on profitability.




When it comes to selling B2B, B2C, SMB or Enterprise customers – what is similar and what can be different?

Time.  Whether you are trying to engage a decision maker who is an owner of a small B2B (SMB) company or an executive for a major corporation, B2C or Enterprise - they're all limited with their time and the attention they will afford you, if at all.  Therefore, you better do your homework, craft insightful questions that are meaningful ..... don't dare to waste their time. 
The good news is that either owners or executives will pay close attention to you if you uncover a problem that they may not have identified as a need yet.  Strive to bring forward creative and innovative solutions that help them (examples of some of their problems):
  • More profitable
  • Drive revenue
  • Be more competitive
  • Increase customer satisfaction
  • Decrease/avoid employee frustration
  • Eliminate administrative headaches and hassles
  • Increase employee morale
  • Identify time wasters that can be eliminated or streamlined
  • Create efficiencies: Streamline how their business operates
  • Increase awareness/improve their brand
  • Handle growth
  • Manage negative growth
  • Help educate others:  employees, customers, media
  • Improve technology:  advise them on solutions that may impact intimately
  • Decrease costs
  • Educate:  inform them on trends in their industry, their location (country/city)
  • Creativity - solutions/technology/marketing/social media that helps with the   aforementioned
  • Improve appearance/quality/messages that attract new customers
  • Promote customer loyalty/referrals
  • Manage change

You will do yourself, your team, your company but mostly your CUSTOMERS a huge service when you examine your widget or service and draw out those bullets, and investigate what you have to offer that will solve any of those problems or needs shared as strong examples.


It isn’t always apparent.  Often it takes time to be talking to the right people in the organization while cross-referencing your research on them, their industry, government regulations, local political atmosphere, that may present you with what you already have in your back pocket from your own operations team, service personnel, technical resources, customer service, web feedback, etc.


No where have I said anything about price!  You can decrease the cost of doing business for a company by streamlining their processes with a solution that provides a service or technology that solves a function performed by employees who find it unpopular, makes them miserable when they have to do it, or are more valued doing something that is more directly linked to their skills and what you’re paying them.  Your solution can offset the cost of saving profit drainers.  Smart executives can grasp on to this concept.  Unfortunately, middle managers are more often gathering information, asking you more and more questions, asking for estimates upon estimates that only spells price shopping.  If you are being wise, selling smart, you have identified some of the pain areas, for example:


·        Keeping track of data

·        Keying information manually

·        Doubled up efforts

·        Difficult to operate

·        Too reliant on a third party that is unreliable

·        Susceptible to human error


All you are doing is asking relevant questions that are directly impacting their business.  You can be sincere and excited when you put in the time to do the research then ask what are their goals or what are their biggest headaches.  When you are able to go back with what looks like a “no brainer” solution, guess who becomes the “Go to Guy or Gal” … yes YOU!
"Basically you are selling a world as an actor, right?  I mean, it's like a sales person:  if you believe in your product, you know your product, you will sell it a lot better."

~Paul Walker(Fast and Furious)


I highly recommend checking out this slideshow by Harvard Business Review (HBR ... grrrrr Acronym, lol) on the "Trouble with Sales People": 


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VISUALLY SPEAKING

"Create your own visual style .. let it be unique for yourself yet identifiable for others."                                                  
~Orson Welles
 
Social media dynamics are more profound when it allows you to simply reTweet, share, Google Plus the images that appeal to you.  I started to share on an ongoing basis the photographs and images that appealed to me from primarily #Pinterest .  I adopted a new sidebar on my Blog of images that I liked on Pinterest.
 
Prior to that, I was invited to post on a group PIN of "Best of Pinterest".  As time elapsed and momentum eclipsed what I thought was phenomenal imagery transformed to an opinion that mattered by the momentum of those who re-PINned, shared, liked what I thought was the best of the best of photography. 
 
What wasn't obvious to me was what appealed to my visual stimulation would appeal to so many others.
 
What is NOW obvious to me is that we all have a creativity nestled within ourselves, but it is only the brave photographers and artists that are able to open up what we find amazing or extrapolate our own vulnerabilities to expose ourselves, our creativity to being examined, microscoped by others to critique what we identified as unique and visually phenomenal at the time.
 
It is with distinct pleasure that I share some of the images that resounded amongst many - photographers, imagers, creative types that shared themselves and I identified as some of the best:
 

 

 

 
 

 
 
There you have it.  These are a compilation of some of the best images I identified on Pinterest that appealed to me.  Luckily, many others agreed and re-PINned and shared.
 
That is what I love about Pinterest it allows me to curate what I visually find appealing.   I was honoured when invited to post to the "Best of Pinterest" and did so.
 
What I'm not telling you is that I also have a board "ArtWOW" amongst many.  What I found disturbing was an inbox email from Pinterest: I just received notification from Pinterest about a complaint that I was infringing on a copyright on a Marilyn portrait that I shared. I did apologize to the artist but also pointed out: "FYI Pinterest is a phenomenal way to showcase your artwork and by ensuring your images have a stamp by you on them, will insure that the credit goes to the proper person. If you put the copyright mark on it, it can also serve as protection on legal matters, prevent reproductions. I'd be commending people who are willing to broadcast and share your talent rather than complaining."

Don't post or share anything that you don't want to be shared.  Hide and conceal your talent where others won't post or re-share what they find appealing.  If they do, don't complain when others are sharing your talent.  Hide out, protect your copyright.  However, don't expect others to give you credit on your creativity.  It's quite annoying when we're trying to promote your talent and you complain.
 


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Gold Medal. Gold Statue. Gold Mine.

"Desire is the key to motivation, but it's determination and commitment to an unrelenting pursuit of your goal - a commitment to excellence - that will enable you to attain the success you seek."
~Mario Andretti


Watching the Sochi Olympics 2014 was amazing!  One couldn't help but be inspired by watching so many amazing triumphs.  The winners won because of:
  • Preparation
  • Dedication
  • Teamwork
  • Sacrifice
  • Discipline
Sales or any career development should be the same as an Olympian.  Truly, if you want to be the best of the best, you can't wing it.  Your organization and customers pay and expect you to be worth gold. 


For example, those figure skaters, judging controversies aside, spent hours and hours both on and off the ice training.  They don't just lace on the skates and go out and give it a whirl and hope for the best to happen.  If you have ever tried ice skating, you can't.  It takes practice, skill, dedication, discipline and often sacrifice to even make it to competition level, never mind the Olympics.

The same should be said for your career and sales.  Yet how many people figuratively just hop on the ice expecting to do flips and spins right away?  Many, lots, tons.  Never mind that in sales, you are not paying for ice time, coaches etc.  Your company is - and they're trusting you to be the best.

What about the Oscars?  I can't imagine Mathew McConaughey, Mr. RomCom, winning the Oscar without all of those attributes, can you?  (Note the stark transformation physically.  How's that for dedication and sacrifice?)



You too can transform yourself from being an empty suit into a star.  Don't step outside the door without doing some self examination:  is it a career that suits you?  Can you devote the time to reading, learning, training to be the best?  Of course you can.  It is at your fingertips.  What nobody can hand you, is the Gold Medal, Gold Statue without some work on your part. 

Be thankful and feel blessed if you work for a company who sponsors, pays, provides additional training, mentoring to help you.  That's all fine and dandy.  If you don't embrace and absorb it with the dedication to be the best, you don't deserve it.

What about their paycheques being incentive enough?  What career possibly has no ceiling on your earning potential than sales?  If you put in the hours, take the time to learn, practice continuously, be disciplined, you too can earn a Gold Medal or Statue - it's called respect and admiration for your skills.

What are you going to do today to start being the best of the best?




The only place where success comes before work is in the dictionary.” Vidal Sassoon
Read more at http://under30ceo.com/50-best-success-quotes-of-all-time/#I2P0hl0wAju6seAU.99
"The only place where success comes before work is in the dictionary."
~Vidal Sassoon

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