Socrates Says

Are Salespeople Born or Made?

October 16, 2020/in Product Support Selling, Training/by learningwithoutscars

Are salespeople born or made?

This week’s blog post is a continuation of last week’s series Answers to Four Tough Sales Questions. The second question in the series asks us: are salespeople born or made?

Don Buttrey is the president of Sales Professional Training Inc., a company that offers in-depth skill development for sales professionals and sales support. He has trained thousands of salespeople over 25 years and clearly understands the selling environment of equipment dealers and manufacturers. His curriculum is comprehensive and proven! Don is also the author of “The SELL Process”, a foundational how-to book on effective sales interactions.

Don can be reached at (937) 427-1717

or email donbuttrey@salesprofessionaltraining.com.

Check out this website link salesprofessionaltraining.com for more information – or to purchase online sales training.

Are salespeople born or made?

Don Buttrey: Neither. It really takes both. Granted, some individuals are born with great gifts. They have contagious personalities, persuasive ability, the gift of talking, or technical/mechanical aptitude. These are all excellent talents that can be good starting points. However, I am of the firm belief that these are not enough. For sales success in today’s tough market it will also require training and practice on fundamental selling skills. The skills and disciplines of sales professionals are what take those innate gifts and make them produce with maximum effectiveness.

On the other side of this issue it must be noted that training and practice alone will not make a great salesperson. All the training in the world will not fix a salesperson who refuses to grow or who has the wrong attitude. Plus, it is very important that we begin with and invest training into people who want to be in sales and who have some of the raw talent and aptitude for daily interactions, communication and self-management.

My conclusion is; attract and find good people with some (or a lot) of the basic talents and aptitudes needed for selling. Confirm that they have a drive to succeed and a teachable mind-set. Then direct, train and coach them. This is a formula for a winning team.

For more information on our sales training programs, visit us at Learning Without Scars.

TESTIMONIALS

The CSIs in the Tire Shop #technogeek

Our guest writer Bob Rutherford is back this week, along with a new hashtag (#technogeek), to talk technical about the CSIs in the Tire Shop.

At the last TMC meeting there was a lively discussion about the shock absorber and the role it plays in vehicle safety. As with most things trucking related, correct answers can be hard to come by. This is one example. The answer is totally dependent on what type of suspension system the shock has been incorporated into.

From the textbook* on the subject, here are the various categories of suspensions:

Leaf spring

Equalizer beam: leaf spring and solid rubber spring

Rubber block and torsion bar

Air spring: pneumatic – only or the combination of pneumatic/leaf spring

*Above from page 814 fifth edition Heavy Duty Truck Systems by Sean Bennett

This white paper is concerned with only the air spring only system at this time (in bold above). The reason for this is explained in detail on page 826 about the air spring only system:

“The primary disadvantage of the air spring is a ZERO ability to dampen suspension oscillations. For this reason, they use auxiliary dampening mechanisms such as shock absorbers.”

Further research needs to be conducted to draw conclusions about the role of the shock in the other suspension systems listed above. One thing that is known for sure, a monoleaf spring design is very dependent on a working shock absorber as opposed to the multi-leaf spring packs have a self-damping capacity. It looks like the monoleaf design is gaining in popularity for the advertised weight savings of up to eighty-five pounds in some applications.

The more leaf springs in a spring pack the more self-damping against suspension oscillation the system will have. This reduces the need for a working shock absorber in this type of system.

My conclusion is that on the air spring (AKA air ride) system the lowly shock has been crowned the King of Safety and needs to be recognized as such by all concerned with safety. A properly functioning shock can make the difference between a tire having the proper footprint or merely only having the equivalent of a toe print on the pavement.

From a braking standpoint, how good is the braking system if the tires are rebounding off the pavement because the shock is worn-out? The shock is the key to keeping the tires on the road.

Based on comments received on my prior published works I know many in the trucking industry think a shock, even on an air ride system, is not a key safety component. I am sure this is because in their mind’s eye they see an 80,000 GVW just bouncing down the interstate without a care in the world. I don’t look at that scenario; I see the last thirty seconds of an accident where a distracted driver cuts off the big rig and the driver is jamming on the brakes and turning the steering wheel with all the might the driver can muster. At that exact moment, the shocks had better be keeping the biggest and baddest tire footprint on the highway.

So why would a truck driver drive on bad shocks? As stated, when I quoted the list of suspension systems, if the truck driver and mechanics were used to a vehicle with a leaf spring suspension, maybe worn shocks were never an issue; and that could be a very big “were never an issue.”

In my research I have found that many tire dealers are not in the shock business and actually benefit in more tire sales when a customer brings back a cupping tire that is not covered under warranty because of a bad shock, other suspension problem, or an out-of-balance wheel end assembly.

I have found those tire shops that see the future are using the ABC’S system (explained below) for wheel end management and so are fighting an uphill battle.

Many drivers see a conversation in a tire shop with a CSI tone as the tire shop attempting to pull off a dreaded up sell of an unnecessary shock absorber just to pad the bill.

Explaining the ABC’S and the CSI conversational tone with the truck owner

It should be no mystery to anyone who has watched TV during this decade that CSI is short for Crime Scene Investigators. The ABC’S will be explained next.

Michelin Tire Company has been distributing tire wear analysis charts to tire shops for years. The charts are titled “The Usual Suspects.” I assume (and hope to verify someday) that someone in the Michelin marketing department saw the relationship between a tire that is dead on arrival (DOA) that like the TV show, there are always certain suspects that the death of the tire can be pinned on.

The premise of the movie is that every time there was a crime they would round up the usual suspects, perform a crime scene investigation and figure out who done it.

It is to the advantage of tire manufacturers to showcase the usual suspects as a troubleshooting tool for several reasons. First, they don’t have to warrant the tire and second, they might solve the mystery and have a happy customer in the future.

I named the usual suspects the ABC’S gang. It is up to someone in the tire shop to look at the tire corpse and figure out who done it. The simple version of the gang members:

Air pressure is not correct.

Alignment issues

Balance issues

Bearing issues

Centering/mounting issues

Shocks & suspension issues

It is my belief that every tire shop should have a whiteboard near the usual suspects’ chart and use it to explain what happened to the tire.

I think every tire shop should have a whiteboard to help communicate with the driver about the wheel end system. The whiteboard could start out like the illustration, then be erased, to explain the Usual Suspects chart as it relates to the tire that arrived dead on arrival (DOA).

As far as explaining that a shock needs to be replaced for safety reasons, the following steps need to be considered.

First – Know how to identify an air ride suspension that needs good shocks.

Second – Every new tire that was replaced because it was worn-out should have a new shock, again, depending on the suspension system.

Third – Further research into the cupping issue needs to be done. I think this can be a big tipoff that the shock was not replaced or there is some other unsafe condition, such as an out-of-balance wheel end that is not allowing the tire to have the proper footprint as it rotates down the highway.

Fourth – I believe once the word is out, most tire shops will be interested in implementing the ABC’S and CSI system for their customers; the problem will solve itself.

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March 20, 2024

Introducing our Colleague John Sessums

Our new guest writer John Sessums is the owner of Mechanic and Techs LLC, based in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. John's career spans 38 years involved in equipment dealership management, and he is also an AEMP Certified Equipment Manager. As a Senior Product Support Manager and later as Wholegoods Sales Manager, Johns's focus has always been on increasing sales by providing superior customer support. Once retired, he formed Mechanic and Techs and now offers a unique buffet of affordable Product Support Growth Solutions. M&T provides Consulting, Recruitment, Speciality Job Boards, On-Line Search Systems, LWS Skill Assessments/Training/Testing for those in Service, Parts, Sales, and Rental.

I have been a past student of Ron Slee's Quest Learning Centers, and I credit that training as the foundation of my success. As a Regional Manager of Product Support and later as Whole Goods Sales Manager, I have sent many of my employees and managers to Ron's training seminars to learn from the GOAT himself. They each returned with a three-ring green binder that held the secret of success for themselves and their employers. Using Learning Without Scars, all companies looking to grow now have a proven method to succeed.

Every dealership is looking to grow, but most are more focused on handling day to day issues

Six years ago, after 38 years in the heavy equipment business, I launched a recruiting company focused primarily on recruiting higher-level equipment technicians. Our team created a buffet of employee management services for equipment dealerships across the country centered around LWS.

About two and a half years ago, Ron and I discussed a client who was having trouble finding the number of techs they needed. As we talked, I shared with Ron my main challenge was locating and vetting qualified people. Like everyone else, I had to take a candidate's word that they actually had the skills they claimed to have.

Considering my company offered a performance guarantee, I needed a proven method to confirm a candidates' knowledge and skill level before recommending them to clients. Being an old equipment guy, I also knew guarantees and refunds were great, but what I valued most was hiring qualified and committed people the first time. After talking with Ron over several weeks, I knew I had found the exact answers I needed.

Ron and I took part in an equipment industry article about five years ago about the coming technician crisis. What will now follow will be a rapid rise in wages and a gradual decline in overall tech competency and efficiency. As with technicians, the last train carrying needed Product Support replacements has already left the station and is rapidly heading towards that same bridge. Thankfully, all manufacturers offer excellent technician training, so that crisis will hopefully even out over time.

LWS will be at the forefront of product support employee training. Ron and his team have been busy formatting and transferring his thirty-plus years of knowledge and teaching onto the new LWS site for the past several years. Ron's training seminars, books, and consulting have been considered the Gold Standard for Capital Goods dealerships across the U.S. and translated into several languages worldwide. Senior managers in dealerships across the country have vetted and approved the LWS courses. An equipment industry senior service management expert developed the Technician Assessments. While the site's content was time-tested, duplicating Ron's unique delivery method and personality online took time to perfect. You can now visit Learning Without Scars and view firsthand what our friend, along with his daughter Caroline, and the entire LWS team have been up to for the past few years. I think you will be very impressed.

Our company, Mechanics and Techs LLC., was designed and is staffed by seasoned semi-retired equipment industry corporate managers. We have successfully managed multi-branch Service, Parts, Outside Product Support Sales Teams, New and Used Sales teams, Rental groups and worked with a wide variety of brands and types of equipment and trucks.

We combined our many years of hands-on dealership experience to create a unique selection of affordable Product Support Growth Solutions specifically designed for our equipment industry clients. We provide Consulting, Recruitment, Specialty Job Boards, Web-Based Online Candidate Search Systems, LWS Skill Assessments/Training/Testing for those in Service, Parts, Sales, and Rental.

We will introduce you to more of our services, in more detail in the coming weeks and months. I look forward to having Mechanics and Techs working with learning Without Scars for years to come. Thanks for welcoming us as a Colleague.

Did you enjoy this blog? Read more great blog posts here.

For our course lists, please click here.

January 25, 2022

Are salespeople born or made?

Are salespeople born or made?

For more information on our sales training programs, visit us at Learning Without Scars.

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