Articles

Selling Styles Can Make a Difference - What's Your Style and How Do You Use It?
by Paul Eccher

We have all seen sales professionals who, to the untrained eye, appear identical to each other based upon the ways in which they interact with customers.

This is not surprising. Many sales representatives share similar backgrounds, experiences, and educational levels, However, at the end of the day, a few are wildly successful, some do a solid job, and others wonder what went wrong.

I have spent more than a dozen years studying and profiling the behaviors and motivations of top flight sales professionals in the medical arena, and I think I can offer insights into what makes the best sales reps so effective.

Five Prominent Sales Styles

My study of sales professional in the medical arena has revealed five primary selling styles. When observing top-performing representatives, I have noticed that at most of these individuals employ at least three of these styles. The five selling styles are:

The Relationship Selling Style
This style is all about cultivating a close, personal rapport with the prospects and customers. Relationship sellers are known for their friendliness and outgoing personalities.

The Technical Problem-Solving Style
Sales professionals who are experts on their products and are able to educate their audience on the details of their offerings are practitioners of the Technical Problem-Solving style. These individuals tend to be quite analytical, and they excel at establishing technical credibility in front of their prospects.

The Account Servicing Sytle
Representatives who use this selling style focus on keeping existing customers happy while asking for more business. This service-minded style is built upon a foundation of responsiveness, proactive follow-up, and a strong commitment to doing what is right for physicians and their patients.

The Attack Style
Attack-style representatives driving activity as a way to win business. Strong attck-style reps typically bring that difficult-to-train, "fire in the belly" approach to the work. They are extremely competetive, self-assured, intense, and assertive.

The Business Partnering Style
Sales professionals who establish a business consulting relationship with their customers employ this style. Business Partners understand strategic issues and market conditions that influence physician business practices. These representatives excel in helping physicians "grow" their businesses. Successful business partnering reps display excellent big-picture thinking skills, market knowledge, persuasive communication capabilities, and creativity.

Which Styles Work Best?

As suggested earlier, my study of top performers suggest that three of these five selling styles serve as the "entry ticket" into successful selling. The Relationship Selling, Technical Problem-solving, and Account Servicing styles are necessary components for most pharmaceutical sales positions. If a rep does not have solid proficiency in each of these three styles, he/she may struggle to gain the respect of the customer.

The top-echelon sales performers, the individuals who consistently "knock the cover off the ball", bring something in addition to these three styles to their selling. They display a strong combination of the "fire in the belly" Attack Style and the "learned" Business Partnering style.

At their very core, all top performers display a strong desire to succeeed. They are extremely competetive, goal-focused, and accountable. They utilize an abundance of tenacity, energy, and intensity to drive bottom-line success.

Beyond this "warrior" mentality, these reps also display a greater ability than others to consult with their customers. They are attuned to the business strategies and growth plans of their customers. They recognize and can persuasively communicate how their company and products can add value to the customer's business. They are active students of their industry and marketplace, and they are viewed as true business partners by their customers.

What You Can Do -As a sales rep, ask yourself the following questions:

1. Upon which style(s) am I most dependent?
2. Do I ever over-rely on one style to the detriment of the others?
3. Based on my market and my success rate, on which stykes do I need training and development?
4. Which styles do the top-performing reps in my company utilize, and which styles can I emulate?
   

By understanding your unique selling style and analyzing the gaps that exist between yourself and the best performers in your company, you can seek the training and advice you need, setting the stage for enhanced productivity.

The Bottom Line

• Successful sales representatives utilize a combination of five selling styles: the Relationship Selling Style, the Technical Problem-Solving Style, the Account Servicing Style, the Attack Style, and the Business Partnering Style.
• The Relationship Selling, Technical Problem-solving, and Account Servicing styles are necessary components for most pharmaceutical sales positions.
• Identify the selling style(s) you employ, then analyze -- and shrink -- the gaps that exist between yourself and the best performers in your company.