Where Did All the Salespeople Go?

Jeffrey Gitomer recently wrote “Death of a Salesman! How alive are you?” an article in response to James Ledbetter’s “Death of a Salesman” piece in Slate Magazine. You can read his full response here, but basically he posits that salesmen aren’t so much dying as they are evolving.

Both Gitomer and Ledbetter work off of the premise that the internet is wreaking all sort of havoc on traditional brick and mortar business and the retail salespeople within; which seems like a fairly safe assertion to make.

The success of online retailers and popular third-party review sites, like CNET, is undisputed. And that makes sense. The average consumer doesn’t trust a car salesman or a phone salesman.  Consumers understand that a salesman working for a commission has an agenda that does not include selling them the best product for their money. Fifty user reviews on Amazon, however, can offer a consumer a much more unbiased view of a product. Price comparing, zero lines, and the comfort of your own home, or anywhere there is cell phone service really, all conspire to lure consumers out of brick and mortar stores and away from the influence of retail salespeople.

Where does this leave the salesmen of old? According to Gitomer, the internet shouldn’t be seen as the slayer of sales jobs, but as the opener of doors to new opportunities.  The rise of companies like Google and Amazon just means that there are going to be new places and ways for those who can sell to make a living. As long as salespeople are adaptable and willing to bridge into eCommerce, there is no reason for the salesman to die.

So rather than grieving over the death of the traditional “retail” salesman, embrace the evolution of sales and look forward to the future of commerce.

Gitomer also points out that there is a big difference between B2C and B2B salespeople.  As a consultant who deals with lots of small and medium-sized manufacturing companies, I agree that the current trends offer the B2B salesperson even more opportunities than ever.

Here are a few (there are plenty more) ways that B2B salespeople can evolve and take advantage of these inevitable trends:

1. Become an online citizen – get connected, get engaged, and see how people are using online tools to buy and to sell.
2. Build a following – how do I do that you ask, see #1, and have something to say – if you can really add value then you have something to say.  Most salespeople will falter at this point, they never really added much value to their sales opportunities so they have nothing important to say.
3. Write, publish, blog, Tweet, etc. – attract prospects and customers to you and be the expert in your field, build a community around your value.
4. Create valuable tools for your customers – be the go-to person in your industry for your unique value.

This is hard to do and those who master the new selling environment will be very valuable indeed.