People buy from people
I was having breakfast with a client of mine a week or two back and we were talking about the various jobs, experiences and paths we have taken to get to where we are today, which is being in business for 15 years or so in my case and 10 years + for Jason.
There were two common points for both of us during our journeys. Our first epiphany was realising that we were doing all the work and someone else was reaping all the rewards. Now don’t get either of us wrong here, we both appreciate that in sales, if you do a good job, you should get paid well, but not as well as if you were doing it for yourself
Now being in business or owning your own business is not everyone’s ‘cup of tea’ of course and for a lot of people the opportunity has just not arisen. Nowadays however, that really is not the case, there are so many opportunities for people to start a business in so many different industries, from swimming coaches to business consultants and almost everything in between. Of course, I am talking about a franchise, this really is a great way to start a business and assuming that you are dealing with a good company with a strong brand and in a good and/or expanding market, the opportunities are there. In most cases you don’t even need experience in that particular field as full training is given. In Fluid’s case for instance, we have taken a school teacher and turned her into a professional telecoms person, selling simple as well as complex hosted telephony solutions, so it can be done, you just need to apply yourself. As I say to my children in pretty much everything they do, you put the effort in and I will help you.
The other common point that Jason and I share, is that we don’t believe we are really good sales people! Yes, we have been reasonably successful in the past in sales and we are both doing OK now, but are we good sales people, we have to say, in the true sense of the word, no not really. We both know people who totally driven and they will not leave a customer’s premises until they have an order signed, a sale at all costs etc. and as much as I totally admire and respect these people, they’re a rare breed, but you don’t have to be this type of person to be successful in sales. I’m a great believer that people buy from people and so long as you know your product or service and you’re honest and ethical and prepared to put the effort in, you can be successful in your chosen field.
From a training point of view, I know if somebody puts the effort in, we can get them to a level where they would be comfortable and confident enough to work in our industry, so I would be keen to speak to anyone who possesses a great work ethic and wants to put their destiny in their own hands. Telecoms is a fantastic industry and with the unifying of all communications now, it’s getting more and more interesting.
Want to find out more? For an initial conversation email me rob.tolley@fluidns.co.uk or call us on 0800 304 7766