Seattle and Raleigh-Durham marketing, graphic and brand design studio Design Kompany

UPDATE: March 2010

The tips below from a panel of sales and marketing experts from this post in 2008 holds today more than ever. We are getting WAY too many messages from so-called marketers on what we as business owners should be doing, or shouldn’t be doing. And they’re all conflicted. So let’s look back at what people who’ve been doing it for a while—and successfully—say makes good business sense.

Being good at sales and marketing, I learned tonight, is about figuring out how to solve people’s problems.

Design Kompany believes Anything is Possible.

So I’m going to do two things in this post. Tell you why I went to the sales and marketing-themed talk tonight at Seattle U, and tell you what I learned.

Ready?

Part I: Why I went

Design Kompany does branding. Branding is a big part of marketing.

In fact, we like to think of what we do as “brand marketing.”

That is to say, making the visuals and words speak out what makes you special.

Admittedly, people have told us that we are like “business psychotherapists.”

My point here is simply that if you are struggling to figure out what you want people to think and feel about your company, talking to Design Kompany might not be a bad idea.

Our strength really is figuring out how to isolate the beautiful components of your brand story. And tell it through compelling visuals. Through simple, elegant design.

Part II: What I learned

Against this backdrop, Design Kompany went down to hear three seasoned sales and marketing software folks talk to a group of entrepreneurs tonight at an auditorium at Seattle U.

The talk, sponsored by Northwest Entrepreneurs Network, drew about 80 people who came with all sorts of backgrounds in expertise and formal education on the topic of landing sales.

Everyone knows without sales you have no business. No matter how brilliant your product or idea.

So here are a few things we learned from the speakers: Do My Reminders co-founder Sally J. Vilardi, Skytap’s chief marketing officer Steve Brodie, and Zango’s senior vice president of worldwide sales Rip Warendorf.

Really engaging people with a wealth of money-following ideas.

Key takeaways

1. Pay attention. People tend to think of sales as something you have to do, like get on the phone and push out messages about your company or product. It’s really more about listening and learning than it is about talking.
2. Take the long view. This seminar was billed as “Getting your first sale,” but in all honesty, there’s way more to it than that. Sure, it’s about getting customers. But it’s also about keeping them. Customer retention is huge. Think beyond getting your first dollar in the door. Think about how to offer great service to the customers you already have.
3. Have a customer in mind. You really need to have a picture of this, but also need to know when the particular person you’ve picked out really doesn’t want to buy what you’re selling. Be willing to let go.
4. Don’t do everything for everybody. Know what you’re about, but also be clear what you’re not about. Be able to say, “My product does this. And no, it doesn’t do that.” Lotta people get caught up in trying to sell something they plan to develop “eventually.” Don’t do this. Definitely don’t tell people you’re going to do something and then not do it. Do what you say you will.
5. Know what problem you’re trying to solve. Know who to talk to in a company who would appreciate knowing you can solve their problem. You want to hear them say, “Wow, you can do that? Really?” These people will be your best advocates.
6. Build a case. You don’t need a lot of customers to be able to tell a good story. Be willing to set up “introductory pricing” to get a few clients on board. Then build up your case studies. Get them to write references.
7. Don’t get caught up in emotion. Set measurable targets for your sales. Be willing to adjust and reassess to the reality that emerges when you check your numbers down the line.
8. Don’t cold call. Get introduced to the right person through your network.
9. Network. Talk to people. Take them to lunch. Buy people coffees. See what they’re thinking, but most importantly, get a sense of what problem you might be able to solve for them. [Side note: this reminds me of beat reporting. You gotta get to know who’s out there and what their concerns are when you’re thinking up good ideas for news stories.]
10. Funnel. If you are getting too many requests for small projects, consider a self-service option for your product that’s available only online

Right.

So there you go.

For more on marketing, see DK’s posts on:
Target marketing
A T Mobile marketing person’s advice to DK
Know your audience’s psychographics
Business experts talk about trigger points and reality checks