48 MARCH / APRIL 2017 • One bank customizes presentations with pitch books and PowerPoint decks. Instead of multiple pages at the beginning of the document about the bank, its size, its history and other blather, the presentation opens with a recap of previous conversations, followed by an objective industry overview. Next, the objectives of the client are highlighted. The presentation closes with solutions the bank has devised, and promotional information about the bank. Not surprisingly, this bank’s win rates have improved. • A relationship manager in Boston keeps several stories ready, depending on where the conversation goes. He sometimes brings a tablet, which allows him to share short clips of clients in a similar industry that he has partnered with. Why? Because he knows that 63 percent of buyers remember stories, but only 5 percent remember statistics and numbers. He also knows that prospects often buy because they can relate to others in similar industries that have used the bank before. Collaboration ‒ the ultimate in transparency. In trust-based selling, it’s not the banker versus the customer; it’s the banker and the customer versus the problem. The salesperson needs to recognize whether there is a fit between the philosophy and the abilities of the bank, and the vision the company has of what a banking relationship should be. When the banker shows he or she has nothing to hide, more collaboration ‒ and less negotiation ‒ occurs. Collaboration also happens inside the bank, when sales associates work with their teams on behalf of clients. It is impossible for a competitor to tear your bank down. That happens from the inside, when underwriting fights with sales, when commercial bankers try to control the sale and fail to bring treasury in soon enough, and when sales managers focus more on numbers than behaviors. Working together works. Coaching ‒ the glue that binds trustbased selling. None of the first four Cs occurs without an ongoing commitment to reinforce the process. Great sales coaches manage numbers and lead people. In his classic book, Go Put Your Strengths to Work, Marcus Buckingham suggests that our people aren’t our greatest asset: The strengths of our people are. Successful executives and effective sales coaches continually ask: - How am I reinforcing conversations, curiosity, customization and collaboration? - What tools am I using to reinforce this process? - How do I interweave this approach into team meetings and individual interactions? - How do I make team meetings strategic and actionable? - During joint calls, am I observing behaviors or taking over? - Does our reporting create coaching moments, or does it only count calls made and sales accomplished? We’ve come a long way in sales since Adam bought that apple. We still have a long way to go, and the 5Cs provide an excellent roadmap. HB SALES / MARKETING Limits, terms, and conditions apply. © 2017 Promontory Interfinancial Network, LLC. BUILD RELATIONSHIPS With or Without Keeping Funds on Balance Sheet DIVERSIFY FUNDING in a Flexible, Cost-Effective Way REDUCE COLLATERAL BURDENS and Increase Asset Liquidity A Smart, Profit-Enhancing Solution To learn more, contact Erich Buckenmaier, Regional Director, at (866) 776-6426 x3354 or ebuckenmaier@promnetwork.com. IBA Mega Conference The largest, most comprehensive state banking event in the country, Mega provides bankers with the tools and resources to prepare for opportunities and challenges. Attendees choose from more than 40 educational tracks, ranging in topic from talent management, to compliance, to technological advances in payments and mobile banking. Click on the icon at left in HB Digital to register, or go to indianabankers.org/education-events. Indianapolis MAY 24
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