“You have reached the highest level in sales when your Client views you as an unpaid employee”
~ Zig Ziglar
That statement has had a huge impact on my life.
I’m not bragging, but when I was a sales rep I did very well, and it was because I believed and practice the statement above from Zig Ziglar.
When I started at American Retail Supply (Thompson Marking Service) in 1978 the only products we sold were hand-held price marking equipment and labels. My job was to drive, or walk, from one retail store to the next, sell price marking guns, service the guns for existing Clients, and sell them labels for their price markers. I was paid on straight commission.
Zig’s statement of, “You have reached the highest level of sales when your Client views you as an unpaid employee” was right in line with what I learned from Dick Thompson, the founder of American Retail Supply. Dick said, “You can only get in direct proportion to what you give.”
With Dick and Zig’s advice, along with parents who taught me the same principles, I headed out to sell price marking equipment and labels. The Client’s in my territory hadn’t had anyone calling on them for almost three years and I found that most of them had started buying from another company who had a sales rep coming around periodically.
As I entered the Client’s store I looked at the labels on their product to determine the type of pricing equipment they used. While I did this I looked for labels that weren’t printing properly. In those days the price marking equipment needed periodic adjustments and the tracks needed to be cleaned for the price marker to work properly.
As I introduced myself, many of the Clients told me they didn’t buy from us any longer because we had not been around to service them and another company came in once in a while.
I had learned from my parents that what you say isn’t nearly as important as what you do, so I simply told them that’s fine, and let them know I would still love to clean and service their labelers. If they hesitated, I would point out the labels that weren’t printing properly and almost always was able to clean and service their labelers. Then I showed them what I did to fix the problem and often gave them a hint or two on maintaining the labelers. Sometimes I walked out with an order.
Most of the time I thanked the Client and told them I would be back in a few months. Most of the time when I told them I would be back in a few months they reminded me that they didn’t buy from us any longer. I simply replied, “That’s fine.”
When I showed up a few months later I was often reminded that they no longer buy from us. I again serviced the labelers and left with more orders. Over the three years I was an outside sales rep almost every Client who originally told me they no longer bought from us became my Client and many are Clients today.
Zig’s lesson that, “You have reached the highest level of sales when your Client views you as an unpaid employee” served me well as a sales person, and is still our goal today at American Retail Supply.
I originally published my newsletter for my American Retail Supply in 1993 with the thought that I would research an issue and bring what I found to my customers with the hope that it would be of value and help their business thrive… which of course, meant they would need more supplies and fixtures.
“You have reached the highest level in sales when your Client views you as an unpaid employee.
~ Zig Ziglar
You can get my hardcopy book (not an e-book), The Happy Customer Handbook, 59 Secrets to Creating Happy Customers Who Come Back Time and Time Again and Enthusiastically Tell Others About You for FREE.
We just ask that you pay $2.97 to help cover shipping and handling. Go to www.TheHappyCustomerHandbook.com.
“Do What You Do So Well
That People Can’t Help Telling Others About You”