Information is Everything
By: T.J. Tedesco
For: High Volume Printing
Published: April, 1999

Sales representatives that visit customers and prospects without providing valuable information are merely playing the “numbers game.”  Those that ask, “May I bid on something?” without earning the right to do so compete on price.  Long term success in graphic arts sales used to depend on making customers’ lives easy.  Now, this is just the beginning.  Success depends on anticipating people’s informational needs … and offering attractive solutions.

Before agreeing to see print sales representatives, influential print buyers need to know that their time investment in meeting a sales rep will be of direct benefit to them.  Regardless of their experience, many salespeople forget this.  It doesn’t matter whether you’re a rookie thrown to the wolves for the first time or a seasoned pro who’s at the top of the game.  Those that focus on “what’s in it for me?” rather than, “what’s in it for you?” don’t win much business.  They work long hours for poor results and are the ones complaining at the water cooler at the end of the day. 

What is Information?

For the printing salesperson, “information” can be defined as useful knowledge, in a useable format, of reasonable scope, which is tailored to the individual needs of each recipient.  Information should be personal.  What is valuable to one person isn’t necessarily so to another.  Print buyers without a good working knowledge of printing technology likely will appreciate production-oriented information.  Those working for large companies may need help keeping up with the inner workings of their own organizations and industry.  Others with aspirations beyond print buying might value career-building tips aimed at helping them climb the corporate ladder.  Some are only interested in exploring their own personal interests.

Since everyone’s informational needs are different, it’s impossible to craft a “one-size-fits-all” message that appeals to all types of key business influencers.  Marketers have known this for years and craft different messages for different target audiences.  Selling print should be done the same way, except that the target audience is an individual, not a market “segment.”  The specific informational needs of your prospects and customers aren’t important.  It only matters that you give them what they need, thereby increasing your value to them.

When I was rookie print sales rep, I inherited a Fortune 100 customer that concentrated tens of millions of dollars of print purchases in the hands of one key business influencer.  Admittedly, this highly influential print buyer was dedicated to my predecessor, but I too had a good selling proposition.  Although, I continued to win some limited business from her, my sales efforts didn’t match expectations.  My boss and I paid her a visit to find out why.  We learned that the sales representative before me had been exceptional.  Apparently, he won some of her sizeable printing business by relying on the low-tech, time tested, “scissors” approach.

For almost a year, he searched for articles pertaining to her company, cut them out and sent them along with a brief note explaining why the article was useful.  Included were financial performance clips from the Wall Street Journal, news releases from the local paper and industry events from whatever sources he could find.  The buyer explained, “He provided a unique service to me – and did it without asking.”  Even though his clippings rarely had anything to do with printing, he won her attention and eventually earned the chance to sell printing to her company.  He correctly assumed that his prospect knew printing cold, and she did.  However, she lacked the time to stay on top of the non-printing aspects of her job and he capitalized on this opportunity.

She told me that while I hadn’t done anything wrong, my message of good service, quality and technical expertise in no way differentiated me from the hundreds of hopeful print reps that came knocking on her door.  Her point to me was clear.  Information was the key to her business.

Are you now sold on being an information provider?  Put on your Sherlock Holmes hat and figure out what type of information will appeal to the key business influencers on your target list.  Here are some suggestions, but as you read them, keep in mind that these are just the tip of the informational iceberg.

For technically challenged and/or new print buyers offer:

•       Trade articles about buying print

•       Trade articles with technical tips

•       Trade articles about paper, prepress, bindery, ink, etc.

•       Paper swatches

•       Examples of different binding and finishing methods

•       Imposition/layout advice

•       Individual or small group training sessions with a specialist from your own company

•       Industry specific and useful ad specialty (logo imprinted) items such as tape measures, rulers, Pantone color books, loops, etc.

For those who work in large organizations:

•       Clips about their company from leading newspapers and magazines

•       Trade publications from their industry

•       Books checked out from a library about their industry – with certain pages marked.  (This is better than buying books because 1) it gives you a purpose for coming back and 2) shows you’re careful with your resources.)

For association employees:

•       Clips from newspapers and magazines about significant members of their association

•       Articles about their industry.

For government workers:

•       Information about their branch of the government

•       Charts mapping their portion of the government.

For design agencies:

•       Downloaded pages (onto your laptop computer) from other design agency web sites for easy and quick viewing

•       Names of web sites offering design advice

•       Names of web sites with useful stock photography, drawings and other artwork.

For print buyers with outside interests such as golf, fishing, woodworking, etc.:

•       Appropriate published information about their area of interest.

•       Examples of how you share in their interest (photos, memorabilia, etc.), but only if your interest is genuine.

For people with whom who have done quotes, but no work:

•       “Anniversary” cards that thank prospects for quoting opportunities.  The message should read something like; “Our first quote with you was January 15, three months ago.  May we have a job?”

•       A listing of all quotes and dates.  Ask how many jobs they won.  If their percentage is low, inform them how they can improve by using your services.

These are just a start.  It’s important to identify your company’s true capabilities, determine the best prospects to target and then deliver useful information to the right key business influencers.

You should be able to offer better information than your competitors.  If you or someone in your organization can write effectively, do it.  When the information you send is yours (validated by being published in a noteworthy trade publication), business barriers have a way of becoming much smaller.  There is a dearth of good information out there and if you can make a contribution, you will be doing your company, industry, clients and yourself a big favor.

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The old style donut and bagel providers don’t succeed into today’s information-crazed business world.  Print sales representatives that help their customers and prospects identify what’s important provide a very valuable service.  Adopt an “information first” method of selling and watch your sales grow.

T.J. Tedesco is a “hands-on” marketing, sales, coaching and training consultant to the post press industry. He is the author of Binding, Finishing & Mailing: The Final Word, and Win Top-of-Mind Positioning, both published by GATFPress and available at Amazon.com. T.J. can be reached at (301) 294-9900 or tj@growsales.com.