Ecolutionary Selling

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Archive for the ‘Green Sales Edge’ category

Are You Trust Worthy?

November 8th, 2010

“You can trust us to do the job for you.”

According to a 2006 study, those are the 10 magic words that need to be at the bottom of every ad. Not “fair”, “quality” ,”competency”… [thanks to NeuroMarketing for bringing this study forward again.]

Why would that be? Can saying it make it so? When you live in a world where the next choice is a click away, perhaps. It comes down to being good for your word, when you tell others you can be trusted, you are setting the benchmark for expectations — trust is yours to lose.

Do people trust you on a face level? It’s time to do a 360 and find out.

Original 2006 study: On the Potential for Advertising to Facilitate Trust in the Advertised Brand by Fuan Li and Paul W. Miniard. Summarized data can be found in About Face by Dan Hill.

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Posted in Green Sales Edge

Tags: sales trust

Active Conversion is one Smart Selling Tool

September 16th, 2010

Don’t you wish someone would just give you the answer some days instead of wading through options? Nancy Nardin did that for us this week with two gifts, first a webinar by Active Conversion and second by providing tons of reviews for sales tools on her site.

Best quote of the webinar, “We don’t have a content overload problem, we have a filter failure problem.” Active Conversions helps sales people filter through web leads, determining which ones are good or bad. Their inexpensive process lets reps work quickly with prospects showing the most interest, without them even knowing that they flagged themselves.

My thanks to Yves of Active Conversions for solving the lead filter problem and to Nancy of Smart Selling Tools for this intro. If you want to see LOTS of smart selling tools (many for free) go to her site.

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Posted in Green Sales Edge

Women In Green Forum Selling Takeaways

September 5th, 2010

September 1-2, 2010

Selling any new ideas lately? Have you incorporated what is sustainable about your product, service, or company? Do you have proof-of-performance? Is that proof accepted by governments and citizens alike?

Where do you start?

The best place is with those who self-select themselves for conferences such as the Women in Green Forum. Any person who foots their own bill to keep both informed and networked is the type of person you want on your team.

For me, finding Green in Orange County isn’t easy, OC isn’t San Fran. I signed up for the forum hoping to find other women as passionate about sustainability as I am — it didn’t disappoint. If you need connections for your sales pipeline, sign up for next year’s event.

One of the first women I met was Sarah Potts, City Director of the Clinton Foundation. Out of 300 attendees somehow I sat near almost everyone attending from the Climate Registry, Jennifer Kaminski, Peggy Foran and Robyn Camp. I lunched with Marieta Francis the Ex. Dir of Algalita.org (that’s the group that monitors gyres of plastic swirling about in the oceans) and also with marketing dynamo Carolyn Parrs of Mind Over Markets and her own change-the-world site. And so many more — I learned something from everyone I met.

What surprised me the most? They brought in a guy to do the keynote at a first-time women’s conference. I bad mouthed that effort on Twitter, but have to eat my words because he delivered an exceptional crossover talk with the gender-neutral balance of an Apple Store.

“He” was John Picard, long-time USGBG native and activist. As this is a blog about selling, John had to work extra hard to win this crowd over — he hit every resonating tie to what women care about with absolute authenticity thanks to his track record and his willingness to show respect for the women in the room.

Another big surprise didn’t happen until I came home; I had picked up a year’s worth of Miller-McCune magazines that were sitting by the door. I’ve been reading them cover-to-cover ever since, as has my husband a mechanical engineer who only subscribes to the National Geographic. Producing a mag that appeals to both a marketer/sales type and an engineer is no small feat.

Miller-McCune is a newbie on the publication scene, but if you’re serious about keeping your sales saw sharp with what matters in today’s world, I’d highly recommend bookmarking the site or subscribing to the magazine. Regardless of your talent base, Miller-McCune will raise your critical thinking and writing skills.

My sincere thanks to Jaime Nack’s team for putting on an excellent first forum and setting the tone for high-level dot connecting.

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Posted in Green Sales Edge, Women in Sales

Prove it!

August 19th, 2010

For the last post in the 16 Things for a Green Sales Edge series, I’m going to aggregate the topics of, Carbon Footprint, Energy Efficiency, Resource Consumption, Greenhouse Gases, and Ozone Depletion under the PROVE IT category–all are interconnected and all will soon be requiring proof by federal, state, and local governments as well as retail giants such as Wal Mart.

Holy smokes, what’s a simple sales rep to do? Everyone knows we aren’t rocket scientists, how can we prove that our product and company is being honest about its environmental impact?

The truth is, we can’t prove anything unless the company invests in a tracking program that will monitor and aggregate all of the above information into a useable report which could be audited just like taxes. The reports are what we sales types will want in our files–when our clients ask the tough eco-questions, we’ll be ready with tangible evidence.

That’s no small task, but fortunately by the time the mandates hit the streets in 2011, there will be plenty of ways to get to the bottom line. The Los Angeles Community College District comprising of nine campuses, is using Conserviscorp.com to track the “Prove It” areas as well as water and other resources. The Conservis product is sustainable standard agnostic, as standards change, it can be updated to meet the new requirements and audit issues.

Yes, this will cost companies money up front, but it will also save tons of money on the backend as energy wasters are identified and fixed–they’ll be spending far less on operational costs. It also will help to put truth back into your green advertising. The marketing department will love having facts to back up their messaging.

What did I miss in this series that you would like to see addressed? Please send me your thoughts at Mary@ECOlutionarySelling.com

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Posted in B2B, Environmental Statements, Green Sales Edge

Installation, Use and Maintenance – the Long-Tail of Green Sales

June 2nd, 2010

Part 8 of 16 Things for a Green Sales Edge.

Long tail of green sales costs...

You’ve heard about long-tail sales, it’s when the right side of the sales bell curve extends out indefinately as buyers can buy things forever off the web and retailers don’t need to discontinue products. Think about itunes and how songs that have long run their course are still being purchased. In many cases the cumulative affect of that long-tail surpasses the sales generated inside a typical bell curve sales cycle.

The cost of owning a product has a long-tail as well. With green products, which tend to cost more initially, installation, use and maintenance becomes the long, green-tail of total cost. Seasoned reps know how to step around this one, but for the newbies in the audience, lets break it down.

1. Money. What’s this gizmo going to cost up front.

2. Money. What’s this gizmo going to cost over its lifetime? When it comes to working with a new, green product line:

Installation: Who in the company needs to be trained to use the right tools, the right adhesives, or set up a room with the proper ventilation, etc.
Use: What happens when things wear out? Is it like a light bulb with higher up front costs, but a longer life? After that life is over, will you take the product back? If not, how do they dispose of it and at what cost.?
Maintenance: Who will come in contact with the product? What’s it’s VOC level (volatile organic chemicals? Do you have to use additional special materials to keep it looking its best? What are the safety risks if workers are over exposed?

Add up the bigger package and pretty soon you can demonstrate where you outshine the other contenders. As a sales leader you should have a checklist or FAQ of the above ready to go and part of your second call proposal.

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If you have an LCA conducted on the product, make that available as well as the Material Safety Data Sheet. Companies, consumers and investors are all looking to avoid risk. The more you can prove that your product’s risk is low along with long-term costs the closer you are to closing the sale.

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Posted in B2B, B2C, Green Sales Edge, LCA

CA Green Summit

March 17th, 2010

I’ll get back to the 16 Things for a Green Sales Edge in the next post, but first I’d like to give a shout out to my new friends at the CA Green Summit who heard my Creating Permanent, Positive, Promotion talk this morning.

As promised, there is a special E-treat for interested attendees, just send me your contact info to Mary@EcolutionarySelling.com with, “I want my E-Treat”! (one per company) – Mary

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Posted in Content, Green Sales Edge

Testing, Standards and Certifications

February 21st, 2010

Part 6 of 16 Things for a Green Sales Edge.

You’ve conducted a Life Cycle Assessment and now you want to legitimize your findings further by hanging them on a benchmark standard. Which ones do you pay attention to, the ones that are getting the most press because their marketing campaign budget is a winner or the ones that are credible for their science and their multi-stakeholder formation, i.e. the ones with global legs?

If you’re smart, you’ll dump any standard that doesn’t REQUIRE an ISO LCA or LCIS (Life Cycle Impact Statement) or has an EPD (Environmental Product Declaration). You’ll also dump any that don’t REQUIRE a third party auditor who can de-certify non-compliant products after the original certification. Anyone can look good for the first year, it’s being consistent over many years and around the globe that will create public trust in the standard label.

In Standard-land there are “single attribute standards” such as Energy Star (low energy consumption) and single industry standards such as FSC (Forest Stewardship Council – forest management) and then there are multi-industry and attribute standards such as SMaRT or SCS.

Some argue that multi-attribute and industrial standards are too broad, that they can’t really focus in on the issues pertaining to a single sector such as food or textiles. Or the other side of that argument is poor buyer who has to figure out which standard out of 300 or so is worth considering. How does the SMaRT Platinum rated office chair compare to BIFMA’s rating compared to C2C’s rating?

For the above reason the Sustainability Consortium is trying to sort it out letting science tell the tale as to which standard is the most comprehensive and best for the world to follow.

Meanwhile, the cost of waiting for the top dog standard to emerge distracts from your market position. What do you say when your buyer asks you why you aren’t certified to XYZ Standard that she just read about in the NY Times?

Your sales force will have that answer without flinching if:

1. Educate them on what Sustainable Standards are and are not, m ake them fluent in “attributes” and how standards are created and know the difference between a Type I and Type II certification.

2. Determine which standards are the top contenders in your sector and do your own cross-comparison using the List found on Green Building Pages, Green Format or the ASTM E2129-05. Do three comparison’s at a minimum. If you have the due diligence done to show your buyer, they won’t have to do it and you just took a big step forward.

3. Using your Life Cycle Assessment information, show how you stack up if you were benchmarked on any of the standards. Don’t fudge, address ALL the questions. This isn’t about advertising your best assets, it’s about being transparent in your all practices throughout your supply chain.

Lastly – don’t overwhelm your buyer with your new-found knowledge. If you give them a checklist spread sheet (just like what you see on the back of a software package) it will help them make a decision in under 30 seconds. If you ask them to read pages of collateral you will send down a rabbit hole of confusion vs. closer to closing.

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Posted in Content, Green Sales Edge, LCA

Tags: green building pages LCA life cycle assessment sustainability consortium sustainable attributes

What’s Your Life Cycle Assessment for Sales?

January 29th, 2010

Part 4 of 16 Things for a Green Sales Edge.

Can you send your client to the public posting of your product’s Life Cycle Assessment?
Do you know which LCA you used as the base format?
Do you know which LCA facts to use when talking to different sell team members – in the most transparent way?

LCA’s are the backbone of everything you claim in your collateral or apply in a standard’s certification. LCAs are somewhat like accounting of money except your accounting for your environmental and social impacts. In LCA land what facts you gather and how you weigh the facts later is determined by which LCA you use. And just like accounting for money, a good “CPA” of LCAs will be needed to get you through the extensive list of questions. LCA specialists are ready to help you.

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The ISO LCA is garnering global endorsements to become THE matrix to use, but conduct a due diligence of latest softwares and solutions before you venture in. This is important to know as different LCA structures provide different results. Don’t be blindsided by a question that deserves a two word answer that can distract you from closing.

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What the high C’s team wants to know:

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For CEOs / Cover their assets proof. Your LCA provides proof for the facts seen on the collateral that nothing will come back to bite the CEO’s company. For example, your paint has no VOCs that could bother their clients or was made by children in Brazil.

For CMOs / Mission matches. Find the facts that line up the most with the company’s mission and use them to anchor your conversations. If they strive to save energy, show how your processes save energy at your manufacturing facilities and (if applicable) will save them energy in using or disposing of the product.

For CSO (Sustainability Officers) / Be fluent in Eco-language. You wouldn’t leave your tech person behind if you were presenting software, don’t leave your SO behind even if they are so-so. At least you have one and that’s a step ahead of others.

For CFOs / Save money and reduce risk. LCA’s generally flag where you an cut back and save money by doing things differently or avoiding long-term risk. Talk to the CFO about how this product will also help them avoid long-term risk and liability and therefore lower insurance rates or clean up issues.

We’ve gone from green to sustainable to “prove it” in just a few years. Now the final question is “whose proof are you going to use”? Today, while you’re waiting for a dominate standard to take the lead, get your LCA done and be ready to answer all questions your prospect team will have. (free LCA software here)

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Posted in Green Sales Edge, LCA

Is Your Packaging as Green as Your Product?

January 24th, 2010

Part 3 of 16 Things for a Green Sales Edge.

It almost goes without saying, if your product is green, shouldn’t your packaging enhance that statement?

How have you cut back on packaging? One inventive company uses PODS to ship their building supplies directly to the site. How far can you cut back and still protect your goods? Once a product is “sold” do you really need to retell the story on each shipment or just get the product on site?
Is the packaging you have left recyclable? Is the cardboard of 100% FSC wood or recycled paper? Is the ink, soy-based ink? Have you eliminated polystyrene? Are you packing peanuts made of cellulose.
Will you take back packaging? Imagine opening 200 boxes of flooring material and now being left with piles of boxes. If you don’t take it back, do you know who takes the material locally that you could refer the buyer to?

Recycling should be part of every buyer’s consideration. How are you making it easier for your client to get over this disposal issue?

For more information on green packaging go to the 2009 winner http://www.greenpackaginginc.com/

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Posted in Green Sales Edge

What’s your Eco-Statement?

January 17th, 2010

Part 2 of 16 Things for a Green Sales Edge.

Pop quiz – you’re sitting in front of your client and they ask, “What’s your environmental policy”? Can you:

A) Quote them the mission statement?

B) Point them to the website that has it and more published?

C) Be so well versed that you’re able to talk about in terms of manufacturing, installation and use of the product, what happens at the end of the product’s life and what your company’s social profile?

The sales force at Forbo Flooring can do all of the above, their Marmoleum flooring is the poster product for sustainable floors. I’ve been tracking “Marmoleum” on Google alerts for about a year to see what people are willing to write about it. Almost every one is praising the product and they often mention a sustainable attribute along with the color they selected. That’s great sales at work, AFTER the sale.

Go here to download Forbo’s Sustain brochure. (top left corner) Then use it as a base to develop your own environmental policy statement and brochure.