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and nearly 78 percent of managers have caught a competitor lying about their companys products or services. It
appears that misrepresentation of products or services is
prevalent among salespeople, Zoltners says. This is a
losing strategy, and this kind of behavior is not what the
best salespeople do.
In the short term unethical sales tactics may prove lucrative, but in the long term every executive should
worry about resorting to such strategies. Dishonesty, experts say, eventually ensures a company will have zero
customer loyalty. Unfortunately lying is what some of the
most profitable salespeople resort toand experts dont
necessarily blame the behavior on the individual. There
are probably three participants in thisthe customer, the
salesperson, and the company, Zoltners says. They are
all a part of the pressure to make money and the combination can make a rep succumb to it.
he key driver of a sound sales strategy is that the leaders of the organization exhibit the values that they want
employees to follow, says Steve Walker, president of
Walker Communications, a stakeholder research and
measurement firm in Indianapolis. Most people want to
do the right thing, but when bad situations arise its usually when the leadership has created an environment that
tolerates it, he says. Until boards of directors want to
sniff it out, the scheming will stay in the hallways.
Walker Communications offers clients products that
determine whether a companys employees are telling
lies, abusing drugs, or otherwise violating the rules. Its
been a tough sell. Offering these kinds of products in a
litigious society is difficult, he says. Executives actually
dont want information that may indicate that theres a
problem. They dont want to officially know that their
sales force is lying.
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territory to retain clients, he says. If you dont, people
will get hurt down the road. The only reason execs dont
deal with this is cowardice.
Making an example of unethical salespeople is one
way of letting the rest of the team know that lying wont
be tolerated by the company. When somebody is allowed
to sell by whatever means necessary, it sends a message
that the behavior is acceptable. Where Go Daddys Leedy
used to worka call center sales environmentthe signals were clear to everybody. You could hear the top
sales guy making false comments to his customers, but no
disciplinary actions were ever taken, she says. To the
people who were lower in the company it was an example
of what they needed to do to be recognized.
Another way to safeguard your team against dishonesty is by making smarter hiring decisions. I always talk
to a potential hires former employers because I find they
will say more about a persons personality than anybody
else, Blades says. The best predictor of future behavior
is looking at past behavior.
Keeping a sales organization honest means keeping
close tabs on its performance. I find that conducting
monthly evaluations is more productive than annual
evaluations, Blades says. Get salespeople to tell you
how they achieved something or what they think went
wrong. You have to be strong and let reps know from the
beginning that youre a straight shooter.
From Sales & Marketing Management, July 2002, pp. 40-47 by Erin Strout. 2002 by V N U Business Publications USA. Reprinted by permission.