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Selling to the Government: Does Your Company Have What it Takes?

--In our previous post we examined some key qualities of government salespeople.  Today, we’ll look closer at characteristics of companies with success in selling to the public sector. --

Government selling is all the rage today; companies are rolling out plans across the country to bolster their government business.  However, not all companies are cut out for such an endeavor.  Even those that fill knowledge gaps with experienced government salespeople may not achieve the results they seek because of their culture, organizational design, business model, etc.  Let’s examine a few characteristics of companies that tend to fare better in government markets over time.

Ability to handle complexity and customization.

While there is some movement within the government sector to buy more “off-the-shelf” products and services, the fact is, much of what is purchased at the government level is fairly specialized in its design or service requirements.  Government is big on specifications.  Many times requirements are understandably more rigid than those for consumer or commercial applications.  As such, companies must be able to deal with the demands of customizing products and services.  Companies pursuing government customers must be aware of the potential impact of this complexity.

Longer-term Commitment.

With complexity comes the need for long-term commitment to the market sector.  Government customers often expect to see product road maps and growth plans to assure them investments will not be short-lived.  Multi-year contracts and service level agreements are not uncommon.  Effective government vendors build supporting organizations for the long-haul.

Organizational patience.

Government sales deals can be lucrative, but they are often not immediate.  Customer budgets may be cut.  Projects stall.  Leadership and directions change as political tides come and go.  Successful government contractors treat selling to this market as a strategic initiative, not a quick-win, cash-generation tactic (although over time, it’s nice to know your customer WILL pay you—and typically when due). 

Clear differentiation.

Differentiation is always desirable, but it’s critically important in government markets for two primary reasons: 1) companies with highly unique capabilities may be able to “sole source” deals, allowing government procurement departments to forego the competitive bid process, and 2) when participating in a competitive bid process, unique positioning will stand out in the vendor evaluation process, increasing the odds of winning the sale.

Ability to manage partnerships.

Many government contracts can only be fulfilled through “teaming agreements,” (i.e. partnerships between two or more companies).  Whether the reason for teaming relates to expanding one’s overall capabilities, or simply for “passing through” a deal through a third-party due to their status as an approved purchase vehicle vendor, successful government contractors are generally adept at working with outside partners.

These are a few key company characteristics that relate to success in government markets.  What do you think?  Are there other traits successful companies must possess?  We’d love to hear from you.

All the best,

Lorin

Rick and Lorin help companies increase government sales and marketing effectiveness through their firm, Galain Solutions, LLC.  For a FREE report entitled “Five Sales Rules to Break when Selling to the Government” email [email protected] or visit www.galainsolutions.com.

Selling to the Government: Do You Have What it Takes?

There are many qualities of government salespeople that mirror those of sales professionals in other sectors.  Ambition, drive, lack of fear, competitiveness—all are characteristics that help a government salesperson rise to the top.  However, there are also a few personal qualities we believe are unique to government-sector sales success.  Let’s examine a few of these.

Sense of Mission

Whether selling to the Department of Defense, Federal agencies, or local officials, a sense of mission is prevalent in most of the great salespeople with which we’ve worked.  Generally, this is made up of a couple of things: 1) the strong belief that the product or service being represented will truly help a community or country achieve some greater goal, and 2) a respect for the fact that funds used for acquiring products and services ultimately stem from citizens in the form of taxes.  While we’re not suggesting every top salesperson we’ve encountered is the proverbial Boy or Girl Scout, we do see a correlation between success and deeper internal motivations and character.

 Process Orientation

Government procurement most often follows defined and detailed processes.  Such processes are in place to minimize biases in purchasing and ensure the government spends taxpayers dollars wisely (or at least that’s the theory).  This can be frustrating for salespeople skilled at “winging it” or accustomed to winning deals based on pure charisma.  Sure, a winning personality and outstanding presentation skills will give you an edge over competitors.  But, if you’re sloppy with details or irritated by “confining” procurement rules, you won’t win in government selling. 

Team Facilitator & Player

While lone mavericks may be held in high esteem in other sales sectors, government selling requires an inordinate amount of team facilitation and collaboration skills.  Customer solutions are often complex and customized, requiring diverse expertise just to put together a proposal.  Customer-preferred purchasing vehicles may mean a partner or reseller must be brought in to secure a deal.  While a government salesperson is typically the primary relationship manager, he/she is typically not the only one involved in making a sale.  If you don’t play nice with others, government selling is probably not the place for you.

Patience

Salespeople are not generally known for their ability to wait.  In fact, they’ve been taught to constantly move and “make something happen.”  While government selling requires substantial energy, activity, persistence and focus, there are times when a salesperson must deal with inactivity.  Procurement processes can bog down.  Elected or appointed officials may go in and out of office.  Budgets may be cut or held up for approval.  The government salesperson must not let these situations discourage him or her, but continue driving activities associated with pipeline building and relationship development--even while specific deals may appear to be stalled.

Up Next:  Does your company possess the characteristics required to thrive in government markets?  We’ll examine key predictors of company success within this sector.

 Rick and Lorin help companies increase government sales and marketing effectiveness through their firm, Galain Solutions, LLC.  For a FREE report entitled “Five Sales Rules to Break when Selling to the Government” email [email protected] or visit www.galainsolutions.com.

Introducing "Selling to Government--Secrets of Success" Blog Posts

There are billions of reasons why you would want to sell to the government.  Literally.  The stimulus package, passed earlier this year, amounts to $787 billion in new spending.  Add this to the billions already budgeted each year at the local, state and federal level and you know why so many sales and marketing professionals are scrambling today to “up” their government game.

To many businesses, government selling is a mysterious and confusing process.  Some may see the potential opportunity, but have no idea how to begin.  Others may have dabbled in the sector at some point, but found their traditional methods of selling and marketing simply didn’t bear fruit.  Still others may currently have a thriving government business, but realize continuous improvements must be made to overcome increased competition. 

Whatever your position, we hope to provide relevant and useful information for capturing government contracts through this new series of blog posts.  Based on more than 20 years combined experience in sales and marketing to all levels of government, we will reveal many of our “secrets” to success, while dispelling common myths about this market. 

We hope you will make frequent visits as we explore the many facets of selling and marketing to all levels of government.  We appreciate your comments and questions as well.  Thanks for joining us, and happy hunting.

Best wishes,

Rick Wimberly & Lorin Bristow

Up Next:  Do you possess the personal characteristics required to excel in government markets?  We’ll examine key predictors of personal success within government markets.

Rick and Lorin help companies increase government sales and marketing effectiveness through their firm, Galain Solutions, LLC.  For a FREE report entitled “Five Sales Rules to Break when Selling to the Government” email [email protected] or visit www.galainsolutions.com.

Are You Guilty of Barfing on Your Customer?

Finally! After dozens of calls and emails, you get that treasured meeting with a new prospect. You have been allotted 30 minutes of that person’s time. How are you going to use that time?

 

Too often, salespeople will use most of that time to talk about their product, service or solution. They tell the prospect everything there is to know about the product. They discuss every feature. They review every point. They talk, talk, and talk.

 

I call this the barf factor and I actually wrote a full-length article about it a few years ago (read it here). Barfing on a prospect is a figure of speech that means you spend too much time talking about aspects of your product that are of no interest to the other person. This affliction affects many salespeople and it causes them to lose valuable sales opportunities. Here’s why.

 

Barfing shows a lack of control. Let’s face it, you can’t control this bodily function when you are sick. And when you barf on someone during a sales conversation, it shows the same lack of control. When you barf on a prospect, you inevitably give them too much information that is irrelevant to their situation. And every time you do this, their desire to buy drops.

 

Demonstrate your superior skill and ability by controlling what you say and how you say it.

 

Kelley Robertson helps sales professionals reach their sales quotas and targets in any economy. Receive a FREE copy of 100 Ways to Increase Your Sales by subscribing to his free newsletter available at www.Fearless-Selling.ca. For information on his programs contact him at 905-633-7750 or by email.

CRE’s Incentive for Incentive Buyers

SMM, along with our sister publication Incentive magazine, is a media partner of CorporateRewardsXchange.com. Otherwise known as CRE, this a cooperative effort of leading brands and incentive fulfillment companies to help organizations improve the efficiency, service, and economies of scale of their motivation and engagement programs. Incentive fulfillment companies that are members of the cooperative include Certif-A-Gift, Harco, Lapine, Partners for Incentives, Rewards Direct by Maritz, Rymax Marketing Services, and Quality Incentive Company.

CRE’s Universal Points Platform and Corporate Gifts Store enable incentive companies and end users to buy leading brand merchandise from their authorized fulfillment companies. A real-time inventory management system allows traditional points-based incentive/gift programs to ship rewards with a day or two of redemption—rather than weeks, as is currently the case with traditional drop-ship scenarios.

Access to CRE is available on a membership basis, much like that of leading shopping clubs, except that companies will have to qualify as incentive, reward, or corporate gift buyers. Members have the opportunity to take advantage of one-stop shopping with significant corporate discounts for merchandise, travel, and gift cards. To join, sign up here.