SELLING THE WHEEL is about just what the title suggests: an ancient man, named Max, who invents the world's first wheel, but who then is dismayed to discover that the world couldn't care less. He enlists the help of his wife, Minnie, and together they embark upon a grand adventure as entrepreneurs, learning how to sell their product profitably in every phase of its development, from breakthrough innovation through mass-market, standardized commodity.
"The wheel in the story," explains Cox, who also wrote national bestsellers Zapp and The Goal, "is doubly symbolic. First, like a widget, it symbolizes every product and service on the market today. Second, the wheel represents the product-market cycle that is perpetually at work in every technology and industry."
Though written as a story, SELLING THE WHEEL is in fact based upon more than 25 years of actuarial research conducted by co-author Howard Stevens' firm, The HR Chally Group in Dayton, Ohio.
"Since the mid-1970s," says Stevens, "we've been continuously collecting and analyzing data about salespeople, sales management and customers. Everything in SELLING THE WHEEL is based upon real data that cover over a quarter of a million salespeople, literally hundreds of the best professional, corporate salesforces, and more than a hundred thousand in-depth interviews with the customers those sales forces serve."
The ultimate conclusion of all that research is that there is no one single, best way to market and sell. Rather, your strategy (and your selection of exactly which types of salepeople to hire) has to be based upon your customers' needs -- and that strategy must change as the market matures.
Wait a minute. Isn't that obvious? "Apparently not," says Stevens. "We have seen over the years any number of big-name companies that have gotten it wrong."
"The supreme temptation in business," Stevens continues, "is to try to be all things to all customers. Attempting to do that is virtually a guarantee the company will lose momentum and will very likely decline. The great companies that continually grow sales are the ones willing to ignore or to let go of some customers in order to focus on the ones most important to their futures."
SELLING THE WHEEL begins with basic questions -- Who are your customers? Who are your competitors? -- and ends with in-depth strategies covering all the major issues of marketing and sales, from the proper company image to the best way to offer service.
"I've tremendously enjoyed working with Howard Stevens," said Cox, "because he offers a complete picture of the sales universe. And that universe is quite diverse. His research shows you don't have to be the stereotypical, high-pressure closer in order to be successful. Indeed, in most cases, that's the wrong approach. It's a matter of knowing what to do and when."
In SELLING THE WHEEL, there are four essential selling styles. Each is suited to a different type of salesperson and matched to what customers value the most at a particular phase of the market's development. They are:
- The Closer: With an almost evangelical enthusiasm, the closer sells not only the product, but also an entire concept, a dream, a better tomorrow. Playing to the customer's fantasies and desires, a closer is willing to do whatever it takes to make the sale whenever, wherever. This type is best at selling products and service based on new technology with little or no direct competition, where the potential gain for the customer is huge.
- The Wizard: This salesperson has a technical education and sells high-tech, state-of-the-art products that are customized to meet an organization's requirements. Both a team player and a team leader, the Wizard enjoys the challenge of creating unique solutions and thrives on managing complexity – political (with respect to organizations), as well as technological.
- The Builder: With an inner sense that the customer always comes first, this salesperson likes the entrepreneurial spirit of sales, but needs the security of an organization. Builders are the backbone of most business-to-business corporate salesforces. They sell well-accepted products (as opposed to "next wave" high-tech) and take a long-term approach based on solid relationships with their customers. They add value through creative problem solving, attention to details, and ensuring dependable delivery.
- The Captain & Crew: This style is most associated with retail sales (applicable to both conventional brick-and-mortar stores, and also today's web commerce). Its mantras are low price and maximum convenience for the customer. It relies upon strong sales management leadership (the Captain) and an empowered salesforce, each member dealing with dozens or even hundreds of customers over the course of a single day (the Crew). Though the products here may be "commodities," there are billions in sales at stake, and highly systemized, yet great customer service is the key to immense fortune.
Over the years, as the wheel business grows and changes, Max and Minnie employ each of these sales strategies, often because the previous strategy has failed. They learn the hard way that no company can successfully coordinate more than two of these selling styles at the same time -- and preferably should stick with one, perhaps even changing technologies to preserve an optimum place in the market.
With both a bird's-eye view of the sales world as well as practical insights on each style, SELLING THE WHEEL translates complex business theory into a clear framework of understanding -- and throws in a great sense of humor as a bonus for the reader.
About the Authors:
Jeff Cox is a professional writer and the bestselling coauthor of Zapp and The Goal . Cox is married and lives near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Howard Stevens is chairman of The HR Chally Group, based in Dayton, Ohio. The Chally Group's clients include a large number of Fortune 500 companies such as General Motors, ADT Security Services, First Union Bank, Reynolds and Reynolds, Standard Register, Weyerhaeuser, as well as hundreds of other companies. Chally also conducts ongoing benchmark research to determine the best professional salesforces, which are then honored through the World Class Sales Excellence Awards.
SELLING THE WHEEL
Choosing the Best Way to Sell For You, Your Company, Your Customers
By Jeff Cox and Howard Stevens
Simon & Schuster
Publication Date: January 5, 2000
ISBN: 0-684-85600-X; 208 pages
So what do you do? Do you open a store (or, these days, a website) and sell direct to the public? Do you hire a solid, experienced salesperson with lots of connections? Do you sign up an engineer who can customize your technology to your customers' individual requirements? Or, do you offer big commissions to a special type of super-salesman, known as a "closer," who can hype your product to new users?