Turn and Face the Change, Cha, Cha, Cha Changes

As I work with a wide variety of clients, I keep hitting on a core truth: No sale occurs until a buyer commits to change.  What specific change is involved in the sale varies by industry and buyers and can mean changing vendors, changing products, changing processes and so on, but the need for the buyer to commit to change is universal.  Equally universal is status quo bias, the powerful tendency to make no change.  More sales are lost due to “No Decision” than to any other factor.

Considering how important change is to the sales process, it only stands to reason that salespeople must function as change agents.  The MSU Leadership and Strategic Management program posted a blog listing five characteristics of an effective change agent:

• Flexibility

• Diversified Knowledge

• Priority and Results Focus

• Ownership and Responsibility

• Effective Listening Skills

There are certainly many other ways to define the attributes needed to be successful in sales but these five work pretty well for me, especially because they are aligned to a critical aspect of any sales: working with the buyer to gain commitment to change!