This third installment of our “Back to Basics” series will test your knowledge of sales and marketing. Like the previous discussions on supply programs and labor needs, getting back to basics in this area begins with strategic planning.

But even before you can set down a plan for sales and marketing, one needs to understand the difference between those terms. Marketing, in the simplest of terms, is communicating to others the features or benefits of a product or service. Sales, on the other hand is the function of getting another to purchase the product or service you are marketing.

An actual strategic plan begins with an internal assessment of your company. Once you have the knowledge of where you fit in the marketplace, what your targets are, and who your competition is, then you can jump quickly to learn some simple but profound tools for making the sale.

Who are you?
No matter the size, all companies will need to identify roles, align available time and resources, and be prepared to measure and monitor the progress attained:

What does the company’s existing business look like today? What is the customer mix? Large or small customers — and how are you defining large or small? What are the target markets serviced? Answer these questions and you will begin preparing the picture of the company’s internal resources.

To whom are you selling?
If you know your current customer base you can begin to make the critical decisions about who to sell to next.

Just what market segments represent the next best steps for your business? Some decisions will be based on geographic needs to round out some logical operational densities taking advantage of economies of scale. Contractors who have not yet grid- mapped out their current customer sites, travel times, crew routes and cleaning schedules need to do so. A little homework in this area can yield needs to fill in crew hours, extend the value of travel to certain areas, or take advantage of specialized equipment available at certain sites.

Determine markets where you enjoy the work and offer considerable potential for growth in your metropolitan statistical area. Here are some possible target markets:

Hospitality — Hotels, foodservice

Retail — Department stores, grocery, specialty shops

Manufacturing — Warehouse, light/heavy manufacturing

Logistics/Transportation — Air travel, buses, trains, freight carriers

Healthcare — Hospitals, clinics, medical and dental offices

Industrial — Refineries, high-tech, clean rooms

Corporate commercial — High rise, low rise, REITs, corporate headquarters

Educational/religious — Schools, churches

Entertainment —Theaters, stadiums, parks

Government — Offices, bases, secured areas

Who are you selling against?
Knowing your competition involves knowing what other cleaning companies exist in the market, what are their strengths, who their key customers are, who are the leaders of those companies, and most important ... knowing their weaknesses. Don’t just stop at companies that market themselves first as janitorial or cleaning companies. Many companies market their area of specialty first and perform janitorial as the value-add. This is typical of some floor, window, carpet, upholstery, maid services and even some security firms.

Try creating a database of competitor information and update it frequently.

Basic sales principles
Now that you’ve done your homework, you can go out and sell. Here are some great tips from Frank Bettger’s How I Raised Myself from Failure to Success in Selling:

  • Value people’s time; make appointments. When you demonstrate to others that you value their time, they will unconsciously place more value on yours.
  • Come to every appointment prepared. Treat every appointment as if those you are speaking to are actually paying you to speak.
  • Don’t dilute the primary reason and value for being in front of the customer. Too many sales people flirt around explaining a laundry list of features and benefits to the extent that most, if not all, get diluted and lost in the customers mind.
  • Come with notes. Most new and even some seasoned sales people can’t expect to be able to stay on track, respectful of time, hit the prime customer needs with solutions, and find the close to the meeting quickly. Don’t be afraid to come with some notes, but bring even more back.
  • Ask questions. Bring them with you. Develop some when listening to your customer; and don’t be afraid to ask a few more even after you leave the appointment.
  • Use your energy and enthusiasm to stir people up! Providing solutions to customer needs might not be the cure for cancer, but don’t make it sound like a mortuary visit. Customers like their service providers to be passionate about their work.
  • Know you are playing to “desires of gain” or “fear of loss.” People are motivated to buy when they know that they have something to gain from the purchase — or the fear that not buying could be a loss to themselves or their organization.
  • Be honest in what you can provide. Also, present your offerings without knocking others’.
  • Your customer wants to feel appreciated and important.
  • Assume they will buy! As earlier stated, if your current customers experience great service, effective communication, competitive service value, and you maintain their relationships over time, this potential customer will buy too. Assume the close. Ask for the business.
  • Use “you” instead of “I” everywhere you can in the sales process. After all, unless you truly see the situation from the customer’s prospective, you will never sell.


Joseph K. Fairley is an industry veteran and executive vice president of business development for Building One Service Solutions, an Encompass Services Corp. company.




POSTED ON: 5/1/2001