Michael Roman and Meryl Snow, Catersource 2010.
SALES TALK By Jennifer Perna
Leads are Gifts
Editor’s note: Sales Talk with Jennifer Perna succeeds Successful Selling with Meryl Snow, who opted to take a step back from her longtime column. I started my consulting business eight years ago. Prior to that, I spent years managing catering sales teams ranging in size from three to 32. No matter the number of salespeople, lead distribution and fighting over the “ownership” of inbound leads was always a hot topic. It still is today. The most frequent question I hear from sales leaders is, “How do we teach our salespeople to sell and stop being order takers?” Conversely, the most frequent question I hear from salespeople is, “How did you handle leads and make it fair for everyone?” Different perspectives and priorities on salesperson roles, responsibilities, and expectations, right? Sales is more than account management Sales leaders, it’s time to take responsibility. You’ve created a team of order takers by: • Calling some salespeople “salespeople” when many are truly “account managers” • Letting salespeople just service inbound leads and wait for them to come in
• Relying on external venues and third-party websites to be your number one lead source • Pushing salespeople out of their comfort zone by asking them to “sell” without providing any outbound business development skills training Don’t get me wrong, account management as a part of sales is really important. Is this even selling? Yes, kind of , maybe about 50% of your sales day: working your existing client base by nurturing and growing these clients into your top revenue accounts; building stronger relationships, listening, communicating, and understanding your clients’ needs; knowing what clients want before they even ask; and educating clients on what they have to have. These skills are the building blocks of account management, but anyone with sales in their title cannot rely on these skills alone to grow their individual pipeline and achieve their goal (assuming there is a structured, written goal—a topic for another time). Leading by example Which takes me back to the leads. I spend more time coaching sales leaders on the how-to of lead distribution rather than growing existing accounts and finding new business. It really bothers me because leads are gifts . Leads should be appreciated. Leads should be special. Leads should be earned. Leads should never
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SUMMER 2025 ■ CATERSOURCE
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