Many of you reading this would say I’m
venturing into risky territory by talking about this, but I’m willing to
discuss the elephant in the room.
This question comes up a lot when I’m talking with both sales managers and sales
producers.
The interesting thing about this issue is how little there is in actual
writing about it. I find that interesting since the question comes up a lot.
First, let me say my views are based on my experience in working with hundreds
of sales producers over the last 30 years as a consultant, speaker and trainer.
This work has allowed me to spend extensive time with sales producers of all
types across the United States, Canada, and England.
I’ve found myself in nearly every imaginable type of selling situation. My
conclusions are not based on statistical research or someone’s doctoral thesis.
It’s my opinion. Okay, with that out of the way, let me dig in.
Before you throw daggers at me for my opinions, please read it entirely and
yes, you’re welcome to disagree and send me comments. Please understand all of
my comments are not based on putting down one side or another.
I’m merely sharing what I’ve observed.
My first opinion is women are much better
listeners than men. Women are far more prone to listen to
customers. Why? I’m not sure, but my belief is they come by listening and
communication more naturally than men do. Also, women are very open to
learning, and one way they do this is by listening to others.
Men aren’t as good of listeners (and I put myself squarely in this camp, unfortunately.)
The reason is because men have this self-driven belief where they feel they
know it all anyway and, therefore, the other person doesn’t have anything
meaningful to say.
Men also have a desire to compete, which means a lot of time a conversation
in their mind turns into a sporting event where someone will come out a winner
and the other a loser.
My second opinion is on the topic of being
able to develop and close a sale. Here I give the nod to men to
close a sale faster. The reason is because of how men tend to see everything as
an event that will ultimately have a victor.
Women — because of their desire to listen and learn — may sometimes take
longer to close a sale, but can often times get a bigger and more profitable
case.
What this means is in short-cycle selling, men can be better, while in
longer sales cycles and more complex ones, women may be better.
Prospecting is a very interesting situation.
I’ve watched any number of women be far more successful than
men in both making telephone calls and making introductory in-person calls.
What is interesting is I notice how women are able to get out of prospects
information that men can’t get. Why? Good question! The only reason I’ve been
able to determine is that women can come across as less threatening than men.
If I have a policy coverage or risk management service that requires a huge
amount of prospecting both on the phone and in person, I would lean toward
using female sales producers.
Negotiating is another very interesting situation,
as I’ve watched men be more successful, but the reason is not what most people
believe. Based on my observations, the reason I men are more
successful is that customers may have a feeling they can take advantage of a
female sales producer and thus try to push for more.
What I find interesting is leading up to the negotiation phase, females do a
better job of uncovering key information they can use during the negotiation.
Negotiation skill winds up being a toss-up in my book because both the male
and female producer have strong skills they can bring to the table.
Dealing with customer issues is a real
interesting situation for both male and female salespeople. Reason
is it depends on the situation.
A sad situation I’ve seen too many times is the female sales producer having
to do battle with the strong-willed female customer. In these situations, there
is no winner, as both sides wind up coming out bloody.
Conversely, I’ve seen a male sales producer come to near physical blows with
the male customer over the most simple of issues.
If there is one thing I’ve found interesting is how many times the best
solution is to have the sales producer be the opposite of the customer. When a
male sales producer deals with a female customer or a female sales producer
deals with a male customer, the outcome tends to be successful.
There you have it! My opinions on which is the better sales producer — the
male or the female.
Now comes the question you want to ask me.
If
you, Doug, could only hire one sales producer, which one would you hire the
male or the female?
Are you ready for my answer? I’m not going to hide behind a long drawn out
reason. My answer is female.
My reason is simple.
The business world is still primarily a male driven world, and to be successful
you have to find the edge and do things competitors are not doing. When others
are zigging, I’m going to zag. When people are going to the left, I’ll go to
the right.
Thus in a business world that is still comprised of
more males than females, I will go with the opposite, thus hiring the female.
********
I’m sure your answer is a resounding “no.” But in reality, it’s not what you
think that counts. Only your prospect’s perceptions matter—and they can be very
different from what you’d imagine.
