Moving Your Team From Pleading to Partnering: Developing A Needs-Based Sales Culture

Oklahoma Blood Institute: At A Glance Established in 1977 Over 650 employees Collect about 250,000 units annually Supply about 90% of the population in our service area

OBI Service Area Counties Blue & Purple = where donors give Purple = where patients in medical facilities receive blood from Oklahoma Blood Institute and Texas Blood Institute donors

A Need for Change Moved from a donor incentive driven culture to a relationship driven culture (had to break our cotton addiction) Struggling with projection accuracy Not-so-best practices Lack of opportunities for development

Moving to a New Culture The Plan New expectations New Incentive Plan Support Tools Sales Training Sales Coaching

New Expectations Blood Program Consultant will: Achieve assigned collection goal - every month 10 – 15 weekly sales calls with pre- determined objectives Annual collection plan for assigned territory and accounts Weekly review with Donor Services

A New Incentive Plan for New Expectations Incentivize to match business objectives by providing a lucrative opportunity for incentive earnings that support: Consistent goal attainment every month Collections during critical collection periods Increased projection accuracy that supports the budget and resource plans

$how me the Money: New Incentive Plan Determined the maximum earning level for consultants and put 1/3 of that “at risk” in incentive earnings

Incentive Plan At A Glance Production Incentive: Maximum pay during critical months, must achieve 100% to earn, no extra incentive after 103% Projection Accuracy: Full earnings for 90 – 100% PA, ½ for 85 – 89.9%, decreasing incentives starting at 103% PA Consistency Incentive: To encourage consistent monthly goal achievement & discourage calendar manipulation for high earning months Holiday Incentive: Incentives for goals met during Fourth of July, Christmas & New Years

In Order to Build It, You Need the Right Tools Account planners Monthly workshops –Focus on market segments –Follow-up sales training –Sharing best practices/account strategies Specialized programs such as High School Honor Cord Branded marketing materials Exercises to help identify our value, making intangibles more tangible

What Are We Selling???

High School Features/Benefits Features: Honor Cord Program Service Learning Program Health/A1c Screening Educational Presentations Volunteer Opportunities Project Management (Blood Drive Timeline) Local Community Ties Engaging Donor Promotions Blood Drive Committee Donor Benefit Plan NMDP (OBI exclusive) Donor Schedule Branded Materials Benefits: Allows more students award opportunities “Pre-packaged” program w/ proven success Opportunity to provide free health screening Can be tied into school curriculum Social responsibility, character development Can be applied to other school projects Knowledge of local impact Excite the donor base Leadership development, team-building Credits provide health benefits for group Mobilization of minority student groups Efficient use of student/school time Allows students to do more creative recruiting

Perception of Value Musician playing violin in a Washington DC Metro Station on a cold January morning in He played six Bach pieces for about 60 minutes. During that time approximately 2,000 people went through the station, most of them on their way to work. After 3 minutes: A middle aged man noticed there was a musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds and then hurried to meet his schedule. 4 minutes: The violinist received his first dollar: a woman threw the money in the till and without stopping, continued to walk. 6 minutes A young man leaned against the wall to listen to him, then looked at his watch and started to walk again.

10 minutes: A three year old boy stopped but his mother tugged him along hurriedly, as the kid stopped to look at the violinist. Finally the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk, turning his head all the time. This action was repeated by several other children. Every parent, without exception, forced them to move on. 45 minutes: The musician played. Only 6 people stopped and stayed for a while. About 20 gave him money but continued to walk their normal pace. He collected $32. 1 hour: He finished playing and silence took over. No one noticed. No one applauded, nor was there any recognition.

This is a real story. The Washington Post, as part of a social experiment about perception, taste and people's priorities, arranged the entire scenario. Playing incognito, no one knew the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the best musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written, with a violin worth $3.5 million dollars. Two days prior to this, Joshua Bell sold out a theater in Boston where the tickets averaged $100 per seat. Lesson: It is our job to make sure that we clearly understand our customer’s needs so that we can help them see the VALUE in the programs & solutions we have to offer. More importantly, WE must understand & believe in the VALUE of our programs & solutions.

What’s Your Value?? Features Benefits

Ready or Not – Sales Training

Extreme Sales Makeover Achieve Global, Professional Selling Skills – Why? Consultative Selling – From clerk to consultant Expect Turnover

Use It or Lose It: The Need for Sales Coaching Dealing with resistance: “I went to PSS & all I got was this lousy notebook!” Translating the training for everyday application The role of sales coach – friend not foe

Recognizing Success No summer blood emergency appeal Working smarter w/ leaner resources Developing account strategies

Projection Accuracy Trends

Recruitment Cost Per Donor