Are production and sales singing from the same hymn book?

If customers really knew what was going on behind the scenes many would be reluctant to buy.

Production creates the product and salespeople are entrusted to sell it. These two areas must be in unison but often collide with force. To salespeople production can be considered slow and inflexible. And according to production the salespeople can lack detail and over-promise. Morphing these two contrasting perceptions into a cohesive reality poses some very real challenges.

To be effective salespeople need to believe in what they sell. Any attempt to mislead customers will be met with resistance. Successful salespeople invest time understanding the inner workings of their product. They dont need to be experts, but they possess the ability to articulate the process involved in creating what they sell. This safeguards overpromising and also helps to build trust with customers.

Breakdowns between production and sales are generally caused by a lack of communication and understanding for what the other department does. Salespeople feel a sense of superiority, claiming, if they didn’t sell, there would be no business. Similarly, production spruiks without product salespeople would have nothing to sell. Both are correct and need to appreciate what the other area contributes.

I encourage production and sales people to brainstorm together regularly. In a safe environment, make time to share frustrations, insights, challenges and ideas for improvement. And ensure salespeople are not strangers to the production site and they regularly speak with key people that produce the product.

I find production people, despite their reluctance to “sell their product” can be skilled in doing so. Their deep understanding and passion for the product is unparalleled. This knowledge is valuable and should be shared with your salespeople and then communicated to customers with gusto.

If production staff had to actually sell their product to customers, they may be given a new appreciation for how challenging it really is and why sometimes salespeople push too hard. One thing is for sure, when both departments are focused and aligned the business will sing like a well-oiled machine.

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Trent Leyshan is the founder and CEO of BOOM Sales! a leading sales training and sales development specialist. He is also the creator of The NAKED Salesman, BOOMOLOGY! RetroService, and the Empathy Selling Process.