Back in the 70s I grew up in Frankfurt, Germany. Well, not exactly.
I say so because it's way sexier than Liederbach a tiny village, where I really grew up, not far.
I remember clearly how impressed I felt by the stunning view of Frankfurt’s city skyline on the horizon.
The breathtaking skyscrapers of many global and European corporate headquarters.
Later when I went in broader circles, I recognized that this silhouette of Frankfurt is just a Legoland version.
Compared to what the rest of the world has to offer in terms of skyscrapers, towers and skylines.
There is sooo much higher, bigger, better out there...
Are you on a mission of stepping things up? Broadening circles? Playing a bigger game?
Now, then.
Success.
You want it?
If you're ready for a lazy business model that supports you financially then... I’ve got a very special treat for you!
Today we are going to talk about the # 1 secret to playing a bigger game in your garment export business.
I’ve noticed that joining hands with marking experts abroad is crazy-underused. This means it’s a handy edge for you!
Welcome, my name is Heike Siegel from the Smart Garment Exporter blog.
Why do I know that? Well, I've been working as a sales agent for Indian knitwear exporter for 25 years. What can I say, I love this business model.
Marketing expert abroad?
I know. Ouch.
You might be thinking right now: “Of course, Heike, but how do I get them?”
Listen, my friend, how to get this person isn’t as hard as you might think right now.
So today we’re looking at different possibilities for how to do that. And where you can find them.
Good?
Now, let me set the scene:
You are seeing a foreign sales agent during a meeting with one of your most important customers.
So you know the customers he’s going after are the same customers that YOU are going after with your products.
As you see this agent you have the flash of genius and think:
“I want one, too! We should work with a sales agent (sales representative, whatever you like to call it...)!”
So, at that moment you think: “I am going to pitch myself!”
And then you think: “Wait for a second, how am I going to stand out from all the other offers that he/she probably get on a daily basis?”
Well, that is what today’s episode is all about.
How to pitch an agent
I’m going to show you the art of how to master that. And I mean master, no half effort here.
If you want to land big opportunities by joining forces with a sales talent and get yourself in front of new customers, you need to know the right ingredients for an approach that get results.
When I talk about getting results, I mean that you actually start getting noticed and start working with this sales agent.
The truth is that there are way more people who are looking for an agent – than agents.
The good news is that there are a lot of opportunities – and now more than ever sales developers are looking for really good sources who are with compliance, have all the green and sustainability requirements. And that stuff that is needed today.
So for the right approach – there are opportunities.
When you join forces with these well-connected local persons, when you get in front of new buyers, it’s a great opportunity for you to
- Start growing at a faster pace. Earning a great income.
- Establish your expertise. And get even more credibility behind your name.
- Plus, it’s great to drive demand for your products to have frequent orders coming in.
- Troubleshooting when needed.
- Make sure that on-time payments are secured from buyer's end.
- You get approval quickly.
Let's just say, many cool things.
You don’t have to start out big
There are sales agents who are just starting out but make this up with their enthusiasm and their high need for achievement and they are looking for a partner, so you could just ease into it.
If you master the art of the pitch for a salesperson abroad– even if you start out small, you can then move into the better-connected agents. Plus, your chances of getting noticed and getting chosen are going to be way higher if you’ve done this a few times before.
Did I mention that I have an incredible FREE RESOURCE for this episode?
It’s a fill-in-the-blank template for you to use the next time you pitch foreign salespeople, like sales agents, sales developers, sales representatives, marketing managers, country managers – it’s going to make it so much easier.
It includes a single pitch, from the subject line all the way down through the body and into the closing. I want you to see it in action. So I’ve added that as our free resource today.
To get your hands on this – really, it’s oh-so-good, even if you don’t want to do that right now, download it and save it somewhere on your desktop so you can use it – whenever you need it, good?
Now by the way, if you’re feeling like: “Ahm I’m not sure if I’m ready to work with a salesperson abroad…” please go back to the video: ‘Should we hire a RMG sales agent to grow faster?’ You'll get clarity quickly. This will lead you through a series of questions to figure out if you and your business are ready for external support in export sales or not.
The first thing
is that a sales developer is a real person. The key is to really treat the agent as a human being.
They sometimes built up their customers, brands, retailers, hypermarkets, fashion chains for years and years and really want to have their work appreciated.
They are working really hard to make their customers happy over years and they have to defend their good reputation. I mean they are giving their word and their face for what you produce and ship. And they want to continue to do really great client work.
Make it easy to choose you
So, when you approach them make it easy for them to select YOU. This means you’re trying for win-win relationships. That’s why you want to think about what’s in it for THEM.
Structure it
So how can you structure any message you send out?
Create attention
Yes, first you want to create attention and you want them to open your message. Right? Clear thing, first you need to create an irresistible headline. It’s not about summarizing the message content – it’s just to create attention. It should be juicy and enticing.
Say hello
Of course, you’d start greeting them with their name, not just ‘Hi’ or ‘Dear Sir….’ or something generic.
Share details
Yes, in the body of your message you share your story, expertise, your products and that it fits into THEIR business. So, you want to immediately make sure you start with a personal introduction. Leverage your uniqueness.
Be specific
You want to be specific.
Common connections
Sometimes it helps to have a mutual connection. You can check what connection you have in common for example on LinkedIn. Do you know the same buyers and people in our industry?
Be personal
And you want to make this as personal as possible. Not like a copy and-paste-thing … thinking you’re saving time.
Share results
And you keep sharing results that you achieved for your clients and why working with you will be a great success for everybody involved.
Be brief
Yes, I know that sounds like a lot but, but you get to all very brief, very succinctly, give them some info and bullets on what type of cooperation you’re thinking of what kind of cooperation you’d offer.
Select the tone
Really look at the individual person and make a choice what “tone” you like to use. What could resonate with them the most?
Why them
Reference why you chose them- what peeked your interest, what in particular did you like about them, that you decided to reach out?
Make it really specific what resonated with you. Highlight something you know about them or their share in one of their profiles.
Call to action
And please make sure your call to action is clear. What do you want the sales developer to do now? What is the next step?
Quality over quantity
I mean focus your efforts – you don’t want to go for mass-pitches – go for quality over quantity. Think that every person is unique so that your message needs to be really uniquely created for that specific person.
So always sent tailored targeted approaches.
Ok, here are some of the mistakes that I see that even the pros make.
- ONE -
One of the things I see is that garment exporters don’t think they can.
So, if you stop moving forward, you’re missing this huge opportunity. I’m sure you have a professional approach to this business, that you’re trustworthy with an infrastructure made for hot-selling products, you are more than committed to making your customers happy – you have everything you need. I hear that so often and I believe it.
I just want you to know that you have a unique perspective, story, and approach to this business and the right sales developer /agent will resonate with that.
So that’s the first mistake: Just feeling stuck.
- TWO -
And the other one is really being ready – you want to be prepared.
What is the next step when they get into a conversation with you and really show interest? Be quick in responses and have a plan for what should be happening next.
- THREE -
The third thing is – we have hinted at that. How can you convince them to promote your products or services?
It’s important because you need some selling skills yourself to attract these sales talents – so that they choose you.
If you’re like: “I can’t really see what you’re saying until you show it to me”, as you know I have a really cool freebie for you with exactly that.
That you can look at and really see how it works what we just talked about. It goes along with this post and complements it. Grab it here.
- FOUR -
Yes, and you hear me a lot talking about following up with your potential buyers – the same goes here. Be persistent and patient.
I’m not talking about stalking – but surely you want to keep in contact… The easiest thing is if they are on LinkedIn follow them so you can see any changes that they’re making in their profile.
And if you‘re like: „Heike, that‘s all good but I need professional support, my business is huge and I need the perfect fit for my export business quickly....“ then fill out this questionnaire here and I'll get back to you for the next steps and make sure you'll get there in approx. 90 days from now.
I hope you found this episode valuable, I loved putting it together, don't forget to download your pitch template here, – that is a definite “must-download”.
Talk soon,
Heike
P.S. All that said, love Frankfurt's skyline! Feels home. Go and see it in the sunrise...
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