Inspired by my recent Twitter conversation with New York Private Investigator, Michelle Pyan (aka @michelle_lpi)
I've worked with a few clients who, for various reasons, have a lot of trouble with Salesforce.com terminology. Often it's because Salesforce.com has roots in Salesforce Automation, and these users don't come from a traditional sales background.
That's the power of Salesforce. It's such a powerful platform, and it can be customized for any business, and just about any application.
Yet many new users stumble with the Salesforce terminology right out of the gate. They're eager to get started, to get their data added to Salesforce -- and get stuck asking, "Umm, is it a Lead, an Account, an Opportunity or a Contact?"
When explaining Salesforce.com to new users, I'll often use the fish model:
Lead = Something swimming in your favorite fishin' hole.
Contact = Fish.
Account = School of Fish.
Opportunity = Fishing rod.
Closed/Won Opportunity = Lunch.
Closed/Lost Opportunity = The one that got away.
Campaign = Planning and preparation for the big fishing trip.
Since the third grade, the fish is about the only thing I can draw that people will recognize it for being just that: a fish. As I describe these terms, I'll sketch them out on a whiteboard. The visual presentation delivers a lot of "Ah-ha!" moments, and users walk away with a clearer understanding of how to enter data into these standard Salesforce objects.
Do you encounter a similar struggle with your new Salesforce.com users? What tricks do you use to bring clarity on these terms?
I often find myself saying "a lead is like a bob in the sea - not associated to other objects because we don't know anything about it yet. . . " but I like your fish metaphor better.
ReplyDeleteSuper common topic during training. It's remarkable how simple concepts aren't actually all that simple sometimes. Lots of talk around what constitutes a Lead vs. an Early Opportunity. How a Lead is never just a company name (you need a contact!) a Prospect is an organization you haven't done business with yet.... etc.
ReplyDeleteNice fish analogy...
I like this. I have a few questions though - Leads for us are always people, but is it ever valid to have a lead that is just a company - or a potential project? (Our Opportunities represent large industrial projects) If your sales team is trying to penetrate an Account - is it best to have them do their prospecting from the Account - or create a lead that represents an Account and then try to find some fish there? I've actually played with a custom relationship between Accounts and Leads. Just wondering your thoughts on these things because our prospecting activities are not always centered on a person.
ReplyDeleteA Lead is always associated with a Person. And the reasoning is very simple - when your Sales team goes to pick up that phone, they can't call the Project or an Account. They always have to talk to a PERSON associated with the Project or Account.
ReplyDeleteThat said, in the examples you've cited, I probably wouldn't create these as new Leads.
If you have already established a relationship with the Company, and they exist in your system as an Account, then you've already processed that lead.
When prospecting within an exsiting Account, I would instead encourage the Sales Team to create a unique Opportunity for each project. If, during the process of prospecting, they've identified new contacts, then create them as such (not as leads).
Reserve Leads for all those many companies and individuals who MIGHT fit your product / service some day, but for whom you don't have an exsiting relationship. Source them from trade shows, marketing campaigns, advertising, etc.
Of course, every sales process is different, and this method might not work for all companies. The most important excercise that you can do with your Sales and Marketing leaders is coral them together and create a clear process map for sourcing and managing leads, and a second process map for managing your full sales cycle.
Thanks JP. Working on clear process maps is on my project list for this quarter.
ReplyDeleteHey JP, I just came across your blog and I really like your Fish Model. Do you have a picture of the diagram you could share? Or do you have it recorded somewhere as you describe it?
ReplyDeleteThanks!