The Presentation

Today I drove to the next town over to present a bid for a 2014 conference. It is a January conference which in Wyoming is literally booking gold! Ironically, it was the first conference that I bid for as a sales manager at the hotel I'm currently the Director of Sales for. That first one I lost. I don't think I really sold my location and perhaps was too lengthy (who knows!), but I won this bid two years ago and this conference took place at our property in January of 2012. This year I was bidding against another property that was a bit dated, but was fortunately undergoing a huge renovation which would help with the aesthetics for us. Honestly in my most unbiased opinion, I think our location (both the town and property) are clearly the better choice, but the town of this other property is able to offer really low hotel rates and it's location is considered a bit more convenient than our's in comparison to the state. I hope beyond hope that we are able to get this one, but walked away thinking the board's opinion could sway to the other location given price.

After that presentation, I went and visited some other clients then decided to swing by a competitor property in this town that happened to have complimentary internet so I could check some emails between appointments. I happened to sit next to a group of three men who happened to be in the business of insurance sales. As a sales person, I've really learned to listen for opportunities which has given me a wonderful gift of being able to listen to conversations close to me (maybe not that wondreful for people I'm listening to...). Anyways, the conversation was very interesting. There was one gentleman who had obviously been in the industry for awhile and was talking about his experience. While so many articles talking about sales talk about being a good listener, I really took to heart what he was saying. He was talking about only filling out 2 RFPs in his entire life and hating that process (two? I know, right?). He proceeded to talk about how few sales conversations he has ever is about sales. It is about a relationship developed. Bringing a client out on a fun outing or meeting with clients in a different setting then the typical, sterile "sales meeting" environment. Of course, the insurance industry is a lot different than the hospitality industry, but important lessions learned.