When your sales manager expects you to do their job for free

Published: Wed, 03/30/22

March 30, 2022

Good morning. It’s the second to last day of Q1, which means you’ve either hit quota, or are annoyed at us because you thought this email was from a prospect. In either case, take a quick break with this week’s edition of The Quota, where we’ll tell you the story of Mary Kay Ash, one of the most successful salespeople of all time, find out how much of a salesperson's day is spent talking to prospects, and help a rep whose manager expects him to supervise other salespeople for free. Let’s do this.

NUMBER OF THE WEEK

The percentage of buyers who prefer not to meet with salespeople face to face.

Source: Kvadrant Consulting

SALES ROUNDUP

Here’s what’s happening in the sales world this week

A car salesman from England recently made news with his act of generosity, spending his own money to house more than 40 Ukrainian families who have been displaced as a result of the Russian invasion. Marcos Castillos is spending approximately $6500 per day to put the families up in a Polish hotel, and also plans to help them find more permanent housing. You can read more about his generous act here.
The smart home company Vivint has agreed to pay $400k to the state of Arizona to settle claims that its door-to-door salespeople made false representations to customers, lying about the length of the company’s cancellation policy, and claiming that their existing provider had gone out of business and that Vivint had taken over their contract. You can read more about the consent judgment here.

FEATURE

The story of Mary Kay Ash, the High Priestess of Sales

It was always obvious when Mary Kay Ash arrived at the party. The pink Cadillac she drove around her hometown of Dallas was as iconic as the line of her namesake beauty products which graced every store shelf in America. With a billion dollar company, a million dollar fortune, and a global beauty business, the Mary Kay who gave out cars and vacations to her top sales reps at lavish Vegas parties in the 90’s was a far cry from the young mother who scrimped and saved during World War II.

In 2001, the Times quoted her as saying: ''I've been asked a number of times, 'How did you succeed so quickly?' 'The answer is I was middle-aged, had varicose veins and I didn't have time to fool around. Have you heard the definition of a woman's needs? From 14 to 40, she needs good looks, from 40 to 60, she needs personality, and I'm here to tell you that after 60, she needs cash.''

Ash was speaking from experience. In 1925, she was married at the age of 17 to Ben Rogers, with whom she had three children before he left to fight in World War II. Instead of a happy return to domestic bliss when the war was over, he asked for a divorce. It dealt a heavy blow to Ash, and not just because she was now a single mother with three mouths to feed.

Ash went into direct sales for the next 25 years, selling child psychology books and then Stanley Home products at private parties. It was at one of those parties where she met Ova Heath Spoonemore, whose father, a tanner, had been experimenting with the oils that made his hands seem less weathered than his face. Spoonemore passed out sample jars of her product to the women at the party. Ash was hooked, and in 1963, the year she started her company, she bought the secret recipe from Spoonemore for $500.

But it wasn’t the fancy oils and lotions that made Mary Kay cosmetics such a success (there are now over 200 products in the line). It was Ash’s business acumen. She adopted a sales model that most would consider unusual: everyone was an independent consultant who bought wholesale and sold at retail prices. No personal checks were accepted on either end – only money orders, cashier’s checks, or credit cards. In addition, Mary Kay did not subscribe to the sales territory model in which women could only recruit people in their area. Women who recruited new reps in other cities and states still received commissions on those sales. Ash believed this encouraged cooperation rather than competition among her employees.

In addition to fostering community among her workers, Ash believed that “recognition is key,” handsomely rewarding her highest performers. In the 60’s, it was a party with boned chicken and Jell-O salad. By the 90’s, it was furs, jewels, and (pink) cars, with the value of the annual prizes amounting to over $6 million. The rewards were elaborate, but the philosophy behind it was plain and simple. Ash believed that with the proper encouragement, anyone could succeed. She particularly saw herself as a champion of women, giving them the opportunity to make their own money, their own careers, and their own choices, something that the generations before them had not been able to do.

“I don't think God wanted a world in which a woman would have to work 14 hours a day to support her family, as my mother had done,” Ash once told a friend. “I believe he used this company as a vehicle to give women a chance.''

The sales directors of today could take a page out of Mary Kay’s book – it’s leading with kindness, encouragement, and humility that builds great teams. But if you happen to have some pink Cadillacs laying around, that doesn’t hurt either.

MEME OF THE WEEK

Source: Instagram -- Sales Humor

QUIZ

Which car company sold the most vehicles in the U.S. in 2021?

A. GM
B. Ford
C. Toyota
D. Honda

SALES FAILS

Each week, we bring you the most cringe-worthy sales moments from across the web. To submit your sales fail story for consideration, click here. (Don't worry, you'll remain completely anonymous).

“The funniest thing that’s ever happened to me in sales happened at a corporate training in 2006. I had just started working for a national bank, and they flew all the new hires out to a suburb of Chicago for a week-long training.

I flew out with another guy who started at the same time as me at my branch, but we didn’t really know each other. Anyway, he was a bit odd. He was friendly and nice enough and everything, but it just felt like something was “off” about him. I remember he was really big into conspiracy theories.

Anyway, a few days into the training, we were in a conference room with about 15 other trainees, eating catered lunch from Panera or something like that. A woman who was there took a bite from a sandwich and didn’t like it, so she left it on her plate. All of a sudden, the guy who I had come to training with says, “Are you gonna finish that?” and picks it up and starts eating it. People started giggling, but it was not a huge deal or anything.

The next day, we were all in a classroom, sitting at desks, and they passed out lunch, which came with a pre-wrapped cookie. The lights were dimmed because we were watching a training video. At the end of the video, the lights come on, and I hear someone shouting in the back of the room: “What the hell? Why did you eat my cookie?”

It turns out, the guy I came to training with had eaten his own cookie, then stole the cookie of the guy who sat next to him, who wasn’t okay with it. It was a really awkward scene, and the guy who had his cookie stolen would not let it go. Still one of the funniest things that I’ve ever seen happen – sometimes I wonder where the cookie thief is today.”

Anonymous Location withheld

GRAPH OF THE WEEK

Source: LinkedIn Poll -- March 2022

WORTH A PEEK

If you’re a fan of nonfiction, or just looking for an interesting read that can help you become a more tenacious rep, check out Angela Duckworth’s Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance. The 2016 best-seller focuses on the importance of grit, and how it can be more important than intelligence or circumstance when it comes to success. The book uses interesting real-world stories to make its case, and explains how anyone can learn grit. You can check the book out here.

ASK THE QUOTA

Want to submit a question and be featured in our advice column? Click here. (Don't worry, you'll remain completely anonymous).

Dear Quota Team,

"I’m part of a small sales team (100% remote) within a large company – I’m one of 3 reps. I am the highest performer by a longshot – the other two have much less industry and overall sales experience.

Our manager means well but is spread thin. We are one of 2 teams he oversees, and the other team is much larger. Naturally, we are often overlooked / not given as much attention or recognition, but lately with our overall numbers lagging our manager is growing impatient with us, despite not investing much time in training and resources for our specialized product.

To make things more frustrating, he is constantly late to our huddle calls, and when he’s on them he’s barely even paying attention and obviously answering emails / Skype chats. I spend maybe 30 minutes total a week in front of him. He continues to lean on me to get the other two up to speed. I help when I can, but it is a high-volume role with lots of cold calling.

I don’t feel it should fall on me to basically manage my peers when I’m not being compensated for it and taking away from time I could spend selling. How should I address this (or should I even address this?) without putting myself in a bad place with my boss?"

Overwhelmed in Idaho

--

Dear Overwhelmed,

This is honestly one of the tougher questions we’ve received, since the answer isn’t as black and white as some of the others. That being said, it comes down to this: you’re frustrated enough to write in for advice, which means you should address this with your boss.

There’s a good chance that he doesn’t even realize that he’s asking you to do work for free, and it’s obvious that he feels like he can count on you, so it makes sense to broach the situation with him directly, in an honest, professional, and nice way, then let the chips fall where they may.

One of two things will happen after the conversation: either he’ll respect your honesty and initiative and agree to help you, or he’ll get angry and not help. If it’s the latter, then it might be time to look for a role where you’re not asked to act as management without a manager’s comp plan. It’s still a job seeker’s market out there, and since you know how to sell and presumably have a track record, you won’t have a problem landing a great gig.

So don’t let your frustration keep building up. Address the issue head-on, and you’ll feel better, one way or the other. The squeaky wheel gets the grease, and you’re pretty squeaky right now. Good luck!

Quiz Answer: C

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Today's email was written by Ken Kupchik, Erica Furgiuele, Steve Rado, and Emily Hill.

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