This week Bruce S. Gordon resigned as president of the NAACP. I know Bruce although I haven’t really seen him for several decades. I do know that he is intelligent, articulate and tough minded. In fact, we were on the same football team at Gettysburg College. His corporate career was stellar…his reputation impeccable.

In reading about his decision to resign it was clear to me that this circumstance appears to be a case of someone having lots of responsibility with very little authority. A board of 64 people? Give me a break! No one – no matter how capable that person might be, will be able to satisfy the agendas of 64 different people. Not even Bruce.

That forces me to ask this question: Are you (or an entire sales team) in a situation where the levels of responsibility and authority “don’t match?” First, what is responsibility?

• The obligation to perform

What is authority?

• The right to act

A few examples:

• Responsibility – to sell
• Authority – the right (or lack of it) to adjust terms on delivery
• Responsibility – to manage a sales team
• Authority – the right (or lack of it) to hire or fire salespeople

Think about it. Bruce Gordon’s situation was high profile and made national news. A sales manager or salesperson’s plight may not be as news worthy. However, it’s just as critical to their company, customers, family and career. In any case, it is just as frustrating!

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In a surprising announcement, Frank Blake, the new CEO of Home Depot, says the company may shut down business operations with business contractors. Instead, Blake says the home improvement store giant will focus more on serving its retail customers.

Why change from the strategies championed by former CEO Bob Nardelli? Simple – it’s all about margin. Analysts say the Home Depot Supply Business offered such a low financial return for the company that it had become a distraction for its real bread and butter, the retail business. Home Depot’s wholesale distribution woes appear to have two causes. In the short run, there’s a slowed-down housing market and in the long term, strong competition from Lowe’s has kept prices too low to be profitable.

Basic business courses have long taught that if you lower prices you can make it up in volume. However, successful businesses have discovered that it’s not a game of volume; it’s a game of margin. Home Depot’s margins (profits) are in retail not in wholesale distribution, and Frank Blake’s strategic move, while appearing strange to some, may just be what the company needs to stay number one in the marketplace.

And by the way, don’t feel too bad for Home Depot if they do sell off its wholesale distribution business. Estimates of its worth range from $5 to $7.5 billion.

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For over 10 years we have been dealing with this issue. Somehow, however, it continues to be a problem. In fact, it is discussed extensively in the Jan/Feb issue of Sales and Marketing Management Magazine.

The point? Aren’t both after the same goal? More sales, success for the organization, providing high quality, qualified leads to salespeople, etc.

A question: How aligned are your sales and marketing strategies? If they’re not, perhaps you need to do something about it. In fact, I have long believed that there is a “middle ground” that demands that salespeople need to fully understand the marketing strategy in order to sell the product the way it is marketed. The opposite is also true. Marketers must know how the product is sold in order to position, promote and place it correctly into the market.

This whole concept is discussed in great detail in my book, The New Science of Selling and Persuasion.

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Here’s a tip that has actually shown early signs of transforming our business here at The Brooks Group. We rely a lot on leads generated by our strong internet presence. The problem? Our salespeople would call and get voice mails, a person saying they didn’t even remember requesting information, etc., etc.

How have we addressed the problem? The first thing was to seek some data. The best was from a reputable source . That research revealed that a web lead contacted the same day it is received is significantly better than one that sits around. In fact, their research says that after one, four and eight days they tend to get worse, worse and worse in value.

We then installed a “four hour” rule that says every internet generated lead must be contacted within 4 hours of receipt. We even have someone assigned to make the calls if the salesperson to receive the lead is unable to do so. That person then passes that lead on to the salesperson.

The response? Prospects are happy to hear from us. More requests for information. Leads ultra-improved with our speed of responses and more qualified leads who actually remember requesting the information. Hope this helps!

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