It is a misconception that Sun Tzu (or San ZÇ in pinyin) was a “real” general, since there were no historical records of Sun Tzu ever leading an army into battles. He might have been conferred the title of General, but in ancient China, General lead armies at the frontlines, NOT doing the planning and logistics at the base, which was what Sun Tzu did. However, the reason that Sun Tzu’s treatise in the 6th century BC, The Art of War, have so much impact after 2,000 years around the world has to be attributed to Sun Tzu’s keen observations of the battlefields and other less visible aspects of war
In short, Sun Tzu had observed, analysed and summarised what works and what doesn’t at war. Most of what he had written turned out to be true, if applied correctly. In fact as recent as the 1st Gulf War in the 1990′s, the elements of deception, speed, and attacking the enemy’s weaknesses used by the allies had so much in parallel with the Art of War, that some guessed General Schwarzkopf probably used it as part of his strategy. In other words, Sun Tzu is a consultant, and a good one, whose observations and conclusions withstand the test of time.
In business, many companies have used lessons from the Art of War in business strategy, and more importantly, in leadership. However, there are some lessons from Sun Tzu that we can apply in the field of selling too.
Know Thyself and Thy Adversary
Once again, the biggest mis-quote of the Art of War is “Know yourself and know your enemy, a hundred battles fought with a hundred victories gained”.
The quote according to the original text is actually “Know yourself and know your adversary, a hundred battles fought and not be imperiled in any”. The number “hundred” here has the same meaning as “countless”. The word “adversary” is used instead of “enemy”, because in the former means “opposing force”, which is closer to the original text, while the latter has elements of hatred in it, of which such strong negative emotions may cloud your judgment in war (or business).
If you were to ask any sales person who he think is the adversary or enemy, chances are the answer will be the competitor. Unfortunately, unlike war, you can’t blow up your competitors’ office and stop them from selling. The adversary in sales, is actually the customer.
Think about it. Before you make your sale, your customers may have their reservations about buying from you. Your aim is to optimise your profits and fetch a good price. Their goal is to save money and cut unnecessary spending. Both parties started off as adversaries, initially.
The second most frequent quote from Sun Tzu is probably, “The best victory is the one that’s won without fighting.” This couldn’t have been more apt for dealing with customers, as your goal is to win them over and not to crush them.
Yet according to studies conducted by HR Chally, some of the key customers demands of sales people these days include:
o “Sales people MUST understand our business”
o “Sales people MUST be our advocates”
o “Sales people MUST provide (innovative) solutions that work!”
From these comments, it’s quite clear that many customers are indeed waiting for some enlightened sales people to win them over! If you know what your customers’ business is, and you know how you can add value to their business, you would probably have won them over.
To win over customers, sales people would have to do more planning before communicating with customers. In a less-often quote in the Art of War, “Those who plan more will win those who plan less.” That’s probably the predecessor of “Failing to plan is planning to fail”.
Unfortunately, most sales people and managers are so obsessed with action and activities that they forgot to plan, i.e. to planning to understand customers’ business, be their advocates and provide innovative solutions that works. While some may view planning as a waste of “calling time”, if they plan less than their competitors, they will lose the deal. If the plan less than their customers in researching the right facts, preparing for the right questions and providing the right responses, they will lose the deal.
