An Ode to the Silent Worker in Sales and Marketing

Last weekend, I got a call from a co-worker from the marketing team. A usual call turned into a long conversation and we began discussing how even in such difficult times he managed to achieve his targets.

Later while simply lying on the bed, I was re-evaluating what we have discussed and a spider caught my attention, silently weaving a web across the wall in the top right corner. It reminded me of one of the stories I had read during my childhood on how spiders weave without being noticed at all until their “work of art” is visible to the residents.

I looked around the wall, and yes, there were spider webs in every corner. When did that happen? It went unnoticed all the while until I took a moment to look around who is doing what?

Suddenly a stream of thoughts rushed in my mind. A full sales pipeline, my conversations with prospects, so many calls with internal and external teams, and everything leading to great sales.

But when it came to recognizing the team efforts, the few names that instantly came into my mind were of those who used to regularly call me to discuss the work, casually slipping-in their achievements in the form of concerns or questions.

The Beginning of a Great Realization

I realized the one who talks more in the meetings, even when they do not have any critical questions to ask or relevant remarks to make are appreciated for their enthusiasm and participation. Whereas the quieter lot is regarded as inactive or disinterested members.

I realized how whenever I think about the marketing team the person that came to my mind is the one who called me on the weekend. For me, he is the face of the marketing team, but when it came to the key tasks, his KRA was not even close.

Has it ever happened to you?

Are you fully aware of what each member of your team is doing?

Do you have a complete idea of how their individual contribution is leading to the success of the team?

Thankfully, we have digital tools today, that give us proper visibility into the tasks, KPIs, and performance details of every team member in the sales and marketing. We now know who is working on what, what metrics they have achieved, how many of them missed the targets, who is working efficiently, who is the most effective, what is the next target, and how it must be achieved.

The Action Plan

The next day, Monday, I scheduled a meeting with both sales and marketing teams to discuss our long-term goals, but with the conviction to take my research further to understand the psyche and also what can I do more to bring the quieter lot in the mainstream.

I had read sometime back that if you want to find the smartest person in the room asks an easy question first. The mediocre people will jump on to answer that question. Then ask a smart question and see the smarter one speaking.

I tried to apply this approach by first asking general questions on what is happening in the team and what is the status of existing tasks.

Observation 1

I saw a rush among the noisy members to put their perspective first in an attempt to score the brownie points. And when most of them had their quota full, then came the other members with few one-two liners, precisely on the point answers.

Next, I asked them how they see FieldCircle in the market in the next 6 months.

Observation 2

The one with few words had more concrete, optimistic yet realistic answers. Whereas those who preferred the limelight came with all the fanciful ideas that were not impossible but extremely difficult to materialize but presented a rosy picture that many in the management team would like to hear.

My third question was a measurable result that I can expect from every member of the team

Observation 3

True to my expectation, only a few people had a clear-cut strategy ready to achieve the said goals, whereas others began complaining about a lack of resources and time. I did not dismiss their complaints and further delve into the details of their requirements.

I found that most complaints were unfounded grievances based on hypothetical situations. This means if they began to start on the project, they might require a new resource, it might consume most of their time or they might face resistance.

Whereas others complain about past experiences and the lack of essential skills to complete the task.

The Closure

I ended the meeting with a focus on individual, measurable, time-bound goals, which can easily be monitored and tracked. I believe this is the simplest way to bring all the silent, often unappreciated marketing and sales professionals who although put in their best efforts but are poor in self-promotion in the mainstream.

The Ode

We live in a noisy, noisy world. Everyone has something to say. That is not a problem. We need orators. We cannot go mute. But we need the skill to differentiate a sound between noise and music.

What usually happens in the professional world is that there are people in positions who like to see only success and close their eyes on failure.

They have little tolerance for “No”, “I don’t know”, “It will take time to figure out” or “let’s wait for the results to come out.” When such people hear no crucial success stories from silent marketing and sales professionals, they treat them as side-kicks, with no regard for the company or their dream.

But this is not true. Instead, those professionals work like spiders. Silently weaving the web of goals and tasks, until one fine day, their “achievements,” “results”, or “the work of art” is visible.

Epilogue

Till then we have to trust them. But how can we trust them if we don’t know how efficiently they are working? This is not impossible if we bring visibility and transparency in the process.

PS: Please do not mix it up with introvert and extrovert traits instead focus on speaking just to make your presence felt or to share an opinion to make meaningful conversations.