Nature shows us straight commission.
We observe the spider hanging around, waiting for supper to arrive. We didn't see the work: Location scouting, battle for territory, planning and design, raw materials, construction, labor, maintenance.
Her web is outside the back door at our house. Every afternoon, a couple of hours before dark, she is there. She rests in the middle of her web once the work is done. She makes it look easy. She is motivated, talented, hungry.
I look for her, and admire the work. She must have got an early start. I learn from her. I'm a fan.
The web, and that spider remind me of some places I've worked, and some people I've known.
It takes a special person to be successful in sales, let alone handle straight commission. A few of us have been there, most of us have not. At Lehigh Safety Shoes, I was trained by one of the best. His name, is Eddie Horton.
My experience at Lehigh, and other jobs tells me success in sales depends on many factors:
The product or service you are selling.
Pricing flexibility.
Training and preparation.
Luck.
Competition.
Availability and delivery.
Internal controls and support.
Territory borders.
Hustle.
Personality.
The "X" factor!
For two and a half years, I worked for Lehigh Safety Shoes. That time in my working life compares to time spent in Jr. High. It was a short burst of time, but lessons were learned, and the experience changed me and made me a better person.
Lehigh started new people out on a training salary. There were bonuses on top of that if we exceeded our goals. We always did.
The Product - Lehigh Safety Shoes
https://www.lehighsafetyshoes.com/mens/safety-shoes/
Lehigh has their own design team, and factories. The shoes they make in the USA, and overseas are attractive, functional, and exceptional quality.
Pricing flexibility
Don Stallings, our boss, trusted us to manage pricing, and gross profit margins, within parameters. We could bundle several styles and hit a price point to address a customer's reimbursement rate. Example, an employee gets $100 for an annual shoe allowance. I would create a list of in stock, available today shoes that were appropriate for their work environment. The price, out the door, would add up to zero out of pocket to those people. Some were less expensive, some cost closer to $100. But when you pointed, and said, "These are your free shoes... what do you like?" They picked something out quickly, and the deal was done.
Training and Preparation
Ed Horton was the best salesman in the Lehigh Safety Shoe company. There were some guys in the Northeast with long Itallian names, and they were great too. But Eddie was our guy in the Southeast. A big part of my training was, I went to Greenville, South Carolina, and stayed for a week. I made every step Eddie made. He was amazing. He moved fast, talked fast, and had a New York accent. You wouldn't think that would work in the South. Eddie made it work.
Something he said that I'll always remember, ...He was making cold calls on our first day together. We were walking up to a factory, he stopped and pointed at the sign on the front door, ..."Stevie... ya see that No Solicitin' sign right there?? huh? Ya know what that says??? (and I did, but I shook my head no...) It says,... Come on in here Eddie! We been waitin' for ya !!!" He laughed big and we went in. His smile and confidence put the gate keeper at ease. They chatted like old friends for a minute, and Eddie got the information he was after.
Eddie had that confidence about him. He knew his stuff, and taught me all he could. That day, I learned "No Soliciting" signs keep weak people out.
Boot Camp...I joke that every morning, before breakfast that week, I had to lift Eddie's sample bag of boots over my head and jog around the hotel ten times. Ok, that's an exaggeration, it was only five times. Eddie had a sense of urgency, pace, and drive about him. That week of training with Eddie was my "Boot Camp."
Our boss, Don Stallings, and our VP of Sales, Fred Kuhnen, thought the world of Eddie. They knew he could train, teach, and inspire. They trusted him to train me. I told Don and Fred about Boot Camp, and the things Eddie did and tried to show me.
Fred was very supportive, and quick with a laugh. There were goals to reach, and things to improve on. But, he kept the job enjoyable, and had an approachable, friendly personality.
Eddie drove a Dodge mini van with a hundred or so thousand miles on it. The back was full of shoe and boot samples, and customer and prospect files. Eddie remembered names, pet's names, minor details, and major details. He made his big deals in person, and on his cell phone while he was driving.
I recall he was on the phone with someone talking about a contract for the State of North Carolina. He was wheeling and dealing and driving that mini van. For several minutes, the bigger the deal got, and the closer Eddie got to a yes, the faster he drove. After that, no one had to remind me to buckle up.
Eddie could drive any vehicle he wanted to drive. Much like the spider above, Eddie is motivated, talented, and hungry. He wanted to look hungry. He had no desire to look like he had "made it" already by driving something new and shiny. Eddie even told me he loved that mini van.
Another part of my training was going to Endicott, New York. This was product and process training. I learned all about shoe lasts, Process 81, Goodyear Welt construction, TS 100 toe caps for wide feet, and a bunch of other things. I can still talk dual density polyurethane out soles if I need to. Electrical hazzard? Static Dissapative? Puncture resistant? No problem. We got to meet the designers, see the plant, and talk to people that made the shoes.
Luck and Competition
The harder we worked, the luckier we got. It is important to know who your customers are. Maybe they are already using your competition. Never talk bad about your competition, especially in front of a customer. To do so questions the customer's choice and wisdom of using them and not you. Once you put in the work, and stay with the process, smile, and expect good things to happen. Some call that luck.
Availability and Delivery
Something I learned early on, don't sell the latest, greatest if it's not available. SWAT...Sell What's Available Today. Your customers will be better served, and the system supports you. This works for 95 percent of your customers. The other 5 percent might have to have a special shoe or boot. Example, Alcoa Company, in Maryville, TN, had problems with people walking on the smelting pots and their shoes melting. Lehigh developed a Pot Room boot that had a big nasty outsole. The life span of the outsole had to far exceed what they had been wearing. We designed it, built it, and they bought a bunch of them. It worked. Inside their plant, we kept a shoe commissary stocked up with this boot. That made it immediately available and accessible to them.
Delivery of Lehigh Safety Shoes was done primarily on a Shoemobile like this one...
Many times our driver called out, or did not show up. When that happenned, I drove an hour to Nashville, and got in the truck.
This provided some excitement, because I never had a CDL, (Commercial Drivers License) and this was not my responsibility. I made sure we kept our promises and did what we were supposed to do. That truck and I traveled four hours to Johnson City several times, and all over Tennessee. If you saw me on the interstate, you might have wondered who that was driving the speed limit, hands steady at ten and two, and 100% paying attention. We got the job done. Our customers appreciated that. They knew they could count on us. 7AM? No problem ! 6AM? Even better !
When I got to Lehigh, Bob was our Shoe Center Manager. We hired Jennifer Clark to work in the store. She was a single mom and a hard worker. Then Bob left, and I found Matt Tiffany. During my time there, we had at least a half dozen different truck drivers. We built a good team, and worked well together. When I found and recruited Matt Tiffany, he was the manager at the Shoe Dept. inside Hickory Hollow Mall. He was a hard working guy, and loved the shoe business. Lucky for me, and Lehigh, he was ready for a change of scenery, and a new challenge.
Internal Controls, Support, Territory Borders
The company has to support your efforts. And they have to make sure everyone gets paid. I think more sales people leave good jobs because of this, than any other reason.
Support. Be careful not to over-commit. Special considerations, and emergencies should be the exception, not the every day rule. Your support team will be more likely to help you on the rare occasion, instead of constant drama, and chaos. Also, know your customer service reps by name. Brag on them. Support them as they support you.
Territory Borders...Are they are well defined? There is an old country saying, "Good fences make good neighbors." Lehigh didn't have good fences. The old guy in Alabama sold about as many pairs of shoes in Nashville, as our Nashville team did. At the end of the day, Lehigh was selling shoes, and from the company's point of view, that was the most important thing.
At the end of my second year, I won District Manager of the Year for the Southeast Region. They called me down front, at our national Sales meeting. I think Eddie was as excited as I was when my name was called out. I accepted and said a few gracious words about our team that everyone exepcted me to say. Then I added, "Harold??, Where are you Harold? Stand up Harold! Harold in Alabama deserves part of this. (pause) He sells as many shoes in Nashville as we do." It got a huge laugh, and applause. Lots of heads nodded in agreement. Well timed humor can take a swipe at the truth, and get away with it.
Hustle and Personality
Once I learned what was going on and where my customers were, no one was going to out hustle me. My two largest accounts, Saturn, in Spring Hill, and Alcoa, in Maryville, liked me. I kept safety shoes and boots the main thing, and didn't waste their time. If the floor was dirty, I picked up a broom or got a mop, and made myself useful. If I could do anything to make them look good, or make their world a little better, I did it. When they said, "(So and So) never did that." That's when I knew I was doing the right thing, and making a great impression.
At those two major accounts, and most all of our large and medium accounts, sales grew. We had repeat business because the people that wore the shoes were happy. And, thanks to the boldness and confidence I got from Eddie Horton, I kept walking through those no soliciting signs. After all, those people were waitin' for me! We had lots of new customers.
I adopted what I could of Ed's personality and hustle. He set the bar high. Eddie made selling shoes and boots fun. He was always smiling and laughing with his customers, and putting together a deal. That brings me to the "X" factor.
The "X" factor.
Eddie Horton, and the spider that built the web at the beginning of this story, have the "X" factor.
If I needed a web built, There is no doubt in anyone's mind, that spider can get it done. Attention to detail, timing, strength, symmetry, results. She makes it look easy.
Eddie Horton has the "X" factor. Repeatable, responsible, success. The "X" factor may not show up as the loudest voice in a meeting, or the boldest personality in a group of high achievers. Underestimate the "X" factor at your own risk. That person will kick your and everyone elses butt. Over time, they are the proven winner. Eddie made it look easy. Watch and learn from that person. I'm glad I did.
While working for Lehigh, I saw Marvin Neely, a fraternity brother from college, at the Tennessee Safety Conference, at the Opryland Convention Center. He and another fellow owned Respond First Aid in Nashville. They were growing, and he thought I could help them. A couple of months later, I went to work at Respond First Aid.
Not long after I left Lehigh, Matt Tiffany, our Shoe Center Manager, was promoted and replaced me as District Sales Manager. Jennifer Clark, our shoe store clerk, replaced Matt as Shoe Center Manager. The customers were happy, and sales were growing. With Matt and Jennifer, Lehigh was still in good hands. My time at Lehigh was like a two and a half year sprint. Matt and Jennifer took the baton from me, and kept running.
I have not talked to Eddie Horton in years. A quick google search, and he is still in Greenville South Carolina. He is the Sales Manager at Vulcan Safety Shoes. I think its awesome that his retail store is called, "Boot Camp."
Vulcan’s BOOT CAMP
They have 4.4 out of 5 stars on their Google Reviews. That doesn't surprise me either !
At this point, I'm feeling the need to reconnect with some people. I want to say, "Thank You", and let them know they were important to me back then, and now.
In that spirit, I appreciate Eddie Horton! I admire his work. I'm a fan, and a student. I learned important things from him.
Eddie's nature is to understand people, and make a living in sales. He showed me, and a bunch of other guys how to do that.
I just wanted him, and you to know.