After 5 years at the Hawaiian Regent, I was recruited to join the Westin Ilikai Hotel in sales. There were many lessons from the Ilikai and here is one that was most meaningful.
Shortly after starting at the Ilikai as a sales manager, a lead from the Hawaii Visitors Bureau (“HVB”) was assigned to me. As the lead was from the HVB, it was provided to all hotels in Honolulu which meant lots of competition for the same piece of business. Knowing that “the early bird gets the worm,” I decided to contact the principal by phone to avoid a delay in sending a letter by mail.
The call was made, but the response was not what I expected.
After introducing myself, expressing eagerness to promote the hotel, and great interest in having the business, he responded quite harshly to me. He said “I asked for a proposal, not a phone call. I do not have time to talk with you. Do you know how to write? Please send me your proposal by mail.”
His words reverberated in my mind repeatedly. I was shocked by the response but even more so because I did not understand what I did wrong. Why was he so hostile? This was a very low point for my young sales career. I wanted to be proactive but instead may have jeopardized the business and perhaps even my reputation.
After a few days of feeling sorry for myself, a light bulb flicked on brightly to guide me forward. I recalled in my mind every word of his response and noted that he did not say “No.” Instead, he said he wanted to receive a proposal by mail and not a phone call. So, I decided to prepare a proposal as requested and send it by mail.
My hopes were not high for a positive response after the phone call incident, but I remained hopeful. Several weeks went by with no reply and finally a letter in the mail. I was anxious to open the envelope, but also apprehensive to see the response. You can imagine the smile on my face when I read the letter to see that they wanted to discuss the proposal in more detail.
I promised myself that I would make every effort to secure this business and win their confidence. After several weeks of negotiations, we established a good relationship and ultimately secured the business. A very happy ending for the hotel and an even happier ending for me.
This is one of my earlier lessons and perhaps the most memorable. It taught me many aspects of sales and doing business:
1. Listen to the prospect
2. It is alright to be aggressive, sales people are aggressive but respect the prospect and his desires. He asked me to write instead of call.
3. Even if the answer is “No,” it is only an objection, and we should fully understand the objection first before moving forward to answer the objection. He did not say "No", he just did not have time to talk and wanted a letter.
4. Be patient. With every opportunity, there is a start and a finish.
5. Follow Through
6. Build a proper foundation, establish a relationship, and develop confidence.
This is only the beginning, there is much more to learn.
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