The Ultimate Sales Machine by Chet Holmes
Book Review - 4.5 Stars
This is the first book from Chet Holmes and the full title is "The Ultimate Sales Machine: Turbocharge Your Business With Relentless Focus on 12 Key Strategies."
I hate it.
No, not the book. That's great.
The title
I've got to get this off my chest...
Why I Hate The Ultimate Sales Machine Title
I don't know whether Chet Holmes was badly advised or whether this is a moment of hubris.
I thought I would use one of the classic headlines to show one of the problems with "The Ultimate Sales Machine."
As a title it's so boring. It has little impact on me and I am a fan of Chet Holmes.
Second there is the use of the word "Ultimate."
It's not "great", or even "the greatest" but "the ultimate" - the best that can ever be. Job over then, this is as good as it gets!
This contradicts one of the key messages I get from Chet's work which is the need to drive for continuous improvement on a systematic basis.
When you already have "the ultimate", you know can't get better so there is no point trying.
It's arrogant and marketing the book, I think that the title is too easily dismissed as hype. The book deserves better.
Third I don't like the "Sales" in the title. When I think of Chet Holmes I think of business growth.
While that includes sales, it also includes much more.
I fear that the book will be pigeon-holed in the sales training sections of book stores.
It will be looked at by sales reps and sales managers instead of the CEOs and managing directors who need to be reading it.
Even worse, in the sales section I don't believe it will be bought as only chapter 10 is on sales skills - all 17 pages to introduce the seven stage process. The seventh stage "follow up" has its own chapter.
I can't see why someone looking for a sales book would choose The Ultimate Sales Machine over some of the much more focused sales books by Brian Tracy, David Sandler and a host of others.
Finally I object to the word "Machine."
It underplays the importance of people and again this contradicts some of my biggest take-aways from Chet's work in terms of involving the team in continuous improvement and hiring sales superstars.
Sorry, a long rant about the title but the more I thought about reviewing this great book, the more irritated I became with the choice of title.
Chet Holmes Big Idea in The Ultimate Sales Machine
People over-complicate what is needed for business success.
Chet believes you just have to:
- Focus on 12 key strategies rather than trying to master hundreds of different ideas and techniques.
- You implement these 12 strategies with pigheaded discipline and determination.
I fully commend the last point. Too often people try something that looks a great idea in a half-hearted way. They are then disappointed with the results, decide that the idea wasn't so good after all and move on to the next big thing.
I also like the focus on major themes and take a similar approach in my Eight Pillars of Business Prosperity coaching system.
The Key Business Growth Strategies of Chet Holmes outlines in The Ultimate Sales Machine
- Really effective time management
We all have to find our own system that we are prepared to commit to and be disciplined. My system is based on the Chet Holmes system with a few minor tweaks.
Chet contrasts his early experiences when he was running businesses for billionaire Charlie Munger. Chet was a typical reactive manager, letting his staff dictate the agenda and doing his own work after hours and at home. In contrast, his meetings with Charlie Munder were at set times and very focused on a strict agenda.
- Instituting higher standards and regular training
Chet rips into the traditional training practises which lack follow up so any knowledge gained is quickly lost. Please note focused follow-up is a key advantage of the coaching approach.
Chet reports that up to 90% of people aren't natural learners.
I am. I love to learn and pass on my knowledge but you can see that from this blog.
All the professions like doctors, dentists, solicitors and accountants had to introduce mandatory continued professional development to make sure that people keep up-to-date.
Chet asks the question "Shouldn't it be the same for you and your staff?"
He recommends a system of group training for a minimum of one hour per week based on getting the most out of the key strategies. This could be working through each one in turn and then repeating with a slightly different theme or it might mean focusing on one discipline for ten weeks to correct a major problem.
- Effective meetings
This chapter gives more detail on how to run these meetings or workshops to deliver regular improvements in your planning, procedures and policies. Good advice for many people who probably haven't received training in this area.
- Taking a strategic approach
Too many people are tactical and work on a day by day basis when far more success can be created if you focus on your longer term aims and make sure that all your tactics move you closer to your longer term vision.
Chet recommends educating your prospective customers so that you set the buying criteria and again this is an approach that I strongly believe in.
Why try to play the game to someone else's rules if you can change the rule book by having a better understanding of the opportunities and threats that your customers face.
An idea I like is the stadium pitch. What would you say if you had the initial attention of all the possible buyers of your product or service but they could walk away at any time?
It's a powerful question on its own but Chet also introduces us to a pyramid of potential customers - some are actively looking to buy, some are thinking about buying but not doing anything about it yet, some are not thinking about it, some don't think they are interested and the last category know in their own minds that they are not interested.
It could mean 90% of the audience are ready to walk out as soon as you say "Hi my name is Joe and I sell..."
It could be different if you had a story so powerful that all three bottom categories heard a headline and it connected with them and was immediately relevant.
For example suppose you had a product or service that you only sold to dentists eg a computerised appointment booking and record maintenance system.
If you stand up and describe the product, its features and benefits then the vast majority are probably going to leave immediately. They do not naturally fall into the interested category.
If instead, you stand up and talk about the "11 serious threats to the profits of dentists over the next decade and what can be done to turn these threats into opportunities", you are suddenly connecting with all your target market.
It's a powerful technique and Chet been very successful with it when he has developed the stadium pitch into a core story to use in sales presentations.
My one concern is that it works when one company does it, but it will not be so good when a number of competitors learn the technique.
So as well as our "11 serious threats..." there is also "The seven easy to implement steps every dentist must take to boost their profits by 20% year after year". The impact is reduced and the technique becomes cliched.It is even worse when you realise that it might not be just your competitors who are doing this. What about other specialist suppliers to dentists?
- Hiring superstars
There is some fantastic advice on hiring superstar sales people in this chapter that will knock your socks off.
It is that good and like many things so obvious when you learn it. The technique explains why men like Chet Holmes attract the high performers while the rest of us attract the salespeople who are nice but struggle to handle the rejections that inevitably come their way.
- Targeting your best buyers
More excellent advice about focusing your marketing on the target customers that you believe really matter with tips on how to do it. This is one area that you will have been told about before but do you do it and if so, do you do it with pig-headed determination?
- The seven musts of marketing
You can't rely on just using one weapon to attract new customers so Chet echoes messages from Jay Abraham (the Power Parthenon) and Jay Conrad Levinson (200 Guerrilla Marketing weapons).
The book gives some solid advice on advertising and trade shows but the treatment of some of the other areas is superficial compared to what you can get from the two mentioned marketing giants.
- Better presentation skills
Some good advice in this section including some common mistakes that presenters make. If you are a sales professional, you may have heard it before and I have a problem with "death by powerpoint."
- Winning the best buyers
Picking up on the theme of chapter 6 on the importance of targeting your best buyers, the book now reveals practical advice on how to make it happen including tips on getting past the gatekeepers.
- Sales skills
For Chet, selling is a seven stage process - establishing rapport, qualifying the buyer based on need, building value by matching your product to their buying criteria, creating a stronger desire, overcoming objections, closing the sale and following up.
As you can see, there is nothing revolutionary in his sales process. It is still good sensible advice and I recommend you use a systematic process that moves you along.
- Follow-up and client bonding
This essentially covers two vital topics.
The first stops what is known as post purchase dissonance and happens when an order is cancelled. What seems like a good idea with the sales person, no longer seems a good idea when you are on your own.
The second correctly identifies that as a general rule, you don't make the bulk of your money on the first transaction but on the subsequent business which relies on developing the relationship.
- Goals and measures
Standard material but rarely done well.
Conclusion on The Ultimate Sales Machine by Chet Holmes
The Ultimate Sales Machine by Chet Holmes is excellent and I recommend you add it to your library of business books, read it and put the ideas into practice.
I first encountered Chet's techniques through the course materials from major seminars with Jay Abraham and Jay Conrad Levinson, both of whom say very nice things about Chet. As such there was little in the book that was new to me although it is structured in a slightly different way.
You will find it an easy to read, powerful and inspiring book that puts the emphasis on action. You will certainly see why Chet Holmes is one of the business development superstars that I promote.
It's just a shame about the title.
You can buy The Ultimate Sales Machine from Amazon UK or USA.
The Ultimate Sales Machine is also available in summary form from Soundview.
The idea that somebody else reads the best business books and then produces short summaries for you to take the best ideas from is excellent. Soundview have produced an excellent summary of the book and has been updated by Chet Holmes himself.
What Do You Think About The Ultimate Sales Machine?
Have you read the book? Do you agree with my review? It would be great if you could leave a comment.
Chet Holmes has contributed a series of audio recordings to Scott Hallman's Small Business Growth Club which is a superb resource, even without the additional material from Chet. See Chet Holmes in the Small Business Growth Club for more details.
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