{"id":1446,"date":"2015-03-16T13:49:12","date_gmt":"2015-03-16T17:49:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.peaksalesrecruiting.comblog\/order-takers-vs-order-makers\/"},"modified":"2023-04-11T19:41:25","modified_gmt":"2023-04-11T19:41:25","slug":"order-takers-vs-order-makers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.peaksalesrecruiting.com\/blog\/order-takers-vs-order-makers\/","title":{"rendered":"Is Your Sales Team Comprised of Order Takers or Order Makers?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img alt=\"Order Taker in Sales \" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-10978\" decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\" height=\"532\" src=\"https:\/\/media.peaksalesrecruiting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Sales-Order-Taker-vs-Order-Maker.png?strip=all&resize=710%2C532\" width=\"710\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Describe cold calling to someone outside of sales and they will cringe at the notion of contacting an unknown person and likely hearing that they don\u2019t want to speak. Even sales people who claim to embrace hunting will often avoid cold calling if given the choice.<\/p>\n<p>There is no doubt that prospecting for new customers is hard work and all but a few personality types have the disposition to embrace the practice and do it well. The practice, however, remains one of the most powerful ways for sales teams to achieve superior sales results (<a href=\"\/17-statistics-improve-cold-calling-2015\/\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"17 Statistics To Improve Cold Calling In 2015 \">check out these stats!<\/a>).<\/p>\n<p>But if you were to take a stroll through the average sales team across the country, as we often do at Peak Sales Recruiting, you would find that many of the sales people responsible for acquiring new customers are not only not suited to, but actually not doing the work that would lead to finding new customers. This is particularly the case on sales teams where the responsibilities of the sales reps include a mix of managing existing accounts and finding new accounts, since this scenario allows the sales person to compensate for the lack of new business by delivering sales from existing accounts.<\/p>\n<p><strong>The Downside of Order Taking<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>While pursuing easy sales sounds like a smart thing for sales teams to do, there is a huge risk involved without some degree of balance between sales from the existing customer base and new customers. Sales might be strong in the short-term, but will suffer in the long-term as the sales team looks for low hanging fruit and becomes reactive rather than continually staying ahead of the competition and regularly bringing aboard ideal customers that can contribute to long term growth and profitability.<\/p>\n<p>Many sales managers don\u2019t like to admit that their sales teams may be relying too much on existing accounts, but the numbers won\u2019t lie. If there is a problem with the prospecting machine, it will show up in the sales results from new customers, before it shows up in the overall sales numbers.<\/p>\n<table class=\"tablepress tablepress-id-3\" id=\"tablepress-3\">\n<thead>\n<tr class=\"row-1 odd\">\n<th class=\"column-1\">ORDER TAKERS<\/th>\n<th class=\"column-2\">ORDER MAKERS<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody class=\"row-hover\">\n<tr class=\"row-2 even\">\n<td class=\"column-1\">Focus on any customer that is in buying mode regardless of whether the customer or transaction is ideal or not<\/p>\n<p>Find themselves in competitive scenarios where size of discounts often dictate who wins the business <\/p>\n<p>Wait for the phone to ring<\/p>\n<p>Do whatever they can to avoid making outbound calls \u2013 preferring to network and get referrals <\/p>\n<p>Sell what the customer asks for and leave money on the table because they are not conditioned to probe for higher value solutions <\/p>\n<p>Excel in the accounts that offer less opportunity and are less desirable to competitors   <\/p>\n<p>Regularly fall short of sales targets\n<\/td>\n<td class=\"column-2\">Target ideal customers whether they are in buying mode or not<\/p>\n<p>Spend working time penetrating and developing opportunities that will contribute to quota attainment<\/p>\n<p>Avoid competitive scenarios by speaking to prospects about needs before they have been identified and\/or acknowledged<\/p>\n<p>Win business based on value not price <\/p>\n<p>Create long term relationships by offering solutions to real customer needs  <\/p>\n<p>Transaction sizes are larger as a result of shaping transaction with the customer rather than simply selling what the customer asks for<\/p>\n<p>Consistently achieve or exceed sales targets\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p> #tablepress-3 from cache <\/p>\n<p>Which type of salespeople is your team made up of?<\/p>\n<p>For more on sales hunters, check out these articles:<br \/>\n\u2022 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksalesrecruiting.com\/blog\/job-description-various-positions\/\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Job Description of an Account Executive \/ Sales Hunter \/ New Business Developer\">Job Description of an Account Executive \/ Sales Hunter \/ New Business Developer<\/a><br \/>\n\u2022 Sales Compensation \u2013 Hunters vs. Farmers<br \/>\n\u2022 <a href=\"\/how-to-hire-sales-hunters\/\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"How to Hire Hunters\">How to Hire Hunters<\/a><\/p>\n<p> relpost-thumb-wrapper <\/p>\n<div class=\"relpost-thumb-wrapper\"><!-- filter-class --><\/p>\n<div class=\"relpost-thumb-container\">\n<h3>Related posts<\/h3>\n<div style=\"clear: both\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"clear: both\"><\/div>\n<p><!-- relpost-block-container --><\/p>\n<div class=\"relpost-block-container\"><a class=\"relpost-block-single\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksalesrecruiting.com\/blog\/sales-team-scaling\/\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"relpost-custom-block-single\" style=\"width: 150px; height: 215px;\">\n<div aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"relpost-block-single-image\" role=\"img\" style=\"background: transparent url(https:\/\/g9d6c5a5.rocketcdn.me\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/datadriven-150x150.jpg) no-repeat scroll 0% 0%; width: 150px; height: 150px;\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"relpost-block-single-text\" style=\"font-family: ProximaNova, sans-serif;;  font-size: 15px;  color: #6eba57;\">Sales Team Scaling: Building the Team You Need to Hit Your Targets<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/a><a class=\"relpost-block-single\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksalesrecruiting.com\/blog\/saas-sales\/\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"relpost-custom-block-single\" style=\"width: 150px; height: 215px;\">\n<div aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"relpost-block-single-image\" role=\"img\" style=\"background: transparent url(https:\/\/g9d6c5a5.rocketcdn.me\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/SaaS-Sales-150x150.jpg) no-repeat scroll 0% 0%; width: 150px; height: 150px;\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"relpost-block-single-text\" style=\"font-family: ProximaNova, sans-serif;;  font-size: 15px;  color: #6eba57;\">SaaS Sales: Navigating Unique Products, Commissions, and Metrics For Success<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/a><a class=\"relpost-block-single\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksalesrecruiting.com\/blog\/scale-your-sales-team\/\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"relpost-custom-block-single\" style=\"width: 150px; height: 215px;\">\n<div aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"relpost-block-single-image\" role=\"img\" style=\"background: transparent url(https:\/\/g9d6c5a5.rocketcdn.me\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/scale-team-150x150.jpg) no-repeat scroll 0% 0%; width: 150px; height: 150px;\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"relpost-block-single-text\" style=\"font-family: ProximaNova, sans-serif;;  font-size: 15px;  color: #6eba57;\">3 Signs You\u2019re Ready to Scale Your Sales Team<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/div>\n<p><!-- close relpost-block-container --><\/p>\n<div style=\"clear: both\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><!-- close filter class --><\/div>\n<p> close relpost-thumb-wrapper <\/p>\n<div class=\"abh_box abh_box_down abh_box_business\">\n<ul class=\"abh_tabs\">\n<li class=\"abh_about abh_active\"><a href=\"#abh_about\">About<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"abh_posts\"><a href=\"#abh_posts\">Latest Posts<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div class=\"abh_tab_content\">\n<section class=\"vcard abh_about_tab abh_tab\" style=\"display:block\">\n<div class=\"abh_image\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" class=\"avatar avatar-80 photo\" height=\"80\" src=\"https:\/\/media.peaksalesrecruiting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/1cfb2152f763e6118839d97c16339339s80ampdmmamprg.png?strip=all\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.peaksalesrecruiting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/1cfb2152f763e6118839d97c16339339s160ampdmmamprg.png 2x\" width=\"80\"\/><\/div>\n<div class=\"abh_social\">\n<div style=\"clear: both; font-size:12px; font-weight:normal; width: 85px; margin: 0 0 2px auto; line-height: 20px;\">Connect:<\/div>\n<p><a class=\"abh_twitter\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/eliotburdett\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Twitter\"><\/a><a class=\"abh_google\" href=\"https:\/\/plus.google.com\/+EliotBurdettPeakSalesRecruiting?rel=author\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Google Plus\"><\/a><a class=\"abh_linkedin\" href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/eliotburdett\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"LinkedIn\"><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"abh_text\">\n<h3 class=\"fn name\"><a class=\"url\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksalesrecruiting.com\/author\/eliotburdett\/\">Eliot Burdett<\/a><\/h3>\n<div class=\"abh_job\"><span class=\"title\">CEO<\/span> at <span class=\"org\">Peak Sales Recruiting<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"description note abh_description\">Before Peak, Eliot spent more than 20 years building and leading companies, where he took the lead in recruiting and managing high performance sales teams. He co-founded Ventrada Systems (mobile applications) and GlobalX (e-commerce software). He was also Vice President of Sales for PointShot Wireless.<\/p>\n<p>Eliot received his B. Comm. from Carleton University and has been honored as a Top 40 Under 40 Award winner.<\/p>\n<p>He co-authored Sales Recruiting 2.0, How to Find Top Performing Sales People, Fast and provides regular insights on sales team management and hiring on the Peak Sales Recruiting Blog.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<section class=\"abh_posts_tab abh_tab\">\n<div class=\"abh_image\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" class=\"avatar avatar-80 photo\" height=\"80\" src=\"https:\/\/media.peaksalesrecruiting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/1cfb2152f763e6118839d97c16339339s80ampdmmamprg.png?strip=all\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.peaksalesrecruiting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/1cfb2152f763e6118839d97c16339339s160ampdmmamprg.png 2x\" width=\"80\"\/><\/div>\n<div class=\"abh_social\">\n<div style=\"clear: both; font-size:12px; font-weight:normal; width: 85px; margin: 0 0 2px auto; line-height: 20px;\">Connect:<\/div>\n<p><a class=\"abh_twitter\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/eliotburdett\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Twitter\"><\/a><a class=\"abh_google\" href=\"https:\/\/plus.google.com\/+EliotBurdettPeakSalesRecruiting?rel=author\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Google Plus\"><\/a><a class=\"abh_linkedin\" href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/eliotburdett\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"LinkedIn\"><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"abh_text\">\n<h4>Latest posts by Eliot Burdett <span class=\"abh_allposts\">(<a href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksalesrecruiting.com\/author\/eliotburdett\/\">see all<\/a>)<\/span><\/h4>\n<div class=\"abh_description note\">\n<ul>\n<li> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksalesrecruiting.com\/blog\/books-about-sales-management-and-sales-leadership\/\">20 Of Our Favorite Books About Sales Management and Sales Leadership<\/a><span> &#8211; October 20, 2023<\/span> <\/li>\n<li> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksalesrecruiting.com\/blog\/how-to-make-progress-on-your-sales-goal-without-a-sales-leader\/\">How To Make Progress On Your Sales Goal Without A Sales Leader<\/a><span> &#8211; September 15, 2021<\/span> <\/li>\n<li> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksalesrecruiting.com\/blog\/how-cmos-can-retain-talent-during-the-great-resignation\/\">Augment Your Recruiting Strategy During \u201cThe Great Resignation\u201d<\/a><span> &#8211; July 26, 2021<\/span> <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"et_social_bottom_trigger\"><\/span> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Describe cold calling to someone outside of sales and they will cringe at the notion of contacting an unknown person and likely hearing that they don\u2019t want to speak. Even sales people who claim to embrace hunting will often avoid cold calling if given the choice. There is no doubt that prospecting for new customers<\/p>\n<div><a class=\"text-primary mt-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksalesrecruiting.com\/blog\/order-takers-vs-order-makers\/\">&#8230;continue reading <span class=\"sr-only\">&#8220;Is Your Sales Team Comprised of Order Takers or Order Makers?&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"limit_modified_date":"","last_modified_date":"","cybocfi_hide_featured_image":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1446","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sales-management"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.peaksalesrecruiting.com\/wp-json\/\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1446"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.peaksalesrecruiting.com\/wp-json\/\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.peaksalesrecruiting.com\/wp-json\/\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.peaksalesrecruiting.com\/wp-json\/\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.peaksalesrecruiting.com\/wp-json\/\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1446"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.peaksalesrecruiting.com\/wp-json\/\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1446\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.peaksalesrecruiting.com\/wp-json\/\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1446"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.peaksalesrecruiting.com\/wp-json\/\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1446"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.peaksalesrecruiting.com\/wp-json\/\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1446"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}