What are the key ingredients for making a great arboricultural salesperson?

I have seen surefire, can’t-miss candidates crash on the rocks of life. On the other hand, I’ve seen people I thought had no shot become stars. I have had the privilege of working with some incredible arboricultural salespeople, people who sell a lot of year-round work. That’s a huge part of selling tree care. Anyone can be a star in May or June.

Always be honest. If a client asks you something you don’t know, don’t make something up. Tell them you will find out and get back to them. The author, left, with a client. All photos courtesy of David Anderson.

Each of these salespeople was very different. Left brained, right brained, extroverted, introverted, some great technical arborists and others not so much. Male, female, all races, creeds and cultures. All of them were very effective in their own way. However, there have to be some common factors. The following are the key characteristics.

Honest
Hmm, I bet you didn’t see that one coming, especially first. An honest sales weasel? What is more important than your reputation, both yours, personally, and that of your company? Saying whatever you need to say to make a sale may work for a while, but it will catch up to you.

Always be honest. If a client asks you something you don’t know, don’t make something up. Tell them you will find out and get back to them. Don’t over promise, admit when you make a mistake, give accurate bills that match your proposal. Doing the right things consistently will go a long way toward building your company brand and personal brand. This is the first step in creating a referral stream.

Coachable
When I first started selling, I was a know-it-all. Because I had strong arboricultural knowledge and I liked to talk, I thought I knew how to sell – nope! I was truly blessed to have some incredible mentors: Mark Tobin, Joe Camilleri and Scott McPhee, to name just a few. When I started doing what they told me to, my sales took off. Interesting? They were about the same if not better at the horticultural piece than I was, but they had experience knowing what worked and what did not.

You need to swallow your pride, listen and learn from someone who is successful. At the same time, you need to develop your own style. Emulate the qualities you like in others, avoid their bad habits and be the best version of yourself.

When I show up on a property, my goal is to know every plant and to evaluate its condition. If I don’t know something, I figure it out. I am not ashamed to say I’m still learning every day.

Not afraid to fail
Good salespeople are not afraid of making mistakes, being unliked or being rejected. You won’t get anywhere if you are afraid, because all of the above will happen – a lot. Whenever you read about the most successful people, you always hear them talk about how they struggled in the beginning. What’s the difference between successful people and average people? Perseverance. This is one of the most important, indisputable facts of sales. This is where I see most people fail, because they give up.

Is rejection fun? Is making mistakes a good thing? Will everyone like you and want to buy from you? All rhetorical questions, obviously. Failure is good. It’s a great life lesson. It makes you better. It’s OK to be uncomfortable or afraid. It’s not OK to turtle and give up. When it does not go your way, evaluate, learn and say “Next.”

Service oriented
Treat your clients, prospects and co-workers like you want people to treat your mom. Look at the world from their perspective. You need to want to solve people’s problems. Be easy to work with. Return all calls, emails and texts withing 12 hours. Set realistic expectations and surpass them. If you make a mistake, fix it ASAP and don’t haggle. Yes, there are jerks in the world who will take advantage of you. Hopefully you figure this out before you work with them. If not, take care of them and never accept work from them again. You need to truly care and walk your talk. Many people talk a good game about client service, but their reality does not match their rhetoric.

Not afraid to talk about money
Being afraid of talking about money is a very common ailment that a lot of people struggle with. It is natural when you first start, but you need to grow out of it quickly. You need to be comfortable talking about money or their budget. The good news is, it’s not your money! The tree business fits Murphy’s law: “Anything that can go wrong will go wrong.” Don’t be afraid to charge a fair rate for your service. Hopefully, your company knows its costs, so you have a price structure on which to base what to charge. Price the work as if things will take longer. Add one to two hours to every line item. If you think you will make money charging $3,200, charge $3,600. Don’t be afraid to make money.

Do you want to make money, have nice equipment and have the best staff? I don’t hear too many arborists complaining they’re too profitable. You don’t want to gouge people, because, like being dishonest, that will catch up to you. On the rare occasions you proposed a job at $12,000 and your team got it done for $5,000, charge $6,500. That is a great way to deepen your relationship with the client, because everyone wins. That’s also a much better scenario than if you proposed the job at $5,000 and it cost you $12,000. Even if you have the hutzpah to have that conversation, it’s not as much fun.

Able to communicate well
Stop me if you’ve heard this one before. You need to have excellent written and verbal communication skills. More important, think about what is the most effective and appropriate method for each situation. Some clients prefer text or email, but some want to speak on the phone. Gear your communication to what is best for each client’s preferred style. However, if something goes wrong or the situation calls for a face-to-face meeting, don’t send a text. In our modern world, we often prioritize our convenience over client service. As Stephen Covey wrote in his groundbreaking book, “The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People,” “You want to be effective with people and efficient with things.” If you would rather send an email because you are afraid to talk to someone in person or on the phone, you are miscast as a sales rep.

Be sure to set expectations or, better yet, lower expectations. If you don’t tell them you need to be in the driveway and your crew puts the truck in the driveway, they can get upset. If you don’t set their expectations for how the tree will look post pruning or how big the brush piles will be, you can set yourself up for a problem. Most of us have had the uncomfortable conversation when the client came home to “the huge brush pile.”

Over-communicate throughout the sales cycle. It is better they are aggravated by you over-communicating than having them truly upset because you made a mistake that could easily have been avoided.

Be a great arborist
Being an expert sets you apart. Have you ever seen someone working on a tree or shrub they couldn’t identify? How do they know what to do? Why aren’t they embarrassed? Don’t be a ham and egger; we don’t need any more of those in our industry.

When I show up on a property, my goal is to know every plant and to evaluate its condition. Are there structural defects, insects, disease or cultural issues. If I don’t know something, I figure it out. I am not ashamed to say I’m still learning every day. That’s what I love about what I do. Being an expert separates you from the crowd. This is a key component to making the sale and garnering referrals. This also allows you to work for a wealthier demographic of client who wants someone who knows what they are doing, not just the lowest bidder.

Put in the hours
It’s ironic how salespeople have the reputation of being lazy. Most of the salespeople I know are incredibly hardworking. Being a commissioned salesperson, you need to put the time in. They call it a numbers game for a reason. The good news is, the harder you work, the more you can make. If you don’t want to work some Saturdays, if you want to go home early every day or you are a clock-watcher, you won’t make it. Especially at the beginning, you need to put the time and effort into mastering your craft. The good news is, if you put in your time, you will eventually have a more flexible schedule. Because you have built your reputation, developed relationships and are known as an expert, it gets easier. However, there are no short cuts.

Be resilient
At times this can be a lonely job. Especially when things are not going well. You need to be mentally and emotionally tough. Even good salespeople will have slumps that may affect their confidence. No matter how desperate you are, never let the prospect know. They can smell it on you like a dog can smell fear. Even if you cannot make your mortgage payment, act like you don’t need the work. Like a great batter being in a slump, this too shall pass. Stay confident, be consistent and be resilient.

A good salesperson knows their job is never done. No matter how big of a backlog you have, you never have enough work. You know how to sell work year-round so your team has work and you can increase your sales, which means your salary.

Being an expert separates you from the crowd. This is a key component to making the sale and garnering referrals.

Network
Build your brand by getting your name out there, whether it is through social media, presenting to garden clubs, sending newsletters or direct mail, partnering with landscapers or all of the above. If you don’t have a plan, create one. When you are a little slower in the winter, make a plan and do as much work as you can. Put things in your calendar throughout the year and stick to the plan. Do a little bit of everything, but focus on the things you are best at. Working on your networking strengths, like any other endeavor, will give you the best return on your time investment.

No excuses
Successful people don’t make excuses. If you want to be a victim who blames the world for why they are not doing well, don’t go into sales. There is no hiding in sales; your numbers tell the world who you are and how you are doing. If the thought of this gets your juices flowing, you will be great. When you do all the right behaviors and you see your name at the top, it’s a wonderful feeling. That is tangible proof that you have earned your success.

Conclusion
Being a successful salesperson is not hard if you are willing to learn and put in the effort. If you love tree care, whether you have been doing it a long time or just got started, it’s a great job. Individually, these ingredients are simple; however, mastering all of these skills is more of a challenge. This is not a job where you can just show up and go through the motions. That is why some of these requirements are listed with brutal honesty, possibly misconstrued as being mean. That is why some people who seem like sure things don’t succeed in sales, while others who seem unlikely candidates are incredibly effective.

For owners and managers, this list can help you evaluate your present sales team, vet potential new hires and evaluate possible in-house candidates. No one is perfect, so give people a chance, coach them and move on if they’re not performing.

David M. Anderson, CTSP and Massachusetts certified arborist, is a manager with Mayer Tree Service Inc., a 33-year TCIA member company based in Essex, Massachusetts. He also is a member of the TCI Magazine Editorial Advisory Committee.

For more on sales, see Anderson’s article, “A Successful Sales Process Outline.”