Print Solutions Magazine

“It’s just a difference of semantics.”

You’ll hear this when both parties to a discussion agree about the core meaning of a word or phrase but have different interpretations of nuances. I disagree with the notion that semantic differences are minor. In fact, terminology can change reality. For starters, let’s consider the words “sales” and “service.”

Describing someone as an effective sales rep implies that the individual is “a closer” and can develop new accounts. This characterization may be applied even though the sales rep might have unnecessarily lost some accounts, and incorrectly believes that “we’re getting everything” at current accounts. References to a “born salesman” imply that the individual is outgoing, focused and aggressive.

On the other hand, the word “service-oriented” implies that an individual is relatively non-confrontational, thoroughly dedicated to satisfying existing customers and slow to deliver incremental sales volume.

These impressions created by the words “sales” and “service” are unfair to customers, sales and customer service representatives, and to employers. The alleged “service-oriented” rep may be concentrating on improving the quality of the customer relationship in the short term to better the chances of account retention and sales volume in the long term. The rep often described as a born salesman is characterized as an individual capable of maximizing short-term sales volume but who may not invest the time and attention necessary to develop and penetrate a buying organization.

Both types of salespeople can be productive. Performance, not only behavior, is the key unit of measurement. Despite the implication of the words “sales” and “service,” volume has a quality as well as a quantity. The primary difference is the extent to which a buying organization perceives value in a supplier that transcends product and price.

Here’s more semantic hair splitting: “different” vs. “differentiated.” It’s easy for a supplier to be seen as different—staff can wear purple jumpsuits and strange haircuts. Differentiation, on the other hand, involves customer perception of unique benefits. Awareness of a company or product does not itself create competitive differentiation. In today’s commoditized print market, prospects and customers must have a solid reason to choose your company.

Our company’s research with print buyers tells us there is a widening chasm between buyers and sellers defining the word “neglect.” Until about 10 years ago, “neglect” meant, “Nobody’s calling on me.” Today, as a result of merging, downsizing and a general increase in the speed of business, buyers have less time to spend frivolously. Today they define “neglect” as, “A rep is calling on me but has nothing useful to say.”

A similar semantic twist involves “knowledge.” Before the computer age, it meant that an individual knew everything that was important and current about his or her vocation. “Knowledge” today is knowing who to call to get an answer.

Sales reps must understand how definitions of some commonly used words have changed. Semantic differences often are trivial, but they sometimes reveal important discrepancies in attitude between buyers and sellers.