From Paris to Monaco: A Sales Simulation Journey in Personal Banking

A year of challenging sales,?a well-earned promotion,?and way too many white-knuckling commutes prepared me for what came next: an all-expenses-paid journey to the heart of the French Riviera. Our first big personal banking event was a world away from my daily grind. Our journey started in the captivating city of Paris, where we were treated to a lavish dinner at one of the city's most renowned restaurants. The evening was a culinary masterpiece with a generous selection of fine French wines.

The group dwindled as the night went on, leaving a few of us to venture into the Parisian nightlife at the infamous Crazy Horse Cabaret. The performance was mesmerizing, a sensation of elegance and sensual provocation.

From Paris's captivating charm,?we journeyed to Monaco,?the glittering jewel of the Riviera.?A day of team building awaited us in the form of a treasure hunt along the stunning coastline.

The workshop in Monaco was held at the bank's training facility,?a large room filled with immaculate white office furniture.?Amidst this sea of white,?two items stood out:?a clunky,?old projector with a fan that sounded like a rotary plane engine and a mounted camera in the far corner,?an unusual sight in this setting.

The instructor fired up the projector,?positioned a slide on top,?and, after some fiddling,?finally got the zoom right.?"Role-play" was the word inscribed at the top.?Up until then,?the term was utterly foreign to me.?It reminded me of a specific two-word phrase ending in "play," but this was an entirely different concept with different outcomes.

The instructor kicked off by explaining the workshop's format,?splitting us into pairs for role-playing scenarios.?Each scenario involved one person playing a client and the other a sales manager,?simulating real-world interactions.?He emphasized that we would be evaluated on key criteria:?product knowledge,?the effectiveness of our sales pitch,?and both verbal and nonverbal communication skills.

The mention of "nonverbal communication" drew blank stares from many participants, prompting the instructor to elaborate. To clarify the concept, he used the term "body language. "I couldn't help but smirk at this, but the instructor's sharp glance quickly silenced me. Clearly, after years of dealing with students, he knew exactly where my mind was headed.

My teammate was Polanda,?who worked at the bank's branch in Luxembourg and had been my host during my visit to the Benelux region.

I was selected as the first "Sales Manager," with Polanda as the client.?The instructor took her aside, whispering instructions and rules of engagement.

The scenario for my role-play with Polanda was as follows: Polanda was a corporate executive and a single mother residing in Luxembourg. She had a 12-year-old daughter and a significant deposit in our branch in Switzerland. My role was to cross-sell her a mutual fund focused on large U.S. company stocks.

The instructor requested that I step out, take five minutes to think about my sales pitch, and then return to start the role-play. He pointed out the camera in the corner and explained that the role-play would be recorded for later review.

After stepping out, I took time to strategize. I felt confident in my approach, which focused on Polanda's daughter. I planned to explain that the interest rate on her deposit wouldn't outpace inflation, meaning the future value of her money would diminish significantly by the time her daughter needed to attend college. To counteract this, I would recommend investing a portion of her funds in a well-performing mutual fund in the stock market.

My strategy hinged on leveraging an emotional connection: her daughter. I didn't realize this was a classic example of a dominant buying motive – the core emotional or psychological driver behind a customer's decision. Now, I refer to this concept as the "dominator" in my workshops and coaching sessions. At the time, my understanding was more instinctive selling, honed by street-smart sales tactics rather than formal marketing knowledge.

With practiced confidence, I strode into the room, ready to impress. But as I extended my hand to greet Poland, her unexpected words, "I'm sorry, I do not shake hands," shattered my composure. My face burned with embarrassment, and the seconds stretched into an agonizing silence.

Finally,?I gathered my wits,?mumbled an "I understand," and sat.?Despite the rocky start,?I launched into my pitch, focusing on her daughter as the cornerstone of my strategy.?Poland,?however,?played hard to get during the role-play, constantly interrupting me and not allowing me to finish my thoughts.?While irritating,?this behavior was not unfamiliar with real-life client interactions.

I managed to control my frustration,?maintain a smile,?and politely request that I finish my points.

Then, I began with the standard "profiling" procedure—a term we used in the old days that's pretty much the same as today's "qualifying." Old habits die hard, I guess. I still slip up and say "profiling" when I mean "qualifying." And that's not the only relic of the past I cling to—I still call nightclubs "discos" and sneakers "tennis shoes."

This "profiling" involved a ten-page questionnaire with three sections.?The first tested the client's financial knowledge, while the second explored their experience with investments like mutual funds,?bonds,?and stocks. The third section, though, was the real kicker. It was designed to assess risk tolerance with thought-provoking questions.

Given the conflicting responses from Polanda, I decided to play it safe. I refrained from suggesting alternative investment options except for a conservative mutual fund with a back-end load*, a low standard deviation, a modest beta, and a healthy Sharpe ratio. My focus was on protecting the client's capital rather than pursuing aggressive growth. In a real-world scenario, this cautious strategy might put my ability to meet the bank's revenue targets at risk. To break even, I needed to generate monthly revenue that was double my cost of sales, which included my salary and other HR expenses.

*Back-end load: A fee charged when an investor sells shares in a mutual fund.

However, the bank's real profits came from mutual funds, which charged a substantial 5% upfront commission and a 2.5% annual fee. This seems excessive, especially considering that less than 10% of large-cap fund managers outperform the S&P 500 over 15 years (as evidenced by the SPIVA U.S. Scorecard by S&P Global).

After profiling Polanda and recommending a suitable fund, I delved into the fund's details, highlighting its low standard deviation, Sharpe ratio, and beta. I explained these terms to illustrate the fund's low risk and ability to safeguard against inflation. She threw me a curveball mid-explanation: "Is the fund ethical?"

Caught off guard, I could only vaguely recall the concept of ethical investing from my school days and had never encountered it in my professional life. The idea of an unethical fund seemed foreign to me. How could a fund be unethical? I didn't know of any that were cruel to animals or violated human rights. My initial response was, "Of course it is." However, as the role-play continued, I began to grasp what she meant by ethical investing.

After completing our role-plays, the instructor rolled in a big-screen TV roughly the size of a wardrobe and began playing each role-play individually, soliciting comments and feedback. When it was my turn to see my performance on screen, it was my first time watching myself in action.

Initially, I was pleased with how I sounded, but that quickly turned to apprehension when I realized that my facial expression didn't match my tone—it was downright angry. I later dubbed this my "default face," or as some call it, the "resting bitch face."

The instructor highlighted several areas needing improvement in my sales pitch, focusing on tonality—the variations in pitch, volume, and voice cadence. He also discussed the cues I was sending through my body language, both positive and negative.

This experience sparked a deep respect and fascination for the art of verbal and non-verbal communication in sales, a passion that now drives my workshops and coaching engagements.

Since that pivotal workshop in Monaco, my sales training journey has been a whirlwind. I've transitioned from student to mentor, using role-play as my go-to training tool. But not just any role-play; it's a structured, purposeful exercise that maximizes learning.

Effective sales role-play requires clear objectives, realistic scenarios with defined roles, thorough preparation, structured feedback, repetition, a safe and supportive environment, an experienced facilitator, comprehensive debriefing, and adaptability.

Despite initial resistance due to discomfort with improvisation, role-play is fun and effective. Even recording sessions can be beneficial, adding another layer of challenge.

I emphasize all these elements in my workshops for an engaging and practical learning experience.

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