Innovation. You can't read a business article, blog or twitter feed without running across this word multiple times.

Innovation has been defined as: making changes in something established, especially by introducing new methods, ideas, or products.

Now, more than ever, it's a critical concept in the world of sales. Why? Without innovation, products and solutions become commodities. Commodities are considered so similar in value that price becomes a primary way to differentiate between commodity products and commodity suppliers.

Unfortunately (or fortunately), most people reading this cannot afford to win by having the lowest price. Instead, they are trying to sell the value the solution can help to create. By innovating, we show we are continuously committed to creating value for our customers. This value is what keeps executives engaged and procurement open-minded.

Innovation can come from many sources - disruptive competition, breakthrough technologies, best practices, etc. The one condition that is always required is deep insight into the customer's business. Consider business process/technology outsourcing as an example. This was an innovative solution leveraging existing technologies in a new manner, in response to customers who wanted to drive up efficiency and effectiveness while focusing on their core business and reducing FTEs.

As Gary Hamel said,


"Most of us understand that innovation is enormously important. It's the only insurance against irrelevance. It's the only guarantee of long-term customer loyalty. It's the only strategy for out-performing a dismal economy."


We would add that it's also the best way to stay ahead of commoditization. This is where we sales professionals come in. It's our job to gain deep insight into the customer's business, understanding where they're at and where they want to be in the future, so our companies can innovate and inspire. That means we're still the front line in positioning ourselves and our companies as true business resources for our customers.