I call BS on "people don't like to be sold to" -- a mini Rant

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I just keep seeing these articles and blog post about how people don't like to be sold to... Ughhhh.

I call BS on "people don't like to be sold to"

This myth comes from hipsters who don't know how to sell, and think they have it made because they got angel funding or VC capital. What happens when those sources dry up and the have to generate real revenue?

They have to sell their product in order to get MONEY.

Selling is not a bad thing.
Again, selling is not a bad thing.

Sales is the cornerstone for capitalism. Every business sells something, be it a product or a service. That is the only way they stay in business, and pay the gatekeepers who try to screen sales calls( the irony of that).

All those prospects, who try to shut you down, are selling something themselves,
Unless they are a government agency or a non-profit.


Stop with the people don't want to be sold, because I'm here to tell you they do want to be sold.

You just need to understand how to sell to various types of personalities. Some people want a consultative approach. Others want and need for you to tell them what you want them to buy. Guess what, they will buy from you if you tell them what to do.

Stop thinking that you can create real relationships with all of your customers/clients through email only. Some will be happy with a total email relationship, while others want and need to hear a voice. Actually talking and listening to prospect generates lots of $$$$$$.

As long as people are people, sales will never die. You need to learn different methods of selling, to be able to close various personalities.

While it is true most buyers use the internet to research products, before speaking with salespeople, there is so much information out there many of them get confused and need a salesperson to sell them on why, as a customer, they are making the right decision choosing the salespersons product/service. Selling.

Selling is not a bad thing.
Selling is a very good thing.
Selling others on your product/service is not a bad thing.

Just stop already with the people don't want to be sold to. YES THEY DO


whewwww... now that I have that off of my chest. thank you
#offline marketing #call #mini #people #rant #sold
  • That "What happens when.." is coming.. its called a recession and IT IS coming.. and those hipsters with all that VC capital...they wont be selling... they will have JOBS.

    Driving to their just above minimum wage job, in their precious Lambo and parking it off in some dark corner because the repo man is coming.. wondering how they got there?!?!
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  • People don't like being cold called. They don't like their day interrupted...and they don't like being pressured by incompetent desperate salespeople.

    But they love being sold by someone who knows how to sell.

    People love it when you pay attention to them. They love expressing their opinions, they love people catering to their needs.

    They love seeing the latest, greatest, best products and services. And they love buying them.

    I've said this before, great selling is like giving the customer a massage. If you have ever talked with a master salesperson, you know what I mean.

    Every modern convenience, every technological advancement, every change in or culture...had to be sold.

    Selling isn't something you do to people. Great selling is something you do for people.
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    • The only thing one needs to add to the above is:

      people (the person).

      Which is whole nuther specialty.

      Maybe a million years ago, when dinosaurs blocked my path to the doorways of profit, my mentor hit me over the head with the following mantra:

      SEE the people. See the right people, at the right time and place, and then see more of them, (and we never carried a club on our shoulders either).

      Thanks posters for the truth of selling...

      GordonJ
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  • Great to see you back!

    People want to buy...and they want help in making that buying decision.

    Your intention as the salesperson is key.
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  • Reminds me of shopping for gardening equipment with my aged mother vs. shopping with my aged father.


    Mom and Dad loved gardening. Both would spend lots of money on gardening equipment and lots of time working the gardens. Both hated shopping with each other. Each one would drag me along separately. The day came when both were in wheelchairs. Long story short, I did the shopping and all of the garden work.


    From the beginning I knew there would be problems. Not the kind of problems where I had to separate the two for cause of body harm even though I did have to separate them only once when Dad caught Mom flashing herself to the next door neighbor, lol.


    At one point I realized I needed a company that would provide their respective gardening needs. Simple things like weekly grass cutting, picking up fallen tree limbs, planting new seed and the occasional heavy jobs like cutting down trees and removal to include minimal plowing.


    After contacting many landscapers that would provide the full services I was surprised that almost all of them were proud to convey something like "We aren't trying to sell you anything."


    When I heard that my immediate reply was something like "You don't understand. I am here to pay good money for you service and if you cannot sell me what I need then I have to look elsewhere." Their eyes always popped at that and they immediately changed their mindset. Little did they know, once you step into my mindset, you better step it up. lol.


    In my offline business hundreds of low to middle income people buy from my business simply because I and my people always explain to customers that when the are in the buying posture then we go into the selling posture all in their best interest.


    "Your Best Interest" is the key phrase I demand all of my sales people use. Attention to the customer's needs is paramount to the sale. The Attention provides the Discovery which provides the Solution and I call it ADS and ingrain it in all of salespeople.


    Once the customer realizes they are being sold a solution to the problem the end result is a customer feels they made the right buying decision. BTW, followup with a happy customer makes for repeat sales :-)
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    • If that were the case, then sales quotas would be "number of satisfied customers".
      Instead it's number of calls, number of sales. Big conflict of interest.

      And one of the common reasons for shift to online buying is not having the deal with idiot salespeople...
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    • Most business owners aren't salespeople. In fact most salespeople aren't salespeople.
      "We aren't trying to sell you anything" is a positioning statement, because they still think selling is something bad...or socially unacceptable.

      I was sharing the stage with about 6 other speakers at a trade show. I spoke first, and at the end mentioned I had a book that they could order. Every speaker after me made it a point to say "I don't have a book to sell you", like it was a virtue. It was a way to position themselves as nobody special...just one of the guys.

      I have had a few people walk in my store selling something, and they say "I'm not selling anything" or "I'm not a salesman" The last couple of people that said that,I replied... "That's too bad. I buy from salespeople every day. Have your company send someone next time that can sell".

      Salespeople...trying to hide the fact that they are selling something...disgusts me. Be proud of what you do, or do something else.
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  • People want to buy, but they don't want to be sold to.

    When people are sold to, they feel as though they're not in control. Always let the customer feel as though they're in control.

    They're looking for information that ALLOWS them to make the right decision. As a salesperson (a good one), you're finding out what they need to know to make that decision...even if sometimes they're not sure (you ask questions)...and you allow them to buy.

    You guide them through the process to the point where they sell themselves.

    Difference between sales people that try to sell and sales people that are super stars.
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    • You always let the buyer be in control. If you try to pressure them, the only way they can get even with you...is to not buy.

      But at some point in the conversation you have to establish (through answering questions expertly) that you are an authority and your recommendations are valued.

      Asking the customer for their insights..for their opinions...is how you learn how to perfectly match them to your offer (assuming there is really a match).

      In my selling, at some point I ask "May I make a recommendation?". They always say "yes" and then I recommend what they really want anyway...unless it's really a bad decision on their part.

      Just giving information until they make a decision is a way to sell, but you aren't doing anything they couldn't get from a brochure. It's the difference between giving them information and giving them advice.


      By the way, I used to get store owners in my industry ask if they could visit my store and just watch me sell for a day. And I would let them.

      They were always disappointed. Someone would come in, I'd help them, they would leave. This may happen 20 times in a day.

      And three people would buy an expensive vacuum cleaner from me.

      They were disappointed because they expected to see an aggressive salesman that tried to sell a high end vacuum cleaner to everyone that came through the door.

      I would mention the three that bought, and the visitor would say "Yeah, but they came in to buy".

      And they were wrong. Maybe one came in to buy something. The others two came in to get something for a few dollars, and I'd ask a few questions to find out if there was an opening to sell...to see if the idea was in the back of their mind already.

      Real selling is invisible. Like great acting. Great selling is, to the uninitiated, just a nice conversation that just happens to end with a purchase.

      An analogy to selling is playing the piano, or Karate.

      If you knew nothing about a piano......Most people would think that a great piano player is one that can hit the keys the hardest...make the loudest sound....maybe lift the piano.

      The best martial arts is the one that can yell the loudest, or kick the highest. That's what rank beginners think.

      And in selling, it's who's the most aggressive, the loudest, and who can dominate a weak buyer. Beginners think that. But none of this is skill. None of it is valuable.

      Asking questions...and really listening to the customer...and really trying to do the best thing for them, no matter how it affects you personally...is selling.

      The highest compliment a buyer can give me is "I feel so lucky that you just happened to have exactly what I needed".

      Man, apparently I love to hear myself talk.
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  • I wonder what triggered the OP's rant.

    Bet it wasn't someone claiming that sales is a noble profession!

    To any beginner: Position yourself as far from being a sales person as you can - your life will become much easier...
    • [3] replies

    • We all have our triggers, buttons that can be pushed and so on. At least we have a community open to understanding and no judgement from just one rant. No body is perfect, no salesman is perfect and no customer is perfect.
    • To any beginner: Position yourself as far from being the stereotype of a salesman as you can - your life will become much easier.

      It's not selling that people avoid like the plague...it's what they assume selling is....that they avoid.

      It's why I would insist on taking new salespeople with me on my own calls. Before they could learn any skill, and technique, anything to make their sales easier..I had to show them...and convince them that;

      1) Selling wasn't badgering people.
      2) Lying wasn't part of it. In fact accurate information was mandatory.
      3) People regularly bought, as a natural ending to the presentation.
      4) Even if they didn't buy, people are generally very nice, and nobody will yell at you.
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    • Actually, it was another blog post from an "expert."

      Sales is a noble profession, one which I am extremely proud of, and I happen to be very good at.

      Guess what, all of the prospects I approach are selling a product or service too!
      Exactly why should we be ashamed of that.

      Again, I am PROUD that I sell services that help my clients solve problems and generate more revenue, and they're happy with the services I provide and refer me to other businesses.

      Wow, capitalism at it's finest.

      To any beginner: Learn to become a great salesperson, be proud of it. Sales is not something everyone can do. Learning to sell is a great gift to yourself. Whether the economy is up or down you can always find work, if you know how to sell. If you start your own business, you will have to learn how to sell your product or service.

      Being a great salesperson is a very good thing.
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  • Even if the claim is ironic, generally speaking, in light of the loose hypothesis; receiving money and spending money are polar opposites.

    It's entirely subjective to the individual and what's being traded and it does require that degree of disection to stand as a remotely relevant statement from either side, otherwise it's just a fundamental comment based upon the structure of the ecomony.

    On a disected, specific and individual level, people in their millions can despise being sold certain products or services in certain ways. Equally, on the other hand, they can love it...
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  • Isn't the line, "I'm not selling anything" meant to lower the recipient's sales guard rather than an expression of loathing against selling? I thought it was. Anyhow, it's usually a lie and that's what I would have against it being used on me. Of course you're selling something. You're not interested in my well being, you don't even know me. Why else would you call me? And, how do you make your money then?

    Not liking to be "sold" predates hipsters. It's knowing the seller is attempting to box you into a purchase or agreement, recognizing the ol' sales tactics, so familiar and so worn out they get endlessly mocked in television and movies such as Martin Landau's character in "Entourage" with the formula sales line, "If I could show you how to [BENEFIT], would you be interested?"

    This is why techniques like, "is this a bad time to speak?" such as Kanigan advocates, work much better, because the salesperson isn't attempting to get an agreement out of the prospect.
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    • "I'm not selling anything" is an expression that assumes that the buyer will loathe selling.

      And yes, it's meant to lower the prospect's guard, but it's ineffectual, because it's obviously not true.

      It's right up there with "I'm losing money on this deal". Something a car "salesman" actually said to me.



      Another reason I like this is that it sounds like a regular conversation. Most books on selling, and most sales training...gives you this structured sequence that doesn't sound like two people talking. It sounds like one person setting a trap.

      "Is this a bad time?" is something a friend would say.....someone who respects your time.

      Yesterday I got a call from a friendly woman that started off with my name, and a joke.

      I asked "Who is this?", and after I found out, I hung up.

      Someone...somewhere...thought that this was a good approach. It reminded me of the old salesman meme where the glad handing guy in the loud suit is constantly laughing and joking. Anything to keep rapport from crumbling. Anything to avoid the crushing pain of rejection.

      By the way, it's good to read a post from you.
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  • I hate it when salespeople won't sell to me... when I am ready to buy.

    Last weekend we went into Home Depot to buy something that costs $800-$1000. Our property manager had told us that HD was the best place on our island to buy this item. We went to what we thought was the correct department and the very nice saleswoman said that sorry, they don't sell that.

    We came home and talked to the contractor our property manager recommended, and he said, yes, they sure do sell that item, and he told us exactly where in the store to find it.

    I think what was going on was that the very nice saleswoman, who probably within her department works on commission, didn't handle that item, so to her it didn't exist. Or she'd be damned if she was going to step a foot outside her department, mentally or physically. She wasn't like Claude and oriented toward helping us whether she'd get a commission or not. So she caused us to make an unnecessary extra trip to Home Depot, and could have potentially lost an $800-$1000 sale to Lowe's.

    (Except that the same thing happened at Lowe's!]
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    • From that, I can't help but read: 'I hate it when people aren't good at their jobs'.

      'Choosing not to sell' would be knowing that they have an item in stock, yet choosing not to allow you to purchase it.
    • I have learned over the years over hearing such conversations and walking into it and saying "Oh, those are over in the X isle.. I can take you there if you like." to know it does happen. After all you are asking a human being to know where every one of lord knows how many products are in that store.

      I have my goto set of people in each of the 2 stores to ask when looking for something that isn't where I think it should be, and KNOW that its in the store somewhere. BUT even then it comes down to simply looking at the little hand held device they have (not all associates carry one.. just ask associates if they have a handheld ) and not only will the hand held tell you where its at but how many are in stock.

      Human error or simple lack of knowledge is a humans greatest down fall.. if you don't know ASK. Its just hard for people to say its not that we don't.. I don't, and lets ask someone that might to be sure.

      Kinda a life lesson tucked into that one LOL

      PS this thread got so hi-jacked hahaha
  • Home Depot and other big box corporation mammoth stores like that don't really have salespeople.

    They are "Sales Associates", which is a fancy term for "warm bodies walking around for no apparent reason". These stores could save billions every year if they just stop hiring anyone who doesn't stock shelves, process returns and contractor orders or operate a register. This would also save them money in by reducing internal theft. Less employees = less internal theft.

    The money they save would offset any increase in shoplifting.

    I never ask these "sales associate" for help anymore. The outcome always just pisses me off and it's just not worth it.

    I presume this is why a regional grocery chain in my area is starting to roll out robot associates.
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    • My local Lowe's has associates that are eager to help, and know their stuff. I'm not sure if it's because they are there for so long, or that they are well trained. But it's one reason I shop there.
  • The people you see in the regular Departments are hourly paid employees of Home Depot. Unless you go into the certain sections. The people who promote cabinet refinishing,Kitchen design and a few others are paid by hourly and part of the sale.
  • ...I adapted the phrase "I'm not trying to sell you anything" cos its more than obvious I am.

    So I say, "I only want you to buy if you are happy" this seems to lower the resistance and puts the clients at ease.

    And it's true - not many will buy unless they are happy.


    Steve
  • I think selling is an issue when a saleman is trying to trick you to buy something you don't really NEED. No one wants to be told they need this or that for [insert bs reasons here] - only to find out later it was all a pack of lies.
  • Banned
    Interesting discussion. Sometimes I think the "intent" is important.

    Recently I had a sales call from my broadband provider ... And the guy was kind of "pushy" and somewhat stubborn and determined ... However I let him do his pitch and now I don't have to worry about my data allowance running out because I have a new plan with them ... (For less money than the original one.)

    2C
  • People want to be sold at certain points but not others; non-personal unsolicited emails are a point where most people don't want to be sold; people accept if not even want relevant product offers on passive channels such as Facebook or Google ads
  • I agree. Describe the product/service. Answer questions if they want to buy let them.
  • Its not about that they dont want to buy stuff but its about hating when people are trying only to sell ,they want to see also you deliver value
  • It's funny...I posted in a separate thread that I enjoy being sold, and someone commented, implying I was a sucker and would buy anything. They missed the point and didn't believe me when I explained my appreciation for the psychology and the process of selling.

    It seems like I should have instead presented my views here where the selling process is more appreciated.

    If I actually need something, why wouldn't I want a good sales person to sell me on that product? Tell me about all the features and how they will benefit me.

    What makes me a sucker is spending too much money on something I don't need....but if that happens, kudos to the sales person who got my dollar to feed their family.
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    • So you're putting your faith in someone who's job depends on them making their quota. Who will lose their home if they don't sell you something. Who's kids will starve if they don't sell you something...

      Surely in this day and age, you can figure out what you need yourself?
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    • My thought exactly. I want the highest paid waiter, the most successful suit salesperson, the best furniture salesperson. Why? Because their continued success shows that lots of people trust them, and the salesperson has delivered.

      My experience with top salespeople has always been positive. Sure they want a sale. We all do. But a sale is usually the result of answering questions, showing interest, and clear communications......not lying to the customer.

      It's the desperate con man that I want to avoid. The loser that goes from sales job to sales job. And in my experience, they are pretty easy to spot.
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  • Truly needing something and being convinced you 'need' something and two very different concepts.

    So too, in the same respect, there is a difference between necessity and convenience.

    The sales person usually strives to make convenience appear to be necessity.

    Things that are truly 'needed' don't require a good salesperson. For this reason, optimal selling doesn't derive from seeking the money, but seeking a problem and providing a solution to those who are fully aware that they are experiencing it.
    • [1] reply
    • If you're talking about food and water, that may be true, yes. What are some examples of things you're talking about that are truly "needed", but don't require a good salesperson?

      I still don't understand why people don't want a professional salesman helping them make educated decisions on what to buy. Maybe there is confusion between a professional salesman and a con man who will say anything to get a commission? And there's an assumption that we can't tell the difference and will make impulse decisions?
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  • i think maybe this should be said.

    Every new idea, every convenience, every new improved methodology...had to be sold. And it met with resistance.

    It's a near universal constant.

    So all this talk about what we "need" or whether we like selling or not, ignores the fact that all new ideas have to be sold, or innovation grinds to a halt.

    Except for shelter from the rain, fire, food and water....everything else is something we want. And that "want" was created by someone selling the idea.

    Whenever I hears someone sat that they don't like being "sold'...they mean they don't like being badgered by an incompetent salesperson. Great selling is invisible...seamless.
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  • Tellya, I ain't evah bein' cheated outta my fyooture by NO SCHMUCKS.

    So plz (sellers) form AN ORDERLY LINE ... preferably AT MY FEET ... so's I can figure STAAAMP (that is front foot Princess Acshwaaahn) or BURST (bcs heels are SHARP & I staaahmp FOR FREE) before I imbibe your crapola.

    Gotta be like bees buzzin' around, I guess ...

    "I was initially attracted to this beautiful amber bloom only to discover that when I sank my honey-loving extendables into its self-proclamatory pseudo-pollen wahoohole ... well, let's just say at that moment I envied flies on sh*t."
  • Banned


    Just thought I would post that little gem of advice. Looking back
    on my Broadband Sales Call experience, I didn't particularly like
    the Salesperson's approach (kind of "pushy" and "stubborn") ...

    However I recognized the value in the proposition and now I'm
    thrilled because I don't have to worry about my data running out
    ... And all for less money than my former plan.

    So maybe remember to focus on the value you're offering to
    your Prospects when you're selling to them.

    2C
    Thoughts?
    • [1] reply
    • Isn't is always suppose to be about the value? And listening and solving problems and all the other key things involved in the sale process? You just had this revelation now?
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  • [DELETED]
  • People like to get help and value. All of this comes from the "used car salesmen" of the past. Add to that the Hollywood portrayal of Salesmen and you have a myth that becomes a common perception. Any Salesmen that engages a customer and provides help in solving a problem and provides value to the customer, is successful and likely gets most of their business off of referrals.
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  • I think the phrase has been misinterpreted.

    People don't like being sold to. That's fact. What they do like is buying.

    People love to spend, but they would spend if they think spending would benefit them.

    As a salesperson, it is your job to transform your own need to get sales into a need to help them. You have to package your efforts to appear genuine, to appear as if the only focus of the conversation if how that person will benefit from having your product.

    Selling isn't a bad thing, no. Being forceful and manipulative is. And that's what people mean when they say they don't want to be sold to.
    • [ 1 ] Thanks
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