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

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

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...

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.

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.

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.

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.

"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.

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

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.