Always have a toothpick handy!

Can you imagine seeing a new doctor and without even saying a word to you she began writing a prescription!  She didn’t know your medical history, didn’t take any vital signs or even talk to you as to why you were there!  How comfortable would you be?  Would you take the drugs or even pay for the office visit?  Probably not.  In the medical field, prescription without diagnosis is called malpractice. 

Well in the sales arena, recommending a product or service without finding out if it fills a want or need of your customer is every bit as unprofessional.  

Medical doctors and other “perceived” professionals have a built-in level of trust and confidence that society bestows on them.  Unfortunately, this blind trust allows them, at times, to step over the boundaries of acceptable practices thereby harming  their patients or clients by giving care or advice that is not warranted by current symtoms or problems.

We salespeople, on the other hand, have to earn the trust of our customers.  Many times that is an up-hill battle because of our poor reputation and the fact that we pay the sins of every salesperson that has come before us. 

We need to “earn the right” to recommend our product or service.

How do we do that?

Well, to begin with we need to know our product or service backwards and forwards.  We have to know it cold!  Many salespeople think that they need to know everything about their product or service so they can give their customers an encyclopedic education and by giving all that information the customer will eventually hear something they like and buy. 

 Big mistake!

It’s like asking your customer to take a sip of water out of a fire-hose!  Too much information confuses customers and makes them want to “think about it.” All of your product or service information are just “tools” of your trade.  The key is knowing which tool in your toolbox you should use.

Take the example of a furnace repairman.  Here in Iowa I am sure they were very busy this winter.  Do you think when he shows up at someones house to fix their furnace that his goal is to use all the tools in his toolbox?  Of course not.  He wants to diagnose the problem as quickly as possible using whatever tests are necessary and then use only the appropriate tool to fix the problem and get on to the next broken furnace.   End of story.

In sales, we also need to run our diagnostic tests to find out what is wrong and what is needed.  We call it our discovery or fact-finding process.  These are the questions we are going to ask of our customers to get a conversational dialogue going so that we can find out what is important to them and in so doing help them discover for themseves that they want or need our product or service.

By asking these questions we develop trust and also discover the dominant buying motives (DBM) of our customer.  Its been said that if you ask the right questions your customer will tell you exactly how to sell them.  There is also a truism to sales that you need to never forget.  That is:

If you say it…they can doubt you.  If they say it…it’s true!

Remember that you are a salesperson and until you develop the appropriate level of trust with your customer, everything you say will be taken with a grain of salt and a bit of skepticism.   For example, If I am a salesperson trying to sell a vacation condo in the caribbean and I TELL my customer that it is more convenient to the beach…is less expensive than a motel/hotel…and is luxurious, the customer may doubt me because I am just a salesperson trying to sell them something.

How about instead of TELLING your customer…try ASKING your customer:

“Sandy, let me ask you a question.  If you had a choice of staying in a fully furnished, luxury condominium right on the waterfront versus a standard hotel room 1/4 mile inland and the cost was the same…which would you rather stay in?” 

 ”I would stay in the condo of course.”

“Of course you would…you would be crazy not to…but let me ask you… why would you stay in the condo?”

“Well, because it is right on the water.”

“So what you are saying is that convenience is important to you… is that right?”

“Yes”

“Great, any other reason?”

“Well, the fact that it is fully-furnished condo instead of a hotel room”

“So, in other words, luxury is important to you also, correct?”

“Yes”

“Any other reason you would choose the condo over the hotel room?”

“Well, if I could get it for the same price that would be great!”

“So saving money is important to you also?”

“Yes”

“Well Sandy, if I could show you how you could save a few dollars, get the luxury you want and at the same time enjoy the convenience that is important to you…do you think you might be interested?”

“Yes”

See how much better that is?  We not only got some dialogue going by asking questions but we also got the customer to say what was important to them instead of the salesperson telling them what is important.  The whole key was asking a great first question which forced the customer to think and imagine a possibility.

Selling is not telling…it is asking.  It is what separates the peddlers from professional salespeople.  In addition, if you don’t ask questions of your customer you are just as guilty as the physician who prescribes without diagnosis.

Make it a great day, Rick

I know you have heard it before whether in Spanish or English.  Translation:

One must eat to live…not live to eat!

I know it doesn’t sound like fun but let’s face it.  We Americans are basically gluttons.  I mean, we ought to be ashamed of ourselves.  I sure don’t need the Surgeon General to tell me that we Americans are killing ourselves with our forks.  All we need to do is sit on any street corner in America or any mall and gape with wonderment at the mass of overweight human protoplasm shuffling along in their endless search for the next nacho plate or twinkie.  It is amazing.  The kids are no better.   I now understand why some animals in the wild will eat their young to improve the species!

It doesn’t have to be that way.  All it takes is the decision to make better choices.  Of course any change is going to be met with resistance.  (See the post on homeostasis)  The key is not to try to do too much too soon.  That’s why 80% of the New Years resolutions to lose weight have already been broken less than 3 months into the new year!  A pound is 3,500 calories.  So to lose a pound we need to eliminate 3,500 calories either by cutting back our intake or increase our burning off of calories.  Small changes are the key.  Just move around an extra 30 minutes a day and choose to knock off one or two lattes a week or some other little treat that does nothing for us and we can easily realize a pound or two loss each month.   You know what I am talking about, don’t you!   You knock that stuff off and that’s about 15 pounds a year with no muss or no fuss.  

That’s not very much you say. 

Well, just look at the alternative.  If you do nothing but continue with your same sedentary lifestyle and eating habits I can almost guarantee that one year from now you will be about 10-25 pounds heavier than you are now.  The choice is yours and a no-brainer.  10-25 more or 15 less.  Net loss of 25-40 pounds of ugly fat in one year!   It’s simple…but not easy!  Next case!

Hope you have recovered from St. Patrick’s Day!  Rick

I have always said that people LOVE to learn but they HATE to be taught.   You would do well to remember that advice in all your communications with others.  Anytime you can get your point across using a story, anecdote or humorous event you will find that not only will your audience hang on your every word but they will LEARN at the same time.  

If you are in sales (and all of us are!), you can be taught that if you want to be successful you must first find out what is really important to your customer before you try to sell him your product.   That is great advice, but you could have learned it much more effectively if you were given the same advice wrapped up in a story.  Try this one on for size.

I first  read this story in Readers Digest about 30 years ago.  It took place during World War II around 1943. ( I verified it with my 88 year old Dad who was in the Army in Europe at the time.)   Uncle Sam, in an effort to raise more money for the war effort, started a war-bond program for the men in uniform.  The program was that all the soldiers, marines, airmen and sailors could buy war bonds.  The upside for the servicemen was that if they bought the war-bonds and were killed in action then the government would have to pay a $10,000 death benefit to the servicemen’s heirs back home.  Of course $10,000 was a lot of money in the early 40’s and was the big appeal and benefit of the program. 

The downside was that the war-bonds would cost the servicemen around $3.00 per month which was a hefty chunk of what the military men were making in 1943.  The bottom line was that the cost was too much and the servicemen weren’t buying the war-bonds because they were just too expensive.

The story goes on to tell of a young 2nd Lieutenant fresh out of West Point, standing on a stump, in front of his platoon in France.  He was trying to “Sell” them on the many reasons they should buy the war-bonds.  He talked passionately about why they should get involved, saying things like, “It’s the patriotic thing to do, it will help the war effort” and “The government needs the money.” All to no avail.  The men just stood there with blank faces and their arms folded. They were thinking, “It’s just too expensive.  I don’t care how many reasons you give me, I can’t afford them.”

A crusty old Sergeant standing off to the side said. “Sir, let me talk to the men.”  He got up on the stump and said in a loud voice, “Men, I have a statement to make and a question to ask.  The statement is this:  If you buy these war-bonds and are killed in action then Uncle Sam will have to write a check for $10,000 to your loved ones back home, Right?”  The men all answered, “Right.”   Now, on the other hand, if you don’t buy the war-bonds and are killed in action, then Uncle Sam doesn’t have to spend a dime, Right?” Again, the men responded, “Right”

“So, the question I have to ask is this:

“Who do you think they are going to send to the front-lines first to be killed? Those that are going to cost them $10,000 or those they get by with for free!?”

Needless to say, everyone bought the war-bonds!

You chuckle at the simple logic but you have to stand in awe of the message.  Rather than talk about features of the program, the Sergeant cut to the very basic premise of sales.

Sell your product based on what is important to your customer and not what is important to you.

The message to us is easier to understand because of the story.  The message is clear.  Be like that Sergeant.  Find out what is important to your customer and then share your product and service using a story.  Remember that your customer might just be that son you are trying to get to mow the lawn or to do their homework.  We are all in sales every day.  Be a sergeant and not a lieutenant!

Happy St. Patrick’s Day! Rick  

PS. I need your help!! What can I do to make my blog better and what more can I do to advertise it? I will cherish your comments and/or advice. Let me know. Thanks for stopping by and sharing some of your valuable time with me! Rick

I was letting the dog out this morning for his first “daily” and got to thinking what an easy life this mutt has. All he does is sleep, eat and eliminate. That’s it! To make it even worse, he was “fixed” years ago so he’s not even going to “get lucky” any time soon! What a life! It would be a pretty boring existence for you and me but ole Tom (his name) seems as happy as he can be. Why? There must be a lesson or two here for us two-legged animals.

We have too many desires!

We put too much pressure on ourselves trying to amass “things” to keep up with the neighbors and live up to the guidelines that “society” sets for us. We many times set our goals based on these false dogmas. Tom doesn’t do that. He doesn’t have a jealous bone in his body and he couldn’t care less if he is gaining weight or the dog across the street lives in a bigger house. Animals cannot select their goals. Their goals (self-preservation and procreation) are hard-wired in their brains. And their success mechanism is limited to these built-in goal images which we call “instincts.”

Man, on the other hand, has something animals haven’t - Creative Imagination. We can picture goals in our minds and also create them. That makes us not only creatures but also creators! We have the keys to our own happiness that we have total control over. We are the architects of our own success! We are what we think. Unfortunately, unlike Tom, we think about too many things. We overwhelm ourselves at times. Paralysis by analysis! We need to dial it back a little and simplify our aspirations a bit. We need to think good thoughts. Remember:

“If you always think what you’ve always thought…..you’ll always get what you’ve always got!”

Take a lesson from Tom and slow things down. Take a nap today.. have a great meal…wag your tail and don’t take life so doggone serious.

Have a great Sunday! Rick

PS. I need your help!! What can I do to make my blog better and what more can I do to advertise it? I will cherish your comments and/or advice. Let me know. Thanks for stopping by and sharing some of your valuable time with me! Rick

Are you all aware that today, March 15th,  marked the worst day of Julius Caeser’s life?  Sure was!  Seems that he got himself carved up by a bunch of his enemies in the Roman Senate in 44 B.C.   William Shakespeare thought it was important enough an event to write a play about and teach us all about the term “The Ides of March.” 

It went down this way.  Caeser was an arrogant old fart and he apparently summoned the Senate to meet in the Theater of Pompey on the Ides of March.  A certain seer (soothsayer)warned Caesar that he had better have his head on a swivel that day and to be on his guard because a great peril on the 15th of March had his name written all over it.  Caesar apparently blew the fortune teller off and didn’t pay him much mind.   So when the big day had come and Caesar was strolling on his way to the senate, he saw the seer again and greeted him with a jest and said: “The Ides of March has come,” basically telling him, “Shows how much you know!”  The seer then answered him softly and said: “Yes, the Ides of March has come, but it has not passed.” 

Caesar soon learned that you don’t dis the seer because as the Senate convened, Caesar was attacked and stabbed to death by a group of senators who called themselves the liberatores  (”Liberators”).  They justified their action on the grounds that they committed tryrannicide and were preserving the Republic from Caesar’s alleged monarchical ambitions.  Call it anything you like….they killed him!  The term “Ides of March”  has since come to be used as a metaphor for impending doom.   Big deal, huh?  Well, if you like trivia…the ides of March was a also a red letter day for George McFly in the movie ”Back to the Future II.”  He was killed on the 15th of March, 1973!

So whether you are superstitious or not, at least today you learned a new expression or term you might not have known before.  If you want to be really enlightened you should also know that in the Roman calendar, the term ides was used for the 15th day of the months of March, May, July and October, and the 13th day of the other 8 months.  Don’t ask me why.  It was a long time ago and my day-timer only goes back a few years.

I think we should all pull together today and spit in the face of all the doom-sayers and let’s make this March 15, 2008 our best day so far this year!

Regards, Rick

PS.  I need your help!!  What can I do to make my blog better and what more can I do to advertise it?  I will cherish  your comments and/or advice.  Let me know.  Thanks for stopping by and sharing some of your valuable time with me!  Rick