Profit Tip of the Week--The Death of Traditional Salesmanship & a "Little Green Book" Update
July 21th, 2009
What was once considered traditional salesmanship, just doesn't cut it anymore. Case in point: Two weeks ago, my small town of Zeeland was hosting it's annual sidewalk sale in the historic downtown. My design studio and showroom is downtown, so I decided to open my doors for the sale (I'm typically only open to the trade and by appointment). The first person to stop in that Friday morning was a gentleman we'll refer to as "Willy".
Willy was quick to introduce himself, and he began asking me questions like "So how long have you been in Zeeland?" and "Are you from here originally?" He seemed genuinely interested in my story. Then he asked:"So Chris, do you accept credit cards? Who do you have your merchant account with?" I felt like telling Willy to get the hell out, but I'm too nice, so I replied by saying I am perfectly happy with my merchant account provider. I figured this, and the fact he could sense my irritation, would be enough. OH NO! Willy jumped right into his perfectly scripted, unsolicited sales pitch. After about the third "I'm perfectly happy" he finally left. Here are a few of the thoughts that flowed through my mind after Willy left: 1. I open the doors of my business to make sales for myself, NOT to be sold to by someone else! 2. I settled on my current merchant account provider based on a strong referral, not a shady door-to-door salesman. 3. Sales come from strong, genuine relationships. You can't pretend to be interested in someone, like Willy, and then try to sell them something 30 seconds later. There is no doubt that Willy read about the annual sidewalk sale in the local newspaper and thought to himself--"What a great opportunity! All of the businesses will have their doors open!". Willy is from a dying breed of salesmen. The sales and marketing game have completely changed from what Willy once knew. Today, information is so readily available online, people don't need door-to-door salesman to deliver information and make decisions. To quote Harry Beckwith from "Selling the Invisible": "People don't want to be sold to, they want to buy". (That quote probably isn't quite word for word; thank you to Tim Thoelecke for sharing with me) Are you trying to sell to your prospects, or are you putting them in a comfortable buying position? How do you make your prospects want to buy from you? Share your comments below. UPDATE:
As many of you know, I'm currently writing and publishing a marketing book for landscape professionals called "The Little Green Book of Big Marketing Tips & Tactics for Landscape Professionals". One of the reasons I'm writing this book is because of the lessons I've learned from traditionalists like "Willy". The hope is to provide a more effective way to promote yourself and market your business--21st century style."The Little Green Book" will be released in 38 days, on Friday August 28th. You can now pre-order the book for $14.95 (includes free shipping). That's $5.00 off what will be the regular sale price. The book can only be purchased via my blog at the link below. The Little Green Book of Big Marketing Tips and Tactics for Landscape Professionals You will also find book excerpts on my blog at the link above. Let me know your thoughts about how I'm trying to market this book. This is an entirely new adventure on my part and a bit untraditional. Feel free to share your comments below. To your success,
Chris Heiler, Editor
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