Everybody is in sales!

One question that I ask almost every crowd that I speak to, no matter what the industry, is “How many people in here are in sales?”

The answer to this questions is: Everyone in the room.

Everyone is in sales. The difference is that some people know it and some people don’t.

When I ask this question and then reveal the answer, I often see people visibly recoil at the suggestion that they are in sales. This is because they don’t understand what sales really is.

Selling isn’t the manipulative act of tricking someone into doing what you want them to do, but rather the skill of connecting with another person regarding their needs and desires, and then bringing that meeting of minds to a mutually agreeable and beneficial resolution.

Everybody has something to sell. At some point in your day, you’re going to have to communicate an idea or perspective, a bit of bad news, a new direction or product. If you’ve ever been in, or wanted to be in, a romantic relationship, you’ve had the opportunity to sell your perspective. If you’ve ever managed people, you’ve had to sell a company direction or policy. If you’ve ever applied for a job, you’ve had to sell the idea of hiring you.

For example, I recently put out the word in my area that I was looking to hire some office help. Applicants were instructed to e-mail my office with their résumés. In reply to my ad, I received the following e-mail verbatim:

“I am sending this from my phone and I’m not sure if this is the full resume but, if you don’t mind letting me know if it is the full resume? Like letting me know if it looks fully done or is it missing something!? If its missing anything, I will make sure of that you receive a well done resume next time!
Louise Thompson”
(Typos and grammatical errors left intact. An incomplete résumé was attached to the e-mail.)

Guess what, Louise? There won’t be a “next time.”

Louise successfully sold me on the concept that she is completely wrong for my office. Why?

Wow, where do I begin?

1] She blew the very first task I gave her, that of sending me a resume. My thinking as a boss is, if she can’t get it together enough to send me a professional, well-written letter with a complete résumé, why would I pay her money to come in to my office and make the same type of mistakes?

2] She’s asking me to cover her mistakes before I’ve ever met, much less hired, her. How much slack would I have to pick up if she worked for me?

It doesn’t matter if my conclusions are fair or not. Because of her carelessness, inexperience, and/or lack or education, that is the impression that she sold me.

The question I have for you is, what impression are you selling to the people around you? Are they sold on your competence? Have you sold them on your intelligence? Have they bought into you as a spouse, employee, boss, relative, parent, or leader?

How you communicate, the words you choose, and the manner in which you speak or write them are all telegraphing a perspective to your recipient.

Remember, people rarely, if ever, tell you that you aren’t selling them. They just don’t buy from you, and you remain ignorant and unsuccessful.

Today, give careful thought to your sales ability in every area of your life. If you find that you lack sales skills or need improvement, choose to act on that revelation immediately, rather than risk further frustration and disappointment.

Feel free to reprint this article in your organizational publication. We only ask that you use the following attribution blurb at the bottom of the article:
© 2010 Charles Marshall. Charles Marshall is a nationally known humorous motivational speaker and author. Visit his Web site at http://www.charlesmarshall.net or contact him via e-mail at charles@charlesmarshall.net.