ice to eskimos, coal to newcastle
It’s often said that the world’s first profession was prostitution. Personally, I’d contest that there was a pimp working his magic somewhere behind the scenes. At the risk of sounding like the ol’ codger from the fast show who, on every show, declared that the particular job they were discussing was indeed ‘the toughest job in the world’, I used to be a salesman and…it was the toughest job in the world!
Nah, it wasn’t, it was a helluva lot of fun and because I was, though I do say so myself, half-decent at it, people often ask what was it that made me so. Is a salesman, or saleswoman for that matter, born or is he made?
Selling is something we all do everyday. We are constantly pitching ideas and suggestions to those we come into contact with. Presenting ourselves, occasionally without the use of powerpoint graphics and colourful pie-charts, trying to persuade people to accept us is part and parcel of our whole raison d’etre: asking the new girl in accounts if she’d like you to get her a coffee as it’s on the way, trying to get through to the right person in customer services without losing your temper and costing you a fortune on your mobile, convincing the traffic warden that you really have been gone for only three or four minutes, at the very most! Selling is no more than the purely human ordeal of introduction, acceptance, rejection and progress.
I have always believed (note there’s no use of the adjective ‘passionately’ as passionate should be reserved for activities that warrant such description, like passion) that our ability to sell, to persuade or even to manipulate others, is intimately wrapped up in how we define ourselves. Indeed, we are not defined by what we wear or what we drive but by how we ‘do’ and how we interact. Master the art of selling and you will master the art of life. Now, you couldn’t say that about auditing could you!
In 1961, the Harvard Business Review published a series of articles that I suspect go some way to throwing some collective light on the actual process of selling and the steps that contribute to a successful interaction. First the salesman will ‘seduce the prospect’, sifting quickly through the prospect’s emotional hot-buttons to find the one to push that will arouse suitable interest: ‘the canteen are trying a new blend of Italian coffee and it’s sooo much smoother than the usual stuff’. Next comes the logical justification for buying into the plan: ‘I’ll bring it back to you so you can finish that report, look good in the boss’s eyes and don’t forget he’s doing the salary reviews next week.’ Finally the close: ‘quick, drink your coffee, marry me and have my children!’
Those three steps to selling – seduction, rationalisation and close – do however require very different talents. The seducer may not have the natural authority or dominance to close. The rationaliser may depend on logic, fact and detail too much and fail to make an emotional connection or build any level of obligation into the scenario. The closer may prove to be too much of a bully to seduce and win people over. The articles highlighted that the whole process as that of one of ‘wooing’ the individual. The habitual wooer is apparently someone who has a compulsive need to win and hold, or be held in, the affections of others.
Irrespective of his own personal style, the habitual wooer can be identified by several consistent and predisposed traits: seemingly boundless energy; eternal optimism bordering on virtual Polly-Anna-ism; the self-confidence and self-belief of an eastern European dictator, a chronic desire for money and the trappings this may bring (personally, I don’t buy this one at all and believe the actual fruits of the selling labour are but a poor relation to the act of getting someone on your side. I have always found internal competition and respect to be a far more effective motivator than any tangible reward. (yeah, that’s because you were a shocking payer – ed.)), the self-discipline and self-control of Ghandi, a capacity for hard-work, and finally, a mindset that regards each rejection as a challenge, each obstacle as a tremendous opportunity to overcome it.
The challenge is trying to find all these subtle qualities and traits in just one person. Too much empathy and you won’t be able to close a bun in a bakery. A strong ego for sure but not one so big you only see yourself in the room. Assertive yes but not so aggressive that you need their first-born into the bargain. Not enough of anything and it’s back to accounts for you my friend! Remember, without selling there is no business and selling is the starting point of all business. So what exactly are you willing to do for a buck?
