the watch of time

Like it or not, in one manner or another, we are all sales people.

For many of us, this is (or has been) literally true. Even in businesses where corporate mission statements exemplify other, i.e. lofty, aspects of service relationships, the ultimate determination of success or failure generally comes down to whether or not sales are made.

For the population at large, not dependent on successfully adhering to the sales process to make a living, variations of selling still infiltrate daily living. Whether it’s a price negotiation with a retailer, convincing children to do their home work or to go to bed, or bribing a dog to behave, it’s a necessary skill to reach many goals. Try winning any kind of election without using sales acumen.

Nevertheless, we see examples constantly of those who use archaic, or sloppy, or illogical, approaches in attempting to complete the sale. Whether they realize it or not – good chance the latter – they need some guidance in situations like this…

• Assuming ‘that new car smell’ spray works on other products
• Going for an assumed contractual close by selling the prospect a pen
• When one’s problem-solving train of thought shifts attention onto a less maintained track
• Trying to emphasize the importance of investing for a child’s future education by counting the child’s faults while in one’s presence
• Claiming credentials which don’t exist but sound good
• Changing personas every day so as not to leave tracks
• Ignoring the pervasiveness and influence of social media, thus metaphorically assuming one can still sell sand to desert dwellers
• Talking up a tangible product which, in one’s own mind, only provides intangible benefits
• Massaging inducements to commit by declaring ‘don’t worry, we’ll work it out’
• Trying to encroach on a colleague’s marketplace, justified by imagined entitlement