The Perspiration Principles: Number 70 – Don’t Wear Out Your Welcome

The Perspiration Principles by Howard Tullman

Having been in sales for most of my adult life (and frankly what entrepreneur isn’t always “selling” something), I try to never be rude to even the most clueless or incompetent salesman because I know what a tough and thankless job sales can be. But recently I stopped taking one guy’s calls and began just hanging up when he started directly calling my cell phone. (I’ve also been ducking my barber’s calls, but that’s a different story.)

All I can say is that I’m very grateful for Caller I.D. these days because – although most of the time I’m strong enough not to hate, this guy was treading on the thinnest of ice. And why? Because he simply wore out his welcome and – with me at least – once you’ve burned that particular bridge, there’s really no way back. Life’s just too short to deal with ignoranuses. And, in case that’s a new word for you – it’s people who are both ignorant and assholes.
But the saddest part of the story is that I went out of my way to give him all kinds of fair warnings. You can’t push a rope no matter how hard you try and I fundamentally wasn’t interested in what he was selling at the time. Unfortunately, he was just in too much of a hurry to hear me – even assuming (which might be a stretch) that he was interested. The truth is that it’s a very thin line between persistence and pestilence, but it’s pretty bright and obvious if you’re paying attention and listening to what your prospect or customer is saying. This shouldn’t be that hard a concept to master.
The fact is that all long-term success in selling always comes from two things – even in this crazy, time-constrained and chronically impatient world in which we are living – building relationships and being patient. And, by the way, I can’t believe that I’m saying this – the world’s most impatient guy and a long time sufferer of hurry sickness, but it’s actually true. Trying to press a sale on an unwilling buyer at the wrong time is a waste of effort and energy. Patience always achieves more in the long run than force and, as I always say, even the strongest “No” is just a “No” for now. But not if you burn down the place and wreck your relationship in the process.
In sales, you’re always dealing with people’s perceptions which can shift in an instant – they’re erratic and discontinuous – so, for a long time, you’re it and the next moment, you’re out – if you’re not careful to thread the needle between obnoxious and irresistible.

I’ve got a few ideas and suggestions to share with you to help you think about ways to keep the conversation moving forward without crossing the customer’s comfort line and throwing out the baby with the bathwater.

(1) Small Serial Successes

Great sales people will tell you that winning is almost never about hitting home runs or bowling someone over in a first meeting with your bravado and BS. It’s about solid and consistent base hits – an unbroken series of successful gestures and increments – that lead over time to a relationship based on trust and then a sale. There are times when it’s more important to walk away and wait for the real deal than it is to grab a quick sale (whatever your sales manager might think) which may or may not make ultimate sense for the customer. You have to learn to communicate a sense of urgency without seeming to be in a hurry. If you can’t move things forward, it’s a good time to move on and wait for a better moment.

(2) Someone is Always Selling

As they always say about stocks, they’re not bought, they’re sold. Selling is about momentum and – at any moment in a conversation – someone is selling – it just might not be you. If you find yourself leaning back on your heels and suddenly on the defensive, you’ve lost control of the conversation and, most likely, you’ve just met a master salesman who happens to be your prospective customer at the moment. You always want to be selling from strength and not seeking sympathy or someone’s pity. It’s OK to agree with your customers and even to empathize with them and all of their problems – as long as you don’t end up (with the tables turned) agreeing with their very good reasons for not buying your product or service. And one more thought on this topic – as soon as you start talking about price – you’re on the slippery slope and headed in the wrong direction. It’s better at that point to pick up your marbles and pack your bags and come back when you’re got a better story to sell.

(3) Sell Something Else

When you’re selling something that nobody really needs, you’d better actually be selling something else. This is why perfumes are sold by smell, sex and status rather than dollars and cents. And why alarm systems are sold by images of burglars and broken glass – by smoke, security and safety concerns – and almost never on price.

(4) Manufacture “Maybes” and Reasons to Return

In sales, closure is as bad as cancer. A million “maybes” are better than having the door definitely shut in your face. So it’s important to always have a plan to prolong the conversation; to have something (however modest) that the customer can say “Yes” to; and to always have a reason to return. Good selling is telling – explaining without a hidden agenda – adding to the customer’s knowledge base – and being an impartial source of this type of “education” – and even of juicy industry gossip – is a way to make sure you’re welcome to return.

PP: “You Get What You Work for, Not What You Wish for”