If you didn't know I am a salesman. I have chosen to make a career out of building relationships. I have also chosen to ply my trade with integrity above reproach. I am fortunate to work for a company who will stand for nothing less. That being said I often try to sharpen my sales skills by reading. I find value in learning to how to ask better questions, how to listen after I ask those questions and how to communicate how my service might meet a previously unmet need. So, I try to read a minimum of two "sales" books a year. Two years ago I picked up Jeffery Gitomers Little Red Book of Sales Answers. (Thanks Ryan Sanders for the idea of including a picture in every post. I have to give you credit if I am going to rip you off) I decided to pick up again to re-learn some of his ideas. However, I was blown away by what I didn't notice the first time I read it.
His advice for trying to get to the decision maker through the dreaded gate keeper (or person keeping you from getting to who makes the sales decisions) included this pearl of wisdom: "If at all possible tell the truth." pg 40. Really, if at all possible? So tell me Mr. Gitomer please tell me a situation where it would be impossible to tell the truth? I must not be doing something right because I haven't found myself in this situation. How can you build a meaningful business relationship if you don't tell the truth? In my opinion you can't. Maybe that makes me less a salesman than some other guys. Maybe I won't retire with multiple homes and a collection of over priced cars. However, if they make a movie about my sales career (which they won't) it won't look anything like "Glen Gary Glen Ross" or "Boiler Room." I don't know what it would look like. I guess I don't care. I just hate that so many of my peers make my job harder by listening to people like Mr. Gitomer telling them to cut corners.
For the record I don't think Mr. Gitomer endorses lying, he seems far too inelligent for that. His message is not one of get the sale at all cost. I just questions his blurring of an already thin line.
1 comment:
So, kudos to you for taking honesty seriously. But, in the spirit of honesty, I have to say that when I think of "sales person" I don't automatically think of honest. I think of someone doing anything to sell me something, making your post all the more refreshing. Now, can you talk the lady who keeps calling trying to sell me a warranty on a car that I don't even own anymore??
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