STOP SELLING!

I was asked recently to speak at a local chamber event. The theme I chose was “stop selling”.

This was very odd as there were a number of sales trainers and business development consultants in the room. I was about to upset somebody for sure! I asked them why they had come along. “I saw you were speaking.” That was even odder.

But even they had not seen sales the way I presented to them in the following twenty minutes. I gently suggested that all the techniques and closing they were using for themselves and their clients were actually helping nobody. Because selling does not work.

I know selling does not work; I did it for decades.

The typical salesperson is not a “Hunter” or a “Farmer” as we are lead to believe. A transformation agent contact of mine suggested most are a third type, and I could not disagree; “Harvesters”. No thought for the seed for the future, no skilful stalking with a rifle. Just plain taking. Order taking.

“Order taking” is dressed up with presentations and brochures and websites. It looks like selling. It looks like good client attention. However often it is just being in the right place at the right time with the right priced product or service.

Taking somebody from thinking all is well to realising they need to change something in their business or their life, then figuring out what impact it would have to make that change and the way they could actually make that decision. Is this Harvesting? Farming? Hunting? In fact is it Selling at all? Helping somebody to buy. Now that is supposed to be the job of the Salesperson.

So Stop Selling!