Andy Black
Help people. Get paid. Help more people.
Staff member
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
LEGACY MEMBER
A friend was made redundant after three decades as a pharmaceutical sales rep. It hit him hard, and left him with no desire to work for another company.
I suggested he work with me for three months and see if he could bring me clients. We spent hours going over stories how I’ve helped businesses and how I’ve signed them up.
He arranged a meeting for me with a prospect and listened while I chatted with her for an hour.
After that meeting my friend told me “You’re not a salesman Andy.” He explained how much more there was to learn about sales, and how big his library of sales books was. I smiled and nodded.
To help sign up a local car dealership, my friend went round with his laptop so I could have a Skype call with them.
I spotted instantly the business owners were a couple of regular guys hustling hard to build their business, and that they’d appreciate straight talking.
I did my thing on the call, the client signed up, and we’re into our third month helping them.
Last week my salesman friend told me he wanted to get me on calls with prospects more often, explaining that I bring a lot of value to those calls.
So why did he say that after he initially proclaimed that I’m not a salesman, and how can it help you?
What my friend didn’t realise back then is that I try damn hard to NOT be a salesman.
I’ve since explained to him that when I pop into my local garage with a weird rattle in my engine then I prefer talking to the guys in the oily overalls to the guys in the suits.
That when I ring up Google with a problem then I’d much rather speak to a technical specialist who can tell me exactly what’s up with my account, even if they’re not as smooth on the phone as an “account strategist”.
And that I know I’m a techie, a regular guy, and that I play to that deliberately.
On sales calls I talk too much. I get way too excited. I often speak first to fill in the awkward silence (a big no-no to the sales folks amongst us). I wave my hands in the air, interrupt myself, and go off at tangents. I propose solutions there and then, get carried away, and give away too much.
In short, I act like a techie who loves what he does rather than a salesman trying to close a sale. I do all the things a salesman accompanying me would want me to stop doing.
Except I know this works. I’ve been doing it for years.
I’ve had big agencies in Dublin wheel me into meetings to answer questions from the marketing team in a big corporate they’re pitching to. Apparently one marketing director was sold the moment I bounced over to the flip chart and started doodling to answer his questions.
I “allow” myself to get super passionate and excited about what I do. I don’t try and put a lid on it, or act how I may think a good salesman or good businessman would. If anything I ham it up!
I try to be that guy with oily overalls that loves cars and wants to chat about them all day long.
If you’re a techie then consider playing to it, rather than trying to dampen it down and become more of what you think a professional salesman or businessman would be.
Learn about sales by all means, but consider acting more how a techie would than how you believe a professional salesman or businessman would.
Chances are you’ll do better at sales by not trying to make sales.
I suggested he work with me for three months and see if he could bring me clients. We spent hours going over stories how I’ve helped businesses and how I’ve signed them up.
He arranged a meeting for me with a prospect and listened while I chatted with her for an hour.
After that meeting my friend told me “You’re not a salesman Andy.” He explained how much more there was to learn about sales, and how big his library of sales books was. I smiled and nodded.
To help sign up a local car dealership, my friend went round with his laptop so I could have a Skype call with them.
I spotted instantly the business owners were a couple of regular guys hustling hard to build their business, and that they’d appreciate straight talking.
I did my thing on the call, the client signed up, and we’re into our third month helping them.
Last week my salesman friend told me he wanted to get me on calls with prospects more often, explaining that I bring a lot of value to those calls.
So why did he say that after he initially proclaimed that I’m not a salesman, and how can it help you?
What my friend didn’t realise back then is that I try damn hard to NOT be a salesman.
I’ve since explained to him that when I pop into my local garage with a weird rattle in my engine then I prefer talking to the guys in the oily overalls to the guys in the suits.
That when I ring up Google with a problem then I’d much rather speak to a technical specialist who can tell me exactly what’s up with my account, even if they’re not as smooth on the phone as an “account strategist”.
And that I know I’m a techie, a regular guy, and that I play to that deliberately.
On sales calls I talk too much. I get way too excited. I often speak first to fill in the awkward silence (a big no-no to the sales folks amongst us). I wave my hands in the air, interrupt myself, and go off at tangents. I propose solutions there and then, get carried away, and give away too much.
In short, I act like a techie who loves what he does rather than a salesman trying to close a sale. I do all the things a salesman accompanying me would want me to stop doing.
Except I know this works. I’ve been doing it for years.
I’ve had big agencies in Dublin wheel me into meetings to answer questions from the marketing team in a big corporate they’re pitching to. Apparently one marketing director was sold the moment I bounced over to the flip chart and started doodling to answer his questions.
I “allow” myself to get super passionate and excited about what I do. I don’t try and put a lid on it, or act how I may think a good salesman or good businessman would. If anything I ham it up!
I try to be that guy with oily overalls that loves cars and wants to chat about them all day long.
If you’re a techie then consider playing to it, rather than trying to dampen it down and become more of what you think a professional salesman or businessman would be.
Learn about sales by all means, but consider acting more how a techie would than how you believe a professional salesman or businessman would.
Chances are you’ll do better at sales by not trying to make sales.
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