the Zen of selling

the Zen of selling

the Way to profit from life’s everyday lessons

by Stan Adler

pg 37 “How much do you want to spend?” That is absolutely the worst thing you can say to a customer, and yet salespeople do it all the time with no sense of how grave an error it is. No matter what the product, from personal computers to personal retirement plans, this is the wrong question. … The only thing you have achieved is to create a negative atmosphere. People invariably feel intimidated and defensive. … Introducing the issue of price achieves only one thing: It calls customers’ attention to the price. And make no bones about it, they can find your product somewhere else at the same price, even a better price, in a snap. … Your focus instead should be on the qualities of the product itself, and on you as the representative. Your goal is to use the product as a way to show your value to customers so that they will want to buy from you rather than from someone else. If you do your job properly, customers will come to think of you as indispensable.

pg 72 “You call every customer personally within forty-eight hours of the sale,” he began. “Call to find out how much they are enjoying their system or component. ‘Enjoy’ is the key word here, and no purchase is too small for a call. Small sales create big ones, and big ones mean a lot more small ones. … Most salespeople don’t follow-up for two reasons: first, because it means more work and they probably got a sales job in the first place because they didn’t like hard work and, second, they don’t have confidence in what or how they sold the customer initially, so why should they call the customer and risk confronting a problem? That’s the working premise of a non-seller.

pg 95 When you talk, you repeat what you already know; when you listen, you often learn something. – Gared Sparks

pg 104 As Bryan developed his skills and discovered his special talent, he never let stereotypes or preferences of age, sex, or status limit his effectiveness. He prejudged no one. He was motivated by the presence of a customer, pure and simple.

pg 116 If you follow all the rules, you miss all the fun. – Katharine Hepburn

pg 170 As a salesperson, it is your job to inspire people to do things that they have only thought about. You work hard to turn fantasies into realities. You often have to assure pople that they will be satisfied because you will make it right. It is your business and your responsibility to give people a sense of fun and fulfillment. You initiate lifelong relationships with your customers and influence their lifestyles much like a teacher giving guidance to pupils.