No, no, don’t run and panic.\u00a0 I’m not asking you to turn into Leisure Suit Larry here, nor am I saying that you have to learn to schmooze and be manipulative. You don’t. I’m a cranky misanthrope who hates too much contact with people and I manage it, so you who are probably a nice person who finds human company pleasant can do okay.<\/p>\n
The point a lot of people miss, and it’s an easy one to do, is that sales is not about convincing people to do what they don’t<\/em> want to do.\u00a0 That’s nasty and manipulative.\u00a0 You don’t have to be nasty and manipulative to sell well – rather the opposite.<\/p>\n The point of selling is to find out what the potential clients wants and provide that.\u00a0 When you learn to sell, you’re going to be able to show the potential client why you<\/em> are the best person to help them out with what they want and need<\/em>!\u00a0 Real sales is actually about being helpful.\u00a0 You can feel okay with being helpful, right?<\/p>\n It also means you have to believe in your product or service.\u00a0 Make sure you’re utterly convinced of the value of what you do.\u00a0 Don’t ever<\/em> say, “Oh I just<\/em> clean houses,” or\u00a0 “Well, the writing I do is trivial.”\u00a0 A clean house is valuable, and not everyone in the world can write clearly.\u00a0 These are needed skills!\u00a0 If you have a skill or a talent, you can be sure that there are millions of people in the world who don’t<\/em> have it, but do<\/em> need the fruits of it.\u00a0 Value that; show your potential client that it’s valuable.\u00a0 Many people will agree, and be willing to buy it.<\/p>\n While you’re learning to sell, another thing you’ll need to get your head wrapped around is that “No” is almost never personal.\u00a0\u00a0 I’m not gonna say rejection is fun, but being told “No” in a business situation is not a personal rejection of you as a human being.\u00a0 Be willing to blow that off.<\/p>\n It’s partially a numbers game.\u00a0 Depending on your field, you may get “no” between ten and one hundred times before you get “yes”.\u00a0\u00a0 For individual marketing, such as responding to Requests for Proposals (RFPs in contractor parlance), a ten to one ratio of nos to yeses isn’t too shabby.\u00a0 For a series of cold calls or a direct mailer, you’re looking at more like a ratio of one hundred to one.<\/p>\n Okay, here’s another exercise for you.\u00a0\u00a0 If you want to be self-employed, you’re definitely going to have to learn to be assertive.\u00a0 You may find it difficult to believe, but just the habit of asking <\/em>for what you want may make the difference between success and failure in being self-employed.\u00a0 I know it sounds goofy, but it’s true.<\/p>\n For the next week, practice asking for stuff.\u00a0 It doesn’t matter what, just ask.\u00a0 I do want to caution you that there’s a difference between asking and demanding.\u00a0 Just ask. “Please” is always good and smiles accessorize great with most requests.\u00a0 Ask if you can get a discount on something in a store.\u00a0 Ask someone in your household to take out the trash.\u00a0 Ask if you can do someone a favor.\u00a0 Ask someone out on a date.\u00a0 Write your Congressman and ask her to vote a specific way on a bill that’s coming up that’s important to you.\u00a0 Think of things to ask for – big things, small things, it doesn’t matter.<\/p>\n What will matter is how you feel when you ask, and how you feel when you get a response.\u00a0 Are you scared to ask?\u00a0 Does it feel worse if the person says no?\u00a0 Do you feel a sense of relief if the person says yes?\u00a0 Keep a record of how you feel, what was going on around the situation, and the outcome.<\/p>\n The goal here is not necessarily to try to get as many people to say yes as possible.\u00a0 You don’t need to worry about that in the early stages.\u00a0 Let it be a numbers game at first, and a scattershot.\u00a0 You want to be in the habit of simply… asking for what you want.\u00a0 It’s not about demanding and it’s not about being upset at being told no.\u00a0 It’s about being willing to step up to the plate and ask and take that risk.<\/p>\n Don’t get mad at a negative response, ‘kay?\u00a0 Part of this is to practice not taking no personally.\u00a0 If you’ve been fighting with your kids for years to make sure they take out the trash on the night before the garbage collectors are supposed to pick it up, that’s too emotive a situation to be using for this practice.\u00a0 If you find you feel upset at any<\/em> no, examine that.\u00a0\u00a0 To be successful in the self-employment game, you’ll need to figure out how to stop doing that!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" No, no, don’t run and panic.\u00a0 I’m not asking you to turn into Leisure Suit Larry here, nor am I saying that you have to learn to schmooze and be manipulative. You don’t. I’m a cranky misanthrope who hates too much contact with people and I manage it, so you who are probably a nice … <\/p>\nIt’s not Personal, It’s Just Business<\/a><\/h2>\n
Exercise: Practice Asking<\/a><\/h3>\n