We Know Better Than The Prospect Does

Being a salesperson is an interesting job. It's one of those professions, kind of like being an attorney, where while we like them and we need them, most of the time they're the brunt of jokes. And most of the time we don't like them, and most of us would never want to be one of those people.

On the other hand, once you become an attorney, you take an oath. You don't take an oath for honesty—guaranteed, that's not what's happening. And you don't take an oath to fight for right and justice—guaranteed, that's not what's happening. You take an oath to support your client, to defend or to promote your client's point of view, and you're doing it for a fee.

Well, the sales profession is the same kind of thing.

It comes with the job. It's well defined. Though it's not an oath in a particular format, if you're ethical you take on the responsibility of working to persuade those who can benefit from your product to purchase or invest in that product.

Now, every single prospect has loads of other opportunities to spend their money on, even if they're not in the same field. For instance, if you're selling swimming pools, you're not the only person selling swimming pools, or the only company selling swimming pools. However, the consumer isn't thinking about just swimming pools, or that's not the only option they have.

They may have gone out to buy a swimming pool, or a mobile home or whatever, but they've also got other things happening.

In fact, if you're in the sales profession, how many times have you had a deal locked down, and then something comes up? A weekend, a trip, mother gets sick—and then it's just amazing how, in just a few days, people don't need your product any more. They've got another need for their money. Mary's in the hospital, Johnny lost his job, etcetera, etcetera.

So sellers are always trying to close now. And the advantage that the sellers have, too, is that if they have worked on themselves, they know that their product is the absolute best product that exists for the buyer—that is, according to the unique sales position, or USP, that you've created.

For instance, it may be that you can get the pool delivered and installed in two days. And so therefore, you work and you tell them that, and you build on the excitement. You do everything you can to close, using that “two days” unique selling position – such as they can enjoy your pool this weekend when the family comes in from Texas…

It may be that you have the best and, in your conviction, the absolutely only thing that a person could have, because it's a real, custom-done, concrete pool. Takes longer to install, but it’s the real thing. Catch my drift?

One of the things we live by—and again, I know it to be true, because I've seen it too many times—is that we know better than the prospect does how they will benefit from what we have to offer.

It's up to us to do everything we can that's moral, legal, and ethical to get them to become owners of our product, so they can begin experiencing the benefits our product or service offers.