- Who they are
- What made them great at selling
- What separated them from everyone else
- How we can take those ideas and apply them to our selling career
The Recap
In this series, Donald has talked about several individuals who made their mark. They were influential and persuasive people who were able to make a difference in their lifetimes. We’ve talked about Jesus Christ, Oprah Winfrey, Reginald F Lewis, Martin Luther King Jr., Harriet Tubman, Benjamin Franklin, Mahatma Gandhi, Mother Teresa, and Abraham Lincoln. They were amazing sales people even though they weren’t in sales for a living. For example, Abraham Lincoln wasn’t a salesman but he did sell a major idea.
- Abraham Lincoln – sold the whole country on the idea of unity and the need to abolish slavery.
- Mother Teresa – sold to the Catholic church the idea of leaving the convent and personally helping the needy to create her own ministry.
- Mahatma Gandhi – sold to the whole country the idea of a peaceful revolution.
- Martin Luther King Jr. – sold the idea of civil disobedience.
- Harriet Tubman – sold to people the idea of running away toward freedom, despite the danger
They all had vision
All of the individuals we’ve discussed are tied to a vision we are still talking about today. Websters defines vision as a thought, concept or object formed by the imagination. You can have a vision but that doesn’t necessarily mean your vision is going to compel people to take action. For people to join you, your vision must reveal and alleviate the pain. If people understand how your vision can help them, they will want to know more and be more compelled to come alongside. People need to understand why they should sacrifice their time, effort, and resources for your vision.
Martin Luther King Jr., illustrated this beautifully in his speech, I Have a Dream. He didn’t offer a detailed plan of execution, Martin Luther King Jr. simply stated his vision and invited our imaginations to join him in a better world.
Sell a dream, sell a vision
If you want to become a great salesperson, you too must be able to learn to sell a dream.
As scripts are recycled, sales reps are saying the same things. How are you going to stand out in the way you communicate with your prospects? By recognizing your clients’ pain points and offering a vision of what life would be like without these challenges. Here’s an example:
“60% of what your sales reps are doing today are non-sales related activities and will not generate business for your organization. Based on what you’re paying them, that could cost you anywhere from $2000 to $5000 in wasted resources, not to mention lost opportunities. If we can demonstrate how we have helped other organizations like yourself show their sales reps how to become more productive and increase sales by 30 to 40% per rep. would you be open to learning more about that?”
You can do this in the form of a video or a phone call. Regardless of the platform you use, be able to paint a picture for your prospect. Speak about the pain that most sales leaders and other businesses face. Help the culture change within the organization by making them see the problem, quantifying their pain, and helping them see how bad it impacts their business. You are giving them a vision of what life could be like for their organization if they keep going in the same direction. As the sales rep, show up as the solution.
It’s a fact that not everyone will buy into your vision, just like the other individuals we’ve talked about in this series. The greatest sales people in history faced opposition but they showed up and they were brave. Be brave.
Do not fear the challenge
The second lesson from this series is to not fear the challenge of going against the status quo or your own organization. When organizations find themselves in a rut , they can do the same things over and over again even if they’re still not seeing positive results. Disrupt the rhythm by showing how you can provide the opportunity for these systems to get better.
When you offer change, be respectful and be ready to show the data. Pepared and take on chances.
Welcoming the new series
The new series will be coming in after the month of March. We will be focusing on SaaS and we’ll be interviewing individuals who are in the SaaS world. This series is called BDR, business development representatives and it’ll be rolling out by April. We’ll be getting on people from Donald’s team. It’s almost like a reality TV show and they are going to talk about their journey and experiences as salespeople and how they were able to become successful. This series may run for six episodes and will be posted and played every Wednesday.
“Best Seller In History Recap” episode resources
If you want to hear more and review this series, you can just head on to The Sales Evangelist podcast site and type Best sellers in history series in the search bar.
If you want more stories, you can just reach out to Donald. Reach him via these channels: LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook about any sales concerns.
This episode is brought to you in part by TSE Certified Sales Training Program. It’s a course designed to help new and struggling sellers to master the fundamentals of sales and close more deals. Sign up now and get the first two modules for free! You can also call us at (561) 570-5077.
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Audio provided by Free SFX and Bensound. Other songs used in the episodes are as follows: The Organ Grinder written by Bradley Jay Hill, performed by Bright Seed, and Produced by Brightseed and Hill.
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