Verbal Aikido
May 28, 2023
Letting go of the pitch starts with you. Join my newsletter to read things like, ‘How to Start Conversations With Skeptical Prospects’ and ‘The Cure for Sales Anxiety’. You can opt out anytime.
People are afraid of you.
They’re afraid you’re going to try to talk them into buying.
The problem is the word “into”.
People can smell your commission breath when you try talking them into buying. They know you have an ulterior motive— that you’re putting your best interests in front of theirs. That you’re cherry picking stats to persuade.
And yet people buy things all the time without being persuaded.
Brown boxes are delivered to doorsteps everyday.
Over 800,000 people subscribe to Masterclass.
All without anybody persuading anyone.
Selling isn’t about persuading.
It’s not your job to talk people into things.
Instead, detach from the outcome.
Let go of assuming you’re for everyone.
Shift from persuading to guiding people to persuade themselves.
However, you can’t do that with the traditional sales approach.
You have to stop pitching and start listening.
My mission is to show you how.
Know HowAre you just starting out in sales? Have you been selling for some time? Here are some products that might help you make progress faster.
This guide is filled to the brim with tactics that stack the odds in your favor for grabbing people’s attention and keeping it.
An easy-to-learn cold calling method for starting conversations with skeptical prospects without the debilitating feeling of rejection.
I started captioning snakes doing salesy things as a reminder of what not to do (and what to do instead). Thus, Snakes Struggling with Sales was born
Do prospects get you tongue tied when they raise objections? I got you. 34 Sales objections flashcards. Objection on the front, what to say on the back.
Included with the Badass Guide. Understand why customers “hired” your product so you create messaging that invites people to care and motivates them to want to learn more.
Dear Salesperson,
What if you did away with the idea of talking me into buying?
What if you let go of any assumptions you have about me?
What if you started by understanding me instead of persuading me?
What if you were open to the idea that I might be able to make progress without you?
What if you stopped trying to change my mind?
What if you had zero expectations when you reached out to me?
What would that do to your mental state?
What effect would that have on building trust?
Somewhere along the way, you became assumptive.
You started assuming everyone needed what you were selling.
You began asked leading questions to elicit a desired response.
You refused to take no for an answer.
Assuming you’re for everyone sets in motion pushy behaviors. Like bumping emails to the top of my inbox. Can you please bump it back down?
Whenever I feel the push, I pull away. So do you. So does everyone.
Assuming you’re for everyone makes you anxious because you attach your self-worth to the outcome (extrinsic reward). When you don’t get what you expected, you feel rejected.
I’m not rejecting you.
I’m rejecting what you said.
However, when you let go of having expectations you create an environment where I feel comfortable having an honest conversation with you because I don’t feel sold or manipulated.
Ask me a question that shines a light on a problem I’m not aware of.
Motivate me to do the talking.
Then let me come to my own conclusion.
Sort me, don’t sell me.
Sincerely,
A Prospect