expanded our territory by salespeople, Louis and Clark. The first 175 years after the American Revolution, we were still just on the verge of the Appalachian Mountains. Louis and Clark studied what the British had done so they set up trading posts, manned by salespeople, so that when people went westward they could get the supplies that were necessary. So, we were not only discovered by a salesperson, freed by a salesperson, populated by a salesperson, and expanded by salespeople, but today you as salespeople are completely responsible for goods and services you sell. Our whole economy depends on it.
Let me ask you another question. Are you required to have a little piece of paper that you write the order on when you make a sale? Most salespeople at one point or another have to use paper, is that not true? Well, you see, that paper didn’t start out as paper. It started out as a tree. Now what had to happen was we had to go out into the woods, cut the tree down, and then haul it to the paper mill. Now, had you not made the sale, there’d be no need for that in the paper mill, and there are hundreds of people involved in manufacturing that tree into paper.
What happens is that you take part of your profits you made on the sale and you go to the grocery store and you buy a can of beans and the grocer says if you are going to buy my beans then I got to get some more. So, he goes to the wholesaler and says, “Hey, need more beans.” The wholesaler says, if you’re going to buy my beans, then I got to get some more, so he goes to the canner and says, “Need more beans.” The canner says if you are going to buy my beans, then I got to get some more. The canner goes to the farmer and says, “Need more beans.” The farmer says if you are going to buy my beans, then I got to raise some more, and to do that, I got to get me a new tractor because the one I got is all worn out. So, he goes down to the dealer and says, “Got to have a new tractor,” and the dealer says to himself, “Man, if you are going to buy my tractor, then I got to go to the factory and get another one because this is the last one I got.” So, he goes to the factory and the factory says if you’re going to do that, I have to bring in iron, plastic, steel, aluminum, lead, zinc, rubber, and all of the things to manufacture that tractor, and every bit of that happened because one day you got out there and made a sale. And, let me tell you, friend, that’s what you ought to tell people.
Our economy is dependent on that. Since the economy is dependent on it, understand that your character is a critically important part of all of this. I’m not talking about making a sale. I’m talking about making a sale so that you can make the next one, and the next one, and the next one, and the next one. That’s why character is so important.
Years ago, I spent fifteen years selling heavy-duty waterless cookware. I was the number one salesperson in America working for the Salad Master Corporation out of Dallas, Texas. I never will forget one occasion in Columbia, South Carolina. My friend Bill was struggling. Now, Bill and I sold the same product. We were in different organizations, but we were friends, so we would frequently get together just to chat.
I was over at his house. I was really excited and there was Bill singing the blues. We were in his kitchen having a little chat. I mean things were tough, and as I got talking to him, I said, “Well, Bill, I know what your problem is”
He said, “What’s my problem, man; tell me quick.”
I said, “You’re trying to sell something you don’t believe in.”
Well, he about exploded. He said, “What do you mean I don’t believe in it? We have the greatest set of cookware on the American market.”
I said, “I know that, Bill, but it’s obvious you don’t know it.”
In a testy voice, Bill said, “What do you mean I don’t believe in it? I left the company I was with for four years. I was a manager there, and I came aboard here as a salesperson because I believe in this product.”
I made a little eye contact with the set of pots he had hanging over his stove… and they weren’t our company’s pots.
“Oh, that,” said Bill. “But Zig, you know what my situation is. Man, I wrecked my car, and for about a month there, I had to depend on the bus and cabs in order to go make calls. You can’t operate like that. And, you know my wife has been in the hospital. She was in there for ten days, and we didn’t have any insurance. The hospital bill was horrendous. Now, it looks like we’re going to have to put the boys in the hospital to get their tonsils out. But Zig, I am going to get a set of the cookware.”
I then asked him how long he had been with our company. He said it had been five years. I then asked him what his excuse was last year for not having a set of the cookware. And the year before that and the year before that. I then looked right into his eyes and said, “Bill, let me tell you the thought process that takes place when you’re in the closing situation and the prospect says to you, ‘Bill I’d love to buy this set of cookware. It is really neat, but you see, I can’t. I wrecked my car a month ago and my wife’s been in the hospital for ten days and I don’t have any insurance, and man, that just stripped us bare. Now it looks like we ’re going to have to put the boys in the hospital and get their tonsils out.’ I said, “Now Bill, you and I both know nobody is going to come up with exactly the same excuses that you came up with, but when they give you any excuse at all, you’re sitting there saying to yourself quietly, ‘Now think positive, Bill. Think positive ’, but deep down, what you’re thinking is ‘Yeah, I know exactly what you mean. That’s the reason I don’t have a set of the stuff myself.”
I let that sink in for a moment and then I told Bill that he needed to buy a set of the cookware from himself that day before he went out to make his first sales call. He asked me if I really thought it was that important. I told him I didn’t think it would make a difference. I knew it would make a difference. I told Bill that if he did this, he would sell enough extra cookware that week to pay for his own set of cookware. Well, I made a sale that day. I persuaded Bill to buy a set of cookware off himself.
Later, he told me he earned more than enough to pay for his own set of cookware and acknowledged as he went on in his career that the best investment that he ever made was the investment in his own product. Owners are closers. Owners sell; that is the point I’m trying to get across. Believe in what you’re selling enough that you would sell it to your mother or your daughter or your son or your dad. Believe it enough that you’re using it yourself. Now, don’t misunderstand. I don’t think if you sell 747 airplanes that you have to buy a 747. But, if you’re selling Fords and you’re driving a Chevrolet, then there’s something that’s a little inconsistent about what you’re talking about. Selling is a transference of feeling. Well, what I’m really getting at is character is the base on which you are believing. You see, the heart of the sale really does start with the honest factor, and that is what character is all about. You see, values determine behavior. Behavior determines reputation. Reputation determines advantages. It is so important.
A lot of people think that their lives are completely out of focus. That their lives are all filled up but they are not all filled up. They are just a little bit out of focus. As salespeople, we first need to focus on getting prospects. Then, we need to focus on getting appointments. Then, we need to focus on making the presentation. Then, we need to focus on getting them to take a positive action.
I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve been on a sales call with a new salesperson who will be talking and talking and talking, and you know what? They still never asks for the order. I have, on occasion, heard the prospect say, “Now, you’re not trying to sell me something, are you? “And believe it or not, the salesperson will say, “Oh, no, no, no.” Well, what are you, a professional listener? I mean, as I understand it, the purpose of the call is to make the sale. That’s why honesty and integrity are so important. The belief you have in your product or service will come out, and the depth of your sincerity is infinitely more persuasive than the height of your knowledge
