Property ManagementThe Greatest Salespeople in the World Are Children
The Greatest Salesman in the World. Og Mandino wrote that classic
some 30 years ago. It still sells over one million copies annually. After
reading a tribute to Og, I started to think about what characteristics make a
great salesperson. Og had many brilliant thoughts regarding sales and life. He
said in his book, "to live each day as though it were my last." He also said,
"to be persistent until you succeed."
Then, after spending time with a few of my young nieces and nephews, I
realized that as children, we were all at one time the "greatest salespeople in
the world." At the age of three, we all had sales skills that were world
class. Our own parents were afraid to take us to the toy store, for fear that
we would sell them on the idea of buying something for us!
"Can I have that please?" "Why not?" "Tommy has one!" "I promise I"ll take
good care of it!" These are the familiar refrains heard by parents the world
over.
We all possessed three important skills to make the sale: persistence,
creativity and the ability to ask one question after another.
I personally think most of us lose our "sales skills" in our junior high and
high school years. These are the years when we are really concerned about what
others think and how they feel about us. Those self-conscious years of life
are when we try the hardest to avoid any kind of rejection in our lives. But
the inability to face rejection means the elimination of selling skills.
We could all improve our sales performance if we could turn back the clock
and reclaim these three skills from our early childhood.
As small children, we all had the ability to ask a continuous stream of
questions. Our questions were rapid-fire, coming one on top of another at a
dizzying pace. I think we were trying to confuse the prospect. But we were
also able to ask very simple, direct questions, without worrying about
rejection. If I had a dollar for every time my niece asked me "Why?" in a
three-hour period, I would be able to retire. "Why?" seems to be a favorite
question of the under-five set. We should all be so bold.
But we can take those childish questions and apply them to grown-up world of
real estate. "Why do you feel your home is worth $15,000 more than other recent
sales?" "Why are you offering $20,000 less than the true market value?" "Why,
Mr. Co-op Agent, did you write the offer this way?" The "why" questions help
you to ferret out the reasons behind the decisions. It is easier to show the
client, prospect or other agent an alternate approach if you know the reason
behind the approach that has been taken. Focus on finding the "why."
The childhood ability to ask questions was coupled with great creativity,
when it came to getting what we wanted. We would ask the same question from
different angles. We would try the same question on different people,
involving our siblings or aunts or uncles, working to recruit allies to our
cause. If we heard "no" from one parent, we would try to elicit a "yes" from
the other. We would seek to get one of our parents to commit, then use that
commitment to bring the other parent to the desired decision.
When one approach didn’t work, we would try another. With an object in
view, our creativity knew no limits. As adults, we learn from experience that
some sales approaches work better for us than others. But we can get stuck in
the method that usually works best, and be unable to make the sale in a
situation that is an exception to the rules we have learned.
On a listing appointment there is often one person that is easier to get
agreement with than the other. Find that person and use them as an ally. Get
agreement with that person first. They will actually help you sell the other
party. Remember they have more experience getting agreement with the reluctant
person than you do. In most cases they have been doing it for years.
Childlike creativity can allow you to make opportunities out of what would
otherwise be dead ends.
When creativity didn’t work, we pulled out the big gun -- persistence. We
were singularly focused on the result. We would spend hours, days, weeks, even
months in pursuit of our goals. A delightful classic movie illustrates this
childhood determination beautifully. "A Christmas Story" is about a young boy
who tries to get his parents to buy him a Red Ryder BB gun. At every turn he is
told "No, you"ll shoot your eye out, kid!" To reveal any more would spoil the
delightful story for those who haven"t seen it, but the upshot (pardon the pun)
is that persistance pays off.
In the real world, you don"t always get your way. Not every prospect becomes
a client on the first encounter. But too often we are afraid to try more than
once, even though no prospect has the power to send you to your room. The
worst thing that can happen is another "no." With a child’s focus and
persistence, you may turn that "no" into a "yes."
Take a cue from your children or nieces and nephews. Use their skills of
questioning, creativity and persistence to your advantage. Then you will truly
become, as Og Mandino wrote, the greatest salesperson in the world.