Think of a used car salesman.

What words come to your mind?

Sleezy. Creepy. Dishonest. Ugh.

Are any of these your thoughts?

These words (and many more like them) are what jumps into our minds when we think of sales. We have been deeply conditioned to think of sales as a negative.

This means we avoid selling and judge anyone we think is selling.

But we are entrepreneurs. That means BUSINESS. That means SELLING things.

Is it any wonder we get mixed up and struggle to make money? We have been taught to suck at one of our most important skill sets: SELLING!

I can remember when I was in school and hearing my classmates critique a speaker or entrepreneur on campus who was peddling his/her services to the students. The refrain was, “They just want you to buy their stuff!”

I got sucked into this mentality. I turned down the volume whenever it became clear that someone was looking to sell me something. I cast doubt on their intention and more or less ignored anything else they said. I didn’t look into the product, the value it might offer, or do anything remotely constructive to my future. I checked out.

This lead to me only accepting advice and help that was free. Which lead me to having a very limited resource base.

This lead to me having fear and judgement in asking people to buy MY services and knowledge. Which lead to me losing many opportunities to help people and flourish in business.

This is CRAZY because my whole job as a chiropractor was selling my services and knowledge.

I had set myself up in an impossible business model.

How can I tell people that they should value my service, talent and expertise when I shit on anyone else who offers to sell their service, talent and expertise?

Let’s start over.

There is NOTHING inherently bad about selling.

The good/bad is in how you do it. So let’s all learn to do it well (and “good”).

What is selling?

Selling is explaining what you do. Selling is explaining how what you do offers value to the POTENTIAL buyer. Selling is clarifying the gap in knowledge, ability or application of information that the buyer has and then clearly demonstrating how your product can close that gap.

And be sure to check out Daniel Pink’s book: To Sell Is Human. It’s brilliant and will help you sort this out further.

HERE IS WHY YOU SHOULD NOT FREAK OUT WHEN SOMEONE IS SELLING.

1. You do not HAVE TO buy their thing.
2. You usually are being offered FREE information and value as the seller is establishing connection with you. What a cool system! Free stuff first, then if you would like to buy something more advanced, you can. YOU’RE WELCOME.
3. If how someone is selling feels creepy, you get an opportunity to observe their techniques and figure out why. And if it truly is a creepy tactic (see below), you can make sure you avoid doing it yourself when you are selling.
4. Branding is not creepy. Branding is creating enough awareness so the potential buyer can figure out where to go to learn more, probably for free. Branding is when someone gives you their business card. Branding when someone has their logo on their slides while they present and give their website URL at the end of their presentation. That is not pushy. That is helpful.

THINGS THAT RAISE A RED FLAG/CREEPY SELLING

• Someone says they will offer free value and then doesn’t teach you anything or add value but says they will add value AFTER you buy.
• People who spend a good portion of their time telling you how great they are. This shows lack of awareness and lack of connection to you as the customer.
• People who say they have the RIGHT and the ONLY answer. No one has the right answer or the only answer. They are a liar or delusional.
• People who say they are THE ONLY PERSON who can teach this thing and offer no alternatives, books, website or resources where you can learn what they learned.
• People who shit on everyone else’s products and businesses. A great seller/marketer can absolutely win a sale without attacking others. It’s much more powerful to show how much value you offer.
• People who don’t offer anything for free (samples) and then want you to jump in at an elevated level of cost or a even a contract after a five minute reveal or list of stuff.
• People who do not offer a money back guarantee. This shows lack of confidence in their product.
• People who do not offer social proof (testimonials) of their ability to help others. (Side note: this might mean they are new, but still talented, or that they are a poor marketer.)

I wish I had re-examined my relationship with selling a lot sooner. I think of how many people I did not even TRY to reach because I was afraid of my own (false) judgement.

My job as an entrepreneur (a salesperson, yes!) is to deliver vitalistic (authentic, inside-out) sales.

HERE’S WHAT VITALISTIC SALES MEANS TO ME.

• I offer a well-crafted valuable product that was created with the very best of my abilities.
• I build a business around an idea that I truly believe will help people and I am not afraid to be compensated for adding that value to people’s lives.
• I built my product with my audience, my customer in mind. That includes pricing.
• I am always looking to add more value to my customers that they expected.
• I care about my customer’s feedback and needs.
• I respect my customer and don’t talk down to them or insult their intelligence and capabilities.
• I recognize that my stuff is not for everyone. I make it great for the people who are into it. I lean into my niche.
  I tell people the truth and admit when I screw up (because we all screw up).
• I don’t shit on other people’s products and skills. I know their products will speak for themselves over time, as will mine. I am not the judge. I am a creator and I create better when I don’t judge others. (Because critics generally create weak products because they are afraid to take risks.)

Let’s reinvent the idea of sales in our industries and help our peers develop a healthy appreciation for sales and how embracing our salemanship can add more business and therefore more value to the world.

SELLING is awesome! Go out and sell your heart out. Sell your best ideas with no shame and no doubt, because if you are adding value, you are making the world a better place.

Mary

P.S. I sell stuff. Right here on this web page! You might like to:
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c. consider buying an online class, because they kickass and make you better at stuff that matters to you.