Sales and Power
by Philip Siddons

[Editor's note: One of the biggest issues in the field of
electronic networking is how to SELL it to the folks who haven't
yet discovered its power. Here are some tips on sales from an
expert!]


He sat across from me and talked. He said he is looking for
someone who wants to take over his job. A take charge person.
One who wants to live in a better house than most others.
Someone who cares about the amount of money *he* carries
around.

After checking on the neatness of his pocket handkerchief, he
went on.

He talked about how, with his formula for sales, (which he
numbered with his fingers) *he* could sell anything. Pots and
pans, computers, it didn't matter. And with him doing the
training, his next sales*man* could take control of any
conversation. Customers would think they were crazy to consider
another company.

Power. Being in control has traditionally been valued in
sales. But the values have changed.

The last thing consumers want is a person who is out to talk
them into something. What they want, what I want, is service.
A person enters a store or a corporation for one thing to have
needs met. And the most effective sales people, I think, are in
it to serve the client. To help her or him assess their needs,
consider a variety of alternatives, and recommend the better
solutions for consideration.

Consider this axiom: "You can never motivate another
person. You can only create the best environment conducive to
their own working style."

It is my belief, then, that those in sales would be wise to
create an environment which encourages people to do what they
already are capable of doing: to choose what they come to know
is best to meet their particular consumer needs.

To test this theory, think, if you will, about people who
have been most influential in times of your decision making.
The person you were consulting about a car. (Perhaps it was a
relative.) The one with whom you talked when considering a
college or graduate school. The clergy person who was present
when working through a difficult decision. The neighbor who
helped you buy a VCR.

Those who attempted to fit you into their scheme were
probably more distracting than helpful. But those who had the
listening skills to hear your needs, and who had the working
knowledge of a product to creatively encourage you to explore
options of your liking, were the most powerful at the time of
decision.

Sales as service. That's the new climate of sales today.
And whenever we are fortunate enough to deal with a sales person
who sees their task as service, a relationship begins. And in
the end, that is most powerful.


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Author's note: Philip Siddons is the Director of Advertising and
is a corporate trainer for Desktop Publishing for Quest Computer
Systems in Buffalo New York. He is an author and free-lance writer.