I Hate Sales by Noah Rickun

7/27/2019 I Hate Sales by Noah Rickun

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I Hate SalesBy Noah Rickun


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ContentsIntroduction p. 3

The Stigma of Sales p. 4

13 Ways to Overcome the Stigma of Sales p. 8

How to Elevate Yourself from Order-Taker to Salesperson p. 12

Six Secrets of Sales Success p.16

About the Author p.18


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I Hate SalesGet over it. Get better at it. Get paid for it.

INTRODUCTION

Ive created I Hate Sales for anyone

and everyone who hates sales but nds

themselves having to sell.

The number one job of every employee inyour company is to sell. But most people

arent comfortable admitting that. I Hate

Sales is the key to nding the purpose, drive,

and attitude you need to sell your heart out.


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The

STIGMAofSALES


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There are two kinds of people in the world cat

people and dog people.

Wait, no. Thats not the point of this chapter.

There are two other kinds of people in the world people who love sales and people who hate

sales. And, then, there are those who hate

salespeople and those who love salespeople.

From my own experience, I have found that

there are far more Americans who detest

salespeople than there are those who love (or

even like) salespeople.

Youve heard all the jokes. How do you know a

salesman is lying? His lips are moving.

The reason why its funny is because its

true. Salespeople for centuries have given

themselves a bad name.

Which means, theyve given you a bad

name.


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Theyre too pushy.

They make assumptions about what I want.

The fact that too many of them act like a

20 year-old in Vegas looking for nothing

more than a one night stand.

They start every call with How are youdoing today? but they dont really want to

know. They just want me to buy something.

What one thing do you

DISLIKE MOSTabout salespeople?

They tend to lie... if they dont outright lie...

they can be very misleading.

The fact theyre salespeople! Should be focused

on their clients needs versus their pocket!

Focused on their own selsh needs.

You can never nd them after the sale is

nal... unless its for another sale.

They dont listen.


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Their utter phoniness.

Theyre fake and call you Partner.

Funny you should ask the day I found out a

car salesman lied to me more than once.

My answer: Lie.

The ones that simply tell me theyll saveme money. Those types have no plan for a

working relationship.

But dont just takemy word for it...

This week, I conducted a survey on

Facebook and Twitter with a singlequestion:

What one thing do you dislike most

about salespeople?

Just look at some of the responses I got.

Hurts, doesnt it?

So, whats the cure? You have to create a

name (and a title) for yourself. You have to

create a perception for yourself.

Youve got to do whatever it takes to put

yourself in a different category. You have

to work hard to create perceived value in

the mind of the customer or the prospect

so that they think of you as anything but a

salesperson.

Be a value-provider, not a salesperson.

Be a resource, not a salesperson.

Be a friend, not a salesperson.

Be an assistant-buyer, not a salesperson.

Be a customer-advocate, not a

salesperson.

Be an idea-generator, not a salesperson.

Be a trusted-advisor, not a salesperson.

Become perceived as ANYTHING but a

salesperson, and youll put yourself on a

path toward sales success.

Transferring call to another person or

department to x a mistake they made,

since its no longer a Sales Call.

That they are all liars!

Telling me what I want to buy and what I

need instead of asking me what Im looking

for and what my needs are.

Halitosis.


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13 Ways to

OVERCOMEthe Stigma of Sales

How do you overcome the odds and put yourself on a path toward sales success by becoming perceived

as anything but a salesperson?

The goal is to transform your prospect or customers perception of you from salesperson to:

1. Start out by changing your philosophy. Itsnot, How do I sell as much of my stuff as

possible? Its, How does my prospect win

by buying and using my stuff?

2. Never try to sell something that you would notbuy yourself were you in a similar position as

your prospect.

Value Provider

Assistant Buyer

Valuable Resource

Customer Advocate

Idea Generator

Trusted Advisor

Those are just a few of the titles you must aspire to earn. Pay attention to the word earn. You can put

whatever you want on your business card, but what really matters is how your prospects and customers

think of you. If you put down that youre a Value Providerand they think of you as Slimy Salesguy, well

you lose.

Heres how to earn the respect, the trust, and the sale:


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3. Bring a new idea (or three) to your rst meeting.

Yep, your rst meeting. Show up prepared. The

idea has to be something of value something

your prospect can use to become more

protable, more efcient, or more secure. Dont

worry about whether your idea is connected in

any way to your product or service. Focus on

connecting the idea to their business.

4. Do not ask anything about shing or hunting

or how theyre doing until after youve shown

some value. You think youre qualifying your

prospect during your initial meeting or phone

call when in reality, theyre qualifying you.

5. Ask great questions. Dont be winging it. Show

up with a list of 10 great questions that get your

prospect talking and thinking.

6. Come to your prospect by way of referrals from

their peers. A great recommendation changes

the game to your favor before you walk in the

door.

7. Bring them a referral. If you show up with a

new prospect for your prospect, theyll take

your meeting. And, theyll owe you one. Not

every prospect will repay you, but most will.The more you can connect your customers to

one another (unless, of course, they happen to

be direct competitors), the more business you

will earn for yourself.

8. Offer to work in their business for day. Tell them

that before you make a decision about whether

your product or service can help them, youd

rst like to fully understand what they do, how

they do it, and why. Spend a day in their shoes

and theyll spend their money with you.

The Evolution of Sales


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NOTE

Your mileage may vary.

Not every strategy will work for you.

Pick a few that t you well and get to work.

9. Leave your brochures and PowerPoint

presentation behind. Make the rst

interaction all about them. Tell them youll

give them the full dog and pony show by

their request only. Dont be surprised if

they never ask.

10. Be prepared to walk away. Sometimes

during a meeting or a phone call, youll

realize that youre not the best t for your

prospect. Walk away. Fast. Tell them you

do not think that you can help them but

youll be back one day if and when their

needs (or your service offerings) change.

You will earn their respect and, perhaps,

their future business.

11. Read everything you can about your

prospect their company, their industry,

their competitors, their announcements,

their social media posts, etc. and sendyour prospect clippings of the most

relevant and insightful pieces. Add your

own comments when appropriate.

12.Follow-up and follow-through. Do what

you say youre going to dowhen you

say youre going to do it. Send them a

cool gift (gifts are cool because of their

thoughtfulness and their usefulness not

because you spent $50 on them). Hint:relevant business books that provide ideas

and answers to your prospects most

burning questions are the best possible

gifts. Inscribe them with a personal note.

Even if your prospect never reads the

book, theyll put it on their bookshelf and

theyll always know where it came from.

If they do read the book youll havesomething to talk about (at great length)

next time.

13.Read a few books yourself. Youll nd

more ideas and inspiration than youve

ever dreamed of. While youre reading,

ask How can I adapt this to my business?

How can I use this in my situation? And

why the heck didnt I read more books

before!?!


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... AND NOTE WELL

The rst sale you have to make is to yourself. If you think of yourself as just as salesperson, your

prospect will do the same. Make a list of everything that you actually do for your customers. Things

that you do for them (rather than yourself), on their behalf, and for their benet. The longer that

list is, the easier it will be to prove to yourself (and, eventually, your prospect) that you belong in adifferent kind of category. The kind of category that deserves and earns the business.


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DONT ASK

DO ASK

Did you save room for dessert?

Would you like a slice of the best darnapple pie youll ever have?


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What other options are youconsidering?

When would you like it delivered.

(As opposed to just telling themwhen you can ship it.)

After giving them a quote ask,

Is that what you expected to spend?


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6 SECRETSofSALES SUCCESSI recently conducted a sales training day for a little

over one hundred sales professionals. Two hours

in, somebody slipped me a note that read, Whats

the secret to success?

I responded, Two words hard work.

Somehow, I think the audience felt cheated, so I

decided to continue.

Want a more in-depth answer? I asked. Work

your tail off.

The reality is that salespeople often look for

shortcuts. They want the easiest path to success

(aka commission checks).

Heres the good news: there are no shortcuts. If you

want to win, youve got to be willing to work harder

than your competition.

Sure, sometimes luck plays a role. But, as

Jeffrey Gitomer often reminds me, Hard work

makes luck.


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Success in selling means destroying your quota. It means having a closing ratio that exceeds that of your

teammates and your competitors. It means becoming your best, earning customer loyalty, and not having

to cold call.

Success is the reward you get when you think the right thoughts, when you take the right actions, when

you bounce back from adversity, when you fully dedicate yourself to your craft, and when you do the

hard work it takes to become known as a value provider and resource as opposed to simply sales guy.

I have studied thousands of successful salespeople across hundreds of industries. While many of these

salespeople have their own denition for success, most of them agree on what it takes to get there.

Here are the six secrets to sales success:

1. WORK HARD. REALLY HARD.

The world doesnt owe you anything. Nor

does your boss. The only one who owes

anyone anything isyou. You owe it to yourself

to skip tomorrows episode of Dexter and

instead make a half-dozen sales calls.

2. START EARLY, STAY LATE.

Dont worry about how many hours youre

working. Hit your numbers and then look for

ways to become more efcient. But rst, hit

your numbers.

IF YOURE NOT GETTING WHAT YOU WANT,YOURE PROBABLY NOT ASKING FOR IT.

So, ask for it. Ask your customers, your

boss, your prospects.

3. FIND YOUR PASSION.

Success in selling has more to do with

your condence, your belief system, and

your passion than anything else. If youre

not passionate about your company,

your product, and your ability to help your

customers, youll never be successful.

6. TAKE RISKS.

Playing it safe will ensure that you have a job

forever. Taking calculated risks will help you

earn a fortune. Put yourself out there. Take

your shot. Reach out and sell something!

PUT SALES CALLS AND COLD CALLINGIN YOUR APPOINTMENT BOOK.

If your smart phone or tablet doesnt have

an hour blocked for outbound sales efforts

each day, you dont have a shot. Youre not

going to ever get to it or squeeze it in.

Youre busy. Youve got paperwork. Youve

got inbound phone trafc to handle. If you

intent to make sales calls, put them in your

calendar. Otherwise, get out of sales.

Taking a little liberty, I opine that success is a journey, not a destination. Its a journey

through consistent positive action, dedicated effort, and endless pursuit of improvement.

4.

5.


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ABOUT NOAH RICKUN

Born to sell, other kids were playing in sandboxes while Noah was running his

rst businessout of his moms basement. Today, Noah Rickun is a professional

speaker, sales guy, writer, and business leader known for his innovative,

passionate, and relatable style. Hes a non-practicing attorney, the former

CEO of Jeffrey Gitomers TrainOne, and master of the approach - the single

most important part of any sale. As a speaker, Noah delivers inspirational andinformational sales seminars packed with implementable strategies, all focused on

helping his audience members to go out into the world and take their shot.

STAY CONNECTED

[email protected]

@noahrickun

/noahrickun

/noahrickun

I Hate Sales by Noah Rickun

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