The sales profession has earned a dubious reputation thanks to its history of questionable methods and tactics. Most people alive today are only vaguely familiar with door-to-door selling, but that’s how some of us got started in the landscaping industry.
Looking back, I believe that was either one of my dumbest or smartest career moves. At the time, I knew almost nothing about the landscaping industry. However, after a decade in corporate sales, I was confident I could figure everything out if I could just land a few clients.
None of those cold calls resulted in new business, but I learned a lot from the experiences. My greatest surprise was discovering that most buyers knew less about landscaping than me. That inspired me to learn more.
A few weeks ago, I wrapped up a sales presentation for contractors and was doing my best to answer their questions, mostly pertaining to deals in progress. Several also wanted me to recommend a good book on selling. My answer then seemed just as impossible as it is now, but I’m going to give this a try.
After some research of my own, I sought the advice of friends in our industry and others. Few could name a book on sales that they believed to be truly remarkable, with one exception. Never Split The Difference, by Chris Voss, is a book on negotiating, but its exceptional title suggests the author knows a thing or two about deal-making.
Voss believes that in every negotiation, including his high-stakes deals with terrorists and drug dealers, your counterpart always wants two things: safety and control. This matters in life-or-death circumstances, and it’s relevant for salespeople working with buyers who consider their needs equally critical.
Empathy drives sales and negotiation success
In the first chapter of his book, Voss makes this statement: To get what you want, you must clearly know what that is and ask for it.
Here is his prescription for achieving your objectives,
- More than preparing, seek to reveal the surprises you’ve yet to discover.
- Test your hypothesis. Negotiation is all about discovery.
- Focus on the other person. Empathy leads to familiarity and bonding.
My prescription for succeeding in selling situations aligns with this: Be yourself because that’s a differentiator that is nearly always underestimated. Consider that in the context of negotiating with criminals and hostages and other life-and-death situations, as Voss did. Then bring that reality to your selling situations.
This is no time to hold back. You must be the best version of yourself for the most important person in the room to make everyone feel safe and in control. You must be focused, honest and authentic.
You also must expect to resolve every obstacle that stands in the way. That’s never a halfway job. You must own everything because that’s what the best sales professionals do.
Endless learning opportunities
Depending on where you are in your sales career, here are a few additional books you may find useful:
- To Sell Is Human: The Surprising Truth About Moving Others, by Daniel Pink
- The War Of Art: Break Through The Blocks And Win Your Creative Battles, by Steven Pressfield
- The Obstacle Is The Way: The Ancient Art Of Turning Adversity To Advantage, by Ryan Holiday
Only one of these books focuses on selling, and it is more about people than practices. This may lead you to think, “Who is the most important person in sales situations?”
I believe if you work on yourself and give clients your best, your conclusion will be the right one.
