Sleazy salespeople and their sleazy salespeople ways.
Hey there!
It’s late here. But before I sneak off to bed, I want to catch up with you for a little chat.
Earlier today I was reading an excellent article by my friend, Aussie persuasion expert Duane Cunningham.
Go back, click on his name and read it if you want the rest of the post to make sense.
On the other hand, if you’re after a more psychedelic blog reading experience then go read something else, then come back and debate the appropriateness of your reading choice in the context of the remainder of the post.
Alice in Wonderland might be a good choice.
So you’ve just read Duane / Lewis Carroll make a pretty bold premise. I’ll paraphrase it thus:
“Strewth mate. If you’re gonna be prissy about sales and marketing, don’t “like” it, aren’t any bloody good at it, aren’t (wo)man enough to hunker down and get good at it then you’re bloody well not going to make any bloody money!”
Or something like that.
I’m exaggerating, of course. But not much. Duane understands the value of not sitting on the fence. His blog is pretty badass. You should check it out.
So… if Duane’s premise is correct, then that pretty much sucks for the majority of us who regard selling as a rather disagreeable pastime…
… unless we change some of our beliefs around sales and marketing.
Most of the people I work with don’t really like the idea of marketing or selling themselves, their product or their service.
They think of selling as that thing that salespeople do.
I am a consultant, they say.
I am a coach, they say.
I am a yoga-instructor.
I may be all these things, they say. But I am not a salesperson.
This is usually because they see the act of selling or marketing as an affront. Maybe they’ve been exposed to too many nasty pushy salesmen. Maybe their friends have tried to get them involved in some lame pyramid scheme. Whatever, they’ve come to see the whole selling stuff deal as A Bit Icky.
Which is a massive shame. Because Duane is right. You can’t make money if you’re not selling stuff.
You need to sell stuff to make money. But selling is not necessarily a dirty nasty sleazy thing, and you can do it without being a dirty nasty sleazy douchebag.
(I love the word douchebag. It’s sorely underused this side of the Atlantic.)
You don’t need to be a sleazy chain-smoking salesman from the seventies, banging on endlessly about his “leads”. You don’t need to write big long ugly internet sales pages that look like your son has swallowed a yellow highlighter and vomited it all over your monitor. You don’t need to send a million sales letters to a million ungrateful mailboxes. You don’t need to start spamming people’s inboxes.
You don’t need the used car salesmen approach to selling.
Yeah. Not this.
Not at all.
Selling your services or product is really about making sure that an awesome thing ends up in the hands of an awesome person who will benefit from it but who might not otherwise recognize the value it holds for them.
And for that…
You need something awesome that you believe in. And you deserve to feel proud about that thing and to promote it in a non-creepy way that you enjoy.
That, my good friend, is a part of what this blog is all about.
You know that the thing that you’re selling rocks. So go tell people about it. Spread the love. Spread the happy. Change lives. Change the bloody world!
For a quick intro, check out this post here http://www.jjjalopy.com/coaching-business-startup-202-beliefs-about-marketing/
If you’re worried about promoting your stuff then, to be successful and to start making the money you deserve, you’ll need to do one of two things:
- work on your beliefs about marketing (see above)
- get better stuff to sell.
Often, for coaches and consultants, the reluctance to promote your services enthusiastically actually stems from a lack of confidence in your services themselves.
And how do we deal with that?
Well… we come up with a plan to manage it. And we’ll do that together soon.
But for now… it’s time for bed! 
Have a fun evening. Say Hi to Duane from me when you pop by!
JJ Jalopy.
Comment by Lynn Lane
16 June 2009
JJ,
Always a pleasure to read your blog. I agree with you all the way. Sales can be fun if you apply your ideas.
Lynn
http://www.Warriorofsuccess.com
Lynn Lane´s last blog ..A Quitter Never Wins
Comment by Duane Cunningham
16 June 2009
Hey JJ,
Now as the king of shameless self promotion that you are! I’m humbled to be featured on your superb blog post!
But everything you say is spot on! If you don’t like the shit you sell…go find something you would be proud of selling!
The people that make it in this world are those that get out there and make it known that they have something worth having!
When are we doing this podcast you slacker!..lol
Duane
Discover Secret Persuading Skills that Work Like Magic by Tapping Into the Psychology of the Mind with The Worlds Leading Persuasion Expert Duane Cunningham!
“Amazing Secrets Discovered Using Cutting Edge Research! Guaranteed To Put Money In Your Pockets, Melt Away Sales Resistance…And Slash Buyers Remorse Almost Overnight!”
Comment by Anthony Lemme
16 June 2009
Douchebag! We use it quite a bit on our side of the pond. In fact, my ex-girlfriend called me a douchebag just last week. It was so much fun to be called a douchebag, especially by her!
You make a few great points. One is that Duane’s blog does rock, the other is to sell something better, and another is the one about coaches not being confident in their services.
By the way you slacking douchebag, when are we doing that podcast with Duane?
You know I love you man!
Anthony
http://www.anthonylemme.com
Anthony
http://www.anthonylemme.com
Anthony Lemme´s last blog ..When to Let the Voices in Your Head Speak
Comment by John Ho
16 June 2009
JJ,
EVERYONE is a sales person. If s/her persuades you to be otherwise, s/he is ALREADY SELLING you that funny idea anyway!
John Ho
Numerology Expert Helps Understanding Personality for Better Influence & Persuasion (WordPress Blog)
Numerology Expert Birthday Numeroscope (Vox Blog)
Numerology Expert Helps Understanding Personality for Better Influence & Persuasion
John Ho´s last blog ..“Numerology Expert Puts Copyright into Whatever He Writes From Now On”
Comment by JJ Jalopy
16 June 2009
@Lynn – Thanks very much dude. I received an awesome e-Zine yesterday. I loved it to bits!
@Duane – It’s a pleasure to have you on my blog, superstar. Do you have Skype? I’m jjjalopy. Add me. I call Anthony every so often but he never picks up. Tease…
We could pretty much summarize all of this as: “sell good shit”… but then we’d sound like drug dealers.
@Anthony – Love you too Douchebag!
@John – You’re totally right. I guess the only difference is our limiting beliefs about MONEY. Cool point dude!
JJ Jalopy´s last blog ..Sleazy salespeople and their sleazy salespeople ways.
Comment by Darryl Pace
17 June 2009
JJ,
Dude, you are correct: Duane’s blog rocks! It’s awesome. Also, I must say, your blog is rockin as well! Great information as usual.
Health, Fitness — Darryl Pace
Fitness Product Review
Darryl Pace´s last blog ..What Kind of Glycemic Index Make You Crash and Burn?
Comment by Pam Schulz
19 June 2009
Duane’s blog nails it – unfortunately, for many of us, successful selling is like speaking a foreign language. Thanks for bringing me back to a point where I can begin believing that I can be successful at it.
Pam
Invest in Your Future
Pam Schulz´s last blog ..The Strength of Markets
Comment by JJ Jalopy
19 June 2009
@Darryl – Thanks man! Always a pleasure to have you over for tea!
@Pam – I totally agree. Selling doesn’t come naturally to most of us. We can’t all be super-slick superstars like Duane.
You highlighted the key to success at this – the belief that you really can do it!
Thanks for stopping by.
Comment by Newport Beach, Widow Support, Bereavement Counseling, Divorce Recovery, Grief Support, Orange County, Huntington Beach, Long Beach, Irvine
22 June 2009
Hey JJ,
Your blog is totally rockin’, UK Dude!
Indeed, Mr. Australia Persuasion Expert, Duane’s blog is superb, too! (yeah, I know that wasn’t 100% grammatically correct, but I’m a roll, here, so bear with me!)
Sometimes in California we seem to think that “selling” is somehow… impolite. And in fact, bed selling really is. It’s uber aggressive and forcing. When GOOD selling is asking questions and letting many many people, preferably yes those in your target audience of actual prospects, about the VALUE, not the tactics of what we do to HELP THEM. And then they are grateful we spoke with them.
Best regards,
April Braswell
Single Boomer Dating Expert, Relationship Success Coach
Widow Support and Bereavement Counseling Outreach Workshop Orange County, Newport Beach, Huntington Beach, CA
Newport Beach, Huntington Beach, Orange County, Website Marketing, Web Design, SEO, Social Media Marketing
Comment by JJ Jalopy
22 June 2009
@April – Thanks US-Gal!
We tend to think in similar ways in the UK. We hate to impose.
Well… people more polite than I do anyway…
Comment by Lisa McLellan
28 June 2009
I think that Duane’s blog is the one that always makes me feel like I’m going to fail no matter what. He is a badass when it comes to selling. And I am far to wishy washy to ever be good at sales. He is a master of his territory for sure!
Lisa McLellan
Babysitting Services – Babysitters and Nannies
Comment by Steve Chambers
2 July 2009
Everyone sells, period. They either do it well or they do it badly, but they are selling.
Seriously, we can sell things that add value or we can take what we want by force. It’s a better world when sell things.
Steve Chambers, The Sales Expert
The Sales Eagle Solution – 6 months to dominate your market
Comment by JJ Jalopy
4 July 2009
@Steve – Yup. There’s no getting away from it if we want to make money!