Lessons and Adventures in Sales

By Lloyd Allard

Suppose you had the luxury of an expert sales agent going along with you on every sales trip or coaching you through each sales call. With Lessons and Adventures in Sales you do. This book brings together the war stories of the veterans of the sales world from road trips to boardrooms to showrooms. The mistakes they make are the lessons to be learned and the successes they achieve are the examples to be followed.

Calling upon his own adventures and those of other professional salesmen, Lloyd Allard has created a panel of experts who offer timely advice to anyone in the sales field. Managers, trainers, recruiters, motivators, and new employees will all find useful tricks of the trade to apply and hazards to avoid. Allard introduces them to Fundamental rules for selling, Twenty-one principles for closing a sale, Empowering themselves against rejection

When gimmicks work and when they fail Presenting real-life examples of selling and managing, Lessons and Adventures in Sales is the professional development guide for the sales force. Practical, enjoyable, and successful, it has all the fundamentals needed for building one's salesmanship talents.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Open Road Integrated Media
• Release date: Mar 31, 1994
• ISBN: 9781455607334

Book preview

Starting a Career in Sales

When I first made the decision to become a salesman, I knew absolutely nothing about selling. I didn't even know how to find a job in sales! Certainly, nothing in my family history prepared me for a sales career. I still remember listening to my father say, again and again, There's nothing more hated than a damn salesman! He'd developed this attitude because the salesmen he met usually tried to sell him things he couldn't afford. When they were successful, they would hound us for payments we couldn't make. The dispute was often handed over to a collection agency. These agencies would then waste a small fortune on stamps or phone calls, ceaselessly demanding payments from us. No, there was never much respect for salespeople in my childhood home.

Sales seemed like a strange, even foreign profession when I first decided to explore it. Some of my early experiences were unusual. Others were funny. Still others were sad. I hope that as I relate some of these experiences, I can make it a bit easier for others to take the same steps that I took long ago into the wonderful world of professional selling.

For me, work usually meant real work . . . physical work. I'd always done manual labor in factories, in construction, on farms, and in a forest cutting paper wood. I'd started in southern Ohio and Kentucky. Then, I worked my way to the East Coast, where I worked in a shipyard. After a while, I worked my way to Los Angeles for a change of scene and new opportunities. Ultimately, I found myself earning my pay by loading boxcars in the hot California sun.

It was there, in 1960, where it all began for me. I was hot, dirty, and sweating at this job one day when I noticed two young men walking by. They were wearing expensive suits and carrying briefcases. I looked at those two men and thought to myself, What in the hell am I doing working like this? Why aren't I doing what they're doing?

I walked up to these men and put a simple question to them. So, what do you fellows do for a living? I asked.

We're salesmen, one of them responded. I thanked them, and decided then and there that sales was for me. I was going to become a salesman.

I lived just one block away from where I worked at the time. As soon as I could, I raced home to make the big announcement to my wife. I burst through the front door with a big smile on my face. My wife looked at me curiously.

What are you so happy about? she asked.

I've made a big decision, I said. I'm going to become a salesman!

Then she hit me with something I never expected. The first words out of her mouth were a simple pronouncement. You'll never sell anything, she said.

LESSON 1

Enlist the support of your family as you make your transition into a sales career.

I made the mistake of not considering my family's opinions or attitudes when I made my career decision. I didn't think about the apprehension my wife felt about this significant change in our lives. This was a mistake. She soon developed an intense dislike for my chosen occupation. Even after I became successful, she never changed her attitude. The seeds of doubt and dislike had been planted deeply, and nothing could root them out.

Seventeen years later, that marriage ended in divorce. I had become a successful salesman. We had all the external trappings of success, including a large home and new cars. Still, my wife felt insecure. I remember her explaining that one of her reasons for seeking a divorce was that she wanted a man who works regular hours in a regular job.

I started out by asking my friends for advice on how to find a job in sales. One friend (whom we'll call Norman) offered to help me out. Norman was a preacher who made his living by selling recordings of the entire text of the Bible. Norman told me that this career of his offered great opportunities for people like me. He suggested I give it a try. Norman then offered to sell me a demonstration set of recordings for the special reduced price of just $375. That was a lot of money for me at the time, but I was eager to get started in my new career. I decided to buy the records.

I studied the materials for a few days until I felt confident that I'd mastered it all. Then, I went to see Norman once again. I wanted to get started, so I asked him for some leads or ideas about what I should do next. Have you sold any recordings this week? I asked.

Just the set I sold to you, he replied.

LESSON 2

Be very wary whenever you have to buy something before you can sell it.

As it turned out, these Bible recordings were usually sold only to other salesmen. The tactic was amazingly simple. You just told someone that they could make a lot of money selling these records, and then you sold them the demo kit. Surprisingly, this technique is still used widely today. In my opinion, it is as unethical as forging a check or stealing money from a blind man. I became very angry and disillusioned when I realized what Norman had done to me. At least, I told myself, I'd learned an important lesson. To this day, I still keep those recordings. I've never opened their containers. They serve as a vivid reminder to me that everyone in sales needs to avoid the scams and the con men that prey on our profession.

My next selling job was with a company that marketed sets of high-quality kitchen knives. The company was completely legitimate, and the knives were excellent. That quality, of course, carried an impressive price tag, but that was just fine with me. That high price would mean real commissions for a change! Finally, I thought, I was on my way. I was going to make it as a salesman.

My spirits were buoyed even higher when I made a call several days later. The woman I spoke to seemed excited about the knives from the very start of my presentation. She was about to give me an order for my first complete set of knives. Soon, she decided to make the purchase. Now, it was my turn to be excited. This sale meant that I'd be earning a fifty-dollar commission!

Then it happened. As she was signing the sales agreement, she casually mentioned that she didn't think she'd have any problems making the payments out of her welfare checks. I came back down to earth with a rude jolt.

LESSON 3

Never make a sale you can't be proud of.

As I looked around the shabby apartment, I slowly realized that fine cutlery was about the last thing this woman needed. The carpet was dirty and threadbare. Much of the furniture, which looked as though it had been rescued from a junkyard, was broken. Standing in the corner was the woman's dirtyfaced little son, quietly sucking his thumb. I looked into that kid's face and thought to myself, God, what have I done? I remembered how I'd often had jobs in Kentucky shoveling cow manure. It wasn't a pleasant job, but at least I could do it with pride. But this? Had I sunk so low that I had to make a living by squeezing money out of desperately poor people? If I kept this up, I thought, I'd soon be eating manure. No, I decided, this wasn't right. I tore up the sales contract and gave the woman some of the knives. Then, I started looking for another job.

It didn't take me long to find one, and that sales job turned out to be a fascinating experience. The company is a wellknown national distributor that sells products to housewives. They do this with a large army of door-to-door salespeople. I joined that army. I didn't stay with it for long, but I learned a lot about selling in a very short time.

The pattern I followed with my prospects was almost always the same. I'd begin by involving the housewife in a casual conversation as I demonstrated my products. I'd then sell her whatever she seemed most interested in. I got very good at selling these products—almost too good, it seems. Soon, I discovered that I could sell to almost anyone if they just gave me the chance to speak with them.

One day, I found myself calling on a woman who seemed as though she'd buy anything I showed her. I saw my chance, and I took it. Soon, I'd loaded her up with all sorts of products. Everything was going fantastically ... up to the moment her husband arrived. He saw what was happening, and he didn't like it a bit. He flew into a rage. Soon, he was cursing at both his wife and at me. She started to cry, but as I contemplated this situation, I found myself laughing quietly. What a hilarious situation to be in, I thought. Here I am, a guy who thinks of himself as a high roller, quibbling over dimes and quarters with a weeping wife and her hot-tempered husband! It was clear that this high roller had to start setting his sights a bit higher.

LESSON 4

Investigate before investing your efforts.

Though I did very well in this job, I was actually making only a few dollars an hour. The potential for earning big money just wasn't there. The reason was simple. Whenever something is relatively easy to sell, no one is going to pay you a lot to sell it. This is a natural law of sales. It is every bit as dependable as the law of gravity, despite what almost all sales recruiters will tell you.

My next job in sales was in Southern California, where I sold real estate. As soon as I had my license, I decided that I was ready for some big-time selling. I became associated with one of the most successful real estate promoters in the country. They solicited customers by advertising throughout the Los Angeles area. Their ads invited people on a free trip to a future city to be built on a salt flat in the California desert. Once the prospective customers arrived at this location, the pitch began.

The plans for this new community were gloriously opulent. The promoter, standing in front of an oversized map of the area, pointed to locations of big office buildings, housing tracts, marinas, and churches. This ambitious development would spring up in a place where nothing but sand and salt could be now found. He'd point to this map with one of his cleanly manicured fingers. On the finger next to it, he wore a six-carat diamond ring. When I first watched this professional, well-dressed, and confident master salesman in action, I thought to myself, Damn! I've really arrived! This is what selling is all about.

Soon, I had my chance. I pitched my first customer. Once again, I quickly discovered that I had the ability to make a sale, even with these more difficult products. On that first day, I earned a commission of $370. Wow! I thought. "I'm going to get rich!"

My adrenaline pumped the following week as I sought out my next prospect. That customer turned out to be a prominent pastor from Los Angeles. Things moved smoothly, and soon we were ready for the close. He was clearly ready to buy . . . and buy big. If he signed this contract, I'd earn a commission of several thousand dollars.

The sale moved forward, and I began my close. He then dropped some information that hadn't come up at any point in our earlier discussions. You know, he said, this should be a great investment. I'm doing this for two old ladies in my church. They asked me to find a good place to invest this money, and well . . . this looks like it to me.

I tensed immediately. This man suddenly brought me and my high-flying vision of riches crashing to earth. Was this a good investment? Was I doing the right thing by this man, or those two ladies who trusted him? I couldn't be sure. Since I couldn't be sure, I couldn't take the chance of acting against my inner sense of what was right. Pastor, I almost shouted, don't do it! Don't sign that contract! You might lose those ladies' money! The pastor looked at me as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing. After a brief pause, he spoke.

Now wait a minute, he said. First, you were giving me all these reasons why I should buy. Now, you're telling me I might lose the money. What's going on here? Why are you selling this stuff?

He probably never realized just how good a question he was asking. I'm not, I said. "I just quit. Let's get out of here." We both silently walked out of the room. I never went back. Neither did the pastor.

LESSON 5

Con men often look important, dress well, and appear self-confident, but con men are still con men. Avoid them. Never make money at someone else's expense.

That tract of land out in the desert is still undeveloped and virtually worthless twenty-five years after that promoter first pitched his master plan. The promoter, of course, disappeared long ago with the down payments of his innocent victims tucked away in secure accounts.

Selling can be not only a fantastic career, but even an art form if it is handled properly. A key element of true salesmanship is that everyone involved in a sale should benefit from it. If everyone does not benefit from the sales you make, you can't properly call yourself a salesperson. In fact, you may even be a con man and a crook. A crook can always pretend to be a salesperson, but no real salesperson can ever be a crook.

Over the years, I studied salesmanship closely. As I uncovered the basic principles of selling, I attempted to apply them on every call I made. It didn't take long before I became very successful in selling. I've had a wonderful career in sales since those early, faltering days. I've sold to some of the largest corporations in America, and earned hundreds of thousands of dollars a year for many years. However, the principles that I learned early in my career —the principles that I've seen work successfully, over and over again —have never changed.

LESSON 6

Set high standards for yourself, and always operate with pride and integrity.

If you think of yourself only in terms of how much money you can make, you'll reach a plateau—and stay there—as sure as you're an inch high. If you think of yourself as a professional who has the ability to help others, and if you set high standards and always operate with pride and integrity, there's no limit to how far you can go in the world's most wonderful profession, selling.

Remember this ancient adminition: For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? (Mark 8:36-37.)

Joe and Jim Go Into Sales: A Cautionary Tale

There once were two men named Joe and Jim. These fellows worked together at a local factory in their hometown. They were average guys, a lot like you and me. They were family men with children to feed, houses to pay for, and futures to plan. They had the same hopes, fears, and dreams that we all have.

One day, their lives changed abruptly. Their shop foreman called them into his office and told them the bad news. Sorry, the foreman mumbled, but business has been pretty bad lately. We have to make some cutbacks, and well . . . we're gonna have to lay you off. It may be a while before you'll be called back. In fact, we may never have any call-backs. It's too bad, but that's just the way it is, I guess.

Joe and Jim were stunned. They decided to go out together for a few drinks before going home to tell their families the bad news. They groused about their situation for a while. They asked each other what they should do.

Well, said Joe, one thing I know for sure. I'm sick and tired of punching that time clock every day like some kind of machine. I don't want to ever have to do that again, believe me.

Yeah, you're right, said Jim. And you know, it's funny. I've been thinking a lot lately about how much I hated that deadend job. And that lousy pay, too. All this time I've been tellin' myself to stick it out for the job security. Some security! They just turned around and tossed us out!

At this point, the two men resolved never to let this happen to them again. They decided to take action. They decided to do what thousands of people do each year. They decided to go into sales.

FINDING A JOB

The following morning, Joe and Jim both picked up their morning papers and eagerly scanned the classified ads. After a short while, they both spotted the same ad. They were soon on the phone to one another. Joe bubbled with enthusiasm. Hey, Jim! Did you see that ad? You know, the sales position that promises $600 to $1,200 a week to qualified applicants?

You bet, said Jim. Coming off a job that only paid three-seventy-five a week, that looks pretty damn good to me!

Me too, said Joe. Why don't we both go down and check it out?

I'm with you, buddy. Let's get over there right away.

OK, Joe replied. I'm on my way!

The two men drove to the address shown in the ad and went through their job interviews. Well, to make a long story short, the sales manager liked them both, and hired them on the spot. Joe and Jim both felt that they were now on their way. They were about to make the big transition from factory workers to professional salesmen.

PLANNING THEIR CAREERS

Joe and Jim were both very excited about the new challenge and opportunity that lay before them. They decided to give sales their very best effort. That effort, they realized, began at home. When Joe described his new job to his wife, he told her that he'd be selling a product that would help his customers. He mentioned that his co-workers were very friendly. He made a point of mentioning that many people had offered to help him in any way possible as he got started. Joe said that even though selling was new to him, he was going to commit himself to the job. He noted that unlike his factory job, this one would pay him immediately when he sold something. He concluded by saying, Honey, I might have to work long hours, nights, and weekends for a while. It'll be hard, but we'll do whatever it takes to succeed.

Jim told his wife about the new job, too. The sales manager seems like a nice enough guy, he said, but he's a bit of a square. And he talks too much. Jim assured his wife that he could outsell any of the other salespeople he'd met so far. I'll tell you, dear, he stated firmly, "I can't wait for all the chitchat to get done with so I can get out into the field and make some serious money. Remember, when I'm not selling something, I'm not earning anything. I just don't see why they expect me to spend so much time in those boring sales meetings!"

Joe's wife was honest with him. She was concerned, she told him. This new business seemed risky to her. Joe assured his wife that they would work hard together. They'd study, plan, and maybe even sacrifice for a while, if necessary. She felt better when he reiterated that the people in the sales office had promised to help him. They would all work together to help him succeed.

Jim's wife was also anxious. She didn't relish the idea of risking the stability that a fixed-salary job offered. Jim just laughed at her concerns. Hey, don't worry! he said. In fact, you ought to get ready to quit that job of yours. You should start planning that vacation in Paris you've always dreamt about. Jim was determined that he'd soon be setting the world on fire. But just in case, he had a fallback position. He attempted to reassure his wife by explaining this option to her. Besides, he said, we always have unemployment compensation if this doesn't work out.

Joe asked his wife to be careful and conserve as much money as possible. He advised her to hold back on expenses, at least in the near term, until he had a better idea of what income they could expect. Jim, on the other hand, told his wife that they needed to redecorate their living room. He also recommended that she go out and buy herself a few nice evening dresses. After all, when he became a sales manager, he'd be doing a lot of entertaining. He wanted to be sure that he'd be able to project the right image to his guests.

PREPARING FOR THEIR SALES CAREER

As he'd promised both himself and his wife, Joe studied hard for the next few days. He carefully went over all the written materials his boss had given him. He learned everything he needed to know about properly filling out his company's paperwork. He and his wife spent countless hours going over his presentation, his closes, and his axioms.

Jim, on the other hand, wanted to get a jump on Joe and the other new members of the sales staff. He decided to get some hot tips by reading the new best-selling book on salesmanship. Buyers Are Liars by the B. S. brothers. He also studied that now-famous sales seminar, available on audio cassettes, entitled How to Maneuver Your Customers through Subliminal Body Language. Jim was so impressed by this program that he bought a book written by the Reverend Mr. Slim, the seminar developer. The title of this book was One Hundred Ways to Manipulate Your Customers.

Joe carefully studied how the other salespeople who worked for his company dressed for the job. He did his best to dress as much like them as possible. To do this, he had to have some of his suits pressed and altered. He fixed up his wardrobe as best he could. He also decided to spend some money on a couple of new suits. It seemed