“Everybody lives by selling something.” --- Robert Louis
Stevenson
Anyone who can’t express themselves can not by any stretch
of imagination be good Salespersons. Salespersons are generally good talkers. I
recently read an advert where the advertiser, was looking for someone “who can
sell refrigerators to Eskimos.” This advertiser was obviously looking for good
persuaders as Salespersons. You must be a good and effective communicator
before you can succeed in persuading anyone. Both written and verbal communication
is very important. I have heard it said that “it is not what you say that
matters but what they hear.” Communication is not about talking to yourself but
talking to someone else. You must be able to size-up your customer accurately
to know how you can deliver your message. If you go around speaking “Queen’s
English” to someone who has never been to school, you will sooner than later
find out that you are wasting your time and the person’s time, particularly the
person’s time. If you can’t get the message across effectively, you are not
communicating. I once had a hobby that kept me amused no end. I used to collect
pieces of communications I came across that appeared to convey meanings
different from what the communicators meant. I will share just a few of them
here with you.
“Don’t let overwork kill your wife. Let electricity do
it.”___ Advert for a new electrical gadget.
“All flights have been cancelled for managerial reasons.”___
Sign at airline booking desk.
“The Doctor arrived too late to save my husband. He
recovered by himself.”__Elated house-wife to a neighbor.
“Pregnant women are
allowed here without their babies.”___ Sign at the door of an Irish pub.
“We are the ones who dig the shit. They just sit there and
eat it.”___ Complain from a frustrated laborer.
“Women are not allowed to entertain men in the rooms. They
can do it in the restaurant.”___ Sign in a hotel lobby.
The person whose message conveys what he or she intends to
say is the person who is communicating. These messages do not meet this test.
It is your duty to learn and use effective communication if you want to be a
good Salesperson.
