Sales is about getting someone to respect your opinion (creating “status”). This is applicable in all kinds of situations, for example, in poker, getting someone to respect your bluff; in enterprise sales, getting the counterparty to respect you as the subject matter expert; when hiring others, getting someone to believe that your vision is worth following.
There are two main ways to build status:
- Signal that you know more than your counterparty (knowledge)
- Signal that you’re someone worth respecting (craft).
Knowledge
The easiest way to signal that you know more than your counterparty (CP) is to know more than your CP. Many deals and negotiations are won simply because one side has more knowledge than the other. This is why many CEOs or founders who don’t have much experience in the craft of sales can still do very well in sales. They typically know a market’s problem and its solutions much more intimately than the people they’re selling to.
Craft
Now, regarding the other method of getting someone to respect your opinion, the craft of sales. The craft consists of two parts: the technical and abstract part of sales.
There are many books that will try to teach you the “technique” of sales, for example, SPIN selling. It teaches you what kinds of questions are good to ask, when to ask them, and even the best order to ask the questions. But I’m sure you’ve been sold to by a sales rep that tried to do their routine on you and I’m sure it was a turn off. This is where the abstract part of sales comes in, i.e. knowing the right way to ask a question, from the tone to the speed of delivery; knowing when to push on a topic, but also knowing when to back off.
Although the abstract part of sales is often seen as a natural gift that some people have, e.g. charismatic individuals, I’m certain it can be nurtured with experience, self awareness, and reflection. That being said, it’s hard to do and most people won’t put in the work to get there [1].
Effective Selling
The people who are best at effective selling are the ones who have both knowledge and craft.
The main pro of knowledge is that you will be able to get by without learning the craft of sales. The main con is that you have less horizontal flexibility; if you move industries, you’ll be starting from scratch.
The main pro of craft is that it’s much more scalable; you will be able to sell any product, no matter the vertical. The main con is that it’s very, very difficult to learn.
All things considered, the easiest way to sell effectively is to know more than your CP. It’s a lot more difficult to master the craft of selling than it is to be more knowledgable than most of the CPs you’ll encounter, in aggregate.
[1] Especially salespeople. Most salespeople were forced into their career path and are mostly order takers.