I once heard a quote by a Scottish ex-World Champion Formula 1 motor racing driver called Jackie Stewart. It went something like ‘you can criticize a man about anything other than his driving and his love making ability’ Well I would like to add to that, because you can’t criticize somebody about their selling ability either. I got to wondering the other day, why is that? Why do men and women who take orders yet have never had any reasonable amount of sales training think they are sales people and hate to be told otherwise? It would be like a technical assistant in an operating theater calling him or herself a surgeon and bristling at anybody that questioned their logic. This may seem harsh but I really do think there is that much blue water between good sales people that understand and can implement the sales process and people that are in a sales role and just happen to be around to pick up an order from time to time.

I have had 2 examples of this within the last week or so. I have been thinking about setting up an office closer to downtown Orlando and as such have been looking at property and furniture.

Case Number 1: I went into a well-known store that sells reclining chairs (enough said there I think). I asked whether they had a love seat in leather the same design as a chair I had previously bought and even gave the guy the code and the color specification. Immediately he told me that they didn’t do that design in a love seat and that they didn’t do THAT color anyway. I explained that I had taken it from underneath the chair and as it was only 6 months old thought they may be able to at least match it. The man wondered off to find more information, or at least that is what I thought, but he never came back. I saw him talking to another customer 5 minutes later and just shook my head in disbelief. That man probably thinks he is a sales person and probably tells himself that when somebody buys something, he SOLD it whereas the reality is completely different.

Case Number 2: I sent an e-mail enquiry about some property that was available in an area that would have suited my needs. I got a phone call back within half an hour from a very pleasant lady that said she managed that building. She then asked me how much I was looking to spend per month! No questions on what I needed it for, no questions about what was important to me, not even a question about my business or long term plans, just a simple request for my budget. Is that selling? I don’t think so.

There are so many people that work in sales and so many companies that offer no initial or ongoing training that when occasionally you meet a good sales person they stand out from the crowd. They will truly look like a professional and not somebody that is completely out of their depth and probably not even going to be there next time you visit.

I have a theory that because there are no formal recognized qualifications for selling and that as it is seen as a job that people slip into rather than aim for, then people think it must be easy. Therefore, to be criticized for not being good at a job that is ‘easy’ is something that most people can simply not accept.

So, are you in sales? Are you a good sales person? Could you be better? Could you benefit from training? Would a 5% improvement help your earning potential immeasurably? If the answer to those questions is yes, then I urge you to get some training as soon as you can and I am confident that you will look back on it as being a very sensible investment in your future success.