Summer sales reads recommended by Jordan Wolf
Three Summer Holiday Sales Reads
I recently recommended a sales read to a client who after benefiting immensely from listening to it while out running (audible does have it merits) suggested I put together a short-list for the summer holidays. A good idea for sure but where to start? On a rainy Tuesday evening (in June) I came up with three quite diverse recommendations that cover different aspects of doing business. I strongly recommend all of them, but holidays are for having the craic so maybe you might choose one for the airport and all that toing and froing involved. Enjoy the break and let me know what you think of your chosen read.
1) Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion: by Robert B. Cialdini
In Influence, Cialdini engagingly explains the psychology of why people say "YES“ and more importantly how to use these key learnings to help in our everyday lives. Not only will you get to fully understand these 7 universal principles (with vivid examples) but also strategies on how to use them to become an effective and skilled persuader of things. On the flip side, it also shows you how to protect yourself from these effective strategies when attempted on you. Whilst this book is a ‘must read’ for all sales professionals, its revelations can be applied to all aspects of your life and will shift your perceptions in the most positive of ways. These basic principles of Influence will propel personal change in how you approach situations and people forever.
Do yourself a favour and read this book!
2) Gap Selling: Getting the Customer to Yes: How Problem-Centric Selling Increases Sales by Changing Everything You Know About Relationships, Overcoming Objections, Closing and Price: by Keenan
This book is dedicated to creating or improving upon your sales process. Keenan works hard to simplify the complex when it comes to deciphering buyers’ issues and concerns. He concentrates his efforts on how to use your sales solutions (product or service) to narrow your customers ‘gap’ between where they are today (the customer’s current state) and where they want to be (their desired future state). He constantly reminds us that we should never sell our product or service offering. Instead, we should clearly explain the impact our product or service has on our customer’s current environment and how it will help them reach their desired future state. Buyers are not terribly interested in your company – they want to know that you recognise their challenges, have solutions to their problems and how you can make their lives better because of it. They do not want to hear about you, your company, or your products. As we all know, buyers are tired of hearing our seller-centric drivel.
I must point out that Keenan is a loud-mouthed American who can on occasion go right over the top to make his point. The good news is that this is a simple read with many good learnings. Enjoy!
3) Negotiation Genius: How to Overcome Obstacles and Achieve Brilliant Results at the Bargaining Table and Beyond: by Deepak Malhotra and Max H. Bazerman
It does not matter your experience or whether you work in sales or not this book will dramatically improve your negotiating skills. Something we are all short of in both our business and personal lives. The book draws on much behavioural research and the experience of thousands of business clients and situations. It seeks to remove the ‘mystery’ out of preparing for and executing negotiations. It could be asking for your next pay rise or closing out on your biggest sale yet.
It offers strategies that work in real life even if the opposition is hostile, unethical, or in a stronger position than you. By the time you finish reading it, you will have a plan of action for your next negotiation. For a pleasant change, you will know how to play it and more importantly why. The authors (both professors at the Harvard Business School) give sound strategies for negotiating for your next house or negotiating with your boss or having sales conversations with your prospective customers. It helps you build a methodical approach and to develop the structures essential to successful negotiations.
Not as easy a read as the other 2 recommendations but not exactly ‘War and Peace’ either – so go for it.
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