When’s the last time you watched someone else try to sell something ? I watched a couple of people today and even had a young man try to sell me two different items that he knew nothing about. Each instance went into my memory bank and I reinforced to myself that simple is genius and genius is simple.
While shopping at my local Sam’s Club for a Sirius satellite radio, I wandered near the new Vista-equipped laptops on display. Bad move. There happened to be a young fellow close by and he couldn’t wait to show me a feature that he thought was great.
Him: Want me to tell you which version of Vista you need ?
Me: Sure.
Him: This one here. ( He pointed towards the Ultimate version. )
Me: Why ?
Him: ‘Cause it’s got everything.
Me: What if I don’t need everything ?
Him: ( Silence )
We look at each other for what seems to be 30 seconds. Silence doesn’t bother me, so I’d made up my mind to not break eye contact or say anything, even if we stayed like that for days.
Him: Want me to show you what’s really neat about this here laptop ?
Me: Sure.
Him: Look. It scans your fingerprint. ( Then he demonstrated by moving his finger over the scanner. )
Me: How’s that make my life better ?
Him: ( Silence )
Another staring match for about 30 seconds … and then …
Him: You need any help with anything, you just holler.
Me: I will.
I grab my Sirius satellite kit, which will make my life better by allowing me to listen to bluegrass and Big 80′s all the time, commercial free and I headed for the checkout lanes.
Unfortunately, I met the first young man’s evil twin, who apparently had gotten all the brains at birth and he was selling some poor woman on the virtues of owning a plasma television.
I’m a geek. A 6’2″, 250 pound hillbilly golf-star of a geek, but a card carrying, computer building geek none-the-less. But even I couldn’t keep up with all the buzzwords, technoblabble and baloney that he was gobsmackin’ her upside the head with.
All that for a TV ?
Seems it would have been easier for him and better for her if he’d actually asked her what she needed and served her needs by finding a setup she could make use of and learn to enjoy.
The good part was that a lesson I learned a long time ago was reinforced again.
Never over-sell the product and always make sure that what you say and what the prospect hears is the same thing.
Where there is misunderstanding, there’s no selling.
A wise man once said – genius is almost always displayed in great simplicity of method.
Selling genius is likewise displayed.
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