Back in the bad old days, there was a period when I had to sell expensive vacuum cleaners. Since we only got the money the sale was made, I had to unlearn many theoretical sales aspects and learn new tricks that worked “in the field”.
For example, every sales pitch needs to be practiced to be effective. However practicing without sakes, like with a colleague or spouse offers zero stakes and is mostly a waste of time that looks productive.
Instead, you list all the people you intend to contact about the offer. Then, judging by what you know about them, group them into three “tiers”.
– “A tier” prospects are the ones you are pretty sure they will like the offer.
– “C tier” are the ones you are pretty sure (but not certain) that they will NOT like the offer.
– “B tier” are people that you are really not sure about.
If you start with “A tier” the chances for success are highest. However, that makes the stakes high enough to choke you with fear, AND failing to sell “a sure thing” will often ruin your energy and motivation.
By contrast, losing a “C tier” client doesn’t feel nearly as bad, and making a sale against the odds will skyrocket your motivation. It’s much harder to feel panicked over losing a client you never thought you had. And if you manage to sell against all odds, you will feel great.
So next time you have a price to test out, you know whose opinion you want first.