It’s something we see regularly with startups who handle everything but seem to forget the sales.
Hell, it’s something I’ve been guilty of myself! Focusing on the minutia of the business – the branding, the net promoter score, the event that’s happening in 12 months time, the non-urgent-non-important email that is sat in the inbox waiting for an answer that could be any distraction from picking up the phone.
Business is sales.
Without selling, do you have a business? Well, technically, no. You have a project, or a charity (and even charities have to sell, via their messaging in order to attract donations).
So why does sales scare us?
As a generation bought up largely through the 90s, we’ve seen the generations of old adopt the ‘double glazing sales person’ persona and be too forceful – something we don’t want to emulate. We’ve also all been subjected, I’m sure, to a cold call or a knock on the door from someone trying to sell you something you don’t want or have time to care about just then.
But selling doesn’t need to be like that. If you truly believe in your product, in the good it can do, the value it can bring, then there should be no feeling of guilt in selling it.
You are helping people by bringing it to their attention and it’s their loss if they ignore it.
Of course, this doesn’t mean to say you can avoid feedback, but it does mean that you should be confident in bringing it to their attention.
How can you sell more effectively? Well that’s the sort of thing we’ll be answering in the content we’ll be bringing out from January 2018, to help educate all members on how to better your ability in starting & growing the remarkable businesses you’re at the helm of.
So stay tuned, and more will come soon!
