How many commercials, advertisements, and even salespeople have you heard share how great their product or services are? Often times, it’s way over the top! If you’re not careful, you end up sounding just like everyone else.
A client recently shared with me a commercial he saw that illustrated this. The commercial was about a product that saves the enamel on your teeth, which apparently will go away over time.
The female spokesperson was supposed to be a user of the product. What made my client laugh was the last line in the commercial, which went something like this: “I use this product because it helps me live the life I want to lead.”
Seriously? We’re talking about enamel here! My client couldn’t believe they got away with saying something that over the top.
But have you done or heard that in the sales world? If your prospects haven’t heard it from you, they’ve likely heard it from someone else in the past.
There’s something wrong with a lot of the messaging in sales, marketing, and advertising. And it makes people jaded toward all future sales, marketing, and advertising interactions.
Your competition in sales is not just the other company down the street that sells exactly what you sell. It’s all the other salespeople your prospect has ever talked to. And all the marketing and advertising they’ve seen, too!
All those interactions your prospect has had in the past causes them to raise their drawbridge, that defense mechanism they have. That was put in place by bad experiences!
I’ve never heard of anyone waking up one morning and deciding, “I’m going to lie to salespeople.” Or, “I’m going to withhold information,” or even, “I’m going to try to get as much information as I can and commit to nothing.”
It’s a defense mechanism created by negative experiences in the past. And those experiences are not limited to your industry.
So don’t go around claiming your product and services are the best. Sandler Rule #35 states, “If your competition is doing it, stop doing it right away.”
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