chapter 20 everybody is a salesperson and everything is selling this dentist is a professional salesman one of the true Professionals in selling is my friend Dr Tom McDougall Tom is a dentist and a superb one he lectures nationally to other dentists on building a successful practice like all real professionals Tom practices what he preaches on my first visit the receptionist at the front desk was cordial friendly and enthusiastic an assistant handed me the new patient forms and encouraged me to take a seat in the reception room almost immediately after I completed them another assistant came to take me into a treatment room for the preliminary examination from Hello to goodbye all of them were enthusiastic and professional in what they did Dr McDougall of course handled the parts of the treatment that only a dentist can handle handle but the staff members did their jobs in a professional way perhaps the most impressive part of the visit was the fact that not one not two but three of them sold me on the importance of using dental floss each one laughingly said that Dr McDougall believes you should floss only those teeth you want to keep the point is simple he believes in preventive Dentistry I left with the strong feeling that everybody there wanted me to keep my teeth that's practicing good dentistry and and good human relations and its fantastic service selling words do make a difference when I visited Dr McDougall I noticed he used positive words many of these words are taken from the extensive list prepared by Dental consultant gladus e cook he talked about restoration instead of filling and about a change in schedule rather than any cancellation or postponement I was in his reception room briefly not his waiting room at the end of the visit they wanted to know how I would take care of not pay for the services his office called my office to confirm or to verify the appointment not to remind me of it I was told to empty my mouth not to spit they prepared the tooth instead of grinding the tooth he gave me an injection instead of a needle or shot I felt a little discomfort or press sure not any pain yes sir words are important they do make a difference oops two other things stand out in the relationship first two nights later one of the temporary crowns came off I called Dr mcdougall's office and the answering service responded 5 minutes later my phone was ringing and 10 minutes later I was on my way to the office where one of Dr mcdougall's Associates quickly cemented the temporary back in place that's taking care of your patient customer second since Dr McDougall prepared three teeth for crowns the visit was lengthy and the work extensive that evening he personally called me to inquire as to how I was doing did I need a prescription was I comfortable could he be of any help to me in all the years I've been going to dentists I have never had a single one call me at home to see how I was and ask if I was hurting to be candid I initially thought he was calling because he knew me professionally as a speaker and writer I checked with other patients of his however and discovered that anytime he does a significant amount of work on a patient he always calls the patient that night to make certain they're doing okay that's good Dentistry but friends from where I'm sitting that's also good selling because that showed me his care and concern for me as a person Dr Hugh Russell from Atlanta Georgia points out that often people will buy from us not because they understand our offer but because they feel we understand understand them in Dr mcdougall's case I will buy from him because he's a superb dentist and because he understands me and my needs when I sit down in his chair every professional salesman should be just that concerned and just that professional in looking after his customers this is best verbalized by Dr McDougall himself in this paragraph which he contributed the real secret to selling IND Dentistry or in any other profession or business is to speak from the heart instead of from the head or intellectual tool base when the inner man speaks the deepest form of sincerity is communicated however one cannot speak from the heart unless he truly believes in his product and or service this means that he must have paid the price by obtaining profound knowledge of his product or service one must also believe this product/service is unquestionably what the customer SLP patient needs Dr McDougall is not a Salesman or sales trainer in the eyes of the public at large but as a salesperson you will never read a paragraph any more loaded with sales impact than the preceding one Kevin's exponential Insight number nine Arnold Morris professional salesperson when I first saw him Arnold Morris was demonstrating knives at the Philadelphia home show he had quite the moves cutting through a Coca-Cola can and then the head of a hammer a pair of sneakers even a car muffler he called his product the Ginsu knife now Arnold was a great salesman in fact he'd been doing this for dozens of years 40 weeks per year doing pretty much the same demonstration in city after City but he had fun doing it and that's when I said Arnold let's put this up on TV you can do what you love but don't have to travel around as much we made a deal and it was one of the best deals I ever made but even though the situation was a win-win for each of us it took off so well because I didn't look at him as a personal paycheck instead said our partnership was powerfully symbiotic he brought me opportunities and I brought them to him in fact Arnold and I kept up a friendship even to his last weeks on Earth and even then his wife called me saying Arnold wanted to talk about another new product that I just had to check out I thought bless him that's Arnold through and through he was a great asset to our business and I can honestly say had it not been for Arnold Morris I wouldn't have probably done the billions of dollars in sales that I did value your relationships and the relationships will bring value to everyone a professional service station operator several years ago when service stations were service stations and not just stands with pumps that you used to fill your own tank I met Tom Fountain one of the super salesmen of our time never will I forget the day I pulled into his station in decar Georgia with an empty tank rain was coming down in sheets as I pulled up to the gas pump hopped out and made a Mad Dash into the station signaling the attendant not to come out and get soaked because I was not in a big hurry I introduced myself to the owner and started the conversation with an untypically negative comment Tom this rain is really tough on the service station business isn't it Tom very cheerfully replied no zig not at all as a matter of fact this is one of the greatest things that happens to me the rainy weather close I responded that in all my years I'd never heard a service station owner get enthusiastic about rain and I asked him why he said that he replied well zigg while it's raining it is true that my business slows down but when we have a real Gully washer like this it washes hundreds of nails and pieces of glass into the street and you're going to see a rash of flat tires during the next few days now don't misunderstand zigg I hate to see anyone have bad luck but it's a fact of life that when nails and glass hit the street people are going to run over them and it also happens zigg that I have the greatest tire repair men in the city and we can do the best and fastest job at the best price of anybody here that's the reason people come to us there's nothing I can do about the rain falling but there is a lot I can do about solving people's problems when that rain does fall wow was that ever a delightful visit with an attitude like that no wonder Tom's business was booming the spare close on another visit into his station we were discussing sales strategy and Tom shared a fantastic procedure he uses for bonus sales when a car pulls into the station Tom and his crew check the oil battery and water as well as the fan belt when the fan belt is worn and in danger of breaking Tom says to the owner of the car sir your fan belt is worn if you'll get this Fair one out of your trunk I'll be glad to put it on and it shouldn't delay you but just a minute invariably the owner will say I I don't have one in my trunk then Tom responds if you'll take a look you'll notice this one is badly worn I would really encourage you to get a new one because yours could break at any minute and you might be stuck in a bad spot the owner in an extremely high percentage of the cases agrees to do so I'll bet you've already finished the story haven't you when Tom comes out of the station he is carrying not one but two belts he not only sells the one belt but in a high percentage of the cases is he also sells the second belt that's the mark of the professional that's serving by selling or is it selling by serving the coach is a Salesman everybody sells and to repeat what red Motley the former editor of Parade Magazine said many years ago nothing happens until somebody sells something never will I forget that hot summer day in 1943 when I walked into the American history class being taught by coach Joby Harris at Hines Community College in Raymond Mississippi I was there under protest I had to have the course in history in order to get my high school diploma but as far as I was concerned it was a complete waste of time what possible good would it do me to know what happened 50 years ago 100 years ago 200 years ago I entered the class with the attitude that I would take the class and I would pass it because I would learn just enough to get by my real interest was in getting the course out of the way so I could take additional Math and Science courses the Following fall in order to qualify for the naval airp my dream for several years had been to fly one of the fighter planes we were in the midst of World War II in that summer of 1943 and I was really gung-ho about doing my share at the rip old age of 16 I clearly knew what I wanted to do with my life when I walked into the classroom that day I expected the teacher to introduce himself make a few light remarks and get on with the business of teaching US History the first part was right coach Harris introduced himself made a few casual remarks and then made one of the most professional sales presentations I have ever heard by the time the sales talk was over I clearly understood why I absolutely had to know my history as a matter of fact before the end of that first hour I was a history major not only did I make an A in the class but it was the only subject in which I consistently made a for most of the rest of my academic career considerably more important is the fact that what coach Harris said to me that day influenced the rest of my life my interest in politics in Social conditions and in doing as much as I can to make our country a better place to live can be traced directly to that first hour in the history class of Coach Joby Harris professional builder cell 2 as I've said on a half dozen different occasions in Secrets everyone from the housewife and mother to the professional computer technician is a salesperson the same is certainly true of builders in 1981 we initiated an action which had been in our plans for a number of years we bought a lot at Holly Lake which is a pleasant Tower Drive East of Dallas Texas it had been my long-range dream to reduce my speaking engagements and concentrate more on writing my personal objective is to positively influence the maximum number of people I can do this more effectively through my books than I can through personal appearances we found in Holly Lake what we considered the ideal location because it was included quiet and beautiful after buying the lot we had to decide on a builder we only talked to one man his name is Bill Tennyson from the beginning Bill's words and actions indicated that he expected to build our house assumptive close Bill had many things going for him including an easy friendly professional manner and his reputation when we bought our lot we met the next store neighbors who were in the process of completing their home they told us there was only one Builder to consider and Bill was that man they enthusiastically pointed out that bill did superb work was a man of integrity and did everything he said he was going to do and then some we talked to people for whom Bill had built a couple of years earlier they said exactly the same thing bill was understandably eager to take us to inspect homes currently under construction as well as those he had built several years before the general feeling in the community is that bill Tennyson builds every house so that he can be a good neighbor and friend with with all his customers since bill was in the process of building his own house at the lake and was going to be fishing and playing golf with all or most of his neighbors his approach is certainly a wise one can you imagine trying to play golf with 50 angry clients so how did he do I can honestly say that bill delivered far more house than I thought we were buying I know little or nothing about building but person after person familiar with the industry assured me that Bill had used far more insulation than was required in this specific ifications and that he added extra reinforcement which was not called for on countless occasions he used 3in by 6 in boards when standard practice dictated 2 in by 4 in as the house was going up since we could not be there for every phase of the construction Bill voluntarily took dozens of pictures and sent them to us this not only enabled us to watch the growth of the house but satisfied us completely that we were getting everything we had bargained for and then some the point really is clear Bill knew that when his men drove the last nail into our house he was laying the groundwork for driving the first nail into all the other houses his satisfied customers are going to sell for him as a professional bill is intelligently selfish enough to know that if he does a superb job delivers more than he's paid for and satisfies me as a customer I'm going to be telling people like you that if you ever build a house at Holly Lake Bill Tennyson is the man who should build it that my selling friend is what building a sales career is all about since you don't let a beautiful home sit empty this story has a sequel and it's at least partially tied to what the late sales trainer J Douglas Edwards called the puppy dog close the puppy dog close this close is simple and undoubtedly got its start or at least its popularity from the early days when youngsters lured their parents into a pet shop just to look at that doggy in the window for those of you who are old enough to remember that song If the youngster and the pet shop owner could not gang up on Mom and Dad and persuade them to buy that cute puppy then the owner encouraged them to take the puppy home to see how they liked it you can complete the story can't you the most important point is the pet shop owner let his product the puppy sell itself that's good strategy interior designer sell too when Bill Tennyson finished our home at Holly Lake interior designer Joyce WN and her beautiful staff especially Kathy Adcock Smith who did a tremendous job of looking everywhere to find exactly what we needed worked carefully with the red head and me to make certain it was furnished appropriately and according to our tastes and desires never will I forget what happened when virtually everything was complete except for a large empty space on one of the walls in the great room frankly I thought it looked fine as it was but Joyce brought in a beautiful wall rug to fill the spot as you might suspect it wasn't exactly Bargain Basement material I liked it but there were some reservations about buying it Joyce casually suggested that we hang it on a temporary basis and see if it grew on us if it did that would be fine if not no problem that made a certain amount of sense even to this stubborn husband it wasn't until that afternoon while I was jogging that I realized she had used the old puppy dog close on me it was almost all I could do to keep from laughing because it demonstrates exactly what I'm talking about good technique Works yes I bought the wall rug even when the person you're using it on is educated in sales techniques and procedures actually if it's really good the prospect is not completely aware of what is happening even if they are if the need and desire for ownership are there and the salesperson's techniques are professional there simply isn't a great deal you can or want to do about it remember the prospect wants their problem solved the professional is is so effective you forget they are a pro about a year after we moved into our home at Holly Lake the redhead and I were visiting with Cathy atcx Smith my wife was sharing with her that many people have remarked how they love the warmth of our home she also commented that some had expressed surprise that an interior designer had helped us because the home looked so natural and livable whereas many interior designers have a tendency to make homes look artificial and overdone these these comments obviously delighted Kathy because she knew she had done her job well that she had sold us her furniture accessories and ideas so well they had Blended completely with our tastes ideas and Concepts so that her expertise had given her home a beautiful added Dimension the conversation reminded me of an early experience I had in the sales world after consummating a sale for a set of cookware I was getting prospects from my new customers as I sought the prospects I assured them I would simply demonstrate and if their friends chose to buy that was fine and if they did not choose to buy that was fine two to this statement the wife responded Yes I know that is true because you're definitely not much of a Salesman since she had just given me a check for the largest set of cookware our company made I was delighted with her comment in the customer's mind she had bought and I had not sold ideally that's the way every Prospect should feel at the end of the transaction it works on million-dollar deals two several years ago when the corporation was small compared to what it is today an aircraft salesman called on Rich Devas the president of the Amway Corporation to sell him a jet airplane rich is quite conservative and felt the corporation could not justify the purchase at that time the salesman knew what the jet would do in Saving Time as well as wear and tear on Rich's body he also knew the plane would enable Rich to see more of his distributors and substantially increase his Effectiveness here's the approach the salesman used Mr Devas we have one special jet aircraft which would be ideal for you and I would like to take you for a demonstration ride with some reluctance but also with some excitement rich took the ride he liked it but was by no means convinced he should buy so the salesman said Mr DeVos we're not going to be using this plane this week so we want you to take it and use it as if it were your own obviously there is no no obligation a deal like that is difficult to turn down since he emphasized there would be no obligation on amway's part as luck would have it rich just happened to have an especially difficult week with much travel in front of him during that week Rich flew around the country in that jet faster more comfortably and more productively at the end of the week the salesman came back and tried to close the sale but Rich was still not convinced the move would be prudent so the salesman extended the puppy dog offer with a small string attached Mr DeVos since we have no specific plans for the jet this next month why don't you just lease it for the month and continue to use it as if it were your own this time Rich was even more hesitant but the salesman persisted so rich made even better use of the plane for the entire month by the end of the month Rich was hooked so when the salesman came back for his jet Rich DeVos looked at him and asked what do you mean your jet by then then Rich had grown accustomed to the extra speed and convenience and it's tough to give up any satisfying convenience especially if you can justify it in any way in essence Rich had no trouble talking himself into an investment which would enable him to serve his Corporation more effectively he bought the jet because the salesman was able to demonstrate the value of his product in a nutshell he let his product demonstrate that it would make Rich more effective in fulfilling his corporate responsibilities so in the truest sense the product sold itself after the salesman used the puppy dog clothes the waiter is a Salesman Franken fonte was born and raised in Cuba but when Castro and his communist cohorts took over he along with other members of his family made his exit to the United States I met Frank for the first time one evening when the redhead and I were having dinner at farf Fall's restaurant in Dallas and had the Good Fortune to have Frank as our waiter he's the best I've ever seen he's thoroughly professional in his every move and is well-versed in all the niceties of being a superb waiter he speaks the language knows the words and has the grace charm and good manners that are vital to good service he's extremely sensitive to the diner and their every need without smothering them with unwanted unneeded attention each time he serves as Frank starts by greeting us with a friendly lowy welcome after we've had a reasonable amount of time to look over the menu Frank with that innate sixth sense of his approaches at what seems to be the precise moment we've arrived at our decision he smilingly asks if we are ready to order generally speaking there's a little small talk I always ask about the Specialties and in glowing but not too detailed terms Frank tells us about them I ask for his recommendation and he seldom Hedges he knows our tastes and we'll say I believe you would enjoy this particular dish it's very nice however since we are fairly traditional and there are three or four dishes we particularly enjoy we generally order the V Oscar red snapper sauce Braton or curde filet Helder filet Minon with Beret sauce his description of the salads is also quite elaborate and yet not too lengthy in other words he's inclined to tell us what time it is and not how to build a watch this soft service cell close it's amazing to me that Frank can bring us exactly what we want so quickly when we're somewhat pushed for time and yet time everything to Perfection so that we can have a leisurely dinner when it's just the two of us the tea and coffee are always available and ready the hot bread is at our fingertips we never wait more than a minute or so when we've completed one course and are ready to move to the next as we finish our meal Frank asks about dessert and we generally say no often with a twinkle in his eye he will say to us that the cheesecake is particularly good or the cappuccino pie is especially nice and if we split one it would not be too heavy for us his clo is soft it's service oriented and it works one reason it works is that Frank is truly a team player who works with his bus boy that's a horrible title which the restaurant industry must change in order to help attract more quality people in a most effective manner he treats him with respect and courtesy as he requests assistance instead of Dem in it that's class from Hello to goodbye Frank and fonte is selling he's doing it in a pleasant lowkey and very professional way but he is selling he recognizes that his income is directly related to the effectiveness and manner in which he serves however as you watch Frank and listen to him you get the distinct feeling that his entire reason for being there is to be the best at his profession his objective is to make your meal a true dining experience needless to say we never tip Frank just the standard amount it's a shame that every waiter and waitress can't have Frank and fonte serve them a meal I'm convinced that if they could and if they were truly interested in becoming more professional many of them could increase their incomes from 50 to 150% almost immediately question what would you do with this extra income answer you probably could figure it out for yourself but Frank INF fonte invested in his own restaurant and is doing well one of the mysteries of life is why any waiter or waitress or any other salesperson doesn't understand that all they've really got to sell is their attitude and their service if they would learn some of the simple niceties of being gracious Pleasant enthusiastic and helpful their income would increase dramatically yes a Goodway person is a good salesperson the three-year-old Pro when it comes to selling no one but no one is as persuasive or effective as a small child conviction is total Integrity is beyond question and enthusiasm is unlimited now throw in a completely open manner combined with the right words and you have an unbeatable Persuader never will I forget an incident with Susan my oldest daughter when she was just 3 years old Cindy our second daughter had made her appearance just 6 weeks earlier and I had been on the road much of the time the previous 3 weeks I pulled into our driveway in Knoxville Tennessee slightly before noon on that cold snowy February Saturday after my welcome home from the redhead Susan Cindy and our Livin housekeeper Lizzy Rogers I was informed that I needed to go to the store to pick up some things since I was playing with Susan and holding the baby while talking to the redhead about the trip I wasn't exactly thrilled at the prospect of going back out in the cold however those things were essential so I reluctantly started putting putting on my top coat hat and gloves as I was getting ready Susan started asking if she could go I explained that the weather was just too bad to take her out and besides I would be gone only a few minutes she responded but Daddy I'll be so lonely Zig Susan you know you won't be lonely your mother your little sister and Lizzy are all here so you certainly won't be lonely Susan but Daddy I'll Be Lonely for you it really wasn't a fair fight I was badly overmatched and never had a chance obviously Susan didn't know anything about dominant buying motive or the importance of making the prospect feel important and really meaning it but no sales Pro with 30 years experience could have come up with a better line needless to say I didn't want Susan to be lonely so she made the trip the winner and Undisputed Champion one of the really great professional salespeople in America was the late Billy angman who sold for the salad Master Corporation out of Dallas Texas at the time of her death Billy had set and held more individual sales records than anyone in the history of the company toward the end of her career she was selling to the daughters of the girls she sold to when she started her career with the company in 1950 Billy was one of those ladies with a truly professional concept and philosophy she was incredibly well organized and was an extremely hard persistent and consistent worker when she was out beating the bushes she had great singleness of purpose she's a sales psychologist let's look at some of her Concepts ideas and philosophies to begin with she mildly objected to the use of the term closing the sale she explained that she thought of closing as someone closing the door and shutting someone out she felt that when she opened her sample case of products and opened her Storehouse of information which she shared with the process aspect she was really opening the sale instead of closing the sale Billy had some Keen insights into human nature and the impact we can all have on one another if we will but take time to learn despite her phenomenal success she was extremely modest and felt that her role as a salesperson gave her the privilege and opportunity to serve that modesty was best demonstrated by the fact that she had not reported her sales for several years not reporting cost her a considerable number of subst stantial prizes and the resulting publicity that was part of the package but Billy preferred to stay out of the Limelight and serve her clients according to a company official and her husband Hal who worked with her and was understandably proud of her Billy sold so much more than anyone else that her major competition was with herself and her records like the professional golfer whose real competition is the golf course itself Billy could tell you exactly what she sold this same week last year she reached her goal to improve sales for the same time period so consistently that almost without exception each year was better than last year she understood that over the years there had been several recessions she admitted that any talk about recession frightened her so she got out and worked harder so that her volume of business would continue to climb instead of start to decline now that's a great attitude she's a smart lady her sales psychology included getting the entire family involved in a presentation because approximately 60% of her business was with families and only 40% with single girls if a small child was present for the presentation she involved that child and made each member of the family feel important one thing she did to psychologically gear the prospect for the sale was to eliminate tension or feelings of being closed in on the part of the prospect when the closing process started if she observed the prospect getting nervous and uptight she asked them to get her a drink of water as she explained it's amazing what that brief interlude will do for the nerves of the prospect Billy kept meticulous records and took great Delight in tracing her customers into the second generation she grouped her leads into areas and when she left home it was with the sole purpose of seeing as many prospects as she possibly could she carried her sample case to the door so if the prospect was home she had everything needed to make a presentation this procedure eliminated any loss of momentum or a chance the prospect might change their mind during the few minutes required to go to the car and get her samples since she went to the door expecting to get in it would be inconsistent not to carry the sample case Billy was lowkey and was not seen as a threat to the people she dealt with each Prospect is different Billy geared her presentation to each individual Prospect though she gave each one the same basic facts as they related to the product she recognized that the single girl who perhaps always be single has different interests from the girl who plans to get married who also is different from the married couple she personalized the use of the product to a large degree she used what she called the mirror of the future and projected the prospects using and enjoying the beauty and practicality of her products not just in their own lifetime but in the lifetime of their children and even their grandchildren Billy was up to- date on her current events she tied her prospects needs to current story and used that information as a tool or sales prop for getting immediate action she sold on love caring sharing and togetherness and the fact that her products contributed to all of those things she used warm selling words as she discussed her program with her prospects words like Rich loving good taste gracious Comfort security investment caring and many other positive words were a part of her so they were a natural part part of her vocabulary the lowest word on her sales language totem pole was the word pitch she contended and I completely agree that the professional never uses that word the total sales Lady Billy firmly believed you open/close the sale by the way you dress by the neatness of your accessories and attire by the way you smile the way you walk and even the kind of car you drive she didn't believe in being flashy for fear the prospect might think she was being too success uccessful and though Billy could have driven a new Mercedes and made her sales calls dressed in mink she prudently bought fine quality materials drove a more than adequate car and gave the appearance of The Quiet confident success she was she never discussed with her prospects how long she had been selling she started in 1948 she felt this would brand her as a person who was trying to sell somebody something when in fact she wanted to be regarded as a friend and counselor whose function was to help them make the best possible investment for the future Billy collected many testimonial letters and constantly updated the ones she had what a new Happy customer said about her product was a strong supplement to what her customers of 10 years ago had to say when she brought out some of the oldies it was to let the prospect know that an investment of this type was not a new idea that years ago investors were doing exactly the same thing she was trying to get them to do that day and that yes she really was offering approvable lifetime investment conviction is essential to closing this partially explains her success there are many reasons Billy angman did such an incredible volume of business I've already touched on some of those reasons but there are three others that were as much a part of Billy angman as breathing first Billy expected to sell everyone she called on not only did she expect to sell them but she expected to sell them a large order the first time and an even larger repeat repeat order the second time second Billy felt the order was the result of making a presentation so she considered the close a natural part of that presentation she gave everyone she called on a chance to buy by asking for the order third Billy kept records on all her customers she knew exactly what they bought when they bought and how they paid for it she planned her call back and prepared the prospect for that call back when she made the original sale equally important she prepared prepared herself for the follow-up call she knew the initial order firmly established the trust of the buyer and put her in the position of being able to help the customer even more on the second sale the accessory Clos Billy's call back was something else before she called back to complete the order she carefully checked the initial order then she prepared three accessory offers her first offer was the impossible one it was so big so complete so comprehensive and so expensive there was no way the prospect could or would buy it it was truly a dream proposal in that most people would only dream of owning so many beautiful table appointments fortunately for Billy and the customer many of them didn't realize they couldn't have the biggest and the best so they went ahead and bought the Impossible Dream order as a pro Billy challenged her customers to go for the gold to strive for the best to reach their Impossible Dream and the prospects responded it's a fact customer performance is often tied directly to the salesperson's expectancy Billy's expectancy was always high the second accessory order Billy prepared was also beautiful and substantial it was a big order designed to perfectly complement the original one this was her most popular reorder partly because it was the middle offer and partly because realistically more people could afford it the third accessory or order which Billy prepared in minute detail to complement the initial order was still a substantial order but was obviously smaller than the first two proposals after looking at the first two proposals many prospects who initially felt they couldn't afford anything became enthusiastic buyers of the minimum order and at a later date followed up with a third and even a fourth order very important on the follow-up call to sell accessories Billy treated the call as a full-fledged sale and service call she gave the customer the full treatment and then some she resold herself she resold the company she resold the products she resold the concept of investing for the future she sold the idea of taking action today not tomorrow she had her customer get out their original order so she could check it over then Billy either bragged on the customer for taking such excellent care of the merchandise or gently suggested how they could take better care of it and receive even more benefits all the time she was reselling herself and her products wish I had known this I personally believe that if I had known this procedure when I was in the business my income would have been at least 50% greater because my customers would have benefited a great deal more incidentally in case you are wondering about Billy's cancellation and delinquency records it's a fact that her cancellation was extremely low and her delinquency rate for non-payment was the lowest in the company at that time will this procedure work for others you bet you over the years in addition to her own sales which put her in first place Billy trained numerous others who finished in the top 10 nationally will it work for me only if you use it techniques procedures and ideas have no feelings and don't really care who uses them one of the real mysteries of life is why more salespeople who work in stores don't go direct and generate more business by developing C customers who are loyal to them and their stores example in our over 56 years of housekeeping the redhead and I have never once been solicited to buy a house diamonds Furs furniture or appliances Doyle Hoyer who sold me my clothes Pages 370 to 72 and Chuck Bellows who sold me a car are a couple of the precious few who have ever followed through with service and solicitation for future business during our years together together we have bought four homes more than 35 cars counting company vehicles and four complete households of furniture and appliances not counting dozens of major individual items we've spent thousands of dollars on jewelry and Furs but nobody ever tries to sell us those items they don't even make a serious effort to get us back in their stores question if you sell any of these items are you seeking business or do you just wait for the business to seek you when you make the initi sale do you follow through to make certain your customer is satisfied with this purchase and plant the seeds for the next one in athletics the follow through is critical the golfer pitcher kicker boxer must follow through for maximum results in selling the salesperson must follow through with service and reminders to buy if they're going to keep their customers once you sell them you should feel as if they are yours and build a career point if anyone makes a significant purchase from you you should put them on your super customer list and Court them as long as you represent the same company or sell the same basic product line question how do you sum up or in a nutshell explain Billy angman answer you don't but if you could you would start with love she loved her family her products her company and her customers she wanted the best for all of them then you move to Commitment she committed to do the best possible job and utilize her talents and abilities to the maximum by utilizing every moment to the fullest finally she saw herself as a person who was going to deserve serve is the major part of deserve the big sale do the big job earn the big rewards she knew that was the way her customers her family her company and her country would also win big she was truly a sales Pro