TRAINING.....

I came home from work and sang out my usual "I'm home famileeee"

(Really. I do this. And as annoying as it sounds, Beth doesn't sock me.)

PJ came running out of his room with a big smile to greet me.

"Daddy!" he squealed.

"Hi PJ!"

"Sit down, dad," he said.

I sat.

He pulled out a catalog.

"Dad, what's this?" he asked.

"It's  a train," I told him.

"No. It's THOMAS, dad."

"Oh, Yeah, it's Thomas the Tank Engine," I said reading. "And this is Annie and Clarabelle."

"Do you like it dad?"

"Yeah it’s very nice,"I said, not quite tuned in to where this was headed, yet. "I like the track with the snow-covered tunnels."

"Can you help me get this dad?"

I was at once proud and trapped. I was proud of my little salesman asking for the sale. I was trapped by the fact that he never asked me to BUY it. He only asked me to help him get it. And I'd already said I liked it. What could I do?

We can take a lesson from PJ.

He didn't ask me to buy anything at first. He re-established our relationship and involved me in a dialog. He got me to commit to liking it -- then he asked for the sale. He didn't even present the price. I had to ask how much.

Too often, our selling process starts with the price, then asks for a commitment.

A more effective approach, especially for big ticket items -- like a pricey Thomas the Train Set -- is to involve our customers in a dialog and get them to buy in on the idea before you ask them to consider spending one penny. But you have to be careful not to be too mysterious or gimmicky or you could come off like an Amway salesman.

I've helped several clients develop a systematic approach that goes from ads to literature to closing (I call it the PJ principle.)

Will PJ get his train set this Christmas?

If you get a phone call from a very young salesman asking you about your advertising, you'll know how I "helped him" get the train set. (Not really. But maybe next year.)


- Phil Sasso