Must I Believe In My Product in Order to Sell It - Beliefs That Hinder Salespeople

by Dave Kahle

As a sales trainer, I often confront a difficult obstacle that stands in the way of developing more effective salespeople.  Too often salespeople are hindered by limiting beliefs that prevent them from implementing the best practices, principles, and processes that can multiply their results.  They remain bound by internal barriers of their own conception.

Here’s an example.  A Customer Service Representative wants to move to outside sales.  He was good at his job of reacting to whoever was on the other end of the phone line and responding effectively to the request of all the customers.  As a result, he forms the belief that success is a matter of responding effectively to everyone.  He’s moved into outside sales, where he naturally brings along that belief.

In that new position, he continues to operate on the basis of that belief, responding effectively to everyone who has a request for him.  As a result, he finds himself spending inordinate amounts of time with small and needy customers, and very little time with larger, more sophisticated, and higher potential customers.  And as a result of that, his sales are mediocre, although he feels fulfilled.

It’s not that he doesn’t have the ability to do better; it is just that his belief limits his effectiveness.

This example illustrates just one of many beliefs that limit the productivity of salespeople.  Many of these self-limiting beliefs are so subtle that they operate beneath the level of consciousness, supporting some behaviors and preventing others without the salesperson’s conscious awareness.  In order to unleash the salesperson to higher levels of productivity, these beliefs must be recognized, challenged, and changed.

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“I must believe in a product in order to sell it.”

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard this.  I hear it frequently from new salespeople, and occasionally from more experienced reps.  It is often pronounced with a bit of a smug, self-righteous attitude and projects the air that this is the last word on the subject – “That’s my position.  Period.  End of conversation.”

That’s too bad.  Because, as long as the salesperson holds this belief, he will never achieve his potential.

It’s detrimental because it holds that the product, or more specifically, the salesperson’s opinion of the product, is the ultimate influencer of sales behavior.  The salesperson’s opinion becomes more important than the needs and situation of the customer.

Selling Without Believing  

At one point in my life, I sold men’s suits and sport coats in a relatively expensive men’s clothing store.  At a time when the average price of a man’s suit was around $100, we had one line of suits that sold for an average of $350 — three and a half times the price of the average.

I personally thought that it was a waste of money.  Why pay that much, when you could get a perfectly good suit for a third of the price?  I would never buy one of those.  I just didn’t believe in it.

Now, if I had been ruled by the belief, “I must believe in the product in order to sell it,” I would never have shown those suits, never had suggested them, and never had sold them.  However, my personal opinion didn’t matter to those people who wanted the extra details and more expensive look of that line of suits, and who could afford them.

I would have allowed my personal opinion to stand in the way of the sale made to someone who did not share my opinion.  In so doing, I would have limited my sales and hindered my ability to fulfill the customer’s needs.

Now, you can say that the example isn’t a good one.  We all have limits on what we can spend.  You’ve missed the point...READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE.