ChatGPT Writes An Overview of Eliminate Your Competition

A good friend of mine and fellow sales coach, Robert Gillette , advised the readers of his newsletter to summarize books they wanted to understand using ChatGPT. The command that he suggested was, "Give me a 1,000 word summary of {book name}."

I thought that Robert's suggestion was a good idea, but before I recommended it to anyone or understood what warnings I should give, I wanted to try it out on a book that I knew incredibly well. I chose to do that test on my own book, Eliminate Your Competition.

Here is the output of "Give me a 1,000 word summary of Eliminate Your Competition by Sean O’Shaughnessey." If you are interested, scroll down to the bottom of this article, where I give suggestions and criticisms.

BTW, the below section is taken straight from ChatGPT without any grammatical corrections.

Hey ChatGPT, "Give me a 1,000 word summary of Eliminate Your Competition by Sean O’Shaughnessey"

"Eliminate Your Competition" by Sean O’Shaughnessey offers a comprehensive guide to sales strategies and techniques that aim to help salespeople outmaneuver their competitors. At the heart of the book is the assertion that, in the world of sales, you are either eliminating your competition or they are eliminating you. This 1,000-word summary touches upon the main themes and key takeaways from the book:

1. Understanding the Sales Process:

O'Shaughnessey stresses the importance of comprehending the intricacies of the sales process, which starts from the moment a salesperson identifies a potential customer to the point they close the deal. Recognizing the milestones in this process allows salespeople to navigate their sales conversations more effectively.

2. The Power of the 4-Step Sales Campaign:

The book presents a four-step sales campaign:

a) Prospect: Identify potential customers.

b) Qualify: Assess the feasibility of the opportunity and ensure it's worth pursuing.

c) Win: Close the deal.

d) Grow: Nurture the relationship for future sales opportunities.

3. The Trapper System:

O'Shaughnessey introduces the Trapper System, drawing an analogy between sales and trapping. The main elements of this system are:

a) Setting Bait: Attracting potential customers through marketing and networking efforts.

b) Laying Traps: Establishing processes and techniques to keep prospects interested and moving them through the sales funnel.

c) Hunting: Actively seeking out new opportunities and prospects.

4. The Importance of Eliminating Competitors Early:

The author advocates for a proactive approach in dealing with competitors. Rather than waiting for them to make a move, it's essential to take initiative, anticipate their strategies, and counteract them.

5. Building Strong Relationships:

One of the book's key themes is the significance of nurturing and maintaining strong relationships with decision-makers and influencers in client organizations. This ensures not only the likelihood of an immediate sale but also opens doors for future opportunities.

6. Mastering the Complex Sale:

O'Shaughnessey emphasizes that in the modern sales landscape, many sales processes are complex, involving multiple stakeholders and long decision-making cycles. Salespeople must be patient, persistent, and skilled in navigating such complexity.

7. Identifying Decision Makers:

The book stresses the importance of identifying and engaging with the real decision-makers in any deal. This often means going beyond the obvious contacts and seeking out those who wield influence behind the scenes.

8. Leveraging the Power of Teams:

No salesperson is an island. Effective selling often requires collaboration with colleagues from other departments, like marketing, product development, or customer service. Harnessing the collective intelligence and capabilities of a team increases the chances of sales success.

9. Handling Objections:

O'Shaughnessey provides strategies and techniques for handling objections that prospects might raise. Addressing objections head-on and turning them into opportunities is a skill every salesperson should master.

10. Continuous Learning and Adaptation:

The sales landscape is ever-evolving. Salespeople need to be lifelong learners, continuously updating their skills, knowledge, and techniques to stay ahead of competitors and meet the changing needs of clients.

11. Ethical Selling:

The author emphasizes the importance of ethics in sales. Unethical behavior might result in short-term gains but will invariably lead to long-term losses. Building trust and credibility with customers is paramount for sustained success.

12. The Role of Technology:

In a rapidly digitalizing world, salespeople need to leverage technology, from Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems to analytics tools, to streamline their processes, gather insights, and stay competitive.

In conclusion, "Eliminate Your Competition" by Sean O’Shaughnessey is a guide for salespeople who wish to achieve excellence in their field. Through the understanding of the sales process, the Trapper System, and other principles and strategies outlined in the book, salespeople can not only win against their competitors but also establish themselves as trusted advisors to their clients, leading to sustained success in their careers.

Sean's thoughts and suggestions

The summary was quite accurate. To be honest, it correctly told me the book's themes, but it wouldn't tell a reader how to accomplish those efforts. If it were a student, I would give the answer a C because it didn't capture the book's nuances or learnings (activities I would expect from an A performance).

Maybe it was too much to expect that a 1,000-word summary of a 288-page book would teach you how to achieve the goals of effective selling as well as I might have written them. For instance, it doesn't mention or explain a Decision Timeline or a Power Matrix, two essential tools for complicated B2B sales efforts, but then it might be a challenge to adequately discuss those individually in only 1,000 words.

To be honest, though, most business books can be effectively summarized in about 25 pages, and therefore a 1,000-word high-level summary may be more complete. When I wrote Eliminate Your Competition, I wanted to teach salespeople on every single page of the 288 pages, so I doubt it would be possible to catch many of the details in my book.

I might try someday to ask it to give me a summary of the first four chapters and see if it is a bit better.

Robert Gillette 's idea has merit, though. I will probably try it on a few books that I am fairly sure have a lot of "fluff" surrounding a few good points. Also, I will probably try it on books that are not designed to give specific action items but instead are designed to wax eloquently on a subject. Maybe ChatGPT will help to eliminate the fluff and eloquent wax.

I will repeat Robert Gillette 's advice as he wrote it in his newsletter, as I think it has value. I will also repeat his advice always to move forward. The advice is important because if you want to be great in sales, you should always learn and apply new techniques.

3. Fake Read a Book

You know that sales book you were recommended but know you'll never read? ChatGPT will happily give you an interactive summary.?

Assignment: Go to ChatGPT and ask: "Give me a 1,000 word summary of {book name}." If you can't think of any, I'm happy to recommend a couple.

Remember, if you aren't moving forward then you're sliding back. Sales is a perishable skill, and practicing the craft is what makes you good at it!