Leading a Sales Rebellion

“Rebellions are built on Hope.”

In 2009 I decided to walk a different path. As everyone went left, I turned right. I started to develop my personal brand in the MFD Industry (fancy acronym for boring copiers). I was made fun of, told I would fail, called unprofessional, a kid that doesn’t get it and never will… It fueled my fire. Not because I wanted to show them wrong, but because I did not agree with the old school methodology of “make your money and retire”. I watched people sit complacently in their respective roles just waiting “a few more years” until they could get out and call it a day on their career, not focused on their prospects or clients, only on themselves and their own selfish motives. The modern day sales rep does not give a flying crap about those they sell to. These are the facts. Because of this, I knew exactly what I had to do.

I had to #ChangeTheGame.

So, I did. And in the process, I created an entire system. One that has stood tall and caused an eruption of success for myself, and later, for the teams I would develop and am still developing.

So, I wanted to share some of the ideas that are the foundation of my Sales Rebellion, with you, through this article.

Interrupt Marketing and The ToolBox:

My first bit of research into the sales world started with Psychology. I wanted to understand better how the human-brain worked and how I could adapt to my prospects/clients needs, emotions, and outlook without having to "force" myself to be anything other than The Copier Warrior. Understand that perceptions play a big role in society and when it comes to sales... well, they can be your worst enemy. So, I dove deep into the Psychology behind a first interaction between two humans and applied everything I learned from that to a sales call. One of my revelations was that if I were to "Radically Educate" my prospect through a first-touch-piece that would literally cause an interruption in their normal/daily patterns, I had a much better chance to book an appointment with them. This was not good enough for me though... So, I started learning more about the natural curiosity that we all inherently have. This caused my awakening and my first-touch-piece-campaign was officially born. The number one objection of these Interrupt Marketing pieces was to soften the prospect when I called them to set an appointment or when I stopped by to introduce myself to them. What was most important about the development of this campaign though? The motive behind my marketing. I put meaning, purpose, and intentional thought into each marketing piece I developed. You could literally learn more about me by dissecting the piece than you could if you visited one of my social media sites or had an hour long conversation with me. I made myself vulnerable, I caused the prospect to smile, I helped them to relate to me, and I built credibility through these pieces. People are not looking for the "product expert" as much as they are looking for someone who is honest, intelligent, adaptable, empathetic, and REAL.

"The whole art of teaching is only the art of awakening the natural curiosity of young minds for the purpose of satisfying it afterwards..." -Anatole France

The Living Pipeline:

I got sick, really quick, of hearing about "funnels" and how you needed to have them full of people that might possibly be buying really soon/right now. I got tired of being told quantity was the only way to be successful. Especially when the focus was all on people buying RIGHT NOW. No relationships, just transactions. Treat the buyer that way too, because if you don't the other guy/girl is going to beat you in the sales cycle, because they are pressing hard for the close. I will never forget the first time I disrupted a buying cycle to move from "we are buying right now" to taking almost 3 months to make a decision and I WON THE FREAKING SALE, MAN. How? I created The Living Pipeline. The premise behind it being that each individual prospect was a living-breathing-human who, if treated appropriately, would look deep inside themselves when making a decision to purchase products and services from you, instead of just picking the lowest price. Crazy right? Well, it works, and it works based on the principles of service at the forefront of every interaction you have with the prospect. The idea that you are to rise above mediocrity and build upon on your sales legend, one centered around giving without reward, a selfless outlook that is rarely found in sales. The bigger picture of The Living Pipeline being that I have about 7 compartments that a prospect goes into once I learn about their buying cycle. I would spend my time cultivating a foundation of credibility, integrity, and values as the root of my relationship with each individual prospect. Once I knew the timeline or their situation from this high level perspective, I could adapt my process around them. The process is much more than sending an email with the subject "checking-in!" or calling them and saying "Hey, just seeing how everything is going?!" Too many times in sales we rely on surface level interactions in order to complete an activity in our CRM and call it a day, all the while lying to ourselves that "we've got this sale in the bag." Breaks my heart when I think about salespeople that just don't understand this concept.

"There is no scarcity of opportunity, only scarcity of imagination." -Napoleon Hill

R.E.A.S.O.N.

The short form for REASON is to Radically Educate And Share Ones Narrative. The formula behind creating your REASON is much more intricate than that and the outline to create your own is as follows:

R.E. - Radically Educate: This is the first touch before any type of phone call or hand shake with your prospect. It is a way to cause undeniable curiosity and make them want to take your follow-up call to hear more about “what this is all about." Think about the Interrupt Marketing I discussed earlier in this article and allow the light-bulb to go off.

A. - Attention: Once you have left your Radical Education, the follow-up call behind it is designed to captivate their attention fully. Think of the way you currently throw down your 30 second commercial. Now, forget about it completely and never do it again. This is an interrupt that stays consistent with your first touch and continues the prospect down their new adventure with you.

S. - Story: This is where you start throwing glimpses of yourself into the conversation. My theory behind this is based on the psychological effect that a story has on the person listening. It causes them to drop their guard, builds credibility, and helps them to be vulnerable with you. This leads to them sharing more about their situation than just “yeah we have that product you sell and we are happy, thanks."

O. - Outline: This is where you take it home. We jump “back to business” in this final piece of the pitch. The idea is to set yourself and the prospect up for success by agreeing to the agenda you would like to see fulfilled by focusing on service before yourself and building a deeper relationship with the prospect. One that might even end in just “being friends” and becoming referral partners if they don’t qualify for your services.

N. - Nuanced: This is the ocean in which your REASON exists. The definition of Nuanced is: "Characterized by subtle shades of meaning or expression." Enough said!

This method slowly became the building block behind all of the relationships I founded through cold calling into my community in an attempt to become something much larger than just "the local, annoying, copier guy." If you are still delusional about whether or not consumers like copier sales reps, let me clear that up for you now, they don't like us. Any of us. That's why this process is so important because they have been ripped off, lied to, cheated, and treated like crap for long enough that they are just plain over it. This goes for a lot of other sales verticals as well, copier sales reps can't take all the credit here. This is why it is important to take your prospect on an adventure, a journey into the sales process. Give them an experience!

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Thanks for taking a minute to read this article giving you a sneak peak into my process as a sales professional. My upcoming book (stay tuned for dates!) dives much deeper into The Copier Warrior and the Sales Rebellion I have been leading for many years. Soon, it will be your turn to start your own Rebellion by Radically Educating your local, regional, or global marketplace through an evolved attitude and mindset putting creativity, servant-hood, and a deeper understanding of why you are on this earth, at the forefront. It is time for us as sales professionals to rise up from the ashes of a stale and decrepit system that has been rehashed and given a make-over every few years. The system is broken. Now, more than ever before, is the time to find fulfillment through your role as a salesperson that is deeper than the surface-level rush you get from a big commission check or closing a deal to hit your quota and get your boss off your back. It is time to start making a permanent mark on our society and your community.

Head to my website www.salesrebellion.com and connect with me on YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook (@salesrebellion)! I post content daily and I am always giving tips, tricks, and wisdom when it comes to the true form of sales. I also offer individual and group coaching sessions along with my monthly membership model on SalesRebellion.com, come check it all out!

"At your sunset, be remembered as the greatest to have ever walked this earth, even if just as an acquaintance… one that had a bigger impact than the longest relationship that individual ever had. Your legend begins here and, as the sun begins to set on this book, know that it does not have to be the end. For the lionhearted, it is only your beginning." -The Copier Warrior