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The Only Sales Trick That Ever Worked For Me
It can take you a long way, if you do it right…
I typically like to forget about the three months I ran off to sell high end pots and pans in Sam’s Clubs around the country. After two stints, I had to face the fact that this line of work was not at all for me. It seemed easy, at first… I discovered the hard way that summer that I couldn’t sell Satan my soul no matter how hard I pitched it.
Which isn’t to say I made no sales; in three months, I made a little more than $2,000 for myself, so I console myself with the fact that I could have done much worse. And I learned an interesting trick which has proven useful in my day-to-day life as a cook. I looked back and thought about the few who actually purchased something from me that summer. Was there a pattern? How did I manage to win them over?
Some reflection later, I saw what it was: all my successful sales had been to families with small children. Why? 9 times out of 10, it was because I had engaged with their children, first.
My job was to do demos all day, breaking only to fill out paperwork and send customers off with my wares. Mostly, adults just staunchly avoided making eye-contact and kept walking before I could engage; but children always wanted to stop and watch. At the very least, they made a fun and sincere audience.
