To sell is to be human

It is very hard to get a good sales book. I decided to try “Sell Like A Spy: The Art of Persuasion from the World of Espionage”. Spies are the ultimate salespeople. They must be believable, collect the necessary information, and recruit others to become spies. Their motto: spies convince, thugs coerce. The book does not disappoint. It is a nice mix of war stories and lessons learned from special forces such as Green Berets, FBI, hostage negotiators, kidnap insurance, and piracy in Somalia.

Know your target

The first lesson is to get to know your target. Become a psychiatrist. Practice radical empathy, build rapport and genuinely connect. Using vulnerability. Create intimacy. Built the relationship. Use the research and intellectual curiosity (or intelligence if you want to use the language of a spy) to create the talk triggers. It also reminds me of the Mackay method. Find out as much as possible about your prospect, including hobbies, school, children, favourite sports, birthday, etc. and use that to develop trust and credibility.

Be authentic

Lesson two is that you need to be authentic, know who you are, and approach sales with a clear mind.

The art of conversation

Lesson three is the art of conversation. How to listen better, get answers without asking questions, and connect…