Marketing is fun. Building and executing a plan to influence mass or segmented audiences towards a certain behavior (buy the product, like the person) is creative, challenging and interesting.
Selling sucks. Or, I should say, I suck at selling.
My brother is a natural, as are cousins Bernie and Cheryl, so I can't blame genetics.
I've had enough coaching and advice over the years to pull it off when I have: 1) a receptive audience 2)a product or concept I know well AND 3)am presenting something in which I believe passionately.
What I can't seem to ever sell is myself.
I'm fortunate that the majority of the jobs I've had have come through people I've worked with on other projects and who have seen my work. I don't lack saleable skills, but the skills to sell them.
If I had to depend on myself to talk about what I can do, I'd be forgetting to ask people daily if they wanted to supersize their Extra Value Meal.
I recently told a client that when I was a kid I bought my own Girl Scout cookies -- he thought I was joking. It took a lot of allowance quarters... and counting on Mom and Dad to take the sales sheets into work.
Some people resent the Mom/Dad proxy barrage of school sales in the workplace. Not me. I'll sign on for a couple more boxes, candles or wrapping paper packages every time.
I rarely meet the little salesfolk, but I feel their pain. Deeply.
Please don't tell me sales is just an academic exercise. I can dissect the process, I simply can't do it.
I sat in a 401k meeting with our rep the other day and silently marvelled as I watched him build empathy, deflect objections and reinforce key points seamlessly.
But, I told myself, he probably can't curl his tongue or touch his nose with it.






Copyright 2005 Judi Griggs