The sale is in the story,
not in the product or in the seller. That’s true about being an entrepreneur,
too.
EXPERT OPINION BY HOWARD TULLMAN, GENERAL MANAGING PARTNER, G2T3V
AND CHICAGO HIGH TECH INVESTORS @HOWARDTULLMAN1
DEC 24, 2024
The basic attitudes and
skill sets that make for a great entrepreneur, I’m convinced, are exactly the
same life skills that we need to be teaching our kids and our team members.
That is, if we want them to be successful.
Everyone has their own favorite list
of the essential qualities and talents that new business builders require. Here
are mine: passion, preparation, perspiration, perseverance, and principles. But
I’d say there’s no question that one capability primes these attributes and
ranks far above the rest. And that’s the ability to tell an effective story.
Stories are the way we sell ourselves,
our products and services, and how we build connections with others as well. No
one ever made an informed purchase decision because of a number. They need a
story. An authentic one. If the stories aren’t honest and authentic, then
the whole process falls apart.
Storytelling is a remarkably powerful
tool and the irreplaceable essence of great leadership, whether it’s spinning a
great yarn, firing up the team, sharing war stories from the imagined good old
days, or just laying out – clearly and concisely – the most compelling vision
for a business or a career. That story should also include a chapter on the
path forward, and the sacrifices required to make that dream a reality. A
well-told story can change the world’s mind and has done so many times in the
past — as long as it’s ultimately grounded in the truth.00:0001:56
Apple is one great example. At one
point, Apple’s refusal to cooperate with law enforcement (which wanted Apple’s
help to break into bad guys’ iPhones) threatened to damage the whole brand. Tim
Cook launched a worldwide privacy campaign even changing the Apple logo to a
locking image in its ads. That put the company on the consumer’s side. The
story was simply that consumer privacy is more important than anything else.
Apple eventually became such a strong advocate for that position that other
companies were forced to assume a similar posture. Instead of being seen as a
nasty and recalcitrant tech firm, Apple became a hero of the people, a company
willing to stand up to the government.
Storytelling is the way we teach and
the way we learn. Stories are lessons embedded in language (written, spoken or
seen) and they can bring us together or they can tear us apart. The
stories we tell others help us to share our knowledge, experience and wisdom.
The stories we tell ourselves give us faith, courage, inspiration and the
strength to bear on against seemingly insurmountable odds and obstacles.
But the stories we tell our teams,
partners, peers and children and the ones they create and tell themselves are
the most crucial of all because those stories can heighten their horizons and
broaden their perspectives or, in an instant, can crush their creativity and
enthusiasm and condemn them to a bleak future.
Unfortunately, storytelling talent is
much like technology itself– it’s basically neutral and it can be used or
abused. As Sara Bareilles sang and presciently warned in Brave: “you can turn a phrase into a weapon or a drug”
and “nothing’s gonna hurt you the way that words do”. In today’s sad and
nasty meme culture, you can turn a stupid motto like MAGA into a movement – for
better or for worse – and excite or inflame millions of listeners in the
process.
We’ve done a great job of enabling and
empowering enhanced expression, where our stories spread instantly around the
world. But we’ve done a lousy job of explaining the ethical and moral
responsibilities that come with the expanded power to persuade and the weight
and impact the stories we now tell can have on other lives. You can’t get grace
from gadgets.
No amount of technology is ever going
to turn a bad story into a good one, but plenty of liars still make massive
incomes online in our low information, widely distributed, and largely
anonymous digital economy. Some even get elected to high office.
An important part of any leader’s job
is to let everyone know that not every great narrator is someone worth
listening to. And notwithstanding the MAGAt-mess we’re facing and the malicious
and mendacious messaging that we’re seeing all around us from Trump, his
sycophants, and his enablers (who believe that you should never let the truth
get in the way of a good story), the fact is that you can’t pray a lie or ask
people to ignore what’s in front of them for too long before the whole house of
lies and cards comes tumbling down. At least that’s what we’ve got to believe.
The smartest entrepreneurs know that
without substance, fundamental beliefs and ironclad integrity, you can’t build
a solid and sustainable foundation for anything of value – not a business, a
culture or a life. There aren’t multiple versions of the truth – or alternative
facts – and there never were. The best storytellers put relevant, accurate, and
important facts into an appropriate context and then deliver them with
emotional impact.
If you’re going to teach someone how
to tell a compelling sales story, don’t waste your time concentrating on the
particulars of the person, product or service that they’re trying to sell.
Instead, always concentrate on the five most critical considerations and keep
them firmly in mind during every contact or conversation.
(1) No one cares how much you know
until they know how much you care.
Establish a personal connection before
you ask for the sale and make sure that you have the buyer’s interest and
attention. Whatever else you’re selling, you’ve also got to sell yourself.
Engage with the person before you start explaining the program. Connect and
then convince.
(2) Customers want ¼-inch holes, not ¼-inch drills.
Focus on a few critical concerns of
the buyer, listen carefully, and tell a simple story about how the buyer’s
needs are addressed by what you’re selling. This is about the results, not the
tools.
(3) Customers buy for their
own selfish reasons, not yours.
Demonstrate an immediate benefit to
the buyer – how it saves time or money; how it makes the buyer more productive;
or how it helps them make better decisions. Other people don’t always dream
your dream.
(4) Get a Calendar.
Almost everything in life is about
timing. Context trumps content – you need to plan to have your conversations at
the right time. You want to be there when the buyer is ready to buy.
(5) It’s only a “No” for now.
The best and most successful
salespeople don’t take “No” for an answer – especially from people who can’t
say “Yes.” It’s all about persistence. Start with what you have, build from
there, and don’t quit until you cross the finish line.
At the end of the day, I always
remember what an old cosmetics salesman once told me. He said that, in the
factory, they make make-up, but, in the stores, they sell hope.
