Good morning!
It’s 8 o’clock on a Sunday morning. I am writing this sans personal hygiene. I will spend the morning at my daughter’s house helping her to clean up leaves and downed limbs and hauling unwanted junk to the dump.
I am dressed accordingly.
As I was upstairs just now in the kitchen thinking about what I would say in the sales tip this week and noticing that I was not “visually prepared” for a sales tip video, the idea of talking about dress, fashion, and personal brand came to me.
Almost all of the conversation about building a personal brand speaks of marketing and social media in presenting yourself as a subject matter expert in a problem solver, etc. But there is a more basic level; an easier entry point, if you will that I want to talk about. I can teach you a lot about sales and the fundamentals and how to overcome objections and beat voicemail and were look for great leads, but there are some basics and more common-sense lessons that are increasingly becoming less common. This is one of them.
Take a piece of paper and write down adjectives for how you would want your self-described to others. You might choose things like kind, friendly, interesting, creative, and fun. Add a second column and write down more descriptors, but make this one about how you’d like to be seen as a salesperson. Now, words like responsive, problem-solver, reliable, upbeat, positive, creative, and available could be used.
This, too, is a version of your personal brand. I believe this is equally as important. It’s funny, we complain a lot about customers buying on price only but it sure seems to me after 40 years of sales and 40 years of almost never being the lowest price, my clients found a way to do business with me and they did this in part because they liked me. You might say, they liked my brand.
Regardless of what kind of a salesperson you are, being a good person comes first. And while problem-solving, presentation skills, and getting right back to someone are all important, such things are not all-important.
We should strive first to be someone people would want to associate themselves with. Being the best version of our sales self begins with being the best version of ourselves.
One more thing: As you ponder your list, think of the people in your circle whom you admire and then think of the qualities they have.
For me, I want to be generous like Chris Mutkoski. I want to look sharp like Daniel Dejan. I want to be optimistic like Kelly Mallozzi. I want be filled with wonder like Mason Maskell. I want to be joyful like Benji (Mason’s cat).
Off to the leaf pile…
