“By giving them something first before asking for anything in return, you show you’re different from other people; you’re there to help.”

- Danielle Bornowski

If you’re a solopreneur, you wear the salesperson hat, which may make you cringe. It used to make me feel that way, too. I’ve read a lot of books and taken a lot of training on sales and want to share some of the top pieces of wisdom I’ve come across with you.

• In How Good Humans Sell, Catherine Brown points out that most of us went into business to do good, which means that what we sell helps other people thrive. This realization that selling is an honorable vocation, one that promotes flourishing for ourselves and other people, should actually create deep satisfaction for us as sales professionals.

• In What’s In It For Them, Joe Polish breaks down relationship building (which should be done prior to selling) as bringing our authentic selves and focusing on providing value to other people. By giving them something first before asking for anything in return, you show you’re different from other people; you’re there to help. You’re a giver, first and foremost. Not a taker (which is how sales feel).

• If you’ve ever felt yourself stuck because you weren’t sure what to say next in the sales process, I offer a few game-changing suggestions:

  • When you listen to someone talk about their struggles and your product or service is the solution to their problems: “I can help you with that.”

  • When you’ve offered a solution to someone and they aren’t responding: “I’ve reached out a few times about XYZ and haven’t heard back from you. Where should we go from here?”

In our desire to avoid being a sleazy salesperson, we often don’t know what to say, so we don’t say anything at all, which results in missed opportunities.

Now, go sell to people and help them thrive!

P.S. If you need help fine-tuning your sales script, I’m here to help. Grab time on my calendar here.