Who should you seek to influence the most?

During a presentation to a group of startups last week, I asked, “who would you like to influence the most?”

The answers were the same as what I used to think: 

  • everyone I sell to
  • my boss
  • my employees  
  • the world! 

Now having read “Pre-suasion” and “Influence” by Robert Cialdini, the person I would most like to influence is myself.  

The effect of influencing yourself can be extraordinary. It can affect your personal performance, internal confidence and response to failure.

In the long run, being a greater influence to yourself will have a much greater impact on everyone around you!  

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Become a better influence by asking for advice

Over the past few months I have been a big fan of Robert Cialdini’s 2016 Book, Pre-Suasion. 

Research has uncovered the fascinating fact that if we ask someone for advice, they are going to be more supportive of the product we are selling. 

Despite people’s fears that asking for advise might cause people’s perception that we don’t know much, the evidence shows the opposite.  

A great way to use this tactic is asking for advice on how to navigate an organisation’s structure for a proposed product. You are going to get greater support compared to not asking for advice! 

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Early stage startups don't need a “fancy” CRM

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I get really frustrated when startups buy the coolest CRM and spending the next 5 hours tweaking it’s functionality until it’s PERFECT.

Don’t waste your money - and especially TIME.

Too many startups do not realise how short the startup life-cycle really is.

Time is not on your side.

Use every spare moment calling potential customers, setting up meetings, learning how to increase your sales success.

Instead of a CRM, just get started with a simple spreadsheet (Microsoft or Google Drive). With some basic tables, you can easily manage up to 50 opportunities on a single page.

(Sure when your sales machine is SOLID, you are bringing in over $50k every month, hiring new sales people - fill your boots and get a great CRM)

If this is not you yet, give yourself 10 mins to setup a spreadsheet you are comfortable with, and then get back on the phone and email and selling!

If you really need to have a CRM, then pick a free one that only takes a few minutes to setup.

Try this example spreadsheet as a starting point. Now it should take you 2 minutes!

"Don't let perfection be the enemy of the good."

Voltaire

My personal experiment with Pre-Suasion

About a month ago I published this article on how watching images of runners winning races can improve sales results by 60%. The research was outlined in Robert Cialdini’s latest book, Pre-Suasion. 

Always wanting to be the guinea pig I gave it a try... To be honest at first I found it a bit weird looking a this slide deck of runners while calling customers... I was not convinced it would work! 

This is the result of giving the pre-suasion experiment a try: 

  • I feel more relaxed and at ease when calling prospects and customers.

  • When I am relaxed my mind is more capable of solving complex challenges and can be more articulate when speaking.

  • There has been a measurable increase in my success over the phone!

If you can get past the weirdness and give it a try you might be surprised.  

 

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When the sales drought ends

Today I hit a purple patch in sales after several weeks of disappointment. The feeling of closing deals is amazing! 

However intoxicating the good feelings are, you need to keep a stoic perspective with the following:

  • Aside from my efforts, what other factors have contributed to this windfall? As humans we are hardwired to internalise success and externalise failure. 
  • Write down how you are feeling right now.  Use that description during the tough days or weeks. Success breeds confidence and this willkeep your confidence high when times are tough.  
  • Immediately look around for another sale to make. While you are on a roll it’s easier to close new deals. 

I will now go and follow my own advice!

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Becoming a greater influence on yourself

When we learn about the topic of influence, we are first drawn to the benefit of influencing others. However since learning more about the subject, I believe the most valuable application of influence is on ourselves. 

Robert Cialini from his book, Pre-Suasion gives an example of a Canadian study of a call centre that displayed athletes winning running races achieved a 60% improvement in their sales results. 

Wanting to test that result, I have created the following slide deck to be a greater influence on myself and improve my sales performance.

Please feel free to try viewing these slides each day with me and see if you can discover an improvement in your sales performance. 

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/19vd3vIsYr6QuzODvLjtO0LKUFivZRWUVxEeA_DO5wYY/edit?usp=sharing

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Try to limit your false-positive sales opportunities

Don’t be in a passive state with your sales opportunities. 

Sales opportunities are either real or they are not.  

Founders and sales people are generally positively biased.  You need to have that bias in order to get past the many rejections. 

False-Positive opportunities are bad for sales people. They soak up attention and energy you could be spending opening new opportunities.  

I would much rather have 2 real and validated opportunities instead of 20 soft ones. 

 

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Are you listening?

One of the best ways to be persuasive and influential in sales is to listen. 

Listing is not when you stay quiet while your partner speaks.

Listening is active, seeking to really break down what their challenges or opportunities are from their perspective. 

Everybody appreciates when they are understood. They are more likely to pay attention to you and seek to understand your message.