The Recruiting Animal

In Defence of Salesmen, Part 2

(Audio version here)

Last week, I criticized a young, corporate recruiter for slandering salesmen on his blog. Well, he got in touch with me because he didn't like hearing me say his philosophy is well suited to cult members and cream puffs but not strong women and real men.

And you know what that means? That even after listening this little punk still didn't get it. So I'm going to have to teach him another lesson, today. And, I'm going to start by telling him -- and you -- about a conversation I had with Maureen Sharib at the end of last week's show. Maureen, as you might know, is the Queen Bee of Telephone Sourcing and she was telling me how a sourcer will call a stranger inside a company to ask for information.

Sometimes the person you're talking to won't know the exact information you're asking for but you know she does have some information that can help you so you have to coach her then and there on how to give you what you need. For instance, you might ask for the Director of Strategic Sourcing and she says, "Oh we don't have one of those". So you say, "Well, do you have a Director of Procurement?" And she says, "Gee, I don't know."

My point is that this person might be busy so she might get impatient and Maureen was telling me that she can hear the impatience in that other person's voice. But here's what I want to point out. She's not afraid of it. It doesn't scare her. She's not thinking, "I'm afraid because this person is getting mad at me." She's not thinking, "If she gets angry the sky is going to fall down." She's not thinking, "If she gets mad and hangs up before I get what I need this search is going to be shot to hell and everyone's going to be mad at me and I won't be able to earn a living and I'm going to lose my house and that's going to be a total disaster."

No, Maureen doesn't think those things. And you know why? Because Maureen has the heart of a salesman. She doesn't feel any fear. And that's what separates her from everybody else. She isn't afraid of other people. And that's what I was trying to say last week when I was defending salesmen against the slander of that lily-livered, corporate man.

A salesman is someone who goes out among strangers and tries to get them to do what he wants. And if you're going to do that, you can't be afraid of other people's thoughts and feelings. You have to see them as facts, not threats. They're neutral facts you have to work with, not something you have to run from.

And you know, recruiters and sourcers, last week Maureen and I we were also talking about a famous song called, "Viva Las Vegas". It's a terrific song with fantastic lyrics, and I want you to listen to this verse.

"There's blackjack, poker and a roulette wheel
"A fortune won and lost on every deal.
"All you need's a strong heart and nerves of steel.

Maureen Sharib has nerves of steel. Real salesmen have nerves of steel. They're ready to ask people for things those people don't want to give -- and they don't care. If you don't like them that's just too bad. They see a negative reaction as an opportunity to turn you around. And that's more personal power than most of us can ever imagine having.

Me, personally, I'm a Clark Kent. These guys, they're supermen. They're unstoppable. And, that, Mr Corporate Recruiter, is the kind of person I want to be and if you understand what I'm saying, you should want it too.

In Defence of Salesmen, Part 1

In Defence of Salesmen

(Audio version here)

Are recruiters salesmen? There are two schools of thought here. One says yes but there's a whole bunch of other guys who go around bragging that they're not into sales. I came across one of them last week on Fistful of Talent.com. His name is Jason Pankow and I want to take a look at how this little punk, I mean corporate recruiter, builds his case against sales.

First he sets up a straw man. Right off the bat he tells you that a salesman is a hustler, someone who doesn't give a hoot about anybody but himself. All he thinks about is how he can trick you into buying a lousy product for a lot of money.

And just in case we don't get the message -- because it's so original -- right beside his posting he put a picture of a greasy guy in a loud suit standing in a used car lot.

But, you know, I think that must be a picture of Jason himself because, really, what difference is there between a classic used car salesman and a guy who tries to sell you the kind of shoddy argument Jason Pankow is shopping around? The answer is not very much.

Before we go any further I'm going to tell you what a salesman really is. Because it's not at all like Mr Pankow says. A salesman is a gutsy guy who isn't afraid to go up to complete strangers and ask them to do what he wants.

And when they say no he doesn't slink away like a wounded animal. He doesn't run and hide under a rock. No, he tries to show them where they're making an mistake.

Now a person like this has a lot more courage than the average guy. In the war for business, he's not peeling potatoes somewhere behind the lines. No, he's right up there at the front in hand to hand combat bringing in the orders that make the company run.

So everyone is jealous because beside him they look like nobodies. So what do they do? Instead of simply admitting that they are chickens and he's a hero they complain that sales people are pushy and salesmen are liars and then they pat themselves on the back for being such nice guys.

Did you see Beverly Hills Cop? The hero, Eddie Murphy, he's a salesman. The other guys, they're Jason Pankows. But here's something funny. When you first read Jason's postings you might think that he's as far from being a salesman as anyone could be.

I mean, he's got an article that tells recruiters they have to eat, sleep and breathe the corporate culture. And after you see that you say to yourself: a salesman is an individual, a hunter, a real American -- and this guy doesn't have an independent bone in his body.

But don't kid yourself. Panky is a salesman too. He might have merged his identity with Big Brother's but what do cult members normally do? They try to convert people. And this guy is watching like a hawk for any opportunity to show the candidate that he's just like him.

"You played frisbee at college? Me too. You like softball? We've got a league." Just like any salesman Jason is trying to reel the guy in. It might be soft sales -- for cream puffs -- but sales it is no matter how much he denies it.

And again, how different is it, really from what the used car salesman does? My friend, The Funny Banker, says that all sales is lying. That sounds outrageous, I know, but in a way, it's true. If you put your best foot forward you're hiding your worst foot, aren't you? And, I'll bet you dollars for donuts that anyone who sees himself as a missionary for of the corporate culture isn't focusing on the downside of the job.

Feedback
I spent many years denying my "salesman" mentality. My breaks came when I embraced exactly what you describe: I have the guts to talk to people I don't know, I rarely take "no" for an answer, and I am not afraid to ask again... I'll keep my worst foot well behind the other, thank you very much.
-- Rayanne Trumbo

Pose as a career consultant to sell candidates on jobs

Margaret Graziano says:
If you act like a career consultant, candidates will trust you.

So, forget about the job you are trying to fill for 45 minutes and get to know the candidate well. Just like a career consultant would. Then have a great sell.

How To Sell

Before the advent of department stores, small retailers used their front windows in a straightforward manner to put their goods on display. The big department store windows were different. They were used to put on a display meant to charm and amaze.

Frank Baum, author of The Wizard of Oz, was a window dressers and founded the National Association of Window Trimmers. "Even the male mind, naturally obtuse upon such matters, is forced to marvel at the beauty of the display," he said.

What's the lesson here? Sell the sizzle not the steak. The plain goods are not as emotionally compelling as the context in which they are presented.

That's why some recruiting firms rent fancy offices in downtown towers. But how can theatrics make a job seem magical when the person you are presenting it to understands it quite well? Doesn't familiarity with something that is probably not a dramatic change, rule out big dreams?

Reference: Froma Harrop

Against Hard Selling

The last time I was in Macy's to test-drive a sofa, four different sales gnats came buzzing around me in search of a commission.

Fire the hard-sellers, lower the price of the sofa by $200 and you've got IKEA, where most items can simply be picked up and rolled out the door. At the entrance there is a sign: "No one will bother you."

-- Kyle Smith via Matt Welch

How to Overcome Skepticism

Source: Brian Clark

We aren't suckers. We aren't gullible rubes. We have been subjected to so much advertising that we have been trained, properly, to be skeptical. We know that we shouldn't simply believe.

So how does a poor recruiter get through to this kind of sophisticate? You have to prove somehow that you know what you're up to and that you're not out to bamboozle anyone.

What does that mean? That you have to build a relationship first. Before you do business you have to get them to trust you. It takes time but you'll have many opportunities to make deals after you've convinced someone that you do deliver the goods.

This makes tutorial marketing on a blog a smart way to present yourself online.

A free introduction to your subject starts the relationship and your regular blog postings keep it going. And eventually, you’ll turn some readers into candidates or clients and get some referrals.

The ongoing value of an ongoing relationship is much greater than what you get by asking for someone's business as soon as you say hello. Old-school closing techniques just make people see you as a social predator who disrespects them and only wants to push them around.

Irresistable Offers

A blogger wants her readers to subscribe, bookmark the site, make comments, respond to surveys and use the info supplied.

But how do you get people to act? You make them an offer. An offer is a conditional promise. "If you do this, you'll get this." How do you make an offer they can't refuse? Offer something they want.

Domino’s pizza was not, apparently, the greatest but who could refuse delivery in 30 minutes or free? The guarantee had explosive power.

Online, offers must be fast to read and so clear that they can be understood in no time at all. The first thing to remember though is that if you don't make offers people don't act.

Source: Copyblogger

Dreaming in Technicolor

When Obama was spending time, at the beginning of the campaign, discussing policy, he was euthanizing his campaign. There is no policy wonking when he is speaking to the tens of thousands in rallies that make lesser candidates green the envy. -- Charles Adler, National Post

The moral of this story: dreams inspire, technical discussions don't. Recruiters are often advised to sell the sizzle when they present a job to a potential candidate. But, in fact, what are their dreams made of but opportunties to use their technical expertise.

How To Be Persuasive

Focus on dramatic consequences.

Your bait has to be dramatic to create a decision to bite.

1. list every element (feature) of your offering
2. ask what benefit each feature offers
3. translate each benefit into dramatic consequences that are emotionally compelling

Example:
1. For instance, a job offers free parking.
2. That saves you ten dollars a day.
3. No one is going to be excited about earning ten dollars more a day but three thousand a year might be compelling.

1. Free parking is the feature
2. Ten dollars a day is the bland benefit
3. Three thousand per year is the dramatic consequence

To get dramatic consequences you have to package your message correctly. Otherwise your benefits are bland. Bland Benefits are real but they aren't dramatic enough to drive action.

Use the Forehead Test to decide if your benefits are dramatic and compelling. Imagine you wake up in the middle of the night, slap your forehead and say, "Gee, I want that!" Only dramatic consequences will qualify.

Source: Copyblogger

Selling Internally

When I recruit people my client or project manager often wants to know if a candidate has had strong experience selling her ideas within a firm. The importance of selling risk-laden ideas to the major internal stakeholders of an organization is demonstrated in W's need to sell The Surge to the military after the Baker-Hamilton Commission recommended retreat.

The existence of a plausible alternative was not enough. Two tasks remained before him before bucking the consensus. The first was the organizational challenge of persuading the military chiefs the alternative plan was correct -- a sales job. -- The Belmont Club

The military, in Bush's view, has to be treated with special deference and tact. "One of the most important jobs of a commander in chief, and particularly in a time of war, is to be thoughtful and sensitive about the U.S. military," he said. Bush believes in persuading the military to embrace his policies rather than simply imposing them. -- Weekly Standard

It would appear, as well, that the identities of the salesmen were key factors in the success of the sale: the president and Robert Gates.