In today’s edition, we explore why humour is so important to opening doors and building relationships in sales. It has to be used at the right time, but when you do, then wow… Let’s get to it
Hello Reader,
I remember the day well.
I had been on the phone trying to generate new leads for my software business for around 2 hours with limited success.
I had made over 50 calls, and for the 20 or so people I had got to speak with (it was easier getting hold of people 15 years ago!!), they weren’t interested in what we had to offer.
I had resigned myself to it just being one of those days, but on the next call, something happened. I can’t quite remember why I decided to change my approach, but when the person picked up the phone, I said:
“Hi, is that [Name]? You are the 51st person on my list to call today and you probably don’t want to be interrupted, but I wanted to talk with you about something important. If you give me a few seconds, I will tell you one of my best jokes. If it makes you smile, you hear what I have to say. If it doesn’t, you can end the call there.”
The guy at the end of the phone chuckled and said, “go on then”.
I was shocked but grabbed the opportunity.
“What do you call a lady who sets fire to all her important letters?”
He replied, “I don’t know”.
“Bernadette”.
I waited for a few seconds and then heard him laugh down the phone and say, “Fair play, that’s good! You win”.
And the ice had been broken.
I then proceeded to talk about the software we had and what I thought it could do for him, and although he wasn’t totally interested, he heard me out. The pitch I had then wasn’t as good as what I teach people to do now, but that’s not the key point here.
He was open to listening as I had made him smile. It opened the door.
Humour had won, and ever since that day, I have made sure to use it as much as I can in sales conversations.
Not all of the time, of course. There is a time and a place to try and bring humour into the conversation, and you have to be VERY careful about what humour you use.
What you may find funny is not what someone else will, so stay away from jokes related to sex, race, politics and religion!
What I aim to use are statements which can provoke a smile.
In a call, I may say, “The last thing you want right now is someone calling you, I know. So before I go home and cry, would you give me a minute to share why I called?”
Or
“You don’t know me, and you are probably wishing you hadn’t answered, but you did. So were connected, and so there are 2 choices. One is you give me 30 seconds to share some incredible wisdom, or two, you end the call and make me open up a new pack of tissues to wipe away my tears. Which option are you going for?”
Now the key is HOW you deliver this message. With the right tone and delivered in a calm but engaging way, this type of approach can break down barriers and open doors.
If you don’t have phone numbers, then you can use messages (like the ones below) on email or through social media DMs. Obviously, you should change the bit highlighted to be more about what you do.
Humour, when used in sales, works! It breaks the ice. It relaxes people, and it gives you time.
When you have met people, adding humour to conversations also builds relationships and brings people closer to you. I will cover this in another email if you drop me a message to say this email helped you. I read all replies.
So, have a think about how you can use humour.
Focus on trying to make people smile in prospecting conversations, and you could be amazed by the impact it has.
Have a brilliant week ahead, and remember: Eat or be Eaten.
