My 5 Timeless Sales Principles | Ep 266

what's up guys and welcome back to build and today i want to talk about a topic that i rarely touch on and

a decent amount of knowledge about and that is sales. So I want to talk about What I want to call timeless sales principles that I have been noodling on thinking about I really want to talk about it because I think that the way that you sell you as a business, the values that you have, but also the entire journey for the customer thereafter. And so I look at it as like sales is the first point at which you develop a relationship with a customer.

Therefore, it's one of the most important interactions that you can have. And so this is not the like, sleazy pushy can i put you in a car today kind of like sales you know used car sales techniques okay these are like timeless principles that i use to think about sales and i felt like rather than talk to you about sales tactics i want to talk about the way that i think through sales and some of the i would say like nuggets i've picked up along the way that have really helped me

And then I think are practical that you can put the work and you can kind of use as a frame to think through the way that you do sales in your company. And to give myself a little bit of credibility here, since many of my listeners or those of you who follow me might not know this. I actually started my career in sales. So I started in fitness sales. I did personal training sales. I did gym membership sales. And then I did online sales, right? So I did online fitness.

I sold for multiple different online companies, different types of products, B2B, B2C. And then I did sales for my first company, Gym Launch, for about the first year and a half, and then transitioned into running the sales team. And so I actually, I really love sales. I love talking about sales. What I don't love is I don't love talking about it on social media because I think that there's just such a, I think sales gets a really bad rap.

I also think that a lot of the advice out there is absolute shit. I think a lot of the advice is like, It's like what words to say to get a person to say yes. And I would consider that not sales, but coercion. Coercion is when you get somebody to say yes in the short term and then regret it every day thereafter. And I'm just, honestly, I'm disgusted by it. And that is just the opposite of how I operate. It's the opposite of how I do things.

It's the opposite of who I am and how I've ever sold. And I just feel like none of my sales content has ever really done well because I just don't provide people with these quick, quippy wins. And that's okay. I understand it. But I had this top of mind because I was talking to a business owner who was struggling with sales and I gave them

Hey, here's my three principles that I use to think through sales. And then I was really thinking about it. I wrote it down and I was like, you know what? There's two more and that would make for a really good podcast. And so I hope this helps you. I think that these are some of the things that helped me. when I got into my career in sales and then as I've built sales teams in my companies and the companies thereafter.

It's really just helped me use as a frame to filter decision making, whether it could be how you speak to a prospect or how you build a team or how you run a team.

So, the first principle. is that I focus on getting people to buy not on selling them. This sounds so subtle, but it's like a massive shift in results and how it changes the frame. When you stop trying to sell people and you start trying to help people buy your product or service.

Okay. And so the frame shift is really like you ask yourself this core question, which is why would it be to my benefit to buy this? That's what you have to ask as the question, pretending you're the prospect. Like, why does it benefit me to buy this thing? And when you reframe your role or your team's role in sales as just helping somebody make a smart buying decision.

You naturally become more empathetic. You actually listen for their pain points. You stop pushing your own agenda. And then the buyer feels in control, which builds trust. because i i believe this i really do because i am this way and so of course i believe it i am this way therefore everyone's this way that's not true but i do hate being sold to

but I love buying shit that actually solves my problems, right? And I think that my theory is just that most people feel the same way. They don't like feeling like they're being sold to. They like solving their problems through the product or the service that they're purchasing. And so my theory is that the best salespeople are just really, really great advisors.

Okay. They ask fantastic questions. They uncover what the real problem is and then they guide people to the smart solution. Now going with that is that they will also tell people if the solution is not for them. There were so many times when I was a personal trainer.

when somebody would be telling me what their problems were, all the things they were dealing with, blah, blah, blah. And my incentive, right, is like, okay, well, I could say that I want to try and get them to buy the biggest package possible to work with me.

But if I know that they're not going to be able to make that sustainable, that it's going to be a stress on their life, that the stress of trying to fit in, say, five days a week of training is actually going to outweigh the rewards of that training. then I was like, well, I don't want you to do that. And so I was always trying to figure out like, what is the best solution for this person? And then do I offer that solution?

And I think part of this and how I've thought about this with sales teams going forward is you have to make sure that you understand what makes somebody a qualified buyer. So it's one thing for you to understand who's qualified to buy your product, meaning they have the problem that your product or service solves for. That's really how you make this friendship. They have the problem that your product or service solves for.

However, as you grow a team, what you'll see is that, I think there's like a quote, it's like, show me the incentives, I'll show you the outcome. And if you have a team that's solely compensated on getting people to say yes, and they're not compensated or rewarded for disqualifying people, right, then you're going to get sleazy sales shit, right? And so something I've done in every company I have is that I'm very

particular about ensuring that we have qualifications for people who are able to purchase. And so what you really think about is if you're scaling your sales is What qualifies somebody? to use this as a solution for their problem. What qualifies somebody for this to be the best solution? Is it that they have a certain number of employees?

Is it that they have a certain problem? Is it that they have a certain revenue size of business? Is it that they have a certain weight that they're at? Is it that they have a certain goal that they want to get to? Is it that they have a certain number of people in their family? Think about all the measures. So, for example,

In my company Gym Launch, what we found is that people who bought our service and got the best results with it, they had at least 30 clients, they had at least three teammates, and they had a physical location gym. So what were our qualifications? Those were our qualifications because we knew that we had the best solution on the market for people who had those qualifications around their pain.

and that was it and I think what this does is it really aligns your incentives with the buyer's success so that you win and they win. So it's like, okay, I'm showing you guys on the team, we don't want people who don't fit these qualifications. Now, why do we not want those people? Not because we can't help them some, but they're not the best people for us to help.

And I think this really facilitates that frame of you're just getting people to buy. You're not trying to sell And I think once you have to get into like really sleazy sales stuff, it's because the reality is that your solution is not the best solution for their problem. And then because of that, it's like wrestling a fucking alligator getting it over the line. I have never. Ever.

facilitated a purchase of somebody buying something and wrestled with them to get over there. And then it'd been the best solution for them. I think the only, there was one time in my career that I remember I really fought this lady tooth to nail. I was like, she needs this training. And then what happened? She freaking ghosted me after.

And so I don't think it's a good experience for the person selling. I don't think it's a good experience for the person buying. And I just love the frame of focusing on getting somebody to buy and make the best decision rather than focusing on selling them. And it's like so subtle, but

I think it really makes a difference in like the culture of the teams as well, which is like, you're here to help people make the best decision. You're not here to help sell people on something, right? Now, the second frame, is that we are always selling an outcome, not a product, right? And so people don't want your product. They don't want your service. They want what it does. They want the transformation. They want the relief that it provides.

And so that right there is really everything. Your pitch should not sound like, here's my thing, but your pitch should sound like, here's how your life or business get better because of this product or service. I think this shift changed everything. It changes how you write your marketing, how you write emails, how you take sales calls, how you even run ads, because it forces you to lead with value and it positions you as a partner in their success.

Right. As somebody with skin in the game for their success. And one thing that I've recognized time and time again is that a lot of people can relate to the pain and what they want the outcome to be. They do not understand what the vehicle to get there is. So for example, you think about, uh, gosh, let's look at one as like, okay, say I'm having a lot of stomach pain, right? I don't know what it is though.

If I see a piece of marketing that's like, here's this new app that does all these cool things and all this stuff for gut and this and that and blah, blah, blah. I'm like, I don't know. Do people that use that app, do they have this pain that I have? Do they get relief from the pain? Do they...

I don't care about the features in the tool. I care about, can it help me solve my problem? Is it going to give me the outcome that I'm looking for? And I think a lot of times what we do is we make ideas very complex. We think, okay, I need to talk about all the features, all the things this thing can do, all the things you get for your money. But in reality is, I think that the best sales leaders make things simple so that people can understand if this is the right solution for them.

Like, yes, that makes sense. I want it, right? And I think that's what selling is, is simplifying the benefit so that somebody can decide for themselves that it is the right solution. I ideally think that what you want is you want to make it so simple and you want to be so clear about the outcome that you're solving for that when people get to the sales call, they're already ready to buy because they've pre-qualified themselves. based on the way that you've positioned your product or service.

And I think that's what we want to understand is that every product or service that you create in your business, it is not a product or a service. It is a solution to somebody's problem. And it is a vehicle for getting them to the solution. It's a vehicle.

And so it's not about what kind of car it is. It's about how you're going to get there and if you're going to get there. And if they believe that your product or service is the right vehicle to get there. Most of the time, that means that what you want to talk about is the pain of what they feel today and the desire for what they want in the future.

When I think about somebody who's pitching, especially with like people get wrapped up when it's like physical products and software, talking about all these features, it's like people aren't buying for the features. They're buying for the solution to their problem. And you could probably make an entire advertisement where you say nothing about the product or service. You only talk about what it's like. I think one of the best examples I've seen recently was

If you look at really fantastic advertising that sells quote, right, something is Nike. They did one where they talked about the athletic the mindset of an athlete and it was essentially all these athletes they're running in the rain they're running through you know woods and it's really hard and it's raining and it's cold outside and they have calluses on their hands and they have bruises all over and it's clear that everyone's just struggling.

and the whole thing takes you through this journey of just like you can feel it in your bones like i could relate to it because like i'm an i've been an athlete most of my life it's like You just feel like how hard it is some days when you just have to get up at 4 a.m. You've got to practice and you have to go again after work and practice. It's just repeat, repeat, repeat. And it's like you can feel it.

And then at the very end, it just shows the Nike symbol. And it's not about the product. It's not about the shoe. Nike has never sold a shoe. Nike sells a way a way of life and an outcome that people want which is they want to be an athlete they want to feel like one of those people right and you want to feel like when you're wearing it you're like i am that person who works hard it's an identity

And so when somebody goes to lose weight, why do they buy Nikes? This is very common. It's because they want to feel like now I'm an athlete.

And the problem they have is they don't feel like one. The solution is that they believe if they wear this brand, they will feel that way. Now, the third frame that I will give you is to Treat, and this kind of goes what I just said, treat marketing like salesmanship in writing. Okay, and so what I think about is the first thing I realized when I started understanding marketing and how much it ties into sales,

is that I realized that marketing is just sales written down, right? And so it's like every ad should work as hard as your best salesperson. I can't remember who said that. I think it might've been. Gosh, what was his name? Hopkins. But really the thing is, it's not about being clever. It's about what works and what actually speaks to people and what you realize. is that most of the times it's the same things that people are saying on a sales call.

And so a lot of people come to me and they're like, oh, my sales, they're okay, but my marketing isn't working well. And it's like, well, every piece of content, right? Whether it's a landing page, a piece of content on TikTok, a LinkedIn post, et cetera, they have one job and that is to move someone closer to deciding if they want to buy. And now how would you determine what that says? It's literally just a sale. You're selling people in written word.

And now I know it sounds like so simple when you say it out loud, but like this took me a long time to understand. It's like, oh, marketing is just sales written down. I've been doing sales, you know, in person verbally to people for this amount of my life. Marketing is just sales in writing. That's it.

And the job of marketing is to move somebody closer to buying, is to make it as easy as possible for them to decide. So by the time they get to a sales call or to a sales demo, they're already pretty much decided that they're going to buy the thing. Now, the fourth principle

of sales that I think is super helpful is that you want to show not tell. Okay. So often what you see on sales teams and sales calls is people are like, it's amazing. Like, it's so good. Like you should buy it. You should hear about all this. It's like, nobody gives a fuck. Okay. You can't argue with results. Results, people can see, they can feel, they can grab. And that's why demonstration always beats persuasion.

And so you want to, as much as you can, show your product or service in action. Whatever proxy that is, People trust what they experience more than what they're told. Okay, that's why things like free trials, samples, case studies, product demos, behind the scenes videos, like all those things work.

because it's a tangible, like, wow, I see it in action actually working. I don't have to trust, is this person who's talking to me and telling me these stories trustworthy? They're not thinking about that. They're thinking, Oh, I saw it work. That's why it's like, why do you drive the car? Why do you go see the house? Why do people pass out samples of perfume? Why do people at Mac put makeup on your face?

Why is it that we do free trials of software? All these things are because we know that if people actually use the thing, they're more likely to buy the thing. Right. And there's a principal by, I think it was Estee Lauder. And she talked about how she gave away free samples because she knew that touching and feeling the product would outperform any piece of advertisement that you could have.

And so the point of this is that you don't want to just say that you're valuable. You want to prove value. And if you prove value prior to somebody purchasing their lifetime value is going to be 10 times higher anyways. It is a much better buying experience. And so with your product, with your service, think how can you show, not tell? If you have a physical product,

Is there a mini physical product that you can send the person? This is why it's notorious that makeup companies send mini samples with a purchase that you buy of something else. If it's food, can you not have people taste the food ahead of time? Think about Annie Ann's. I think one of my favorite memories.

when i was a kid was annie ann's i'd go to the mall and they'd be passing out those pretzels and i would walk by and smell it and then they'd have the samples and you take one bite and you're like this is so good then you're like dad can i buy can i just get a pretzel And it worked. It was like, You take a taste and you're like, I want more. Because of course, that's how it works with humans anyway. It's like, we find something we like, we want more of it.

And for some reason, people think, oh, if we give them a sample, a trial of this, of something, and they like it, they're going to say, oh, I got enough. That's not how humans work. When humans like something, they want more of something. That's why you don't just eat one potato chip. You want the whole bag.

And so I really love the show, don't just tell, because if you give them something valuable, something tangible, something that they can see, then they are so much more likely to want to buy it and then continue buying it. Now, I will say that this can be difficult with things that are like B2B services. And that is where I think case studies, samples of work, or behind the scene videos are some of the best things that you could do.

Show it working for other people is one of the better proxies that you can have in a B2B service capacity. So that's why video testimonials work. That's why behind the scenes things work. That's why, because then people at least see it working in some capacity. And unless they think that you've paid all these people to be actors,

they're going to believe that that can transfer over to them. And that brings me to the last principle, which is that everything is sales. Even if you're not in a sales role, you are always selling. And it's funny, my first mentor told me, he said, Layla,

Because I said, wow, you know, I'm going to get out of selling. I'm going to not be managing my sales team anymore. Like, what am I? That's kind of sad. Like, what am I going to be doing? He said, Layla, you never stop selling. You just change who you're selling to.

And I was like, ooh, that's really good. And that's when I realized, it's like you're always selling in business. You're selling a vision. You're selling someone that you're hiring. You're selling a strategy. You're selling yourself half the fucking day. It's all persuasion. It's all sales. And that's not something to be ashamed of. It's a gift if you use it ethically. I would think about it this way.

My opinion is that selling is actually leadership. It is guiding somebody to a better outcome. And to do that, you have to learn how to communicate clearly. how to simplify complex concepts and how to inspire actions. And so I think what that really means is like, Even great companies, great products, great leaders, they don't necessarily sell themselves. They need champions. They need narratives. They need you to vocalize why they're important.

And I've seen this time and time and time again in my business career. And I really believe that. Most of my day all day. I am selling people. I'm selling people on themselves. I'm selling people on a vision I'm selling people on why they should work for me I'm selling people on why they should try harder I'm selling people on why they should believe in themselves

And honestly, it's probably the favorite part of my job. I like selling people on themselves. And I like using that skill because I know I'm using it for good. And so even if none of these tactics applied for you, this one applies to anybody in business, in any piece of your business. And I'll give you a line that has always helped me, which is sell, don't tell. If you are trying to change something in your organization, sell your organization on it. Don't tell them about it.

If you're trying to get somebody to make a career move, sell them on making that career move. Don't tell them to do it. If you're trying to get an idea out to your team and change strategy, sell them on that idea and that strategy. Don't tell them about it. What I did over my career was I took the same effort that in my early days I put towards selling people to be a client of mine and I took it and put it towards selling people to supporting me, to working for me, to

betting on themselves to being better leaders, to being better managers, to understanding how to actually run a business. So you don't ever stop selling. You just change who you're selling to and what the objective is. And so to wrap it up, here are those five again. First off is we help people buy. We don't sell people. The second is that you are selling an outcome, not a product or service. Marketing is just sales in writing. We want to demonstrate

why something works and that something works rather than describe it. And then lastly, always sell, don't tell. And here's the thing. These principles are not just for salespeople. They're for founders. They're for marketers. They're for leaders who want to build trust. You want to drive actual value in your business and you want to scale And I promise If you apply them, not just once, but consistently, you will. to scale your business.