How to Sell is A Variation on How To Get Anyone to Do AnyThing - A new approach for volunteer orgs as well as entrepreneurs

In entrepreneurship:

By now, you probably know that no one is going to purchase your high-value package or product “cold.”  People need to know, like and trust you.  You need to prove that you can do what they need, with strong social proof. 

Smart consultants like Ian Brodie (ianbrodie.com) and Meredith Eisenberg (mereditheisenberg.com & Time Traders) will tell you that you MUST begin your relationship with a prospective client by providing them with lots of real value.

Create a sales funnel by all means, just understand that people will be in various stages along the road, and make sure that you don’t give up on the people who just aren’t ready for your high-cost products yet.  Have something that they can use, now, and give them some easy, inexpensive entry ramp to the concept of spending money with you.

So you need to choose the enticement or gift that your prospects care about.  It's not just where they are at on the sales cycle, but the kind of Language that they prefer to hear most of the time.

In volunteer organizations, religious groups, other social situations where you want to encourage people to do something:

                You guessed it.  It’s the same situation, in different clothing.  You want the volunteers to want to volunteer more but they keep dropping out to attend to other needs or to join a different group.  The “reasons” are legion but they all come down to one thing: you haven’t convinced them to buy what you’re selling.  When YOU aren’t as committed to a group, you can be sure that they are not giving you what you need. 

                So how do you entice or reward your prospects or the other group you are trying to influence?  Don’t laugh: I have found great value in the Languages of Love concept.  Two decades ago, Gary Chapman outlined a framework to help people improve marriages, by getting people to understand what their partner really values.  I’ve been using this idea in business and social groups for about that long.  Chapman’s basic idea is that we humans tend to value 5 types of interactions, and some are more important to each of us than others.  They are Words of Appreciation; Physical Touch; Quality Time; Thoughtfully-Chosen Gifts; Acts of Service (doing something tangible to help me).

 

                Some people really just want to               be thanked, sincerely and regularly.  Other people want dedicated one-on-one time to discuss their concerns and be the center of your attention, regularly.  Other folks love the tangible swag.  And people like me love the people who use the sentence “Let me help you with that” regularly.  Acts of Service people value tangible help with problems and chores.

                This is how many volunteer-run groups run into trouble.  People will say that they have a lot of chores or they have to spend time with their kids, but the reality is that if the volunteering was something that they loved, they would do it with their kids and if they felt cherished and you were taking tasks off their list, they would take tasks off yours.  If people aren’t buying, it’s because what you’re offering is not what they need right now.  Cycle the offers to cover all the bases and Languages, or (if you’re clever) have people at different stages of the buy getting different offers. 

I remember spending years volunteer-teaching with a local organization.  The students were wonderful, engaged, funny, energizing people, and only a few other instructors taught as many classes – volunteered as many hours – as I did.  They appreciation events (Words of Appreciation) in which my name was honored, and they had food and appreciation events (maybe qualifies as Gifts), and the director was an incredible soul who gave you Quality Time when you needed it.  But an Acts of Service person like me never got what she really needed, which is an occasional exemption from the You Gotta Do This, You Can’t Do That that add stress, aggravation and problems to my day.  THAT is the only Language that means anything to me.  I don’t want to be thanked.  I don’t want pizza.  I want 10 less minutes of (to me, unnecessary) hassle.  I never got it.  When I found the same wonderful students in a less-inflexible world, I bailed.  Less dictation = Acts of Service.

When I was the Volunteer Director for a county government, I thanked the volunteers regularly (via email and events), I handed out high-quality swag (coffee-table books and bags were the hot “sellers”), I gave people my undivided attention when they needed it and I actively looked for ways to make life easier for them.  Most of the Languages were covered.

[Let’s dispose of the problematical one now.  The people who like Physical Touch, if they are appropriate, are the ones buffeting your shoulder, touching your arm when they want to emphasize a point or hugging you.  To deflect unwanted Touch, just say “Don’t hug me” or take the person aside and lay out a clear, courteous boundary, like “I’m uncomfortable when you .  Please respect my boundaries and don’t do that again.  I know you didn’t mean any harm, so I am sure that all will be well from now on.”  This is the one language that, because of the possibility of abuse, you might need to accept not being addressed.]

Applying this idea to my volunteers and to prospects is really helping me.  Hope it helps you too!

Visit me and my cool free stuff at www.soaringdragon.biz.  Links to free classes, You Tube, Learnitlive and more.....   You deserve to soar with dragons!

Key Components of HR Wellness and Motivation Programs: It's Not What You Think!

I was talking to a health and benefits manager about intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. She is reading articles that tell her that only intrinsic motivations matter. But I know so much research that validates my instant-salivation when someone says $100 Amazon Gift-Card. So here's my take, in written form:

Extrinsic motivation is motivation that is focused outward, to the environment that the person is in. For example, you give people a $100 gift card or a reduction in their health insurance premiums if they get screened by their doctor and then talk with a health coach at least once a month, to focus on reducing weight, blood pressure or emotional stress in their lives - all factors that are known to lead to expensive illnesses. The person is taking action because you are dangling money (an external factor) or you are threatening them with a negative outcome (higher premiums).

Intrinsic motivation is motivation (desire) that stems from inside the person. The group increases the customer satisfaction by decreasing the fail rate of a product, and they do that because they are given more autonomy in their work and they are on fire to do a good job, because a good job reflects on their vision of themselves. They want to see themselves as Quality Performers, so they are internally-powered to think of new ideas and put them into practice. They take ownership of the result because they truly, deeply care (are motivated).

However, human beings are complex, and simple definitions don't model human beings very well. Most people take action or stop taking action, or shift their internal beliefs, because of both intrinsic and extrinsic factors. The most successful Human Resources changes include both intrinsic and extrinsic components. In the intrinsic example above, the professionals started to take more ownership of the final result (shifted to more intrinsic motivation) when they were given more power and autonomy to make changes; if the company just talks, or brings in a "motivational speaker," the results will not last, because deep desire isn't engaged by just talk.

One interesting result is that positive external incentives work more effectively than negative incentives. From a psychology perspective, consider that if you want people to change deeply ingrained habits, are they more likely to do so if they are cheerfully walking toward a reward, or are angry and resentful (you are increasing their premiums unless they comply)?

In the example of improving health outcomes, the best results seem to include both extrinsic factors (the positive financial incentives) and the addition of intrinsic motivation. The health coaches provide encouragement and inspiration, and the best coaches will stress the outcome of the changes: that the employee will be more likely to stay healthy for their children if they maintain a healthy weight and blood pressure. A strong desire to do the best for one's children is a common intrinsic motivation to get healthier.

Understanding that people are complex, that intrinsic and extrinsic motivations work best when both are active, and that carrots (positives) work better than sticks (negatives) can help guide a company to their true end goal - greater profits through more educated and trained, happier and more engaged workers.