Traits of Profitable Selling

This time of year there are growers selling fresh ears of candy corn on every corner out of the back of their pickup trucks. After passing by several, a couple of days ago I couldn’t resist any longer and stopped at one. Husked ears of corn were propped up on all sides of the truck, displaying the shiny yellow and white kernels. A few seedless watermelons, plump cantaloupes, unblemished tomatoes, and large yellow onions were spread around the truck, too. Scribbled on a sign was this offer: “Corn $5 a bag or 5 bags for $20.”

As I walked up to the truck, a very friendly grower approached me. “Fresh candy corn just picked today.”

“How does it taste?” I wondered.

“Oh, it’s delicious,” he replied as he grabbed an ear and bit into it. “I eat it raw everyday, and it tastes good even that way.”

I had never witnessed a demonstration of someone biting into a raw ear of corn before, and I admit that he got my attention. Actually, he somewhat diverted my attention because I wondered how good raw corn would taste.

“Everyday I eat some of what I grow,” he continued. “It’s delicious. I believe in my products. They are all locally grown, too.”

I bought some corn. In fact, it looked so good that I spent $20 and the rest of the day freezing corn. As I indulged in some corn later, I agreed with the grower. He had raised good corn.

While I was freezing the corn, I thought about how displays of great salesmanship can be found in unlikely places, such as on street corners with growers selling produce. What made his selling effective?

First, he was very enthusiastic about his product. Enthusiasm is contagious. When you believe in and love your product, it shows. Customers have difficulty not being drawn in and buying from your infectious belief. That trait alone was making many, many sales for this grower.

Second, he gave a stunning demonstration. Have you ever seen someone bite into a raw ear of corn, chew it with a satisfaction, and exclaim, “Mmmm, that is good!” Well, if you haven’t, that is a powerful demonstration. It makes you want to bite into the corn yourself, and I am not an eater of raw corn. His demonstration made the corn mouth-watering.

Third, he encouraged a larger sale. Rather than just say so many ears for a price, this grower offered a bag for $5, which sells fourteen ears at once. That was significantly more ears than most growers sell in one transaction. Then he took this a step further and gave a bonus of a bag free with the purchase of four bags. Get five bags for the price of four. That is a five dollar savings. Although only grabbed by a few, his second offer sold even more ears of corn at once. Making a larger sale to every customer is one of the ways to profitably grow your business. He was definitely making profitable sales.

Good salespeople are enthusiastic, believe in what they sell, demonstrate it well, and look for the larger sale.

Does this describe you and your salespeople?