Tag: elevator pitch

“Tell me a joke, please!” – Rodric Leerling

rodric_leerling_5 — Rodric Leerling, Leerling.biz, RefRod, Sales Power Provider

Always have a good story ready. That’s what, in my opinion, a true salesman has to do every day. Not just an elevator pitch and consequent sales story, but preferably an anecdote or cracking joke. Just to elevate the atmosphere or simply get people’s attention by surprise.

I seem to have a good, associative memory for jokes and also seem to know when to tell the right one. The one I most often tell came back in the mental ‘joke-carousel’ when I saw the pope recently, shaking hands during one of his visits abroad. My hero for this particular joke, Mr. Johnson, who’s a good friend of the pope, is eventually recognized by a total stranger on St. Peter’s Square while the pope is just labelled as ‘that guy in the white dress’. I know the long version and the short version of the joke, by the way.

After telling jokes like this, people regularly burst into laughter. They experienced an unexpected twist in a story, realized it is indeed funny, and let go of their emotions. You got their attention now, with their brain focused on what else you have to tell. And they already like you, even before you started the serious part.

I bet you will ask me to tell another one of these great jokes next time we meet. I’ve got a few more, I promise. But always expect a serious (sales) story to follow. One you won’t be able to forget either.

“Joke of the day” – Rodric Leerling

Always have a story to tell. Not just your elevator pitch and consequent sales story, but an anecdote or cracking joke. To elevate the atmosphere or simply get people’s attention in a different way.

I seem to have a good memory for jokes and know when to tell the right one. The one I most often tell came back in the caroussel when I saw the pope shaking hands during his visit to Mexico. My hero for this particular joke – Mr. Johnson – is eventually recognized by a total stranger on St. Peter’s Square while the pope is addressed as ‘the guy in the white dress’.

After telling jokes like this, people normally burst into laughter. They experienced an unexpected turn in a story, realized it is indeed funny, and let go of their emotions. You got their attention now, with their brains focussed on what else you have to tell. I bet they will ask you to tell another one – of these great jokes.

“A sales guy who never stops” – Rodric Leerling

It doesn’t happens very often, so it really took me by surprise. The lady I had found in my social network looked like the right person to talk to for my social media proposition. She also shared the same nationality and I tried the friendly native language approach, despite her probably English business environment.

Wrong choice, or just the wrong moment? I probably will never know, but she didn’t give me a chance and yelled at me why I called her! Well, that’s a question that can be answered in 30 seconds – the elevator pitch. Before I even could try to explain my reason and asking if she could help me find a better person, she just threw down the phone. So much for an international brand manager!

Ouch, that hurts. Of course, we sales people just start when we hear ‘no’, but I decided this time to leave it and dial another number. Just to get over it quickly and not to take it personal. The next person at the same company listened to me and suggested another colleague to talk to, who proved to be the right person. The door opened and he wanted to hear more.

I might bump into the bad-tempered brand person at my next visit. I will behave like a pro and will just tell her we have been on the phone, briefly, but maybe I should introduce myself properly this time?

Rodric Leerling