A Lesson from “Old School” Salespeople … on Engaging Effectively in the AI Era
What’s the biggest stereotype people who don’t sell for a living have about the “typical salesperson”?
Remarkably, it’s still the one-dimensional shmoozer that movies, television, and other storytelling outlets latched on to sixty years ago. Pushy. Fast-talking. Fixated on closing the deal. Not always completely honest. Big on connections and contacts and the so-called “old boy network.” Heavily reliant on social bonding – by taking the client out to dinner, to a ballgame, or to the golf course. Less reliant on things like being vulnerable, asking questions, making clear future commitments, and keeping those commitments.
Think about it. Even today, whenever you see someone “being a salesperson” on a TV show, in a movie, or in fiction, that’s still what you’re likely to encounter. Someone who lies, shades the truth, and salivates for the deal. Someone who fires off memorized, manipulative “closing techniques.” When was the last time you saw, in popular entertainment, any salesperson taking the time to pose a question to a buyer they don’t already think they knew the answer to? Telling a buyer the truth when doing so meant they lost the deal? Expressing genuine human interest in a prospective buyer without any ulterior motive?
I can’t think of one example.
What Can We Learn from the Stereotype?
So: Why did that stereotype take root in the first place? Why does it still have such a powerful hold on the popular imagination?
I think it’s because that stereotype was based in reality. A lot of people who sold for a living were (and, let’s be honest, still are) pushy, fast-talking, fixated on closing the deal, focused only on the contract, etcetera. That’s why this negative image of what we do for a living caught on in the popular imagination. Many, many, many people tried to sell for a living in this “old school” way, and they kept it up for a long time. Scriptwriters, among others, noticed.
I raise all this because I think it’s important to look closely at whether there’s anything we can actually learn as sales professionals from the “old school” model, any relevant reality at all behind the iconic “pushy-salesperson” stereotype.
And when we take the time to examine that stereotype, what we discover is that there is quite a lot of useful stuff to be found lurking behind it. Relationship-building does matter. A lot. Real-time social bonding matters, too. A lot. Introductions from people the buyer or influencer knows and trusts matter. Networking matters. Connection about non-work-related stuff matters. All of those things matter. There’s nothing wrong with taking a client out to a ballgame or going golfing. There’s nothing wrong with focusing on the relationship and deepening it over time with cool activities and interactions that are designed to allow us to connect, purely as human beings, with the buyer. Those activities and connections really are incredibly important. They’re just not the entire job description.
The ”Data-Driven” Salesperson
Here’s another big question for you: What are the most successful salespeople doing today that they weren’t doing, say, three years ago?
In other words, what are the best-performing salespeople doing in the era of AI, in the era of data-analytics, the era of remote selling, the era of the buyer-empowered customer journey? What best practices are making a difference now that might not even have been on our radar screen before the pandemic hit?
Here’s what we’re seeing: The most effective sellers never imagine they’ve learned it all. They’re open to, and curious about, new platforms and new tactics. These elite sellers operate in a digital-first landscape, a working world where enabling technologies, relentless upskilling, and customer-centricity reign supreme. They leverage advanced CRM systems, massive, constantly updated databases, artificial intelligence, and data analytics expertly – all so they can personalize their approach. They don’t recite generic scripts or send out blind email blasts to thousands, or tens of thousands, of people. They use advanced information tools to sculpt outreach messaging and follow-up messaging that is authentic to them — and deeply, deeply customized to the individual recipient.
These salespeople understand that today’s buyers are barraged by spam, and that they have massive amounts of information at their disposal. These salespeople anticipate customer questions and needs, and they deliver tailored responses. And yes, these salespeople build relationships over time. Just not always in the way people used to think of salespeople building relationships. They create, and sustain, contact and engagement via a vast array of digital tools and resources that enable them to engage with prospects across various channels and touchpoints –consistently and seamlessly.
There is then, an “old school” approach to selling. And a newer, “data-driven” approach. And my point is: in order to succeed as a sales professional, we need to be sure we are both willing and able to use what works from both outlooks.
The “old school” mentality may have over-relied now and then on the ability of rapport, connections, influence, and relationships to solve all the problems salespeople might encounter. And the “data-first” mentality, taken to its extreme, runs the risk of turning salespeople into marketers — by minimizing or overlooking entirely the non-negotiable importance of the human-to-human (meaning face-to-face or voice-to-voice) connections that launch and sustain all our important relationships. Maybe a golf game is in order! Or, who knows, a shared (appropriate!) Spotify playlist. It’s up to you.
Here’s the takeaway. When it comes to interacting effectively with the large (and growing) cast of characters who influence buying decisions within a buying organization, today’s most productive sales performers harness both the power of data and the power of personal connections. They connect the dots, using cutting-edge tools to invest both time and effort in building rapport, nurture relationships over time, and earn the trust, good will, and loyalty of their clients. They use the best of the “old school” and the best of the “data-driven” school.
If you’d like to talk about how your team could do a better job of connecting those dots, let’s connect.
- Someone who fires offmemorized, manipulative “closing techniques.”
- And my point is: in order to succeed as a sales professional,
