Sample Selling Without Giving Away the Store
“I know you recommend sample selling for intangible services, Charlie,” the caller said, “but I have to tell you, I think that’s naïve.”
“I followed your advice,” he continued, “I gave them a great idea; but I didn’t get the deal. Worse, they stole my idea; now they’re making it a practice area. You can’t trust everyone; you can’t give away the store.”
The Three Myths of Giving Away Too Much
My caller is not alone in his fear of being taken. And as the saying goes, just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean they’re not out to get you.
Yet he is the architect of his own misery. He has fallen prey to three mistaken beliefs. And while you can’t think your way out of all tough situations, this one you can.
Myth 1: Ideas, Like Shoreline, are Limited. I’ve heard it said there are really only seven jokes—all others are variations. I have no doubt that’s true: but there is no end to standup comedians telling no end of those variations. Limited categories don’t preclude infinite instances.
Myth 2: Ideas are the Scarce Resource. As a consultant, I originally bought into the idea that corporate strategies were invaluable; if discovered by competitors, they could bring the company down.
This turned out to be a conceit. In truth, you could give an entire industry public access to each other’s written strategies, and due to a combination of hubris, incompetence and the inertia of culture, very little would change as a result.
As the NRA might put it, “ideas don’t change businesses—people do.”
Myth 3: They’re Out to Take My Stuff. Yeah, some are. And they are the people who believe that ideas are limited and that access to ideas alone is valuable. See myths 1 and 2 above.
Those who are out to take your stuff are co-conspirators in a joint exercise of self-delusion. They’re like thieves bent on stealing counterfeit cash. Go find some fresh air to breathe.
Sample Selling without Giving Away the Store
Let me acknowledge that there are certain businesses where idea theft is quite real. Chemical formulae in the pharmaceutical industry, novels in the publishing industry, code in the software business—I’m not talking about these cases. They are covered by patent, trademark and copyright laws. There are still lawsuits, but by and large the rules and case law are very well developed.
I’m talking about marketing, change management, business strategy, process change methodologies, sales processes, communications, systems implementation—the world of complex, intangible services. Like jokes, there may be a limited number of categories—but there is an unlimited number of applications.
How do you avoid falling prey to the myths? How do you not give away the store? Here are three tips to remember.
Sample Selling Tip 1: Present Ideas Collaboratively. The context in which you present an idea is critical. Don’t waltz in and dump an idea on your client’s desk; first they’ll reject it, then they’ll tweak it, then come to believe it’s theirs—leaving you to stew in your own juices. (That’s best case; most likely, they’ll ignore it.)
Instead, go back three steps and engage your client in a general conversation; let the idea emerge in context, between the two of you. Don’t be obsessed with ‘ownership’ of the idea unless you already have a patent.
You might say something like:
“Susan, I was thinking about the XYZ problem we discussed Monday. Does that situation ever arise in other divisions? I’m wondering if it’s really a process problem, or a people problem; can we bounce this around for a while?”
If you’re really smart—and evolved; see Tip 3 below—you’ll let your client discover the idea.
Sample Selling Tip 2: The Real Sample is Problem Definition. The idea of ‘sample selling’ is a bit of a misnomer. The real sample you’re giving the client is not a sample answer, but a sampling of how it feels to work with you.
You do this by continually asking—with the client—“what problem are we trying to solve?” You might say something like:
“Joe, we’ve come up with some great ideas in the business process arena. As we’ve talked, some related issues have arisen in the talent side of the business. Could we schedule some time to work those issues together?”
Then repeat Tip 1 above.
Sample Selling Tip 3: Rebalance Humility and Confidence. You need humility. Not humility about your ability—humility about your uniqueness. You are not Einstein (unless you are); you aren’t the only one with ideas. And frankly, your ideas are probably not unique either.
You need confidence. Not confidence in your ideas—confidence in your ability to spot an infinite number of problem areas in your client, and confidence in your ability to generate more ideas to address each problem. It starts simply with seeing opportunities for improvement.
Above all, you are the one with the client relationship; in that, you are unique. So—go define problems, and generate ideas collaboratively.
You’ll get credit—but more importantly, you’ll get repeat business.
As a fledgling consultant I ran into a similar situation where I provided a solution to the clients’ REAL problem, they said thank you, and then they attempted to try out my ideas on their own. At the time I was discouraged and angry. I wasn’t going to allow that to happen again. I fell lock-step into to the “three myths thinking” but over time I recognized the folly of that mindset, identified the mistakes that I was making and corrected MY approach.
I wish your blog was available then…it would have saved me a lot of heartache and time. Suffice it to say…sample selling works for relationship building and repeat business!
Charlie: So many times I believe we misinterpret the “knowledge is Power” adage. We believe that knowing something which others don’t gives us an advantage. That old saying can be re-framed as “Sharing Knowledge is Power” – puts it into a whole new light.
As a fledgling consultant I ran into a similar situation where I provided a solution to the clients’ REAL problem, they said thank you, and then they attempted to try out my ideas on their own. At the time I was discouraged and angry. I wasn’t going to allow that to happen again. I fell lock-step into to the “three myths thinking” but over time I recognized the folly of that mindset, identified the mistakes that I was making and corrected MY approach.
I wish your blog was available then…it would have saved me a lot of heartache and time. Suffice it to say…sample selling works for relationship building and repeat business!
Charlie: So many times I believe we misinterpret the “knowledge is Power” adage. We believe that knowing something which others don’t gives us an advantage. That old saying can be re-framed as “Sharing Knowledge is Power” – puts it into a whole new light.
This is one of those unsubstantiated fears that fade over time (e.g. with experience). As you said, each of us has ideas and given the abundance of folks out there, how likely is it that any idea is unique? What is unique is the person from whom the idea came; filtered through my experience, delivered with my intention, my idea is vastly different from yours’ (even if they are contextually the same).
Over time we recognize this fact; we let our egos take a much needed break and we share knowledge without reservation.
I like Sandy’s notion of sharing the wealth. Unfortunately, when we approach life as a zero-sum game, wherein sharing is seen as a death-knell, well, (one’s feeble attempt at) hoarding results and so does your first myth (or “story”).
As for your second myth, Charlie, this is one reason why when folks attempt to integrate another’s “benchmarks” into their own organization, failure often result. It’s the culture and what works in one culture can seldom be overlaid on to another. But many keep on trying. Hmmm.
Myth three is also a product of a “victim” mentality – everyone’s out to take advantage of me.
You ask, “…How do you avoid falling prey to the myths? How do you not give away the store?”
I like your sample selling tips, Charlie – collaborate, engage in dialogue, allow the process to be organic, and allow the client to drive, to lead and trust your own skills, abilities and intuitions to help more the client forward to solutions and towards a level of comfort and safety working with me.
You suggest, “ask.” If nothing else, one thing I learned early on in my coaching career is how to ask powerful questions, and this approach has worked out very well over the long term.
I’m always conscious of asking myself and the other, “what is the question?’ Gaining clarity. Asking questions negates the myths that “I have to have an answer” or “look smart.” Allowing one’s intuitive sense to inquire into whether there’s a deeper question…and often supporting the client to uncover, previously “hidden” issues and/or solutions.
Asking whether the “problem” really is the problem means asking the question underneath the question – to uncover root causes or other sources of the issue.
What I’m getting at here is this is a flavor of solution selling, that the process in itself can be a “solution.” And, in my experience, folks will pay for someone who is skilled at this type of “solution.” Think Challenger Space Shuttle.
Another aspect of humility is to ask others – in-house experts, or opponents, even competitors, for their perspectives. Humility means knowing and accepting “I’m not right 100% of the time.” Another way to sell who you are.
This is one of those unsubstantiated fears that fade over time (e.g. with experience). As you said, each of us has ideas and given the abundance of folks out there, how likely is it that any idea is unique? What is unique is the person from whom the idea came; filtered through my experience, delivered with my intention, my idea is vastly different from yours’ (even if they are contextually the same).
Over time we recognize this fact; we let our egos take a much needed break and we share knowledge without reservation.
I like Sandy’s notion of sharing the wealth. Unfortunately, when we approach life as a zero-sum game, wherein sharing is seen as a death-knell, well, (one’s feeble attempt at) hoarding results and so does your first myth (or “story”).
As for your second myth, Charlie, this is one reason why when folks attempt to integrate another’s “benchmarks” into their own organization, failure often result. It’s the culture and what works in one culture can seldom be overlaid on to another. But many keep on trying. Hmmm.
Myth three is also a product of a “victim” mentality – everyone’s out to take advantage of me.
You ask, “…How do you avoid falling prey to the myths? How do you not give away the store?”
I like your sample selling tips, Charlie – collaborate, engage in dialogue, allow the process to be organic, and allow the client to drive, to lead and trust your own skills, abilities and intuitions to help more the client forward to solutions and towards a level of comfort and safety working with me.
You suggest, “ask.” If nothing else, one thing I learned early on in my coaching career is how to ask powerful questions, and this approach has worked out very well over the long term.
I’m always conscious of asking myself and the other, “what is the question?’ Gaining clarity. Asking questions negates the myths that “I have to have an answer” or “look smart.” Allowing one’s intuitive sense to inquire into whether there’s a deeper question…and often supporting the client to uncover, previously “hidden” issues and/or solutions.
Asking whether the “problem” really is the problem means asking the question underneath the question – to uncover root causes or other sources of the issue.
What I’m getting at here is this is a flavor of solution selling, that the process in itself can be a “solution.” And, in my experience, folks will pay for someone who is skilled at this type of “solution.” Think Challenger Space Shuttle.
Another aspect of humility is to ask others – in-house experts, or opponents, even competitors, for their perspectives. Humility means knowing and accepting “I’m not right 100% of the time.” Another way to sell who you are.