Can you turn a penny into a priceless magic trick? It’s something my grandfather could do easily and there’s a lesson there that could benefit your company.
The trick was relatively simple: My grandfather would make you believe that, while curling his right arm up, he was able to insert a penny into his right elbow. Later, he would “pull out” the one cent piece and his elbow was no worse for wear.
Later my grandfather showed me how the trick was done and I don’t think the World of Magic will be in an uproar over my trying to crudely explain it. It’s a classic case of misdirection. He was able to shift the penny from his left hand to his right. His right hand then deposited the penny, for safe keeping, in the collar of his shirt, which was easy to access as his arm was curled. The whole time, he’s pretending to insert the penny into his elbow.
Through this technique, it seemed like the penny went into his elbow. Then he showed me that both of his hands were empty.
I understood the trick and understood the timing of the misdirection. But when I try to perform it, I can’t fool anyone. Not even small children.
What I learned is that there is a difference between knowing a magic trick and performing it effectively. There are a lot of obstacles you have to get around if you want to Clear the Path to mastery. Magic requires a commitment of time and practice.
The same applies to the sales process:
- You may have a script but if you don’t read it with sincerity, the impact will be lessoned.
- A good magician is paying attention to the audience and their reactions. In sales, it can be easy to focus on yourself and not the prospect. This can happen when you’re so worried about what you need to say next, that you don’t listen to the other person.
- You make sure the other person enjoys the experience. With all due respect to Harry Potter, I know that magic is a clever performance. I accept the perceived illusion because I want to be entertained and turn off the overly rational part of my brain. Can you create a scenario where people decide it’s fun to just “go for the ride” and put their rational objections aside?
Practice your sales techniques like a magic trick and your customer’s objections may soon vanish.
