The Golden Rule of Sales

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Jesus, in Matthew 7:12, uttered perhaps the most profound words ever spoken, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." We have a plethora of idioms in our contemporary vernacular to express what Jesus was saying. "Walk a mile in the other person's shoes." "Try to see things from the other person's point of view." The idea is to treat someone in such a way that you imagine yourself being treated. We have word to describe this idea: that word is empathy.

Empathy is perhaps the most powerful quality in interpersonal communication. Dale Carnegie, in How to Win Friends and Influence People, says, "Remember that the other man may be totally wrong. But he doesn't think so. Don't condemn him. Any fool can do that. Try to understand him.....Try honestly to put yourself in his place." True empathy requires great mental concentration. It is an actual visualization of what your life would be like inside the other person's skin. You must pretend that you are that person. Only then can you understand him...and only then can you come to any sort of agreement.

If there is any group of people that really need to learn the meaning of empathy, it is salespeople. Too many times, we see a salesperson trying to shove a product or service down a customer's throat without bothering to understand his or her needs. All too often, we see salespeople attempting to close a sale before opening a relationship. Too many salespeople send this crystal clear signal to their customers: "we don't care about anything but your money."

If this is true for salespeople, that they see their jobs merely as earning commissions, they are in the wrong field. Every professional makes money, but that is not the professional's job. A salesperson is one who solves problems, one who finds solutions, one who connects a customer with a product or service that leads to a more fulfilling life or more profitable enterprise. A salesperson is a connector of people and products. How well a salesperson is paid is contigent on how well he is able to meet the needs of his customers. And, to meet those needs, the salesperson needs empathy. The salesperson needs to learn the Golden Rule of Sales.

The Golden Rule of Sales is this: sell unto others as you would have them sell unto you. It's that simple but, in practice, it is incredibly challenging. If you want to succeed with your prospect, pretend that you are the prospect. What would pique your interest? What would make you trust the salesperson? What would make you buy? Don't just pretend to be empathetic. Actually visualize yourself as having to make the purchasing decision that your prospect is making. Don't say, "I know how you feel." Feel how they feel!

If you can't think of anything that would convince you, then perhaps you are taking the wrong approach or selling the wrong product. But if you can convince yourself, you can undoubtedly convince your prospects. There is no other way, though, than to get inside your prospect's skin. To walk a mile in his shoes. To see things from his point of view. To sell unto others as you would have them sell unto you. If you can do this, if you can be empathetic, everything else will fall into place.