How to Identify Effective Sales Pitches: Catching the Winners and Throwing Back the Rest

Has the shiny stuff been distracting you?

It’s October, and there are a lot of people selling. Sales pitches are being made for everything from spiritual growth and deeper insight to faster weight loss and more money. I’m currently overwhelmed by how much is being sold to us daily. My friend and mentor, Ken Cheatham, used to tell me that to be effective in sales you must find the people who genuinely need what you’re selling. If the sales pitches coming into my emails are any indication, I need more money, increased confidence, greater spiritual knowledge, recipes and new boots!

But what do I really need? That is for me to discover in my time of quiet meditation, where I ask myself the hard questions I might be avoiding. How many of us respond without thinking to a sales pitch whether it’s in church (yes, they happen there too), at work, on social media, or at the grocery store? Part of being wise is understanding which things on the assembly line of life are for you and which ones to let pass by. Have you ever jumped at an opportunity that seemed right, only to watch the real opportunity pass you by because you were too busy to pursue it? The wrong sales pitch at the right time could make you jump ahead of yourself. I realize we're in the fourth quarter and a lot of us are anxiously pitching and considering options.

PAUSE. 

To know what to buy you must thoughtfully consider where you are going. For example, if you’re on your way to a rainy climate, you are probably in the market for a raincoat and umbrellas. If you’re on your way to the desert, you’re likely looking for objects that protect you from the effects of the sun. In both instances knowing where you’re going helps you know what to buy. The point of this example is to remind myself and anyone else who is listening to not be an impulse buyer in response to random sales pitches. Consider the following questions:

• In what direction do you want to go?

• What knowledge do you need to get there?

• What spiritual and emotional resources must you develop to be effective there?

• Which opportunity (pitch) will help you achieve the goal or destination you are pursuing?

• Which opportunity is merely an attractive, 'shiny' distraction?

"Buyer beware" of wasted time and energy on what it’s not profitable to your future. AND beware of ignoring the opportunities and experiences that will prepare you for where you are purposed to be. Take a few minutes to breathe before you evaluate the next pitch.

Michele Aikens is Lead Coach at Clear Sight Coaching & Consulting Inc.