11 Myths About Sales 

You'll get a lot of canned advice about selling. Some of them are Myths about sales.

Beware of some of the advice you get.

Below are some ideas I consider to be sales myths.

• MYTH: You must work harder in order to earn more.
• MY VIEW: Working harder is NOT a key to higher income- better strategy is. In my B2b selling days I made about a quarter the number of sales calls that my colleagues did but made 4 times the sales. You must divorce time from results.

• MYTH: You must convince harder to make more sales.
• MY VIEW: Ever heard of Newton’s Laws ?
  “Every action has an equal and opposite reaction”
  Convince harder will gain you harder resistance.
  Results are more about your ability to explain rather than persuade.
  

• MYTH: You can't sell if you're not in front of someone.
• MY VIEW: You don't have to be in front of someone to influence them. I have made many sales over the phone. People buy when they know WIIFT. Moreover, we live in a digital age. If you're not taking full advantage of that, you are still in the analog world.
  

• MYTH: Selling to ‘pain’ is the best strategy
• MY VIEW:  Yes, people run away from Pain and toward Pleasure. If you want to sell optimally you need to know whether pain or gain has the biggest influence on your prospect. If you can’t work that out your strategy must be to include both.
  

• MYTH: You grow your income by being more effective in front of prospects.
• MY VIEW: There is quite a bit of truth in that statement BUT remember the quote from Teddy Roosevelt often re-quoted by legendary salesman Zig Ziglar   “They won’t care how much you know until they know how much you care”.   
  Remember my ABCs of selling … Always Be Caring.
  Sales skills are a part of what it takes to grow your sales BUT it all begins with how you think - about yourself, your potential and the role you play in the buyer/seller dance.
  

• MYTH: Social media is a waste of time.
• MY VIEW:  Done properly, social media will create opportunities for you. Yes, it takes time, but you want attention - and one way to get it is to post intelligently on social.
  

• MYTH: If you want to improve your conversion percentage, give more information.
• MY VIEW: Nope. Ask more questions so you can offer information relevant to your prospect. Too much information can often confuse a prospect. Also, when You give more information you intellectualize the process. Buying is an emotional process not an intellectual one. 

• MYTH: The customer is always right. 
• MY VIEW: The customer is not always right, but they are always the customer. Which means you treat them with respect.  Instead of always agreeing with them, seek to understand their needs and educate them. Providing insights and guiding customers towards the best solution strengthens trust and builds a more sustainable relationship.

• MYTH: More features equal more value.
• MY VIEW: Value isn't in the number of features but in the relevance of those features to the customer. Simplify your offerings and emphasize how these tailored features solve specific problems or improve their situation.

• MYTH: Lowering prices is the best way to compete. 
• MY VIEW: Competing on value, not price, builds long-term business sustainability. Educate customers on the lasting benefits and superior service that justify a premium. Lowering prices can sometimes devalue your offering.

• MYTH: Turn more, earn more. 
• MY VIEW: The idea behind this myth is that if you see more prospects you’ll make more sales. Not unless you are well prepared for those meetings ! As they say,  “An ounce of preparation is worth a tonne of cure.” Taking this myth out to the limit you are going to run into a point where it’s just not possible to see more people. You’ll run out of time. However, honing your sales attitude and skills has unlimited returns and your preparation time is not limited by the hours your prospect is available.

Follow the advice I've offered here and your opportunities in sales will grow.