Les Traband is a life insurance agent and a friend of mine. In 1971, Les was chasing me to sell me some life insurance he claimed I needed. I didn’t think I did. So, even though we were friends, I sort of kept avoiding him and the issue.
Les sort of halfheartedly followed up. Even though he professed my “need” for this insurance, I didn’t really believe him. He seemed to be less convicted about the insurance process, and more convicted about my insurance premiums.
My bank, at the time, was Camden Trust (long since absorbed by a myriad of bigger banks), and my banker was a guy named Frank Knox. Frank was the typical banker of the seventies: nice guy, in his late thirties, family, not much authority to decide but just got a promotion.
Les was also the insurance agent for Frank. Les sold Frank an additional $100,000 term life insurance policy that he thought was necessary based on Frank’s recent promotion and the addition of another child to their family.
Les called me one night a few months later. “Frank Knox is dead, heart attack,” he said as though his own mother had died. “Remember that $100,000 policy I sold him? That’s going to pay off his mortgage, and put his kids through college. I’m coming over tomorrow and you’re going to sign the insurance policy form, you no longer have a choice.” I signed.
That was the start of a meteoric rise in the career of Les Traband, insurance agent. As soon as he began to believe more in his product than in his wallet, he began to win big time. He gained his belief because he saw first hand someone benefit from the wisdom of his words.
Call it anything you want: getting religion, meeting your maker, serendipity, struck by lightning, divine intervention or just plain luck. Les, through a dose of reality, transformed his sales process from wallet-driven to heartfelt. And went on to become a successful and fulfilled life insurance agent because he believed in what he did.
What do you believe in?
In order for a sale to take place, three things must be present:
One, you gotta believe that you work for the greatest company in the world.
Two, you gotta believe that you have the greatest product in world.
Three, you gotta believe that you are the greatest person in the world.
The key words are, “you gotta believe.”
Not everyone can have a Les Traband belief experience, but at some point in your sales career, you must achieve total belief in your company, your product, and yourself to achieve any type of fulfillment beyond the idea of a fat wallet.
Easier said than done.
Here are a few elements of belief. You might want to take a fast “self test”:
- A clear conscience about what you sell.
- You’d buy it yourself.
- You’d sell it to your grandmother.
- You have nothing to hide.
- You are sincere.
- You are truthful.
- You love your company.
- You love your product.
- You take pride in your work.
9.5 Your Mother is proud of you.
Before a competition starts, ask any athlete if he thinks he’ll win the game, the match or the medal, and the reply will always be “yes.” And even though they don’t always win, they still strive to do the best they can, and prepare for the next game. They believe in themselves. They (and you) only lose when they (you) quit.
So, how does this equate to selling more copiers door-to-door? Strong belief will make you a more innovative, creative salesperson with a burning drive and desire to help the other person buy and that’s a big difference from a burning drive and desire to sell something.
Mike Robinson sold products to the elderly that helped them to move and travel (scooters, bath lifts, wheelchairs). He was doing okay, but not great.
He borrowed the idea of staying in touch with his old customers by sending them a birthday card. A friend of his said it was “a good gimmick,” and gave you a reason to call everybody to try and get a referral.
One day, an 83 year old woman called to thank Mike for the birthday card. She said, “It’s the only one I received.” Suddenly, Mike found new meaning in his desire to send cards, and realized that they actually made an impact as opposed to being a sales ploy. For some unknown reason, Mike’s sales doubled within six months.
What do you believe in?
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