The first principle of influence or selling is POSITION. I often summarize the principle of position with two words: "It's Thursday!" What's position..? It's Thursday! If you haven't heard me explain it during training, here's it is.
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Your position in any sale is where it all starts, pluss it's what affects everything else. Think of it as a question to a customer about what he or she thinks of you and your offer. If you skip all the beating around the bush, every customer always has a very clear opinion of both you as a person and your offer, at any given time. You better believe it. You may not get it out of them, but they have one. Their perception of you and your offer, that's your position with them. If you hypnotized them they'd give it to you, loud and clear. | |||||||||
To illustrate. If someone were to ask me what day it is, I'd be able to respond promptly: "It's Thursday". No discussion. End of story. It's finite. Accepted. Taken for granted.
Is it a fact, though? Sure, it's a fact; it's Thursday. A relative fact, maybe..? What?! Well, what if the majority of the world's populace just decided to make it Friday? Hypothetically speaking, it's possible... But highly unlikely, don't you think? That's how position works, how position appears. It easily seems as though nothing can be done about it.
Position is the first principle of sales success. Position is perception of relative facts. "It's Thursday" is a relative fact. OK, it's an extreme example, but it's still relative. The principle of position as perception of relative facts teaches us a load of things. Maybe the first most obvious lesson is this:
(1) Your position will either work for or against you
So many times I do training and dig into specific business cases with sales people. Every time a sales team starts discussing real customer cases there's a number of recognizable characteristics in individuals that come to the surface. They reveal the differences between high and OK performers specifically related to the principle of position:
You can see how one quality leads to the other, as these traits are listed almost in successive order. A second lesson that follows the first is:
(2) Change the position itself or you adapt to it
"It's Thursday" as an example of POSITION also illustrates how positions in fact regularly change, we just need to be there when it happens. Either you change the position itself or you adapt to it. If you were to ask me again tomorrow, I'd say "it's Friday". Of course, you say. Well then, why don't you stay at it until you win that way. Almost always, I repeat, almost always, there are ways to change or improve your position, i.e. the way the customer perceives the facts about you and your offer. Typical positions we can influence are:
- a bad or malfunctioning product
- a poor brand or reputation
- a market in recession or tight budgets
- incompetent management, mine or yours
- a failed relationship with a customer or vendor
These are just examples. Now, today, consider your most important sale, right now. Ask yourself what your position is. If you're not sure you're in a better position than your competition (and competition is not just other companies, but every factor that competes with you getting the contract) then look closely at what can be done. You'll find there's always something.
I'm telling you, you can decide to be a high performer if you're willing to do what it takes to improve your position. You do this by either "working around the fact that it's Thursday or changing the relative fact that it's Thursday". Either way you can win!
Imagine you have the perfect position, the highest trust and the most optimal behavior with a potential customer. Is there anything that could make you lose the deal? No, there isn't. These three covers it all. You see, when you know what 1) position, 2) trust and 3) behavior is about, then you know what needs to be done, with who you need to work and how you should do it. You're aware of any weakness and you either win the deal - every time - or quit trying early in the process.
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I'm serious. Whenever we lose a deal it's because we're perceived as being weak in one or more of these three areas: Position, trust and/or behavior. When we win, it's because in sum we have the strongest position, the highest trust and the best behavior.
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MESSAGEThe sum of these three is what becomes the message, what the customer or other person perceives and picks up - in total - about what we do, who we are and how we do it. In short, we are what they buy, and if they don't like it they pick someone else that they believe does it better. Our task is to convince them in each area. |
How do we leverage position, trust and behavior?
The strange thing is, each one of these - position, trust, behavior - is indirect. We can't tell someone we have a strong position. They need to sense and feel it by everything else that communicates this. The same goes for trust and behavior. Trust is indirect. We can't really effectively just tell someone they should trust us. Trust is the indirect result of consistent loyalty and good results. Likewise, behavior is also one third of the subliminal message we communicate. We cannot really behave what we don't truly perceive and mean. We only behave what we already believe and are inside. Our behavior only makes transparent what's already there.
Thus, the message is the result of what indirectly precedes position, trust and behavior. In other words, what you do to position yourself (PASSION), build trust (CONNECTION) and skillfully behave (INTUITION) well. You position yourself primarily by asking the WHAT questions. You build trust primarily by asking the WHO questions, and you skillfully raise behavior primarily by asking the HOW questions. You can read about each of them by clicking the links.
So what's this energy thing in communication? Well, it's everything. How can you communicate and not relate what you're doing to energy? Communication is energy. But there's more to energy in communication than you might think. Let's take a quick look at energy again, and maybe we'll catch a glimpse of it.
There are different energy levels in communication. You may have felt it. It's real. It matters. It's something every successful individual intuitively knows and effectively applies. Most of all, it's quantifiable, specific and something you can repeat - over and over again - that is, if you know how to.
Since the term "energy" may sound a bit blurry or hard to "practice in real life", why don't we bring some structure to it. Just for argument's sake, let's say there are three levels. The first level would be ME, myself. It's when I begin to resonate with a particular kind of message. The second level is US, you and me. It's when we begin to resonate with each other. The third level is IT, something out there. This would be when we begin to resonate with the environment, the higher and invisible forces we're surrounded by.
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(The third level doesn't need to be any more mystical than e.g. two individuals having a long distance conversation by the use of a cell phone. Are you able to explain the force or channel through which they're interacting? Unless you've studied it in school, you're probably not. But there's no immediate need to understand or explain how a cell phone works, only the fact that it does). | |||||||||||||||||||
That third level
Most people can easily relate to the first two energy levels (i.e. ME and US). But to some, the third energy level (i.e. IT) sounds too mystical. That's OK, if you feel it that way. Just remember though, whatever the message you behave will be understood differently on each level (yes, "behave" is the appropriate word for it). You see, each level gives more information, because behavior takes on different and more meaning the higher up you communicate. When all the others around you are perceiving the world on "the third level", you'll be missing out on quite a bit if you're still only communicating on "the second level". Why don't you just go in faith for once and test yourself. You may discover there's more to communication than you originally thought. Quite frankly, what have you got to lose?
Even though level one (ME) and level two (US) are understood, most people seldom experience them for real in a professional setting. How sad this is! What's more, because there's no resonating ME, WE don't resonate either (i.e. US). Why? Because there's a natural principle based sequence to this. We can't resonate unless there's first individual resonance. And that's also why so few people understand the third level, which in turn is dependent on both ME and US. You get it?
Let's illustrate with an example to make sure I didn't lose you: Now that there's such a stir around Michael Jackson's passing away, why don't we consider him for a moment?
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First, do you think Michael Jackson ever went on stage without reaching some kind of "resonating ME"? Do you think his best concerts were without a burning desire to share his best self? Of course not. Did he like the songs he was singing? Indeed, we may suppose he did. Second, do you think his resonating with the crowds was significant to their musical experience or his performance on stage? I'd say, probably... Third, do you think his wildest fans might refer to something bigger than just music and dance while experiencing him first hand during a concert? Does their ecstatic behavior make sense to us? Maybe not. Does it make sense to them? In some inexplicable way, most likely. If in doubt, take a look at Michael Jackson for yourself. | |||||||||
It begins with the individual, spreads to those around and then becomes something intangible, but real. At this point, I'll quickly point out that effective communication seldom is a "performance", but rather a shared experience. It can be quietly done without any extravagance or even technique. The absolute minimum that it takes is sincerity (outbound energy) and sensitivity (inbound energy).
Practical and doable
To help understand each level, a long time ago, I put together three scenarios visualising what essentially takes place every time there's a shift in energy. The three scenarios explain each level more precisely. If you haven't heard them explained during a training session or read them I suggest you do so now, before reading the conclusion of this article.
What's the big deal? Well, my message and claim is simple: YOU CAN, it you want to, communicate in a much more exciting way than you're currently doing. It's possible to trigger enormous amounts of energy on three levels. First of all inside yourself. Secondly, in others. And third, and most of all, in unison by the use of power in your environment. And to what purpose? To get a much deeper commitment in yourself and others. If you're in selling, knowing about this is simply a must.
So how do we apply it? Here's how to put it into action. Always stay focused on three areas (one for each level respectively):
Position + Trust + Behavior = Message
Each of these is very concrete and measurable. We dive deeply into each of these areas in my book The 3 Energies Behind Sales Success, but if you'd like some other examples (and they're merely examples) of books written on each topic, you may consider the one's listed below. Note! These authors don't necessarily explain how to unleash the energies, but they tap into the do's and don'ts:
- Level 1: Position - Strategic Selling, Miller Heiman
- Level 2: Trust - The Speed of Trust, Stephen M.R. Covey
- Level 3: Behavior - SPIN® Selling, Neil Rackham
Conclusion
To trigger energy - the stuff that adds real power - and makes communication become really powerful, you'll have to work on answering the WHAT (position), WHO (trust) and HOW (behavior) questions. This is the secret to energy in your communication. There's no shortcut, but hard work. However, once the energy's there, it sure feels like a shortcut.
Communication can be powerful if you do it the right way. The wonderful thing is that "the right way" varies with each individual. Our research indicates that as long as key principles are intact the style with which you apply them is completely up to you.
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To help appreciate the power of The 3 Energies (Passion, Connection, Intuition) at this time we'll share with you three different scenarios.
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Scenario # 1: LIFE
Imagine that you are visiting a new potential customer. You're in a comfortable office in the top floor of a prominent skyscraper. Everything is going very well and you're currently seated doing small-talk with the CEO of the company. She is approximately your age. The setting is very promising. As you move through the preliminaries of the meeting the conversation takes an unexpected turn. From what is being said you suddenly realize that the person on the other side of the table will die by the end of the day unless you help her with your product and service.
What is your immediate reaction? How does this affect you and your style? What happens inside of you? How does it show on the outside? What becomes your primary concern? Is there a shift in balance? How would you describe the feelings you have? What kind of energy are you experiencing?
Scenario # 2: FAMILY
We continue where we left off in "The LIFE Scenario". As your conversation becomes more intense another unexpected piece of information surfaces. You both discover you're family. This distinguished lady is in fact your twin sister. The two of you were separated at birth and you didn't know.
Now, what is your immediate reaction? How does this affect your interaction? What happens with your relationship? How does it show? What becomes your primary concern? Is there a shift in balance? How would you describe the feelings you have? What kind of energy are you experiencing?
Scenario #3: ECOSYSTEM
...but there's more to come. You've just had an incredible experience in "The FAMILY Scenario". While you are speaking yet another surprise hits both of you. The building starts shaking and you realize that you're in the middle of a serious earthquake. Even though the building does not collaps, you're both strikken with fear of a devastating catastrophe.
Again, what is your immediate reaction? What happens with your interaction? What do you do? What becomes your primary concern? Is there a shift in balance? How would you describe the feelings you have? What kind of energy are you experiencing?
These three scenarios each illustrate the essence of what The 3 Energies are about, respectively Passion, Connection and Intuition. Next time I'll comment on each and how they enable energation. Energation is the setting - the atmosphere - where all three paradigm shifts are taking place.
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