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Salesmanship – The Oldest Profession
Roy Zeh - Vice President Sales / Z Marketing Group
Revised Edition: Originally appeared in Steel Notes – Aegis Metal Framing Magazine 2003
The oldest profession is most definitely salesmanship. Looking all the way back to the
Garden of Eden, we see examples of how salesmanship influences decisions. Have you
ever said, "I’m not a salesperson.”? In our next few minutes together I’m going to
debate that belief. I suggest we are all salespeople. Whatever your profession or role in
life, you are not only a salesperson; your day-to-day routine depends on your ability to
sell.
We are all salespeople, in one form or another. In fact, our sales efforts start at a very
young age. As a child, we do some of our best work. Watch a two year old work his/her
magic with mom and tell me sales is not something that we all possess in one form or
another. If you are the parent of a teenager, you know how your son or daughter can
sell. “I want to stay out later tonight!” “I want to go to the mall!” “I want to drive the
car!” “I need this or that!” “My teacher is not giving me a fair shake!” And so on and so
on… Every time we want to influence the outcome of any situation, we are selling. To
further drive home this point…Men, even before we got married, we exercised our sales
ability routinely. Ladies, dare I suggest that you have worked your sales ability in the
presence of that special man? In business and in life, we sell every day. We sell our
ideas, wants, needs, services and products. We sell to our spouses, parents, friends,
clients, bosses, acquaintances and one another.
So let’s talk salesmanship. I have enjoyed a long and prosperous career as a
professional salesman. I know what some of you are thinking. The titles of professional
and salesman are oxymorons! I understand how you might feel that way. Unfortunately,
there are many reasons why we have negative feelings about the profession of
selling. However, I was taught some twenty-five years ago that you could be both a
professional and a salesperson. I, just like you, know from personal experience that we
do not teach this idea to enough salespeople. I was very fortunate. My early mentors did
not offer this as an option, but the only way of selling.
We can all think of a time in which we dealt with salespeople who were not taught this
positive approach to selling. However, for the moment, I want you to think about a time
where you did experience a positive example of salesmanship. Do you have it? Maybe
your real estate agent, the salesperson who sold you your last vehicle, a vendor at your
work who calls on you routinely, or how about the sales representative at the wireless
phone store? As you think about this experience and the individual, think about what
made this a positive sales experience. It may just be some of the following attributes.
Z Marketing Group 10/2009 www.zmarketinggrp.com

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Here are some points to ponder for all of us who call sales our profession:
Integrity – Adopt integrity as the code by which you will operate. Integrity is the
personal inner sense of 'wholeness', deriving from honesty and consistent
uprightness of character. Practice honesty in all that you say and do. This will
lead to trust, and trust will overcome many circumstances.
Trust – Gain your clients' trust. Never lie! Do not even bend the truth. It will
always catch up to you and clients can see right through your deception. If you
don’t know the answer, always admit it and promise to get the answer as soon as
possible. Trust is the baseline from which all relationships will grow. Once trust is
gained, business can proceed. Trust is what will allow a relationship to work
through objections, obstacles or even conflict.
Professionalism – Strive to be the best you can be. Work on and hone your
abilities to become a true professional. A part of professionalism is
appearance. Make sure you’re groomed and dressed for success. A professional
in any field is valued and respected. Salesman are a dime a dozen, but sales
professionals are rare.
Relationship – Set your goal on relationships, not sales. Sales come and go, but
relationships may last a lifetime. As your career develops, the relationships you
have gained will serve to be the resource from which you draw. Your
relationships will offer great opportunity, support and even friendship.
Activity – As a sales professional, nothing can increase our effectiveness like
hard work. Sales work is always directly affected by the amount of activity. I have
always loved sales because the harder we work, the more we are
rewarded. Even those who lack raw talent can make up for talent with effort.
Organization – It is well known that many sales people are not detail-oriented or
well organized. This is not an option. We must learn to be organized. It is
imperative that our sales follow-up, returned calls, call reports, expense reports
and other company required items are done well and on time. Organization will
separate the top performers from the mediocre. Observe true sales professional
and you’ll find an organized individual.
Knowledge – All serious sales professionals should be good students. We should
know our company, and our markets and products and services. At any moment,
you must be able to explain why the client should do business with you and your
company as compared to others. A real professional will nearly know as much
about their competition as they do about their own organization. Moreover, we
must know our clients. Know information about spouse, children, birthdays and
anniversaries. Most importantly, know their needs and be prepared to supply
real business solutions to meet those needs. A sales professional will become
an expert in his or her field and about his or her clients.
Z Marketing Group 10/2009 www.zmarketinggrp.com

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Purpose – Work with purpose. Every call should have a reason and every effort
should work towards your endgame. Daily, monthly or annual objectives should
be defined and documented. Your short-term and long-term goals should be
clear and drive your overall plan. Also, a method for tracking and measuring your
progress is important. Lastly, the ability to quickly change your strategy is a
must. Remember, when the market or circumstances change, we must be able to
adapt.
Listen – The best salespeople are the best listeners. It is not true that extroverts
make the best salespeople. Actually, some of the best salespeople are introverts
with great listening skills. The most important thing a sales professional can do is
get the client engaged in conversation wherein they do most of the
talking. Asking the right questions to uncover the real needs of a client will offer
you the opportunity to meet their needs with your products or services. Be
sincere about learning what the client needs and offer real solutions to those
needs. This will deliver solid results, happy clients and repeat business.
Partnering – Two heads are always better than one and partnering is one of the
very best ways to create success. In the book Co-Opetition by Adam M.
Brandenburger - Harvard Business School and Barry J. Nalebuff - Yale School of
Management, this idea is offered to the extreme. These men offer the provoking
thought that even our competition can make great partners through
cooperation. It may not be your competition, but it may be past clients helping to
get us in the door of new prospects. It may be an industry organization which
allows for networking, or it might be another division of your own organization
partnering for success. Whatever the scenario, it is important to identify
partnering opportunities within your own field and capitalize on these
relationships.
Growth – Any professional knows that we never know it all. Keep self-
development a priority. Look for opportunities to continue your education and
always accept an invitation to be challenged. Other professionals are required to
maintain annual CEU’s (Continuing Education Units). We should require the
same of ourselves. Get to know those performers in your field who may be
ranked above you. Ask for opinions and advice often. Never stop learning and
always be mature enough to accept constructive criticism well.
Remember, a professional salesperson is serious about the art of selling. It will serve us
well to practice and develop the above attributes and skills. By doing so, sales can be
one of the most rewarding professions. As one professional to others, these
suggestions above have served me well. Consider these and other skills and keep on
growing in your abilities to sell professionally.
Z Marketing Group 10/2009 www.zmarketinggrp.com