Mom was right!

When your mother said "If you can't say something nice about someone, don't say anything at all.", she was absolutely right. Research psychologists have recently identified a phenomenon which they called "Spontaneous Trait Transference." This is described as "In the mind of the listener, communicators are associated with the traits they describe in others." Simply stated, if you say your competitor is dishonest, you will be seen as dishonest. If you say your competitor is hard working, you will be seen as hardworking. This may seem a bit irrational, but it is supported by a lot of careful research. After years in sales and as an observer of human nature, I am only surprised when humans act rationally. The lesson to take away is that sales people must focus on consistently using positive language, to avoid using negative descriptions. Sales people should concentrate on the value offered by their products, not on the faults of opposing products. Mom also said "You are what you eat." for salespeople "We are what we say."

Keep smiling, keep selling!

Thanks Jim Busch