Sales is a funny business

I have a reputation for being a bit off the wall on sales calls. (I once told a funeral director prospect that "Our research indicates that more than 90% of our readers will die.") I do this because I am physically incapable of taking anything in life too seriously. Recently I learned that this is probably a big part of my success in the sales profession. Psychologists have found that "incongruity" is a major component of the power to persuade. Incongruity occurs when anything unexpected occurs and forces the mind to reevaluate what is happening. Humor breaks the expected pattern of a conversation which forces the listener to open up and pay attention to the speaker. If you can make a person smile or laugh they will be more inclined to listen to the meaning of your words and to be persuaded by your argument.

Try to insert humor into the flow of your conversations. This works much better than telling a joke. Particularly effective is self effacing humor.

Keep Smiling (and Laughing), Keep Selling!

Thanks Jim Busch