"Serving" vs. "Selling"

What is your experience being sold to? I always associated sales with things like car sales men rushing out to hustle you or the salesman who follows you around the store saying repeatedly, “How may I help you?” Both of these situations were met with an irritated reply, “I’m fine. Just looking.”

I’ve never approached sales that way. First, sales are the mainstay of any business. Yet if you’re like me having to “sell” something can be akin to teeth pulling – unwanted, unpleasant and avoided if at all possible.

As a result, I don’t approach sales and marketing from any of those viewpoints. In fact, I don’t think of sales as “sales”. I mean, I focus on my products and services and identifying people I can be “of service to.” My approach comes not from how can I make money off this transactions (and don’t get me wrong money is important), but how I can I make your life or business better. In that approach it’s all about what can I do? What product (think books for authors) will meet your needs? How can I improve your business with my programs and services?

I do this not just for the customers but also for myself. I don’t want to hustle people. I don’t want to convince people of anything more than benefits to them. Hustling and convincing and pushing people in certain directions isn’t appealing to me. It’s just not how I work or even want to work.

Helping other people … making dreams come true … improving lives! Those three things drive me as an individual. This matters so much. At the book launch of Habits and Attitudes a critical point got made by speaker Marc Gottlieb, one the of the contributors to the book. He said your personal mission statement and your professional mission statement must align for overall happiness. It got me thinking. Did my mission statement for 3L Publishing align with my personal statement? Let’s see …

Personal: To live my life filled with love, creativity and connectedness.

Professional: To strive for excellence in everything 3L Publishing produces and provides.

Do these match? No. Yet when I thought about how I set about conducting business I realized they align in the ways I approach things like sales. Doing something or selling something to “help” others creates the desired connectedness. Conducting business with a desire to make dreams come true is deeply personal and connected.

You see you can be in business and you don’t have to swim with sharks. You don’t have to dive into the waters filled with sharks. When you align your personal and professional missions then you do things in your business and life that don’t attract sharks and shady people. Think about it. If I hustle a sale how does the person feel about knowing they were probably hustled? And really, how do I feel about hustling them? According to my mission statement hustling doesn’t create connection, it’s not “loving” and it’s really not about creativity.

Sitting down and figuring out how to make dreams come true creates connection, engenders positive relationships (love), and it’s far more creative.

Finding happiness and fulfillment in business and life means you do things that align both areas. How you approach your daily life and business requires an alignment in both areas to find not just happiness but also peace of mind. I know I’ve done things that help other people and make positive connections that result in excellent outcomes.

So, my last words: HOW CAN I SERVE YOU AND MAKE YOUR DREAMS COME TRUE?

Contact me if you have a book, publication(s), or content requirements for online materials. I can also help you grow your business through our top-notch public relations and marketing services. Contact me today at info@3LPublishing.com or call 916-300-8012.