A Sale So Simple, A Child Could do It

Tom Richard
Toledo Free Press
Friday, February 02, 2007

Read from the Source

Last summer, our neighborhood had a community garage sale. As we gathered, our once-loved trinkets in the driveway, our 4-year-old son, Robbie, became intrigued. He wanted to sell some of his items, too. So we made a little pact with him: If he sold some of his old toys, he could use the money toward the new “big-boy” car seat he had wanted for quite some time.

As the potential customers walked along the sidewalk, my son walked along with them. “Do you have kids? Would you like to look at my toys?” Robbie asked the passersby. His eagerness and enthusiasm made many trade show salespeople look like amateurs.

After trying his charm with three people, one kind lady took the bait. Robbie escorted her to his toy table. With his arms behind his back, he proudly watched her look over his toys. Finally, the woman picked up his plastic piggy bank, priced at 50 cents. After looking it over, she calmly placed it back on the table. “You have very nice toys,” she told Robbie as she began to walk away.

Without hesitation, Robbie asked, “Do you like my piggy bank?” “It's very nice,” the woman said as she continued to move on. Robbie followed her. “Would you like to buy it?” he asked. She looked down and smiled at the short little man. “No, thank you,” she replied.

“Do you already have a piggy bank?” Robbie asked curiously. The lady cocked her head, “Well, no.” “Well then, you should buy mine,” Robbie said, confidently handing her the 50-cent bank.

With the bank in her hand and a smile on her face, the lady reached into her purse and handed the 4-year-old salesman two quarters. Robbie happily put the coins in the cash box, thanked the nice lady and returned to the sidewalk to talk to the next stranger.

From where I was sitting, I had seen the entire transaction. Robbie's fearlessness and relentless determination of making such a simple sale smacked me in the face. How could a 4-year-old child with literally no sales experience perform, with perfection, what we in the business world spend thousands of dollars trying to learn and teach our employees?

Robbie was nowhere near as fazed by his monumental success as I was. He looked completely natural and at ease. Why shouldn't he have been? He wasn't afraid to approach people naturally, he was proud of his products and he wanted to make money so he could buy his “big-boy” car seat. The sale was as simple as that.

A professional salesperson would have complicated things. They would have tried lowering the price, using some sort of closing trick or methodically outlining all of the benefits and features of the product in hand. The polite lady would have left empty-handed and the salesperson would have felt defeated.

Sure my son is cute, but it was his persistence that won the lady over after she was intent on walking away. He had the courage to be relentless because he didn't know any different. Unlike adults, Robbie wasn't burdened with the fear of being told “no.” A lost sale would have had no reflection on his self worth or his success.

Because of this, he didn't try to hide behind a system, verbiage or technique like professional salespeople often do. He was just himself. He talked to complete strangers and was politely persistent because had no reason not to. The sale was as comfortable and natural as Robbie himself.

Closing a sale isn't as complicated as many professionals make it seem. Let the innocence and sincerity of a 4-year-old inspire you to simplify your sales approach. Don't be afraid of your potential customers or what they may say. Be fearlessly persistent, and one day you'll be sitting in the “big-boy” seat.