MRL #080- The One Sentence Persuasion Course

In my late 20’s I worked as the Director of Sales for the New Orleans Zephyrs.

We were the Triple-A affiliate of the Florida Marlins at that time.

One year, way behind on quota, my boss demanded everyone NOT in sales needed to be given a quota too to make up the difference.

“Everybody needs to sell something,” he said.

I’ll never forget what our IT guy said.

“I’m in IT for a reason. I hate sales. It’s slimy, sleezy, and I don’t like trying to convince people to buy things they don’t need or want. Fire me if you want, but I ain’t doing it.”

He dug his feet in and refused.

He won, of course.

Management couldn’t afford to lose their IT guy over a silly squabble. Especially when he was being asked to do something outside of his job description or know how.

The reason I’ll never forget what he said isn’t because of the part where he stood up to The Man…

It’s the part where he said…

“…it’s slimy, sleezy, and I don’t like trying to convince people to buy things they don’t need or want.”

I’d never really thought about “sales” that way.

I just did it because it was the easiest way to make money.

The guy had a point.

I certainly didn’t like being sold to.

Especially by pushy salespeople like those used car salespeople or the door-to-door types.

In a moral dilemma, I quickly googled:

“Is sales immoral?”

I don’t remember how I ended up on it, but traveling down the rabbit hole I eventually stumbled upon an old speaker tape of Zig Ziglar.

In it he said…

“If you believe your product or service can fulfill a true need, it's your moral obligation to sell it.”

Aha!

I knew I wasn’t a bad person.

I’m paraphrasing here but Ziglar went on to lay out his argument…

“It’s morally right to “sell” people as long as what you’re selling is a product or service that is truly helpful and that you truly believe in.”

Dilemma resolved.

I could live with that.

Now, I know I promised you a newsletter about persuasion…

And I’m getting there…

But first, I thought it was super important to preface with that story.

You see…

What I’m about to teach you can be used for bad or good.

And whether you realize it or not…

You’re Selling—Tying To “Persuade” Someone To Do What You Want—All The Time.

Selling your kids on what’s right and wrong…

Selling you’re side of the argument to your spouse…

Selling the airline why you should be fully reimbursed for your travel because they screwed up (listen to The Great Banff Debacle if you want that whole story).

You won’t be able to use this just in ProducerLand…

You’ll be able to better persuade anyone, to do anything, at anytime.

Yes, what I’m about to tell you is that powerful.

This 27-word sentence is actually the reason you’re reading this newsletter right now.

It’s the very backbone of our marketing (also persuasion) at Max Revenue.

Here, let me show you what it is, and then I’ll give you real examples in our messaging of how we’ve actually used it.

The One Sentence Persuasion Course:

“People will do anything for those who encourage their dreams, justify their failures, allay their fears, confirm their suspicions and help them throw rocks at their enemies.”

No, I didn’t invent this.

It’s originally from an ebook on selling by Blair Warren.

Let's break it down piece by piece and show you some examples.

“People will do anything for those who encourage their dreams …”

Ever notice how a lot of our messaging is motivational?

That we encourage you that, yes, you too can build a book of business?

Here’s one in the wild:

“justify their failures…”

I’m not advocating for enabling people.

But, people desperately want to feel good about themselves, and sometimes they need help justifying why they’ve failed in the past.

For example:

“allay their fears…”

One of the most important things to understand about your clients and prospects is what keeps them up at night?

What are they afraid of?

For Producers, that’s obvious… FAILURE!

“confirm their suspicions…”

What are some common themes everyone knows but no one is brave enough to say?

What are some common narratives that every one says that everyone knows is bogus?

Here’s an example:

“…help them throw rocks at their enemies.”

Nothing bonds people together like having a common enemy.

And when people see you’re in alignment with them, they’ll gladly buy what you’re selling.

For example:

Anyone who’s followed us for more than a second knows this is in jest.

We don’t hate “daddy’s boys” who inherited their books.

(Hell, if my Dad was in the biz and wanted to hand me a mill, I’d take it too!)

But, for those of us who weren’t handed our books it’s a helluva rallying cry.

And that leads me to my final point—which I made in Friday’s LinkedIn post…

“Persuasion is a tool that can be used for good or a tool that can be used for bad. Hopefully, YOU will use it for good.”

So, now that you know the secret to selling (persuasion) what are you gonna do with it?

My guess—since you’re reading this newsletter—is something good.

Like helping a bunch of biz owners get the insurance program they need AND want!

Ok, that’s enough out of me.

Let’s wrap this thing up.

I don’t know if you realize how valuable what I just gave you was.

You’ll learn more about selling, marketing, and persuasion in the last 1,000 words than you will in any $5000 course or workshop.

So, if you haven’t already…

Throw your boy a bone and check out our Producer Playbook.

Even better stuff in there.

Price is doubling in Q4 so grab it now for the intro price while you can.

See you next Sunday.

Kick ass take names,

Maximus F. Revenue IV

P.S. We’ve got some guys inside our FREE community putting together accountability calls where they all hop on a ZOOM together. So, if you feel like you’re out on an island by yourself and want some comradery this might be worth a look. Like I said, it’s free.