I make awesome jewelry.
There, I said it.
And now I want you to say it too.
Repeat after me. “I make awesome {insert your product here}”
Talking about your products in positive way doesn’t make you a braggart, or boastful, or a slimy snake oil salesmen. It certainly doesn’t make you a bad person.
Somewhere along the way, many of us learned that pride is not a positive trait.
But not only is it ok to be proud of the products you make, it’s essential to the success of your business.
In my post on how not to suck at sales, many of you expressed that you don’t like selling because you don’t like to be sold to.
I agree – no one likes to feel like they’re being sold to.
But good selling, true selling, isn’t about selling at all. It’s about sharing. It’s about sharing what makes your products amazing. About why someone needs your products in their life. About why the story behind your products is so good that they’ll want to buy it just so they can share that story with someone else.
But that sharing has to start with what makes your products great. Because if you can’t stand up and say, “my products are awesome, and here’s why,” then you’ll never be able to sell at your full potential.
Well done Megan! Sharing is different than selling. My experience at the Buyers Market gave me clear examples of that. As a visiting artist I got 2 reactions. The vendors read my name tag and thought “not a buyer” and ignored me, or thought “what does she do” and engaged me realizing I might be another kind of customer. I am making assumptions here, but it is about how people make you feel that matters. The vendors that engaged me made me want to know more about them and their work and ultimately were selling me. There is one jeweler I will likely be buying a ring from, and another artist a belt buckle.
Then there is a clear example of the pushy sale vs sharing. I noticed an artist who’s work I have a piece of and went enthusiastically in saying “I love your work, I have this one. Your technique is so interesting” to which he replied “Oh well then you will want to buy some more!” TURN OFF!!!
Next up I saw a guy with hand carved wooden crows. I love crows and I told him so. He talked about how and why he makes them, asked about my work, gave me pointers on wholesaling and a copy of his order and price sheets for reference. I will be contacting him to purchase a crow someday. He shared himself and it made all the difference. As someone not there to buy, I was sold.
Megan and Gwyn,
Thank you for sharing this post and information…Somehow reading this I had an ahha moment…
Its true that we should share information about our work while trying not to cross the line of pushing sales.
We cannot make someone buy, but by sharing our work and talking about it as a matter of fact, we can leave a positive impact on that person. And that will go a long way.
Its more about building a relationship and sales will happen along the way..
Sandhya
This is definitely a good thing to remember. As someone who is just starting out, I think I need to repeat this daily for a while and start sharing more. Even if it isn’t in a typical sales setting, people are usually very interested when I tell them what I make. I have had some sales just by letting acquaintances know what I do which is great practice for future sharing.
Where do I say it? Do I wait to be asked what I do? Should I pin photos of my work on my Pinterest account or hand out business cards at parties?
It isn’t that I don’t want to say “I make amazing garters,” I just don’t know when or how often.
Exactly!
And we’re not “selling” to people when we tell people who WANT our thing how to get it! The person won’t feel “sold to”, they’ll feel delighted!
Janice, if I may, I just want to encourage you to think about where the people are who will want your thing and then go THERE and talk them about it. So…at your friend’s party? Maybe not. But people who have signed up for your newsletter? Definitely.
I had a very cool conversation with the lady from the wax salon yesterday. She innocently asked ‘what are you doing this weekend?’. Every weekend I make jewellery. A little bit inside my cringed as I responded with that answer, (you never know what the person will say in response & I’d have to remember my elevator pitch whilst I was having my lip waxed – hey don’t judge me LOL).
She asked if I made the jewellery I was wearing. She was surprised to learn I made the resin ring I was wearing. We chatted about that & it went from ‘selling’ to ‘share’ because she was interested. YAY…I found one of my people! She asked if I sold them & where she could find them. Double YAY!
We shared how working and doing something else was tricky. We connected. I left floating on cloud nine. Had I have actually handed her a business card I would’ve been more proud. It’s all about getting better with practise so I suck less. =D
Your site has helped me plenty to bring back far more confidence in myself. Many thanks! Ive recommended it to my friends as well.
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So many of these comments make sense to me. I hate being sold to. I hate feeling pressured to buy something.
So because of this I stopped telling new people that I had a business. When they fina;;y did find out for whatever reason, their reply is always “Why didnt you tell us???”
I find it very hard to find the happy medium of letting people know, and not feeling pushy
BTW – My name is Frances and I make marvelous Shampoos, Moisturisers, Lip Balms and Perfumes 🙂 (I also sell soapnuts!)
Just did and I feel so good and proud! Great article.