GET READY!

This is a story that even I find hard to believe.

Over the weekend, I attended a presentation from a very respected author and speaker. He remains nameless and I wont tell you which big organization he will preside over in the coming year.

After the morning-long talk, I approached him, thanked him for what he had shared, and asked if he brought any books with him.

Can you guess his answer? Well, if he had said “yes”, this wouldn’t be much of a story, would it?

He explained that, for whatever reason, he felt a little uncomfortable taking advantage of this forum with this organization to promote his book. Rather than delve into finding out why he doesn’t feel his book is worthy of being promoted to this group, I simply asked how to purchase it and he replied either at his website or Amazon.com.

So, here I am, a willing customer, and someone who might appreciated a signed copy, with money in my hand and he made it difficult for me to buy. Never mind his discomfort; think about my disappointment! Why would he want to make it hard for me to give him my money?

The lesson is this: you never know when you will encounter someone who is ready, willing, able and anxious to buy what you sell. But if you are not prepared to make a sale, you will actually make that person’s life more difficult.

If you are not ready to sell at a moment’s notice, get ready! If you sell hard goods, could you have some with you? If you sell a service, is the paperwork necessary for an initial need assessment readily available?

What can you do to get ready to sell right now?