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Selling as an Expert Witness

Selling as an Expert Witness

As a self-appointed guru on sales and management and productivity, from time to time I’ve been hired to appear in court as an expert witness. I love expert witnessing. You sit up on a throne at the front of the courtroom and, like Moses down from Mt. Sinai, you deliver the word of God to the mortals who sit at your feet, hanging on your every word-—even transcribing those words for posterity. And the attorney who hired you—like an attending angel-—tosses you softball questions, which you proceed to knock out of the park. (A mixed metaphor I know, but you get the idea.)

Unfortunately, after your direct testimony comes the cross-examination. That’s when the opposing attorney—-otherwise known as Satan-—does his damnedest to refute, or actually to get you to refute, weaken, mitigate and/or contradict as much of what you just testified to as he possible can. The first time you testify, your natural tendency is to contest every one of the points he’s trying to make. You after all are the expert, the authority. You’ve staked out your position, you’ve delivered the word of God and this non-expert—-this attorney—-is attacking it, by extension attacking you, maybe even attacking God.

The cross examination can quickly degenerate into argument, even a holy war. And that’s exactly what the opposing attorney—-Satan—-wants. Because the more of a combatant he can make you appear, the less you look like the impartial bearer of objective truth.

It’s all right to be an advocate. Everybody already knows you’re being very handsomely paid by the side that hired you. And in case there’s someone on the jury from Mars who might not realize that, the opposing attorney will be sure to point it out first chance he gets. And even the Martian is going to realize that they aren’t paying you because you disagree with their position. Still, even as an advocate, the closer you come to wearing that mantel of objective truth, the more you grant the opposition their legitimate points, the more credible the rest of your testimony—all those points you needed to make your case-—will be.



You Are the Expert Witness

As a salesperson, you are the expert witness. You’re confident, knowledgeable, authoritative. You know what you’re talking about. You’ve sold yourself so you believe what you’re saying. Why shouldn’t you? You’re telling the truth. You make your case, your best possible case. You never have to deny you’re an advocate or to pretend not to be. The Doubting Thomas in the mind of your prospect wouldn’t believe it anyway.

“I’m not a salesperson, Mr. D.T. I’m a lighting consultant.”

“So how do you get paid, Mr. Consultant?”

“The company I work for, Komfort Kitchens, pays me, of course.”

“For recommending the best possible fixtures for my needs.”

“Absolutely.”

“Even if some other company might have the best product.”

“Well . . . I think you’ll find that our products can meet any need you might have.”

“So you’re selling Komfort Kitchen products.”

“I’m consulting on which Komfort products might be best for your needs.”

“I see. And as a consultant you get paid by the hour or you’re on salary—so you can be
completely objective?”

“Well . . . Actually . . .”


The More You Spend, the More I Make

Personally, I’m more likely to say, “Hey, D.T., I don’t want you to forget—I work on commission here. The more you spend, the more I make. Now, let me tell you why you need to be spending more and making me more money.”

Truth is the ultimate sales tool.

Call yourself consultant or salesperson, call yourself Kip the Amazing Kitchen Counselor or whatever you like. You demonstrate your consultative approach by being consultative. You show your concern for the customer by showing your concern for the customer: in your behavior, in everything you say and do. Not simply by claiming to be a consultant.

So you make your best possible case. Then you grant the other side, you grant old D.T., his legitimate points. When he’s right, he’s right. Why deny it? Sure you might be able to fool him for a while, perhaps even long enough to make the sale. But reality has a nasty way of rearing its ugly head. That’s one of the worst features of reality. So Thomas is unlikely to stay fooled. And since being fooled is what he’s always dreaded, when he finds out it’s actually happened, you’ve lost him forever.

Besides, granting D.T. his legitimate points generates such massive credibility that your points-—the points you need to make your case and the sale-—should easily trump his.

If you’re confident in your product, your service, your offer, if you’ve already sold them to yourself, why should you be afraid to admit that the product, service or offer might have a few negatives? To me, it’s a lot easier to sell a product with a few negatives than it is to try to convince someone that I’ve got a perfect product: perhaps the only perfect product that’s ever existed in the history of the planet.





Selling as an Expert Witness - To learn more about this author, visit Barry Maher's Website.

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Dave Kurlan
Dave Kurlan is the founder and CEO of Objective Management Group, Inc., the industry leader in sales assessments and sales force evaluations, and the CEO of David Kurlan & Associates, Inc., a consulting firm specializing in sales force development. Dave has been a top rated speaker at Inc. Magazine's Conference on Growing the Company, the Sales & Marketing Management Conference and the Gazelles Sales & Marketing Summit. He has been featured on radio and TV, including World Business Review with General Norman Schwarzkopf, in Inc. Magazine, Selling Power Magazine, Sales & Marketing Management Magazine and Incentive Magazine. He is the author of Mindless Selling and Baseline Selling – How to Become a Sales Superstar by Using What You Already Know about the Game of Baseball. He created and wrote STAR, a proprietary recruiting process for hiring great salespeople, and he writes Understanding the Sales Force, a popular business Blog and is a contributing author to The Death of 20th Century Selling and 101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life, Volume 2. - Visit Dave Kurlan's Website

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Linda Richardson is the Founder and Executive Chairwoman of Richardson, a global sales training and performance improvement company. As a recognized leader in the industry, she has won the coveted Stevie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sales Excellence and she was identified by Training Industry, Inc. as one of the “Top 20 Most Influential Training Professionals.” Ms. Richardson is credited with the movement to Consultative Selling and is the author of ten books on selling and sales management, including Sales Coaching — Making the Great Leap from Sales Manager to Sales Coach, and Stop Telling, Start Selling. She teaches sales and management at the Wharton Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton Executive Development Center. Linda is a frequent speaker at industry and client conferences, has been published extensively in industry and training journals, and has been featured in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Nation’s Business, Selling Power, Success, and The Conference Board Magazine. Learn more about Richardson's sales training and performance improvement solutions at http://www.richardson.com web - Visit Linda Richardson's Website

George Ludwig
George Ludwig is a recognized authority on sales strategy and peak performance psychology. An international speaker, trainer, and corporate consultant, he helps clients like Johnson & Johnson, Abbott Laboratories, Northwestern Mutual, CIGNA, and numerous others improve sales force effectiveness and performance. Though it's George's strategies and processes that help corporations increase productivity and performance, it's his tremendous energy and dynamism that spark the transformation. Again and again, clients remark on his amazing ability to unleash human capacity and inspire men and women to break out of their comfort zones. The result is a whole new type of salesperson. His customized presentations teach achievers to make stunning advances in their lives. From helping salespeople realize cherished dreams to helping corporations exponentially accelerate revenue streams, George Ludwig leaves audiences and individuals empowered, emboldened, and clamoring for more. George is the best-selling author of Power Selling: Seven Strategies for Cracking the Sales Code and Wise Moves: 60 Quick Tips to Improve Your Position in Life & Business. - Visit George Ludwig's Website

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Barry Maher
(Visit Barry's Website) Barry Maher is a leading writer, speaker, trainer and motivator on sales, leadership, management and communication. He's appeared on the Today Show, NBC Nightly News, MSNBC and is frequently featured in publications like USA Today, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, the London Times and Business Week. Selling Power magazine declared, "To his powerful and famous clients, Barry Maher is simply the best sales trainer in the business." His client list includes ABC, AT&T, Budget Rent a Car, Blue Cross, Fox Cable Television, Johnson & Johnson, Merck, the National Lottery of Ireland, Verizon and innumerable smaller companies and associations. A keynote speaker and a workshop leader, Maher is also the author of "Filling the Glass," which was cited by Today's Librarian magazine as "[One of] The Seven Essential Popular Business Books. His other books include "No Lie: Truth Is the Ultimate Sales Tool," "The Prentice Hall Marketing Yearbook," the niche book "Getting the Most from Your Yellow Pages Advertising" and even the cult classic fantasy novel, "Legend." Contact him and or sign up for his free newsletter at www.barrymaher.com.

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