Consistency Selling

1. Consistent Process Drives Consistent Results

Consistent activities produce consistent results. Random activities produce random results.

Process over randomness. Your sales performance isn't accidental; it's a direct outcome of your actions. If your sales results are sporadic, it's because your sales activities are sporadic. Implementing a clear, repeatable sales process is crucial for achieving predictable and sustainable success, much like an operations team follows a process to ensure product quality.

Simplicity is key. An effective sales process doesn't need to be complicated or restrictive. If it's too complex, people won't use it, leading back to random, inconsistent results. The goal is a simple, easy-to-understand framework that ensures you don't miss critical steps, even amidst distractions.

Diagnose and recommend. As exemplified by "Joe the Concrete Guy," your core job is to identify every problem your product or service can solve and then recommend solutions. Your customer's job is simply to buy or not to buy. Focus 100% on your process—diagnosing and recommending—and let go of controlling the outcome.

2. Cultivate a Prosperity Mindset for Inevitable Success

Success is an inside job.

Internal factors matter. Your sales success is a direct reflection of your internal state, not external circumstances like the economy or leads. While external challenges exist, a Prosperity Mindset allows you to thrive despite them, determining how hard you'll work, not whether you'll succeed. This mindset ensures you remain focused on your financial dreams.

Small decisions shape destiny. Our lives are shaped by countless small, seemingly inconsequential decisions made subconsciously. To achieve significant sales goals (e.g., $50,000 to $200,000 annually), you must consciously program your mind to make the correct "directions" (daily sales activities) until they become second nature. This is like driving home on autopilot after many repetitions.

FEAR framework for mindset:

• Focus: Clearly define specific income and sales goals (e.g., "$200,000/year," "5 new cold calls daily").
• Emotional Commitment: Write goals in the present tense, review daily in a "Quiet-Time Ritual," and feel the emotions of achievement. This creates a "burning desire."
• Action: Daily ritual creates cognitive dissonance if you don't act, compelling you to take consistent action.
• Responsibility: Own your choices; your results stem from your decisions about problems, not the problems themselves.

3. Segment Your Market to Target the Right Customers

You can build a very lucrative sales career on half of the pie IF you go after and successfully earn the business of the correct half of the pie.

Not all customers are equal. Customers fall into three "Market Thirds": the Value Third, the Cheap Third, and the Undecided Third. Understanding these segments helps you focus your efforts on those most likely to appreciate your offerings beyond just price.

Customer segments:

• Value Third: Prioritize quality and service, willing to pay a premium. They expect high standards and are generally reasonable.
• Cheap Third: Driven solely by the lowest price, regardless of quality or long-term value. Trying to convert them often means sacrificing margin unnecessarily.
• Undecided Third: Can be swayed towards either value or cheap, depending on your presentation and their current priorities.

Strategic focus. Aim to capture the entire Value Third and at least half of the Undecided Third. While both Value and Cheap customers may ask for discounts, the Value Third will still buy if you justify your price. Don't automatically concede on price; probe to understand if the objection is genuine or merely habitual.

4. Minimize Perceived Risk to Facilitate Buying Decisions

The higher the risk, the more difficult the purchasing decision becomes; the higher the dollar amount at risk, the more exaggerated the dysfunctional behaviors become.

Risk drives behavior. Consumers' "dysfunctional buying behaviors"—like asking for multiple bids, demanding cheaper prices, or needing to "think about it"—are often rooted in a high perception of risk. Your goal is to minimize this perceived risk, making it easier for prospects to say "yes."

Three ways to minimize risk:

• Leverage Guarantees/Warranties: Promote your company's risk-reversal guarantees (e.g., "100% Right or 100% FREE"). If your company doesn't offer one, use your personal commitment to ensure satisfaction.
• Use Signature Stories: Bring your guarantees to life with compelling customer testimonials or anecdotes. These stories demonstrate your company's character and how you handle issues when "the chips are down," proving trustworthiness more effectively than abstract promises.
• Build High Trust: Trust is built incrementally through consistent demonstrations of both high character (integrity, honesty) and high competence (skill, ability to deliver results). Like circumstantial evidence, many small proofs accumulate to build a "wall of evidence" for trust.

The ultimate question. By systematically minimizing risk, you earn the right to ask the pivotal question at the end of your presentation: "Will you trust me with these recommendations?" If this question feels natural, you've successfully built the necessary trust.

5. Navigate the Sales Hallway by Proactively Closing Escape Doors

With a little foresight, planning, and key questions, the sales professional can seal the hallway doors closed as he escorts the prospect past them.

The "Sales Hallway" metaphor. The sales process is like a hallway. At the far end is the sale, but along the sides are "escape routes" (doors) that prospects use to avoid making a decision: "I want more bids," "I want a cheaper price," or "I need to think about it." Prospects gather information, then try to exit to postpone the pain of spending money.

Proactive objection handling. Instead of waiting for objections at the end (which feels combative and is often too late), address them proactively as you move down the hallway. This is like showing a child there's no "monster in the closet" by turning on the light and closing the door.

Leverage Consistency Anchors. Based on Dr. Robert Cialdini's "Consistency Principle" ("public declarations dictate future actions"), get prospects to publicly declare their agreement on key issues early on. For example, if they agree that finding a reliable company is more important than multiple bids, they are more likely to act consistently with that declaration later.

Three key declarations:

• Finding a reliable, competent, and trustworthy company is more important than getting multiple bids/proposals.
• Price is not the most important consideration in the purchasing decision.
• A definitive decision about your company can be made without unnecessary delay.

6. Build Trust and Close the "Multiple Bids" Door

If on one hand you had the option of getting multiple proposals from multiple companies who might tell you anything to get your money, and on the other hand you had one company that would treat you the way we treated Mrs. Jones and Mr. Smith, which one would you prefer?

Initial rapport building. Begin by genuinely engaging with prospects, keeping the "spotlight" on them through questions about their Family, Occupation, Recreation, and Material Possessions (FORM). This builds initial liking and identifies common ground. Don't force it if they're not receptive; rapport can build throughout the call.

Address perceived weaknesses. Proactively acknowledge and reframe any perceived weaknesses of your company (e.g., being new, small, or even a past personal challenge) as strengths. This disarms the prospect and prevents competitors from using these points against you later.

Showcase guarantees and signature stories. Discuss your company's guarantees (or your personal commitment) to minimize risk. Then, share compelling "Signature Stories" – real-life examples of how your company went above and beyond for customers, demonstrating high character and proving your commitment. This brings abstract guarantees to life.

Challenge the "three-bid myth." Engage the prospect in a conversation about their past experiences with multiple bids, highlighting how it often leads to poor outcomes. This sets the stage for Power Question #1, getting them to publicly declare a preference for a trustworthy company over simply collecting multiple proposals.

7. Demonstrate Competence and Seal the "Cheaper Price" Door

Would you agree or disagree with the experts that there are other factors as important, perhaps even more important, than a low premium?

Proactive price discussion. Don't wait for the prospect to bring up price at the end; address it early. Use third-party industry experts (e.g., Consumer Reports, Forbes) to show that price is rarely the most important factor when purchasing your product or service. This demonstrates your competence and sets a crucial consistency anchor.

Power Question #2 strategy:

• Acknowledge price is a factor.
• Present a credible third-party article listing important considerations, where price is not number one.
• Ask: "Would you agree or disagree with the experts that there are other factors as important, perhaps even more important, than a low premium/cheap price?"
• This gets the prospect to publicly declare that quality, service, or other factors outweigh a low price.

Product/service demonstration. If applicable, use a physical product demonstration (e.g., HVAC components, educational materials) to tangibly show your competitive advantages and the quality that justifies your price. Explain how cutting corners on these elements leads to inferior, ultimately more costly, solutions.

Seal the price door with Power Questions #4, #5, and #6:

• PQ #4: "Why do you suppose other providers cut corners?" (Gets them to acknowledge cost-cutting).
• PQ #5: "If a company cuts those corners... would they have really saved you any money?" (Gets them to agree cheap isn't always cheaper).
• PQ #6: "Now that you understand the corners we would need to cut to lower the price, is that something you’re going to ask me to do?" (Makes them commit to not asking for a price drop that compromises quality).

8. Diagnose Problems & Emotions, Then Close the "Think About It" Door

Your job is to diagnose problems and recommend solutions. Period.

Uncover problems and emotions. Go beyond surface-level "needs" and "wants" to identify the underlying emotional drivers behind a prospect's desire for a solution. Use a structured questioning process (like a doctor diagnosing a patient) to uncover both obvious and overlooked problems, and how those problems make the prospect feel (e.g., frustrated, embarrassed, unsafe).

Expand the problem's perceived size. The more significant the problem appears, the more valuable your solution becomes relative to the prospect's money. Don't shy away from identifying additional problems your product/service can solve, even if the prospect hasn't explicitly mentioned them. This is high service, not high pressure.

Gain permission to offer solutions. After identifying a problem and its emotional impact, ask for permission to offer a solution: "Is that something I should keep in mind when I design your solution?" This subtly gets the prospect to invite your recommendations.

Close the "think about it" door with Power Question #3:

• Acknowledge past negative experiences with pushy salespeople.
• State your professional commitment: "I am not a pushy salesman... I will not be the guy hounding you."
• Set clear expectations: "All I ask is that you let me know one way or the other whether or not I’m a good fit for your family. And by the way, ‘no’ is a perfectly acceptable answer. Fair enough?"
• This gets a public declaration that they can make a definitive decision with you present, preventing the "I need to think about it" stall.

9. Conclude the Opportunity with a Definitive Decision

Yes is best, but no is a perfectly acceptable answer.

Seek a definitive outcome. Your primary goal is to get a clear "yes" or "no" decision from the prospect while you are still with them. "I don't know" or "I'll call you next Tuesday" are fatal to your income, as relationships weaken and distractions mount once you leave. Don't cling to false hope; move on to new opportunities.

Why a definitive answer matters:

• Prevents distraction: Unresolved deals lead to phantom commissions and reduced focus on new leads.
• Leverages peak relationship: Your relationship with the prospect is strongest at the end of your presentation; capitalize on it.
• Moves forward: Living in the present, not dwelling on past "maybes," is key for top producers.

Be the expert, make specific recommendations. Don't offer multiple options and ask the prospect to choose; instead, based on your diagnosis, recommend the single best solution. You are the professional, like a doctor prescribing treatment.

Ask for the order with Power Question #7:

• Summarize the problems identified and the specific solutions recommended.
• Then, ask directly: "Mr. Prospect, the only question I have for you now is simple. Will you trust me with these recommendations?"
• If objections arise, politely and respectfully remind them of their previous public declarations (consistency anchors) to hold them accountable and guide them towards a decision.

Last updated: July 30, 2025