Getting More Out of Life June 2009

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Sales and Personality Type: How Type Influences Buying Decisions

"Watch your thoughts, for they become words.
Watch your words, for they become actions.
Watch your actions, for they become habits.
Watch your habits, for they become character.
Watch your character, for it becomes your destiny."

-Unknown

I've often spoken about the importance of Personality Type

Profiling in both business and private settings. Knowing what

moves and motivates you(rself), and knowing what moves

and motivates another are hugely powerful tools for

understanding and ethically influencing your environment.

Today, I'd like to discuss the importance of Personality Type

when it comes to sales and marketing, and to "buying".

Whether you are on the selling side or the buying side of the

equation, you must realise that selling and buying are both

based around emotions, around our needs and desires.

Selling is simply this: identifying a gap/need/desire in the

experience of your prospect (they want something that they don't

have yet), providing a solution to fill this

gap/need/desire, and educating the prospect on the benefits of

purchasing that solution, so they warm up to it and buy it.

That's it. one of my mentors said: you NEVER sell anything,

really. You can only make people buy. And it's true. If I don't

resonate emotionally with what the salesperson is

offering, I will not buy, and v.v.

Buying is simply this: identifying a gap/need/desire in

yourself, searching for a solution that fills that

gap/need/desire, and purchasing that solution based on the

perceived benefits it will have.

Again, that's it. We buy because we think the product we

consider will do something to or for us that will help us solve

a problem, fill a gap, or fulfil a desire. Ultimately,

this is an emotional process; or, if you don't like that word:

it has to do with us wanting to feel good.

The AusIDentities Personality Type Profiling System

identifies

Four distinct personality types: the Dolphin, the Eagle, the

Kangaroo and the Wombat. In sales (and for your

buying decisions) it is absolutely critical to know your own

type and those of your prospects. If you don't approach them the

right way, they will probably not buy! Perhaps it's

not that paramount when it comes to buying a bottle of water or

a sandwich, but it's definitely the case when it comes to bigger

or more important purchases. You want to get

clear on the needs and desires of your prospects/family

members/friends, because you can then ethically influence them

and make them choose an option that is both good for them

AND you!

In sales you will have to be able to see the world from your

prospect's perspective. Remember: "sales" could also be

mentioning to your wife you want to go and see a football

match, for which in return you will take her out on Friday!! Or

persuading your children to go on a 4 star hotel holiday instead

of a camping trip by choosing the hotel with the

biggest pool on the planet! To graps your "prospect's"

perspective properly, you will will have to dig in their minds.

The right way to do this is by ASKING QUESTIONS.

Each of the four AusIDentities Personality Types are sensitive

to different kinds of questions. let's create some clarity on

what type of questions work best for what type:

The Eagle (or NT, in the Myers-Briggs typology) on combination of WHAT and WHY questions. Examples:

1. why is it so important for you to......?
2. what specifically would you like to see in .......?
3. why will.....be beneficial for you?
4. what research have you done into.....and what were the outcomes?

The Dolphin, (or NF) will be more partial to a combination of WHO and WHY questions. Examples:

1. Who is going to be pleased when you .....?
2. why is .... so important to you and the people around you?
3. who is you are thinking of when you.......?
4. why will your experience be different when you......?

The Kangaroo (or SP) will be focused on a combination of WHAT and HOW questions. Examples:

1. what will ..... allow you to do faster?
2. how can you use.....to create even more powerful results?
3. what other methods have your tried to ......?
4. how did you compare your current experience with your future experience once you have ......?

The Wombat (or SJ), ultimately, is sensitive to a combination of HOW and WHAT questions (note the order difference with the Kangaroo). Examples:

1. how can .... make your experience more pleasurable?
2. what exactly do you expect from .....?
3. how do you think we can make.... an even better product for you?
4. what needs to happen for you to consider.....?

Again, these and similar questions can be used to get people to

make buying decisions in business, but are as easily applicable

to family and other relations, child raising

issues, employment issues, conflict resolution, and other

interpersonal problems and challenges. It all boils down to

understanding the deeper needs and desires of yourself and

others, so you can relate to yourself and others on an emotional

-feeling- level.

Set a Landmarc:

Firstly, from now on, whenever you make a buying decision on

more substantial goods and/or services (house, car, audio/video

equipment, investments etc.) ask yourself: why do I

want to purchase this? What feeling will it give me once I have

it? The more you know for what sort of emotional feeling you buy

things, the more aware you will become in other

areas of your life (they usually reflect the same values).

Secondly, from now on, whenever you want to make someone accept

your opinion, assess what reasoning you use towards the other

parties. What emotions are you trying to get across

to the other parties, so they will accept what you want.

Thirdly, study personality types extensively so you can

understand on an even deeper level what drives you and others.

This will allow you to become very influential, honouring

all parties' wishes and desires. There are several options

available for further study.

Lastly, commit to sales and marketing, both in personal and

professional selling. Although both words are usually applied to

business and the selling of goods and services,

EVERYTHING in life has to do with selling and marketing. Just

think of the hotel vs camping idea: you will have to SELL the 4

star hotel to the family, and MARKET it properly,

so it will be preferred over a camping holiday. You even have to

sell the idea of having to do grocery shopping to your kids, by

offering them a donut or a ride on the merry-go

-round after. Only THEN will they be SOLD on the idea!

If you really want to increase sales in your business or

fulfilment in your personal life by 300% or more, a thorough

knowledge of personality types is crucial. Understanding

yourself and others will make for massively accelerated success

in all areas of life; that's my personal promise.

Getting More Out of Life

Return to www.landmarc.info. 

"Reality is what's left when you stop thinking about it." -MdB 

The end of 2008 has shown a very big truth in both personal and business endeavours: all earthly success and all material gain are temporary.

What do I mean by this? Well, just have a quick look at the investment market. In my case, all the "gains" I thought I made by investing in my superannuation fund over the last 16 years are pretty much gone. I am back to where I was when I started when it comes to my "return on investment". The stock market itself is back to levels it was at in the 1970's. That's over 30 years ago.

Look at the American housing market. The sky was the limit; right now, there are whole ghost suburbs: brand new homes with no-one in them. This last year only, house prices dropped 18%; some states/cities experienced dropped of more than 45% over the last 3 years.

Look at businesses in Australia: what looked like heaven on earth has now turned into....well, let's say, an interesting challenge. The "always the go" mining industry has caved in (no pun intended). Building company after building company collapses. Employees get laid off left, right, and centre. 

All this looks pretty grim. But is it, really? 

Personally, I see the current situation as an application of one my Knowareness Principles: the Law of Rhythm, which states that life is a continuing movement around a centre line. This will make that everything in our personal and professional life has a "due-date", will come to an end. The stronger we seem to go to one end of the spectrum, the stronger we are "yanked" back to the other end. Liken it like an elastic band: the tighter you pull it, the stronger the rebound. 

There is an upside to this, though, and that's my End-of-Year message for you: what comes down will go back up again! In our universe forces are always balancing out. In that fashion, the "recession" will also have a due-date. It may take a while, but nevertheless, eventually an upturn will come around the corner. The 1930's recession didn't last forever either! 

The Landmarc rule for these situations is this: when times are great, work harder, and use the leverage an upturn gives you. Half the effort will yield you more than double the profit.

When times are not so great, keep working on what's important to you, but also take time to rest and recharge. It's absolutely useless to fight a natural phenomenon (the rhythm of life and business). Ever been really tired, and tried to fight it? You may succeed once or twice, but ultimately you will draw the short straw. The same is true for these times. Resistance is futile. Do what feels good, but stay away from making decisions based on fear and panic. These decisions usually aren't the best ones. 

Your decision making process in both life and business matters will be very much dependent on your AusIDentities Personality Type. Eagles decide on totally different grounds than Wombats do. The feelings Dolphins will use to take action are not the ones Kangaroos feel! 

Once you have a good grip on what your personality preference is, you will be easily able to "re-perceive" the current economic tide, and take action in line with what's naturally best for you. This is congruent with another massive Knowareness Principle I use in my practice: the Law of Surrender. What is best for you arrives 100% more smoothly when you yield to what is going on, instead of resisting it. Most of our major business breakthroughs occur when we "give up", and stop fighting. 

Set a LandMarc: 

Firstly, have the knowareness that all material gains in life and business are fleeting. That realisation can already give you peace. Enjoy what you have when you have it, and allow it to leave when it is time for it to leave. The less we are attached to what it is we think we "have", the less disturbed we will be when it actually leaves. This goes for business success, money, goods, health, and yes, even life itself. 

Secondly, have the knowareness that what came down, will also go back up. Life and business are in a constant state of flow, and "down" is never "down for good". Work on conservation, preservation, and ride the tide. There are multiple tools to allow you to do this. Many I have already discussed in previous Landmarc ezines. 

Thirdly, Discover everything there is to know about your AusIDentities Personality Type. I guarantee you a massive increase in personal peace of mind once you understand why you think what you think, and do what you do. 

Lastly, Re-determine what is REALLY important to you in your life and business ventures. We will always spend most time, money, effort, thought and action into our deepest values. Usually we do that totally unconsciously, but we do it anyway! The more we can work on our values consciously, the more we will feel GOOD, even when times seem to be BAD. 

2008 has been a fascinating year in many respects. Not the easiest one for many (I've had my fair share of critical decisions to make too!), and with a Bang of an ending, economy wise! I am curious about what 2009 has in store for us. 

Remember: what comes down, must go back up. Let that be your motto for the coming year.