Dear Archive Visitor, Recently I became a speaker member of the Direct Selling Women's Alliance. What is the DSWA? Imagine... belonging to a welcoming community of individuals who respect your choice to have a direct selling business, understand your challenges and have the answers and guidance that will empower you to take your business to new heights. The DSWA is a community of direct sellers just like you and by recognizing their similarities as opposed to their company differences, they strengthen their businesses. You can go online and visit their website, www.dswa.org to learn more about the possibility of a local chapter in your area. If you live in the Phoenix area, I am looking to start a local chapter. Come and find out more about it at our first area chapter launch meeting on Monday, August 27 from 6:00 to 7:30PM: The LoneStar Steakhouse, 918 W Southern Ave Mesa, AZ 85210 If you live in the greater Phoenix metropolis, I hope you'll join us.

A Tale of Two Dates! By Tammy Stanley It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despairÉ -Charles Dickens, English novelist (1812 - 1870) Talking to prospects on the phone is like reading those first few lines of Dickens novel, A Tale of Two Cities. The key is to avoid being the worst, being foolish or incredulous, and to prevent the season of darkness and the winter of despair. Now imagine the following: You hear your telephone ringing. You pick it up only to discover a salesperson on the line. She says, "Hello, this is Angel Smith with ABC House Cleaning Service. We clean your house so you donÕt have to. WeÕll be in your neighborhood this week giving free estimates for our services. We can come by your house on either Tuesday at 10:00 A.M. or Wednesday at 3:00 P.M. Which works best for you?" Okay, gut reaction Ñ how do you feel? What do you want to say? IÕll tell you what I would want to say. I would want to say, ÒIf you think you can get an appointment with me by cornering me with that tale of two dates, think again. HEY! IÕM THE CUSTOMER. I GET TO CHOOSE THE DATES, NOT YOU. And by the way, there's nothing amazing about giving a free estimate.Ó ThatÕs what I want to say, but because IÕm pathetically polite, IÕd chicken out and say, ÒNeither.Ó And then IÕd just hang up. I know plenty of sales people still try to close their prospects that way, and plenty more are taught to sell and close like that, but I flat out disagree with that method. When a salesperson uses a script like that, what he/she is really saying is: Hello, IÕm with ABC Cleaning Service and IÕll go wherever I can to get an appointment. I want to make some sales this week, so do you want to buy from me on Tuesday or on Wednesday? Wouldn't you think it foolish for a sales person to use that script? Well believe me, most prospects are savvy enough to hear between the lines of phrases like ÒWe'll be in your neighborhood,Ó and ÒWe have an opening on Tuesday at 10:00 or Wednesday at 3:00.Ó Prospects are quite familiar with the tale of two dates. When a sales person uses phraseology like that he/she is obviously trying to push the prospect in a certain direction. But prospects often resist, once a salesperson pushes. The key is to find out what your prospect wants. Once you know if your prospect wants what you're selling, setting a time to get together shouldn't be any different than setting a time to get together with a friend. The other day I got a call from my insurance agent and my buddy, Mike. He wanted to get together with me for a cup of coffee this week. When it came to picking a time to get together, he simply said, ÒSo what morning works for you this week?Ó On Monday I called a friend of mine IÕd hadnÕt seen in a few weeks. She likes to tease me that weÕd never get together if she didnÕt call me. I decided to surprise her this week with a phone call. When I called I asked her if she could meet me sometime this week, she said, ÒSure. When?Ó I said, ÒAny chance we could meet in an hour?Ó If you look over those conversations, they both included selecting a time to get together with someone, but there was no pressure and no resistance. Indeed, I quickly suggested Thursday morning to my friend Mike, and my friend, Sue, told me she could meet me in 45 minutes. I suggest that the reason those appointments were easy to set was because the conversations surrounding the appointments were real. When youÕre real with your prospects, youÕll find it far easier to generate interest and appointments. You donÕt have to put on a Òsalesman hatÓ and speak like a salesman. It isnÕt necessary. If a prospect wants what you are selling, thereÕs absolutely no need to corner him/her into a tight place with your tale of two dates unless you have a strange desire to resemble Dickens' character, Madame Defarge (not exactly a likable person). That technique is old and truly worn out. Your prospects donÕt want to feel manipulated; they want to feel like they can trust you. Trust will generate a sale far faster than manipulation. Just this week our refrigerator went kaput. Naturally I had just spent a small fortune in groceries, so it became imperative that we go get a new refrigerator right away. We went to one of these huge places and started looking for a brand our repairman had suggested. Why did we want what our repairman suggested? Because he manipulated us? Of course not. We wanted what he suggested because we trust him. While we were looking, a salesman came up and asked if he could help us in any way. I told him that we had to get a new refrigerator because the compressor in our refrigerator had died. I then told him that our repairman had told us that compressors typically last 15 Ð 20 years, but ours had only lasted 9. How the salesman responded stopped me in my tracks. He said, ÒNo, the manufacturers donÕt design refrigerators like that anymore. You know, they realized that when they make them last that long, itÕs bad for their business. So, these days they only design them to last 7-9 years.Ó HUH? Pure unadulterated honesty coming from a sales person in the appliance division? What do you think I did? I looked at his name tag. Five minutes later when we were ready to buy (no, he didnÕt hover over us while we shopped), I searched the place looking for Cheech. Why? I trusted him. AH! The epoch of belief, the season of Light, the spring of hope! WANT TO SEE MORE ARTICLES LIKE THIS ONE? WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR NEWSLETTER OR ON YOUR WEB SITE? You can, as long as you include this complete blurb with it: Author, Sales Trainer, and Professional Speaker Tammy Stanley publishes the propelling 'Sales Refinery Insights' weekly ezine for direct sales professionals. If you're ready to jump-start your direct sales business, make more money, and create more value, get your FREE tips now at www.tammystanley.com/ezine/ezine_offer_ds.htm

One of my favorite books is Guy Finley's, The Secret of Letting Go. If I were to sell my copy of it as a used book on amazon, I would have to describe it as "worn out." At the end of the book there's something that alone is worth the price of the book. That something is a special message from Vernon Howard. Years ago when I found Finley's book at the bookstore, I read the message from Vernon Howard and proceeded to buy one of Howard's books that same day. The Secret of Letting Go is ideal if you want: -to conquer stress -to clear away obstacles -to live life on your own terms -to release your inner strength -to banish fears and negativity -to drop self-defeating behaviors Click here to get The Secret of Letting Go today!

Tammy Stanley, founded and directs The Sales Refinery, a sales training company that assists direct sales consultants to generate more business and build long-lasting sales teams through powerful marketing, selling and leadership strategies.

Tammy has been coaching and training since 1994 and has a deep understanding of the challenges and needs of the independent sales consultant. While raising four children, Tammy built a multi-million dollar direct sales organization, reaching her company's Circle of Excellence 7 consecutive years in a row. She earned numerous sales and leadership awards, world travel, and promoted 11 offspring managers.

The Tammy Stanley Sales Refinery
Tempe, AZ 85283
Call Today: 480-775-4866
tammy@TammyStanley.com