The Magic Words - a lesson in sales

by Rene Espinosa


I once overhead a newly recruited sales rep say, “It is easy to close sales for as long as you are honest to your prospective customers.  Just be truthful and things will go your way.”  She said those words without batting an eyelash and with all the authoritative tone of an expert.  I couldn’t help but notice that those experienced in selling standing nearby expressed their disagreement through their facial expression and body language.  No, for sure, they were not against truthfulness, but they could not accept the simplistic philosophy of the newbie (who, by the way, miserably failed in her sales career until she was fired from her company).  Sadly, but not surprisingly, everything went south for her.

Integrity does not preclude the use of good persuasion techniques to help prospective buyers make decisions that are good for them.  Just as a farmer who makes a living by farming needs farming tools and equipment, persuaders, like entrepreneurs, marketing executives, sales people, suitors and virtually all who need to persuade others to buy their idea, need persuasion tools.

This is immeasurably important.  It is a major determinant of the success of organizations and individuals.  Brian Tracy once shared this amusing story about his meeting with an unproductive  entrepreneur.  He was extremely disconsolate and to diagnose his problem, Mr. Tracy asked, “Why are you not productive?  Are you not improving your skills in persuasion?  Are you not attending any training”  To which the man replied, “I don’t have to.  I just do what comes naturally.”   Naturally, he’s broke.

We may laugh at the satire in the story, but it should challenge every serious reader.   And the challenge is, “What is your Persuasion Quotient or that of your people?”  How many tools do you or your people know and use?

Among the potent weapons in the arsenal of effective persuaders is the use of Magic Words.  What are they?  Simply put, they are words that evoke positive thoughts, pictures and feelings.  In stark contrast, Tragic Words stir up unpleasant ideas or emotions.

Let’s have an example.  Do you remember our country’s coup d’ etat during the time of President Cory Aquino and Gloria Macapagal Arroyo?    Whichever event you would consider, the same thing happened.   After the noisy much ado about nothing, the rebel group was cornered and the government had a choice – to go all out or to make the rebels surrender.  The latter, of course, was immensely preferred.  A negotiator would be appointed to talk to the renegades.

And here’s the crux of the matter --- the negotiator would never ask the rebel forces to surrender.  Whattype of mental image would that bring to their mind?  Humiliation!  A  lost cause!  Defeat!  No way!  Pride was at stake.  And they would rather die than surrender (just think how bloody this could be)!  But instead of asking them to “surrender”, the smart negotiator would ask them to "return to barracks".   That sounds different.  There is no stigma of the word “surrender”.  Then what happened?  The rebel force surrendered, ooops, returned to barracks.  It worked!  Like magic!

How do you apply that to selling?  Let’s have one example.  Let’s take the word “price”.  Businessmen, as well as, marketing and sales professionals freely use the word “price” (of course, it depends on the industry) when convincing their target prospects to purchase what they offer.  But what pictures do consumers psychologically see when they hear that word?  Likely, they are negative.  They see their hard-earned cash leaving their pockets.  It conjures up heavy expenses.  Headaches.  Stress.  Of course, you have to mention the price but don’t say the word “price”.  Instead, use “value” or “investment” which is invariably linked to ROI.  A positive thought is planted in the mind.  (In case the word “investment” is not appropriate for your particular products, there are other words you can use and I will teach them in my forthcoming seminar)

But bottom line, the words that you use in your presentation matter.  I can say this with conviction because I have talked with my seminar participants who have given me their testimonies.  One classic case is that of a real estate agent --- a true story.  He said he was unable to close the sale but he convinced his prospective buyer to see him again.  Upon returning home, he reviewed his training notes and saw the session on Magic Words.  He remembered that in his presentation, he kept using the Tragic Words.  When he saw his prospect again, he changed all the tragic words he used before and profusely used the Magic Words.   The buying mood of his prospect changed very positively.  It's like magic!  Needless to say, he closed the sale.