Watching the endless Presidential Campaign advertisements on television, listening to those negative sound bytes on the radio, and watching these so called leaders debate each other, one thing is quite obvious—they do not have any sales people helping them with their campaigns. The reason I know this–they spend way too much time talking about the “other guy”.
Great sales people do not need to spend time talking about the other guy. That is called “Selling Down.” If you are selling down, that means you do not have much to sell about yourself. If you cannot say something nice about your competition, then do not say anything at all. In reality, you should find something nice to say about your competition–it builds your credibility, demonstrates that you have the confidence in your abilities, and enhances your character in that you do not go out of your way to knock people down. Selling down is a weak sales strategy.
Great sales people know how to “Sell Up.” If you are selling something that you believe in, something that is credible, something that truly has value–the only thing you need to accomplish is to help the buyer recognize how it will add value, solve a problem or, fulfill a need. That requires no time for the competition, it only leaves time to make certain you, as a salesperson, are communicating at the right level with your audience.
My message to the Obama and McCain campaign brain trust–people hate sell down messages. Stop it! If you are fed up with all the negative Presidential Campaign rhetoric–blame the candidates. More correctly, blame their advisors who have no sense of how to sell their story.