Don’t Forget To Salt Your Water
The Importance of Being Memorable
We met for lunch, it was our first in-person meeting. Me, the salesperson, and him, the prospect. We ordered our drinks and I noticed there was no salt on the table. I asked the waitress to bring some salt; when she did I immediately picked up the shaker filled with our most common condiment and proceeded to salt my water. My prospect gave me an odd look but quickly moved on with our conversation and we had a productive lunch which in the end led to him championing the deal and signing a significant agreement…so, why did I “salt my water” that day? For one reason: to be memorable.
In a world filled with buyers and sellers interacting every day to facilitate a fair economic exchange of goods and services, it’s difficult for both parties to make a connection in each interaction. So how do you stand out? How do you become unique in such a crowded and often fast-paced environment? The key is to find a way for you to become memorable. I once interviewed for an Account Executive role with a company and when I asked the VP of Sales what the one trait was he was looking for in his new hire…..he replied with “I’m looking for reps that will be memorable.” That always stuck with me and is something I logged in the back of my head as I built my sales career over the years.
Now, I’m not suggesting you have to add salt to your water as I do. Frankly, I started doing it back in my college days to nurse a hangover as it’s basically Gatorade without sugar and food coloring; but I am suggesting you find that unique, special thing you do to make yourself stand out. It’s a crowded world out there and unless you can do something that is a bit extraordinary, you run the risk of being just like every other salesperson. As Grant Cardone likes to say, “be extraordinary or be ordinary.”
Here are a couple of suggestions on how you can “salt your water” if actual saltwater is not your thing:
- Order the same meal every time you have a lunch meeting. My personal favorite is Caesar Salad and I always ask for extra dressing and cheese on the side.
- Order the same drink when you grab “drinks” with your prospects and customers. My go-to is Jack on the Rocks. In fact, I drink this so often that after some time my customers even order them for me when I’m running late.
- Grow your hair really long or a funky color.
- Wear a Hawaiian shirt every Friday or the same style outfit every day.
Regardless of how you do it, try to build your unique personal brand. There is an interesting bi-product to this uniqueness, some may even call quirkiness. Your customers get to know you so well on a personal level that you develop a very tight-knit and special relationship. If you’re so inclined, this may even lead to a friendship. I ask you, as a salesperson, do you think people do business with people they like? I’ve read in multiple sales books, “all things being equal, people do business with people they like. All things being not so equal, people still do business with people they like” and I believe that’s true.