It was the industry's biggest trade show, and I was a rookie working the booth for my company.
On the final night, the event featured a big dinner. About 3,000 people filled the ballroom of the Hyatt Crown Center in Kansas City. A jazz band played, and two incredible buffet tables ran wall to wall on either side of the room. Food was placed upon the white table cloths, and decorations included festive streamers, candles, and brightly polished musical instruments.
As a trumpet player who had to choose between basketball or band in college, I had long ago set aside my horn. But the temptation was too great, so I grabbed a trumpet off the buffet, knelt down next to a table of my colleagues, and started to play. Fifty feet away, the band's drummer saw me and started to call me up on the stage. That was a bit more attention than I wanted, so I grinned, shook my head, and turned back to return the horn.
Well, turns out I pulled the trumpet out of a display, dragging the streamers across some candles. The spectacular buffet centerpiece of brass instruments and flowers was now engulfed in flames. In the darkened room, the fire was actually quite beautiful. But I began beating on it with a tablecloth, finally extinguishing it and leaving a blackened, smoking centerpiece in its wake.
And the band played on. The evening continued without interruption. Waiters rushed to the table and began cleaning up the mess. People along the buffet table began laughing, and I was relieved that nothing too terrible had really happened -- that is, until my vice president of sales heard about my "artistic performance."
The Moral: Yes, that was me, your sales horror story speaker and trainer, that pulled this stunt. What is a salesperson? Someone crying for attention? Look at me, love me, buy from me! We do have a tendency to talk too much and to take action when silence is OK. Sometimes you just need to shut up and sell. Despite my snafu, we did gain clients, prospects, and a great amount of exposure from that trade show. How well do you use silence to sell? Do you work hard to say nothing at the proper times during your presentation? Just state your case, get out of the way, and you'll help your prospect buy better than before.
Sales from the Dark Side is compiled by speaker and trainer Dan Seidman. For more tales, visit www.salesautopsy.com.
