Over the past week, I’ve been working hard on getting the word out about my new client’s event in San Francisco. I’ve reached out to several connections I still have in San Francisco, telling them about the event with an email that’s 80% form, 20% customized.
I received a couple pieces of feedback about my email, and both of them were, well, honest but also leaning towards negative. I took the feedback to heart and today, went about emailing everyone with apologies for my spam-like message. Most everyone replied telling me that I was fine, that my message wasn’t annoying/spammy, and that I was just doing my job.
I probably didn’t have to even apologize, but it hung heavy on my conscience: I never want people to think that I’m a blood-sucking salesperson. Ok, not to offend any truly great salespeople, but I cannot be emotionless or separate my personal feelings from business objectives when it comes to sales: I value honesty a lot and really, I am just a sensitive person in general. Yes, I may be a bit of a people-pleaser, but I do care about others a lot…maybe to a fault.
In reply to one of the emails above, I said that perhaps it’s a fault of mine to be a sensitive salesperson…but then I thought about it and realized that it can be considered a strength for me instead. If others know me as a sensitive, honest salesperson for my business and for my clients, they will know that I am more driven with genuine emotion than just winning the next sale.
I’m not saying that focusing on solely winning a sale is a bad thing; I’m just saying that it helps to have a bit of emotion when it comes to selling. So tell me, do you consider yourself a sensitive salesperson?