THIS KID COULD SELL

THIS WILL BE MY LAST POST OF THE WEEK, I WILL BE AWAY FOR A FEW DAYS AND UNABLE TO POST. PLEASE CHECK BACK NEXT MONDAY FOR SOME MORE GREAT DISHES FROM THE TRAINING BUFFET, HELP YOURSELF.

LORIN

My wife and I took a ride to Kroger tonight to pick up some groceries we needed. As I walked up to the sliding door of the store a young man stepped in front of me and with one of the biggest smiles I have ever seen and a clear loud voice he started a sales pitch.

“Hello sir, my name is Gerome and I hope you are having a great day” he started. I replied that my day was going great and he continued, “Sir, My friend and I are here today raising money for the Teens Against Crime Organization. For every box of peanut brittle we sell, Teens Against Crime gets to keep 95% of the sale for the organization. I know you have probably seen boxes of peanut brittle sell for less but this is the best peanut brittle I have ever tasted. So you get a treat and Teens Against Crime gets to send kids like me and him to camp, school, and trips so we can break the cycle of crime in our neighborhoods.” It was still about 89 degrees out and the sun was still shining, but I stood there and listened to this “kid” give me a GREAT sales pitch.

He wasn’t finished, I am sure that just about everyone he speaks to tells him the same thing, “maybe on the way out I’ll buy some”. This kid was ready, before I could say, “maybe on the way out” he said to me, “I know you have shopping to do, but if while you are shopping you could try and consider buying a box or two on your way out we would be very thankful”.

I have been trying to teach reps how to “explode objection bombs” for years and this kid had it down to a science. Not only did he avoid my blow off excuse, but he tugged at my conscience at the same time. If only he were 10 years older I would have hired him on the spot.

But the story isn’t over. As I walked out of the store he was right there at the door and asked me if I had thought about what he told me. I told him I had but I am watching my diet and couldn’t eat any peanut brittle. Here is where the kid went over the top, he didn’t hesitate a second and said, “If you like you can make a donation to Teens Against Crime, and I have a receipt book for your taxes”.

After hearing him turn my blow off into another closing opportunity I reached into my pocket and handed him a few dollars. He pulled out his receipt book and I told him not to bother. He put out his hand and gave me a hand shake that I would expect from someone three times his age. He thanked me and hoped I had a great evening.

 I know how most of these “sales teams” work, usually there is one adult in a van dropping the kids off in different places and driving around checking on them every now and again. When I got in my car I started driving around the parking lot to see if I could pick out the supervisor and sure enough, in the parking space at the end of the row was a van with an adult in it watching the kids.

I drove up to the van and put down my window. The guy inside opened his door and walked over to me, he immediately asked if everything was alright, I proceeded to tell him how wonderful a job Gerome was doing and how much I enjoyed listening to him. The guy thanked me for telling him, handed me his business card and told me if he could ever help me in any way to let him know.

As I drove away I felt good about meeting Gerome, and felt great about telling his “Adult Leader” (his title on the business card) about him. But most of all I felt good about being a salesman. After watching Gerome I knew that even with all the garbage going on in the world, there are still some good sales reps coming up and my chosen profession will be in good hands.

Lorin