Tag Archives: sales coaching

How To Defeat the Lizard Brain in Four Fast Steps

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homer simpson with lizard in brain, Lizard Brain

You’re in sales. Whether it’s in a job interview, presenting a multi-million dollar pitch to a room of investors or your online t-shirt store – you’re constantly selling something. Once you’ve gotten a potential customer through the door – you’re selling.

Psychology of the sale

I sleep with a psychology book on my nightstand. I love diving in to how the mind works because once you understand how we’re wired, it makes certain things like selling quite simple.

Here’s the three-step cycle going on in your prospects mind before they purchase anything, hell before they even approach you:
1) Fight or flight (THE LIZARD BRAIN!) or spam filter to your pitch
2) What does this mean to me (providing social context)?
3) What problem does this solve (very analytical)?

Before visiting you online, setting foot in your store or chatting with you at a networking event, humans primal extinct is to fight or flee the situation. It’s only been for the past century or so where our basic standards of life (in the Western World anyway) have been covered to a point of not having to worry about a large predator jumping out of the bushes and devouring us on the spot. However, our minds have been slow to change.

This is the lizard brain quickly deciphering whether we should run or stand put and duke it out to the best of our ability. Our mind has been conditioned to conduct a quick survey of our surroundings within nano-seconds. Once this assessment is complete – the body chooses whether to fight or flee.

This is why you may find your palms or brow get sweaty before a pitch. For me it’s my lower back and armpits. Hell, I get sweaty before I ask my wife about whether or not she wants pizza or a pita for dinner. It’s human nature.

Knowing this primal instinct is hardwired into everyone’s mind – you must get it to calm down before moving to the second part of your prospects decision making mind. To do this you must be clear, concise, while sprinkling in a bit of humour (if you can).

Click here for a script on how I get past the lizard brain selling CCTV cameras. Sounds sexy doesn’t it...

The Lizard Brain is very picky

The lizard brain is essential for survival. This is why it’s so difficult to get past. In your pitch you’re selling using data, metrics and all these things the lizard brain doesn’t care about. Remember the lizard brain is the spam filter. 90% of what you’re saying or pitching isn’t getting through. The lizard brain is lazy and if you’re throwing numbers, and business jargon its way it will get overwhelmed and discard the vast majority.

The lizard brain likes black and white. It’s taking care of your survival. It doesn’t care about data. Your pitch needs to be clear and concise. The lizard brain is lazy, so don’t make it do too much work.

How to get past the lizard brain

  1. Focus on the big picture in black and white. No grey areas. Remember this is fight or flight you’re dealing with.
  2. Use emotion through visual and audio cues
  3. Create novelty (how are you different and exciting?)
  4. Throw in concrete facts (verified evidence)

Your entire sales pitch is wasted unless you get past the lizard brain. Your pitch was created with the analytical part of your brain. Having said that, don’t pitch to the lizard brain with analytics. Get past it using the points above. Once through the lizard brain you can dive into the details.

If you missed it above – Click here for a script on how I get past the lizard brain selling CCTV cameras. Still sounds sexy doesn’t it…

Love you,

Jordan ‘The Guy with the Bow Tie’ Rycroft

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Why Attacking Your Competition Like The President Is Good For Your Business

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The next few paragraphs aren’t going to break down the latest polls, how much marketing dollars have been spent or unravel the gong show that is the Democratic Party. Rather it touches on things right under your nose that if investigated closely…provide the framework for being a standout business (and also how to get elected).

Attack your competition.

I don’t recommend going at the throats of your competition like the President (see Trump’s Twitter feed). You don’t have the resources or power of a President.

Having said that, you can subtly attack your competition.

There’s a local jewelry chain, who goes after “The Big Guys” by letting outsiders (like you and me) into the world of diamond trading. They even break it down to where they single out the BIG BIG diamond companies in their messaging.

Did you know most diamonds go into one big pot? Then “The Big Guys” get first dibs without really knowing where the diamonds are coming from and whether or not they have been obtained ethically.

Meanwhile, this local jewelry store gets their diamonds from a single source that doesn’t play with “The Big Guys,” so you can rest assured you’re getting a quality diamond from a reputable mine. These powerful statements are included in their marketing.

You don’t have to be super focused on what your competition is doing.

It’s good to know, but you don’t have to be obsessed. By seeing what they’re doing, you can start breaking down their claims in your messaging. Similar to what the local diamond store does and what President Trump has been doing forever and ever.

You don’t have to outright name your competitors, but you can peel back the curtain on what really goes on in your business. This creates trust within your customer base because, to the consumer, it feels like you’re giving away trade secrets. You become the expert whereas your competitors seem dodgy.

You’re an expert in your business category. Share what you know.

How many times have you seen a babe pop up in your Insta feed hawking some health/fitness product YOU KNOW isn’t the reason for their six pack? I’m willing to bet he/she isn’t an expert, so if you’re a fitness trainer you can go on the attack and tear down these Insta swindlers.

Having been a high performance athlete I know a single kale smoothie isn’t going to do the trick. It’s a combination of eating right, exercising right, and doing both consistently over a long period of time. Tap into what you know and include it in your messaging.

Your knowledge is what sets you apart from the other noise. It’s what differentiates you from the pack. Attack your competitors in a way only you know how. You have insights into your business category that the Average Joe doesn’t. Expand on those like the diamond company, the legitimate Instagram fitness trainer and The President.

Different works. Different wins elections. Different businesses win.

Love you,

Jordan ‘The Guy with the Bow Tie’ Rycroft

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How To Discover Your Ideal Client

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Name badge stating Hello! My Name Is Debbie
Hello! My Name is Debbie

Do you know who you’re speaking to? Putting out any messaging whether it’s on social or legacy media and not knowing who you’re speaking to is just plain lazy.

Your message will be bland and won’t really resonate with anyone. You’ll blame Facebook for their shitty advertising platform or blame your radio sales rep for swindling you into buying 30-second spots that didn’t generate any traffic.

Here’s the thing…look in the mirror and ask yourself, “What is my message? Who am I speaking to in my message?” Chances are you don’t have a clue. Instead of blaming the medium (Facebook, radio, etc…) you need to blame the message.

Here are 700 words outlining how to craft your ‘different’ message

Here are 700 words showing you how to write a stand out message

Finding Your Ideal Client

Before you release any messaging into the world. KNOW WHO YOU’RE SPEAKING TO! How do you do this, well this is where it gets a bit complicated…

You can call this your ideal client/customer or a persona. I used persona’s all the time when working with radio stations across the country. I nailed down a persona to age (44), sex (female), name (Debbie), and her likes and dislikes. Every time we did a promotion, ad, whatever…it was targeted around our ideal listener aka Debbie. Debbie is who we spoke to.

  1. Getting super specific helps craft your message as you know exactly who you’re talking to.
  2. It helps you target your advertising.
    For example – Debbie had a couple teenagers in her house, so she was running them around to their activities on the weekend and polished off a glass of wine on her Saturday night. Knowing this it was very important to have our messages out and about in the community around things like football fields, gymnasiums, and the burbs. Plus, wine stores…
  3. A persona helps you identify your ideal customers biggest problem(s). You really start to get in their heads.
    For example – Debbie’s biggest problem was time…she had none to herself because she was busy with work during the week and family engagements around her work schedule. So, we always did fun promotions and marketing that helped Debbie escape from her regular, hectic routine.

Based on the above – you can already start to tell how to break down your ideal client. You get an understanding of where they live, how much money they have, what’s going on in their life, what they like, and what they dislike.

If you get stuck defining your ideal client

Try asking an existing one. Pick someone who is a fan. Ask them what they do on weekends. Do they like to travel? Do they drink Bud Light or Highland Park Scotch or Appletini’s?

Record their answers, save the document and if you’re feeling extra frisky…post in on the wall in your office. You don’t have to get as specific as I do by naming them, etc…but you should have a good idea at who he/she/they are. Then you can start crafting your message, and creating a business flow centered around your ideal client.

By not defining your ideal client you might as well give me all your money, so I can burn it, although I’ll probably buy a few bow ties first before I incinerate your cash.

You should never advertise, hell you shouldn’t even turn on your OPEN sign, before knowing who your ideal client is. It’s THE first step, the BIGGEST step, and it often gets overlooked.

Love you,

Jordan ‘The Guy with the Bow Tie’ Rycroft

PS. Need a bit more help on defining your ideal client? Punch in your email addy below, and I’ll send you weekly tid bits direct to your inbox.

I’ll never give out your personal information and you can opt-out at anytime.

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