There are some funny moments in your life that you will never forget, as insignificant as they seem at the time.
I recall one such incident from college that always makes me laugh. We had a mutual friend who was a good guy, and harmless for the most part, but a real know-it-all. No matter what you said, he had to top it, and there wasn’t a thing he would admit to not knowing something about.
One of our mutual friends was particularly annoyed by the know-it-all, and decided one day to turn the tables on him. The know-it-all was an avid outdoors type, and also a hunter, so our friend decided to go right to the heart of it.
He says to the know-it-all: “did you read last month’s Field and Stream?”
“Sure,” the know-it-all says. “I always read it.”
“Well,” he says. “Did you read the story about the bird that is becoming extinct in Pennsylvania; the one they are trying to protect?”
“I did,” he says, confidently. “But, I just can’t remember the name.”
“It’s called the Ring-Tailed Goose Feather,” the teaser says, with a straight face, while the rest of us looked down trying not to laugh out loud.
“That’s right,” the know-it-all responds. “I did read that.”
One would think the name of the bird was so ridiculous that the know-it-all would realize he was being played. But, there is a more powerful force at work here: a know-it-all just can’t tell you they don’t know-it-all. Just like a lawyer can’t give you a straight answer; a life insurance sales person can’t stop talking; a preacher can’t stop bringing up Judgement Day. You get my drift.
They don’t mean any harm by it. They just can’t help themselves. You have to find the humor in it, and learn how to deal with it in a sales cycle and in life.
I vividly recall one particular sales call with a know-it-all. I’m new in sales and one of our solutions was specifically for medical practices. I had been trying to get an appointment for several months with a Neurosurgeon, and I finally reached the doctor and he asked to meet me at 7 pm on a Friday evening. Pretty unusual time I thought, but I had tried too long to get with this guy.
I show up at the office about 6:55 pm, and I wait and wait. Finally at around 7:30 pm the doctor walks in and immediately starts in on me.
“I don’t need your solution,” he says emphatically. “I don’t know why you are here.”
I respond, “I thought that if I had an opportunity to better understand your requirements in this area, and I could explain how our solution can help you….”
He interrupts and says, “I don’t need to tell you about my requirements. I already know about your technology, and it’s not even the best out there.”
“Wow,” I thought to myself. “This meeting will be a short one.”
“Besides,” he says. “Your solution will be obsolete within 3-5 years anyway.”
At this point, I am kind of stunned, and not sure what to say. The doctor goes on for about another 15 minutes describing everything that is available in the industry, why none of it will work for his practice, and how our solution definitely would not be a fit for him.
I don’t know what to say, and out of desperation I mention, “What maybe our solution is not for you.”
The doctor looks at me with a blank expression and says, “what do you mean, your solution will not work for us?”
I didn’t realize at the time that I was on to something here. I hadn’t learned it as a sales technique or come back, or anything. I was basically at a loss for words and wanted to get the heck out of his office and enjoy the rest of my Friday night.
What I was on to was one of the basic tenets of human nature: the people-want- what-they-can’t-have syndrome. In other words, as soon as I told the doctor that the solution might not be for him, and maybe he couldn’t have it, the more interested he became.
Strange but true. and it happens every day in selling and in life situations. It’s a powerful sales and life tool for those who aren’t afraid to use it.
And, there was some other human psychology going on during that sales call that I also wasn’t aware of. That is, once I told him the physician that maybe our solution wasn’t for him, I went from being the submissive salesperson in the doctor eyes, to maybe one that was also successful and didn’t need his business. Hence, I am now more exciting or make attractive to the customer doing the buying . Successful people want to deal with other successful people. Some things never change.
So, what do you do with a know-it-all prospect? I say you listen, let them talk for as long as they want, and tell you everything they know.
And, once they are finished talking, recommend that maybe your product, service, or solution isn’t the best one for them. Always remember: we don’t have to sell to every prospect, just like they don’t need to buy from every salesperson.