Servant Selling = Supporting Dreams and Goals

Servant Selling is all about helping people reach their dreams and goals. The product you sell may do this directly. In other words you are selling their dream house, dream car etc… What you sell may also be helping people reach their goals indirectly. The specific item is just the vehicle. I am involved with selling a product that more often than not is a vehicle to another dream or goal. Often this is building community, communication, and a sense of group identity within an organization. We also sell family portraits which may be a vehicle to a well decorated home that truly reflects the family identity. Portraits may be a vehicle to share family pride as you pull out those wallets. They may help a child feel important or valued as he or she see's their portrait displayed prominently in the home.

A car may be the dream itself. But it also may be a vehicle to get a date and marriage for a young man. It may be a vehicle to independence. It may be a vehicle to safely and conveniently hauling your kids to soccer practice or a trip to Disneyland this summer. It may be vehicle that communicates success or "having arrived".

A dream home may be the perfect floor plan and architecture but it also may be a safe neighborhood. It may be the place where the kids can grow up and walk to school. It may be the place to retire and a base to travel from.

In some instances Servant Selling may also be about helping people adjust their goals to something that is really attainable. Without pouring water on someone’s dreams it may be they just can’t get there from where they are, and you need to help them see what's really possible. If I walked into the sporting goods store tomorrow and bought a set of boxing gloves to start training for my dream of fighting Mike Tyson I hope the salesman would set me straight. I'm too old, I'm too slow, and I'm too small. Of course helping people adjust their dreams is a sensitive matter that must be done with great respect.

Take a moment and jot down some ideas on how what you sell connects people with their dreams. Keep the list, shape it, and add to it over time. Think about ways to communicate this connection in your sales and marketing efforts.