Social Media: What not to do with sales
I remember graduating from college in 1992 and my dad took me to this movie. Just to get me going, he leaned over with a sinister look and said, “That is what you are in for, it is tough out there!” He laughed just to let me know he was joking, but what an impression it made. I was shaking when I walked out of the cinema.
The movie, ‘Glengarry Glenross’, captured the aggressive American sales approach spawned from the late 1980′s, as the US economy hit one of its lowest ebbs in decades. To understand the economic backdrop, view this chart to see the 1989 bailout similar to what we saw in the recent global financial crisis 1989 American Bailout
The movie showed how businesses played on fear and greed, is that familiar??? That being said, even though common sense tells us this behavior is shortsighted and prone to failure, I have to admit this is one of my favorite movies. My friends and colleagues never stop talking about it. Check out this all star cast that would break hollywood budgets today…
Here is another great scene with Ben Affleck as an ambitious entrepreneur in the movie ‘Boiler Room’. Countless sales managers that I have worked with love this movie and continuously refer to this scene as a classic. This is behavior that contributed to the current global financial crisis. Ben Affleck might as well be a young version of Bernie Madoff in this clip:
So what is the lesson in all of this? Doing the right thing is not only best practice, but not doing the right thing can be dangerous and have devastating consequences in the corporate ecosystem as well as people’s lives.
It is important to talk about best practice and proper behaviour next to videos like these to show how intoxicating short term thinking an emotions can be. The temptation of “money at all costs” is alluring.
Here’s to doing the right thing and leaving these behaviours in the movies where we can appreciate cinema and acting rather than be on the stage ourselves where it is less enjoyable.
FINAL NOTE: Please let me know if anyone has classic sales stories to share or links to other cool clips.
Rick Speciale, My CMO
http://xeesm.com/speciale/
Kate
Great post Rick. While I agree with you, sadly the movies do impact on real life. How many times have you heard someone quote Gordon Gekko? I can recommend the ABC doco now on DVD Addicted to Money – David McWilliams looks at the pre-story of the GFC, the wreckage and what might happen next.
Rick
Wallstreet is another classic, good one Kate. I think they are supposed to bring back Wallstreet to the movies showing Michael Douglas getting out of jail and seeing what happens next. Should be a good one.
Abramo Ierardo
I sometimes get annoyed by these sorts of presentations in movies, did these types of businesses really believe that the ‘close’ is the only thing that matters? Does this form of sales approach really cut it anymore? I doubt it, the savvy consumer in today’s marketplace, would just hang up if confronted like this. Most of us now talk the game of customer engagement and that is what ultimately will influence the result. My sales career started in media sales, tough environment and had the typical sales manager that wanted me to close, close and close.I remember fondly, my biggest sale, and it involved listening to the client’s needs and delivering on my promise, no more and no less. The real skill in sales is the ability to listen…then engage, then deliver, and ultimately, what ever you are selling has to do what it is intended to do. From there, you build repeat business and partnerships…but perhaps I live in a dream world of fairy floss and toffee apples!