What I Learned From A Talk Radio Show

Last week I challenged the typical definition of the decision-maker and shared some thoughts on who we need to approach if we are to succeed in our role of challenging the decision process and changing beliefs. Now let’s talk about a key principle that will guide our approach when attempting to reach the person who determines the strategy.

Let’s start with a question. Which do you think has more impact on our ability to influence, the receptivity of the audience or the persuasiveness of our message? Those of us in the sales profession spend thousands of hours crafting our message, developing our proof points, focusing on FAB, and defining our value proposition, publishing our case studies – all of which are critically important. But ask yourself this simple question, how often has one of your well crafted messages been embraced by someone who was completely unreceptive to hearing that message?

In my 30 years of sales, I can’t think of a single time that I presented my solution to a prospect that had ALREADY made his or her mind up to move in a different direction, in which they chose instead to embrace my recommendation. Conversely I have been in many situations where I was struggling to make my point but because the audience had a strong desire to hear what I had to say, they encouraged me to communicate my point and ultimately embraced my recommendation. So while it may be counter intuitive, our ability to influence is actually more dependent on the receptivity of the audience than it is on our ability to be charismatic or persuasive – and gaining receptivity is a much more achievable goal for most of us.

Case in point. Since 1991, Rush Limbaugh has been the number one rated radio talk show in America. He focuses on persuasively arguing that the conservative view point is the best option for America (or for any other country for that matter). And whether you inwardly cheered or almost threw up at the mention of his name just now, any unbiased person would admit he is very talented at communicating and arguing his point. And he has the stats to prove it. More people have listened to his show than any other show in the history of radio. Why? Certainly, in part, because he is entertaining but, I believe, it is also because he is extremely effective at positioning his recommended solution for America. For those who are at least open to the conservative ideology, a high percentage buy into his point of view (i.e., he effectively communicates the benefits of conservatism). So, regardless of what you may personally think about Mr. Limbaugh (or his politics), hopefully we can agree that he is pretty good at positioning his recommendation and crafting the message – if you are still unconvinced, check out his bank account.

Let’s see how successful he would be if we changed how we measured his performance. What if he was judged not on the number of listeners to his broadcast, but rather on how many democrats he converted – in other words, how many people who were not receptive to the conservative or republican ideology adopted that ideology as a result of listening to his show. In many instances, that is more similar to our challenge in sales. In our terms, he would be below quota.

Even though he is highly talented at making a persuasive argument, he actually hasn’t made a dent in changing the minds of those who have an opposing viewpoint prior to their exposure to him. In 1991, the year Rush first grabbed the top spot, 31% of those surveyed (according to the Gallup poll) identified themselves as Democrat. Guess how many Americans identified themselves as Democrats in 2011? 31%. Even though over 13 million people listen to Rush every week, he (along with his faithful army) have had little or no impact on converting the staunch, unreceptive Democrats. Why? The answer would appear to be that while he is very gifted at positioning his argument with those who already agree with him, he is not nearly so effective at truly influencing those who disagree. That skill is one that we sales pros must possess if we are to succeed.

Our role is to change beliefs and not just do a better job of convincing people who already agree with us. We have to first focus not on our message, but on creating a receptive audience. Next week, we will begin to unpack radical new ways to accomplish this – but in the mean time, pay attention to your meeting priorities. Do you first focus on the receptivity of the audience or on how well you craft or position your recommendation? If the latter, think about what you would do differently if you focused on receptivity. What would you do differently if you measured your success not by how well you delivered the message, but how hungry the audience was to hear what you have to say?