A Practically Perfect Way to Sell Anything

Mary Poppins was one of my favorite movies growing up. In fact, it still is. As a child, I was in awe of the music and magic. As an adult I am inspired by a woman who finds the fun in every task she undertakes. I find myself asking myself "What Would Mary Poppins Do?" more often than I'd care to admit. While there are many categories I could dive into, today I'm going to tell you how Mary Poppins inspired my success in the world of sales. More specifically... her magic carpet bag.

Do you remember the scene? Mary walks through the messy toy room and is escorted into her quarters by Jane and Michael Banks. A small room on the other side of the play area. After assessing the space and inspecting the fireplace mantle, she looks around and says "Yes, I think it will be quite suitable; just needs a touch here and there." Just then, she took off her hat, opened the seemingly dull carpet bag and pulled out a hat rack to hang it on. The children were astonished as she pulled item after item out of the bag; filling in empty space and upgrading things, like the mirror, to create a room that was practically perfect in every way. She had every thing she needed. No more. No less. When you start to think about it... who knows what else was in the bag? It could be anything! Just imagine the amount of regular bags she would need in order to carry it all. I doubt she'd be able to fly her umbrella while hauling around multiple totes filled with her belongings.

"But what does this have to do with sales?" you might ask. Let me explain. It's all about the bag. A bag capable of carrying everything she would ever need as she traveled from home to home. No clutter. No mess. Just one bag. Could you imagine if Mary Poppins filled that small room up with every single thing in that bag? It wouldn't be practically perfect at all. It would be uncomfortable and really awkward. Our minds should be like the magic bag. Stay with me... In order to find success in sales, it is mandatory that we know our product inside and out. Every single brand fact, benefit and solution are stored up in the ole' noggin. If someone were to go around from person to person explaining every possible detail they could to every single person that would listen... eventually, the customer would feel uncomfortable and you would seem awkward. Instead, try this: assess the situation and determine what specific information would be suitable for that particular client. Talk to them, discover what solutions they're searching for and then reach into your magic carpet bag and simply pull it out. Provide exactly what they want. No more, no less. When you get the hang of it, you'll find that even someone as grouchy as Mr. Banks will be thankful and delighted you were there to find the solution to a problem they didn't even know they had in the first place.