We started this article series by challenging ourselves with a question: In this $23 billion global industry, why do sales growth and career development often seem to flatline or end in burnout? Over the past year in the SpaRetailer sales training video series, we’ve focused on uncovering and removing the barriers that keep many people stuck in what Seth Godin calls “90% below average.”
Through this experience, I’ve uncovered several reasons I hadn’t recognized when I first wrote about the topic. In behavioral psychology, there is a term called “The Law of Least Effort,” which refers to the tendency to acquire the skills to do a job adequately and then maintain that level forever. In the sales realm, I view it as becoming just good enough to avoid starving or getting fired.
It’s the old maxim: The salesperson “didn’t have 30 years’ experience; they had one year’s experience for 30 years.”
No doubt it takes hard work and effort to overcome our inherent tendencies, but that is precisely what is required to break that law.
The second part of breaking this law is understanding the difference between transactional and transformational aspects of selling.
The transaction is the easy part; it’s our profession, the exchange of a prospect’s money for a product or service. We focus on this somewhat exclusively in most sales trainings or conversations because it answers a burning question: “How do I sell more?”
The first article I read in a pool and spa trade journal, 40 years ago, told the story of a successful retailer who kept an oversized sign above his desk that read: “Nothing happens until somebody sells something!” That message stuck with me. Without sales, the lights don’t come on, there’s nothing to service and there’s no need for accountants, staff or receptionists — because nothing else can happen. Sales are the foundation and it’s up to us to make them happen. That’s why, as we train and prepare, developing stronger skills for the future of our sales careers is so essential.
Unfortunately, the go-to approach for closing a transaction often includes shortcuts, manipulation or the old-school bag of ineffective strategies. This is where the value proposition is so critical for a salesperson to embody: perseverance, accountability, diligence, discipline and integrity.
Bringing these values to any transaction is key to consistent success. The transaction is what is happening now. It requires learning and developing an effective skill set to do the work and close the sale. The real (and only) answer to more and better transactions now and in the future is transformation — growth through actually doing the work required.
Professional growth means mastering the sales process: preparing effectively, qualifying prospects, delivering presentations that address most objections upfront, asking curious questions, handling any remaining concerns and always following up.
Personal and professional growth are one and the same, which you know if you have followed this series. The sales process is the professional part. Who we bring to the transaction every single day is the personal part. We couple those professional values with personal life principles — our physical, mental, spiritual, relational and financial well-being — things that do not take care of themselves. This is where the growth can and must occur for improvement, and neglecting any of those areas can derail our success.
The transaction is the intellectual aspect of selling — understanding what needs to be done — and the transformation is the experiential aspect — actually doing it. Growth is only possible with experience. It is this combination that allows us to break the Law of Least Effort. If you are in a slump, focus on values and principles to dig your way out.
The pool and spa industry has transformed significantly over time — shifting from a handful of independent entrepreneurs to a landscape that now includes those pioneers as well as large multinational brands, with continued consolidation and private equity investment signaling confidence in the industry’s future. What top salespeople and companies who have successfully navigated those dramatic changes have in common is one of the top skills for enduring success: adaptability.
Learning is the transaction. Doing is the transformation.
A sustainable, successful career is available to anyone willing to learn and implement the ongoing skill development required to rise above the flatline.
Every success story is a testament to learning and growth, and every failure is an example of what occurs when both are not executed.
SpaRetailer and Effort Today Enterprises are committed to providing a resource for greater transactions and transformation with our 13-segment workshop and video series to do our part in the evolution of the industry.