In wrapping up this series on Win Together, let’s explore its core principles.
1. Peace
Needless to say, the world has changed drastically, especially in the last 50 years. But let’s go back 2,000 years to ancient Rome. If someone wanted to send a message from Rome to Jerusalem, it would take at least a couple of weeks to arrive. In fact, that time frame didn’t change much for over 1,800 years, until we were well into the 19th century.
The first major leap was the telegraph, which arrived in the mid-1800s. The next significant advance, the telephone, came about a short time later. In the late 20th century came the internet, with which communication has become instant.
The internet brought about a new element: transparency. Today, nearly everything is visible. It’s becoming increasingly difficult to hide shady dealings or tricks designed to cheat customers. We’re now using Smartphones for just about everything, and they accompany us wherever we go, monitor what we’re doing, and practically know more about us than we do about ourselves.
We’re living in a transparent networked community. If someone commits any type of crime, it is very hard for them not to be caught. In past times, they could simply disappear to another location and often escape detection. Now there is nowhere left to hide. Transparency contributes to win together because what you do can immediately be transmitted around the globe.
This takes us to another aspect of win together, because transparency relates directly to a principle of the Austrian School of Economics—that trade has a peacekeeping element. When two parties, or two countries, are engaged in fair and equitable trade, they can’t be in conflict at the same time. We can translate this directly to sales, and declare that salespeople should be agents of peace. Transparency, of course, illuminates such behavior.
Peace, therefore, is a cornerstone of our philosophy. More than anything, peace is something everyone is longing for. Who truly wants to experience endless war or limp from one crisis to another?
If a salesperson isn’t selling something that is producing peace, what other motive can they have? If they’re selling illegal drugs or weapons of mass destruction, they must have some other agenda. But sales, conducted with a peacekeeping element, not only create a win for both sides but builds up the middle class and creates a more stable society.
Note that Win Together isn’t a “top-down” approach. It is instead built on personal responsibility and a commitment to making the world a better place. It has a deep ethical component.
2. Joy
Our second philosophical principle for Win Together is joy. Joy is more than an emotion—it is an active decision. It is related to the soul of a person. It is not a momentary thing but something that is carried forward and infused into all elements of a person’s being. . It is an inner feeling, not an outward expression, and above all, it is deliberately something chosen by us.
Why is joy so critical for the salesperson? Because when you sell, you should bring joy. When someone is buying, they should be happy. And in the end, most people would like to have more joy in their lives.
Joy also contributes to the customer relationship. If a salesperson makes a customer happy, the relationship is much more stable and enduring.
A salesperson, therefore, should be an agent of peace, bringing joy and spreading happiness. As a salesperson you want a customer to be happy with your product or service, and as a result, will spread the positive word about it. With your joy, you directly create happiness in the customer. You’re excited about the product, the process, the sales, and how you conduct them because they all stem from the inner strength of your joy.
When you have joy, you bring it to others—and we all Win Together, don’t we?
3. Honorable Business
Our third principle is that business must be conducted honorably and nobly. Earlier in this series, I quoted the book of Leviticus in the Bible: “Do not use dishonest standards when measuring length, weight or quantity.” If a merchant is being dishonest, they are cheating someone. Being honorable means doing the right thing in sales, and treating your customer fairly.
A good deal for both parties, as I always say, hurts both sides just a little bit. Each side must give up just a small measure in order to reach an agreement and shake hands at the end. That means being honorable, with price, quality, and all other aspects.
If you are not acting honorably in a network society, sooner or later (probably sooner) someone is going to find out about it. For example, if you’re using an unfair price structure, someone will figure it out, and word will spread. Your customers will obviously not be happy about it. Or, if you’re using components or ingredients that are harmful to people, it will come back on you. An example is a company that was knowingly poisoning a community’s water for years with chemicals. Such deeds were exposed and were the subject of a major lawsuit, which the company lost. Details were portrayed in the movie Dark Waters. There have been other examples of drugs that produced birth defects or other destructive side effects.
Critical to Win Together
These three principles—peace, joy, and honor—are at the core of Win Together, and each is vital to it. When everyone wins together, it brings about what every marketing person and organization is striving for: turning customers into fans!. A fan is someone who is cheering for your product or service and creating a community around it. Within that community, you have loyal customers who will promote you to anyone who will listen. They will identify with you, wear your t-shirt and even put bumper stickers on their cars promoting your products.
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