The magic is in the outcome….

Date: 4th August 2014

Have you heard the electric jug metaphor?

People buy electric jugs not because they want an electric jug but because they want boiling water. The jug is a means to an end. People are really buying the outcome. Magic works for exactly that reason. All the audience see is the outcome. The process is totally hidden and in that context, the outcome is even more compelling. Succeeding in business is a bit like that. Focus on the outcome for the consumer, not the boring technical aspects of the goods or services.

Doing that requires you to do two things. First, focus on how the product or service will benefit the buyer. Make it personal. Make it magical. Understand the difference between what you are selling and what people are buying.

Look at it from the outside in (from the buyers’ perspective). Second, remember that creating influence is about making your own personal magic – it’s about you. People don’t buy what you do. They buy why you do it.

Does this approach work? Well, I used it recently when helping a senior lawyer I mentor in a large British company. After many years she had applied to move in to a different senior role, outside her comfort zone. Having been away from the interview process for so long she was nervous about how to approach it and wanted help with her interview technique.

Rather than focusing on the mechanics of her specific skills and experience (worrying about the colour of the electric jug!) I suggested she talk about the shape and performance of the department with her in it. This would let the interviewer start to feel the benefits of the outcome she was seeking and, through that, explore her skills and experience. I reminded her that sales is about getting what you want by helping others get what they want.

I also encouraged her to focus on selling her deep enthusiasm for the role, allowing the interviewer to buy why she was doing it – allowing them to buy her magic. It was interesting to receive her response:

 “That’s one of the most helpful suggestions for interviewing that I have had despite me not even telling you what the role is!”

A useful way to apply this approach is to look at your business and make two lists. First, write down every outcome for your customer if they do business with you. Second, write down why you do it. Try not to describe the business and try not to describe what you do.

Next time you speak with a customer sprinkle a little of your own magic and mention at least one item from each list, and see what happens.

Cameron Lawes, Barrister, Resolution Chambers

(This article first appeared in Admire Magazine on 2 August 2014)

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