The salesperson stood in front of the building – home of her very first sales call. She had been through weeks of training and rocked the role-playing, so she felt confident. She walked down the hallway listening to her steps echo, and stepped into the elevator. The doors shut, leaving the deafening silence of every elevator in the universe.

The doors finally opened, and her heart began to pound. As she went to the desk and asked to see her client, it’s as if the flash of the receptionist’s super white teeth erased her memory of all things learned in training. Her legs began to shake slightly.

Walking into her client’s office, she was met by a gentleman with silver hair that looked a lot like Leslie Nielson from the movie “Airplane.” She greeted him, sat down, and then enthusiastically started in on why she had come to see him. He held his hand up. “Tell me something about you.” She wasn’t prepared for this – she had already stated her objectives and was well on her way to benefits. She stumbled for a moment, and he said “Tell me something about your childhood that was important to you.” She remembered the time she cheated on a test in first grade, and turned herself in a day later. She told him about it, laughing and relaxing at the same time.

Her client smiled. “Now I know something about you. Now you’re a person and not just another pitchman looking for a purchase. From that story I know you’re trustworthy. So let’s talk about your product.”

This story could provide a new salesperson with an important lesson, without being preachy or in a PowerPoint deck with those infinite bullets. Stories have been used to persuade and educate as long as man has existed, because the human experience is a story.

In sales,  people do business with other people, not with products or even, ultimately, companies. You can build trust in a client relationship with good service and commitment, but that takes time. Stories can be shared in the first interaction, and can build immediate trust because clients see something in us that is human and similar to them. Stories . . .

• Are memorable, while facts and figures aren’t (think back to your last good training session. Do you remember any of the numbers that were presented or the stories that were told?)
• Create vivid images and provide details that are more understandable than a lecture or sales pitch.
• Draw the client or audience in. “Let me tell you a story” are magic words that cause busy people to put down their Blackberrys.
• Are a powerful tool that is available even to the salesperson with the most limited resources.
• Create trust because we’re connecting instead of convincing.

So which story do you choose to share? That is learned with experience, but here’s a good way to start:

• Canvas the environment and use a story that may play on a key interest of theirs.  If they have a picture of a child in a soccer uniform and you or your children play soccer, share a soccer story.
• If they seem to be in a hurry, tell a (quick) story about a client that had very little time and how you helped them.
• If they seem defensive before you say hello, tell a humorous story that puts them at ease.
• If you’re presenting to a group, walk into one of their stores, banks, hospitals – and have an experience ready to share as a customer of that company.

If you want to know where to get other stories, feel free to visit me at www.highfillperformancegroup.com and look at the Stories button. In fact, send me your story and I’ll post as many as I can so you can connect with others. I would recommend you use your own stories as often as possible in a sales situation, because you’re more familiar with them, they reveal something about you, and your energy and passion for the story will shine through you.

Stories build community and celebrate individuality at the same time. There’s power harnessed in stories – so start paying attention to your own!

Donna Highfill helps salespeople come up with ways to help move the heart (why), mind (what) and feet (next actions) of their clients. She’s a big believer in the use of stories to first engage the heart, and would love to have you visit her blog/website at www.highfillperformancegroup.com. Once there, subscribe to her newsletter and feel free to follow her on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook!