Damn you, Netflix.
Karen and I are addicted to a television series that came out years ago. We watch it almost every night, and I won’t even tell you how many episodes we binge-watched on Sunday.
I’m talking about “Mad Men.”
When it first came out, I watched season one, and that was it. I wasn’t really into it, but oh have times changed.
The show centers around an advertising agency in the 1960s with Don Draper leading the charge as the creative director. There is more drinking, smoking, and philandering in this show that it makes your head spin. Heck, I feel drunk just watching it. Anyway, it’s a great show, especially for we sales and marketing folks.
What’s interesting is that until Don Draper starts his own agency in season 3, he is consistently at odds with the sales team. Creative runs the agency for sure. They think of the sales team as a necessary evil. But when old, Donnie Boy’s owns the place, and his livelihood is dependent on sales, his tune changes a little bit. Yes, he still believes that the creative team rules the roost, BUT he is much enthusiastic when the sales guys bring in new accounts. Heck, he even starts doing some selling.
The sad fact is that many business owners, especially those with advanced degrees, hold the same attitude Don had before he owned the agency. They feel that selling is somehow “below” them and that they are entitled to success because they are so skillful at their craft. This belief is so deeply ingrained in some entrepreneurs that they rather struggle or even go out of business than become a “salesman.”
Here is the truth: The ultimate success combination is to be excellent at your craft and a master of selling it. It’s not an either-or proposition.
If you want to get better at one-to-many selling so you can serve more people, then check out my crash course “Webinars That Sell” here:
Dave “Mad Men Rules ” Dee