How to sell in an authentic way

One of the most common questions I get from my clients who are either starting a business or trying to grow one is this: “How do you sell yourself in a very authentic way?”

Most of us have something to offer and often, it’s something very valuable that could make a difference in someone’s life. We often get very clumsy when it comes to selling our services and we think that inevitable sleaze has to come with it, when it can be done in an authentic way. Stop right there because I have few tips for how to sell yourself in an authentic without the sleaze!

So many of you hate the word “selling” but we are all selling something to someone. I sell ideas to my kids and my hubby all the time. We are doing the same with our clients and people we serve but the problem arises when selling becomes inauthentic or clumsy. Here are a few things I have learned:

1. If you have a gig or a business and you are offering a service, you are selling. If you are coach, therapist, artist, teacher, healer- you are selling yourself or your work. See if you can substitute the selling for “making better”. You should truly believe in your work: service or product, then think about how much better the other person will be because of what you have to offer. Think about why you started this work and how excited you were at the start of it all.

2. Get your most confident self “ON”. Many amazing clients I work with are shy or nervous when presenting themselves. You have to find a way to get yourself into a state of confidence and assurance – the others then have to feel the same thing. If you cannot do this, you have to find someone who can do it for you but if you a solopreneur – it’s all you baby. I believe everyone can get there, but you need to start training yourself.

3. Integrity. You have to believe in what you have to offer, believe in yourself and always being 100% honest and transparent. When I did software sales, I had the courage (to the chagrin of my boss) to tell the customer that we couldn’t do everything they wanted if that was the case. Guess what – 95% of those people ended up still buying the product because they valued integrity over functionality that wasn’t even that important.

4. Besides keeping it simple and being yourself, there are a few tips and tricks when it comes to selling. For example, research shows that folks have to come into contact with you 7 times before they consider buying from you. I knew I had to make 20 calls to have one sale. If you don’t know some of these things, you are likely to get down on yourself and give up when progress could be just around the corner.

5. Find community of peers to talk to. Get into a Mastermind group and connect with likeminded people who will support you, give advice and cheer you on.

Lastly, none of this is complicated as we think it is It’s just that we get down on ourselves when we are working by ourselves – especially if you are a solopreneur working at home. Let this be a reminder to get back on the drawing board. You CAN do this.