Being a founder is always tough. Introverts tend to be inwardly focused and recharge when alone, but entrepreneurship often requires an outward lifestyle.
This post is part of a series surfacing being an introvert across selling, networking, leading, facing anxiety, and finding happiness.
Introverted personalities exist in a range, and extroverts face many of the same stressors. Hopefully, these posts offer insights and tips for everyone.
We start with sales because being an introvert can be both helpful and detrimental in that role. While salespeople are often depicted as gregarious, exuberant, story-telling extroverts, many successful ones are introverts.
"Sales is so much more than a loud car
salesman aggressively pushing you.
Truth is, people love to buy, but not to be sold."
– Matthew Pollard
Pollard continues, “Sales is a skill anyone can learn and master,” with introverts naturally having the right skills to succeed.
Sales System Needed
Effective selling depends on complementary personality and persistence.
Introverts can manage social anxiety by creating a clear process with only minor deviations. For instance, build a step for rapport. Theodore Roosevelt nailed it:
"People don't care how much you know
until they know how much you care."
Establishing rapport involves connecting emotionally with the person’s background, industry, or interests. Prepare a list of potential questions which you feel comfortable asking. Your questions may vary, but they will be finite. Then, rely on your ability to listen.
Next, introverts can control their anxiety by establishing a practiced meeting agenda that emphasizes asking questions to determine their needs.
For instance, you may ask how the business is doing, where it struggles most, and the costs (time, money, and pain) of its main challenges. Avoid talking about your company’s history, accomplishments, and offerings. The main idea is to listen – introverts are well-suited here.
If there is hesitation, rely on real and rehearsed stories to explain how you solved problems for customers like them. The practice makes it less anxious.
Throughout the encounter, focus on the process and not the sale.
By following a familiar path, you mitigate any stress with familiarity. By embracing a process, you will focus on elements you control, channel uncertainty into repetition, and design experiments to keep improving.
Finally, identify your audience's underlying needs and communicate how you can improve their lives. Use your reflection to gain their insight.
Being successful in sales as an introvert depends on following a process, incorporating your genuine personality, and focusing on improvement.
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This post was written by me with AI editing. The image is AI generated.
Special thanks to Matthew Pollard and Derek Lewis who wrote The Introvert's Edge: How the Quiet and Shy Can Outsell Anyone
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