Grant Cardone knows something about reinventing himself. He went from a poor kid struggling to pay for college to the best car salesman in Louisiana to a real estate mogul, author and one of the nation’s leading sales trainers. Along the way, he’s created a brand for himself and tweaked that brand to reflect the goals and qualities he’s picked up in the meantime.
January is not only bringing in a new year but a new decade and a perfect time to consider what qualities in yourself you want to reflect out into the world. Cardone’s got a little seasonal advice to consider for 2020.
“Be like Santa Claus,” he says. “Santa Claus is a successful dude.” Jolly St. Nick embodies some of the best qualities of a great salesman according to Cardone. Let’s take a look at how.
1. Claus and consistency.
Santa Claus doesn’t miss deadlines. If he did, Christmas would be ruined. “Year after year he shows up,” Cardone says.
A lot of people get into sales because they gravitate toward the freedom of being the master of their own results. Sales allows some people to work from home or keep their own schedule. A sales commission can mean making a large chunk of income in a single day as opposed to getting a paycheck every week that won’t go up until someone else decides to give you a raise.
But even without the obligations of a typical 9-to-5, you still have to show up. A big sale might allow you a financial cushion, but if you’re trying to build something big, you’ll be trying to replicate it the very next day. The world’s biggest accomplishments start with big ideas, but there’s no short cut around consistent hard work. People like to talk about Santa’s magic, but it’s quite the task he has to pull off every year. “The dude works his ass off,” Cardone says. “He works 24 hours a day.”
2. Santa Claus is his own brand.
What does every successful brand have in common? More people know they exist than buy their products. Do you think every single person who knows who you are is going to invest in you? Probably not. But people are put at ease by something they become familiar with. Try to think about the times you’ve unconsciously found a product more credible just because you come across someone else who’s heard of it.
Let’s be honest, Santa is allowed to break and enter our homes because we all know who he is. He’s a household name. “No matter where you live or what your religion is, you know about Santa Claus,” Cardone says.
You can’t be shy and build a brand. You might be an introvert in your personal life, but whatever you’re selling has to be extroverted. Santa might be doing charitable work, but he isn’t exactly modest about it. “He makes sure everybody knows it,” Cardone points out. There’s pageantry in creating something people will remember. “He’s got his reindeer. He’s got his sled. Everything’s a show-off thing.”
Of course, your product should speak for itself, but that’s usually how you keep customers coming back. The best way to get new customers is to create a brand that speaks to your customers. “[Santa] makes a lot of noise,” Cardone reminds us. “He’s in every store.”
3. Santa is EVERYWHERE.
Unless you are a very ambitious child reading SUCCESS.com, it’s possible you’re a little reticent to believe that Santa Claus’ ability to come down every chimney on Earth to deliver gifts to every single boy and girl could actually be of use to someone in, well, the real world.
But Cardone suggests that you don’t need magic to be everywhere at once. He developed the 10x Rule, which, among other things, states that whatever you think you want to accomplish, you should be trying to accomplish that goal multiplied by 10. You don’t get rewarded for a perfect sales percentage. What’s better: the commission on going 10 for 10 on sales pitches or the commission on going 65 for 100 on sales pitches?
“Santa Claus is the perfect example of the 10x Rule: He’s everywhere, omnipresent, believed by all,” Cardone says. “Even the people who don’t believe in Santa talk about Santa.”
When you’re pitching one person, you’re only on one person’s mind. Maybe you can only close one sale at a time, but you want numerous people thinking about you at a time. “The ultimate solution to all sales is the top of the funnel,” Cardone says. “Lots of leads.” There shouldn’t be too few people looking at your offer.
“Make sure you’re everywhere,” Cardone advises. “Pick up the pace this year. Be somebody that people look up to.”
Related: Grant Cardone’s 10x Commandments
Image by RetroClipArt / Shutterstock
