Hard work and a great product/service are a big part of a successful business, but it’s also important to know how to sell yourself. To be very clear, selling yourself does not mean selling out. You do not have to drastically change the person you are nor do you have to become someone else. You may have to grow and change but at the end of the day, you are NOT a product, you are a person, and it’s okay to be you!
Why it’s important to sell yourself
Selling yourself is crucial for a variety of reasons. For starters, you attract more people. By putting yourself out there, you are showing everyone who you are. Furthermore, your comfortability in yourself will garner more attention, thus resulting in more deals. Throughout your process of learning to sell yourself, you may also start to discover your weaknesses and strengths. This is so essential to know as this can help you lean into your strengths and improve how well you sell yourself. Also, being comfortable in knowing who you are and working with all the bad (and good!) parts of yourself, is paramount, not only to success, but also overall happiness in life. Finally, selling yourself can enhance and deepen your relationships. When you are open with others, they are more likely to be open to you as well. Although it’s important to sell yourself, you may have a hard time knowing how to get there.
How to sell yourself
There are many different things you can do to learn how to sell yourself as the best version of you. One of the most vital things is to have confidence in yourself! You want to be happy with yourself and what you do/sell. If you do not know the worth of yourself and your products/services, how will others know the value in it either? As stated in the beginning, you are not a product, but, sometimes it can be helpful to imagine yourself this way to get a better understanding of the pros and cons of yourself and your product/service. By doing this, you can learn to highlight the awesome things you bring to the table and work through any negatives that could hinder how well you sell yourself. Next, be able to answer all the questions. You know yourself and your own business more than anyone else. Having all the answers to any question you may receive can help conversations flow smoothly and allow others to see you as more trust-worthy (since they know that you know what you are talking about). On the other hand, if you really don’t know something, it is better to be honest than lie to someone’s face. A good way to handle this is by responding with “You know, I don’t know the answer to that question right now, but I can take a look when I have time, and let you know!” Your honesty and drive to learn can leave a lasting impression that bodes better than a simple “I don’t know” or even worse, lying. Working on yourself will go a long way, but the other significant key to selling yourself is knowing how to talk to others.
It can be daunting for someone to think about going out and hyping themselves up to others. Whether this is because they perceive this as not being humble, are just shy, or don’t like the feeling of being center stage, it doesn’t matter. Selling yourself doesn’t mean becoming the motivational speaker for the entire room, it’s about being happy and comfortable in yourself and giving others the best part of that in your business. There are many tips and tricks to selling yourself in conversation. For one, be aware of how long you talk about yourself. By staying too focused on yourself, it can come across that you are not as interested in them, and for some, it may feel as if you have no humility. You want to focus on the client’s needs and not yourself. In addition to this, don’t go overboard when explaining things. Too much information at once can be overwhelming (and confusing) for some. Another thing to keep in mind is not everyone knows about what your job entails. This is to say that while you want to be presentable and professional, you don’t have to be so formal. It may be easier for you to imagine that you are talking to a young child. You want to be clear, use words they will understand (this means no work jargon!!!), and get your point across in a concise manner. Finally, stay positive and remember that good, non-verbal communication is necessary too. Good non-verbal communication looks like maintaining eye contact, having good posture, facing said person, etc. According to a study done by Harvard Medical School and the University of California, San Diego, happiness is infectious, so it’s fundamental to have a good attitude when selling yourself!
Go On and Sell Yourself!
Overall, selling yourself does not have to mean creating a whole new you. It’s about learning to bring your best qualities out and become comfortable in talking to others. As Dimitri Akhrin of CRMDialer says, “At the end of the day, sales is all about making a connection with people. You need to be able to sell yourself, as that’s how you can earn consumers’ trust. And once you have trust, you can sell your product successfully.” By selling yourself, you can enhance your business and your life!