UC-NRLF 
 

 
 
THE PSYCHOLOGY OF 
 
 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 BY 
 
 WILLIAM WALKER ATKINSON 
 
 Vi 
 
 L. N. FOWLER & COMPANY 
 
 7, Imperial Arcade, Ludgate Circus 
 
 London, E. C., England 
 
 1912 
 
 THE ELIZABETH TOWNE CO. 
 HOLYOKE, MASS. 
 
Copyright 1912 
 
 By 
 ELIZABETH TOWNE 
 
THE PSYCHOLOGY OF 
 
 SALESMANSHIP 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER PAGE 
 
 I. Psychology in Business 9 
 
 II. The Mind of the Salesman 28 
 
 III. The Mind of the Salesman (con- 
 
 tinued) ...... 47 
 
 IV. The Mind of the Buyer 70 
 
 V. The Mind of the Buyer (contin- 
 ued) 91 
 
 VI. The Pre- Approach .... ,. . .114 
 
 VII. The Psychology of Purchase 137 
 
 VIII. The Approach ..167 / 
 
 IX. The Demonstration 193 
 
 X. The Closing . .,. 222 
 
OHAPTEE I 
 
 PSYCHOLOGY IN BUSINESS 
 
 Uintil the last few years the mere mention 
 of the word "psychology" in connection with 
 business was apt to be greeted with a shrug 
 of the shoulders, a significant raising of 
 the eyebrows and a change of the subject. 
 Psychology was a subject that savored of the 
 class room, or else was thought to be somehow 
 concerned with the soul, or possibly related 
 to the abnormal phenomena generally classi- 
 fied as ' ' psychic. " The average business man 
 was apt to impatiently resent the introduction 
 into business of class room topics, or specula- 
 tion regarding the soul, or of theories and 
 tales regarding clairvoyance, telepathy, or 
 general "spookiness" for these were the 
 things included in his concept of "psy- 
 chology. ' ' 
 
 But a change has come to the man in busi- 
 ness. He has heard much of late years re- 
 
 9 
 
10 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 garding psychology in business affairs, and 
 has read something on the subject. He un- 
 derstands now that psychology means "the 
 science of the mind" and is not necessarily the 
 same as metaphysics or ' ' psychism. ' ' He has 
 had brought home to him the fact that psy- 
 chology plays a most important part in busi- 
 ness, and that it is quite worth his while to 
 acquaint himself with its fundamental prin- 
 ciples. In fact, if he has thought sufficiently 
 on the subject, he will have seen that the 'entire 
 process of selling goods, personally, or by 
 means of advertising or display, is essentially 
 a mental process depending upon the state of 
 mind induced in the purchaser, and that these 
 states of mind are induced solely by reason 
 of certain established principles of psy- 
 phology. Whether the salesman, or advertiser, 
 realizes this or not, he is employing psy- 
 chological principles in attracting the atten- 
 tion, arousing the interest, creating the desire, 
 and moving the will of the purchaser of his 
 jgoods. 
 
 The best authorities on salesmanship and 
 advertising now recognize this fact and em- 
 phasize it in their writings. George French, 
 
PSYCHOLOGY IN BUSINESS 11 
 
 in Ms "Art and Science of Advertising" says 
 regarding psychology in advertising: "So 
 we can dismiss the weird word, and simply 
 acknowledge that we can sell things to a manV 
 more readily if we know the man. We can't 
 personally know every man to whom we wish 
 to sell goods. We must therefore consider if 
 there are not certain ways of thinking and of 
 acting which are common to all men, or to a 
 large proportion of men. If we can discover 
 the laws governing the action of men's minds^ 
 we will know how to appeal to those men. We 
 know how to appeal to Smith, because we know 
 Smith. We know what will please Brown, be- 
 cause we know Brown. We know how to get 
 our way with Jones, because we know Jones. 
 What the advertiser must know is how to get 
 at Smith, Brown, and Jones without knowing 
 any of them. While every man has his per- 
 sonal peculiarities, and while every mind has 
 its peculiar method of dealing with the facts 
 of life, every man and every mind is con- 
 trolled, in a large sense and to a great extent, 
 by predilections and mind-workings which 
 were established before he lived, and are 
 operated in a manner separate from his per- 
 
12 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 sonality. Our minds are more automatic, 
 more mechanical, than we are willing to ad- 
 mit. That which we loosely call mind is 
 largely the automatic expression of tendencies 
 controlled by physical conditions wholly apart 
 from conscious intellectual or moral motives 
 or qualities. What those physical conditions 
 are, and how the knowledge of what they are 
 may be utilized by advertisers, forms the body 
 of that new knowledge some like to call psy- 
 chology, so far as it concerns advertising." 
 Mr. French has well expressed the idea of the 
 important part played in business by psy- 
 chology. "What he says is, of course, as ap- 
 plicable to personal salesmanship as to sales- 
 manship through advertisements the same 
 principles are present and operative in both 
 cases. 
 
 In order to bring to the mind of the reader 
 the full idea of the operation of psychological 
 principles in the sale of goods, we shall men- 
 tion a few particular instances in which these 
 principles have played a part. Each reader 
 will be able to recollect many similar instances, 
 once his attention is called to the matter. 
 
 Prof. Halleck, a well known authority on 
 
PSYCHOLOGY IN BUSINESS 13 
 
 psychology says: "Business men say that 
 the ability to gain the attention is often the 
 secret of success in life. Enormous salaries 
 are paid to persons who can write advertise- 
 ments certain to catch the eye. A publisher 
 said that he had sold only five thousand copies 
 of an excellent work, merely because it had 
 failed to catch the attention of many, and 
 that twenty-five thousand copies could have 
 been disposed of in the same time, if agents 
 had forced them upon the notice of people. 
 Druggists say that any kind of patent medi- 
 cine can be sold, if it is so advertised as to 
 strike the attention in a forcible manner. 
 Business life has largely resolved itself into 
 a battle to secure the attention of people. ' ' 
 
 The same excellent authority says, regard- 
 ing the effect of associated ideas: "An emi- 
 nent philosopher has said that man is com- 
 pletely at the mercy of the association of his 
 ideas. Every new object is seen in the light 
 of its associated ideas. * * * The principle 
 of the association of ideas is sufficient to ac- 
 count for the change in fashions. A woman in 
 a southern city had a bonnet that she particu- 
 larly admired, until she one day saw three 
 
14 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 negresses wearing precisely the same pattern. 
 She never appeared again in that bonnet. 
 When a style of dress becomes i common,' and 
 is worn by the lower classes, it is discarded 
 by the fashionable people. Fashions that are 
 absolutely repulsive will often be adopted if 
 they are introduced by popular or noted 
 people. * * * A knowledge of the power 
 of the association of ideas is of the utmost 
 importance in business. One man has his 
 store so planned that all its associations are 
 pleasing, from the manner of the clerks to 
 the fixtures and drapery. Another store 
 brings up unpleasant associations. * * * 
 When negligee hats first made their appear- 
 ance, a shrewd hatter sent for a well-dressed 
 and popular collegian and offered him his 
 choice of the best hats in the store, if he would 
 wear a negligee hat for three days. He ob- 
 jected to making such an exhibition of himself, 
 until he was flattered by the hatter's wager 
 that the hats could, in this way, be made the 
 fashion for the entire town. When the col- 
 legian first put in his appearance on the 
 campus with the hat, he was guyed for his 
 oddity. Late in the afternoon, some of his 
 
PSYCHOLOGY IN BUSINESS 15 
 
 friends concluded that the hat looked so well 
 that they would invest. On the following day 
 large numbers reached the same conclusion. 
 For some time after this the hatter found 
 difficulty in keeping a sufficient supply in 
 stock. Had an unpopular or poorly dressed 
 man appeared first on the campus with that 
 hat, the result would have been the reverse. 
 The hat would have been the same, but the 
 association of ideas would have differed. 
 Some of the ladies of fashion in a large Euro- 
 pean city selected on their own responsibility, 
 without consulting the milliners, a cheap 
 spring Manilla hat, which was very hand- 
 some. The milliners found themselves with 
 a high-priced stock for which there was no 
 demand. They held a council, bought a large 
 number of the cheap hats, and put them on 
 the heads of all the female street sweepers and 
 scavengers in the town. When the ladies of 
 fashion went out the next day, they were 
 amazed to see the very dregs of the city ar- 
 rayed in headgear like their own. It was not 
 very long before the result was what might 
 have been expected. " 
 In a previous work of the present writer, 
 
16 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 the following illustrations of the effect of 
 psychological suggestion in advertising were 
 used : 
 
 The use of the "direct command" as the 
 "ad. men" call it, is very common. People 
 are positively told to do certain things in these 
 advertisements. They are told to ' ' take home 
 a cake of Hinky-dink's Soap tonight; your 
 wife needs it ! " And they do it. Or they see 
 a mammoth hand pointing down at them from 
 a sign, and almost hear the corresponding 
 mammoth voice as it says (in painted words) : 
 "Say you! Smoke Honey-Dope Cigars; 
 they 're the best ever ! ! ! " And, if you manage 
 to reject the command the first time, you 
 will probably yield at the repeated suggestion 
 of the same thing being hurled at you at every 
 corner and high fence, and "Honey-Dope" 
 will be your favorite brand until some other 
 suggestion catches you. Suggestion by au- 
 thority and repetition, remember ; that's what 
 does the business for you! They call this 
 the "Direct Command" in the advertising 
 schools. Then there are some other subtle 
 forms of suggestion in advertising. You see 
 staring from every bit of space, on billboard 
 
PSYCHOLOGY IN BUSINESS 17 
 
 and in newspapers and magazines : "Uwanta 
 Cracker," or something of that sort and you 
 usually wind up by acquiescing. And then 
 you are constantly told that "Babies howl 
 for Grandma Hankin's Infantile Soother," 
 and then when you hear some baby howling 
 you think of what you have been told they 
 are howling for, and then you run and buy a 
 bottle of "Grandma Hankin's." Then you 
 are told that some cigar is "Generously 
 Liberal" in size and quality; or that some 
 kind of Cocoa is "Grateful and Befreshing"; 
 or that some brand of soap is "99.999% 
 Pure" ; etc., etc. Only last night I saw a new 
 one -"Somebody's Whisky is Smooth," and 
 every imbiber in the car was smacking his 
 lips and thinking about the "smooth" feeling 
 in his mouth and throat. It was smooth the 
 idea, not the stuff, I mean. And some other 
 whiskey man shows a picture of a glass, a 
 bottle, some ice and a syphon of seltzer, with 
 simply these words: "Oldboy's Highball- 
 That 's all!" All of these things are sugges- 
 tions, and some of them are very powerful 
 ones, too, when constantly impressed upon 
 the mind by repetition. * * * I have 
 
18 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 known dealers in Spring goods to force the 
 season by filling their windows with their ad- 
 vance stock. I have seen hat dealers start up 
 the straw hat season by putting on a straw 
 themselves, their clerks ditto, and then a few 
 friends. The sprinkling of "straws" gave a 
 suggestion to the street, and the straw hat 
 season was opened. 
 
 Dr. Herbert A. Parkyn, an authority on 
 Suggestion, draws the following picture from 
 life of a retail merchant who is suffering from 
 the effect of adverse psychological influences 
 resulting from his pessimistic mental atti- 
 tude. The present writer can vouch for the 
 accuracy of Dr. Parkyn 's picture, for he 
 knows the original of the sketch. Dr. Parkyn 
 says of the storekeeper: 
 
 "He is the proprietor of a store in a neigh- 
 boring city ; but such a store it almost gives 
 me the blues to go into it ! His windows are 
 dressed year in and year out with the same 
 old signs, and there is nothing to give the 
 store the cheerful appearance so essential to 
 an up-to-date business establishment But 
 the atmosphere of the place is only in keeping 
 with the proprietor. When he started in busi- 
 
PSYCHOLOGY IN BUSINESS 19 
 
 ness thirty years ago he employed eight 
 clerks, but his business has fallen off till he 
 does all the work himself and is scarcely able 
 now to pay rent, although competitors around 
 him are increasing their business steadily 
 every year. In the course of a fifteen minute 's 
 conversation, the first time I met him, he told 
 me all his troubles, which were many. Ac- 
 cording to his story, everyone had been try- 
 ing to get the better of him ever since he 
 started in business ; his competitors resorted 
 to unfair business methods ; his landlord was 
 endeavoring to drive him out by raising his 
 rent; he could not get an honest clerk in his 
 store; an old man had not an equal chance 
 with a young man; he could not understand 
 why people he had catered to so faithfully 
 should be so ungrateful or so fickle as to give 
 their patronage to every upstart who went 
 into business in the same line as his ; he sup- 
 posed that he could work along, as he was 
 doing, from morning till night without a 
 holiday till he was driven to the poorhouse 
 or died, and although he had been in the same 
 stand for fifteen years there was not a single 
 person he could call on if in need of a friend, 
 
20 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 etc. Although I have had occasion to visit 
 him many times during business hours, I have 
 never heard him address a cheerful or en- 
 couraging remark to a customer. On the other 
 hand he waited on them, not only with an air 
 of indifference, but apparently as if he were 
 doing them a favor by allowing them to trade 
 at his store, while others who dropped in to 
 ask permission to use his telephone or to en- 
 quire about residents in the neighborhood were 
 soon given to understand by his manner and 
 answers that he considered them a nuisance 
 and hoped they had not mistaken his store for 
 an information bureau. I have purposely led 
 him into other channels of conversation, with 
 the same result ; everything was going to the 
 dogs the city, the country, etc. No matter 
 what was talked about, his remarks were sat- 
 urated with pessimism. He was ready to 
 blame everything and everyone for his con- 
 dition, and when I ventured to suggest that 
 much of his trouble was due to his attitude 
 he was ready to show me to the door. 
 If he would but cast his bread upon the waters 
 for a few weeks by bestowing a smile here and 
 a smile there, or a cheerful encouraging word 
 
PSYCHOLOGY IN BUSINESS 21 
 
 to this customer and that customer, he would 
 certainly feel better for the giving, and they 
 would return to him a thousand fold. If he 
 would only assume that he is prosperous and 
 proceed to give his store an air of prosperity, 
 how much more attractive he could make his 
 place look and how much more inviting it 
 would be for customers ! If he would assume 
 that every person that entered his store was 
 his guest, whether he made a purchase or not, 
 people would feel like returning to his store 
 when they wanted anything in his line. I 
 could suggest a hundred ways in which this 
 man could employ suggestion and auto-sug- 
 gestion to increase his business, to draw 
 friends to him, instead of driving them away, 
 and to make the world and himself better and 
 happier while he lives in it." 
 
 But, you may ask, what has all this to do 
 with psychology in salesmanship what has 
 the matter of advertising, store display, per- 
 sonal manner, etc., to do with salesmanship? 
 Just this much, that all these things are based 
 on the same fundamental principles as is 
 salesmanship, and that these fundamental 
 principles are those of psychology. All that 
 
22 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 has been said refers to psychology all is the 
 effect of psychology pure and simple. All 
 depends upon the mental attitude, the sugges- 
 tions offered, the mental states induced, the 
 motive to the will all these outward things 
 are merely the effects of inner mental states. 
 J. W. Kennedy, in "Judicious Advertising" 
 says: "Advertising is just salesmanship on 
 paper ; a mere money-making means of selling 
 goods rapidly. That * mysterious something' 
 is just printed persuasion and its other name 
 is ' selling conviction. ' Conviction can be im- 
 parted at will by those few writers who have 
 closely studied the thought processes by which 
 conviction is induced. The mission of every 
 ad. is to convert readers into buyers." Geo. 
 Dyers, in the same journal says: "Adver- 
 tising takes into account the sub-conscious im- 
 pressions, the varying phases of suggestion 
 and association as received through the eye, 
 the psychology of the direct command, all 
 worth earnest consideration, and seriously to 
 be reckoned with, however we may balk at the 
 terms. Seth Brown in ' ' Salesmanship ' 9 says : 
 "To make advertising which will sell goods 
 requires development of the human part of 
 
PSYCHOLOGY IN BUSINESS 23 
 
 the writer. He must realize the different 
 forces which command Attention, Interest, 
 Desire and Conviction. The buyer wants 
 your goods because they will produce for 
 him some definite effect or result. It is this 
 result that the ad. man must keep in mind." 
 
 "But," you may also say, "after all this 
 i psychology' seems to be nothing else than 
 what we have always known as * human na- 
 ture' there is nothing new about this." 
 Exactly so ! Psychology is the inner science of 
 human nature. Human nature depends en- 
 tirely upon psychological processes it is 
 bound up with the activities of the mind. The 
 study of human nature is the study of the 
 minds of people. But whereas the study of 
 human nature, as usually conducted, is a hap- 
 hazard, hit-or-miss sort of undertaking, the 
 study of the mind, according to the established 
 principles of psychology, is of the nature of 
 the study of science, and is pursued according 
 to scientific methods. 
 
 Particularly in its phase of Salesmanship 
 does the study of human nature along the lines 
 of psychology become a science. From the 
 first to the last Salesmanship is a psycholog- 
 
24 SALESMANSHIP ' 
 
 "Heal subject. Every step in the process of a 
 sale is a mental process. The mental attitude 
 and mental expression of the salesman; the 
 mental attitude and mental impression of the 
 customer; the process of arousing the atten- 
 tion, awakening curiosity or interest, creating 
 desire, satisfying the reason, and moving the 
 willall these are purely mental processes, 
 and the study of them becomes a branch of the 
 study of psychology. The display of goods on 
 the counters, shelves, or windows of a store, 
 or in the hands of the salesman on the road, 
 must be based upon psychological principles. 
 The argument of the salesman must not only 
 be logical but must be so arranged and worded 
 as to arouse certain feelings or faculties 
 within the mind of the prospective buyer this 
 is psychology. And finally, the closing of the 
 sale, in which the object is to arouse the will 
 of the buyer into final favorable action this 
 also is psychology. From the entrance of the 
 salesman to the final, closing of the' sale, each 
 and every step is a psychological process. A 
 sale is the action and reaction of mind upon 
 mind, according to well established psycholog- 
 
 ~ ical principles and rules. Salesmanship is 
 
PSYCHOLOGY IN BUSINESS 25 
 
 essentially a psychological science as all must 
 admit who will give to the subject a logical 
 consideration. To those who object to the 
 term "psychology" because of its newness 
 and unfamiliar sound, we do not care to urge 
 the term. Let such cling to their old term of 
 " human nature," remembering however that 
 "human nature" is essentially mental. A 
 dead man, a man asleep or; in a trance, or an 
 idiot, manifests no "human nature" in the 
 sense the word is generally used. A man 
 must be alive, wide awake, and in possession 
 of his senses, before he is able to manifest 
 "human nature," and before his "human 
 nature" may be appealed to according to the 
 well known principles. "Human nature" 
 cannot be divorced from psychology, try as 
 we may. 
 
 We do not for a moment wish to imply that 
 Salesmanship is entirely dependent upon a 
 knowledge of psychology. There are other 
 factors concerned. For instance, the sales- 
 man must possess a practical knowledge of 
 his goods; of the seasons; of the trend of 
 if ashion in relation to his line ; of the adaptabil- 
 |ity of certain goods for certain sections. But, 
 
26 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 waiving for the moment the point that even 
 these are concerned with the mind of people 
 at the last, and admitting that they may be 
 considered as independent of psychology, all 
 of these points will avail nothing if the sales- 
 man violates the psychological principles of 
 the sale. Give such a man the best goods, of 
 the best house, with a thorough knowledge of 
 the requirements of the trade and the goods 
 themselves, and send him forth to sell those 
 goods. The result will be that his sales will 
 fall below the mark of a man far less well 
 equipped in other respects but who under- 
 stands the psychology of salesmanship, either 
 intuitively or else by conscious acquirement. 
 Inasmuch as the essence of Salesmanship 
 
 ^is the employment of the proper psychological 
 principles, does it not seem imperative that 
 the salesman should know something of the 
 Mind of Man the instrument upon which he 
 must play in plying his vocation? Should not 
 
 -"Ehe salesman possess the same kind of knowl- 
 edge of his instrument as does the musician, 
 the mechanic, the artisan, the artist? What 
 would be thought of one who would expect to 
 become an expert swordsman without a knowl- 
 
PSYCHOLOGY IN BUSINESS 27 
 
 edge of the principles of fencing, or of one 
 who would expect to become a boxer without 
 mastering the established principle of boxing? 
 The instruments of the salesman are his own 
 mind and the mind of his customers. He 
 should acquaint himself thoroughly with 
 
CHAPTER II 
 
 THE MIND OF THE SALESMAN 
 
 In the Psychology of Salesmanship there 
 are two important elements, viz: (1) The 
 Mind of the Salesman; and (2) the Mind of 
 the Buyer. The proposition, or the goods to 
 be sold, constitute the connecting link between 
 the two Minds, or the common point upon 
 which the two Minds must unite, blend, and 
 come to agreement. The Sale itself is the 
 result of the fusion and agreement of the 
 two Minds- the product of the action and re- 
 action between them. Let us now proceed to 
 a consideration of the two important elements, 
 the Two Minds involved in the process of 
 Salesmanship. 
 
 Beginning our consideration of the Mind 
 of the Salesman, let us realize that upon his 
 mind depends his character and personality. 
 His character is composed of his individual 
 mental qualities or attributes. His person- 
 
 28 
 
MIND OF THE SALESMAN 29 
 
 ality is his customary outward expression of 
 Ms character. Both character and personal- 
 ity may be altered, changed and improved. 
 And there is in each person a central some- 
 thing which he calls "I," which is able to 
 order and manifest these changes in his char- 
 acter and personality. While it may be 
 argued plausibly that a man is merely a com- 
 posite of his characteristics and nothing more, 
 nevertheless there is always in each the con- 
 sciousness that in his real "I" there is a 
 something which is above and behind char- 
 acteristics, and which may regulate the latter. 
 Without attempting to lead the reader into 
 the maze of metaphysics, or the pitfalls of 
 philosophy, we wish to impress upon him the 
 fact that his mental being has for its inner- 
 most centre of consciousness this mysterious 
 "I," the nature of which no one has ever been 
 able to determine, but which when fully real- 
 ized imparts to one a strength and force un- 
 dreamed of before. 
 
 And it is well worth while for everyone 
 seeking self-development and self-improve- 
 ment to awaken to a clear realization of this 
 "I" within him, to which every faculty, every 
 
30 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 quality, every characteristic is an instrument 
 of expression and manifestation. The real 
 "you" is not the characteristics or features of 
 personality, which change from time to time, 
 but a permanent, changeless, centre and back- 
 ground of the changes of personality a 
 something that endures through all changes, 
 and which you simply know as "I." In the 
 volume of this series, entitled "The New Psy- 
 chology," in the chapter entitled "The Ego, 
 or Self" we have spoken of this in detail. 
 Further mention would be out of place in the 
 present volume, but we may be pardoned for 
 quoting the following from the said chapter, 
 for we feel that a realization of this "I" is 
 most important to each person who wishes to 
 master his own mind, and to create his own 
 personality. Here follows the quotation: 
 
 "The consciousness of the 'I* is above! per- 
 sonality -it is something inseparable from 
 individuality. * * * The consciousness 
 of the 'I* is an actual experience, just as much 
 as is the consciousness of the page before 
 you. * * * The whole subject of The 
 New Psychology is bound up with this recog- 
 nition of the 'I' it revolves around this *P 
 
MIND OF THE SALESMAN 31 
 
 as a wheel around its centre. We regard the 
 mental faculties, powers, organs, qualities, 
 and modes of expression, as merely instru- 
 ments, tools, or channels of expression of this 
 wonderful Something the Self, the pure Ego 
 the 'I.' And this is the message of The 
 New Psychology that You, the 'I,' have at 
 your command a wonderful array of mental 
 instruments, tools, machinery, which if prop- 
 erly used will create for you any kind of per- 
 sonality you may desire. You are the Master 
 Workman who may make of yourself what 
 you will. But before you can appreciate this 
 truth before you can make it your own be- 
 fore you can apply it you must enter into a 
 recognition and realization of this wonderful 
 'I' that you are, to which body and senses, 
 yea, even the mind itself, are but channels of 
 expression. You are something more than 
 body, or senses, or mind you are that won- 
 derful Something, master of all these things, 
 but of which you can say but one thing: 'I 
 AM.'" 
 
 But remember, always, that this realization 
 of the Ego does not mean egotism, or self- 
 conceit, or comparison of your character or 
 
32 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 personality with that of others. It is Egoism 
 not Egotism and Egoism means simply the 
 realization of this ' ' Master-Consciousness ' ' to 
 which all other mental faculties are subordin- 
 ate. If you want some other name for it, you 
 may consider this "I" as the "Will of the 
 will," for it is the very essence of will-power 
 it is, so to speak, the Will conscious of itself. 
 By means of the realization, you will find it far 
 easier to cultivate the mental qualities in 
 which you are deficient, and to restrain unde- 
 sirable characteristics. The spirit of the idea 
 may be gained by a careful understanding of 
 the following from the pen of Charles F. 
 Lummis: "I'm all right. I am bigger than 
 anything that can happen to me. All these 
 things are outside my door, and I've got the 
 key!" 
 
 The mental qualities most requisite to the 
 Salesman may be stated as follows : 
 
 1. 'Self Respect. It is important to the 
 Salesman that he cultivate the faculty of Self 
 Bespect By this we do not mean egotism, 
 conceit, superciliousness, imperiousness, hau- 
 teur, snobbishness, etc., all of which are detri- 
 mental qualities. Self Eespect, on the con- 
 
 
MIND OF THE SALESMAN 33 
 
 trary imparts the sense of true manhood or 
 womanhood, self-reliance, dignity, courage 
 and independence. It is the spirit of Black 
 Hawk, the Indian chieftain, who, lifting his 
 head said to Jackson: "I am a Man!" It is 
 entirely opposed to the crawling, cringing 
 "worm of the dust," mental attitude of Uriah 
 Heep, s who was continually asserting how 
 humble how very humble he was. Learn to 
 look the world in the eyes without flinching. 
 Throw off the fear of the crowd, and the im- 
 pression that you are unworthy. Learn to be- 
 lieve in yourself, and to respect yourself. Let 
 your motto be ' ' I Can ; I Will ; I Dare ; I Do ! ' ' 
 Self Eespeet is a sure antidote for the feel- 
 ing of fear, e ur use of inferiority, and 
 other negoiiv^ which sometimes op- 
 press the Salesman when he is about to enter 
 into the of some "big man." Ee- 
 member that the num's personality is merely 
 a mask, and that behind it is merely an "I" 
 like your own no more, no less. Eemember 
 that behind the "John Smith" part of you 
 tlu same kind of "I" that exists 
 b' viud ,gh Mucky-muck" part of him. 
 Remember that you are Man approaching 
 
34 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 Man not a worm approaching a god. Be- 
 mmber that just as Kipling says the: "The 
 Colonel's lady and Judy O'Grady are sisters 
 under their skin/ 9 so are you and the big 
 man twin "IV beneath the covering of per- 
 sonality, position, and outward appearance. 
 By cultivating the realization of the "I," of 
 which we have told you, you will acquire a new 
 sense of Self Eespect which will render you 
 immune from the feeling of bashfulness, in- 
 feriority and fear in the presence of others. 
 Unless a man respects himself, he cannot ex- 
 pect others to respect him. He should build 
 up his true individuality and respect it, being 
 careful, always, not to get "side-tracked" by 
 egotism, vanity and similar follies of person- 
 ality. It is not your personality which is en- 
 titled to respect, but your individuality, which 
 is something far different. The personality 
 belongs to the outer man, the individuality to 
 the inner. 
 
 One's physical carriage and attitude tends 
 to react upon his own mental attitude as well 
 as also impressing those in whose piesence he 
 is. There is always an action and reaction 
 between mind and body. Just as mental 
 
MIND OF THE SALESMAN 35 
 
 states take form in physical actions, so do 
 physical actions react upon the mind and in- 
 fluence mental states. Frown continually and 
 you will feel cross; smile and you will feel 
 cheerful. Carry yourself like a man, and you 
 will feel like a man. Carl H. Pierce says re- 
 garding the proper carriage of a salesman: 
 "Bemember that you are asking no favors; 
 that you have nothing to apologize for, and 
 that you have every reason in the world to 
 hold your head up high. And it is wonderful 
 what this holding of the head will do in the 
 way of increasing sales. "We have seen sales- 
 men get entrance to the offices of Broadway 
 buyers simply through the holding of the head 
 straight up from the shoulders. The rule to 
 follow is : Have your ear lobes directly over 
 your shoulders, so that a plumb line hung from 
 the ears describes the line of your body. Be 
 sure not to carry the head either to the right 
 or left but vertical. Many men make the. mis- 
 take, especially when waiting for a prospect to 
 finish some important piece of business, of 
 leaning the he^d either to the right or left. 
 This indicates weakness. A study of men dis- 
 closes the fact that the strong men never tilt 
 
36 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 the head. Their heads sit perfectly straight on 
 strong necks. Their shoulders, held easily yet 
 firmly in correct position, are inspiring in 
 their strength indicating poise. Every line 
 of the body, in other words, denotes the 
 thought of the bearer." 
 
 So cultivate not only the inner sense of 
 Self Bespect, but also the outward indications 
 of that mental state. Thus do you secure the 
 benefit of the action and reaction between 
 body and mind. 
 
 II. Poise. The salesman should cultivate 
 Poise, which manifests in balance, tranquility 
 and ease. Poise is that mental quality which 
 maintains a natural balance between the vari- 
 ous faculties, feelings, emotions and tenden- 
 cies. It is the assertion of the "I" as the 
 Master and controller of the mental states, 
 feelings, and action. Poise enables one to 
 correctly balance himself, mentally, instead of 
 allowing his feelings or emotions to run away 
 with him. Poise enables one to remain the 
 Master of Himself, instead of "slopping 
 over" on the one hand, or of "losing his 
 nerve" on the other. Poise enables one to 
 "keep himself well in hand." The man who 
 
MIND OF THE SALESMAN 37 
 
 has Poise indeed has Power, for he is never 
 thrown off his balance, and consequently al- 
 ways remains master of the situation. Did 
 you ever hear of, or see, the Gyroscope? Well, 
 it is a peculiar little mechanical contrivance 
 consisting of a whirling wheel within a frame 
 work, the peculiarity consisting of the ar- 
 rangement and action of the wheel which by 
 its motion always maintains its balance and 
 equilibrium. No matter how the little ap- 
 paratus is turned, it always maintains its- 
 equilibrium. It is likely to play an important 
 part in aerial navigation and mono-rail sys- 
 tems of transportation, in the future. 
 
 Well, here is the point be a Mental Gyro- 
 scope. Cultivate the mental quality which 
 acts automatically in the direction of keeping 
 your balance and centre of mental gravity. 
 This does not mean that you should be a prig, 
 or a solemn-faced smug bore, with an assump- 
 tion of supernatural dignity. On the con- 
 trary, always be natural in manner and action. 
 The point is to always maintain your balance, 
 and mental control, instead of allowing your 
 feelings or emotions to run away with you. 
 Poise means Masterylack of it means 
 
38 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 Slavery. As Edward Carpenter says: "How 
 rare indeed to meet a man! How common 
 rather to discover a creature hounded on by 
 tyrant thoughts (or cares, or desires), cower- 
 ing, wincing under the lash or perchance 
 priding himself to run merrily in obedience 
 to a driver that rattles the reins and per- 
 suades himself that he is free." Poise is the 
 Mental Gyroscope keep it in good working 
 order. 
 
 III. Cheerfulness. The "bright, cheer- 
 ful and happy" mental attitude, and the out- 
 ward manifestation of the same, is a magnet 
 of success to the salesman. The "grouch" 
 is the negative pole of personality, and does 
 more to repel people than almost any other 
 quality. So much in demand is the cheerful 
 demeanor and mental state, that people often 
 give undue preference to those possessing it, 
 and pass over a "grouchy" individual of 
 merit in favor of the man of less merit but 
 who possesses the "sunshine" in his person- 
 ality. The "man with the southern exposure" 
 is in demand. There is enough in the world 
 to depress people without having gloom thrust 
 
MIND or THE SALESMAN 39 
 
 upon them by persons calling to sell goods. 
 Well has the poet said : 
 
 " Laugh, and the world laughs with you; 
 
 Weep, and you weep alone. 
 For this sad old earth is in need of mirth ; 
 
 It has troubles enough of its own. ftv 
 
 The world prefers " Happy Jim" to 
 "Gloomy Gus," and will bestow its favors 
 upon the first while turning a cold shoulder to 
 the second. The Human Wet Blanket is not 
 a welcome guest, while the individual who 
 manages to "let a little sunshine in" upon all 
 occasions is always welcome. The optimistic 
 and cheerful spirit creates for itself an atmos- 
 phere which, perhaps unconsciously, diffuses 
 itself in all places visited by the individual. 
 Cheerfulness is contagious, and is a most 
 valuable asset. We have known individuals 
 whose sunny exteriors caused a relief in the 
 tension on the part of those whom they 
 visited. We have heard it said of such peo- 
 ple: "I am always glad to see that fellow 
 he brightens me up." This does not mean 
 that one should endeavor to become a pro- 
 fessional wit, a clown, or a comedian that is 
 
40 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 not the point. The idea underlying this 
 mental state and attribute of personality is 
 Cheerfulness, and a disposition to look on 
 the bright side of things, and to manifest that 
 mental state as the sun does its rays. Learn 
 to radiate Cheerfulness. It is not so much a 
 matter of saying things, as it is a matter of 
 thinking them. A man's inner thoughts are 
 reflected in his outward personality. 
 
 So cultivate the inner Cheerfulness before 
 you can hope to manifest its outer character- 
 istics. There is nothing so pitiful, or which 
 falls so flat, as a counterfeit Cheerfulness it 
 is worse that the minstrel jokes of the last 
 decade. To be cheerful one does not have to 
 be a " funny man. "VThe atmosphere of true 
 Cheerfulness can proceed only from within. 
 The higher-class Japanese instruct their chil- 
 dren to maintain a cheerful demeanor and a 
 smiling face no matter what happens, even 
 though the heart is breaking. They consider 
 this the obligation of their caste, and regard 
 it as most unworthy of the person, as well as 
 insulting to others, to manifest any other 
 demeanor or expression. Their theory, which 
 forms a part of their wonderful code called 
 
MIND OF THE SALESMAN 41 
 
 "Bushido," is that it is an impertinence to 
 obtrude one's grief, sorrow, misfortunes, or 
 "grouch," upon others. They reserve for 
 their own inner circle their sorrows and pains, 
 and always present a cheerful and bright ap- 
 pearance to others. The Salesman would do 
 well to remember the "Bushido," -he needs 
 it in his business. Avoid the * ' grouch ' ' mental 
 state as you would a pestilence. Don't be a 
 "knocker" for "knocks," like -chickens, 
 come home to roost, bringing their chicks with 
 them. 
 
 IV- Politeness. Courtesy is a valuable 
 asset to a Salesman. Not only this, but it is 
 a trait characteristic of gentlemen in all walks 
 of life, and is a duty toward oneself as well as 
 toward others. By politeness and courtesy 
 we do not mean the formal, artificial outward 
 acts and remarks which are but the counter- 
 feit of the real thing, but, instead, that re- 
 spectful demeanor toward others which is the 
 mark' of innate refinement and good-breeding. 
 Courtesy and politeness do not necessarily 
 consist of formal rules of etiquette, but of an 
 inner sympathy and understanding of others 
 which manifests in a courteous demeanor to- 
 
42 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 ward them. Everyone likes to be treated with 
 appreciation and understanding and is will- 
 ing to repay the same in like form. One does 
 not need to be a raw "jollier" in order to be 
 polite. Politeness true politeness comes 
 from within, and it is almost impossible to 
 imitate it successfully. Its spirit may be ex- 
 pressed by the idea of trying to see the good 
 in everyone and then acting toward the per- 
 son as if his good were in plain evidence. 
 Give to those with whom you come in con- 
 tact the manner, attention and respect to 
 which they would be entitled if they were 
 actually manifesting the highest good within 
 them. 
 
 One of the best retail salesmen we ever 
 knew attributed his success to his ability to 
 "get on the customer's side of the counter," 
 that is, to try to see the matter from the cus- 
 tomer 's viewpoint. This led to a sympathetic 
 understanding which was most valuable. If 
 the Salesman can manage to put himself in 
 the place of the customer, he may see things 
 with a new light, and thus gain an under- 
 standing of the customer which will enable 
 him, the Salesman, to manifest a true polite- 
 
MIND OF THE SALESMAN 43 
 
 t 
 
 ness toward his customers. But politeness 
 and courtesy does not mean a groveling, cring- 
 ing attitude of mind or demeanor. True 
 politeness and courtesy must have as its back- 
 ground and support, Self Respect. 
 
 Allied to politeness is the quality called 
 Tact, which is defined as the "peculiar skill 
 or adroitness in doing or saying exactly that 
 which is required by, or is suited to, the cir- 
 cumstances ; nice perception or discernment." 
 A little consideration will show that Tact 
 must depend upon an understanding of the 
 viewpoint and mental attitude of the other 
 person, so that if one has the key to the one 
 he may open the door of the other. An under- 
 standing of the other person's position, and 
 an application of the true spirit of politeness, 
 will go a long way toward establishing the 
 quality of tactfulness. Tact is a queer com- 
 bination of Worldly Wisdom and the Golden 
 Rule a mixture of the ability to seek into the 
 other person's mind, and the ability to speak 
 unto others as you would that others speak 
 unto you, under the same circumstances. The 
 trait called Adaptability, or the faculty of 
 adjusting oneself to conditions, and to the per- 
 
44 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 sonality of others, also belongs to this cate- 
 gory. Adaptability depends upon the ability 
 to see the other person's position. As a 
 writer says: " Those individuals who are out 
 of harmony with their surroundings disap- 
 pear to make room for those who are in har- 
 mony with them." When the keynote of the 
 understanding of the minds of others is found, 
 the whole subject of true politeness, tact and 
 adaptability is understood and may be ap- 
 plied in practice. 
 
 V. Human Nature. Closely allied to the 
 subject of the preceding paragraphs, is that 
 of Human Nature. A knowledge of Human 
 Nature is very important to the Salesman. 
 In order to understand the workings of the 
 minds of others, one must not only under- 
 stand the general psychological principles in- 
 volved, but also the special manifestations of 
 those principles. Nature tends to form 
 classes and species, and the majority of peo- 
 ple may be grouped into special classes de- 
 pending upon their temperaments. An in- 
 telligent study of The New Psychology and 
 the general subject of Human Nature in works 
 on Physiognomy, etc., will do much to start 
 
MIND OF THE SALESMAN 45 
 
 one well upon the road to an understanding 
 of Human Nature. But, after all, the best 
 knowledge comes only when the general prin- 
 ciples are tested and applied under observa- 
 tion in general experience. 
 
 In this particular work we have much to 
 say upon certain features of Human Nature 
 in fact, as we have said, Human Nature is 
 but Psychology. The following advice, from 
 the pen of Prof. Fowler, the well known au- 
 thority on Phrenology, is recommended to all 
 Salesmen desirous of acquiring the faculty of 
 understanding Human Nature : ' i Scan closely 
 all the actions of men, with a view to ascertain 
 their motives and mainsprings of action; 
 look with a sharp eye at man, woman, child, 
 all you meet, as if you would read them 
 through; note particularly the expression of 
 the eye, as if you would imbibe what it 
 signifies; say to yourself: What faculty 
 prompted this expression or that action; 
 drink in the general looks, attitude, natural 
 language, and manifestation of the man, and 
 yield yourself to the impressions naturally 
 made on you that is, study human nature 
 
46 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 both as a philosophy and as a sentiment, or 
 as if being impressed thereby." 
 
 A forthcoming volume of this series, to be 
 entitled " Human Nature," will go into this 
 subject in detail. 
 
CHAPTEE III 
 
 THE MIND OF THE SALESMAN (CONTINUED) 
 
 VI. Hope. The Salesman should cultivate 
 the Optimistic Outlook upon Life. He should 
 encourage the earnest expectation of the good 
 things to come, and move forward to the re- 
 alization thereof. Much of life success de- 
 pends upon the mental attitude of, and the 
 confident expectation of, a successful outcome. 
 Earnest Desire, Confident Expectation, and 
 Eesolute Action this is the threefold key of 
 attainment. Thought manifests itself in ac- 
 tion, and we grow in accordance with the 
 mental pattern or mould we create for our- 
 selves. If you will look around you you will 
 find that the men who have succeeded, and 
 who are succeeding, are those who have main- 
 tained the hopeful mental attitude who have 
 always looked forward to the star of hope 
 even in the moments of the greatest trouble 
 and temporary reverses. If a man loses his 
 
 47 
 
48 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 hope permanently he is defeated. Hope is 
 the incentive which is always drawing man 
 onward and upward. Hope backed by Will 
 and Determination is almost invincible. 
 Learn to look on the bright side of things, to 
 believe in your ultimate success. Learn to 
 look upward and forward heed the motto, 
 "look aloft!" Cultivate the "rubber-ball 
 spirit," by which you will be able to bounce 
 higher up the harder you are thrown down. 
 There is a subtle psychological law by the op- 
 eration of which we tend to materialize our 
 ideals. The "confident expectation" backed 
 by actions will win out in the end. Hitch 
 your wagon to the Star of Hope. 
 
 VII. Enthusiasm. Very few people under- 
 stand the true meaning of the word ' * enthusi- 
 asm," although they may use it quite fre- 
 quently in ordinary conversation. Enthusi- 
 asm means far more than energy, activity, 
 interest and hope it means the expression 
 of the "soul" in mental and physical actions. 
 The Greeks used the word as meaning "in- 
 spiration; moved by the gods," from which 
 arose the later meaning of "inspired by a 
 superhuman or divine power." The modern 
 
MIND OF THE SALESMAN 49 
 
 usage is defined as: "Enkindled and kind- 
 ling fervor of the soul ; ardent and imaginative 
 zeal or interest; lively manifestation of joy 
 or zeal;" etc. A person filled with enthusi- 
 asm seems to move and act from the very 
 centre of his being that part which we mean 
 when we say "soul." There is a wonderful 
 power in rightly directed enthusiasm, which 
 serves not only to arouse within one his full 
 powers, but also tends to impress others in 
 the direction of mental contagion. Mental 
 states are contagious, and enthusiasm is one 
 of the most active of mental states. Enthusi- 
 asm comes nearer to being " soul-power " than 
 any other outward expression of mental 
 states. It is allied to the soul-stirring impulse 
 of music, poetry, and the drama. We can feel 
 it in the words of a writer, speaker, orator, 
 preacher, singer or poet. Enthusiasm may 
 be analyzed as Inspired Interest. As Wal- 
 ter D. Moody says: "It will be found that 
 all men possessed of personal magnetism are 
 very much in earnest. Their intense earnest- 
 ness is magnetic. ' ' The best authorities agree 
 that Enthusiasm is the active principle of 
 what has been called Personal Magnetism. 
 
50 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 An old writer has well said: "All of us 
 emit a sphere, aura, or halo, impregnated with 
 the very essence of ourselves, sensitives know 
 it, so do our dogs and other pets; so does a 
 hungry lion or tiger; aye, even flies, snakes 
 and insects, as we know to our 1 cost. Some of 
 us are magnetic others not. Some of us are 
 warm, attractive, love-inspiring and friend- 
 ship-making, while others are cold, intellec- 
 tual, thoughtful, reasoning, but not magnetic. 
 Let a learned man of the latter type address 
 an audience and it will soon tire of his in- 
 tellectual discourse, and will manifest symp- 
 toms of drowsiness. He talks at them, but 
 not into them he makes them think, not feel, 
 which is most tiresome to the majority of per- 
 sons, and few speakers succeed who attempt 
 to merely make people think they want to 
 be made to feel. People will pay liberally to- 
 be made to feel or laugh, while they will be- 
 grudge a dime for instruction or talk that 
 will make them think. Pitted against a 
 learned man of the type mentioned above, let 
 there be a half-educated, but very loving, ripe 
 and mellow man, with but nine-tenths of the 
 logic and erudition of the first man, yet such 
 
MIND OF THE SALESMAN 51 
 
 a man carries along his crowd with perfect 
 ease, and everybody is wide-awake, treasur- 
 ing up every good thing that falls from his 
 lips. The reasons are palpable and plain. It 
 is heart against head; soul against logic; and 
 soul is bound to win every time." And as 
 Newman says: "Deductions have no power 
 of persuasion. The heart is commonly 
 reached, not through the reason, but through 
 the imagination, by means of direct impres- 
 sions, by the testimony of facts and events, by 
 history, by description. Persons influence 
 us, looks subdue us, deeds inflame us." En- 
 thusiasm imparts that peculiar quality that 
 we call "life," which constitutes such an im- 
 portant part in the personality of a salesman. 
 Remember we have analyzed enthusiasm as 
 inspired earnestness think over this an- 
 alysis, and grasp its inner meaning. The 
 very word "ENTHUSIASM" is inspiring visu- 
 alize it and let it incite you to its expression 
 when you feel "dead." The very thought 
 of it is a stimulant ! 
 
 VIIL Determination. The Salesman needs 
 the quality of dogged determination, per- 
 sistence, and " stick-to-itiveness. " This bull- 
 
52 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 dog quality must be developed. The "I Can 
 and I Will ' ' spirit must be cultivated. Deter- 
 mination is composed of several constituent 
 faculties. First comes Combativeness or the 
 quality of "tackling" obstacles. This is a 
 marked quality in all strong characters. It 
 manifests as courage, boldness, resistance, 
 opposition, and disposition to combat opposi- 
 tion rather than to yield to it. 
 
 Allied to this faculty is another which bears 
 the very inadequate name of Destructiveness, 
 which expresses itself in the direction of 
 breaking down barriers, pushing aside ob- 
 stacles, making headway; pushing to the 
 front; holding one's own; etc. It is the qual- 
 ity of the man who makes his own paths and 
 builds up his own trade. It is the "pioneer" 
 faculty of the mind which clears away the 
 ground, lays foundations and builds the first 
 log-cabin. 
 
 Then comes Continuity, the faculty which 
 is well-defined as "stick-to-itiveness," which 
 enables one to stick to his task until it is fin- 
 ished. This faculty gives stability and stay- 
 ing qualities, and enables/ a man to finish well. 
 The lack of this quality often neutralizes the 
 
MIND OF THE SALESMAN 53 
 
 work of other good faculties, causing the per- 
 son to "let go" too soon, and to thus lose the 
 fruits of his labors. 
 
 Finally, comes the faculty of Firmness, 
 which gives to one the quality of tenacity, 
 perseverance, fixity, decision and stability, 
 accompanied by a certain "stubborn tend- 
 ency" which holds the other faculties to- 
 gether. A certain amount of this quality of 
 "jackass courage" is needed in the mental 
 make up of a Salesman. If a person is 'set' to 
 a certain -extent it enables him to maintain his 
 position without the constant wear and tear 
 upon his will that is met with by those lacking 
 it. This faculty prevents one from being 
 "sidetracked," and enables him to "put his 
 hand to the plow and look not backward. ' ' It 
 holds the chisel of the will up against the 
 metal of circumstances until the work is ac- 
 complished. It enables one to be like the rock 
 against which harmlessly beat the waves of 
 opposition and competition. It enables one 
 to see his object, and then to march straight 
 to it, 
 
 IX. Secretiveness. "We mention this 
 quality, not because it is one which plays such 
 
54 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 an important part in the world of Salesman- 
 ship, but because the tendency of the average 
 Salesman is to talk too freely regarding mat- 
 ters which should be kept to himself. This 
 failing on the part of the Salesman is due to 
 the free expression which his work necessi- 
 tates. He should remember, however, that 
 many a good plan has miscarried by reason 
 of the tendency of the Salesman to "blab," 
 or to "give away" his hopes, plans and ex- 
 pectations. The Salesman should think thrice 
 before speaking regarding any matter of of- 
 fice or personal policy, plans, methods, or 
 other things which he would not like his com- 
 petitors to know. It is a safe rule, laid down 
 by a very successful business man, that one 
 should "Never speak of anything that he is 
 not desirous of his principal competitor hear- 
 ingfor hear it he will if one speaks of it." 
 The world is full of the "little birds" who de- 
 light in carrying tales the "walls have ears" 
 with microphone, wirelesss telegraphic attach- 
 ments. Be a diplomat in matters of the kind 
 to which we have referred. A little thought 
 should convince that if you yourself do not 
 
MIND OF THE SALESMAN" 55 
 
 respect your own secrets, you can not expect 
 others to do so. 
 
 X. Acquisitiveness. This faculty mani- 
 fests as the desire for acquiring 1 things ; gain- 
 ing; possessing; reaching out for; etc. It is 
 often condemned by people, because of the 
 unpleasant traits manifested by those in 
 whom it is abnormally developed, as the miser, 
 the "hog," and the "stingy" person. But it 
 is not well to hastily condemn this faculty, for 
 without it we would become desireless, spend- 
 thrift, wasteful, without resources, and poor. 
 The man who would succeed in any line of 
 business must cultivate Acquisitiveness, if he 
 is deficient in it. He must learn to want and 
 earnestly desire the good things of life, and 
 to reach out for them. He must desire to ac- 
 cumulate something for himself, for by so 
 doing he will work so that he will make a valu- 
 able accumulating channel for his employers. 
 Acquisitiveness is one of the animating princi 
 pies of the business world, evade it though we 
 may try to. It is hypocritical to deny this. The 
 facts are too plain to be brushed aside or 
 denied. As the writer has said in another 
 work: "People are all after money every 
 
56 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 blessed mother's son and daughter of them 
 in one way or another. What is the use of 
 denying it. Some day we may have better 
 economic conditions I pray to God that we 
 may but until that time all of us must chase 
 the nimble dollar to the best of our ability. 
 For unless a man does this thing, then shall 
 he not eat ; nor be clothed ; nor have shelter ; 
 nor books ; nor music ; nor anything else that 
 makes life worth living for one who thinks 
 and feels. It seems to me the proper balance 
 is preserved in the following statement: 
 "While you're getting, get all you can but 
 give the other fellow a chance." 
 
 XI. Approbativeness. This is the quality 
 which manifests in a desire for praise, flatter, 
 approval, fame, etc. The average Salesman 
 does not need to develop this faculty his 
 temperament is very apt to make him have it 
 too highly developed. It is all very well to 
 feel a certain pleasure from the approval of 
 others of work well done. But it is a decided 
 weakness for one to be so sensitive to the 
 opinions of others that they suffer from their 
 disapproval, or from the lack of praise. He 
 who is dependent upon the praise of the crowd, 
 
MIND o* 1 THE SALESMAN 57 
 
 or the approval of the mob is a fool, deserv- 
 ing of pity. The crowd is fickle and tomorrow 
 may turn on those whom they are praising to- 
 day. Moreover there is always much secret 
 envy and jealousy mixed with the praise of 
 others. 
 
 Did you ever notice how eagerly people re- 
 late the slip-up or stumble of those whom they 
 have been praising? Be not deceived by the 
 plaudits of the crowd. Nor should you allow 
 yourself to be deterred from a right course 
 because of fear of blame. Learn to rely on 
 what you, yourself, know to be right. "Be 
 sure you're right, then go ahead." Learn 
 to stand upon your own feet, and do not lean 
 upon others. Shake the crowd off your heels 
 mind your own business and let others do 
 likewise. And look the world squarely in the 
 eye while you are talking to it, too,. It will un- 
 derstand you, if you do not truckle to it. But 
 never cringe to it else it will rend you to 
 pieces. "They say; what do they say; let 
 i say!" "Do not worry about it your 
 lY'cnds will not care, and your enemies will 
 .cise anyway ; so what 's the use ? ' ' Say to 
 y rself: "I am the Captain of my Soul." 
 
58 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 And remember Burton 's glorious words of 
 freedom and courage : 
 
 "Do what thy manhood bids thee do, from 
 
 none but self expect applause ; 
 He noblest lives and noblest dies who makes 
 
 and keeps his self-made laws. 
 All other Life is living Death, a world where 
 
 none but Phantoms dwell. 
 A breath, a wind, a sound, a voice, a tinkling 
 
 of the Camel's bell." 
 
 The difference between Egoism and Ego- 
 tism consists largely of the difference between 
 Self-Eespect and Approbativeness. Develop 
 the first, and restrain the second if you wish 
 to become an Individual. And the successful 
 Salesman is always an Individual standing 
 out from and above the crowd of the "mere 
 persons " or "order- taker s." Be a Man, and 
 not a human looking glass reflecting the ideas, 
 opinions, and wishes of all those around you. 
 Be creative, not imitative. Flattery is the 
 food for apes, not for men. 
 
 Personal Expression. While one's per- 
 sonal expression in the direction of clothing, 
 
MIND OF THE SALESMAN 59 
 
 walk, voice, etc., can scarcely be called mental 
 qualities, yet they must be considered as ex- 
 pressions of mental qualities outward mani- 
 festations of inward states. So true is this 
 that people naturally judge one's character by 
 these outward expressions. And, moreover, 
 there is a subtle reaction of one's outward 
 manifestations upon one's mental states. 
 One's walk, carriage and demeanor influence 
 one's mental attitude, as we may prove by 
 changing these outward manifestations and 
 noting our changed feelings. As someone has 
 said: "The consciousness of being well 
 dressed imparts a certain serenity and peace 
 which even religion sometimes fails to give 
 us." 
 
 And, as for physical attitudes, etc., hear 
 what several eminent psychologists tell us. 
 Prof. Halleck says: "By inducing an expres- 
 sion we can often cause its allied emotion." 
 Prof. James says: "Whistling to keep up 
 courage is no mere figure of speech. On the 
 other hand, sit all day in a moping posture, 
 sigh, and reply to everything with a dismal 
 voice, and your melancholy lingers. There is 
 no more valuable precept in moral education 
 
60 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 than this : If we wish to conquer undesirable 
 emotional tendencies in ourselves we must as- 
 siduously, and in the first instance cold-blood- 
 edly, go through the outward movements, of 
 those contrary dispositions which we wish 
 to cultivate. Smooth the brow, brighten the 
 eye, contract the dorsal rather than the ven- 
 tral aspect of the frame, and speak in a major 
 key, pass the genial compliment and your 
 heart must indeed be frigid if it does not grad- 
 ually thaw. ' J 
 
 Dr. Woods Hutchinson says : " To what ex- 
 tent muscular contractions condition emo- 
 tions, as Prof. James has suggested, may be 
 easily tested by a quaint and simple little ex- 
 periment upon a group of the smallest volun- 
 tary muscles of the body, those that move the 
 eyeball. Choose some time when you are sit- 
 ting quietly in your room, free from all dis- 
 turbing thoughts and influences. Then stand 
 up, and assuming an easy position, cast the 
 eyes upward, and hold them in that position 
 for thirty seconds. Instantly and involun- 
 tarily you will be conscious of a tendency to- 
 ward reverential, devotional, contemplative 
 ideas and thoughts. Then turn the eyes side- 
 
MIND OF THE SALESMAN 61 
 
 ways, glancing directly to the right or to the 
 left, through half-closed lids. Within thirty 
 seconds images of suspicion, of uneasiness, or 
 of dislike will rise unbidden to the mind. Turn 
 the eyes on one side and slightly downward, 
 and suggestions of jealousy or coquetry, will 
 be apt to spring unbidden. Direct your gaze 
 downward toward the floor, and you are likely 
 to go off into a fit of reverie or abstraction." 
 Maudsley says : i c The specific muscular action 
 is not merely an exponent of passion, but truly 
 an essential part of it. If we try while the 
 features are fixed in the expression of one 
 passion to call up in the mind a different one, 
 we shall find it impossible to do so.' ' 
 
 In view of the above statements, we may 
 readily see the importance of cultivating those 
 outward expressions which are co-related to 
 desirable mental states or feelings. By so 
 doing we arouse in our minds those particular 
 states or feelings. And, moreover, we tend to 
 impress others with the possession on our part 
 of the co-related mental qualities. One's out- 
 ward expression is a powerful instrument of 
 suggestion to others, and people are uncon- 
 sciously and instinctively affected by it, to our 
 
62 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 benefit or detriment. Let us therefore con- 
 sider, briefly, the general principles under- 
 lying personal expression along the lines in- 
 dicated. 
 
 Carriage and Walk. In the first part of the 
 previous chapter, under the sub-head of ' ' Self- 
 Bespect" we have given you the advice of a 
 good authority concerning the proper car- 
 riage. The key is: Carry yourself iin a 
 manner showing your Self-Eespect, Poise, and 
 Consideration of Others. Another authority 
 gives the following directions for the correct 
 position in standing: "(1) Heels together; 
 (2) head up, with chin slightly drawn in rather 
 than protruding ; (3) eyes front; (4) shoulders 
 thrown back but not elevated; (5) chest ex- 
 panded; (6) abdomen slightly drawn in, and 
 not allowed to protrude; (7) arms dropped 
 naturally to the sides, with the little fingers 
 lightly touching the sides of the thigh. This 
 may make you feel a little stiff and awkward 
 at first, but, if you persevere, will soon estab- 
 lish itself as second nature with you." 
 
 Another authority says : ' ' The easiest way 
 in which to acquire a correct carriage is to 
 imagine that you are suspended from on high 
 
MIND OF THE SALESMAN. 63 
 
 with a line, the lowest end of the line being 
 fastened to the lower end of your breast-bone. 
 If you will stand and walk as if you are so 
 suspended, the result will be that you will 
 acquire an easy, graceful, gliding walk, and 
 a correct carriage and natural position. ' ' An- 
 other authority^ gives the following advice: 
 ' ' The following method if observed in walking 
 and standing, will impart a desirable physical 
 poise and will keep you erect and in a graceful 
 attitude while walking : Stand with your back 
 toward the wall, with the heels, legs, hips, 
 shoulders and back of head touching the wall, 
 and with the chin slightly drawn in. Press up 
 against the wall firmly. You will find yourself 
 in an uncomfortable position, and one that is 
 unnatural and incorrect. Then, keeping your 
 heels to the wall, allow your body to swing 
 forward into a natural position, being careful 
 to keep the body firm in the same 'form,' 
 avoiding relaxation, swinging yourself for- 
 ward from the ankle joints alone. When you 
 find that the correct poised, natural position 
 has been attained, hold it, and march forward 
 in what will be the natural, normal, well- 
 balanced walking position. Practice thi re- 
 
64 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 peatedly, several times every day, until you 
 have fully acquired the habit. " 
 
 Shaking Hands. When you grasp an- 
 other 's hand in the act of ' i shaking hands, ' ' 
 do not do so in a listless, cold-blooded man- 
 nerdo not extend to the other man a flabby, 
 clammy, fish-like hand. But take hold of his 
 hand as if you liked to do it throw interest 
 ?.nto the proceeding. More^than this throw 
 feeling into it. Throw into the hand-clasp the 
 feeling: "I like you, and you like me." Then, 
 when you draw your hand away, if possible let 
 your fingers slide over the palm of his hand in 
 a caressing manner, allowing his first finger to 
 pass between your thumb and forefinger, close 
 up in the crotch of the thumb. Practice this 
 well, until you can perform it without think- 
 ing of it. You will find merit in the method. 
 Grasp the other person's hand "as if he were 
 your best girl's millionaire father-in-law." 
 
 Voice. The Salesman should cultivate a 
 voice with expression in it. His voice should 
 convey his belief in what he is saying, and his 
 interest in the story. You will find it an aid 
 in this direction if you will learn to visualize 
 your thoughts that is, to make a mental pic- 
 
MIND OF THE SALESMAN 65 
 
 ture of the thing yon are saying. One can al- 
 ways describe better that which they see be- 
 fore them. In the degree that you can see your 
 mental picture, so will be your degree of power 
 in expressing it to another in words, and *so 
 will be the degree of feeling in your tone. The 
 voice should express the meaning of your 
 thought rather than being merely the symbol 
 of it. Try to say "Good Morning" as if you 
 meant it then say it in the usual way. Do 
 you see the difference? Throw your thought 
 and feeling into your voice. Forget all about 
 yourself and the other man and concentrate 
 your thought and feeling into your voice. 
 
 Many people make the mistake of "speak- 
 ing with their muscles instead of with their 
 nerves. " They throw muscular energy into 
 their words, when they should use nervous 
 energy, or thought-force. The former has but 
 little effect on the mind of the other, while 
 the second vibrates subtly and reaches the 
 feelings of those addressed. Feel, when you 
 wish to speak impressively, and your tones 
 will reflect the same, and induce a similar feel- 
 ing in others. It is a point worth remember- 
 ing that one may "bring down" the voice of 
 
66 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 an excited person to one's own pitch, if the 
 latter is firmly held at the customary pitch, in 
 a firm manner. Not only does this " bring 
 down" the other man's voice, but his feelings 
 will also follow suit, and besides, you also 
 manage to keep your own temper and poise. 
 Never raise your voice because another raises 
 his resist the tendency, and maintain your 
 poise and power by so doing. This is worth 
 remembering. 
 
 The Eyes. Learn to look people in the eyes 
 when you are speaking to them. Not in a 
 staring manner, but firmly, politely and easily. 
 This may be acquired with a little practice. 
 Practice on yourself in the mirror if you pre- 
 fer. A shifting, restless gaze produces a bad 
 impression, while a firm, honest gaze will in- 
 cline people in your favor. You will find that 
 strong men men who influence others al- 
 most always have a firm, strong gaze. It is 
 worth practice, work and time, to acquire this 
 personal trait. 
 
 Clothes. A man is very often known by his 
 clothes, or at least judged by them. The Sales- 
 man should pay attention to this point of per- 
 sonal expression, since it will count much for 
 
MIND OF THE SALESMAN 67 
 
 or against him. The first point to remember 
 is that cleanliness is the first requisite in cloth- 
 ing. Keep your clothes clean and well 
 pressed. Particularly keep your linen clean, 
 for nothing in the way of dress acts so much 
 against a man as soiled linen. Another im- 
 portant point is to keep the extremities well 
 clad that is, the head, feet and hands. A 
 soiled or worn hat; a soiled or frayed collar; 
 an old, or unpolished pair of shoes; ragged 
 sleeves or frayed cuffs these things are more 
 easily noticed and count more against a man 
 than a shabby suit. Better an old suit well 
 brushed, with a good hat, shoes and clean 
 cuffs than the reverse. 
 
 One should always wear as good clothes as 
 his means will permit, and such as will be in 
 keeping with his occupation and position. The 
 rule is to get as good material as possible, and 
 cut reasonably within the prevailing style- 
 but avoiding all extremes, or fanciful designs. 
 A well-dressed business man should give 
 neither tKe appearance of shabbiness nor of 
 being " dressed-up." He should present the 
 appearance of general neatness without at- 
 tracting any special attention to his clothing. 
 
68 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 When a man's clothes specially attract one, 
 that man is not well dressed, but either poorly 
 dressed or over-dressed. The "happy mean" 
 between the two extremes is to be sought after. 
 Polonius' advice to his son is well worth mem- 
 orizing: "Costly thy habit as thy purse can 
 buy, but not expressed in fancy; rich, not 
 gaudy; for the apparel oft proclaims the 
 man. ' ' 
 
 Details of Appearance. Personal cleanli- 
 ness and neatness are pre-requisites of the 
 Salesman who wishes to produce a favorable 
 impression. There is nothing that will so tend 
 to prejudice the average business man against 
 a new caller as the appearance of neglect of 
 personal care. The body should be well- 
 bathed ; the hair trimmed and neatly brushed ; 
 the face cleanly shaven; the teeth well 
 brushed; the nails clean; the shoes polished; 
 the necktie and collar clean; the clothes 
 brushed. Avoid the smell of liquor or tobacco 
 on the breath, and eschew as fatal the odor of 
 strong perfumery on the clothes or handker- 
 chief. The yellow stains of the cigarette 
 showing on the fingers, and the disgusting 
 odor attaching to the cigarette habit, have lost 
 
MIND OF THE SALESMAN 69 
 
 many a man a favorable hearing. The cigar- 
 ette is " taboo" to many me ! n who smoke 
 other forms of tobacco. These things are in- 
 stinctively recognized by the buyer as mani- 
 festations of the mind of the salesman a 
 part of his personality and very rightly so, 
 for if the mind be kept above them they do not 
 manifest. All these things go toward forming 
 the impression which one person always makes 
 upon another at the first meeting, and which 
 have so much to do with securing a favorable 
 notice during the Approach of the Salesman. 
 
CHAPTER IV 
 
 THE MIND OF THE BUYER 
 
 The second important element in a sale is 
 the Mind of the Buyer. In the mind of the 
 buyer is fought the battle of the sale. Within 
 its boundaries are manifested the movements 
 which win or lose the day. As a writer on the 
 subject has said: "The buyer's brain is the 
 board upon which the game is played. The 
 faculties of the brain are the men. The sales- 
 man moves or guides these faculties as he 
 would chess men or checkers on a board. ' ' In 
 order to understand the ground upon which 
 your battle must be fought, and the mental 
 elements which you must combat, persuade, 
 move, push or attract, you must understand 
 the various faculties of the mind, as well as 
 the mind as a whole. Let us, therefore, con- 
 sider the various mental faculties which are 
 employed actively by a buyer in the mental 
 process of a purchase. 
 
 70 
 
MIND OF THE BUYER 71 
 
 I. 'Quality. In the first place, let us 
 consider that which the phrenologists call 
 "Quality," by which they express the various 
 degrees of fineness or coarseness in a man's 
 mental make-up which is usually indicated by 
 his appearance and physical characteristics. 
 This "quality" in a man is akin to what we 
 call "class," "breeding," or "blood" in the 
 higher animals. It is difficult to explain, but 
 is universally recognized. At one extreme of 
 "quality" we find those individuals who are 
 fine-grained, refined, high-strung, intense, and 
 inclined to be susceptible to emotional or senti- 
 mental influence, poetry, music, etc., and are 
 apt to be more or less impractical and out of 
 harmony with the material world of men and 
 affairs. At the other extreme we find those 
 individuals who are coarse-grained, of coarse 
 and unrefined tastes, animal, gross, unrefined, 
 and generally ' ' swinish. ' J Between these two 
 extremes we find many degrees in the scale. 
 The outward physical signs of the person, 
 such as the coarseness or fineness of his skin, 
 hair, nails, ears and facial features, as well as 
 his general form and characteristics, will 
 usually give the careful observer the key to 
 
72 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 the degree of a man's "quality." It will be 
 well for the Salesman to acquaint himself with 
 these characteristics, for they throw much 
 light on the general character of people. 
 
 Next in order come what are called the Tem- 
 peraments, by which term phrenologists desig- 
 nate the general classes into which individuals 
 fit. As a rule, however, an individual mani- 
 fests the elements of several of the tempera- 
 mentsthat is, they blend in him. The best 
 phrenological authorities classify the tem- 
 peraments as follows: (1) The Vital; (2) The 
 Motive ; (3) The Mental ; the characteristics of 
 which are described as follows : 
 
 The Vital Temperament. This tempera- 
 ment is indicated by a predominance of the 
 purely physical or "animal" propensities. 
 Those in whom it predominates are distin- 
 guished by a round head, wide space between 
 the corners of the eyes and the ears, side-head 
 full, broad forehead (not necessarily high). 
 They are generally fleshy with a "well-fed" 
 appearance, inclined to be broad shouldered 
 and deep chested and with a "bull neck" 
 splendid animals, in fact. Their mental char- 
 
MIND OF THE BUYEB 73 
 
 acteristics are love of eating and drinking, and 
 animal comforts ; impulsiveness, impetu- 
 osity, heartiness, quick temper, zeal and 
 ardor, often shrewd and cunning but without 
 great depth, susceptible to flattery and appeal 
 to selfish emotions and prejudices, and loving 
 pleasure. They are generally selfish and 
 grasping toward that which caters to their 
 pleasure and physical welfare. Try to "get 
 all that is coming to them," and yet at the 
 same time tend toward conviviality and are 
 desirous of being thought ' ' good fellows. ' ' Are 
 usually excitable, and are easily thrown off 
 their balance. Those in whom this tempera- 
 ment is deficient manifest physical character- 
 istics opposite to those above mentioned, and 
 are more or less anaemic, or bloodless, and 
 show a lack of vitality and physical well-being. 
 Those in whom this temperament predomi- 
 nates make good butchers, hotel-keepers, cap- 
 tains, locomotive engineers, traders, poli- 
 ticians, contractors, etc. Thej_are reached 
 feelings rather than through 
 
 their intellect. 
 
 The Motive Temperament. This tempera- 
 merit is indicated by a predominance of mus- 
 
74 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 cular strength, endurance, toughness, and 
 powers of action. Those in whom it predomi- 
 nates are distinguished by a general leanness 
 and spareness; strongly marked and promi- 
 nent features, usually with a large nose and 
 high cheek bones; large and strong teeth; 
 large joints and knucklesthe Abraham Lin- 
 coln physical characteristics, in fact. Their 
 mental characteristics are determination, per- 
 sistence, combativeness, destructiveness, en- 
 durance, thoroughness, management, execu- 
 tive ability, creative power, stubbornness, 
 powers of resistance, and often an indomitable 
 spirit. Their emotions are not on the surface, 
 but when once aroused are strong and per- 
 sistent. They are slow to wrath, but are good 
 fighters and will stay to the finish. They are 
 generally canny and shrewd, instinctively. 
 They are the active and persistent workers of 
 the world. It is this temperament in one 
 which supplies his motive power his ability 
 and taste for work. Those in whom this tem- 
 perament is deficient manifest physical char- 
 acteristics opposite to those above mentioned, 
 and accordingl^are^ averse tojrork or exer- 
 tion of any kind. 
 
MIND OF THE BUYER 75 
 
 The Mental Temperament. This tempera- 
 nicint is indicated by a predominance of 
 nervous force, mental activity, reasoning 
 power, imagination, and a brain development 
 rather than bodily strength or physical ac- 
 tivity. Those in whom it predominates are 
 distinguished by a slight build, small bones 
 and muscles, general fineness of structure, 
 quick motions, signs of nervous energy, sharp 
 features, thin lips, thin, finely shaped, and 
 often pointed nose, high forehead, and ex- 
 pressive eyes. Their mental characteristics 
 are activity in reasoning processes, active im- 
 agination, susceptibility to disturbance from 
 uncongenial environment and distasteful com- 
 pany, love of mental activity and often a dis- 
 taste for physical activity, sensitiveness, ex- 
 tremes of feeling and emotion, eager and en- 
 thusiastic, and the general traits popularly 
 designated as "temperamental." Those in 
 whom this temperament is deficient manifest 
 characteristics opposite to those above men- 
 tioned, and are averse to mental activity. 
 
 Blended Temperaments. Nearly every in- 
 dividual possesses the three temperaments 
 blended in various proportions and combine*- 
 
76 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 tions. In some, one temperament predomi- 
 nates largely and gives us the distinctive char- 
 acteristics of that class. But in others, often 
 two temperaments will predominate, leaving 
 the third scarcely manifest. In others, the 
 three are so well blended and balanced that the 
 individual is known as "well balanced" tem- 
 peramentally this being considered the ideal 
 condition. 
 
 Prof. Fowler, one of the old authorities in 
 phrenology, says of the blended tempera- 
 ments : "Excessive Motive with deficient Men- 
 tal gives power and sluggishness, so that the 
 talents lie dormant. Excessive Vital gives 
 physical power and enjoyment, but too little 
 of the mental and moral, along with coarse- 
 ness and animality. Excessive Mental con- 
 fers too much mind for body, too much senti- 
 mentalism and exquisiteness, along with 
 greenhouse precocity. Whereas their equal 
 balance gives an abundant supply of vital 
 energy, physical stamina, and mental power 
 and susceptibility. They may be compared to 
 the several parts of a steamboat and its ap- 
 purtenances. The Vital is the steampower; 
 the Motive, the hulk or frame-work; the 
 
MIND OF THE BUYER 77 
 
 Mental, the freight and passengers. The Vital 
 predominating, generates more animal energy 
 than can well be worked off, and causes rest- 
 lessness, excessive passion, and a pressure 
 which endangers outbursts and overt actions ; 
 predominant Motive gives too much frame or 
 hulk ; moves slowly, and with weak Mental is 
 too light freighted to secure the great ends of 
 life; predominant Mental overloads, and en- 
 dangers sinking ; but all equally balanced and 
 powerful, carry great loads rapidly and well, 
 and accomplish wonders. Such persons unite 
 cool judgment with intense and well governed 
 feelings ; great force of character and intellect 
 with perfect consistency; scholarship with 
 sound common sense ; far seeing sagacity with 
 brilliancy ; and have the highest order of both 
 physiology and mentality. ' ' 
 
 The Salesman should thoroughly acquaint 
 himself with the characteristics of each of the 
 three temperaments, and should also learn to 
 analyze them when found blended and in com- 
 bination. An understanding of a man's tem- 
 perament will often give one the key to his 
 general character and disposition, which will 
 be of the greatest advantage to the Salesman. 
 
78 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 Many students of human nature devote their 
 entire attention to a study of the several facul- 
 ties of the mind, ignoring the force and effect 
 of the temperaments. We consider this to be 
 a mistake, for a thorough knowledge of the 
 temperaments gives one a general key to char- 
 acter, and, as a fact, it is generally found that 
 given a certain temperament or combination 
 of the same, a good phrenologist will be able 
 to indicate just what faculties are apt to be 
 found in the ascendency in such a character. 
 And as the average Salesman cannot spare the 
 time to become an expert phrenologist, it will 
 be seen that a correct knowledge of the tem- 
 peraments gives him his best working knowl- 
 edge of the subject of character reading. 
 
 Let us now consider the various groups of 
 mental faculties which are manifested by the 
 buyer in his business, and which should,be un- 
 derstood by the Salesman in order that he may 
 successfully meet the impulses arising there- 
 from in the mind of the buyer. Our considera- 
 tion of these groups of faculties must neces- 
 sarily be brief, but we shall include the essen- 
 tial features, 
 
MIND OF THE BUYER 79 
 
 TJie Social Faculties. This group of facul- 
 ties includes Amativeness or Sexuality; Con- 
 jugality or Marital Inclination ; Parental Love 
 or Love of Offspring; Friendship or Love of 
 Companionship; Inhabitiveness or Love of 
 Home. Phrenology teaches that this group of 
 organs occupies the lower back portion of the 
 head, giving the appearance of bulging be- 
 hind the ears. Amativeness or Sexuality when 
 highly developed causes one to be at the mercy 
 of the attraction of the opposite sex. While 
 normally developed it plays a worthy part in 
 life, its excessive development manifests in 
 licentiousness, and when deficient manifests 
 in an aversion to the opposite sex or a cold- 
 ness and reserve. Persons in whom this 
 faculty is in excess will neglect business for 
 sex attraction, and will allow themselves to be 
 "sidetracked" by reason thereof. In selling 
 a man of this kind, keep him away from this 
 particular subject, or he will not give you his 
 attention. Conjugality or Marital Inclination 
 when highly developed causes one to be largely 
 influenced by one's companion in marriage. A 
 man of this kind will be largely governed by 
 his wife's wishes, tastes and desires, conse- 
 
80 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 quently if his wife ' ' says so ' 9 the battle is won. 
 Some men, however, while having Amative- 
 ness largely developed, have but small Conju- 
 gality, and if one love is not found satis- 
 factory, another is substituted an "affinity" 
 takes the wife 's place. Parental Love or Love 
 of Offspring when highly developed causes 
 one to idolize his children and to be capable of 
 influence through them. Such men are prone 
 to relate anecdotes regarding their children 
 and to 1 bore listeners with recitals of infantile 
 brightness and precocity. They generally 
 have photographs of their children about their 
 desks. An appeal to the interests of the chil- 
 dren always reaches the attention and interest 
 of these people. Friendship, or Love of Com- 
 panionship, when highly developed causes one 
 to seek society, form attachments of friend- 
 ship, enjoy social pleasures, do favors for 
 those whom they like, enjoy entertaining and 
 being entertained. Such a man will be more 
 apt to base his business dealings upon likes 
 and acquaintance rather than upon reason or 
 judgment, and are comparatively easily per- 
 suaded by those whom they like. An appear- 
 ance of sociability generally attracts them to 
 
MIND OF 'THE BUYER 81 
 
 those manifesting it. The quality of "good 
 fellowship" appeals to this class. Inhabitive- 
 ness or Love of Home when highly developed 
 causes one to become attached to places, locali- 
 ties and associations. Such a man will be full 
 of patriotism, local pride and prejudice and 
 provincialism. He will resent any apparent 
 "slur" upon his locality, and will appreciate 
 any favorable comment on his home place and 
 locality. These people are like cats who are 
 attached to places rather than to people. 
 Their township is usually their idea of "my 
 country." 
 
 The Selfish Faculties. This group of facul- 
 ties includes Vitativeness, or Love of Life; 
 Combativeness, or Love of Opposing ; Destruc- 
 tiveness, or Love of Breaking Through; All- 
 mentiveness, or Love of Appetite; Bibative- 
 ness, or Love of Drink; Acquisitiveness) or 
 Love of Gain; Secretiveness, or Cunning; 
 Cautiousness, or Prudence ; Approbativeness, 
 or Love of Praise ; Self Esteem, or Self Re- 
 liance. Phrenology teaches that this group of 
 organs occupy the sides of the back part of the 
 head. Vitativeness, or Love of Life, when 
 highly developed causes one to manifest a de- 
 
82 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 termination to live, and a great fear of death. 
 Anything promising increased health or long 
 life will greatly attract these people, and any- 
 thing arousing a fear of ill health or death 
 will influence them greatly. These people are 
 excellent customers for health appliances 
 books on health, etc. Combativeness, or Love 
 of Opposing, when highly developed causes 
 one to desire a ' ' scrap " or an argument or de- 
 bate. These people can best be handled by 
 seemingly allowing them to win in argument, 
 and then leading them to suggest the thing 
 that the Salesman has had in his mind all the 
 time. These people may be led, or coaxed, but 
 never driven. With them it is always a case 
 of " sugar catches more flies than vinegar," 
 or of the hot sun causing the man to drop the 
 cloak which the fierce north wind was unable 
 to blow away from him. A man of this kind 
 will be so pleased at beating another in an 
 argument on a minor point, that he will forget 
 the main point and will be in a humor to be 
 persuaded. Always avoid a direct argument 
 or dispute with these people on important 
 points they will let their pride of combat 
 obscure their judgment But they will be 
 
MIND OF THE BUYER 83 
 
 ready to bestow favors on those whom they 
 believe they have worsted in argument. De- 
 structiveness, or Love of Breaking Through, 
 when highly developed causes one to take 
 great pleasure in doing things in new ways ; 
 in breaking precedents and defying authority, 
 and in breaking down obstacles. If you can 
 arouse this spirit in such a man, by showing 
 him how he may do these things with your 
 goods, he will fall in line. A man of this kind 
 may be interested at once in any proposition 
 whereby he may be enabled to do something in 
 a novel way here to defy opposition or estab- 
 lished custom or to break down opposing ob- 
 stacles. The keynote of this faculty is: 
 "Make Way." Alimentiveness, or Love of 
 Appetite, when highly developed causes one 
 to incline toward gluttony and gormandizing, 
 and to place undue importance upon the 
 pleasures of the table. A man of this kind 
 ' ' lives to eat" instead of < ' eating to live, ' ' and 
 may be reached through his weakest point 
 his stomach. To such a man a good dinner is 
 more convincing than a logical argument. 
 Bibativeness, or Love of Drink, when highly 
 developed causes one to manifest an inordi- 
 
84 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 nate taste for liquids of all kinds. In some 
 cases, where alcoholic drinks are avoided by 
 such people, they will run to excess in the di- 
 rection of "soft drinks" such as ginger ale, 
 soda water, etc. It does not follow that these 
 people are fond of the effects of alcohol, the 
 craving seemingly being for liquids in some 
 form. Such people, if their appetites are not 
 controlled, will let their taste for drinks run 
 away with their judgment and reason. 
 
 Acquisitiveness, or Love of Gain, when 
 highly developed causes one to be very grasp- 
 ing, avaricious, and often miserly. But, when 
 not so highly developed, it causes one to mani- 
 fest a keen trading instinct, and is a necessary 
 factor in the mental make-up of the successful 
 merchant. Those in whom it is highly devel- 
 oped will be interested in any proposition 
 which seems to them to promise gain or sav- 
 ing. In selling such a man, the effort should 
 be to keep the one point of profit or saving al- 
 ways in evidence. In some cases this faculty, 
 too highly developed and not counterbalanced 
 by other faculties, will make a man "penny 
 wise and pound-foolish," and will focus his 
 mental gaze so closely on the nickel held close 
 
MIND OF THE BUYER 85 
 
 to his eye that he will not see the dollar a little 
 further off. The " money talk" is the only 
 one that will appeal to these people. 
 
 Secreliveness, or Cunning, when highly de- 
 veloped causes one to incline toward double- 
 dealing, duplicity, trickery and deception. It 
 is the "foxy" faculty, which, while useful to a 
 certain degree, becomes undesirable when car- 
 ried to excess. In dealing with a man of this 
 kind, be on guard so far as accepting his state- 
 ments at full value is concerned. Accept his 
 statements ' ' with a grain of salt. ' 9 Those who 
 wish to "fight the devil with his own fire" can 
 reach these people by allowing them to think 
 that they are overreaching or getting the best 
 of the Salesman. The Salesman who is ap- 
 parently defeated by these people, is very apt 
 to have discounted their methods in advance, 
 and has mapped out his line of retreat in ad- 
 vance so that the defeat is really a victory. 
 These people often will sacrifice a real ad- 
 vantage concerning a big thing for the sake of 
 tricking one out of a small advantage. To 
 trick another causes them to feel a glow of 
 righteous well-being and self-satisfaction, and 
 makes them forget the main point in the deal. 
 
86 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 A small victory thus won acts on them like the 
 good dinner to the Alimentive man, or flattery 
 to the Approbative person. A faculty devel- 
 oped to excess is always a weak point which 
 can be used by others who understand it, 
 
 Cautiousness, or Prudence, while an admir- 
 able quality when normally developed, be- 
 comes, when highly developed, an undesirable 
 quality. When highly developed it causes one 
 to be over-anxious, fearful, afraid to act, lia- 
 ble to panic, etc. These people must be culti- 
 vated carefully, and led to acquire confidence 
 and trust. One should be very careful in deal- 
 ing with these people not to cause suspicion or 
 alarm. They should be treated with the ut- 
 most fairness, and given full explanations of 
 matters of which they are in doubt. As a rule 
 they are very slow in giving confidence, but 
 when they once place confidence in a person 
 they are very apt to stick to him. Their very 
 fearfulness acts to prevent their making 
 changes when confidence is once secured. 
 These people cannot be "rushed," as a rule- 
 they require time in order to gain confidence. 
 They are, however, subject to an occasional 
 6 ' rush ' ' by reason of their panicky disposition, 
 
MIND OF THE BUYER 87 
 
 if they can be made to fear that if they do not 
 act some competitor will be given the chance, 
 or that prices will advance if they do not order 
 at once. These people mnst be handled care- 
 fully, and the Salesman who masters their na- 
 ture will be well repaid for his trouble and 
 pains. 
 
 Approbativeness, or Love of Praise, when 
 highly developed causes one to be susceptible 
 to flattery, desirous of praise, fond of * * show- 
 ing off" and displaying himself, vain, sensi- 
 tive to criticism, and generally egotistical and 
 often pompous. This quality when highly de- 
 veloped is a weakness and gives to an adver- 
 sary a powerful lever to work. The Salesman, 
 while secretly detesting this quality in a buyer, 
 nevertheless finds it a very easy channel of ap- 
 proach and weapon of success, when he once 
 understands its characteristics. These peo- 
 ple can be reached by an apparent ' ' falling in ' ' 
 with their opinion of themselves, and a mani- 
 festation of the proper respect in manner and 
 words. These are the people to whom the 
 "soft soap" is applied liberally, and who are 
 carried away by an apparent appreciation of 
 their own excellence. They will be willing to 
 
88 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 bestow all sorts of favors upon those who are 
 sufficiently able to "understand" them, and to 
 perceive the existence of those superlative 
 qualities which the cruel, cold, unfeeling world 
 has ignored. These are the people for whom 
 the word "jolly" was invented, and who are 
 ready to absorb the available world-supply of 
 that article. 
 
 Self Esteem, or Self Eeliance, is a very dif- 
 ferent quality from that just described, al- 
 though many people seem unable to make the 
 distinction. Self Esteem when highly devel- 
 oped causes one to appreciate one's powers 
 and qualities, while not blinding oneself to 
 one 's faults. It gives a sense of self-help, self- 
 respect, self-reliance, dignity, complacency, 
 and independence. Carried to an extreme it 
 manifests as hauteur, superciliousness, im- 
 periousness and tyranny. It is a characteris- 
 tic of the majority of successful men who have 
 made their own way by their own efforts. 
 These people insist upon having their own 
 way, and using their own minds they resent 
 apparent influence or suggestions, and often 
 deliberately turn down a proposition simply 
 because they think that an effort is being made 
 
MIND OF THE BUYER 89 
 
 to force them into it. The best way to deal 
 with these people is to frankly acknowledge 
 their right to think for themselves, both in 
 your manner, tone and actions and to pre- 
 sent the proposition to them in an impersonal 
 way, apparently leaving the whole matter to 
 their own good judgment. A logical appeal 
 appeals to them providing you do not make the 
 mistake of pitting yourself against them as 
 an opponent in argument. You may play the 
 part of the lawyer to them, but remember al- 
 ways they want to play the part of judge, and 
 not that of the opposing counsel. If a matter 
 be subtly suggested to them in such a way as 
 to make them think that they have thought 
 it themselves, they will favor it. Always give 
 them a chance to think out the point them- 
 selvesthey like it. One need not cringe to or 
 flatter these people. All that is necessary is 
 to maintain your own self-respect, but at the 
 same time let them walk a little ahead of you, 
 or stand just a little bit higher that is all they 
 need to make them feel comfortable. They 
 much prefer being a little higher or ahead of a 
 strong man than a weakling it is more com- 
 
90 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 plimentary to them. They appreciate the one 
 who forces them to use their heaviest guns 
 but who finally allows them to claim the 
 victory. 
 
CHAPTEE V 
 
 THE MIND OF THE BUYER (CONTINUED) 
 
 The Faculties of Application. This group 
 consists of two qualities : that of Firmness, or 
 Decision ; and that of Continuity, or Patience. 
 These faculties, together with Self-Esteem, 
 are located at the upper-back, or back-upper, 
 part of the head. 
 
 Firmness, or Decision, when highly devel- 
 oped causes one to manifest stability, tenacity, 
 fixedness of purpose, often reaching the point 
 of obstinacy, mulishness and stubbornness. 
 These people cannot be driven, or forced into 
 anything. They are "mighty set" in their 
 ways, and when they once take a position are 
 very apt to stick to it " right or wrong. ' ' They 
 are apt to fight to the last ditch for what they 
 consider principle, and will hold on to the end 
 in what they believe to be right. To attempt 
 to drive them by force is to dash one's head 
 against a stone wall. The only way to handle 
 
 91 
 
92 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 these people is to endeavor to get them inter- 
 ested in your side of the case before they have 
 "set" their minds and made np their opinion. 
 If they have already been prejudiced against 
 your case, the only way is to give up the fight 
 from the front, and endeavor to present the 
 matter from a different viewpoint, or angle, so 
 that new points will be presented which take 
 the matter out of the old category. These peo- 
 ple will never give in unless they can say: 
 "Oh, that of course alters the matter en- 
 tirely ; ' ? or " Oh, well, that places it in a new 
 light ; " or " That is an -entirely different prop- 
 osition," etc. Leave them victors of the posi- 
 tions upon which they are "set," and en- 
 deavor to enlist their interest upon some new 
 aspects, points, or principles you have at 
 least an even chance of winning on the new 
 point, whereas you have none whatever on the 
 old one. If, however, you can fit your case to 
 some of their established prejudices, for or 
 against, you have won your battle, for their 
 quality of stability will then be employed in 
 your favor instead of against it. You will have 
 to fit your case to their moulds cut your gar- 
 ment according to their pattern. A stubborn 
 
MIND OF THE BUYER 93 
 
 and balky horse or mule can often be started 
 in motion by turning its attention to a new 
 thing such as putting a piece of twisted 
 paper in its ear, adjusting its harness in a 
 new way, etc. The same principle will work 
 on stubborn men, "set" in their ways. Get 
 their mind off the point in question, and they 
 will be rational. Let them have their own way 
 about their own points and then plan a flank 
 or rear attack on them. You cannot batter 
 down their stone-wall you must either soar 
 over it, tunnel under it, or else go around it. 
 Continuity, or Patience, when highly devel- 
 oped causes one to "stick to" a thing once 
 undertaken; to manifest patience and perse- 
 verance, and to give up the mind to one thing 
 to the exclusion of others. It is difficult to in- 
 terest these people in new things they in- 
 stinctively distrust the new idea or thing, and 
 cling to the old. These people are very con- 
 servative and dislike change. They can be 
 dealt with best by avoiding shocking them 
 with entirely new things, and by carefully at- 
 taching the newer idea or thing to the old so 
 that it seems a part of the latter. New things 
 under old names do not disturb these people 
 
94 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 as much as old things under new names it is 
 the form and name, rather than the substance 
 with them. Old wine in new bottles they abhor 
 but new wine in old bottles they will stand. 
 Arguments based on " old established" things, 
 or "good old-time" things, appeal to them. 
 Things must be "respectable" "well-estab- 
 lished," "standing the test of years," "no 
 new-fangled notion," etc., to appeal to them. 
 Beware of trying new and startling changes 
 on them they will be prejudiced against you 
 at once. Fall in with their ideals, and they will 
 be excellent friends and steady customers. 
 The words ' ' conservative ' ' and ' ' established ' 9 
 sound well to their ears. On the contrary, peo- 
 ple in whom this faculty is deficient will in- 
 cline toward new things because they are new. 
 This faculty, either in excess or when deficient* 
 strongly affects the judgment, and must be 
 taken into consideration by the Salesman. 
 
 The Religio-Moral Faculties. This group 
 of faculties includes Conscientiousness, or 
 Moral Principle; Hope or Optimism; Spirit- 
 uality, or other- worldliness ; Veneration, or 
 Eeverence ; and Benevolence, or Human Kind- 
 
MIND OF THE BUYER 95 
 
 ness. The organs manifesting these qualities 
 are located in the front-top of the head. 
 
 Conscientiousness, or Moral Principle, when 
 highly developed gives one a high sense of 
 right, justice, truth, virtue, and duty. In deal- 
 ing with these people be particularly careful 
 to make no misstatements, misrepresenta- 
 tions, and exaggerations, but to adhere 
 closely to the facts of the case. Avoid also any 
 appearance of trickiness or sharp practice, 
 stories of shrewd bargains, etc. These peo- 
 ple become staunch, firm friends if dealt with 
 as they deserve, but become prejudiced 
 against people and houses whom they sus- 
 pect of unfair dealings, or in whom they lose 
 confidence. Their keynote -is "right's right" 
 and you should adhere to it in all dealings 
 with them. They are * ' the salt of the earth, ' ' 
 and it is a pity that there are not more of them. 
 It is true that sometimes this faculty seems to 
 become perverted into phariseeism and hypoc- 
 risybut, then, every good thing has its coun- 
 terfeit, and the thing to do is to distinguish 
 between the true and the false, here as else- 
 where. 
 
 Hope, or Optimism, when highly developed 
 
96 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 causes one to look on the bright side of things, 
 expect favorable outcomes, look confidently 
 forward, and expect much from the future. 
 Its perversion manifests in visionary dreams 
 and castle-building. These people are ame- 
 nable to appeals to future success, bright pros- 
 pects, cheerful outlook, and new undertakings 
 which seem promising. They become enthusi- 
 astic when propositions are properly pre- 
 sented to them, and prefer to deal with Sales- 
 men of similar mental characteristics. These 
 people are natural " bulls" in business be- 
 ware of posing as a " bear ' ' when dealing with 
 them. They relish a good cheering, cheerful 
 talk more than anything else. They are good 
 people to deal with, particularly if the quality 
 in question is balanced by caution and trained 
 by experience. 
 
 Spirituality, or Other-worldliness, when 
 highly developed tends to cause one to live on 
 mental heights above* the things of ordinary 
 material existence; to trust to the "inner 
 light;" to incline toward mysticism; and to 
 experience a religious consciousness above the 
 ordinary. When manifested in a lesser de- 
 gree it is evidenced by the ordinary "relig- 
 
MIND OF THE BUYER 97 
 
 ious" feeling. Perverted, it manifests as su- 
 perstition, credulity and "psychism." The 
 people in whom this faculty is active seem to 
 feel that business is a degrading necessity, and 
 they are never thoroughly at home in it, unless 
 the goods handled happen to be along the lines 
 of their general inclination, as for instance, 
 religious books, -etc. Consequently, their busi- 
 ness traits and tastes arise from the other 
 faculties, rather than from this particular one. 
 However, they are easily prejudiced against 
 one whom they imagine does not agree with 
 them in their beliefs and convictions, and are 
 apt to be swayed rather more by feeling, emo- 
 tion and sentiment than by cool judgment and 
 pure reason. They are usually strong in their 
 likes and dislikes, and are susceptible to ap- 
 peals to their imagination. 
 
 Veneration, or Reverence, when highly 
 developed causes one to manifest reverence 
 and extreme respect to authority of all 
 kinds. These people are usually good church 
 members and law abiding citizens. In busi- 
 ness, the faculty is apt to cause them to 
 place great stress upon authority and ex- 
 ample. If some large merchant has ordered 
 
98 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 certain goods, they will be impressed 
 by his example. They regard testimonials 
 and recommendations highly. In dealing 
 with them one must avoid speaking lightly 
 of any thing or person esteemed by them, 
 for they will be quick to resent it. They 
 are usually decidedly conventional, and aim to 
 meet the full requirements of "respectabil- 
 ity" and social customs. 
 
 Benevolence, or Human Kindness, when 
 highly developed causes- one to manifest sym- 
 pathy, kindness, generosity, and philanthropy. 
 These people are altruistic and always ready 
 to do another a good turn. They are moved 
 by their feelings rather than by their reason 
 and judgment, and will often base their busi- 
 ness transactions rather more upon friendli- 
 ness and personal feeling than upon cold busi- 
 ness judgment and policy. They are generous 
 where their sympathies and feelings are in- 
 terested, and are too often taken advantage of 
 by selfish people who play on their unselfish 
 natures. Too often are they considered 
 ' ' easy, ' 9 and are imposed on accordingly. The 
 personal equation of the Salesman plays an 
 important part in dealing with these people. 
 
MIND OF THE BUYER 99 
 
 From these several groups of faculties arise 
 many combinations of character in people. 
 While it is true that there is almost infinite 
 variety among people, nevertheless, it is true 
 that there are a few general classes into which 
 the majority of buyers may be fitted or 
 grouped for convenience. Let us now consider 
 some of the more common classes, and see how 
 the faculties, in combination, manifest them- 
 selves. 
 
 The Argumentive Buyer. This man finds 
 his greatest pleasure in arguing, combating 
 and disputing with the Salesman argument 
 for the sake of argument, not for the sake of 
 truth or advantage. This trait arises from de- 
 veloped Combativeness and Destructiveness. 
 Do not take these people too seriously. Let 
 them enjoy a victory over you on minor points, 
 and then after yielding gracefully coax them 
 along the main lines of the selling talk. At 
 the best, they are arguing over terms, defini- 
 tions, forms, etc. and not over facts. Let them 
 make their own definitions, terms and forms 
 and then take their order for the goods which 
 you have fitted into their side of the argument. 
 If, however, the argument is based upon true 
 
100 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 reasoning and with a legitimate intent, then 
 reason, with him calmly and respectfully. 
 
 The Conceited Buyer. This fellow is full of 
 Approbativeness. We have told you about 
 him elsewhere. Meet him on his own plane, 
 and give him the particular bait indicated for 
 his species he will rise to it. Appearing to 
 defer to him, you may work in your arguments 
 and selling talk without opposition. Prefac- 
 ing your explanation with "As you know by 
 your own experience ; ' ' or " as your own good 
 judgment has decided;" etc., you may tell 
 your story without much opposition. You 
 must always let him feel that you realize that 
 you are in the presence of a great man. 
 
 The "Stone Wall" Buyer. This man has 
 Self Esteem and Firmness largely developed. 
 We have told you about him under those two 
 headings. You must fly over, tunnel under, 
 or walk around his stone wall of reserve 
 and stubbornness. Let him keep his wall 
 intact he likes it, and it would be a shame 
 to deprive him of it. A little careful search 
 will generally show that he has left his flanks, 
 or his rear unguarded. He will not let you in 
 the front door so go around to the kitchen 
 
MIND OF THE BuYEit 101 
 
 door, or the side-door of the sitting room 
 they are not so well guarded. 
 
 The Irritable Buyer. This is an unpleasant 
 combination of Approbativeness and Combat- 
 iveness, in connection with poor digestion 
 and disordered nerves. Do not quarrel with 
 him, and let his manner slide over you like 
 water off a duck's back. Stick to your selling 
 talk, and above everything keep cool, confi- 
 dent, and speak in even tones. This course 
 will tend to bring him down. If you show that 
 you are not afraid of him, and cannot be made 
 angry if your tones are firm yet under con- 
 trol and not loud he will gradually come 
 down to meet you. If you lose your own tem- 
 per, you may as well walk out. Simply ig- 
 nore his "grouch" deny it out of existence, 
 as our New Thought friends would say. 
 
 The "Rough Shod" Buyer. This man has 
 large Destructiveness, and Self Esteem, and 
 wants to run things himself. He will try to 
 ride rough shod over you. Keep cool, even- 
 tempered, self-possessed, and firm yet re- 
 spectful. Do not let him ' ' rattle ' ' you. It is 
 often more of a " bluff" than anything else. 
 Keep on "sawing wood;" and do not be 
 
102 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 scared off. These people are often but "lath- 
 and-plaster" instead of the iron and steel 
 they appear to be at first sight. Keep firm and 
 calm, is the keynote in dealing with them. 
 
 The Cautious Buyer. This man generally 
 has Cautiousness and Continuity well devel- 
 oped, and Hope deficient. He is conservative 
 and fearful. Avoid frightening him with 
 ideas of "new" things or "experiments." 
 If you are selling new things cr ideas, manage 
 to blend them in with things with which he is 
 familiar associate the new and unfamiliar 
 with the old and familiar. And be conserva- 
 tive and careful in your talk, do not give him 
 the idea that you are a radical or a "new 
 f angled idea ' ' man. To him, be an " old fash- 
 ioned person." 
 
 The Cunning Buyer. This fellow has large 
 Secretiveness or Cunning he belongs to the 
 fox tribe. He likes to scheme out things 
 for himself, so if you will content yourself 
 with giving him broad hints, accompanied by 
 expressive glances, regarding what can be 
 done with your goods, he will be apt to scheme 
 out something in that direction, and thinking 
 he has done it all himself, he will be pleased 
 
MIND OF THE BUYER 103 
 
 and interested. Let him know that you appre- 
 ciate his shrewdness, particularly if he shows 
 that his Approbativeness is well developed. 
 But, if not, better let him think that he is de- 
 ceiving you regarding his true nature. The 
 majority of cunning people, however, take 
 pride in it, and relish a little grim apprecia- 
 tion of their quality. 
 
 The Dignified Buyer. This man has large 
 Self Esteem, and probably also large Appro- 
 bativeness. In either case, let him play the 
 part for which Nature has cast him, and you 
 play yours. Your part is in recognizing and 
 respecting his dignity, by your manner and 
 tone. Whether the dignity be real or assumed, 
 a recognition of and falling in with it is ap- 
 preciated and relished. Imagine that you are 
 in the presence of your revered great-grand- 
 father, or the bishop, and the rest will be easy. 
 We once knew of a jovial, but indiscreet, sales- 
 man who lost a large sale to a buyer of this 
 kind, by poking him in the ribs and calling 
 him "old chap." The buyer barely escaped 
 an attack of apoplexy the Salesman entirely 
 escaped a sale. 
 
 The "Mean" Buyer. This man is moved 
 
104 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 by Acquisitiveness. He is suspicious of you 
 from the start, for he feels that you intend to 
 get some money from him. Don't blame him 
 -he's built that way. Instead, get his mind 
 off the subject and on to another, by plunging 
 in at once with the statement that you have 
 something upon which Jie can make money, 
 or something that will save him money. Em- 
 phasize these points, and you will have 
 aroused his curiosity. Then proceed along 
 the same lines something to make money for 
 him, or something to save money for him 
 these are the only two arguments he can as- 
 similate. 
 
 The Intelligent Buyer. These people de- 
 pend almost entirely upon reason and judg- 
 ment. They are scarce. "When you meet one 
 of them, drop all attempts to play upon weak 
 points, prejudices or feelings, and confine 
 yourself strictly to logical and rational state- 
 ments, presentation of your proposition, and 
 argument thereon. Do not attempt sophistry, 
 argument from false premises, or other falla- 
 cies. He will detect them at once, and will 
 feel indignant, Talk straight from the shoul- 
 
MIND OF THE BUYER 105 
 
 der, and confine yourself to facts, figures, 
 principles, and logic. 
 
 So far we have dealt with the voluntary or 
 outer mind of the buyer. Let us now consider 
 his involuntary or inner mind. There are 
 many other terms used by psychologists to 
 designate these two phases of mind the im- 
 portant fact is that there are two phases or 
 planes of mind which are operative in a sale. 
 Let us see how they work, rather than what 
 they are, or what they are called. 
 
 Discarding, for the time being, the current 
 psychological theories and terminology, let us 
 take a plain look at the facts of the case. A 
 little consideration will show us that there are 
 two parts to a man's mind or two phases of 
 activity. In the first place, there is a part of 
 one's mind which acts as does the mind of the 
 higher animal, the savage, the child. That is, 
 ' it acts upon impulse and without restraint of 
 the will. Its attention is easily attracted, but 
 held with difficulty unless the interest and 
 curiosity is awakened. It is curious, fond of 
 novelty, inquisitive, impulsive, easily per- 
 suaded in certain directions, susceptible to 
 impressions, amenable to suggestion, imita- 
 
106 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 tive, subject to panic, apt to "follow my 
 leader," emotional, depending upon feeling 
 rather than upon reason, subject to persua- 
 sion and coaxing, and acting almost auto- 
 matically in response to awakened desire. Let 
 us think of this part of the mind as the inher- 
 itance of the race from the past the instinct- 
 ive mind the elemental mind of the race 
 before Intellect mounted its throne. This part 
 of the mind is possessed by every individual 
 of the race. No matter how highly developed 
 the individual may be, he has this part of the 
 mind. No matter how much he may be in 
 control of it, it is always there as a background 
 and basis of his other kind of mind. The 
 difference in the self-control of individuals 
 depends almost altogether upon the other part 
 of the mind, which we shall now consider the 
 Voluntary Mind, in which the Intellect and 
 Will are the predominant elements. The 
 phase which we have just considered may be 
 called the Involuntary Mind, in which Desire 
 and Feeling are the predominant elements. 
 
 The Voluntary Mind has come to man in 
 the course of evolution. It is not nearly so 
 highly developed in the majority of people, 
 
MIND OF THE BUYER 107 
 
 as one might at first suppose. The majority 
 of the race have the Involuntary Mind pre- 
 dominant, and are swayed more by feeling 
 and desire than by intellect and will. Those in 
 whom the Voluntary Mind is highly developed 
 place the intellect over the feelings the will 
 over the desires. They submit their feelings 
 to the inspection and approval of their intel- 
 lect, and hold their desires in check by their 
 will. We are in the habit of thinking of will 
 as a something which .acts but in the major- 
 ity of instances it is found to be employed in 
 checking action of the desires in holding 
 back rather than in pushing forward. One of 
 the chief duties of the developed will is that of 
 inhibition, or restraint. And inhibition de- 
 pends upon the decision of the judgment or 
 intellect. The animal, savage, or child has but 
 little power of this kind the average individ- 
 ual has more than the child or savage but less 
 than the developed individual the developed 
 individual has better self-control, and subor- 
 dinates his emotional desires and feelings to 
 his judgment and will, by inhibition or re- 
 straint. Every individual has both of these 
 phases of mind the Involuntary and Volun- 
 
108 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 tary- the latter, however, being manifested 
 in an infinite variety of degrees of develop- 
 ment and power. Back of every Involun^- 
 tary Mind is to be found the protecting Volun- 
 tary Mind and likewise, back of every 
 Voluntary Mind, no matter how strong it may 
 be, there is ever the Involuntary Mind chafing 
 under restraint and striving to escape its 
 master's eye and express itself in its own 
 way. And the master often relaxes its atten- 
 tion, or gets tired of its strenuous task, and 
 then 1 the hidden nature "plays while the cat's 
 away. ' ' 
 
 Perhaps the Salesman may be able to re- 
 member this classification of the two phases 
 of the mind, by picturing them as two part- 
 ners engaged in business. The Salesman is 
 trying to secure the trade of the firm. The 
 one brother is an easy-going fellow, possess- 
 ing curiosity and childish interest, capable 
 of being "jollied," persuaded and coaxed, 
 and apparently acting always from his mo- 
 mentary desires and feelings, desirous of ap- 
 pearing well in the eyes of others, and anxious 
 to make a good impression, finding it easier 
 to say "Yes," than "No "-easier o fall in 
 
MIND OF THE BUYER 109 
 
 with the wishes of others than to oppose them, 
 being vain and complaisant. This partner's 
 name is "Easyboy." The other partner is 
 an entirely different sort of fellow. He is cold 
 and calculating, manifesting very little feel- 
 ing or emotion, submitting everything to his 
 reason and judgment, not moved by prejudices 
 for or against, driving a close bargain and re- 
 senting attempts to coax or drive him. His 
 name is "Hardf ellow." 
 
 In the firm of "Easyboy and Hardf ello w, ' * 
 the work is divided. "Easyboy" has much to 
 do about the place, attending to many things 
 for which his temperament specially fits him. 
 ' l Hardf ellow, ' 9 however, does the buying, for 
 experience has taught him that "Easyboy" 
 is not fitted for the task, being too much under 
 the sway of his feelings and being too easily 
 influenced. "Easyboy" never could say 
 "No," anyway but "Hardf ellow" finds it 
 almost as hard to say "yes." So "Hard- 
 fellow" does the buying, but "Easyboy" al- 
 ways "hangs 'round" when a salesman is 
 talking, for he is naturally inquisitive, and, 
 being jealous, rather resents "Hardf ellow V 
 authority in the matter. Sometimes he 
 
110 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 breaks in, and "Hardfellow" lets him have 
 his say, and at times indulges him in minor 
 purchases, for being a partner he must accord 
 him some consideration in spite of the ar- 
 rangement regarding duties. A strange thing 
 is that "Easyboy" is possessed of the notion 
 that he would make an ideal buyer, far bet- 
 ter than "Hardfellow" in fact, and he loses 
 no opportunity of manifesting his supposed 
 quality, notwithstanding the fact that he 
 usually makes a bungle of it. 
 
 For "Hardfellow" is often so busy that he 
 cannot give his full attention to the business 
 of buying; then again he becomes tired and 
 at such times his judgment is not so good, and 
 he is apt to be influenced by "Easyboy" at 
 such times ; and, again, he becomes interested 
 in one feature of the purchase and overlooks 
 the others at such times "Easyboy" "gets 
 in his fine work," and takes a hand in the 
 buying. The Salesmen who visit the firm are 
 fully aware of this condition of affairs, and 
 plan things so as to have "Easyboy" on hand 
 and able to play his part. They can do any- 
 thing with him, and the more he is in evidence 
 the better are their chances. If he had his 
 
MIND OF THE BUYER 111 
 
 way he would buy corner lots in the moon, or 
 gold-bricks minus the plating. He likes to 
 say "Yes" when coaxed, jollied or led. But 
 the Salesmen having a straight business prop- 
 osition of merit get along well with "Hard- 
 fellow, ' ' for he is reachable on such lines when 
 logically presented and explained in a busi- 
 ness way. Even such Salesmen, however, find 
 "Basyboy" a valuable ally, for he often gets 
 them a hearing when "Hardfellow" is busy 
 or otherwise not disposed to listen. And so, 
 they all find it an important question to get 
 "Easyboy" on the scene at "Hardfellow's" 
 elbow. Some claim to have discovered a 
 method whereby they can "sidetrack" 
 "HardfeUow" and get "Easyboy" to do the 
 buying. And rumor even has it that there 
 have been unscrupulous individuals who have 
 happened around when "Hardfellow" was 
 taking his siesta after a full dinner, and who 
 then played upon "Easyboy's" weakness in 
 a shameful manner. The firm deny these 
 rumors, but there is an old gold brick holding 
 back a door at the back part of the store ; and 
 a big bundle of worthless shares in a nicely 
 printed gold-mine and a deed for a quarter- 
 
112 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 section of the blue sky, in the safe so there 
 may have been something in the tale, after 
 all. 
 
 Every mind is an "Easyboy and Hardf el- 
 low" firm. Both partners are in evidence. In 
 some cases "Easyboy" has far more sway 
 and influence than his more capable partner ; 
 in others they have equal authority; in a 
 third, "Hardfellow" asserts his right and 
 ability, and "Easyboy" has to take a back 
 seat under protest. But the same principle 
 is true of them all. And this fact is taken 
 into consideration by men of the world who 
 understand the true state of affairs. If anyone 
 doubts this statement of psychological facts, 
 let him analyze himself, and look back over 
 his own experience. He will find that "Easy- 
 boy" has played him many a sad trick in the 
 past, and the "Hardfellow" has been "off 
 his job" more than once. Then let him begin 
 to analyze others with whom he comes in con- 
 tacthe will see the same state of affairs 
 existing there. And yet there is no mystery 
 about the matter it is all in accordance with 
 known psychological laws. Some writers on 
 the subject of Salesmanship rather solemnly 
 
MIND OF THE BUYER 113 
 
 assure us that the "Easyboy" part of the 
 mind is a "higher mind" but it is not. It 
 belongs to the instinctive stage of mental de- 
 velopment, rather than to the rational. It is 
 an inheritance from the past that past in 
 which men were moved entirely by feeling and 
 emotion, before reason came to its present 
 stage of development. If it is "higher" why 
 is it a fact that the lower races and individ- 
 uals manifest it to a greater extent than the 
 higher ones? This part of the mind gives 
 vitality and energy to one, but unless it be 
 controlled by Intellect and Will it is apt to 
 prove a curse. 
 
CHAPTEE VI 
 
 THE FEE-APPROACH 
 
 Nearly all teachers of or writers upon 
 Salesmanship lay much stress upon what is 
 called "The Pre- Approach, " by which term 
 is indicated the preliminaries leading up to 
 the Approach or Interview with the Buyer. 
 
 What we have said under the head of ' ' The 
 Mind of the Salesman" is really a part of the 
 Pre- Approach, for it is in the nature of the 
 preparation of the mind of the salesman for 
 the interview with the buyer. But there is 
 more than this to the Pre- Approach. The 
 Pre- Approach is the mapping out of the cam- 
 paign "organizing victory" it has been 
 called. It is the accumulation of ammunition 
 for the fight, and the laying out of the strat- 
 egy. Macbain says: "The Pre- Approach is 
 the groundwork upon which the salesman 
 builds. It comprises all the information ob- 
 tainable by him that will be of importance in 
 
 114 
 
THE PRE-APPROACH 115 
 
 making his approach in selling the customer. 
 A sale, in fact, resembles chimney- 
 building, in which it takes more time for pre- 
 liminary scaffold-making than it does to 
 build the permanent structure once the scaf- 
 fold is made. ' ' 
 
 In the first place, an important part of the 
 Pre-Approach is a correct and complete 
 knowledge of your goods. Too many men 
 rush to the Approach without knowing what 
 they have to sell. It is not enough to know 
 brands and prices one should know his goods 
 from top to bottom, inside and outside, from 
 the raw material to the finished article. He 
 should feel perfectly at home with his goods, 
 so that he may have full information regard- 
 ing them on tap, and thus have his mind free 
 for the strategy of the sale. A little close, 
 earnest intelligent study of one's line of 
 goods will not only supply one with an efficient 
 weapon, but will also impart to him a sense of 
 certainty and confidence that he cannot have 
 otherwise. What would be thought of a 
 teacher of natural history who did not under- 
 stand animals? And yet many salesmen are 
 equally as ignorant about their subject. 
 
116 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 The salesman should understand his goods 
 so thoroughly that he could write a treatise 
 on them, or demonstrate them before an audi- 
 ence of experts or of persons entirely in ignor- 
 ance of them the latter being probably the 
 hardest task. He should be able to explain 
 their particular virtues and characteristics 
 to a man old in the same line, or to explain 
 them simply and plainly to one who had never 
 seen them or who was ignorant of their uses. 
 We know of one salesman who was asked by 
 his little boy to explain a cash register to him, 
 and who complied with the request. He told 
 us that he learned more about his cash regis- 
 ter in the process of that explanation than he 
 had acquired in even the process of the tech- 
 nical demonstration in the "salesman's 
 school ' J at the factory. It is not always policy 
 for the salesman to air his knowledge of his 
 goods to his customer such a course would 
 generally bore the latter but he should know 
 all about his goods, nevertheless. The man 
 who knows his goods in this way plants his 
 feet on the solid rock and cannot be swept 
 away, while the man who builds on the shift- 
 
THE PRE-AppROACH 117 
 
 ing sand of " half -knowledge" is always in 
 danger. 
 
 But the more popular branch of the Pre- Ap- 
 proach is the knowledge of the customer. Get 
 as many points regarding the characteristics, 
 habits, likes and dislikes of the customer as 
 possible. Find out as much as you can about 
 his trade, and manner of conducting his busi- 
 ness, as well as his business history. Macbain 
 says : ' ' There is really no information about 
 a prospective customer that can be said to be 
 valueless. On the other hand, a knowledge of 
 one or two of the characteristics of the man to 
 be approached may be considered sufficient, 
 the ready intuition of the salesman being re- 
 lied upon for the rest. It is assumed, of 
 course, that a salesman will be able to call his 
 man by name, pronouncing the name correctly 
 upon the very first interview. This is the 
 prime requisite, and the remaining knowledge 
 should be grouped about this in the order of 
 its importance." 
 
 The data regarding your prospective cus- 
 tomer is obtainable in many ways. Much of 
 it you may obtain from your house if they have 
 had previous dealings with him. Other sales- 
 
118 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 men will also add to the data, but one must be 
 on the lookout here and not allow himself to 
 be prejudiced against the customer, or fright- 
 ened by adverse reports regarding his man* 
 ner and characteristics coming from other 
 salesmen. Pierce says : "It would seem that 
 the good characteristics of the prospect are 
 desirable to learn. But it is a conviction that 
 by denying to one's self the unfavorable 
 things said about your prospect, you will not 
 accentuate the very qualities you hope to ob- 
 viate. One attempt at a sale is recalled where 
 the prospect was said to be 'the meanest 
 man on earth.' Almost terrified by the de- 
 scription, the salesman went at the prospect 
 the wrong way; displeased him; lost the 
 sale." 
 
 Hotel clerks or better still, hotel proprie- 
 tors are often very well informed regarding 
 merchants in their town, and often valuable 
 information may be obtained in this way, al- 
 though the judgment and experience of the 
 hotel people must be appraised before basing 
 one's own opinion regarding the customer. 
 Other customers may also be diplomatically 
 pressed into service in obtaining information 
 
THE PRE-APPROACH 119 
 
 regarding their competitors, although allow- 
 ance must always be made for the personal 
 bias in such cases. It is a good idea for the 
 salesman to make a record of these advance 
 reports, so as to have them on file where he 
 may refer to them when needed. Some sales- 
 men have a card index devoted to this pur- 
 pose, which they have found very useful. 
 
 Another, and a very important point about 
 the Pre- Approach is that of developing the 
 proper Mental Attitude in yourself. You 
 must get yourself right first, before you can 
 get anything else right. Pierce says regard- 
 ing this : "Someone has said that the greatest 
 bane to selling goods is fear. As a matter of 
 fact, the only thing you are afraid of is that 
 you won't make the sale, get the check. But, 
 if you waive this point, and say, 'Now, I don't 
 care whether I get this sale or not. I do know 
 this : I am honest, my goods are honest, and 
 if this man does not want them there are 
 plenty of men who do,' you will find the fear 
 melting like the mist before sunshine. Fear 
 cannot live in the presence of your smile, your 
 confidence, your knowledge of the business 
 and your industry." 
 
120 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 In this connection, re-read what we have 
 said to you regarding the "I" and "Self-Re- 
 spect" in the chapter entitled "The Mind of 
 the Salesman." This chapter was written to 
 cover just such cases as the one in question. 
 If you can realize the "I" within you, your 
 fear will disappear quickly. Eemember, 
 ' ' there 's nothing to fear but Fear. 9 J 
 
 Many successful salesmen state that they 
 overcame their early fear and timidity by 
 filling themselves with auto-suggestions that 
 they were calling on the customer for the pur- 
 pose of doing him a good turn that it was a 
 good thing for the customer that the salesman 
 was calling on him, although he did not know 
 it and that he, the salesman must let noth- 
 ing stand in the way of doing that good turn 
 to the customer, etc. As ridiculous as this 
 may appear to some, it will be found to work 
 well in many cases. And it is based upon 
 truth, too, for if the goods are right, and the 
 prices are likewise, the salesman is doing the 
 customer a good turn. 
 
 And right here, let us impress upon you the 
 necessity of working yourself up to the point 
 of believing thoroughly in your own proposi- 
 
THE PKE- APPROACH 121 
 
 tion. You must get yourself into the state of 
 mind in which, if you were in the customer's 
 place, you would surely want to take advan- 
 tage of it. You must convert yourself before 
 you can expect to convert the customer. We 
 know an ad. man who tells us that he never 
 feels satisfied with an ad. that he is writing 
 until he can make himself believe that he 
 wants to buy the article himself. And he is 
 right. And the salesman will do well to take 
 a leaf from his book. Enthusiasm and belief 
 are contagious. If you believe thoroughly in 
 a thing, you run a much better chance of 
 making others believe in it also, than if you 
 feel otherwise. You must learn to sett to 
 yourself first, then you may sell to the cus- 
 tomer. 
 
 W. C. Holman, in "Salesmanship," says: 
 ' ' One cannot make others believe what he 
 himself believes, unless he himself is an 
 earnest believer. Dwight L. Moody swayed 
 enormous audiences by the simple power of 
 his own wonderful earnestness. No one could 
 listen to Moody without saying: 'This man 
 believes absolutely every word he is speak- 
 ing. If he feels what he says so tremendously, 
 
122 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 there must be something in it.' If every sales- 
 man realized how largely the attitude of the 
 ' prospect' depended upon the salesman's own 
 mental attitude, he would be as careful to get 
 into the right frame of mind when he started 
 out to approach a prospect as he would be to 
 carry a sample case. It is a simple matter 
 for him to do this. All that is necessary is for 
 him to Hake account of stock' just before he 
 starts out to enumerate to himself all the 
 strong, convincing points in his proposition 
 to consider the good high qualities of the 
 goods he is selling run over in his mind the 
 splendid characteristics of his house think 
 of the great number of customers who have 
 bought his product and of the supremely 
 satisfying reasons why other customers 
 should buy his goods. In other words, before 
 a salesman starts to sell other men, he should 
 sell himself. He should make this sale to 
 himself at the beginning' of every day's 
 work." 
 
 The student should acquaint himself thor- 
 oughly with the creative force of Suggestion 
 and Auto-Suggestion in Character Building, 
 and in producing and maintaining the proper 
 
THE PRE- APPROACH 123 
 
 Mental Attitude. The volume of this series 
 entitled "Suggestion and Auto-Suggestion" 
 gives both the theory, principles and methods 
 of applying Auto-Suggestion in the direc- 
 tions named. One need no longer be a slave 
 of his Mental Attitude. On the contrary he 
 may create and preserve the Mental Attitude 
 he deems advisable and necessary at any 
 time. 
 
 Mr. W. C. Holman, one of the best of the 
 inspirational writers on Salesmanship, gives 
 the following interesting instance of the use 
 of Auto-Suggestion by a salesman. He says : 
 "One of the best salesmen the writer ever 
 knew got up what he called his catechism. He 
 used to put himself through it every morning 
 before starting out. Oftentimes he repeated 
 it aloud if he had the opportunity. The ques- 
 tions he would repeat in a quiet tone, but the 
 answers he would pronounce with all the 
 earnestness of which he was capable. His 
 catechism ran somewhat as follows: 
 
 "Am I working for a good house? YES! 
 
 "Has my house the reputation and pres- 
 tige of being one of the best in its line! YES ! 
 
 "Have we made hundreds of thousands of 
 
124 SALESMAKSHIP 
 
 sales like the sales I am going to make to- 
 day? YE&! 
 
 "Have we an enormous body of satisfied 
 users? YES! 
 
 "Am I selling the best goods of the kind 
 made anywhere in the world? YES ! 
 
 6 ' Is the price I am asking a fair one ? YES ! 
 
 "Do the men I am going to call on need the 
 article I am selling? YES ! 
 
 ' ' Do they realize that now ? NO ! 
 
 "Is that the very reason I am going to call 
 on them because at present they don't want 
 my goods, and haven't yet bought them? 
 YES! 
 
 "Am I justified in asking a prospect's time 
 and attention to present my proposition? 
 BY ALL THE POWEBS, YES ! 
 
 "Am I going to get into the office of every 
 man that I call on, if there is any earthly way 
 to do it? YES! 
 
 "Am I going to sell every man I call on to- 
 day? YOU BET I AM I" 
 
 Eef erring to the above "catechism" of Mr. 
 Holman, we would say that if a man would 
 work himself up to the point of asking and 
 answering these questions in earnest, and 
 
THE PRE-APPROACH 125 
 
 would carry the spirit thereof through the 
 day, he would render himself almost invinc- 
 ible. A spirit like that is the spirit of the 
 Light Brigade, of Napoleon, of the Berserker 
 Norseman who made a way for himself. Such 
 a man would make opportunities, instead of 
 begging for them. Such a man would be in- 
 spired. This is Auto-Suggestion raised to 
 the Nth Power. Try it you need it in your 
 business ! 
 
 The second phase of the Pre-Approach is 
 that of obtaining an interview with the pros- 
 pective customer, generally known as "the 
 prospect. ' ' In many instances the salesman is 
 able to secure the interview by simply walk- 
 ing into the presence of the prospect, the 
 latter being in full view in his store or office 
 and no intermediary being present to inter- 
 cept the approach. In such cases the second 
 phase of the Pre-Approach is passed over, 
 and the actual Approach is entered into at 
 once. But in other cases, particularly in the 
 large office buildings of the principal cities, 
 tho prospect is found to be in his private office, 
 I the salesman's advance is halted by a 
 :k, or even an office boy, and there are cer- 
 
126 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 tain preliminaries to be gone through with 
 before an interview may be obtained. In many 
 cases, "big" men (or those who wish to be 
 considered "big") surround themselves with 
 so much formality and red-tape that it is quite 
 a feat to run the gauntlet of the guardians of 
 the inner temple, and much tact, diplomacy, 
 presence of mind, and often strategy is re- 
 quired of the Salesman in order that he may 
 "get at his man." 
 
 Macbain, in his work entitled "Selling," 
 says of this stage: "Between the pre-ap- 
 proach and the actual approach sometimes lies 
 a trying time for the salesman. It is no un- 
 common thing for a prospective customer to 
 keep a salesman waiting, either outside the 
 office door and out of sight, or inside and in 
 the presence of the prospective buyer. This 
 is known as 'breaking the salesman's nerve.' 
 It is often done with the idea of deliberately 
 making the salesman nervous and conse- 
 quently unable to make such an approach as 
 otherwise would be possible.. Perhaps one of 
 the most common forms of this is seen when 
 the prospective customer appears to be very 
 busily interested in something at his desk and 
 
THE PBE-APPKOACH 127 
 
 allows the salesman to stand an indefinite 
 length of time and then turns suddenly upon 
 him. This is especially disconcerting to the 
 young man, but the experienced salesman rec- 
 ognizes it as an indication that either the man 
 is very busy and actually hates to take his 
 mind off his work, or that he is afraid of be- 
 ing talked into something that he will later re- 
 gret. The salesman consequently shapes his 
 introduction accordingly and will in no wise 
 be disconcerted by this attempt as it will en- 
 able him to study carefully the outward char- 
 acteristics of the man whom he is about to 
 approach." 
 
 In many cases this waiting is forced on the 
 salesman by a prospect who also knows some- 
 thing of the laws of psychology for such 
 knowledge is not confined to the salesman by 
 any means, the buyer having posted himself 
 in many cases. In the game of checkers or 
 draughts quite an important advantage ac- 
 crues to the player securing what is technically 
 known as "the move," which, however, is a 
 very different thing from the "first play." 
 There is in the psychology of the sale, or of 
 the interview between two people of equal 
 
128 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 strength, a something which corresponds 
 very closely with "the move" in checkers. 
 This something gives a decided advantage to 
 the person securing it, and it is worth striving 
 for. This something is subtle and almost in- 
 describable, although apparent to every one 
 who has dealings with his fellow men. It 
 seems to be a matter of mental balance and 
 poise. The salesman, if he be well balanced 
 and poised, is "positive" to the buyer, the lat- 
 ter being in a listening, and therefore passive, 
 attitude. So far the salesman has "the 
 move," which however he may later lose if 
 the prospect plays scientifically. Well, to get 
 back to the "waiting" stage, the prospect by 
 disturbing the salesman's poise, and "break- 
 ing his nerve ' ' by keeping him waiting on the 
 anxious bench in a state of suspense, often 
 manages to get "the move" on him, unless he 
 understands the psychology of the process and 
 accordingly avoids it. Suspense is the most 
 nerve-breaking mental state on the psycho- 
 logical list, as all realize who have experi- 
 enced it. Beware of losing "the move." 
 
 An important factor in getting past the 
 stockade of the outer office is the conscious- 
 
THE PRE-APPROACH 129 
 
 ness of Self Eespect and the realization of the 
 "I" of which we have spoken. This mental 
 attitude impresses itself upon those who 
 guard the outer works, and serves to clear the 
 way. As Pierce says : ' ' Bemember, you are 
 asking no favors; that you have nothing to 
 apologize for, and that you have every reason 
 in the world for holding your head high. 
 And it is wonderful what this holding up of 
 the head will do in the way of increasing 
 sales. We have seen salesmen get entrance 
 to the offices of Broadway buyers simply 
 through the holding of the head straight up 
 from the shoulders." But it is the Mental 
 Attitude back of the physical -expression that 
 is the spirit of the thing don't forget this. 
 
 The Mental Attitude and the physical ex- 
 pression thereof instinctively influence the 
 conduct of other people toward one. We may 
 see the same thing illustrated in the attitude 
 and action of the street boy toward dogs. Let 
 some poor cur trot along with drooping ears, 
 timid expression, meek eyes, and tail between 
 his legs, and the urchin will be apt to kick 
 him or throw a rock at his retreating form. 
 Note the difference when the self-respecting 
 
130 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 dog, with spirit in him, trots past, looking the 
 boy fearlessly in the eye and showing his 
 sense of self-respect and power to back it up 
 in every movement. That dog is treated ac- 
 cordingly. There are certain people whose 
 manner is such that they do not need to ask 
 respect and consideration it is given them 
 as a matter of right and privilege. People 
 stand aside to give them room, and move up 
 in street cars that they may have a seat. And 
 it does not necessarily follow that the person 
 to whom this respect is shown is a worthy in- 
 dividual or a person of fine qualities he 
 may be a confidence man or a swindler. But 
 whatever he is, or may be, he has certain out- 
 ward mannerisms and characteristics which 
 enable him to "put up a good front" and 
 which carry him through. At the back of it 
 all will be found certain mental states which 
 produce the genuine outward characteristics 
 and manner in the case of genuine instances of 
 persons possessing authority and high posi- 
 tion, the confidence man merely presenting a 
 passable counterfeit, being a good actor. 
 
 It is often necessary for the salesman to 
 send in a card to the inner office. It is well 
 
THE PRE- APPROACH 131 
 
 for him to have some cards, well engraved in 
 the most approved manner, bearing simply 
 his name: "Mr. John Jay Jones," with his 
 business appearing thereon. If he is trav- 
 elling from a large city, and is selling in 
 smaller towns, he may have "New York," 
 "Chicago," "Philadelphia," "Boston," etc., 
 as the case may be in the corner of his card. 
 If the name of his business appears on the 
 card the prospect often goes over the matter 
 of a possible sale, mentally, without the sales- 
 man being present to present his case, and 
 then may decline to grant an interview. The 
 name, without the business, often arouses in- 
 terest or curiosity and thus, instead of hin- 
 dering, really aids in securing the interview. 
 
 Eegarding the discussion of the business 
 with anyone other than the prospect himself, 
 the authorities differ. As a matter of fact it 
 would seem to depend largely upon the par- 
 ticular circumstances of each case, the nature 
 of the articles to be sold, and the character 
 and position of the subordinate in question. 
 
 One set of authorities hold that it is very 
 poor policy to tell your business to a subor- 
 dinate, and that it is far better to tell him 
 
132 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 courteously but firmly that your business 
 is of such a nature that you can discuss it only 
 with the prospect in person. Otherwise, it 
 is held that the subordinate will tell you that 
 the matter in question has already been con- 
 sidered by his principal, and that he is fully 
 informed regarding the proposition, and has 
 given orders that he is not to be disturbed 
 further regarding it. 
 
 The other set of authorities hold that in 
 many cases the subordinate may be pressed 
 into service, by treating him with great re- 
 spect, and an apparent belief in his judgment 
 and authority, winning his good-will and 
 getting him interested in your proposition, 
 and endeavoring to have him " speak about 
 it" to his superior during the day. It is 
 claimed that a subsequent call, the day fol- 
 lowing, will often prove successful, as the 
 subordinate will have paved the way for an 
 interview and have actually done some work 
 for you in the way of influence and selling 
 talk. It is held that some salesmen have 
 made permanent " friends in camp" of these 
 subordinates who have been approached in 
 this way. 
 
THE PRE-APPROACH 133 
 
 It would seera, however, as we have said, 
 to depend much upon the particular circum- 
 stances of the case. In some cases the subor- 
 dinate is merely a "hold-off," or "break- 
 water;" while in others he is a confidential 
 employee whose opinion has weight with the 
 prospect, and whose good-will and aid are 
 well worth securing. In any event, however, 
 it is well to gain the respect and good-will of 
 those in the "outer court," for they can often 
 do much in the way of helping or injuring your 
 chances. "We have known cases in which sub- 
 ordinates "queered" a salesman who had 
 offended them; and we have known other 
 cases in which the subordinate being pleased 
 by the salesman "put him next." It is al- 
 ways better to make a friend rather than an 
 enemy from the office-boy upward on gen- 
 eral principles. Many a fine warrior has 
 been tripped up by a small pebble. Strong 
 men have died from the bite of a mosquito. 
 
 The following advice from J. F. Gillen, the 
 Chicago manager of the Burroughs Adding 
 Machine Company, is very much to the point. 
 Mr. Gillen, in the magazine "Salesmanship," 
 says: "A salesman who has not proved his 
 
134 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 mettle and who, unfortunately, is not sure 
 of himself is likely to be overcome by a 
 sense of his own insignificance on entering 
 the private domain of the great man, rich 
 man, or influential man, from whom he hopes 
 to get an order. The very hum and rush of 
 business in this boss's office are very awe- 
 inspiring. The fact that there exists an iron- 
 clad rule, designed to protect the boss against 
 intrusion, forbidding the admittance of an 
 uninvited salesman and the fact that the 
 army of employees are bound by this rule to 
 oppose the entrance of any such visitor 
 combine to make an untried salesman morally 
 certain of his powerlessness; to make him 
 feel that he has no justifiable reason for pre- 
 senting himself at all. Indeed he has none, 
 if the awe which he feels for red-tape, rules, 
 dignitaries, has made him lose sight of the at- 
 tractions of his own proposition; has swal- 
 lowed up his confidence in what he has to 
 offer and his ability to enthuse the prospect in 
 regard to it. * * * If you believe that 
 your proposition will prove interesting 1 to the 
 prospect and that he will profit by doing busi- 
 ness with you, you have a right to feel that 
 
THE PRE-AppROAcH 135 
 
 the rule barring salesmen from his presence 
 was not intended to bar you. Convince your- 
 self of this and the stern negative of the in- 
 formation clerk will not abash you. You will 
 find yourself endowed with a courage and re- 
 sourcefulness to cope with a slick secretary 
 who gives glibly evasive replies when you try 
 to find out whether Mr. Prospect is now in 
 his office, whether he cannot see you at once, 
 and what reason exists for supposing you 
 could possibly tell your business to any subor- 
 dinate in place of him. Once you are thus 
 morally sure of your ground, the hardest part 
 of the battle is won. * * * You can see 
 the prospect and get speech with him, no mat- 
 ter what obstacles intervene, if your nerve 
 holds out and you use your brains." 
 
 Eemember this, always: The Psychology 
 of Salesmanship applies not only to work 
 with the prospect, but also to work with those 
 who bar the way to him. Subordinates have 
 minds, faculties, feelings and strong and 
 weak points of mentality they have their 
 psychology just as their employer has his. It 
 will pay you to make a careful study of their 
 
136 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 psychology it has its rules, laws and princi- 
 ples. This is a point often overlooked by 
 little salesmen, but fully recognized by the 
 "big" ones. The short cut to the mind of 
 many a prospect is directly through the mind 
 of the man in the outer office. 
 
CHAPTER WI 
 
 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF PURCHASE 
 
 There are several stages or phases mani- 
 fested by the buyer in the mental process 
 which results in a purchase. "While it is diffi- 
 cult to state a hard and fast rule regarding 
 the same, because of the variety of tempera- 
 ment, tendencies and mental habits possessed 
 in several degrees by different individuals, 
 still there are certain principles of feeling 
 and thought manifested alike by each and 
 every individual buyer, and a certain logical 
 sequence is followed by all men in each and 
 every original purchase. It follows, of 
 course, that these principles, and this se- 
 quence, will be found to be operative in each 
 and every original purchase, whether that 
 purchase be the result of an advertisement, 
 display of goods, recommendation, or the 
 efforts of a salesman. The principle is the 
 same in each and every case, and the sequence 
 
 137 
 
138 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 of the mental states is the same in each and 
 every instance. Let us now consider these 
 several mental states in their usual sequence. 
 The several mental states manifested by 
 every buyer in an original purchase are given 
 below in the order of sequence in which they 
 are usually manifested: 
 
 Involuntary Attention. 
 First Impression. 
 Curiosity. 
 
 Associated Interest. 
 Consideration.^ $/wfa^*fl 
 Imagination. 
 Inclination. 
 Deliberation. - 
 Decision. 
 X. Action. 
 
 We use the term "original purchase" in 
 this connection in order to distinguish the 
 original purchase from a repeated order or 
 subsequent purchase of the same article, in 
 which latter instance the mental process is 
 far more simple and which consists merely in 
 recognizing the inclination, or habit, and 
 ordering the goods, without repeating the 
 
PSYCHOLOGY OF PURCHASE 139 
 
 original complex mental operation. Let us 
 now proceed to a consideration of the several 
 mental stages of the original purchase, in 
 logical sequence: 
 
 I. Involuntary Attention. This mental 
 state is the elementary phase of attention. 
 Attention is not a faculty of the mind, but is 
 instead the focusing of the consciousness 
 upon one object to the temporary exclusion of 
 all other objects. It is a turning of the mind 
 on an object. The object of attention may be 
 either external, such as a person or thing ; or 
 internal, such as a feeling, thought, memory, 
 or idea. Attention may be either voluntary, 
 that is, directed consciously by the will; or 
 involuntary, that is, directed unconsciously 
 and instinctively and apparently indepen- 
 dently of the will. Voluntary attention is an 
 acquired and developed power and is the at- 
 tribute of the thinker, student and jntellec- 
 tual individual in all walks of life. Voluntary 
 attention, on the contrary, is but little more 
 than a reflex action, or a nervous response to 
 some stimulus. As Halleck says: "Many 
 persons scarcely get beyond the reflex stage. 
 Any chance stimulus will take their attention 
 
140 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 away from their studies or their business." 
 Sir William Hamilton made a still finer dis- 
 tinction, which is, however, generally over- 
 looked by writers on the subject, but which is 
 scientifically correct and which we shall fol- 
 low in this book. He holds that there are 
 three degrees or kinds of attention: (1) 
 the reflex or involuntary, which is instinctive 
 in nature; (2) that determined by desire or 
 feeling, which partakes of both the involun- 
 tary and voluntary nature, and which al- 
 though partly instinctive may be resisted by 
 the will under the influence of the judgment ; 
 and (3) that determined by deliberate vo- 
 lition in response to reason, as in study, 
 scientific games, rational deliberation, etc. 
 
 The first mental step of the purchase un- 
 doubtedly consists of involuntary or reflex 
 attention, such as is aroused by a sudden 
 sound, sight, or other sensation. The degree 
 of this involuntary attention depends upon 
 the intensity, suddenness, novelty, or move- 
 ment of the object to which it responds. All 
 persons respond to the stimuli arousing this 
 form of attention, but in different degrees de- 
 pending upon the preoccupation or concen- 
 
PSYCHOLOGY OF PURCHASE 141 
 
 tration of the individual at the time. The 
 striking or novel appearance of an advertise- 
 ment; the window-display of goods; the ap- 
 pearance of the salesman all these things 
 instinctively arouse the involuntary atten- 
 tion, and the buyer "turns his mind on" 
 them. But this turning the mind on belongs 
 to Hamilton's first class that of the in- 
 stinctive response to the sight or sound, and 
 not that aroused by desire or deliberate 
 thought. It is the most elemental form of 
 attention or mental effort, and to the sales- 
 man means simply: "Well, I see you !" Some- 
 times the prospect is so preoccupied or con- 
 centrated on other things that he barely 
 "sees" the salesman until an added stimulus 
 is given by a direct remark. 
 
 II. First Impression. This mental state 
 is the hasty generalization resulting from the 
 first impression of the object of attention 
 the advertisement, suggestion, display of 
 goods, or the Salesman depending in the 
 last case upon the general appearance, action, 
 manner, etc., as interpreted in the light of 
 experience or association. In other words, 
 the prospect forms a hasty general idea of 
 
142 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 the thing or person, either favorable or un- 
 favorable, almost instinctively and uncon- 
 sciously. The thing or person is associated 
 or classed with others resembling it in the 
 experience and memory of the prospect, and 
 the result is either a good, bad or indifferent 
 impression resulting from the suggestion of 
 association. For this reason the ad. man and 
 the window dresser endeavor to awaken 
 favorable and pleasing associated memories 
 and suggestions, and "puts his best foot 
 foremost." The Salesman endeavors to do 
 the same, and seeks to "put up a good 
 front" in his Approach, in order to secure 
 this valuable favorable first impression. 
 People are influenced more than they will 
 admit by these "first impressions," or sug- 
 gestions, of appearance, manner, etc., and the 
 man who understands psychology places 
 great importance upon them. A favorable 
 first impression smooths the way for the suc- 
 cessful awakening of the later mental states. 
 An unfavorable first impression, while it may 
 be removed and remedied later, nevertheless 
 is a handicap which the Salesman should 
 avoid. 
 
PSYCHOLOGY OF PURCHASE 143 
 
 (Note: The mental process of the pur- 
 chase now passes from the stage of involun- 
 tary attention, to that of attention inspired 
 by desire and feeling which partakes of both 
 the voluntary and involuntary elements. The 
 first two stages of this form of attention are 
 known as Curiosity and Associated Interest, 
 respectively. In some cases Curiosity pre- 
 cedes, in others Associated Interest takes the 
 lead, as we shall see. In other cases the mani- 
 festation of the two is almost simultaneous.) 
 
 III. Curiosity. This mental state is 
 really a form of Interest, but is more ele^ 
 mental than Associated Interest, being 
 merely the interest of novelty. It is the 
 strongest item of interest in the primitive 
 races, in children, and in many adults of ele- 
 mental development and habits of thought. 
 Curiosity is the form of Interest which is 
 almost instinctive, and which impels one to 
 turn the attention to strange and novel 
 things, All animals possess it to a marked 
 degree, as trappers have found out to their 
 profit. Monkeys possess it to an inordinate 
 degree, and the less developed individuals 
 of the human race also manifest it to a high 
 
144 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 degree. It is connected in some way with the 
 primitive conditions of living things, and is 
 probably a heritage from earlier and less se- 
 cure conditions of living, where inquisitive- 
 ness regarding new, novel and strange sights 
 and sounds was a virtue and the only means 
 of acquiring experience and education. At 
 any rate, there is certainly in human nature- 
 a decided instinctive tendency to explore the 
 unknown and strange the attraction of the 
 mysterious ; the lure of the secret things ; the 
 tantalizing call of the puzzle ; the fascination 
 of the riddle. 
 
 The Salesman who can introduce some- 
 thing in his opening talk that will arouse 
 Curiosity in the prospect has done much to 
 arouse his attention and interest. The street- 
 corner fakir, and the "barker" for the 
 amusement-park show, understand this prin- 
 ciple in human nature, and appeal largely 
 to it. They will blindfold a boy or girl, or 
 will make strange motions or sounds, in order 
 to arouse the curiosity of the crowd and to 
 cause them to gather around- all this before 
 the actual appeal to interest is made. In 
 some buyers Curiosity precedes Associated 
 
PSYCHOLOGY OF PUECHASE 145 
 
 Interest the interest in the unknown and 
 novel precedes the practical interest. In 
 others the Associated Interest the practical 
 interest inspired by experience and associa- 
 tionprecedes Curiosity, the latter manifest- 
 ing simply as inquisitiveness regarding the 
 details of the object which has aroused Asso- 
 ciated Interest. In other cases, Curiosity 
 and Associated Interest are so blended and 
 shaded into each other that they act almost 
 as one and simultaneously. On the whole, 
 though, Curiosity is more elemental and 
 crude than Associated Interest, and may 
 readily be distinguished in the majority of 
 cases. 
 
 IV. Associated Interest. This mental 
 state is a higher form of interest than Curi- 
 osity. It is a practical interest in things relat- 
 ing to one's interests in life, his weal or 
 woe, loves or hates, instead of being the mere 
 interest in novelty of Curiosity. It is an ac- 
 quired trait, while Curiosity is practically an 
 instinctive trait. Acquired Interest devel- 
 ops with character, occupation, and educa- 
 tion, while Curiosity manifests strongly in 
 the very beginnings of character, and before 
 
146 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 education. Acquired Interest is manifested 
 more strongly in the man of affairs, educa- 
 tion and experience, while Curiosity has its 
 fullest flower in the monkey, savage, young 
 child and uncultured adult. Eecognizing the 
 relation between the two, it may be said that 
 Curiosity is the root, and Associated Interest 
 the flower. 
 
 Associated Interest depends largely upon 
 the principle of Association or Apperception, 
 the latter being defined as ' ' that mental pro- 
 cess by which the perceptions or ideas are 
 brought into relation to our previous ideas 
 and feelings, and thus are given a new clear- 
 ness, meaning and application. " Apper- 
 ception is the mental process by which objects 
 and ideas presented to us are perceived and 
 thought of by us in the light of our past ex- 
 perience, temperament, tastes, likes and dis- 
 likes, occupation, interest, prejudices, etc., 
 instead of as they actually are. We see every- 
 thing through the colored glasses of our own 
 personality and character. Halleck says of 
 Apperception: "A woman may apperceive 
 a passing bird as an ornament to her bonnet; 
 a fruit grower, as an insect killer; a poet, as 
 
PSYCHOLOGY or PURCHASE 147 
 
 a songster ; an artist, as a fine bit of coloring 
 and form. The housewife may apperceive 
 old rags as something to be thrown away ; a 
 ragpicker, as something to be gathered up. 
 A carpenter, a botanist, an ornithologist, a 
 hunter, and a geologist walking through a 
 forest would not see the same things." The 
 familiar tale of the text-books illustrates 
 this principle. It relates that a boy climbed 
 up a tree in a forest and watched the passers- 
 by, and listened to their conversation. The 
 first man said: "What a fine stick of timber 
 that tree would make." The boy answered: 
 "Good morning, Mr. Carpenter." The sec- 
 ond man said: "That is fine bark." The 
 boy answered: "Good morning, Mr. Tan- 
 ner. ' ' The third man said : " I'll bet there 's 
 squirrels in that tree." The boy answered: 
 "Good morning, Mr. Hunter." Each and 
 every one of the men saw the tree in the light 
 of his personal Apperception or Associated 
 Interest, 
 
 Psychologists designate by the term "the 
 apperceptive mass" the accumulated pre- 
 vious experiences, prejudices, temperament, 
 inclination and desires which serve to modify 
 
148 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 the new perception or idea. The "apper- 
 ceptive mass" is really the "character" or 
 "human nature" of the individual. It 
 necessarily differs in each individual, by 
 reason of the great variety of experiences, 
 temperament, education, etc., among indi- 
 viduals. Upon a man 's ' ' apperceptive mass, ' ' 
 or character, depends the nature and degree 
 of his interest, and the objects which serve 
 to inspire and excite it. 
 
 It follows then that in order to arouse, in- 
 duce and hold this Associated Interest of the 
 prospect, the Salesman must present things, 
 ideas or suggestions which will appeal 
 directly to the imagination and feelings of the 
 man before him, and which are associated 
 with his desires, thoughts and habits. If we 
 may be pardoned for the circular definition 
 we would say that one's Associated Interest 
 is aroused only by interesting things; and 
 that the interesting things are those things 
 which concern his interests. A man's inter- 
 ests always interest him and his interests 
 are usually those things which concern his 
 advantage, success, personal well-being in 
 short his pocketbook, social position, hobbies, 
 
PSYCHOLOGY OF PURCHASE 149 
 
 tastes, and satisfaction of his desires. There- 
 fore the Salesman who can throw the mental 
 spot-light on these interesting things, may 
 secure and hold one's Associated Interest. 
 Hence the psychology of the repeated state- 
 ment: "I can save yon money;" "I can in- 
 crease your sales;" "I can reduce your 
 expenses ; " "I have something very choice ; ' ' 
 or "I can give you a special advantage," etc. 
 It may as well be conceded that business 
 interest is selfish interest, and not altruistic. 
 In order to interest a man in a business 
 proposition he must be shown how it will 
 benefit him in some way. He is not running 
 a philanthropic institution, or a Salesman's 
 Belief Fund, nor is he in business for his 
 health he is -diere to make money, and in 
 order to interest him you must show him 
 something to his advantage. And the first 
 appeal of Associated Interest is to his feel- 
 ing of Self Interest. It must be in the nature 
 <sf the mention of "rats!" to a terrier, or 
 "candy!" to a child. It must awaken pleas- 
 ant associations in his mind, and pleasing 
 images in his memory. If this effect is pro- 
 duced, he can be speedily moved to the sue- 
 
150 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 ceeding phases of Imagination and Inclina- 
 tion. As Halleck says: "All feeling tends to 
 excite desire. * * * A representative 
 image of the thing desired is the necessary 
 antecedent to desire. If the child had never 
 seen or heard of peaches he would have no 
 desire for them." And, following this same 
 figure, we may say that if the child has a 
 taste for peaches he will be interested in the 
 idea of peaches. And so when you say 
 "peaches! 7 ' to him you have his Associated 
 Interest, which will result in a mental image 
 of the fruit followed by a desire to possess 
 it, and he will listen to your talk regarding 
 the subject of "peaches." 
 
 The following are the general psycho- 
 logical rules regarding Associated Interests : 
 
 I. Associated Interest attaches only to 
 interesting things that is to things asso- 
 ciated with one's general desires and ideas. 
 
 II. Associated Interest will decline in 
 force and effect unless some new attributes or 
 features are presented it requires variety 
 in presentation of its object. 
 
 Macbain says: "One of the old time sales- 
 
PSYCHOLOGY OF PURCHASE 151 
 
 men who used to sell the trade in the Middle 
 West, beginning some thirty years ago, and 
 following that vocation for several decades, 
 used as his motto, 'I am here to do you good.' 
 He did not make his statement general, 
 either, in telling his customers how he could 
 do it. He got right down to the vital affairs 
 which touched his customers. He demon- 
 strated it to them, and this personal 
 demonstration is the kind that makes the 
 sales. " 
 
 Eemember, always, that the phase of Asso- 
 ciated Interest in a purchase is not the same 
 as the phase of Demonstration and Proof. 
 It is the "warming up" process, preceding 
 the actual selling talk. It is the stage of 
 "thawing out" the prospect and melting the 
 icy covering of prejudice, caution and reluc- 
 tance which encases him. Warm up your 
 prospect by general statements of Associated 
 Interest, and blow the coals by positive, 
 brief, pointed confident statements of the 
 good things you have in store for him. And, 
 finally, remember that the sole purpose of 
 your efforts at this state is to arouse 
 in him the mental state of INTERESTED 
 
152 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 EXPECTANT ATTENTION! Keep blow- 
 ing away at this spark until you obtain tlie 
 blaze of Imagination and the heat of Desire. 
 V. Consideration. This mental state is 
 defined as: "An examination, inquiry, or in- 
 vestigation into anything. " It is the stage 
 following Curiosity and Associated Interest, 
 and tends toward an inquiry into the thing 
 which has excited these feelings. Considera- 
 tion, of course, must be preceded and accom- 
 panied by Interest. It calls for the phase of 
 Attention excited by feeling, but a degree of 
 voluntary attention is also manifested there- 
 with. It is the "I think I will look into this 
 matter" stage of the mental process of pur- 
 chase. It is usually evidenced by a dis- 
 position to ask questions regarding the 
 proposition, and to "see what there is to it, 
 anyway." In- Salesmanship, this stage of 
 Consideration marks the passing from the 
 stage of Approach on the Salesman's part, 
 to that of the Demonstration. It marks the 
 passage from Passive Interest to Active In- 
 terestfrom the stage of being "merely in- 
 terested" in a thing, to that of "interested 
 investigation." Here is where the real selling 
 
PSYCHOLOGY OF PURCHASE 153 
 
 work of the salesman begins. Here is where 
 he begins to describe his proposition in detail, 
 laying stress upon its desirable points. In 
 the case of an advertisement, or a window dis- 
 play, the mental operation goes on in the 
 buyer's mind in the same way, but without 
 the assistance of the salesman. The "selling 
 talk" of the advertisement must be stated or 
 suggested by its text, If the Consideration is 
 favorable and reveals sufficiently strong at- 
 tractive qualities in the proposition or 
 article, the mind of the buyer passes on to the 
 next stage of the process which is known as : 
 VI. Imagination. This mental state is 
 defined as: "The exercise of that power or 
 faculty of the mind by which it conceives and 
 forms ideal pictures of things communicated 
 to it by the organs of sense. ' J In the mental 
 process of a purchase, the faculty of imagina- 
 tion takes up the idea of the object in which 
 the Associated Interest has been aroused, 
 and which has been made the subject of Con- 
 sideration, and endeavors to picture the 
 object in use and being employed in different 
 ways, or as in possession of the buyer. One 
 must use his imagination in order to realize 
 
154 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 what good a thing will be to him ; how he may 
 use it ; how it will look ; how it will sell ; how 
 it will serve its purpose; how it will "work 
 out" or "make good" when purchased. A 
 woman gazing at a hat will use her imagina- 
 tion to picture how she will look in it. The man 
 looking at the book will use his imagination 
 in picturing its uses and the pleasure to be 
 derived therefrom. The business man will 
 use his imagination to picture the probable 
 sale of the goods, their display, their adapta- 
 bility to his trade, etc. Another will picture 
 himself enjoying the gains from his purchase. 
 Imagination plays an important part in the 
 psychology of the sal. It is the direct in- 
 citer of desire and inclination. The success- 
 ful salesman realizes this, and feeds the 
 flame of the imagination with the oil of Sug- 
 gestion. In fact, Suggestion receives its 
 power through the Imagination. The Imag- 
 ination is the channel through which Sugges- 
 tion reaches the mind. Salesmen and ad. 
 writers strive to arouse the imagination of 
 their prospective customers by clever word- 
 painting. The Imagination is the "direct 
 wire" to Desire. From Imagination it is a 
 
PSYCHOLOGY OF PURCHASE 155 
 
 short step to the next mental stage which is 
 called : 
 
 VII. Inclination. This mental state is 
 defined as: "A leaning or bent of the mind 
 or will; desire; propensity. It is the "want 
 to" feeling. It is the mental state of which 
 Desire is an advanced stage. Inclination has 
 many degrees. From a faint inclination or 
 bent in a certain direction, it rises in the 
 scale until it becomes an imperious demand, 
 brooking no obstacle or hindrance. Many 
 terms are employed to designate the various 
 stages of Inclination, as for instance: De- 
 sire, wish, want, need, inclination, leaning, 
 bent, predilection, propensity, penchant, 
 liking, love, fondness, relish, longing, hanker- 
 ing, aspiration, ambition, appetite, hunger, 
 passion, craving, lust, etc. 
 
 Desire is a strange mental quality, and one 
 very difficult to define strictly. It is linked 
 with feeling on one side, and with will on the 
 other. Feeling rises to desire, and desire 
 rises to the phase of will and endeavors to 
 express itself in action. Halleck says of De- 
 sire: "It has for its object something which 
 will bring pleasure or get rid of pain, imme- 
 
156 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 diat e or remote, for the individual or for some 
 one in whom he is interested. Aversion, or a 
 striving to get away from something, is 
 merely the negative aspect of desire." In- 
 clination in its various stages is aroused 
 through the appeals to the feelings through 
 the imagination. The feelings related to the 
 several faculties are excited into action by a 
 direct appeal to them through the imagina- 
 tion, and inclination or desired results. Ap- 
 peal to Acquisitiveness will result in a feeling 
 which will rise to inclination and desire for 
 gain. Appeal to Approbativeness will act like- 
 wise in its own field. And so on through the 
 list, each well-developed faculty being excited 
 to feeling by the appropriate appeal through 
 the imagination, and thus giving rise to Incli- 
 nation which in turn strives to express itself 
 in action through the will. 
 
 In short, every man is a bundle of general 
 desires, the nature and extent of which are in- 
 dicated by his several faculties, and which re- 
 sult from heredity, environment, training, ex- 
 perience, etc. These desires may be excited 
 toward a definite object by the proper emo- 
 tional appeal through the imagination, and 
 
PSYCHOLOGY OF PURCHASE 157 
 
 by suggestion. Desire must be created or 
 aroused before action can be had, or the will 
 manifest in action. For, at the last, we do 
 things only because we "want to," directly or 
 indirectly. Therefore, the important aim of 
 the Salesman is to make his prospect "want 
 to. ' ' And in order to make him ' ' want to " he 
 must make him see that his proposition is cal- 
 culated to "bring pleasure, or get rid of pain, 
 immediate or remote, for the individual or for 
 someone else in whom he is interested." In 
 business, the words "profit and loss" may be 
 substituted for ' ' pleasure and pain, ' ' although 
 really, they are but forms of the latter. But 
 even when the prospect is brought to the 
 stage of strong inclination or desire, he does 
 not always move to gratify the same. Why is 
 this? What other mental process interferes? 
 Let us see as we pass on to the next stage of 
 the purchase, known as : 
 
 VIII. Deliberation. This mental state is 
 defined as: "The act of deliberating and 
 weighing facts and arguments in the mind, 
 calmly and carefully." Here is manifested 
 the action of thought and reason the mental 
 process of weighing and balancing facts, feel- 
 
158 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 ings, and inclinations. For it is not only facts 
 and proofs which are weighed in the mental 
 balance, but also feelings, desires, and fears. 
 Pure logical reasoning inclines to strict logical 
 processes based upon irrefragible facts, it 
 is true but there is but little pure logical 
 reasoning. The majority of people are gov- 
 erned more by their feelings and inclinations 
 their loves and their fears than by logic. 
 It has been said : ' ' People seek not reasons, 
 but excuses for following their feelings." 
 The real deliberation, in the majority of cases, 
 is the weighing of probable advantages and 
 disadvantages of various likes and dislikes 
 of hopes and fears. 
 
 It is said that our minds are controlled by 
 motives and the strongest motive wins. We 
 often find that when we think we desire a 
 thing ardently, we then find that we also like 
 something else better, or perhaps fear some- 
 thing else more than we desire the first thing. 
 In such case, the strongest or most pressing 
 feeling wins the day. The faculties here exert 
 their different influences. Caution opposes 
 Acquisitiveness. Acquisitiveness opposes 
 Conscientiousness. Fear opposes Firmness. 
 
PSYCHOLOGY OF PURCHASE 159 
 
 And so on. The deliberation is not only the 
 weighing of facts, but also the weighing of 
 feelings. 
 
 The process of Deliberation the weighing 
 of desires the play and counterplay of mo- 
 tivesis well illustrated by a scene in a classi- 
 cal French comedy. "Jeppe," one of the 
 characters, has been given money by his wife 
 to buy her a cake of soap. He prefers to buy 
 a drink with the coin, for his inclinations tend 
 in that direction. But he knows that his wife 
 will beat him if he so squanders the money. 
 He deliberates over the pleasure to be derived 
 from the drink, and the pain which would 
 arise from the beating. "My stomach says 
 drink my back says soap, ' ' says Jeppe. He 
 deliberates further. Then: "My stomach 
 says Yes ! My back says No !" cries the poor 
 wight. The conflict between back and stom- 
 ach rages still more fiercely. Then comes the 
 deciding point: "Is not my stomach more to 
 me than my back? Sure, it is ! I say Yes V 9 
 cries Jeppe. And away to the tavern he 
 marches. It has been remarked that if the 
 active suggestion of the distant sight of his 
 wife armed with the cudgel, had been added 
 
160 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 to the situation, Jeppe would have bought the 
 soap. Or, if the tavern had not been so handy, 
 the result might have been different. Some- 
 times a mental straw tips the scale. The 
 above illustration contains the entire philoso- 
 phy of the action of the mind in the process 
 of Deliberation. The salesman will do well 
 to remember it. 
 
 Halleck thus well states the immediate and 
 remote factors in choice: "The immediate 
 factors are * * * (1) a preceding proc- 
 ess of desire; (2) the presence in conscious- 
 ness of more than one represented object or 
 end, to offer an alternative course of action ; 
 (3) deliberation concerning the respective 
 merits of these objects; (4) the voluntary fiat 
 of decision, which seems to embody most the 
 very essence of will. The remote factors are 
 extremely difficult to select. The sum total 
 of the man is felt more in choice than any- 
 where else. * * * Before a second per- 
 son could approximate the outcome, he would 
 have to know certain remote factors, the prin- 
 cipal being: (1) heredity; (2) environment; 
 (3) education; (4) individual peculiarities. ' ' 
 This eminent authority might well have 
 
PSYCHOLOGY OF PURCHASE 161 
 
 added an additional element a most impor- 
 tant one as follows : (5) SUGGESTION. 
 
 The Salesman watching carefully the shift- 
 ing scale of Deliberation, injects a telling 
 argument or suggestion into the scale, which 
 gives weight to his side at a critical stage. 
 He does this in many ways. He may neutral- 
 ize an objection by a counter-fact. He adds 
 another proof or fact here a little more de- 
 sire and feeling there, until he brings down 
 the scale to a decision. It must be remem- 
 bered that this Deliberation is not regarding 
 the desirability of the proposition the pros- 
 pect has admitted his desire, either directly 
 or indirectly, and is now engaged in trying to 
 justify his desire by reason and expediency. 
 He is seeking for reasons or "excuses" to 
 back up his desire, or perhaps, is endeavoring 
 to strike a balance of his conflicting desires 
 and feelings. His mental debate is not over 
 the question of desiring the goods, but over 
 the expediency and probable result of buying 
 them. It is the "to buy or not to buy" stage. 
 This is a delicate part of the process of the 
 purchase, and many prospects act like "see- 
 saws" during the process. The clever Sales- 
 
162 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 man must be ready with the right argument 
 at the right place. To him this is the Argu- 
 mentive Stage. Finally, if the Salesman's 
 efforts are successful, the balance drops, and 
 the process passes to the next stage, known 
 as 
 
 IX. Decision. This mental stage is de- 
 fined as : " The mental act of deciding, deter- 
 mining, or settling any point, question, differ- 
 ence, or contest. It is the act of the will, 
 settling the dispute between the warring fac- 
 ulties, feelings, ideas, desires and fears. It 
 is will acting upon reason, or (alas ! too often, 
 upon mere feeling) . Without entering into a 
 metaphysical discussion, let us remind you 
 that the practical psychology of the day holds 
 that "the strongest motive at the moment 
 wins the choice." This strongest motive may 
 be of reason or of feeling; conscious or un- 
 conscious; but strongest at that moment it 
 must be, or it would not win. And this strong- 
 est motive is strongest merely because of 
 our character or "nature" as manifested at 
 that particular moment, in that particular 
 environment, under the particular circum- 
 stances, and subject to the particular sugges- 
 
PSYCHOLOGY OF PURCHASE 163 
 
 tions. The choice depends more upon asso- 
 ciation than we generally realize, and associa- 
 tion is awakened by suggestion. As Halleck 
 says: "It is not the business of the psycholo- 
 gist to state what power the association of 
 ideas ought to have. It is for him to ascer- 
 tain what power it does have." And as 
 Ziehen says: "We cannot think as we will, 
 but we must think just as those associations 
 which happen to be present prescribe. ' ' This 
 being the case, the Salesman must realize that 
 the Decision is based always upon (1) the 
 mental states of the man at that moment ; plus 
 (2) the added motives supplied by the Sales- 
 man. It is "up to" the Salesman to supply 
 those motives, whether they be facts, proofs, 
 appeals to reason, or excitement of feeling. 
 Hope, fear, like, dislike these are the potent 
 motives in most cases. In business, these 
 things are known as "profit or loss." All the 
 faculties of the mind supply motives which 
 aroused may be thrown into the Balance af- 
 fecting decision. This is what argument, 
 demonstration and appeal seek to do supply 
 motives. 
 
 (Note: It might naturally be supposed 
 
164 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 that when the final stage of Decision has been 
 reached, the mental process of purchase is 
 at an end. But, not so. Will has three 
 phases: Desire, Decision, and Action. We 
 have passed through the first two, but Action 
 still is unperformed. A familiar example is 
 that of the man in bed in the morning. He 
 ponders over the question of rising, and 
 finally decides to get up. But action does not 
 necessarily result. The trigger of Action has 
 not been pulled, and the spring released. So 
 thus we have another mental state, known 
 as:) 
 
 X. Action. This mental state is defined 
 as: "Volition carried into effect." Mill 
 says : ' ' Now what is an action ? Not one, but a 
 series of two things : the state of mind called 
 a volition, followed by an effect. The volition 
 or intention to produce the effect is one thing ; 
 the effect produced in consequence of the in- 
 tention is another thing; the two together 
 constitute the action." Halleck says: "For 
 a completed act of will, there must be action 
 along the line of the decision. Many a de- 
 cision has not aroused the motor centers to 
 action, nor quickened the attention, for any 
 
PSYCHOLOGY or PURCHASE 165 
 
 length of time. There are persons who can 
 frame a doz^n decisions in the course of a 
 morning, and never carry ont one of them. 
 Sitting in a comfortable chair, it may take one 
 but a very short time to form a decision that 
 will require months of hard work. * * * 
 Some persons can never seem to understand 
 that resolving to do a thing is not the same as 
 doing it. * * ' * There may be desirej de- 
 liberation, and decision; but if these do not 
 result in action along the indicated line, the 
 process of will is practically incomplete." 
 Many a person decides to do a thing but lacks 
 the something necessary to release the motive 
 impulses. They tend to procrastinate, and 
 delay the final act. These people are sources 
 of great care and work to the Salesman. Some 
 men can get their prospects to the deciding 
 point, but fail to get them to act. Others 
 seem specially adapted to "closing" these 
 cases. It requires a peculiar knack to * ' close ' ' 
 -the effort is entirely psychological. We 
 shall consider it in a subsequent chapter 
 under the head of "Closing." To be a good 
 "closer" is the ambition of every Salesman, 
 for it is the best paid branch of his profes- 
 
166 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 sion. It depends largely upon the scientific 
 application of suggestion. To lead a prospect 
 to Action, is to pull the trigger of his will. 
 To this end all the previous work has been 
 directed. Its psychology is subtle. What 
 makes you finally get out of bed in the morn- 
 ing, after having "decided to" several times 
 without resulting action? To understand 
 this, is to understand the process of the final 
 Action in the mind of the buyer. Is it not 
 worth learning? 
 
 In the succeeding chapters we shall con- 
 sider the several stages of the "Salesman's 
 Progress" toward a sale the Approach, the 
 Demonstration, and the Closing. In these 
 stages of the Salesman, we shall see the ac- 
 tion and reaction upon the Mind of the Buyer, 
 along the lines of the Psychology of the Pur- 
 chase. In the Sale-Purchase the minds of 
 the Salesman and the Buyer meet. The re- 
 sult is the Signed Order. The psychological 
 process of the Sale is akin to the progress of 
 a game of chess or checkers. And neither is 
 the result of chancewell defined principles 
 underlie each, and established methods are 
 laid down for the student. 
 
CHAPTER VIII 
 
 THE APPROACH 
 
 Old salesmen hold that in the psychology 
 of the sale there is no more important stage 
 or phase than the introductory stage the 
 stage of the Approach. Pierce says: " Ex- 
 perienced salesmen will tell you that the first 
 five minutes in front of a prospect is worth 
 more than all the remainder in the matter of 
 getting the check. Why? Because it is then 
 that the prospect is forming his impressions 
 of you. Usually he is obliged to form this 
 quick size-up of the man he meets, in order to 
 conserve his. time for important duties. 
 Therefore it is your duty to have this first im- 
 pression the best within your power. And the 
 best way to develop this is to be genuine." 
 But it must never be lost sight of that the 
 First Impression is solely for the purpose of 
 obtaining an entrance for the fine edge of 
 your wedge of salesmanship, which you must 
 
 167 
 
168 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 then proceed to drive home to its logical con- 
 clusion, the Order. An impression for im- 
 pression's sake is a fallacy. Eemember the 
 old story of the Salesman who wrote in that 
 he was not making sales, but that he was 
 "making a good impression on my cus- 
 tomers. ' ' The firm wired back to him : "Go 
 out and make some more impressions on a 
 snow bank." Do not lose sight of the real 
 object of your work, in obtaining the prelimi- 
 nary results. 
 
 The National Cash Eegister Company in- 
 structs its salesmen regarding the First Im- 
 pression, as follows: "Eemember, the first 
 five minutes of speaking to a man is likely to 
 make or break you as far as that sale is con- 
 cerned. If you are in any way antagonistic or 
 offensive to him, you have hurt your chances 
 badly from the start. If you have failed to 
 definitely please or attract him, you have not 
 done enough. It isn't sufficient to be merely 
 a negative quantity. You should make a posi- 
 tive favorable impression, and not by cajolery 
 nor attempted wit nor cleverness. The only 
 right way to gain a man's liking is to deserve 
 it. The majority of men do not often know 
 
THE APPROACH 169 
 
 just what the characteristics of a man are 
 which makes him pleasing or displeasing to 
 them; but they feel pleased or displeased, 
 attracted or repulsed, or indifferent, and the 
 feeling is definite and pronounced, even 
 though they cannot understand just what 
 makes it. A storekeeper in the smallest way 
 of business in a little country village is just 
 as susceptible of being pleased or offended as 
 any merchant prince. It should never be for- 
 gotten that whatever his position may be, 'a 
 man's a man for a' that.' " 
 
 It is not so much what a man says when he 
 approaches the prospect, as the way he acts. 
 It is his manner, rather than his speech. And 
 back of his manner is his Mental Attitude. 
 Without going into subtle psychological the- 
 orizing, we may say that it may be accepted 
 as a working hypotheses that a man radiates 
 his Mental State, and that those he ap^- 
 proaches feel these radiations. It may be the 
 suggestion of manner, or it may be something 
 more subtle no use discussing theories here, 
 we haven't the time the fact is that it acts 
 as radiations would act. This being recog- 
 nized it will be seen that the man's Mental 
 
170 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 Attitude in the Approach must be right. In 
 the previous chapters we have had much to 
 say to you regarding the factors which go to 
 create the Mental Attitude. Now is the time 
 to manifest what you have learned and prac- 
 tice for you are making the Approach. 
 
 Carry in mind Holman's catechism, of 
 which we have told you. Maintain your Self- 
 Kespect, and remember that you are a MAN. 
 Pierce says of this : ' ' One reason for this is 
 that self-respect is necessary in your work. 
 And self-respect cannot obtain where there 
 is lack of confidence either in your own ability 
 or in your line of goods. Assuming that you 
 take only such a line as you yourself can en- 
 thusiastically endorse, it must be remembered 
 that your goods place you absolutely on a par 
 with the merchant. Hence, you talk to him 
 shoulder to shoulder, as it were. You are not 
 as a slave to a master ! as a hireling to a lord ; 
 as a worm to a mountain ; although this is the 
 usual attitude untrained salesmen consciously 
 or unconsciously assume. They are timid. 
 They feel they might know their goods better. 
 They feel, perhaps, that the prospect knows 
 their goods or their competitors' goods bet- 
 
THE APPKOACH 171 
 
 ter than they do themselves. Fear is written 
 all over their faces as the approach is made. 
 Nine-tenths of the fear is dne to ignorance of 
 the goods. The other tenth is lack of experi- 
 
 ence." 
 
 Eegarding this matter of Fear, we would 
 say that the experience of the majority of 
 men who have lived active and strenuous 
 lives, meeting with all sorts of people under 
 all sorts of circumstances, is that the cause 
 of Fear of people and things exists chiefly in 
 the imagination. It is the fear of anticipation 
 rather than the fear of actual conditons. It 
 is like the fear felt upon approaching a den- 
 tist's office worse than the actual experi- 
 ence of the chair. Suspense and fearful ex- 
 pectation are two of the great sources of 
 human weakness. Experience shows us that 
 the majority of things we fear never happen ; 
 that those which do happen are never so bad 
 as we had feared. Moreover, experience 
 teaches us that when a real difficulty confronts 
 us, we usually are given the strength and 
 courage to meet and bear it, or to overcome it 
 while in our moments of fearful anticipa- 
 tion these helpful factors are not apparent. 
 
172 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 Sufficient for the moment are the evils thereof 
 it is not the troubles of the moment which 
 bear us down, but the burdens of future mo- 
 ments which we have added to our load. The 
 rule is to meet each question or obstacle as it 
 arises, and not to add fear of trouble beyond 
 to the work of the moment. Do not cross your 
 bridge till you come to it. The majority of 
 feared things melt away when you come up to 
 them they partake of the nature of the mir- 
 age. It is the ghosts of things which never 
 materialize which cause us the greatest fear. 
 Banish Fearthought from your Mental Atti- 
 tude when you make the Approach. 
 
 But, a word of warning here : Do not be- 
 come " fresh " or impudent becpuse you feel 
 Self Eeliant and Fearless. "While realizing 
 that you are a Man, do not forget that the 
 prospect is also one. Impudence is a mark 
 of weakness rather than of strength strong 
 men are above this petty thing. Be polite and 
 courteous. The true gentleman is both self- 
 respecting and polite. And, after all is said 
 and done, the best Approach that a Salesman 
 can make is that of a GENTLEMAN. This 
 will win in the long run, and the consciousness 
 
THE APPKOACH 173 
 
 of having so acted will tend to strengthen the 
 Salesman and preserve his self-respect Ke- 
 member not only to manifest the self-respect 
 of a gentleman but also to observe the obli- 
 gations of politeness and courtesy which are 
 incumbent upon a gentleman. Noblesse oblige 
 "nobility imposes obligations." 
 
 If you want a maxim of action and manner, 
 take this one : "Act as a gentleman should." 
 If you want a touchstone upon which to test 
 manner and action, take this: "Is this the 
 act of a gentleman?" If you will follow this 
 advice you will acquire a manner which will 
 be far superior to one based upon artificial 
 rules or principles a natural manner be- 
 cause the manner of a gentleman is the ex- 
 pression of true and pure courtesy, and will 
 be respected as such by all, whether they, 
 themselves, observe it or not. We have seen 
 many instances in which the maintenance of 
 the true gentlemanly spirit under strong 
 provocation has completely disarmed boorish- 
 ness, and won friendship and regard from 
 those apparently opposing it at the time. 
 
 The first psychological element of a Sale is 
 that of the First Impression upon the buyer. 
 
174 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 And the impression must be of a favorable 
 kind. There must be nothing to create a bad 
 impression for this will distract the attention 
 from the purpose of the Approach to the par- 
 ticular object awakening the unpleasant im- 
 pression. The first point preliminary to gain- 
 ing attention, is to know the name of the man 
 you are approaching; and if possible just 
 where he is. Nothing is more demoralizing 
 to the Salesman, and more likely to break up 
 the psychological influence of the Approach, 
 than a lack of knowledge of the name and 
 identity of the man you wish to see. The 
 miscarriage of an Approach occasioned by 
 mistaking the person should be avoided. If 
 you do not know your man, or where he is in 
 the office, it will be well to inquire of the others 
 present, politely of course, where "Mr. X's" 
 desk is. If you happen to ask this question 
 of "Mr. X'" himself, you can easily adjust 
 yourself to the occasion. The fiasco of ap- 
 proaching "Mr. A" and greeting him as 
 "Mr. X" is apt to be confusing and weaken- 
 ing, and tends to bring the element of ridi- 
 cule into the interview, unless the Salesman 
 has the tact and wit to pass it off. If possible, 
 
THE APPROACH 175 
 
 avoid asking for ' ' the proprietor, ' ' or inquir- 
 ing of a man, "are you the proprietor?" If 
 you do not know the proprietor's name, ask 
 it of some one. 
 
 The National Cash Register people say to 
 their salesmen: ^TTFis manifestly improper 
 to describe a definite form of words and re- 
 quire salesmen to use them in all cases when 
 they approach business men at the first inter- 
 view. What would be proper to say to one 
 man under given circumstances might be un- 
 suitable to say to another under different cir- 
 cumstances. Much must be left to the dis- 
 cretion of the salesman. At the same time 
 there are certain leading statements to be 
 made, and certain ways of making them 
 which -experience has shown to be well 
 adapted to the end in view. * * * It is 
 not necessary that this introductory talk 
 should be long. Often a short talk is more 
 convincing. We do not advise salesmen to 
 introduce themselves by sending in a card, 
 but prefer that they should depend wholly on 
 what they are able to say to secure a hearing. 
 We strongly disapprove of obscure introduc- 
 tions and all tricks, and believe that a man 
 
176 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 who has something worth saying, and is not 
 ashamed of his business, can make known his 
 errand in a bold, straightforward manner. A 
 salesman should adapt himself to his man, 
 but at the same time he should have a fixed 
 idea of what he has to say. He should be dig- 
 nified and earnest. * * * As soon as you 
 do succeed in reaching the proprietor, and 
 have said to him, 'GjQXKLaiQrningl Jsjthis i Mr. 
 Johnson V 9 then say directly and plainly ,,JJ[ 
 represent the National Cash Eegister Com- 
 pany/ This immediately puts you on a 
 square footing, and if he has anything to say 
 against your business it will draw his fire im- 
 mediately. If he has nothing to say, proceed 
 to business at once, but don't under any cir- 
 cumstances say, 'I called to~seH"~ you a reg- 
 ister,' or 'I called to tell you about our regis- 
 ters, ' but put it rather in this way, 'J-J^Qnt to 
 interest you in our methods for taking care 
 of transactions with customers in your store.' 
 The difference between the two ways of say- 
 ing it is that oij^Jbe^r^mth jygMrjind QJLth_ 
 business the thing that interests you; 
 while the other begins at his end of it the 
 thing presumably interesting to him." 
 
THE APPKOACH 177 
 
 "We specially direct the student's attention 
 to the above paragraph. It contains in a nut- 
 shell the whole philosophy of the introductory 
 talk of the Approach. It is the essence of the 
 experience and knowledge of the thousands 
 of salesmen of the great selling organization 
 of the large concern named, and is right to the 
 point, and what is still more important, it is 
 scientifically correct, and based upon true 
 psychological principles. 
 
 The Salesman in making the Approach 
 should not act as if he were in a hurry, nor 
 should he dawdle. He should go about it in a 
 business-like manner showing his realization 
 of the value of time, and yet acting as if he 
 had the time necessary for the transaction of 
 that particular piece of business, just as he 
 would if the buyer had called on him instead 
 of vice versa. Don't swagger or strut, or act 
 as if you were the proprietor. Act the part of 
 the real business man who is at ease and yet is 
 attending to business. DojiolJ^ 
 the customer in the Approach you are call- 
 ing on him and must appear to defer to him 
 in the matter of opening the conversation, in 
 a respectful and yet self-respecting manmer. 
 
178 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 The better poised and balanced you are in 
 manner, the more he will respect you, no mat- 
 ter how he may act. It is much easier for a 
 buyer to turn down an ill-bred boorish caller 
 than one who shows the signs of being a 
 gentleman. In fact the boorish caller invites 
 the turn-downhe suggests it by his manner ; 
 while the gentleman suggests respectful treat- 
 ment. The line of least resistance in sugges- 
 tion is the one most natural for people to fol- 
 low. 
 
 Some salesmen try to grasp the hand of the 
 customer at the beginning. This is all right 
 if the customer be a jovial "hale fellow, well 
 met" kind of a man, but if he be reserved and 
 dignified he will be apt to resent your push- 
 ing this attention upon him. Jhe tJiiii&io do 
 is to make him feel like shaking hands this 
 is an important point, which counts if gained. 
 You can generally tell from his manner and 
 expression whether to extend your hand. You 
 must trust to your intuitions in i ' sizing up ' ' 
 your man. What has been said regarding the 
 mind of the buyer will help you, and what data 
 you have collected will also be of use, but at 
 the last you must depend upon your own in- 
 
THE APPKOACH 179 
 
 tuition to a considerable extent. Experience 
 develops this intuitive faculty. Some sales- 
 men thrust their cards into the hands of a 
 prospect when they introduce themselves. 
 This is poor psychology, for it serves to at- 
 tract the prospect's attention to the card and 
 away from the salesman. Introduce yourself 
 verbally, simply and distinctly, and then get 
 down to business. 
 
 If you see a man is busy with someone 
 else, or with something in particular wait 
 for him. Don't break into his occupation, 
 until he looks up and gives you the ptsycho- 
 logical signal to proceed. Never interrupt an- 
 other salesman who may be talking to the 
 prospect. This is not only a point in fair play 
 and business courtesy, but is very good busi- 
 ness policy in addition. When you begin your 
 introductory talk, get right to the point, and 
 don't beat around the bush as so many do. 
 Get down to business get over the agony of 
 suspense take the plunge. Bemember al- 
 ways, that to the prospect your little story is 
 not as stale or stereotyped as it may be to you 
 so put earnestness into it, and tell it just as 
 if you were relating it for the first time to 
 
180 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 someone who had requested it from you. 
 Maintain your interest, if you woulfl arouse 
 that of the prospect. 
 
 Never commit the folly of asking a pros- 
 pect: "Are you busy?" or, "I fear you are 
 busy, sir?" This is a very bad suggestion 
 for the prospect, and makes it easy for him to 
 say "Yes!" You mould bullets for him to 
 fire at you. If he really is too busy to give 
 you the proper attention, you may do well to 
 tell him so, and then get out but never sug- 
 gest anything of this kind to him if you expect 
 to proceed. It is akin to the doleful "You 
 don't want to buy any matches, sir, do you?" 
 of the forlorn vendors of small articles who 
 float into offices at times. Never make it easy 
 for a prospect to turn you down or out. If 
 he is going to do these things, make him work 
 hard to do it. This might seem like needless 
 advice, but many young salesmen commit this 
 particular fault. Avoid the apologetic atti- 
 tude and manner you have nothing to apolo- 
 gize for. You are using up your time as much 
 as the prospect's time let it go at that. Never 
 apologize for anything but a fault or mistake. 
 Your call is not a fault or a mistake unless 
 
THE APPBOACB: 181 
 
 you make it so by assuming it to be such. 
 Some men would like to apologize for being 
 alive, but they never make salesmen. B 
 careful what adverse suggestions you may 
 put into the prospect's mind by this, apologiz- 
 ing and "explaining" business. What's the 
 use of this nonsense anywayit never sold 
 any goods, and never will. It is merely a sign 
 of weakness and lack of nerve. Better stop it. 
 The trouble with these apologetic * and 
 explanatory fellows is that they do* not 
 thoroughly believe in the merit of their propo- 
 sitions. If they really believed as they should 
 if they had "sold themselves" they would 
 realize that the prospect needs their goods, 
 and, that although he might not know it now, 
 he is being done a favor by having his atten- 
 tion called to them. A Salesman has no need 
 to apologize to a customer, unless he has need 
 to apologize to himself and if he is not right 
 on the latter score he had better change his 
 line and get something to sell that he is not 
 ashamed of, or get out of the business alto- 
 gether. No man ever feels ashamed of any- 
 thing in which he thoroughly believes and ap- 
 preciates. 
 
182 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 The following advice from the National 
 Cash Eegister people, is like everything else 
 they say/ very good : * * Do not attempt to talk 
 to a man who is not listening, who is writing 
 a letter or occupying himself in any other 
 way while you are talking. That's useless, 
 and is a loss of self-respect and of his respect. 
 If he cannot give you his attention, say to 
 him : ' I see that you are busy. If you can give 
 me your attention for a few minutes I shall 
 be pleased; but I don't want to interrupt you, 
 if you cannot spare the time, and I will call 
 again.' Try to understand and feel thor- 
 oughly the distinction between confidence and 
 familiarity. Never fail in respect either to 
 yourself or to the man with whom you are 
 talking. Never be familiar with him. Never 
 put your hand on his shoulder or on his arm, 
 nor take hold of his coat. Such things are re- 
 pugnant to a gentleman and you should as- 
 sume that he is one. Never pound the desk 
 or shake your finger at a prospect. Don't 
 shout at him as if sound would take the 
 place of sense. Don't advance at him and 
 talk so excitedly under his nose that he 
 will back away from you for fear of being 
 
THE APPROACH 183 
 
 run over, as if you were a trolley-car. I 
 have seen a sales agent back a prospect half 
 way across a room in this way. Don't compel 
 a man to listen to you by loud or fast talking. 
 Don't make him feel that he can't get a word 
 in edgewise and has to listen until you are out 
 of breath. This is not the sort of compulsion 
 to make customers. But make him believe that 
 you have something to say and will say it 
 quickly. Put yourself in hig place from the 
 very start. Make_ him feel, not that you are 
 trying to force your business upon him, but 
 that you want to discuss how Ms business may 
 be benefited by you." 
 
 One of the best salesmen this particular 
 company ever had has passed down to the sell- 
 ing corps of that concern the following axiom : 
 lo but one thing, in approaching a 
 
 prospect, say, 'It will save you money ^ seven 
 times, and you have made a good Approach. ' ' 
 And so say we. Concrete facts, stated in terse 
 terms, are the essence of the opening talk and 
 the life of the Approach. 
 
 What we have said so far has reference to 
 the stage of First Impression, which followed 
 the preliminary stage of Involuntary Atten- 
 
184 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 lion which was caused by your presence. The 
 purpose of the favorable First Impression is 
 to make the way easy for the real process of 
 selling which is to follow. The principle of 
 First Impression rests upon the associated 
 experience of the buyer, and its effect arises 
 from suggestion. The hasty, general idea or 
 impression of the Salesman's personality, 
 which we call the First Impression, is almost 
 unconscious on the part of the prospect, and is 
 due largely to the suggestion of association. 
 That is, the prospect has met other people 
 manifesting certain characteristics, and has 
 fallen into the habit of hasty generalization, 
 or classification of people in accordance with 
 certain traits of appearance, manner, etc. 
 This is the operation of the psychological 
 principle of the Association of Ideas, and may 
 be influenced by what is known as the Sug- 
 gestion of Association. The following quota- 
 tion from the volume of this series entitled 
 "Suggestion and Auto-Suggestion," will 
 make clearer this principle : 
 
 "This form of Suggestion is one of the 
 most common phases. It is found on all sides, 
 and at all times. The mental law of associa- 
 
THE APPROACH 185 
 
 tion makes it very easy for us to associate cer- 
 tain things with certain other things, and we 
 will find that when one of the things is re- 
 called it will bring with it its associated im- 
 pression. * * We are apt to associate 
 a well-dressed man, of commanding carriage, 
 travelling in an expensive automobile, with 
 the idea of wealth and influence. And, ac- 
 cordingly, when some adventurer of the 'J. 
 Eufus Wallingford* type travels our way, 
 clad in sumptuous apparel, with the air of an 
 Astorbilt, and a $10,000 (hired) automobile, 
 we hasten to place our money and valuables 
 in his keeping, and esteem ourselves honored 
 by having been accorded the privilege." 
 
 ThaJ^gg^^ plays its 
 
 part in the First Impression, and in all the 
 stages of sale in fact. This form of sugges- 
 tion is described in the book just mentioned, 
 as follows: "Let some person posing as an 
 authority, or occupying a position of com- 
 mand, calmly state a fallacy with an air of 
 wisdom and conviction, without any *ifs' or 
 'buts,' and many otherwise careful people will 
 accept the suggestion without question ; and, 
 unless they are afterward forced to analyze 
 
186 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 it by the light of reason they will let this seed 
 find lodgement in their minds, to blossom and 
 bear fruit thereafter. The explanation is 
 that in such cases the person suspends the 
 critical attention which is usually interposed 
 by the attentive will, and allows the idea to 
 enter his mental castle unchallenged, and to 
 influence other ideas in the future. It is like 
 a man assuming a lordly air and marching 
 past the watchman at the gate of the mental 
 fortress, where the ordinary visitor is chal- 
 lenged and severely scrutinized; his creden- 
 tials examined; and the mark of approval 
 placed upon him before he may enter. * * * 
 The acceptance of such suggestions is akin to 
 a person bolting a particle of food, instead of 
 masticating it. As a rule we bolt many a bit 
 of mental provender, owing to its stamp of 
 real or pretended authority. And many per- 
 sons understanding this phase of suggestion 
 take advantage of it, and * use it in their busi- 
 ness 9 accordingly. The confidence-man, as 
 well as the shrewd politician and the seller of 
 neatly printed gold-mines, imposes himself 
 upon the public by means of an air of author- 
 ity, or by what is known in the parlance of the 
 
THE APPROACH 187 
 
 busy streets as ' putting up a good front' 
 Some men are all ' front,' and have nothing 
 behind their authoritative airbut that 
 authoritative air provides them with a liv- 
 ing." 
 
 The suggestion of associated manner, ap- 
 pearance and air the "good front," in fact 
 is the principal elemenTlrrtBe favorable 
 First Impression. The balance is a mixture 
 of tact, diplomacy, common sense, and intu- 
 ition. But remember this always: the 'best 
 "front" is the real one the one which is the 
 reflection of the right Mental Attitude and 
 Character the "front" of the Gentleman. 
 If you lack this, the nearer you can act it out, 
 the better for yourself. But no imitation is 
 as good as the genuine article. The true 
 Gentleman is the scientific mixture of strength 
 and courtesy the manifestation of "the iron 
 hand in" the velvet glove." So much for the 
 First Impression. 
 
 The mental stages of Curiosity and Associ- 
 ated Interest on the part of the buyer are also 
 to be induced by the Salesman in the Ap- 
 proach. We have described these phases in 
 the chapter entitled "The Psychology of the 
 
188 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 Purchase," this particular part of which! 
 should fie re-read at this point. 'A few addi- 
 tional words on these points, however, will 
 not be out of place here. 
 
 Eegarding the phase of Curiosity, we 
 would say that it will be well if you can man- 
 age the opening talk to the prospect so as to 
 "keep him guessing a little," while still hold- 
 ing his Associated Interest. Curiosity whets 
 a man's interest just as Worcestershire sauce 
 whets his appetite. The key to the arousing 
 of Curiosity is the idea of "something new;" 
 a new idea ; a new pattern, a new device, etc. 
 The mind of the average man likes "some- 
 thing new ' ' even the old fogy likes something 
 new in his old favorites, new bottles for his 
 good old wine. The idea of newness and 
 novelty tends to arouse. a man's inquisitive- 
 ness and imagination. And if you can start 
 these faculties working you have done well, 
 for Associated Interest is closely allied there- 
 to. When you get a prospect to the stage of 
 asking questions, either verbally or mentally, 
 you have the game well started. 
 
 Never make the mistake of asking the man 
 if he "wants to buy so-and-so. ' ' Of course he 
 
THE APPROACH 189 
 
 doesn't at that stage, particularly if you ask 
 him in that way. It is too easy for him to say 
 No ! It is almost as bad as that stock illustra- 
 tion of adverse suggestion : ' i You don 't want 
 to buy any so-and-so, do you mister V which 
 brings a ready "No!" from the average per- 
 son. Nor do you want to say : "I have called 
 to see if I cannot sell you so-and-so, to-day, 
 Mr. X." Or, "Can I sell you some so-and-so, 
 this morning, Mr. Z ? " This form of arousing 
 interest is based on erroneous psychological 
 principles. Of course, the prospect doesn't 
 want to buy or be sold at this stage of the game 
 the sale is the finishing stage. This plan is 
 like cutting a log of wood with the butt-end 
 of the axe you are presenting the wrong end 
 of the proposition. You can never arouse 
 Curiosity or Associated Interest in this way. 
 Forget the words ' ' You buy ' ' and ' ' I sell ' ' for 
 the moment in fact the less you use them at 
 any stage the better it will be, for they are too 
 unpleasantly suggestive of the opening of 
 pocket-books to be agreeable to the prospect. 
 There are excellent substitutes for these terms 
 terms which suggest profit, advantage, sav- 
 ing and pleasure to the mind of the buyer, 
 
190 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 rather than ideas of expenditure and i ' giving 
 up." Try to suggest the incoming stream of 
 money to your buyer not the outgoing one. 
 The reason is obvious, if you understand the 
 laws of suggestion and psychology. 
 
 In short, let your appeal at this stage be 
 entirely to the Self Interest, Pleasure, and 
 Curiosity of the prospect. Try to get him 
 warmed up, and his imagination working. If 
 you can do this he will forget his other ob- 
 jects of attention, and will lay aside his armor 
 of suggestive defence and his shield of in- 
 stinctive resistance to one whom he thinks 
 " wants to sell something" and open his 
 pocket-book. This is the stage in which you 
 must get in the sharp end of your psycho- 
 logical wedge. Here is where you need the 
 keen edge of your axe the butt-end may be 
 reserved for the Decision and Closing. 
 
 As far as possible, do not ask questions to 
 which the prospect can answer "No!" at this 
 stage. Fence him off on this point, and dodge 
 every sign of a forthcoming negative. But if 
 he does get out a "No !" or two do not hear 
 him. Let his "No !" slip off like water from 
 a duck's back refuse to admit it to your con- 
 
THE APPROACH 191 
 
 sciousness deny it mentally refuse the evi- 
 dence of your ears. This is no time for 
 " Noes "go right ahead, unconscious of the 
 words. Keep on appealing to his Interest, 
 in the phases of Curiosity and Associated In- 
 terest. Your aim here is to get the prospect 
 to the stage of Consideration. This stage is 
 indicated by his asking a question showing a 
 desire to know the particulars of your propo- 
 sition. The question may show but a shade 
 of interest, but it marks a move in the game. 
 It is the prospect's answering move to your 
 opening. It is an important psychological 
 moment in the game. The next move is yours ! 
 And that move is on the plane of the Demon- 
 strationfor the stage of the approach has 
 now been passed. 
 
 Before passing on to the consideration of 
 the stage of Demonstration, we desire to call 
 your attention to the following excellent ad- 
 vice regarding the matter of rebuffs which are 
 so often met with in the stage of Approach. 
 It is from the pen of W. C. Holman, and ap- 
 peared in his magazine * * Salesmanship. ' ' Mr. 
 
192 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 Holman says : "A crack-a- jack salesman will 
 receive a rebuff as gracefully and easily and 
 with as little damage to himself as a profes- 
 sional baseball player will take in a red-hot 
 liner that a batter drives at him, and go right 
 on playing the game as if nothing had hap- 
 pened. An amateur salesman will want to 
 quit playing, or call the attention of the um- 
 pire to the malicious intent of the batter. A 
 blow that would knock the ordinary man off 
 his pins will do nothing more than to give a 
 professional boxer a chance to show his agility 
 and win applause. If you drop a plank on 
 a cork in the water with a tremendous splash 
 the cork will bob up as serenely as if nothing 
 had happened, and lie quietly once more on 
 the unruffled surface of the water. And so a 
 clever salesman, when a smashing blow is 
 aimed at him by a surly prospect, will merely 
 sidestep gracefully and continue calmly with 
 the prosecution of his purpose. * * * 
 Self-control disarms all ill natured attacks/' 
 
CHAPTEE IX 
 
 THE DEMONSTRATION 
 
 In the last chapter we left the Salesman at 
 that stage of the Approach where the prospect 
 manifests enough interest to ask a question or 
 make an interrogative objection. This is an 
 important psychological point or stage in the 
 game, and here the Approach merges into the 
 Demonstration on the part of the Salesman ; 
 and the stage of passive attention on the part 
 of the prospect merges into that of active at- 
 tention, discussion and Consideration. The 
 moment that the prospect ceases to be a pas- 
 sive listener, and displays enough active in- 
 terest to ask a question or make an interroga- 
 tive objection, the great game of the sale is 
 on in earnest. The Demonstration has begun. 
 
 This stage of the sale closely resembles a 
 game of chess or checkers. The approach and 
 preliminary talk of the Salesman is the first 
 move in the game ; the answer, question or ob- 
 
 193 
 
194 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 jection of the prospect is the second move- 
 then the real game or discussion is on. It is 
 now "up to" the Salesman to make his second 
 move, which is a reply move to that of the 
 prospect. And this particular move is a 
 highly important one in the great game of the 
 sale. Like an important early move in 
 checkers or chess the success or failure of 
 the whole game may depend on it, so it is well 
 to have this move mapped out as a part of 
 your preliminary study. 
 
 Macbain truthfully says of the first remark 
 of the prospect : "The customer is not going 
 to commit himself in response to the first re- 
 mark. He always holds considerable in re- 
 serve. An objection either expressed or im- 
 pliedcan always be counted on. It may vary 
 from a general 'busy' statement, or 'no in- 
 terest in what is about to be submitted,' or it 
 may be a specific statement even heated, in 
 fact that the one approached has 'no time 
 for the salesman or his house.' ' 
 
 But, just as in chess or checkers there are 
 certain "replies" indicated for every one of 
 the first few opening moves, all of which are 
 fully stated and explained in text books on 
 
THE DEMONSTRATION 195 
 
 these games, so in the great game of Sales- 
 manship there are certain replies indicated 
 for these preliminary moves on the part of the 
 prospect. The large selling concerns have 
 schools of instruction, personal or correspond- 
 ence, in which the Salesman is furnished with 
 the appropriate and logical answers to the ob- 
 jections and questions usually advanced by 
 the prospect. It will be found that there are 
 really but few moves of this kind in the game 
 of the average propsects they tend to say 
 the same things under the same circumstances, 
 and there is always an appropriate answer. 
 The salesman will acquire many of these 
 answers by experience, conversation with 
 older salesmen, or by instruction from his 
 sales-manager or the house. Each line has 
 its own stock of objections, and its own stock 
 of replies thereto. 
 
 There are twvj general classes of replies to 
 objections, which apply to nearly ^very kind ( 
 of proposition. The first is that of deftly 
 catching the objection on your mental fencing- 
 foil, allowing it to glance off, and at the same 
 time getting a thrust on your opponent. 
 President Patterson of the National Cash 
 
196 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 Eegister Company is credited with, special 
 cleverness in this kind of reply, and his sales- 
 men are said to be instructed to listen care- 
 fully to the prospect's objection and then to 
 turn it back on him by a remark based on the 
 principle of: "Why, that's the very reason 
 why you should, ' ' etc. In other words ih&jQb- 
 jection should be twisted into an argument in 
 favor of the proposition. In the hands of a 
 master this form of reply is very effective, 
 and often brings results by reason of its dar- 
 ing and unexpectedness. But it is not every 
 one who has the skill to use it to advantage. 
 The second class of reply is based upon 
 what is called Indirect Resistance, which, by 
 the way, is often the strongest form of re- 
 sistance, and accomplishes its intended effect 
 while avoiding the opposition and antagonism 
 of Direct Resistance. Some writers on the 
 subject have called this "Non-Resistance," 
 obviously a misnomer for it is a form of re- 
 sistance although subtly disguised. It is anal- 
 ogous to the tree that bends in order to avoid 
 breaking under the blasts of the storm; of 
 the flexible steel which bends to the pressure, 
 instead of breaking as would iron ; but both of 
 
THE DEMONSTRATION 197 
 
 which spring back into place immediately. It 
 is generally very poor policy to directly op- 
 pose the prospect upon minor points the 
 main point is what you are after. And the 
 main point is the order the rest is imma- 
 terial and unimportant. Let us contrast 
 Direct-Eesistance and Indirect-Eesistance, 
 and see the points of each. 
 
 In Direct Eesistance the minor objections 
 of the prospect are met with the answer: 
 "You are wrong there, Mr. X;" or, "You are 
 entirely mistaken; 77 or, "You take the wrong 
 view ; 7 7 or, as we heard in one instance : ' ' Your 
 objection is ridiculous. 77 The Direct Eesist- 
 ance is necessary in a few contingencies, or 
 upon rare occasions, but it should be sparingly 
 and cautiously used. It is a desperate remedy 
 indicated only for desperate diseases. The 
 Indirect Eesistance expresses itself in an- 
 swers of: "That is possibly true in some 
 cases, but," etc.; or, "There is much truth in 
 what you say, Mr. X, but/' etc.; or, "As a 
 general proposition that is probably correct, 
 but/' 'etc.; or, "I quite agree with you, Mr. 
 X. that (etc.) but in this particular case I 
 think an exception should be made, 77 etc. 
 
198 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 The value of this form of resistance lies in 
 the fact that it costs you nothing to allow the 
 prospect to retain his own ideas and entertain 
 his own prejudices, provided they do not in- 
 terfere with the logic of your general argu- 
 ment, nor affect your main point, the order. 
 You are not a missionary or a pedagogue 
 you are just a Salesman and your business is 
 to take orders. Let the old fellow keep his 
 foolish ideas and intolerant prejudices, pro- 
 viding you can steer him straight to the or- 
 dering point. The active principle in Indirect 
 Besistance is to get rid of his general objec- 
 tions in the easiest and shortest way, by allow- 
 ing him to retain them, and concentrating 
 your and his attention and interest upon the 
 particular points of your proposition the 
 positive and material points of your particular 
 case. Avoid disputes on non-essentials, gen- 
 eralities, and immaterial points. You are 
 not striving for first prize in debate you're 
 after orders. Eemember the legal principles 
 of the "pertinent, relevant, and material" 
 points, and side-track the "immaterial, irrel- 
 evant and impertinent" side-issues, even if 
 you have to tacitly admit them in Indirect Ee- 
 
THE t)EMONSTKATION 
 
 sistance. Here it is in a nutshell : Sidetrack 
 and Sidestep the Non-Essentials. 
 
 The Salesman has now reached the point 
 in which the prospect is manifesting the psy- 
 chological jitage of Consideration' the stage 
 in which he is willing to ' ' look into ' ' the mat- 
 ter, or rather into the subject or object of the 
 proposition. This stage ...must not be confused 
 with that of Deliberation, in which the pros- 
 pect weighs the pros and cons of whether he 
 should purchase. The two stages are quite dif- 
 ferent. The present stage that of Considera- 
 tion is merely the phase of examination, in- 
 vestigation or inquiry into the matter, to see 
 if there is really anything of real practical in- 
 terest in it for himself. It is more than mere 
 Associated Interest, for it has passed into 
 the manifestation of interested investigation. 
 In many cases the process never gets beyond 
 this stage, particularly if the Salesman does 
 not understand the psychology of the process. 
 Many salesmen make the mistake of trying to 
 make their closing talk at this pointbut this 
 is a mistake. The prospect must understand 
 something about the details of the proposi- 
 tion, or the qualities and characteristics of 
 
200 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 the goods, before lie uses his imagination or 
 feels inclination to possess the thing. So here 
 is where the work of explanation comes in. 
 
 The term * ' Demonstration" has two general 
 means, each of which is exemplified by 
 stages in the Salesman's work of Demonstra- 
 tion. The first meaning, and stage, is: *'A 
 showing or pointing out ; an indication, mani- 
 festation or -exhibition." The second mean- 
 ing, and stage, is : " The act of proving clear- 
 ly, by incontrovertible proof and indubitable 
 evidence, beyond the possibility of doubt or 
 contradiction." / The first 
 
 ' i showing and pointing out "_ the second, that 
 of "proof." The first is that of presenting 
 the features of a thing the second, that of 
 logical argument and proof. And, therefore, 
 remember that you are now at the stage of 
 "showing and pointing out," and not that of 
 1 ' argument and proof. ' ' 
 
 Eegarding the matter of "showing and 
 pointing out" the features and characteristics 
 of your goods or proposition, you should al- 
 ways remember that the prospect does not 
 know the details of your proposition or article 
 of sale as you do or as you should know. 
 
THE DEMONSTRATION 201 
 
 The subject is not " stale" to him, as it may 
 have become to you if you have not kept up 
 your enthusiasm. Therefore, while avoiding 
 needless waste of time, do not make the mis- 
 take of rushing this point of the demonstra- 
 tion and thus neglecting the important feat- 
 ures. Better one feature well explained and 
 emphasized, than, a score hurried over in a 
 sloppy manner. It is better to concentrate 
 upon a few leading and striking points of 
 demonstration, of material interest to the 
 prospect, and to assume that he does not know 
 anything about them except as he may show 
 his knowledge by questions or objections all 
 this in a courteous manner, of course, avoiding 
 the "know it all" air. The prospect must 
 have time to allow the points to sink into his 
 mind some men are slower than others in 
 this respect. Watch the prospect's face to see 
 by his expression whether or not he really 
 understands what you are saying. Better 
 present one point in a dozen ways, to obtain 
 understanding, than to present a dozen points 
 in one way and fail to be understood. 
 
 In order to demonstrate your goods or 
 proposition at this stage, you must have fully 
 
202 
 
 acquainted yourself with them, and also have 
 arranged the telling points in a natural and 
 logical order of presentation, working from 
 the simple up to the complex. Be careful not 
 to suggest buying at this point, lest your pros- 
 pect take fright and lose interest in the demon- 
 stration. He is naturally in a defensive mood, 
 for he scents the appeal to his pocket book in 
 the distance you must try to take his mind 
 off this point by arousing his interested atten- 
 tion in the details of your goods or proposi- 
 tion. Explain the details just as you would 
 if the prospect had called upon you for the 
 purpose of investigation. In fact, if you can 
 work yourself up to the proper Mental 
 Attitude you may effect the psychological 
 change by which the positions may be re- 
 versed, and so that it will instinctively seem 
 to the prospect that he is calling on you and 
 not you on him. There is an important psy- 
 chological point here which you would do well 
 to remember. The man who is called upon 
 always has "the move" on the caller if you 
 can reverse this psychological condition, you 
 have gained a great advantage. An awakened 
 personal interest in the details of a proposi- 
 
THE DEMONSTRATION 203 
 
 tion, on the part of the prospect, tends to re- 
 verse the conditions. 
 
 If you would understand what a scientific 
 demonstration of an article or proposition is 
 like, it would pay you to listen to the demon- 
 stration by a well-trained salesman of the 
 National Cash Register Company. This com- 
 pany drills its salesmen thoroughly in this 
 part of their work, until they have every de- 
 tail fastened in their minds in its proper log- 
 ical order. An old salesman of this company 
 should be able to repeat his formula back- 
 wards as well as in the regular order begin- 
 ning at the middle and working either back- 
 ward or forward, at will. He understands 
 the "why" and "what for" of every detail of 
 his article and proposition, and is taught to 
 present them in their logical order. Listen- 
 ing to a talk of one of their best salesmen is 
 a liberal education in demonstration. 
 
 The essence of this stage of the demonstra- 
 tion is that it should be given in the spirit of 
 a conversational recital of an interesting 
 story, or description of an event. Speak in an 
 impersonal way; that is, avoid suggesting to 
 the prospect that you are trying to sell him 
 
204 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 the thing. Let this part of your talk be given 
 from the sheer enthusiasm inspired in your 
 mind by the merits of your proposition. Let 
 it be a labor of love forget all about your 
 hope of sale or profit. Your one aim and ob- 
 ject of life, at that moment, should be that of 
 inspiring the prospect with the wonderful 
 merits of your proposition, which you your- 
 self entertain. Yours should be the spirit 
 of the propogandist seeking converts im- 
 parting information for the good of others, 
 and ' ' for the cause. ' ' Forget the forthcoming 
 collection plate, in the earnestness of your 
 sermon. 
 
 The National Cash Eegister Company in- 
 structs its salesmen as follows regarding this 
 stage of the demonstration : ' * When you have 
 gotten a prospect to a demonstration you have 
 accomplished a most important step. You 
 can take it for granted that he is to some ex- 
 tent interested in the subject. Now, by all 
 means make the most of that opportunity. Say 
 what you have to say to him thoroughly and 
 carefully. Don't rattle off your demonstra- 
 tion in a hurry, as if you were wound up and 
 had to say so many words to the minute. Give 
 
THE DEMONSTRATION 205 
 
 him a chance to speak, to ask questions or 
 make objections. He probably has certain 
 ideas in his mind which may be a decided 
 help or a decided hindrance to your argument. 
 You ought to learn what they are. Don't 
 imagine because he listens in silence that he 
 agrees with you, or even understands all you 
 say. Speak deliberately. If you see from a 
 puzzled or doubtful look on his face that any- 
 thing is not quite plain to him, stop and make 
 it plain. Take time enough to explain each 
 point thoroughly. Whenever you make a 
 statement that is open to question, be sure to 
 get his assent to it before you proceed. If he 
 will not assent to it exactly as you make it, 
 modify it until he does. Get him to assent in 
 some degree to every proposition you make, so 
 that when you get to the general result he 
 cannot go back and disagree with you. Don't 
 do this however as if you were trying to cor- 
 ner him, but with a simple desire to reach a 
 reasonable basis of argument. Cast aside all 
 attempts at being a clever talker, all idea that 
 there is any trick of words or manner, any 
 secret artfulness about selling registers, and 
 put yourself in the plain, unaffected spirit of 
 
206 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 a man who has simply a truth to tell, and 
 is bent upon telling it in the plainest, homliest 
 way. Avoid above all things the fatal mis- 
 take of demonstrating to your prospect with 
 a sense of fear, haste, and uncertainty. 
 Eealize fully the power of the facts behind 
 you, and have the full confidence of your con- 
 victions; coolly and deliberately make each 
 point clear and conclusive, and lead the pros- 
 pect by simple steps up to absolute convic- 
 tion. " 
 
 If you have held your prospect's interested 
 attention during this stage of the Demonstra- 
 tion, you will find that his imagination is be- 
 ginning to work in the direction of making 
 mental pictures of how the thing or prop- 
 osition would work for him how the article 
 would look in his possession. It is a psycho- 
 logical law that interested investigation, or 
 consideration, tends to awaken the interest of 
 imagination and desire if the object of the in- 
 vestigation blends with the general trend of 
 the person's thought and feelings. The very 
 process of investigation inevitably brings to 
 light new points of interest. And, then, the 
 act of investigation and discovery, instinctive- 
 
THE DEMONSTRATION 207 
 
 ly creates a feeling of proprietorship in the 
 thing investigated or discovered. It estab- 
 lishes an association between the object and 
 its investigator. 
 
 Hallecksays: "* * * We must not for- 
 get that any one not shallow and fickle can 
 soon discover something interesting in most 
 objects * * * the attention which they 
 are able to give generally ends in finding a 
 pearl in the most uninteresting looking oyster. 
 * * * The essence, of genius is to present 
 an old thing in new ways. ' ' And again : 
 "When we think about a thing, or keep the 
 mind full of a subject, the activity in certain 
 brain tracts is probably much increased. As 
 a result of this unconscious preparation, a full 
 fledged image may suddenly arise in con- 
 sciousness." Hoffding says: "The inter- 
 weaving of the elements of the picture in the 
 imagination takes place in great measure be- 
 low the threshold of consciousness, so that 
 the image suddenly emerges in consciousness 
 complete in its broad outlines, the conscious 
 result of an unconscious process." Halleck 
 also says: "A representative image of the 
 thing desired is the necessary antecedent to 
 
208 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 desire. Not until a representative idea comes 
 to the mind does desire arise. It has often 
 been said that where there is no knowledge 
 there can be no desire. A child sees a new toy 
 and wants it. A man notices some improve- 
 ments about his neighbor's house and wishes 
 them. One nation finds out that another has 
 a war ship of a superior model, and straight- 
 way desires something as good or better. A 
 scholar sees a new cyclopedia or work of ref- 
 erence, and desire for it arises. A person 
 returns and tells his friends how delightful a 
 foreign trip is. Their desires for travel in- 
 crease. Knowledge gives birth to desire, and 
 desire points out the point to will." In this 
 paragraph we have quoted eminent authori- 
 ties, showing the direct line of psycholog- 
 ical progress from interested investigation, 
 through imagination, to desire and will. One 
 investigates and gains favorable knowledge 
 regarding a subject; then Ms imagination 
 operates to show him the possibility of its suc- 
 cessful application to his personal case ; then 
 his desire for the thing is awakened. 
 
 The stage of Imagination is reached when 
 tlie prospect begins to think of the thing or 
 
THE DEMONSTRATION 209 
 
 proposition in connection with himself. He 
 then begins to picture it in its application to 
 his needs or requirements, or in relation to 
 his general desires, tastes and feelings. The 
 Salesman, in order to awaken the Imagination 
 of the prospect, should endeavor to paint 
 picture s "of the thing injj 
 
 application, value, and utility. He should en- 
 TleavTHrTcT make the prospect see, mentally, 
 the desirability of the thing to any man how 
 it will work for good; how it will benefit one; 
 how great an advantage it will be for one; 
 how much good it will be in every way for its 
 possessor. Avoid the personal application, 
 even at this late stage make the application 
 general, so as to avoid scaring off the pros- 
 pect's pocket book. The whole idea and aim 
 of this stage of the process of sale is to awaken 
 inclination in the prospect to make his mouth 
 water for the thingto make him begin to 
 fetjl that he would like to have it, himself. 
 He must be put into the mental condition of 
 the woman gazing longingly at the hat in the 
 milliner's window; or of the boy who is peek- 
 ing through the knot-hole in the fence of the 
 base-ball park. He must be led into the feel- 
 
210 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 ing that lie is on the outside of the fence or 
 window and the good thing is inside. He 
 will then begin to feel the inclination or de- 
 sire to "get on the inside." 
 
 We once heard a tale of two Southern 
 darkies, which illustrates this point. The two 
 were riding on the same mule's back coming 
 home from work. The foremost darkey began 
 relating the story of some roast possum he 
 had feasted upon the preceding night. He 
 pictured the possum as fat and tender; how 
 they first "briled" him, and then roasted him 
 in the oven ; how juicy and brown he looked ; 
 how nice he smelt; how he was served up 
 "wid coon-gravy poured all over him; 7 ' and 
 finally how nice he tasted when the narrator 
 dug Ms teeth into him. The darkey in the rear 
 displayed increasing signs of uneasiness as 
 the tale proceeded and as he imagined first 
 the sight, then the smell, and then the taste of 
 the possum. Finally he groaned, and shouted 
 out: "Shet up, yer fool niger! Does yer 
 wanter make me fall clean offen dis yer 
 mewel?" This is the point you must make 
 your prospect see, smell and taste the good 
 
THE DEMONSTRATION 211 
 
 possum you have, until he is ready to "fall 
 off en de mewel. ' ' 
 
 Words describing action, taste, feelings, or 
 in fact anything which relates to sense per- 
 ceptions, tend to arouse the imagination. If 
 the Salesman cultivates the art of actually 
 seeing, tasting or feeling the thing in his 
 own imagination, as he talks, he will tend to 
 re-produce his mental pictures in the mind of 
 his prospect. Imagination is contagious 
 along the lines of suggestion. Descriptions of 
 sensations, or feelings, tend to awaken a 
 sympathetic response and representation in 
 the minds of others, along the lines of sug- 
 gestion. Did you never have your imagina- 
 tion and desire fired by the description of a 
 thing didn't you want to see, feel, or taste 
 it yourself? Did you never feel the effect of 
 words like: "delicious; fragrant; luscious; 
 sweet; mild; invigorating; bracing, " etc., in 
 an advertisement? How many young people 
 have been hurried into matrimony by an il- 
 lustration or word-picture of a "happy 
 home;" "a little wife to meet you at the 
 door;" "little children clustering around 
 you," and all the rest of it? A well known 
 
212 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 instalment furniture dealer of Chicago is said 
 to be psychologically responsible for thous- 
 ands of weddings, by his suggestive pictures 
 of the "happy home" and his kind statement 
 that ' ' We will Feather your Nest ; ' ' and ' ' You 
 find the Bride, and we will do the rest." The 
 Salesman who can "paint bright pictures in 
 the mind" of his prospect, will succeed in 
 awakening the Imagination, and arousing the 
 Inclination and Desire. Newman well said: 
 "Deductions have no power of persuasion. 
 The heart is commonly reached, not through 
 the reason, but through the imagination. 
 * * * Persons influence us, voices melt us, 
 looks subdue us, deeds inflame us." 
 
 And so we pass to the stage of Inclination 
 or Desire, by the road of the Imagination. 
 
 The mental state of Inclination, or Desire, 
 following upon the arousing of the appro- 
 priate faculties through the Imagination 
 which arises in the stage of Consideration, 
 may be briefly described as the feeling of: 
 "This seems to be a good thing/ would like 
 to have it." This Inclination has been aroused 
 by demonstration a(ad suggestion, and the 
 prospect begins to experience the feeling that 
 
TIIE DEMONSTRATION 213 
 
 the possession of the thing will add to his 
 pleasure, comfort, well-being, satisfaction or 
 profit. You will remember the statement re- 
 garding Desire given in a previous chapter: 
 "Desire Jias for its object something which 
 will bring pleasure or get rid of pain, imme- 
 diate or remote, for the individual or for 
 some one in whom he is interested. Aversion, 
 or a striving to get away from something, is 
 merely the negative aspect of desire." It is 
 this feeling that you have aroused in some de- 
 gree in the mind of the propsect. You have 
 brought him to the first stages of Inclination, 
 which naturally brings him to a deliberation 
 as to whether he is justified in purchasing it, 
 and to the point where he will begin to weigh 
 the advantages and disadvantages of the pur- 
 chasethe question of whether he is willing to 
 "pay the price" for it, which is, after all, the 
 vital question in nearly all forms of delibera- 
 tion following Inclination and Desire. But as 
 the prospect's mind passes to the stage of 
 Deliberation, you must not lose sight of the 
 question of Desire, for it may be necessary to 
 re-kindle it in him, or to blow upon its sparks, 
 when he debates the "to buy or not to buy." 
 
214 SALESMAKSHIP 
 
 The Deliberation is largely a question of a 
 conflict of motives, and Desire is a powerful 
 motive so you must be ready to arouse a 
 new phase of "want to" in the prospect to 
 counterbalance some other motive which may 
 be turning the scales in the other direction. 
 
 .J3L5*5J^ *9L*?J5 st^e^ofJOgKbgratioii, 
 
 or Argument, the discussion passes from the 
 impersonal plane to the personal. Thejjiies- 
 tion no longer is : " I not this a good thing ? ' ' 
 to that of "Should you not have it for your 
 own?" This is a distinct change of base, and 
 a different set of faculties are now employed 
 by the Salesman. He leaves the Descriptive 
 phase and enters into that of Argument, He 
 enters into that second meaning or phase of 
 Demonstration which has been defined as: 
 "Proving clearly." And the question of 
 proof and argument is that of whether the 
 prospect is not justified in acquiring the thing. 
 The prospect's mind is already considering 
 the two sides of the question, his Caution com- 
 bating his Inclination. He is like ' ' Jeppe ' ' of 
 whom we told you in a previous chapter. 
 It is now a question of "my back or my 
 stomach," with him. The Salesman's busi- 
 
THE DEMONSTRATION 215 
 
 ness now is to demonstrate to him that he can 
 and should acquire the thing. This is a pro- 
 ceeding in which the Salesman's tact, re- 
 sources, knowledge of human nature, per- 
 suasive power, and his logic are needed. 
 
 The Salesman has an advantage here which 
 he often overlooks. We refer to the fact that 
 the very objections of the prospect, and his 
 questions give a key to his mental operations, 
 which may be followed up by the Salesman. 
 He knows now what is on the prospect's mind, 
 and what are his general feelings, views, and 
 inclinations regarding the matter. When he 
 begins to talk he gives you a glimpse at his 
 motives, prejudices, hopes and fears. It is 
 quite an art to lead the prospect to ask the 
 questions or to make the objections to which 
 you have a strong answering argument. You 
 then are able to turn back upon him his own 
 argument. It is a psychological fact that the 
 force of a statement made in answer to an in- 
 terrogative objection, is much stronger than 
 would be the same statement made without 
 the question or objection. 
 
 Macbain says : ' ' Lincoln, it is related, early 
 learned in beginning the study of law, that he 
 
216 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 did not know what it was to prove a thing. 
 By means of careful^ conscientious study, in 
 which he took up the problems of Euclid, one 
 by one, he satisfied himself that he then 
 realized absolutely what it meant to prove a 
 proposition. One of the most eminent judges 
 of the Iowa judiciary regards every legal 
 problem as a proposition to be proved by a 
 chain of reasoning. The salesman who de- 
 termines with absolute accuracy what it 
 means, first, to prove a proposition, and 
 second to apply the general principles of 
 demonstration to an immediate matter in 
 hand, knows just how far to go in making his 
 demonstration, what to include and what to 
 exclude. He can see in his mind's eye the 
 chain of evidence that he is fashioning and 
 will make that fabric of his mind exact, logical 
 and convincing. " 
 
 (Note: In order to train the student in 
 logical thinking, development of the logical 
 faculties, and the art of expressing one's 
 thoughts in a logical and effective manner, 
 we would suggest that he make inquiry re- 
 garding the volumes of the present series 
 known as "The Art of Logical Thinking, or 
 
THE DEMONSTRATION 217 
 
 Le' 
 
 The Laws of Keasoning;" "Thought-Culture, 
 or Practical Mental Training;" and "The 
 Art of Expression." These books are pub- 
 lished by the house issuing the present vol- 
 ume.) 
 
 It will be seen that the field of discussion in 
 this stage of Deliberation covers not only the 
 subject of the value and utility of the goods 
 or proposition, but also the question of the 
 price, the advisibility of the purchase at this 
 time, the special advantages possessed, the 
 over-balancing of assumed disadvantages, and 
 in fact the whole question of purchase from 
 beginning to end. The one thing to be held 
 in the mind of the Salesman, however, is 
 "This will do you good; this will do you good; 
 this will do you good!" Keep hammering 
 away at this one nail, in a hundred ways 
 hold it up to view from a hundred viewpoints 
 and angles. It is the gist of the whole argu- 
 ment, at the last. Don't allow yourself to be 
 sidetracked from this essential proposition, 
 even if the argument spreads itself over a 
 wide field. The point is that (1) the thing is 
 good; (2) the prospect needs it; and (3) that 
 you do him a good turn by making him see 
 
218 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 that he needs it. We once knew of a very suc- 
 cessful life-insurance salesman who had but 
 two points to his selling talk. These were: 
 (1) "Life insurance is a necessity;" and (2) 
 "My company is sound. " He brushed aside 
 all other points as immaterial, and insisted 
 with all his heart and soul upon his two points. 
 He was not an educated man, nor was he 
 vesrsed in the technicalities of life-insurance, 
 but he knew his two points from cellar to 
 garret. He outsold many men with actuarial 
 minds, and extended knowledge. He followed 
 the "rifle-ball" policy, instead of the "shot 
 gun" plan. When he struck the target, he 
 made a mark ! 
 
 It is the Mental Attitude of the Salesman 
 which is the power behind his argumentive 
 rifle-balls. It is his enthusiasm which warms 
 up the prospect's imagination and desire. 
 And, back of these, must always be his belief 
 in his own proposition. The Salesman must 
 "sell himself" over and over again, as friend 
 Holman has suggested. He must answer 
 every objection which occurs to himself, as 
 well as those which are thrust upon him in his 
 work. If the goods are right, there must be 
 
THE DEMONSTRATION 219 
 
 an answer to every objection, just as there 
 is a return-move to every move in chess- 
 just as there always is "the other side" to 
 everything. He must find this move, and this 
 "other side" to every objection to which his 
 proposition is open. And he must "sell him- 
 self" over and over again, as we have said. 
 The National Cash Eegister people say to 
 their salesmen: "Selling registers is a 
 straight-forward serious work. You have a 
 plain statement to make of the facts which 
 you are convinced are true, and which you 
 are certain it is for the prospect's benefit to 
 know. You should be as sincere about it as 
 if you were a clergyman preaching the gospel. 
 If you go at it in this sincere spirit the pros- 
 pect will feel the importance of what you say, 
 and it will carry its due weight. It is a fact 
 which you must fully believe, that the registeu 
 is a great benefit to any man who buys it ; that 
 it will save any merchant many times its cost 
 while he is paying for it." 
 
 Pierce says : " So in selling it is absolute- 
 ly essential to be genuine. First, last and 
 foremostbe genuine. Practice absolutely 
 what you preach. Be honest. Never under- 
 
220 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 take a line of goods that you cannot enthu- 
 siastically endorse. Otherwise you cannot 
 'sell yourself. ' And selling one's self is by 
 all means necessary. Students have asked 
 us: 'How about being honest when the cus^ 
 tomer asks you a question that you know in 
 your heart you cannot answer straight-for- 
 wardly?' The answer is: Drop that line; 
 the sooner the better." 
 
 It is true that there are men who "wear the 
 livery of heaven in which to serve the devil," 
 and who practice self-hypnotization upon 
 themselves until they get to actually believe 
 that they are advocating an, honest proposition 
 in place of the "fake" they are proposing. 
 And many of these "confidence-meni" and 
 "green-goods men" throw themselves so 
 earnestly into their acting that they persuade 
 their victims by reason of their earnestness. 
 We remember Bulwer's tale of the French 
 beggar whose tears wrought havoc upon the 
 hearts of his susceptible victims. "How are 
 you able to weep at will?" he was asked. "I 
 think of my poor father who is dead," he an- 
 swered. Bulwer adds: "The union of senti- 
 ment with the ability of swindling made that 
 
THE DEMONSTRATION 221 
 
 Frenchman a most fascinating creature!" 
 But every genuine thing must have its 
 counterfeit the existence of the latter only 
 serves to prove the former. The success of 
 the " J. Eufus Wallingford V of real life, are 
 more than equaled by their final downfall. 
 No man can continue to prostitute his talents 
 and be happy, or even ultimately successful. 
 The Law of Compensation is in full opera- 
 tion. No, we're not preaching just indulg- 
 ing in a little philosophy, that's all! 
 
 Let us now proceed to the stage of the Sales- 
 man 's Closing, and the prospect's Decision 
 and Action. 
 
CHAPTER X 
 
 THE CLOSING 
 
 The "Closing" is a stage of the sale that is 
 an object of dread to the majority of sales- 
 men. In fact some salesmen content them- 
 selves with leading the prospect to the point 
 bordering on Decision and Action, and then 
 lose heart, leave the prospect, and later bring 
 around the sales manager or special "closer " 
 for the concern. They can lead the horse to 
 the trough, but they cannot make him drink. 
 While it is true that the stage of Closing is 
 a delicate one, and involving as it does some 
 practical psychological strategy, nevertheless' 
 we are of the opinion that many salesmen are 
 victims of their own adverse auto-suggestions 
 in this matter they make a boogaboo of the 
 thing which is often found to be but lath and 
 plaster instead of solid iron and granite. 
 Many a salesman is defeated in his Closing 
 by his own fears rather than by the prospect. 
 
 222 
 
THE CLOSING 223 
 
 This stage of the sale is one in which the Sales- 
 man should draw on his reserve store of en- 
 thusiasm and energy for he needs it in order 
 to carry the day. As Holman once wrote: 
 "General Grant said that in almost every 
 battle, after hours of fighting, there came a 
 critical moment in which both parties were 
 tired out, and the side that braced up at that 
 moment and pounded hard would win. This 
 is probably so in selling. A good salesman 
 knows that critcal moment, and pounds. ' ' 
 
 The main cause of the failure to bring the 
 prospect to a favorable Decision the first of 
 the two final stages of the Closing is that 
 the Salesman has not done his best work in 
 the preliminary stages of the Demonstration. 
 He has not demonstrated the proposition 
 properly, or has not awakened the Imagina- 
 tion and Inclination of the prospect to a suffi- 
 cient extent. Many salesmen slight the pre- 
 liminary process of the Demonstration in their 
 anxiety to reach the Closing but this is a 
 great mistake, for no structure is stronger 
 than its foundation. The Closing should fol- 
 low as a logical and legitimate conclusion of 
 the preceding stages. It should be like the 
 
224 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 result of a mathematical problem which has 
 been carefully worked out. Of course it is im- 
 possible for any one Salesman to "sell them 
 all," from the very nature of things but the 
 average man could sell a larger percentage of 
 prospects if he would strengthen himself along 
 the preliminary stages leading up to the Clos- 
 ing, and to the final steps of the latter. 
 
 The gist of the whole matter of the failure 
 of a prospect to make a favorable Decision is 
 this: He hasn't been convinced! Why? If 
 you can answer this question, you have the 
 key to the problem. You haven't reached the 
 man's desire. Why? If you can get him to 
 "want" the thing, the decision is a mere 
 matter of final settling down to choice. You 
 may have said to the man, "This is a good 
 thing you ought to have it," over and over 
 again but have you actually made him see 
 that it was a good thing and that he ought to 
 have it? It is one thing to tell a man these 
 things, and another to reproduce your own be- 
 liefs in his mind. 
 
 The changing of the talk from that affect- 
 ing Deliberation on the part of the prospect, 
 to that influencing his Decision, is a delicate 
 
THE CLOSING 225 
 
 matter. There is a "psychological moment" 
 for the change which some men seem to per- 
 ceive intuitively, while others have to learn 
 it by hard experience. It is the critical bal- 
 ancing point between "enough" and "too 
 much" talk. 
 
 On the one hand, the Salesman must beware 
 of a premature Closing, and on the other he 
 must avoid "unselling" a man after he has 
 made the psychological sale. Some men are 
 inclined toward one of -these faults and some 
 to the other. The ideal Salesman has found 
 the nice point of balance between the two. 
 
 If the Salesman attempts to make a/prema- 
 ture Closing, he will probably have failed to 
 bring about the full desire and careful De- 
 liberation in the prospect's mind. As a prac- 
 tical writer on the subject has pointed out, 
 this course is a^ faulty as that of a lawyer 
 who would attempt to begin his closing ad- 
 dress to the jury before he had gotten in his 
 evidence. The trained finger on the pulse 
 should detect the "high-tide of interest," and 
 close the demonstration at this point, moving 
 surely and swiftly to the Closing. 
 
 On the other hand, if the Salesman persists 
 
226 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 in talking on, rambling and wandering, after 
 he has made a particular point, or all of his 
 points, he runs the risk of losing his pros- 
 pect's attention and interest, and with it 
 the newly awakened inclination and desire. 
 James H. Collins, in a recent article in ' ' The 
 Saturday Evening Post," relates the follow- 
 ing amusing anecdote illustrating this tend- 
 ency on the part of the Salesman : 
 
 ' ' How easily a customer may be talked out 
 of buying is shown by the experience of a 
 real-estate promoter who sells New York 
 property to investors in other cities through 
 a staff of salesmen. One of his men reported 
 that he was unable to close an elderly German 
 in Pittsburg. 'I Ve explained the whole prop- 
 erty, ' said the salesman. ' He understands the 
 possibilities, yet doesn't invest.' Next time 
 the promoter was in Pittsburg he called on 
 this investor, accompanied by his salesman. 
 The latter explained the proposition again 
 most exhaustively, and made every effort to be 
 clear and convincing. * * * From time 
 to time the investor tried to interrupt, but 
 the salesman swept on, saying: ' Just a mo- 
 ment, and I'll take that point up with you/ 
 
THE CLOSING 227 
 
 When the story was finished he recapitulated. 
 When that was finished he began a resume of 
 the recapitulation preparatory to rushing the 
 man. Here the boss felt that the investor 
 really wanted to be heard, so he interrupted 
 the salesman: ' Charlie, I guess if Mr. Con- 
 rad here doesn't realize the magnificent op- 
 portunities in New York realty after all 
 you Ve told him, there's no use telling him any 
 more.' 'Mein gracious!' protested Conrad. 
 'I do realize them. What I wanted to say is 
 that I will take these lots.' " 
 
 There is a sixth sense, or intuitive faculty 
 developed in many good salesmen which tends 
 to inform them when they have said enough 
 along any particular line, or on the whole sub- 
 ject. In the midst of a sentence, or after the 
 close of a statement, one will notice a subtle 
 and indefinable change in the manner or ex- 
 pression of the prospect which informs one 
 that it is time to stop, and "sum up," or 
 briefly recapitulate. And this i ' summing up ' ' 
 must be made briefly, and to the point, in an 
 earnest manner. It should be made in a 
 logical order and sequence, each point being 
 driven in as with a sledge hammer of convic- 
 
228 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 tion. One should lay especial stress upon any 
 points in which the prospect seemed interested 
 during the Demonstration. In short he should 
 fall in with the spirit of the attorney in his 
 closing address, in which he sums up his 
 strong points, always with an -eye on the jury 
 which he has carefully watched for signs of 
 interest during the progress of the trial. Each 
 juryman's character is represented by a 
 faculty in the mind of the prospect each 
 should be appealed to along its own particular 
 lines. 
 
 The perception of the "psychological mo- 
 ment" of closing the selling talk, is akin to 
 that of the lawyer who leads his jury up to a 
 dramatic and logical climax and then stops. 
 Avoid creating an anti-climax. Mr. Collins 
 in the magazine article mentioned a moment 
 ago says: "The chief shortcoming of the 
 salesman who has difficulty in closing is, 
 usually, that he doesn't know when the psy- 
 chological moment has come to rush his man. 
 This is a very definite moment in every deal. 
 Veteran salesman gauge it in various ways, 
 some by the attention their argument is re- 
 ceiving, others by some sign in the customer's 
 
THE CLOSING 229 
 
 eyes, and others still by a sort of sixth sense 
 which seldom leads them wrong. * * * If 
 the mechanism of a representative sale could 
 be laid bare for study it would probably ap- 
 proximate the mechanism of the universe in 
 that material theory by which the philosophers 
 explain the whole thing up to the point where 
 a slight push was necessary to set it going 
 eternally. The sale of the man who doesn't 
 close is technically complete except for the 
 push that lands the order. Sales may be made 
 by patient exposition of facts, building up the 
 case for the goods. But to close them, very 
 often, a real push or kick is needed. Logic 
 avails up to the moment when the customer 
 must be rushed." 
 
 The trouble with some prospects is that 
 they have practically made the Decision but 
 do not know they have. That is, they have 
 accepted the premises of the argument; ad- 
 mitted the logic of the succeeding argument 
 and demonstration; can see no escape from 
 the conclusion but still they have not re- 
 leased the spring of formal Decision which 
 settles the matter with a mental ' * click. " It is 
 the Salesman's business to produce this men- 
 
230 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 tal " click." It is a process akin to "call- 
 ing the hand" of the opponent in a certain 
 game other than that of salesmanship. It is 
 the stage in which the matter is fairly and 
 squarely "put up" to the prospect. It is a 
 situation demanding nerve on the part of the 
 Salesman that is apparent nerve, for it is 
 after all somewhat of a bluff on his part, for 
 although he wins if the prospect says "Yes," 
 he does not necessarily lose if the answer be 
 "No!" for the Salesman, like the lover, 
 should never let one "No" discourage him. 
 "Never take 'No!' for an answer," says the 
 old song and it is worth remembering by 
 the Salesman. 
 
 The "click" of Decision is often produced 
 by the Salesman "putting up" some strong 
 question or statement to the prospect, which, 
 in the popular term, "brings him to his feet." 
 As for instance the closing illustration of some 
 of the National Cash Eegister salesmen, who 
 after having demonstrated the merits of the 
 cash register by placing in it the "$7.16 of 
 real money," in two-dollar bills, one-dollar 
 bills, silver dollars, half-dollars, quarters, 
 dimes, nickles and pennies, during the various 
 
CLOSING 231 
 
 points of the demonstration, turns suddenly 
 to the prospect and says to him : ' i Mr. Blank, 
 you have been watching every coin and bill I 
 have put into this cash drawer. Now how 
 much money do you think is in this drawer?" 
 Mr. Blank naturally doesn't know. Then the 
 Salesman proceeds : ' ' Well, then, if you have 
 no conception of the amount of money in this 
 drawer, after watching me put every coin and 
 bill into it, far more closely than you could 
 possibly watch such transactions in your own 
 store, you must admit you are guessing every 
 night as to the amount that should be in your 
 cash drawer in your store." Pausing a mo- 
 ment to let this strong point sink into the 
 prospect's mind, the Salesman then says, 
 earnestly and impressively: "Mr. Blank, 
 don't you think you ought to have a register 
 of this kind?" Every proposition contains 
 features similar to the one noted above, which 
 can be used effectively in bringing about the 
 " click" of decision. 
 
 In some cases the Suggestion of Imitation 
 may be employed at this stage by showing 
 orders from others, provided they are of im- 
 portance. Some men do not like this, but 
 
232 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 the majority are influenced by the example of 
 others and the imitative suggestion prevails 
 and brings down the scale of Decision. In 
 some other cases the Salesman has found it 
 advantageous to drop into a serious, earnest 
 tone, manifesting a spirit akin to that of the 
 earnest worker at a revival meeting, and lay- 
 ing his hand on the prospect's arm, impress 
 upon him the urgent need of his doing this 
 thing for his own good. With some prospects 
 this plan of placing the hand upon him in a 
 brotherly spirit, and looking him earnestly in 
 the eye, results in the final warming up of 
 conviction and decision probably from the 
 associated suggestion of previous solemn ex- 
 hortations and friendly counsel. But other 
 men resent any such familiarity one must 
 know human nature in using this method. 
 
 Never attempt to close your sale in the pres- 
 ence of outsiders. Always defer it until the 
 prospect is alone, and you have his undivided 
 attention. It is impossible to get into the 
 "heart to heart " rapport in the presence of 
 other people. 
 
 You may sometimes bring about the De- 
 cision by asking pointed and appropriate 
 
THE CLOSING 233 
 
 questions, the answer of which must act to 
 clinch the matter. But in asking these ques- 
 tions always be careful not to ask a question 
 which may easily be answered by a "No." 
 Never say: "Won't you buy?" or "Can't I 
 sell you?" These questions, and others like 
 them give the suggestion of a negative an- 
 swerthey make it too easy for the prospect 
 to say "No." Eemember what we have said 
 elsewhere regarding the suggestions of ques- 
 tions. Eemember the horrible example of 
 "You don't want to buy anything to-day, do 
 you?" And also remember that a question 
 preceded by an affirmative statement, tends to 
 draw forth an affirmative answer. As, for in- 
 stance: "That is a nice day, isn't it;" or, 
 "This is a beautiful shade of pink, isn't it?;" 
 or, "This is quite an improvement, isn't it?" 
 In asking the important question, do not show 
 any doubt in your tone, manner or form of 
 expression. Beware, always, of makfing a 
 track for your prospect to 
 
 travel over. The mind works along the lines 
 ofTeasl resistance be sure you make that 
 ' ' line^' in the right direction. 
 
 In cases where you have been recommended 
 
234 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 to call upon a person by a friend with whom 
 he has discussed the proposition, you may 
 often find that but little preliminary talk is 
 needed, and you may proceed to the Closing 
 very shortly after opening the conversation. 
 In these cases, the prospect often has "closed 
 himself" without your aid he wants the 
 thing without urging. When you meet this 
 condition, take things for granted, and make 
 Ihe sale just as you would if the prospect had 
 called upon you to make the purchase. And 
 in any and every case, if you see that the pros- 
 pect has "closed himself," clinch the matter 
 at once. And you can readily see when this 
 stage has arrived. After all, the process of 
 discovering the "psychological moment" of 
 "Closing is like the intuitive discovery of the 
 psychological moment for "popping the ques- 
 tion" in courting. At certain times in court- 
 ing these psychological moments arise then 
 is the time to "close." And the same rule 
 holds good in Salesmanship. It is largely 
 a matter of feeling, after all. 
 
 And, in Salesmanship, as in courting, re- 
 member also that "Faint Heart never won 
 Fair Lady." Fortune favors the brave. 
 
THE CLOSING 235 
 
 When you feel the psychological urge of the 
 moment step in! Don't be afraid. Remem- 
 ber the old couplet: 
 
 i ' Tender-handed grasp a nettle, and it stings 
 
 you for your pains. 
 Grasp it like a man of mettle, and it soft as 
 
 down remains." 
 
 "When it comes to the psychological moment, 
 banish fear from your mind. Show spirit and 
 be ' ' game. ' * You have got to make the plunge, 
 and take the risk of " the proposal" some time 
 why not now? You have done your best, 
 then go ahead. Stand up and take your 
 chance like a man. But never act as if there 
 is any chance about it preserve your mental 
 attitude of confident expectation, for these 
 .mental states are contagious. 
 
 If, in spite of everything, the Decision be 
 against you, do not be discouraged. If you 
 think you can reverse the decision by a little 
 further persuasion, do so by all means. Many 
 a battle is won, after it has apparently been 
 lost. Few maidens expect their gallant lad- 
 dies to accept the first "No" as conclusive- 
 
236 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 and the minds of many buyers work in the 
 same way. There is a certain coyness about 
 maids, and prospects, which seems to call for 
 a little further coaxing. Many prospects yield 
 only at the final appeal they are like Byron's 
 heroine who ' ' saying she would ne 'er consent, 
 consented. ' ' 
 
 But if the "No" is final, take it good-na- 
 turedly, and without show of resentment, and 
 assuming an "I will call again another day" 
 spirit, bid the prospect good-bye, courteously, 
 and take your departure. Many subsequent 
 sales have been made in this way and many 
 have been lost by a show of ill-nature. The 
 average man likes a game fighter, and respects 
 a "good loser." Don't give up at anything 
 short of a "knock-out," but, that given, shake 
 hands with the victor good-naturedly, amd 
 then proceed to lay plans for another inter- 
 view. Good nature and cheerfulness under 
 defeat never fail to make friends, and to dis- 
 arm enemies. 
 
 As we have said in a previous chapter, there 
 is sometimes a hitch between Decision and 
 Action. The spirit of procrastination creeps 
 in, and the prospect tries to put off the actual 
 
THE CLOSING 237 
 
 order. Try to overcome this by "taking 
 down" the order at once. Do not allow any 
 wait at this stage. If no signed order is neces- 
 sary get the order down in your order book as 
 quickly as possible Have your order book 
 handy so that no awkward wait arises. Avoid 
 these intervals of waiting as far as possible. 
 Get through with the thing, and get out. 
 
 If a signed order is required, approach the 
 request as a matter of course. Do not assume 
 the air of asking any further favor, or of 
 needing any argument regarding the signing. 
 Treat it as a matter of course, and as if the 
 matter had been agreed upon. Do not say ' ' I 
 will have to ask you to sign," etc., but say 
 simply "sign here, please," placing your 
 fountain pen at the "suggestive slant," and 
 in his direction, indicating the line at the same 
 time. Some salesmen even touch the pen to 
 the line, starting the ink flowing and the sug- 
 gestion operating with the one movement. 
 Others proceed, calmly, like this : "Let's see, 
 Mr. Blank, what is your shipping address 
 (or street number) ?" adding, "We can have 
 these goods hereby about such-and-such a 
 date." And while he is saying this they are 
 
238 SALESLIAITSHIP 
 
 filling up the order blank. Then, in the most 
 matter of fact, business-like manner they lay 
 the order before the prospect, indicating the 
 line for signature, and saying : ' ' Now, if you 
 will kindly sign here, please, Mr. Blank." 
 And it is all over. 
 
 Always have the order blank, or book, and 
 the fountain pen handy. Avoid fiddling 
 around after the pen or the book, or both 
 this is suggestive i'a the wrong direction. 
 Some salesmen lay the pen on top of the order 
 book, and place them easily before the pros- 
 pect while talking. Others lay the pen by the 
 side of the book, in the same way. Collins 
 says : ' ' One of the leading newspapers in the 
 Middle "West has a school for the canvassers 
 who solicit subscriptions. A set of books is 
 sold in connection with a year's subscription 
 to this paper, and the solicitors are drilled in 
 old fashioned bookselling tactics, learning 
 their argument by rote. At the precise point 
 where the signature of the prospect is to be 
 secured the salesman is taught to take his 
 pencil from his pocket, drop it on the floor 
 apparently by accident, stoop over and pick it 
 up as he finishes his argument, and put it into 
 
THE CLOSING 239 
 
 the prospect's fingers as a matter of course. 
 Six times in ten the signature is written with- 
 out more argument." The psychological 
 point employed here is evidently that of dis- 
 tracting the prospect's mind from his or- 
 dinary objection, and attracting his attention 
 to the recovered pencil. A similar proceeding 
 is that followed by certain salesmen who carry 
 a large fountain pen with a rubber band 
 wrapped around the handle. Talking cheer- 
 fully, they drop the pen on the prospect's 
 desk, close to his hand. The rubber band 
 makes it fall noiselessly, and prevents it from 
 rolling. The prospect is said usually to in- 
 voluntarily pick up the pen, and move it to- 
 ward the order book which has been deftly 
 placed before him, and, then, still absorbed in 
 the talk of the Salesman, he signs the order 
 blank. These methods are given for what 
 they are worth, and in the way of illustrating 
 a psychological principle. Personally, we do 
 not favor these methods, and prefer the ortho- 
 dox fountain pen, courteously handed the 
 prospect, at the "suggestive slant," with pos- 
 sibly the point touching the line as an illustra- 
 
240 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 tion of the "on this line, please," which ac- 
 companies it. 
 
 The principle to be observed in all cases 
 where orders have to be signed, receipts made 
 out, etc., is to make the process as easy as 
 possible for the prospect. Let him work along 
 the line of the least resistance. Avoid giving 
 him the adverse suggestion of "red tape," 
 formality, "iron-clad contracts," etc. Act 
 upon the principle of the young man who when 
 he asked his father for money would say it 
 very smoothly and rapidly "twenty dollars 
 please," as if it were twenty cents. Smooth 
 away every item of delay and friction, and 
 adopt the "rubber tire and ball bearings" 
 mental attitude and mode of procedure. 
 
 Eegarding the much disputed and vexing 
 question of the interval between Decision and 
 Action, and the frequent failure of Decision 
 to take form in Action which question, by the 
 way, is very important in the Closing of the 
 Salesman -we ask you to read the following 
 from the pen of Prof. "William James, the 
 eminent psychologist : 
 
 ""We know what it is to get out of bed on a 
 freezing morning in a room without a fire, and 
 
THE CLOSING 241 
 
 how the very vital principle within us pro- 
 tests against the ordeal. Probably most per- 
 sons have lain on certain mornings for an hour 
 at a time unable to brace themselves to the re- 
 solve. We think how late we shall be, how 
 the duties of the day will suffer; we say, 'I 
 must get up, this is ignominious," etc.; but 
 still the warm couch feels too delicious, the 
 cold outside too cruel, and resolution faints 
 away and postpones itself again and again 
 just as it seemed on the verge of bursting the 
 resistance and passing over into the decisive 
 act. Now how do we ever get up under such 
 circumstances? If I may generalize from my 
 own experience, we more often than not get 
 up without any struggle or decision at all. 
 We suddenly find that we have to get up. A 
 fortunate lapse of consciousness occurs; we 
 forget both the warmth and the cold ; we fall 
 into some reverie connected with the day's life, 
 in the course of which the idea flashes across 
 us, ' Hello ! I must lie here no longer' an idea 
 which at that lucky instant awakens no con- 
 tradictory or paralyzing suggestions, and con- 
 sequently produces immediately its appro- 
 priate motor effects. It was our acute con- 
 
242 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 sciousness of both the Warmth and cold dur- 
 ing the period of struggle, which paralyzed 
 our activity then and kept our idea of rising 
 in the condition of wish and not of will. The 
 moment these inhibitory ideas ceased, the 
 original idea exerted its effects. This case 
 seems to me to contain in miniature form the 
 data for an entire psychology of volition/' 
 Prof. James, in another place, gives the 
 following additional hint of the process of 
 transmuting the Decision into Action : ' ' Let 
 us call the last idea which in the mind precedeis 
 the motor discharge, ' the motor-cue ' * * * 
 There can ]be no doubt whatever that the 
 cue may be an image either of the resident or 
 the remote kind. ' ' 
 
 It will be seen then that the " motor cue" 
 which releases the spring of Action the men- 
 tal trigger which fires the gun of will- may 
 easily be some remote idea suggested to the 
 mind, as for instance the sight of the slanted 
 fountain pen and order book. The man wants 
 , to, but does not feel like getting out of bed, 
 and his mind becomes inactive on the question. 
 If some friend h^d said to him, "Come, get 
 out old fellow;" or if he had had his mind 
 
THE CLOSING 243 
 
 suddenly attracted by some outside sound or 
 sight, he would have sprung out at once. As 
 we have said, elsewhere, the placing of a piece 
 of twisted paper in the ear of a horse will 
 cause him to forget his balkiness it changes 
 his current of thought. Any new impulse will 
 tend to get a man over his period of "I want 
 to but I don't" mental hesitancy. We may 
 have given you the psychology of the thing 
 here you must work it out in the details of ap- 
 plication to suit your own requirements. Learn 
 to show your prospect something that will 
 cause him to spring out of bed. Learn to stick 
 the piece of twisted paper in his ear, to over- 
 come his balkiness. Give him the " motor 
 cue" by supplying him with a mental image 
 1 ' either of the resident or remote kind. ' ' Like 
 the boy shivering on the brink of the stream, 
 he needs but- a "little shove" to make him take 
 the plunge. Then he will call to others: 
 "Come on in, the water's fine." 
 
 And, now in conclusion: You have the 
 signed order, but you must continue your 
 Mental Attitude until you fade from the pros- 
 pect 's sight. Do not gush or become maudlin, 
 as we have seen salesmen do. Maintain your 
 
244 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 balance, and thank your customer courteously, 
 but not as the recipient of alms. Keep up his 
 good impression of and respect for you to 
 the last. Leave the prospect with this thought 
 radiating from your mind : "I have done this 
 man a good turn." The prospect will catch 
 these subtle vibrations, in some way not worth 
 discussing, and he too will feel that he has 
 done well. Avoid the "Well, I landed this 
 chap, all right, all right V 9 mental attitude, 
 which shows so plainly in the manner of some 
 salesmen after they have booked an order. 
 The prospect will catch those vibrations also, 
 and will not like it he will resent it, naturally. 
 In short, you would do well to follow the 
 homely but scientific advice of the old sales- 
 man who said : * ' Keep your sugar-coating on 
 to the last leave 'em with a pleasant taste 
 in their mouths. ' 9 Make a good Last Impres- 
 sion as well as a good First Impression. 
 
 But and remember this also get away 
 when your work is over. Do not hang around 
 the office or store of the prospect after the sale 
 is made. Do not place yourself in a position 
 where some newly discovered objection will 
 cause you to do your work all over again. You 
 
THE CLOSING 245 
 
 have got what you came for now get out! 
 As Macbain says: "When the close is made 
 the customer should be left in the shortest pos- 
 sible time that may not be characterized as 
 abrupt. Having 'talked a man into a sale,' 
 the salesman should be careful not to talk him 
 out. The old adage, ' Stop praising the goods 
 after the sale is made, ' is as true as it is trite. ' ' 
 Collins very aptly says on this point : ' ' The 
 explainer type of salesman may actually sell 
 goods to a customer and then, by staying and 
 talking, unsell him without knowing it. 
 One afternoon not long ago, for in- 
 stance, a salesman sold eleven thousand dol- 
 lars' worth of fabrics to a prominent merchant 
 and, by staying for a friendly chat after the 
 order had been secured, gave the merchant 
 time to think twice and cancel it. An excel- 
 lent rule is that of a salesman who built up a 
 business to a quarter million in competition 
 with wealthy competitors, doing this by sheer 
 selling ability. 'Take the first train out of 
 town after you sell your man,' was his rule. 
 If there was no train for several hours he ex- 
 cused himself the moment a deal was closed, 
 and disappeared. 'Just as sure as I stayed 
 
246 SALESMANSHIP 
 
 around after that order was in my pocket,' lie 
 says, 'part of it would be cancelled or modified 
 by the buyer, or some of my work in selling 
 undone. If it were nothing else the buyer 
 would play on the fact that I felt good about 
 getting that order, and squeeze something 
 extra out of me. ? When you land your man 
 get out of sight." 
 
 And, taking our own advice, kind reader, 
 we, having said our say and "closed," will 
 now take our departure. We thank you for 
 your kind attention, and feel that we "have 
 done you a good turn." 
 
 FINIS. 
 
CIRCULATION DEPARTMENT 
 
 202 Main Library 
 
 iRIOD 1 
 I/IE USE 
 
 2 
 
 3 
 
 
 5 
 
 6 
 
 ALL BOOKS MAY BE RECALLED AFTER 7 DAYS 
 
 1 -month loans may be renewed by calling 642-3405 
 
 oans may be recharged by bringing books to Circulation Desk 
 
 vals and recharges may be made 4 days prior to due date 
 
 DUE AS STAMPED BELOW 
 
 31 1978 
 
 tFEB 1 78 
 
 ) DD 6 40m 10 '77 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, BERKELEY 
 
 BERKELEY, CA 94720 
 

 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY 
 
 . -.^ .-