Ymmv but I got a good grip on gimmicks from The Hidden Persuaders by Vance Packard
Also I can't emphasize this enough
INSIDE SECRETS OF SELLING (FIND A NEED AND FILL IT)
Ask HN: Best books or videos to get better at sales?
71–73 of 73 posts
Re: Ask HN: Best books or videos to get better at sales?
#72The one piece of advice I was given years ago: There is no such thing as "sales", and you aren't a "salesman". You provide a solution to a problem. Listen, understand, and then offer a solution. I forgot who told me that but it's fantastic advice. As far as understanding people, the de facto book to read is "How to Win Friends and Influence People" by Dale Carnegie. I'd highly recommend that.
I think advocating Dale Carnegie is a sign that "the lights are on but nobody is home". There is a lot of stuff in Carnegie that makes sense, but I have seen people advocate Dale Carnegie and get "upvoted" (or the equivalent) but I think the people who would benefit from Dale Carnegie aren't in a position to really benefit from it.
Can you elaborate?
Re: Ask HN: Best books or videos to get better at sales?
#73Y Combinator Sales Summer School: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t-K2DHi99oI&list=PLb1c0oEEXW... This is basically Sales 101. Lecture by Steli Efti, YC founder of the close.io CRM. Insanely valuable. --- Y Combinator "How To Start A Startup" Sales: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SHAh6WKBgiE This is held by one of the founder of YC startup Clever, with an emphasis on the earliest stages of sales in a startup. --- To…
Steli is great, love all of his podcasts but I have to admit it's a little lacking in depth, the sort you would find when discussing larger sales requiring multiple stakeholders and decision makers. What I'd love is if close.io took another direction and dove deeper instead of the cliche 'hustle hard'.
:) I'm working with Steli on the content. Just sent you an email - would super appreciate if you find the time to answer. It's the critical feedback like yours that helps us improve and create more valuable content.