"Cargo Cult" Sales, Marketing, & Finance: Art of War Numero Dos

"Cargo Cult' Sales & Marketing

During WW II cargo dropped from the sky in the South Pacific and Indonesia. The shipment included clothing and food from the U.S. government and also humanitarian missions. This phenomenon drew the attention of the local tribes who became known as "Cargo Cult" because they always stood waiting for the next package.

These tribes believed the cargo came from their ancestors and if they erected a landing strip, air towers, and planes made of bamboo then the cargo would appear because this is what it was like the last time they received a package. The cargo appears as a way of mysticism and magic instead of hard work and ingenuity.

In business we can wait for ideas to magically appear or we can produce the "cargo" ourselves. "Cargo Cult" Sales and Marketing blog was created to talk about the essentials for successful sales and marketing professionals. It covers some tips and observations to be more effective in your endeavors.

Thursday, October 28, 2010

Art of War Numero Dos

Here is another interesting quote from Art of War...

Hence to fight and conquer in all your battles
is not supreme excellence; supreme excellence consists
in breaking the enemy's resistance without fighting.

This reminds me of a political axiom which states "If you are explaining you are losing" George Will. If you need to explain things after a situation has already happened then you run the risk of not communicating properly, misunderstandings, losing credibility, and losing a client. People want to keep things simple and work with people who will simplify things and make them easy to understand.

This brings us to a second quote..I actually would credit to myself.."I would rather troubleshoot than problem solve because it is a lot less painful"

If you can go into a situation with a potential sale or client and you can create reasonable expectations and identify potential difficulties then the experience will go a lot better. When you are trying to troubleshoot the challenge will be to win your client's trust and have them believe you about potential problems.

"Cargo Cult" Sales, Marketing, & Finance