Whether it’s a CEO, a coach, a schoolteacher or someone else whose job it is to motivate others, a great leader is at heart a good salesperson.
That’s because if an organization’s leadership isn’t constantly persuading the rest of the team to buy into an idea or a philosophy or an institutional sea change, the team is likely to splinter.
And just barking orders doesn’t always get the job done.
In fact, leaders don’t always have formal authority or positional power to compel people to do what they want. In many situations, they need to sell those around them on their ideas. If they can, whatever is produced will be done that much faster and with a high level of investment and engagement.
To successfully influence others, leaders must understand what people are thinking and tap into their strongest emotion at the time.
Having the right mix of facts, emotional appeals and personal involvement helps sell ideas and proposals. Close the deal by asking for commitment to whatever is proposed. Ultimately, it’s a matter of appealing to their heads, hearts and hands.
But those who aren’t natural leaders aren’t transformed overnight. And anyone hoping to draw support for a project must learn how to pitch others. Understanding different appeals is key to crafting an effective sales pitch.
n The head: This is an appeal to intellect. Leaders can persuade people through rational arguments, including market research, customer surveys and case studies. They also should highlight the business benefits of ideas and how they could help employees. In some situations, it is most effective to explain the consequences of not changing. What’s at stake? What will people lose out on if they resist the new direction?
n The heart: This is an appeal to emotions. People are prone to changing their behavior when doing so makes them feel better. So leaders should connect to their need for status, order, honor, security and purpose. They can engage the hearts of employees by making them feel they are part of something big and special.
n The hands: This is basic persuasion through direct involvement. Leaders should give employees something to experience viscerally, the way a salesperson might let someone take a car for a test drive or offer a taste of a food product. Demonstrations help people experience the value and benefits of a particular idea or innovation. And such direct experience can often alter how a person thinks and feels about a new initiative.
Paul Thornton is a professor of business administration at Springfield Technical Community College in Springfield, Mass.