Today I participated in a joint yard sale with friends who were fundraising for their nonprofit and I learned something valuable about selling, and that is that stories sell.
I had to sell some things that are my father’s that I have absolutely no interest in, things like smoking pipes, collector’s knives and fishing gear. I spent 12 hours researching these things to determine a good and fair price.
The smoking pipes were the biggest surprise to me. Some of them were expensive, costing over $400 new. My dad’s collection had more than 60 pipes.
While doing this research I learned a lot about the artisans that made these pipes and the companies that employed them. I learned the history of the shapes and the chain of ownership of the companies and what significant markings to look for to authenticate the pipe and so much more. I printed photos from the internet of some of the pipes that I had to sell with their prices. When all was said and done I had a lot of information about pipes.
As people made their way to my area they were immediately drawn to the pipes. I can’t tell you how many times today I heard “wow, someone likes pipes.” Well, duh! However, rather than say “duh” I immediately launched into telling some of the stories I had learned about the pipes. I was animated in the telling and felt I was able to convey my amazement at having learned such interesting stories. At the end of the day, I sold most of the pipes, including some of the expensive ones.
It was clear to me that people were enthralled with the stories I told them and they responded positively. One man, after buying a particular pipe I said I liked a lot from a local artist (one of the few not imported) turned to someone else and shared the story I just told him.
This must be similar in nature to telling our compelling stories about ourselves in order to attract customers. At the end of the day, I sold almost everything I had to sell and made quite a bit of money.
So, the lesson to be learned is that it helps if you have a good story tell about whatever you are trying to sell.
