In this episode of Enterprise Sales Development podcast, we speak with Jon Selig, who merges sales with comedy. Jon talks about how he gets into the understanding of the brain of the people he’s trying to communicate with from a salesperson’s perspective. He also discusses how he helps salespeople use the lens of a stand-up comedian to better understand their buyers.
WHAT YOU’LL LEARN
Jon’s observations of sales teams from early 2000s to today and how this has changed the psychology of the buyers he’s going after now
What has changed in selling, how to reach buyers who are avoiding sellers and how Jon disarms them with comedy
How he teaches organizations and SDRs to find those comedic bits and the visual component to jokes
How his time in sales development helped him with comedy
Lessons he’s learned from bad salespeople and bad comedians and how he approaches that space in general
How he approaches jokes through the different mediums and how he applies this approach to a medium like LinkedIn
QUOTES
“I think buyers are always going to react to sellers’ tactics. They’re trying to avoid sellers, let’s not kid ourselves. Let’s not make ourselves out to be the heroes that we know we really are. They want to duck us, but if they manage to catch them and we offer them something of value and we can stand out, they’re going to talk to us.” -Jon Selig [10:01]
“But ultimately, I use humor to paint a powerful picture about what sucks from my buyer which it just so happens is something I can help them with.” -Jon Selig [17:04]
“I’m not trying to turn sales reps into comedians with Netflix specials, and I’m not even trying to get our buyers rolling on the floor. If they do, great, but I’m trying to get sales reps to better connect with buyers and have easier conversations. And a joke is just connecting tissue between buyer and seller.” -Jon Selig [17:26]
“Jokes are like mini-stories. We talk about storytelling in sales, but the right jokes are just condensed stories that get a laugh.” -Jon Selig [25:39]
“The beauty of good joke writing is the brevity.” -Jon Selig [33:03]
TIMESTAMPS
[00:01] Intro
[00:25] Meet Jon Selig
[05:12] Jon’s observations from early 2000s to today
[08:36] How this changed the psychology of the buyers
[11:16] Incorporating comedy into sales calls
[19:43] How he teaches and coaches to find those types of bits
[25:49] Did Jon’s time in sales help him with comedy?
[30:19] What he’s learned from bad sales people and comedians
[38:22] How to think about the different channels affecting the message
[42:24] Applying this approach to a medium like LinkedIn
[44:07] How to contact Jon
RESOURCES
Oracle Corporation
Cadence
Elliott Gould on Friends
Bill Burr
Greg Fitzsimmons
CONNECT
Jon Selig’s website
Jon Selig on LinkedIn
CIENCE website
CIENCE on LinkedIn
CIENCE on Facebook
CIENCE on Twitter
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