Issues #4: The world's best sales advice (from an unpublished book):

The best book on sales was never published.

It’s not available in a bookstore. Can’t get it delivered by Prime.

It was written by my old sales coach, who gave watermarked copies to every client.

I heard that little voice in your head ask “why watermarked?”

I asked the same question.

“The masses won’t understand. It's too simple and too powerful. If a copy gets leaked, I want the world to know the person who leaked it has zero integrity,” he said, sending chills up my back.

Don’t ask for a copy. The answer is no.

If you're asking “what’s the single best advice you got from it?” I’ll share it.

Here’s my promise.

By the end of today’s newsletter, you’ll learn the 80/20 of every sales deal: what makes it close, drives urgency, and is best for your prospect.

If you only knew this about sales, you'd be a top performer.

What's this?

It’s The Binary Principle.

Keep reading.

Why Your Career (and life) Depends On This.

This is how all deals are done.

Doesn’t matter if you sell tech. Real estate. Coaching. Personal Agreements. Political Negotiations. Heck, even a job interview, or a date.

(Yes, dating is sales. You're selling someone on why they should spend another second of their most precious asset — time — with you.

No deals happen without the Binary Principle.

A failed deal isn’t just disappointing.

It’s a loss of time, money, opportunity, memories, experiences, and even your life.

What everyone else is doing.

Let’s start with a quick Google search.

HubSpot (world-class company with clout) says this is how to close a deal.

Oh yes, the good ole “Now or Never Close.”

Sounds like a sales tip from Bon Jovi.

"It's now or never, I ain’t gonna sell ya forever" - Bon Jovi

The worst step is number 5.

“Create a sense of urgency.”

Raise your hand if you’ve heard your VP Sales say “Tell your prospect we have a end of quarter special.”

So lame.

You can’t create urgency through tactics.

Urgency can’t be created.

It can only be serviced.

We'll save that for another day.

Where was I? Oh yeah, back to how other gurus teach selling.

Actually, let’s not waste another second. You’ve had your minds filled with enough sales poison to last a lifetime. You deserve better.

This is your better.

The Binary Principle

Dictionary.com defines binary as relating to, composed of, or involving two things.

So what does this mean?

The principle relating to, composed of, or involving two things.

Confusing and annoying.

Here’s what I mean.

When something is binary, it is one thing or the other thing.

McKinsey has a framework for something similar: MECE. Read The McKinsey Mind for more about that.

So back to binary. It’s this or that. It’s 0 or 1. The light switch is on or off. It’s not “kinda on”.

This seems obvious, but let’s use a real life example.

You hate your job and want more money.

Everyone raises their hand.

Here’s a dollar. That’s more money.

Would you take a brand new job for a dollar (maybe, depending on how miserable you are), but you aren’t taking it “for the money”?

You see, sales dies because of what my coach called spectrum words.

More — Less

Faster — Slower

Smarter — Simpler

Now imagine the prospect says this to you:

“Yea, so we are looking for something that’s less expensive, a little faster to use, and simpler user experience.”

All salespeople get excited here. They hear a problem to sell.

I hear bullshit.

How much less?

How much faster?

How much simpler?

What happens if none of those things happen?

This is a spectrum sale. The prospect doesn’t give the sales people the truth because they don’t trust you. And because sales people haven’t been taught to challenge these spectrum words.

They don’t fight for the binary.

Without something to measure, the prospect has nothing to buy.

Let’s give that example again.

Imagine if the prospect said this instead.

“So, we have to save 12% this year on XYZ widget or we'll go out of business in 6 months.”

Which prospect would you bet your life is going to buy?

Prospect A - “Yea, so we are looking for something cheaper, faster, and simpler to use.”

Prospect B - “So, we have to save 12% this year on XYZ program or we go out of business in 6 months.”

The room erupts, champagne bottles spraying everywhere. The people yell prospect B at the top of their lungs. Chris does 100 pushups because he’s pumped that you're better than the rest.

That’s what I imagine on the 164th Floor

Prospect B is...

In business.

Out of business.

That's binary.

THIS or THAT.

That's measured.

You can’t be in and out of business at the same time. Impossible.

Just like you can’t save 11% and 13% at the exact same time.

This is binary.

This is what you must fight for in every sales deal.

This is the problem you solve.

This is what the prospect buys.

Every deal in history has been pursued because of the binary principle.

Even if they didn’t know it.

Weekly Challenge

This week it’s all about getting your current deals to the binary principle.

It’s going to suck. You'll feel like you’re not a good sales person.

Stop with those weak beliefs.

If you’ve gotten this far in the newsletter, you’re on the path to the top 1%.

And by the end of the week?

You’ll have clear steps on which deals are ready to close, which questions you need to ask, and which have no chance of closing.

This week, you guessed it, we're finding out the binary principle of every deal.

Onto the checklist:

1. In column A, write out every deal you’re working.

2. In column B, write out “why you?” or “why your company?” or “why your product?”

3. In column C, write the binary principle of that account. Pro tip: Go back above and read the example of a compelling binary principle.

4. In column D score it compelling or not compelling.

   1. Notice how I made this binary. It’s one or the other. Can’t be both.

5. In column E write out the 3 questions you need to ask your prospect to find out the real binary principle.

6. Get all calls scheduled with your prospect within the next 7 days and ask those questions.

7. Start the exercise over at #1.

Closing Thoughts

This newsletter is for you.

My only purpose is to teach you everything I know about selling.

Eventually, I’ll get to your burning desire topic. Or you can reply back to this email and I’ll put it to the top of the list.

Here’s the ask.

Reply to this email with the biggest problem you face in your sales career.

If it’s worth a 1,000+ word post, I’ll write it.

If it’s not, you’ll get a personal email from me.

Until next week.

-Chris

P.S. I offer 1:1 coaching to sales executives, founders, and entrepreneurs ready to become top 1% in the world at selling.

I’ll show you my exact system that helped me go from average salesperson to top 1% and 7-figure earner. You’ll learn how to get exactly what you want out of life.

Reply with “Coaching” and I’ll tell you how it works.